#it's a game of translation of sorts. but if you want to treat it like a story well... the matter becomes a lot more complicated

[carlyraejepsans]

Do you enjoy underfell? I thought you disliked aus /genq

i don't dislike the concept of AUs itself, I'm just not a fan of like... the subculture that spawned around them in the UT fandom specifically and how it eventually took over almost all canon content (especially when it limits itself to the bros)

i like aus visually! i am an artist at heart after all. it's just that, if I'm going to care about them as stories and not just fun design ideas, my bar is uhh almost impossibly high the further you move from canon lolol.

[neverendingford]

,

[jester-lover]

P4 Relationship Headcanons

Authors Note/ I have read the manga up to the last English translated volume, but I’ll stick to the public school arc characterizations of them for convenience’s sake.

CW/fem! reader but otherwise no physical description , fluff, kindof accurate Victorian courting, a little angst, manga spoilers! I most definitely forgot this arc was getting animated, so I’m late, might be a little OOC, it’s been a few months since I read the manga

Edgar Redmond

Flattery was his main method of gaining your affections: descriptive poems sent to your mailbox, tulips and chocolates left on your doorstep by a mysterious admirer—a carefully held facade that fell apart when Edgar realized just how badly he wanted your affections returned.

While he has always considered himself a free spirit, capable of swiftly moving from one lover to another, he has an epiphany when he realizes he needs exclusivity with you. Edgar has found something beyond flings with you, a woman who can truly make him nervous; make his heart beat against his chest every time you bless him with a glance.

He isn’t always the most touchy lover, but he tends to take your arm in his while the two of you are out together. (He’ll do nothing more, as he doesn’t want rumors to spread around your private relationship.)

Edgar tends to fuss over you a bit, fixing your dresses, brushing his fingers over your coat, and generally keeping your appearance looking tidy; it’s an act of service that displays his affections for you.

Lawrence Bluewer

When I say all of his sisters gang up on him to tease him about his crush on you, I mean it. Lawrence tried his best to keep his love for you a secret, but his yearning glances over his glasses reveal his truth. They encourage him to speak to you, giving him advice about what women like. (Trust me, he needs it.)

Lawrence is a very dedicated man, particularly when it comes to you. He holds up all of the important customs of an exemplary Victorian man and treats you as an equal in all matters.

He’s adamant on listening to your opinion on matters involving the two of you, but he’ll also ask for your opinions on issues in his home and dorm. Your opinion is important to him.

Lawrence is a very intelligent young man; if you ever find yourself struggling with your schoolwork or a matter of principle in your personal life, he’ll help out to the best of his ability.

Call him by any affectionate nickname, and that carefully held stoicism crumbles before you, and a red tint suddenly appears on his pale face. The only time he ever broke his own rules was after the cricket match, when he embraced you tightly in the stands after winning, so much more proud of his victory now that you had seen it.

Herman Greenhill

It feels as if someone has struck him in the heart each time he lays his eyes on you. He can feel the warmth of his skin and the sweating of his palms each time he tries to talk to you without stumbling through his words. Herman is so utterly rigid and awkward around you, it’s completely obvious he’s head over heels