#i know ifrit is a thing i just didn't know there was LORE???

[xatsperesso]

I made so search about Ifrit and I found some interesting things:

Ifrit, also spelled as efreet, afrit, and afreet is a powerful type of demon in Islamic mythology.

In Moroccan belief, the afarit form a more powerful type of demon, compared to the djinn and other supernatural creatures. With the aid of a magical ring, the afarit might be forced to perform certain orders. -Ifrit appears frequently in film and video games. In the Final Fantasy video game series, an ifrit appears as a summonable spirit or/and an enemy. Like its mythological counterpart, it is a spirit of fire and can use an iconic spell called Hell-Fire Demon Summonable Fire In Iruma universe, it probably meant that this family of demon has a history of being summoned by humanity. So much that they left a trace on history, folklore and myths like we see now in games and stuff like that.

It also mean that Ifrit is perfectly aware that humans exist. Even if he has not been summoned himself, his ancestors have been.

Imagine if Iruma's parents find the summoning circle of Ifrit after some shady searches. or maybe they weren't shady and that they used the first circle that they found in their searches and it happened to be the ifrit one.

So Ifrit-sensei is summoned, he literally dispear during a meeting with his coworkers.

And he appears in the human realm like "….really? it has been centuries since last time a member of my family has lived that. and that's my turn. Damn!"

Iruma BAD parents: "Hello mister demon, we summoned you for a affair!

Ifrit: …i hope that you don't call a demon for nothing because someone less patient than me could have been angry you know, especially that your circle is badly made. My ancestors would have eaten you on the spot ya know.

Iruma BAD parents: We want money

Ifrit: sigh humanity will never change, they were right. light up a cigarette I'm really disappointed now.

Iruma BAD parents: we give you our son as payment.

Ifrit: ….I'm sorry what?"

And the teachers of Babyls have a son now.

Omg that'd be so cute

Like i see it very vividly they'd all be very protective of him!

of course there'd be that one teacher who's like "can we eat him?" And the rest would be like "wtf no"

I can see ifrit being the wine aunt who'd fucking kill for iruma like just say the word sweetie and they're a goner

Kalego would pretend he doesn't like iruma but he's such a dad an so in denial and everyone would make fun of him

Of course balam would be a mother hen making sure iruma is ok from the trauma of his parents leaving him, meanwhile iruma is there like "this isn't as bad as i thought it'd be. I think I'll stay" ( ya know without all the bs sullivan pulled on him at the beginning and all these people making sure ma boi doesn't get caught and keeping him safe+well fed like why wouldn't he want to stay)

Sullivan would be watching them like "haha these demons antics" but then he'd have one interaction with iruma and he'd be like "he's mine now" and try kidnapping him

Iruma would just smile at opera like "nice to meet you, opera-san!" And opera would immediately help sullivan in kidnapping iruma

I cant help but see dantalion being a little shit who always messes with iruma idk why that's just his vibe

I feel like marbas would just be hanging around in the back like "iruma already has all these demons taking care of him he'll come to me if he needs anything" and then iruma goes to him in his very sweet iruma-way and halfway through marbas would be like i would die for this kid

It'd just be so cute

[bloodfin]

✭・.・✫

Rain Ghoul x Dewdrop Ghoul, Midwest Emo Ghouls AU

Rated: T

Word Count: 2.978k

Summary: Set in the Midwestern Emo Ghouls AU, Rain and Dew are trying to enjoy a nice game of pool when a preacher from a few towns over barges in and makes an unscrupulous bet. Rain teaches him a thing or two :)

Warnings/Tags: boys in love; possessive behavior (mildish, they just started dating like two weeks ago who can blame them), suggestive themes, implied/referenced cheating (NOT between raindrop!! the other guy in here is just a capital J Jerk), no beta we die like nihil, background ghouls/relationships

Author’s Note: *smacks fic* you can fit so much lore in here! i had a couple (literal) fever dreams about this raindrop fic after getting covid from a post-christmas pool hall expedition so..... the brainrot is incurable. enjoy, be well, and share what you can! special thanks to @herbal-quintessence for chatting with me about the AU and making me feel so welcome to share a few thoughts about them

additional disclaimer: this is about literal demons straight from hell and has absolutely nothing to do with the actual band members of Ghost

read on AO3

Dew looks like he's glowing in the off-yellow lights that hang from the ceiling, his soft blonde hair glimmering while his head is tossed back in laughter. He had just sent another pool ball over the edge of the table, caught by Rain's quick reflexes before it could clatter to the ground.

“You know,” he smiled, rolling the striped ball back onto the worn green wool, “I thought you were kidding when you said you couldn't play pool.”

Dew laughed again.

“I didn't say I couldn't play, I said I was the worst.”

Rain chuckled, turning towards the bar.

“Hey Rory, can we get another round please? I'm gonna need it.”

“Two old fashioneds, one with extra cherries, coming right up.”

She smiled as Rain nodded, her bubblegum pink hair the brightest thing in the old bar.

“Fritter still on business?”

Dew had joined Rain's side, lacing their fingers together as Aurora mixed their drinks.

“Yeah, might just buy him out at this point. If I do that though, y'all will be saying goodbye to those old tables and icky lights. We need some color in here!”

She giggled as she added more cherries than were necessary to Rain's glass, setting them on the bar while he slid her a crisp bill.

They spent a bit of time at Cinders now that they were together together and Rain felt like he didn't have to worry about the cute bartender as much. As it turns out, he never really had to worry at all. Aurora was bubbly and flirty with everyone, and dating Swiss and Mountain, which his brain often forgot to remind him of in his moments of late night jealousy.

When Ifrit bought Cinders he didn't do much, just changed the name and a few lightbulbs. A few bar signs here, moved the pool tables there, but never quite got around to fixing the crack in the window above the heavy wooden door.

“Humans won't come by as often if it looks a bit run down,” he had shrugged, and no one could argue when they all knew he was right.

But sometimes he was wrong.

Rain was trying to show Dew how to properly rack the balls, a task he was certain could've been easier if Dew didn't make rack and ball jokes every three seconds.

“It's too easy,” Dew chortled, watching Rain's shoulders flex under his flannel as he rolled the triangular rack across the play field.

Rain was about to make a comment back about Dew being easy when the cold wind kicked in through the open door, a stranger walking into the beat up bar. Aurora greeted him pleasantly enough as Swiss stared him down from the shadows of a back table.

Mist and Zephyr looked over from their perch at a hightop, the man's human scent slowly filling the room. Rain and Dew shrugged it off, figuring he'd have a beer or two and be on his way. On the off chance a human did stumble into the bar, they typically had enough intuition to sense that something was just a little ‘off’ and never stayed long.

They instead went back to their game, chalking up their cues and chatting about nothing. Rain insisted Dew break this time, encouraging him with a good natured pat to the back before digging out one of the cherries in his glass and popping it in his mouth.

He watched Dew bend at the waist and carefully hold the cue between his fingers, his tongue sticking out the corner of his mouth in concentration.He settled his weight in his hips, mostly for Rain’s benefit but also because he thought it might help - breathed deeply, and struck the cue ball dead on.

His face broke into a huge grin when he watched the striped and solid balls roll around the table, four of them reaching the rails. Rain wiped cherry juice onto the bottom corner of his flannel before wrapping his hand around Dew’s shoulder, congratulating him with a little check of his own hips.

“I did that!” Dew was still smiling, overjoyed that all the balls stayed on the table this time, and he nailed a legal break.

“You did,” Rain smiled, faltering a touch when the man at the bar slid down to the corner, a little too close to be casual.

“Have a good teacher,” Dew purred, oblivious to the way the human was looking up and down his lithe body, eyes pausing a bit too long on the ripped back pocket of his skintight jeans.

“That was a great break for someone learning,” the stranger interjected, hand tight around his glass of pale beer.

Dew’s face was neutral, while Rain felt the corner of his lip start to quiver with a scowl.

“Thanks,” Dew said, snaking his fingers into the hand Rain held behind his back.

The man then turned to Rain, head tilted with a question. “Best way to learn is to watch a game, right? I’m a bit out of practice, but we could make a quickie of it.”

It was Rain’s turn to study the human, his neatly cropped hair and groomed stubble. He saw the imprint on his left hand, faded skin where a wedding band should be. Rain knew exactly what he was after, and there was no way he was going to get it. He squeezed Dew’s fingers before letting them go, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Sure. Keep this break, or start over?”

The man looked down the table, taking in the position of each ball.

“Well, he seems so proud. Let’s keep his work. I’m Michael, by the way, I preach a few towns over. Was driving through and needed a little break.”

Typical.

“I’m Damon,” Dew piped up, returning his cue to the stand and grabbing his drink before dragging a bar stool over so he could watch. “And this is… Richard.”

Rain turned to glance at him snickering into his glass, a perfect eyebrow nearly hitting his hairline. “Richard?” he mouthed silently, and Dew shrugged, feigning innocence and fishing the cherry out of his glass.

“Well Richard,” the human smiled, far past typical politeness, “why don’t we make the game a little more interesting for Damon, since he’s learning and all?”

Rain turned his attention back to the man, looking him up and down again.

“Depends. What do you want if you win?”

The man hummed, pretending to think about it, even though everyone in the small room could smell his intention from the moment he slunk down the bar.

“Perhaps I could buy that pretty little thing you’re with a drink or two, and then we’ll see where the night goes.”

Rain turned his head towards Dew, making sure the trail of purple Dew left up his neck that morning was visible under the bar lights. Dew shrugged, fully knowing Rain has never lost a game of pool in his entire time topside.

“Well, he seems alright with that.”

The man hummed, pleased. “And if you win?”

“I’ll come up with something reasonable, I’m sure.” Rain offered, his siren charm seeping out.

Filled with false confidence the man offered his sweaty palm in agreement, which Rain begrudgingly shook. He waited until the man had turned to wipe his palm hard against the front of his pants, shaking his head at Dew’s near silent laugh.

“Guests first,” Rain said with a tight smile, gesturing at the field.

Michael shrugged and lined up behind the cue ball, a loud snap echoing in the bar. The purple striped ball rolled into the corner pocket, and the man had the common sense to look surprised by sinking his first shot.

“Can’t believe that went in!”

Rain stifled his eye roll. It was an easy shot, Dew probably could have made it with the right encouragement.

Rain gestured for him to go again, watching him call a complicated show-off shot that the guy would most likely miss. He wanted to bounce off the rail and sink the striped orange ball, but shrugged it off when he scratched instead. Michael wandered his way over to Dew, pushing what would be considered a polite distance.

“That was a scratch, since I pocketed the cue ball. Now Richy here gets the ball in hand, and can shoot from wherever he wants.”

Dew had to take a deep breath through his nose, fighting every instinct he had to make a comment about how Rain was very familiar with the concept. Only a few weeks had passed since they decided to step across the friendship barrier and into something more, so, one could say that they’ve been making up for lost time.

Instead Dew focused on the way Rain walked around the table, rolling the white ball in his large hand. Dew could tell he was showing off a bit, his slender fingers wrapped around the cue, the way he appraised the table, surely making whatever secret calculations he always made when lining up for his shots. So it was a surprise then, when Rain paused next to Dew, taking a sip of Dew’s drink before nodding his head towards the table.

“Which ball should I sink?”

Dew hummed, tapping his fingers on his thigh.

“Well, he’s stripes so you want the solid ones. Mmm,” Dew paused, scanning the table. “Maybe the orange one?”

He pointed at the ball already on the edge of the far pocket, and Rain nodded in agreement.

“Good choice, he should be embarrassed if he doesn’t nail that,” Michael smiled, squeezing Dew’s shoulder.

Rain bristled as he dropped the cue ball onto the table, making a show of lining himself up.He could just rip Michael’s arm off his body, but embarrassing him felt more fun.Dew was watching, intently, the way he flexed his fingers around the stick, loosening his grip as he rolled his wrist to line himself up. The path to the ball he was taking was unnecessarily difficult, so he called the shot out loud to make sure the intention was clear. Dew watched him breathe and settle his hips, eyes following the snap to watch the orange ball tip into its named pocket.

Dew smiled, nodding in encouragement as Rain studied the play field once more. He could watch this all day, the way his eyes traced the paths of possibility across the field, trying to determine the quickest way to win. Rain often pulled at his lower lip when he was concentrating and it was cuter with his fangs, but was still adorable now. He watched him tip his head, no doubt showing off the line of bruises that ran the column of his neck, and much, much lower.

Dew had to snap himself out of it before he did something regrettable, settling back into the bar stool and finishing his drink.

“Oh, I’ll take that for you,” Michael offered, letting his fingers touch Dew’s for longer than necessary before he turned to the bar.

“What a gentleman,” Dew mumbled, watching Rain’s eyes get darker with each passing moment. He blew him a quick kiss, watching Rain catch it before pretending to lick his palm, running it along the stick a few times before Michael turned back around.

Rain smirked, finding a shot that nearly mimicked Michael’s failed attempt from before. Dew watched him nod to himself, using his long pointer finger to plot the course he needed to take. He moved around the table, gripping the edge, getting himself lined up in confirmation.

“Yeah, blue, left center pocket.”

Michael scoffed, and Dew shoved his hands under his thighs to keep his claws from coming out. He loved the way Rain’s brows furrowed as he breathed into the shot, aiming true. One cue ball, off the rail, skirting by the eight to tap the blue exactly where it needed to go, left center pocket. When Rain stood he ran his hand through his ruffled hair, eyeing the table for his next call.

“You’re pretty good there,” Michael said low, taking a long drink of his beer.

“Didn’t say I wasn’t,” Rain stated blandly, sipping his own drink. Dew swore he could see Rain’s skin burning from across the table, knowing he didn’t like how close this human was standing, although he couldn’t blame him. He knew Rain could end the game in six more shots, but he also knew that sometimes, Rain liked to play with his food.

It was on his next shot that Rain missed, purposely, as far as Dew could tell, leaving the cue ball in a difficult position for Michael to make any shots. Rain shrugged and slipped another cherry into his mouth, chewing slowly while making his way back to Dew’s side.

“You’re so hot,” Dew whispered, leaning into Rain.

Rain hummed, pulling another cherry from the glass and pressing it to Dew’s lips. He parted happily, chewing the sweet fruit with a smile. Really, how many had Aurora put in there? Dew took the glass from Rain’s hand and swirled his finger around the ice cube, licking it clean while Mitch or whatever his name was tried to work out a shot.

“Got me cornered here bud,” Michael joked, looking over his shoulder to find Rain shrugging nonchalantly.

“Not like I could do that on purpose.”

Dew bit back a snicker and Rain moved to lean on the table, knuckles pressing into the wood. Michael was taking aim, grumbling under his breath when he landed a solid ball into a nearby pocket.

Rain smiled and made quick work of a stripe. “Gotta keep it fair, yeah?”

Dew watched him wait patiently while Michael pocketed another ball before missing on his second shot, giving the field back to Rain.

Rain made quick work of two more shots, missing the third when his hand slipped watching Michael rest his palm on Dew's knee. A deep rumble filled his chest and the bar, a low enough frequency that the human never would have heard it.

Dew moved in his chair, crossing one knee over the other, sagging with relief when Michael pulled his hand away. Rain quickly returned to his side, resting the cool weight of his palm on Dew's warm thigh. It grounded both of them, let them breathe in each other's calming scents while Michael tried, and failed, to sink another shot.

How he thought he would ever win a pool bet was beyond Rain, but he supposed he could briefly admire the man's audacity. Only humans were so bold.

“You wanna get out of here?” Rain asked Dew quietly, fingers playing with the corner of his flannel.

Dew nodded, briefly leaning his head on Rain's shoulder with an affectionate rumble.

Rain returned to the table, shifting his weight between his legs while he studied.

“Red ball, left corner,” Rain stated, clicking his stick against the table.

Michael scoffed. “From where?”

Rain looked at him sideways.

“My apologies. Red ball, left corner, double bank from right and far center rails.”

“Sure, bud.”

Rain winked at him, settling into position. And when the cue ball followed his exact path and tipped the red ball in, Rain was certain he could have sunk the eight into Michael's mouth next with how far it was hanging open.

Rain flipped his hair to the side as lined up for his last shot, and Dew couldn't help but lick his lips at the sight of his bruised skin. It was far from the first time he saw it that night, but every time he caught sight of the marks his stomach filled with butterflies, a reminder that Rain was his.

His.

He turned his attention back to the game to watch Rain call his final shot, sinking the eight ball with a frightening level of precision. When he stood the human offered him a few claps, nodding up and down.

“Figure out what you want? Since you won and all.”

Dew could hear that the man was a little bitter, his prospects blown by his incredibly hot boyfriend's hidden talent for pool.

Rain set his cue on the stand and turned, appearing to be deep in thought. When he breathed in Dew felt the air change, suddenly chilly as he sucked in warm moisture coming from the radiators.

“I want you to run,” Rain smiled, slowly letting small parts of his glamor drop away, the tips of his fangs falling first.

Michael stammered.

“You want me to… what?”

Rain leaned over the pool table, braced by his hands. His fangs were fully showing now, and his horns were visible in the shadow he cast against the wall. The air around the table got colder and colder, Rain absorbing the warmth with every breath. .

“You heard me. Run.”

Michael screeched out to the Christian god before turning and bolting out of the bar, Rain and Dew nearly doubling in laughter at the sounds of his car peeling away.

“That was mean, Rainy,” Aurora laughed from the bar, drying glasses and setting them on the shelf.

“Maybe he'll think twice next time.”

Dew hummed, hopping down from his chair to press into Rain's back, his arms wrapped around him in a firm hug.

Rain squeezed his hand over Dew's.

“Richard, huh?”

“Yeah, you know the nickname for Richard right?”

Rain stared ahead blankly, having a feeling he was about to be the butt of another one of Dew's jokes.

He snickered, resting his head on Rain's back.

“Dick.”

“You're insufferable,” Rain sighed, long suffering though good natured. “Let's go home.”

“I know. I love you too.”

They left hand in hand, giggling the whole way back to Dew's place, promises made between them to call a realtor in the morning and to finish packing.

Rain's apartment wasn't going to list itself, and the town could always use a few more ghouls.

[exarchs]

⸻ QUICK VERSE DROP !!

FINAL FANTASY VII .

G'raha is a well - studied historian who works under Heidegger with the Turks as a planetology researcher for the Ancients . He takes a particular interest in their connection to the life stream & their ability to commune with the planet , & his fascinations take his research to the next level . His interest and knowledge on the subject earned him his place beneath Heidegger , but G'raha didn't understand he was being used by Shinra . I think his research could tie him easily into interactions with Aerith & I know he'd just be infatuated with her ( even though no one is supposed to know of her being a Cetra , I think G'raha would because of his position with Shinra ) , but I also believe that his interacting with her could be a slippery slope into leading to her capture by the Turks . I think he's intuitive enough to notice the patterns of Shinra's manipulation of him & quit before things went intensely awry , but because of what he knows , he does not escape them with ease , & spends much of his time running away from them , which could be the cause to the join the main party . I see him as kind of an optional character you might find whilst adventuring Midgar's slums .

FINAL FANTASY XV .

Born as a prince in Solheim of ancient past , G'raha grew up with great knowledge of magiteknology and eventually went to study it & its history . He dedicated a mass amount of his time to developing a mechanism that could take him back to a time in society before mankind went corrupt , when peace filled the lands , & Ifrit loved his people . He eventually managed to create something that could assist him with timelessness , but it failed to take him to the past as he'd intended . Instead , it led him into a deep sleep , the crystal he'd worked with putting him into a stasis of sorts , only for him to maybe wake up to Noctis's presence in the Pitioss Ruins . That is to say , if you have a character in FFXV , we can always jump ahead to their meeting point or form something pre - established , given these events transpire ! Just note that G'raha is from a different time and he is not used to way things go in modern society .

KINGDOM HEARTS .

For this verse , I have a lot more work to do which might involve developing alongside KH muses in order to make it work ! I want to have him be found in Quadratum , perhaps aiding Sora or Riku on his adventure , but also has ties to Yozora and the others . I kind of want to work with connecting him into that universe as someone who assists with knowledge of the city's history & whereabouts . Right now , we don't know much about Quadratum aside from setting , so it'd be a lot of discussion and headcanon / lore building until the new game is released , but I think it'd be a fun idea to tamper with !

[oh-my-may]

I finally got around to play Cosmo Canyon! Took me a while to get there bc family stuff and i was feeling a bit under the weather some days, but today I'll finish the protorelic quest and then do the side quests and that was it for Cosmo Canyon...

Thoughts on story: RED (or should I say Nanaki?) IS SO CUTE LEGIT A TEENAGE BOY TRYING TO PASS AS AN ADULT MAN the way I was hollering. The city is beautiful and very huge... Felt very overwhelmed when I first got there. Generally loved the focus on Red, had lots of questions about him originally. Now I wonder how old his kind can get if he's like 15 in human years but actually 48... huh. The story with his parents is pretty basic i guess? Didn't really blow me away, i could see the turning point coming from a mile away but it was very sweet nonetheless. Really enjoyed the gameplay during the trial, the Gi enemies WERE SO COOL. Also loved that we could scale walls with Red, I wish we could do that in the open world... The final boss almost kicked my ass because I'm not used to playing Barrett and Red actively, BUT THEY SLAYED. Shoutout to Titan, homeboy always comes through for me. Also couldn't help but be reminded of Genshin's Misty Dungeon event during the trial. And the mines of Moria. My weird interests meet in the most unusual of circumstances sometimes. My brain does that occasionally.

Also, the Gi Nantaak first scared the shit out of me. Then he kinda reminded me of Vision (you know, from Marvel) but that also wore off. The random sequence with Zack almost made me cry again. Whenever I see him on screen something just urges me to. Him and Biggs also looked so damn good during that entire scene I took so many screenshots 😭 I'm still so confused tho... Biggs ended up in Zack's timeline because of the Whispers/ the Wind for whatever reason? Really have no clue where they're going to take this part of the story, I just know it's going to hurt me so bad in the end.

I also let out an audible ' Hear me out' when they showed Seto... I'm not sorry.

On the exploration side of things... The flying chocobos are so confusing to me, I started the chocobo quest right as I landed in Cosmo Canyon and I immediately failed the first part because the controls as you fly are just??? Therefore everything that was placed so that you could only reach it through flying was a bit of a pain at first. I figured it out eventually, but i still haven't continued that quest... Also saw a bunch of people complain about this so at least I'm not the only one struggling lol.

Everything Else was very enjoyable tho. Go to explore team was Cloud, Aerith and Cait Sith this time and I gotta say Cait's Moogle Magic skill is busted I was so surprised when a full ass Ifrit suddenly stood on the field 😭 Bahamut Arisen was a surprisingly quick clear after I got all the Intel, Tifa just died in like the last minute. A worthy sacrifice tho. Immediately tried Bahamut while beating the Jabberwock, huge Dragon Battle was crazy insane to watch. He's busted. Put him on Cait for now.

I haven't finished the protorelic quest yet, but I didn't expect it to have this much lore right from the get go... So you're telling me Wedge is dead in Cloud's timeline???? Just like that?? The whispers killed him? MY BOY. Also Yuffie's friends (?) - the NPC's for that quest - immediately reminded me of Bella's High School friends in Twilight 😭💀 They just look like they belong in these movies idk

Now I wonder if the last two parts of the protorelic quest are gonna be as much a pain in the ass as Fort Condor was... I managed to clear the first two stages quite quickly so I hope it's gonna be okay with the AI helping me for the configuration part...

So that's that! Will definitely finish Cosmo Canyon tonight and then maybe start Chapter 11... Just a few more steps until meeting Vincent. Heard Chapter 11 was quite long so it'll probably take me the whole weekend to finish next to work and all. My goal of finising this game before easter is probably gonna be left unfulfilled... But I'd rather take my time.

Will add screenshots to this post after I get home from work!

[unnounblr]

The Fayth's dreams was already established fairly early on as being how the Aeons work.

The Fayth's dreams are how summoners. Summon. They don't go into much depth with it early on, but it's actually one of the most consistent things about the story and the game and the, like, lore and mechanics and all that.

I. Do agree about point 2 and point 4. That Tidus steals Yuna's story, and is kind of a hypocrite about concealing what will happen to him.

But. I mean, we find out that Tidus is a dream at Gagazet, after we find out Mika's an unsent, but. I think the reveal of the final summoning is pretty heavily related to Tidus's whole deal, because they're all part of the same. Mechanics?

Like, Seymour and his mom made a Final Aeon, and because he didn't defeat Sin himself, her Fayth is still. Around. So we can get it. It's not a Final Aeon for us, because we don't have the same relationship, but the mechanics of the Fayth, that they're people, as you say, Unsent but worse, is so key to everything with Yunalesca and Seymour and Yu Yevon's whole deals.

Like. I actually genuinely like the Final Fantasy time travel plots, but I actually think. FF10 can be criticized on the level of. Themes. And Tidus's hypocrisy about the sacrifice thing. But mechanically. In terms of plot and magic systems and all that? The reveal of dream Zanarkand, and how it all relates to the Fayth, the Aeons that we've been collecting all game, to Yunalesca and Yevon and all of it. Genuinely makes perfect sense in terms of how it all fits together and how everything connects?

When the Fayth dream, on the command of a summoner, it causes the Pyreflies to come together and make an Aeon in the world, that gets established fairly early, with Valefor and Ifrit. Dream Zanarkand and Sin are just. Really really big Aeons. And Tidus is just. Part of one of those big Aeons. Like how the Magus Sisters are a single Aeon with multiple. Components.

Like. Time Travel would genuinely make infinitely less sense because nothing indicates that that's possible in the world.

And, well, Tidus's Zanarkand isn't at war, and he doesn't know about Bevelle.

okay since ppl are confused/curious about the tidus thing in the poll, HE, as a character, is alright!!! I like the jecht plot twist, but the dream one. Hm. hmmmm thats not good

Its the eleventh hour twist for the ff protag - the one we got w other protagonista as well, and that changes your prespective on the character - we got zidane's origins and cecil's family reunion for example - and that makes things even more tragic for the gang

except that it doesnt work. At least to me.

For starters, this is the first time we get to know about the eon's dreams iirc, which while its not that big of a deal still feels a little. Off. Esp since it feels like Being An Unsent But Worse.

Kind of "steals" both auron and yuna's dilemma to me, with one being unsent and the other fully knowing shes headed to her death.

We ALREADY have two pretty huge twist incoming, with all of yevon's church being made of unsents and the truth behind the final summon

plus imo the hypocrisy of him being mad nobody told him about the whole Summoners Must Die plot just to do the same w his own situation iirc is really annoying. To me at least

"How to we fix it" easy actually

Option A: make Tidus and Jecht simply get isekai'd 1000 years in the future bc idk. Yu yevon thinks jecht would be a good final aeo and jecht wants his son to kill him and reveal that jecht is sin ar the same time the gang discovers the truth from yunalesca. Id say just make them from spira and have amnesia but I dont wanna miss the zanarkand reveal and the otherworld intro since its. One of my fav ff cutscenes of all time :^) also this would make tidus learn to care for his father bc of the jechtspheres and everyone's stories through the game just to get the Final Heartwrecking Twist

Im sorry tidus ily but what if yuna and auron were protagonists. auron who accepts he has to let go of his life and save his friend before accepting his fate while yuna defies it. Imagine

[inkrabbit]

Hello, hello! I was wondering what your ideas are on Dewdrop turning into Ember? As in how he changes from water ghoul into fire? I know that in irl it’s just part of the motifs they had with the guy going from bass to lead guitar but I was more wondering how you’d think it work in the story/lore? I’ve seen some write it as him undergoing a ritual to change his element and body. And I’m surprised I haven’t seen anyone write them as separate ghouls yet. I feel like I’m starting to ramble so I’ll leave you with a “have a good day!” :D

this is going to be one of those... longer answers because I ramble way too fucking much

I know the basics of what happened irl. I didn't dig too deep because... it's not really any of my business. whatever happened between the musicians happened between them. I dip into the irl side a little bit because, obviously, we did lose Alpha and then got Ifrit, and then we lost Ifrit and got Sodo and Rain. I know we also lost Omega and got Aether, but we're not gonna look at them for this.

before I get into my variation of everything, I just want to put up this reminder: everyone is gonna be different. that's just the beauty of all of this. like I've said in the past, there is no right or wrong way to do any of this. what one person says, another person might not. and that is A-OK. you do whatever you like and whatever fits you. I just always wanna add this in because no matter what I do or say for my fics, I don't want people to think that it's like... what you need to follow. I want everyone to remember that they have freedom with all of this and they should have fun. because that's what this is all about.

now, onto my bullshit and how I go about the whole Dewdrop/Ember thing.

so I have it that every Papa summons their own ghouls. these ghouls will match their energy/personality, normally with one of them matching them to a T. with Terzo, I had seen there was a... I guess description Tobias had given about him during an interview: "He represents this frustrated old guy who hates everyone, especially himself." It does also touch on the more happier side Terzo lets out, but I focus on this part because I use this as... it's why we ended up getting new ghouls. I have it that there was a falling out between Terzo and a few of his ghouls, leading to him having to summon more ghouls to take their place. and because of this, we're eventually introduced to Dewdrop.

I take it as Dewdrop (who I call Sodo) is both a fire and water ghoul, though his fire side dominates the most. I hc he's maybe... 25% water ghoul. and it's why in one of my requests, I say that his fire only burns red/orange and not blue or white like the other fire ghouls. his fire isn't as hot because of this quarter water ghoul in him.

so when Terzo summoned him, Dewdrop was... in a way, a "mistake" from Terzo not being 100% all there emotionally and, possibly, mentally. Dewdrop could play bass, yes, but he also liked to show that he could play the guitar, as referenced here. I like to think that, while he also played bass in the practice room, he could mainly be found playing a guitar. and in the beginning, Terzo was surprised and confused. but he also picked up the hints. Dewdrop (also introduced as Water in the video) would've preferred being a guitarist. so when Ifrit's contract ran out and he decided to retire, Dewdrop was appointed new lead guitar and it just worked for him. and, after this, Rain is summoned to take Dewdrop's old place as bassist

TLDR: basically I keep it that Dewdrop doesn't really change much. he's just a mixture of a fire and water ghoul, so when Ifrit left, Dewdrop took his place as lead guitarist

I sincerely hoped this answered your question. my brain is still pretty fried, so hopefully my tangent made some sort of sense <33

[anotherghoul666]

🤭 Do you have a favorite tag to use when posting your fics?

💔 Have any of your fics broken your heart? Bonus: what about someone else's? I'm always in the market for a fic that'll make me cry lol

✅ What's something that appears over and over again in your fics even if you don't mean for it to?

🤩 Who's your favorite character to write?

🧠 (for Rain please)

💞 Who's your comfort character?

🎶 (I know you don't listen to anything while writing, but I'm curious about a song you've had on loop :D)

Thank you so much Fruits!! :D :D I appreciate you taking the time to leave these!

🤭 Do you have a favorite tag to use when posting your fics? I tag what's in the fic as accurately as possible in terms of kinks, sex acts, story types, and potential triggers so people can avoid what they need to. I do like to tag something funny or descriptive to put a bit of personality in my fic's description, tags like "I'm still here to hurt Dew what can I say" or "Dewdrop thinks he's the dom. He's not." XD So potential readers can get a taste for what's inside and my sense of humor :)

💔 Have any of your fics broken your heart? Bonus: what about someone else's? I'm always in the market for a fic that'll make me cry lol Well the one angsty hurtful fic I wrote is Loosened Heart. It didn't break my heart so much as it was super cathartic to write. Like purging an abscess. If I think about it, in my life, I don't think I've ever written a piece that made me cry or broke my heart while I wrote it. I'd need some months of distance with a fic to be able to "live" it and get the emotions from it I intended for the reader to have. I need detachment and a pair of fresh eyes, not my author eyes. As far as a fic rec for something that made me cry, the first one that came to mind is Butterfly Garden by @youhaveahomeinmyheart. If you haven't read this one yet Fruits? Be ready with a box of tissues. I was in PAIN. It DESTROYED ME and I LOVED IT.

✅ What's something that appears over and over again in your fics even if you don't mean for it to? Power dynamics. Though I 100% mean for that to appear. It's the foundation of my work. Playing with power and exchanges and switches is my thing. My sense of humor apparently is a constant in every fic and it gets noticed xD I didn't think so many people were here for my sarcasm and silly jokes, but I'm happy to see it! Lore. Massive amounts of lore that are almost never a part of the outline, but my brain needs an explanation for smut to happen. I'm not one of those authors that can just open on sex or kink already started. I wish I could, I'd write a lot quicker with that skill XD But I guess I'm just too demisexual for that, my characters need *reasons* to play and/or fuck, and that means, for example, 4k words of lore before Aether and Ifrit get together in my current fic xD Is it necessary? Probably not. Do I have a ton of fun writing it? You bet! hahaha I also very much like to describe the first time characters do something. New experiences. Discoveries. Of a kink, of sensations, of themselves, of each other. Doesn't matter, but the element of discovery and experimentation is a common thing I like to write for. Surprise, mental processes, evaluations, "oh. Oh." moments. I love those a ton. If yall pick out shared elements in my writing, let me know! I'm interested to hear it!

🤩 Who's your favorite character to write? It's Dew. It's gotta be Dew. This feral gremlin. Riddled with issues and insecurities. The walking contradiction he is. The abrasive personality as a defense mechanism. The absolute sweetness and care under it all he wouldn't be caught dead showing explicitly. The yearning for attention, for being wanted, the yearning for pain and horrible horrible things to happen to him, the desperation. The impulsivity, the rejection sensitivity, the hypervigilence, the sheer ADHD I write this guy with (I project neurodivergence on some of my characters in various ways, I specifically code Dew with ADHD traits for my ND readers to pick up on). The bad decisions. The self destructive inclinations. The unbearable love he has for his pack and his Papa. The privilege he feels for being a part of this gang of weirdos he constantly torments. He is so layered. So nuanced. So much fun. He flows out of me like the clearest sparkling river from a mountaintop, he's so easy to write. Absolutely painless of a subject, so I may put him through pain as a reward. I adore him and I can't wait to get back to him honestly. Second fav is Swiss. He also flows and writes very easily.

🧠 Pick a character, and I’ll tell you my favorite headcanon for them (for Rain please) Rain is a fucking cryptid my guy, I'm still trying to figure him out even after having written him so much XD Rain very much Does Not Flow and it Not Easy to write. But, there are still a few headcanons I have solidly embedded in my version of our favorite water ghoul. Namely, similarly to how I just mentionned I project ADHD on Dew, I project my own autism on Rain a lot. Rain has hypersensitivity, he has sensory processing difficulties, but he is also a sensory seeker, just, with very specific senses. He is primarily a tactile sensory seeker, he stims on textures a lot. Because the texture is nice and it makes him feel good, or as a response to a stresser, to help him process his emotions and get out of the flood of anxiety, keep focused. He stims by running his fingers on his clothes, his sleeves, his environment, the furniture, his bass a whole lot, his hair, etc. Another key trait I project on him is, Rain learns by imitation. He mirrors people. He mirrors personalities, matches energies, his mask is a reflection of who is in front of him, until he feels safe and comfortable enough to unmask (which he'd mostly do around his pack, in private). He needs to see someone do a thing first to feel like it's normal enough of a thing to do, and then he can do it. He seeks permission to do or say or think things by seeking someone else who does the same. Even if he wants to do something, if he's the only one, he won't do it. He'll assume it's too weird. But if someone else does it first, he'll follow. Enthusiastically. Maybe over-enthusiastically sometimes. You see it on stage the most, when he follows Dew around and imitates his stomps for example, but when he's by himself he's calm and he won't move too much. He can't move by himself, what if he looks weird?; but if Dew's headbagning like a mad man, he can headbang too. Permission seeker. He's the same when he speaks. He'll keep his sentences short and to the point, unless someone asks him a question, opens a door, or otherwise gives him space. He'll then info dump and/or overshare like there's no tomorrow. Because he doesn't know when someone's gonna let him talk next. So he has to get the flood out now.

💞 Who's your comfort character? The entirety of current era Ghost dude. They all bring such a sense of safety and joy to me. I couldn't name just one.

🎶 (I know you don't listen to anything while writing, but I'm curious about a song you've had on loop :D) Just, overall? OK, well, Imma take the space to talk about music for a bit. 1) The Death of Peace Of Mind album by Bad Omens has been on repeat in my ears for about 10 days now. Stellar album from start to finish. It's a damn shame I got on the Bad Omens train on January 1st 2023 cause if I'd listened to that album like, a week before, it would have been on my top albums of 2022 list. Easily in the top 5. Excellent album. Every single song is like it's out of a different genre. These guys are flawless at every music genre they touch. Classic metalcore, heavy deathcore, vibe songs, ambient, synthwave, emo early 2000s music, industrial, goth, trap. It's Atreyu meets Linkin Park meets Bullet for my Valentine meets Post Malone meets The Weeknd meets Whitechapel meets Nine Inch Nails meets Rob Zombie, The Album. You name it, they can do it. And the album as a whole still manages to be coherent and have a throughline??! Masterminds I say. Bucketlist band to see live in 2023. I need it. 2) SLEEP TOKEN. DUDEE. DUUUUUUUUUUUUUDE. SLEEP FUCKING TOKEN. I slept (haha, get it) on these guys and I hate myself for just finding them now. And by now I mean today. This morning. I heard they released two new tracks last week back to back and they've been making waves in the metal world, so I checked them out. I. FELL IN LOVE. SO FAST. I'm actually still kinda reeling from how obsessed I am with these two songs. Chokehold if you're into less of a heavy vibe, The Summoning for the heavier track. Yo. Fucking. THE LAST MINUTE AND A HALF OF THE SUMMONING. I want to fuck this song. This is some of the absolute sexiest metal I've ever heard. I want to eat these songs, I want to comsume them, I want to melt into them, I want them to enter my molecules and become a part of the biologic material that is my body. I cannot wait for this album to come out. If the rest of it sounds anything like these two songs, I might call album of the year right there.

[araminakilla]

Huey and D'jinn possible parallels

As we know, Huey is the center of this season and even if he wasn't present in all the episodes, the ones in which he appears are excelent and contribute for some character development. I bet we are going to see paralels between him and other characters. Dewey has Della, Jormungandr in the neutral side and Don Karnage in the villain side, Louie has Goldie and Gladstone. Huey has Fenton, maybe Gyro, Donald and definetly Fethry Duck, Boyd and Violet Sabrewing. But what if he had parallels with someone who isn't science-related? Someone who has more common grounds in terms of liking history other than Violet (who is now a recurring character)? I have a feeling that it's a side character who is going to return not that soon but in the last episodes.

I'm talking about Faris D'jinn and in this (long) post I'm going to explain why.

First of all, their (brief) interactions. Huey was the first member of the Duck family to meet D'jinn and he was the one who asked if him and Amunet were ok in Moonvasion!

Now this may be very brief but I theorise Huey is going to have more conversations with Faris the next time he appears. They have many things in common after all.

What are those things you may ask? Apart of wearing red in their clothes.

Well, that is the second point. Both like order and things going their way because it makes them easy and in Huey's case, secure.

D'jinn had one thing in mind in all the Treasure of the Found Lamp! episode: To find the lamp of his ancestors in his birthday or devastating consequences would happen aka he's going to be sad. This could count as hyperfocusing on something, that would be the lamp and the story behind it.

He was so concentrated on that matter that he involved the duck family in a quest that some of them (Scrooge and Louie) didn't want to be part of, but felt they have no choice.

This reminds me of the episode where it was Scrooge's birthday and Huey wanted to prove that he could be a better party planner than Duckworth (the already deceased buttler) to the point of only for one second to transform into "the Duke", you know, that facet of Huey that cames to life when a great injustice was made like when Mark Beaks made Dewey the superior of Huey despite the fact that the Blue One didn't put as much effort as the Red One or when a boss character ruins his carefully cultivated farm plot in Legends of Legendquest and the older sibling went mad.

Well, D'jinn had moments that from his point of view count as injustices too. First the lamp was stolen centuries ago, then he finds where it is and goes to Scrooge to have it back, then the old duck tells him the lamp was misplaced. Since Faris had a schedule that he must complete before it's too late, he proposes to find the lamp in a rather...intense way that ends up scaring the ducks. Then he goes to Itaquack and spends maybe hours solving riddles and he knows they are stalling him and gets more impatient. THEN he discovers the lamp was stolen AGAIN under his nose by Ma Beagle and that he was SO close to obtain it right there. These last things of course couldn't happen as the quest was fake but Faris didn't know that.

While I don't think D'jinn has a whole "Duke" persona, he has little moments of intensity that instead of helping him only makes things worse.

It's because these moments of intensity and misunderstandings that the ducks had to make a false quest to obtain more time and stop D'jinn for...wanting to kill them.

No, seriously, the family thought they were death duck meat if they didn't find the lamp which again it's a big misunderstanding, as we found out Faris isn't the kind of guy who is violent just because and he wouldn't kill enemies.

Look, D'jinn is my favorite side character in all Ducktales and I even made a big analysis of why he is a great character a year ago. But... guy has poor communication skills. Let's admit it, many of you wouldn't stay in the same room as someone who not only is very (very) dramatic but also has weapons at their disposition.

Anyway going back to Huey...the Red Bean also has problems with communication. For example, as @pholux-twg pointed out, many things could have been resolved if only Huey had the time to explain his insecurities and point of view in The Trickening!, something he didn't do well in Scrooge's birthday.

And talking about that episode again, he was pushing his siblings to do the perfect birthday for Scrooge, something that Scrooge himself didn't want to. Huey had good intentions when trying to organize the party but his actions and considerations of other people's feelings were not productive, just like D'jinn had good intentions at getting the lamp back but the way he tried to obtain it just scared everybody.

Also to me it is very amusing that D'jinn is a warrior who trusts everybody so much (I mean, he didn't stop to consider if Ma Beagle was lying about the lamp, he believed her inmediatly) and falls for simple jokes as the "got your nose" joke. It is possible that he's not that naive but simply he doesn't really know when somebody is lying or not even if it's very obvious. Just like Huey is Mister "I'm not good at imagination stuff" D'jinn could be "I'm not good at detecting lies and metaphorical jokes"

Then we have the scroll that D'jinn owns and it has the story of his family, his quest for the perfect birthday gift and maybe more information, he writes on it what he has accomplished and that reminds me of the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook that Huey has for guidance. We don't know what could happen if Faris lost the scroll because it seems that he also uses it for guidance in his quests (or in the quest of his life)

Gif belong to @pholux-twg , @stevenfallsvs and @greatgamedota

Also I would like to point out that Huey had moments of stimming in Season 3 and I think D'jinn had moments of this in his debut episode...if spinning his sword many times counts as stimming, because maybe is a cool thing that he does when trying to impresionte those around him but maybe...just maybe he spins his sword when experiencing strong emotions like:

Anger

Determination

Hapiness

But wait you would say, that doesn't make sense as he has the same stoic face in the three gifs.

Yeah, but the thing is, and this is one of the theories that I have...he's masking.

During all the journey he's excited but mostly reserved and it's only when he understood that everyone thought there was a genie in the lamp and said object was now at his disposition that he broke his stoic and serious presence and began to show more than just one emotion.

But from a brief moment before the battle with the Beagle Boys we see the moment he discovers all his quest was a charade to stop him from getting angry, we get this:

He's confused, sad, hurt and angry again when facing the ducks. Then as he questions if everything was fake he seems sad again.

This is of course justified in that he's a tough warrior. Heavens forbid if he shows emotions that could be perceived as weak in front of his allies and enemies.

But we have to consider this: D'jinn lives for epic and little quests. It's his hobbie, his favorite activity, he sees life as a big quest and him as just another player and he takes that very seriously.

The thing is... the others don't. They only pay attention to him for fear of their lives. This is just a guy who you can't ignore. Like I said before Scrooge and Louie only want to escape the problem they got into and even Huey is amazed at how much dedication the warrior puts on the lamp and the quest.

Huey (to Louie): D'jinn monologued about this lamp and the Ifrit's Dawn for ten minutes without blinking!

Taking into account that, let's go back to Faris realizing the ducks lied to him. They used his favorite hobby and interest as a joke. Without saying it, the ducks practicaly said: "You know, we don't care about being part of your quest or your lamp or listening to your dramatic stories. We just don't want to get destroyed. We want you to leave us alone as soon as possible"

And all I have to say is...ouch. OUCH

I mean, of course that supposition is not true because Dewey enjoyed the adventure and Webby was living the dream! But D'jinn didn't know that.

I also have to wonder if him not getting into drama over the lie was because he was very focused in obtaining the lamp or maybe he's just used to it. And for "it" I mean having to deal with many lies made to get rid of him and his dramatic actitude, and that actitude is not wrong or bad but some persons just don't have time or patience for that and we don't know how many people encountered the warrior in the past.

We don't know if his family is as interested and passionate about their history as D'jinn, or if he still has a brother or more siblings but (theory) if he turns out to be the only member of his family to have that passion for history and adventures then he would have another thing in common with Huey. Both love their families deeply but they feel they don't understand them.

At least we have one thing clear for sure and it is that in his last birthday, D'jinn wasn't alone.

I hope he continues to make more friends or how he puts it "allies" and please let him interact with Huey! It's the Red One's season after all.

Also as a sidenote it is interesting that in the last picture Webby, Beakly and Huey (who are confirmed to have more presence and lore in this season) were in one group together. Foreshadowing?

[arkiwii]

I will use that time while I'm doing nothing to slap all my thoughts here because even if I'm supposed to be on break I still have to fullfill my duty of transmitting the brainworms over the Arknights tag

I love this skin I love it so so much and I am insane about it. a little bit sad that in the end, it wasn't drawn by NoriZC (I can't believe that he would give up his beloved owl daughter like that), but at the same time it just has so much of his feeling and personal touch in it that it's hard to believe he didn't decided on the design or had a huge part in the concept

On purely aesthetic look, it just looks so perfectly right. I will reblog this when we get the little lore blurb with it and if there's anything to be told about it (who made it, any lore drop, etc...), but in the meantime I can't help but notice a certain similarity with Saria's Stronghold outfit. call me insane or delusional but look

The black sleeveless turtleneck, the dropping coat around the arms, the white and blue, the frills on the left, the high boots... It just looks so close, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was intentional to make them match in some way.

The other things that are very nice to notice; the Ifrit clock, I have seen a post saying that it would be a fun touch if the ringtone was Ifrit's prerecorded voice, but that might be too silly... Or maybe not silly enough if Mayer made that clock. Also, this one indicates 2 pm, talk about a nocturnal animal, she needs her midday nap

The Ifrit plush is absolutely adorable, and the owl plush is, I think, a direct reference to how the first drafts of the Rhine Lan logo was supposed to be an owl-like shape with the infinity symbol and the + - like eyes. If it's the case, it's an incredibly nice touch

As well, the pot and the clock both have a striked fire symbol, just like Ifrit's pot in Lone Trail!

Clearly, all the references in this skin are making me incredibly happy, BUT that's no the only thing I'm insane about

Let's talk about the symbolism now; if you know me well, you know that I have a lot of thoughts about Rhine Lab's symbolism. And something I was saddened about is that Silence wasn't so much represented with the plants in the game, unlike in NoriZC's personal/scrappaper artworks where it's a major element of her character (and I mean, eh, she's named Olivia)

In fact, this whole plant symbolism got halfway stolen by Muelsyse (jee, Mumu, how come you get TWO symbols!), BUT justice has been made and Silence finally got her plants!

Not only that, but BETTER than just plants; ROCKS!

And, very hopefully, a direct reference to NoriZC's symbolic story about Saria and Silence, the Fable of Rock and Grass (present in his artbook clue n°1!)

It's a HUGE part of their relationship and is a symbiotic meaning to show how rocks and grass can go along if you give them time (the Scrappaper artwork above even tells, "Do not worry about their affairs. Because rocks and grass can always complement each other over time."). Seeing these rocks with the plants, AND a rock covered in moss, it's just huge. They finally get along after Lone Trail, their bound is now stronger than ever, they have seen each other's hearts and are healing from their past... It's beautiful and this skin really puts emphasis on character growth.

BUT WHAT'S MORE! The lore implications! Indeed, we know that after becoming Control's Executor Advisor, Silence has been OVERWHELMED. Just check her alter's dialogues to see how her work is exhausting, and most of all, that she knows that she doesn't have much a choice here; she's not enjoying it in a matter of fact (a lot of greedy companies wanting her approval, whistleblower documents, having to take part in a lot of meetings...), but someone had to do it. You can also see in her Medic version files that she doesn't enjoy crowds or noisy environments. This skin is just perfect on a lore view, because, if you pay attention, it looks like Rhine Lab's eco-garden, or greenhouse. A peaceful place, basically! Not only she gets a break, but she's also allowed to have a personal space where she can rest and be far from stressful sources. As I said above, the name "habitat" is deeply implying it (she's literally in her lane), and you know what, it also works very well with my headcanon that Silence was born in quite a rural environment/liked to be outside a lot. It's just a Liberi thing, to feel like being one with nature!

Her couch looks like a giant nest, extremely comfy, and the amount of personal decorations really adds to the comfort. Now just add her own feathers and it's a literal bird nest

Silence really shows sign of autism, and as an autistic person myself, I can just say YUP YUP YUP, you NEED your personal space to rest when feeling overwhelmed or overstimulated, somewhere with as little as stimulus possible (far from noises and crowds, I'd say that it's maybe too bright but maybe there's a way to cover it?), and it's extremely heartwarming to imagine that Saria and/or Muelsyse have decided to give her a spot for her to rest. She deserves it

ANYWAY. I LOVE THIS SKIN. AND HOW MUCH IFRIT THERE IS. SHE HAS IFRIT PLUSH AND BEAMS IFRIT FACES ON HER S3. YOUR HONOR SHE'S SO MOM

[barbariccia]

throwing my final thoughts under the cut for posterity’s sake.

i stayed up til 3 fucking a m only for my thoughts to sum up as

maybe because i was tired and zoning out, but the engame was incredible short imo. i get that the additional post-patch padding was just that, padding, but the approach to insomnia was all kinds of stupid short. i'm thinking of other final dungeons and the trek to getting to the final boss - sure, you can slack off and go finish up sidequests or dick around in the gold saucer, but there's usually some time needed to get through them. northern crater's kinda long! ulty's castle's definitely long! lunar subterrane can kiss my ass! kefka's tower, anyone? vs.... hey this is a tiny rest stop that's... why is it here? why? and then walk in a straight line lol. ????? 

-again, haven't really been paying 100% attention to all the lore ("all" lol) and stuff, and that's on me - and that's ultimately why i want to actually play it for myself and give it that modicum of an extra shot- but uhhhh ifrit out of. nowhere? i'm still a little bewildered by that, even if episode ardyn does clear that up a bit (i'm hoping i remembered that right, anyway). -hey sidenote ffxv shouldn't have been a FUCKING LIVE SERVICE GAME WITH DLC ADDONS FUCK YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU it ruined the story. okay ruined is a stretch but cutting chunks out only to add them back in later is SUCH a stupid design holy shit. not even fucking 13 did that (mm... exception 13-2's dlcs, maybe? but even they were, uh, well, colisseum fights, a gambling room, and i never did touch lightning's dlc lol) and they absolutely could've tried it then. ff is not a live fucking service unless it's an mmo. -how comrades is still going considering xv is now fucking abandonware is beyond me -who ever heard of a mainline ff title being abandoned -shidding farding crying throwing up etc

-that last battle was absolute trash holy shit. scenery? fuck you. what feels like good, fulfilling combat based on everything you've picked up so far? literally go fuck yourself. -he do be straddling the king of kings to noncon him doe -forgettable music, too. also, if i never hear somnus again it'll be too soon . did you know that track came out at least 13 years before the game itself did? :^) -let me sum the final battle up for you as: i have never heard anyone talk about it or screenshot it or video it. until last night i genuinely thought that ifrit was the final battle, because that was ALL I'VE EVER FUCKING SEEN OF IT. and i didn't see a huge amount of xv back in the day, even, but i absolutely saw bits and pieces! ardyn fucking who? i remember being kinda  at bahamut when he appeared because that felt like it was kind of a huge deal (followed up by some sick flips lol)? but, uh, no, i'll just go fuck myself -i also thought up until last night that ardyn was ifrit the same way gentiana was shiva, tbh. because i KNEW THAT ARDYN WAS THE BIG BAD AND I THOUGHT IFRIT WAS THE BIG FINAL FIGHT. YA FUCKIN KNOW?

-uhhhhh i am still very tired -back to the live service thing, honestly. like, i cannot imagine having played this on release and then having to fucking wait to see what happened to other characters in the game. you know, people i'm meant to have formed an emotional connection to. iris? demon slayer, okay, that's kinda sick honestly, but could we not have seen that? did the budget not allow for another female model? aranea? no word about her? gentiana? oh i guess not but -i realise now that's the end of the list since luna and ravus are dead (hey how come like zero people ever fucking commented on the oracle's bloodline being totally gone) (thats a rhetorical question.) uhhhhhh lol nvm -which leads into: holy SHIT the cast was tiny. and you know what, some games actually pull it off really well. v and xiii both had super small casts! but both of them made an impact! xv made itself somehow feel isolated even from its own main cast, somehow?

-the characters lol. -i am suffering a little from "neeb and i have talked about them and i am attributing more to them than the game has and i have to try and remember that's seperate from the game" -we have sasuke but boring, ignis is okay i guess, i don't actually mind prompto but i can 1000% see how he would get on people's tits, and toxic masculinity -with a side of how dare you want a woman, the bad guy who should've had more to him if he was showing up from the beginning of the game but eh whatever, mr in 50 places at once, why wasn't the marshal with the guys, and ANOTHER female? greedy [smacks your wrist] -they sure exist and they sure interact with each other but uh i can only see those deep bonds of friendship if i squint and approach it from an angle -i would be lying if i didn't want to write smut tho so like, joke's on me

in conclusion: -lol -lmao -they really thought this was their magnum opus of magnum opuses (opusii? opusopodes?) huh? what’s really sad is lif is right, the potential’s there. knowing development was The Way It Was is a shame. and as an ff liker, i’m genuinely a little ashamed at this blemish on the franchise. -a b a n d o n w a r e -thank you yoshi-p for my life

spent my XIV pre-patch maint finishing off the main story of an objectively worse FF. God I hate this game. Wish I wasn’t fucking obsessed with it.

And I’m not even done I still have to do post game dungeons, Ep Ignis verse 2, Ep Ardyn, and then I threatened to read the Dawn of the Future novel aloud to @barbariccia and @lifygreens. WITH the voices.

The Windows/royal edition added a lot to the Insomnia area and story, but at the cost of basically ruining the pacing/emotive impact of the original sequence. Granted, the attempt to make you care about Insomnia was … well there was an attempt? I appreciate that they added more to do, considering how bare it was before, and I also appreciate the boss gauntlet with the corrupted Lucii statues that mirrors off each boy (though I feel like Ignis should’ve squared off against the Rogue). I need to go back and explore the city now that I’m not just making a beeline for the msq since it was like, 3am where Mol was. The addition of the Kingsglaive was nice, and I’m curious to see what kind of quests they have to offer.

I’m still despairing over the fact that we were never given a reason to care about Insomnia, but the additions and set dressing were An Attempt. It utterly wrecked the pacing and made a lot of it feel weird, but hey at least it was there? We got to see Noctis being an actual king to his people instead of just kinda … figureheady. It was needed, and given how the game was already shipped out, I’m not sure how else they could’ve added it in than the way they did.

Whelp. Time to reward myself with some sleep and getting to play XIV 6.1 tomorrow, content in the knowledge that it’ll be Actually Good. I’ll probably start my NG+ of XV later this week, go through just the MSQ to see how the story feels without doing dozens of hours of sidequesting. Probably just as bad as before, but I also need to take notes for the fic I’m writing. I’m also still thoroughly enjoying the Comrades DLC, so I’ll be chipping away at that periodically as well.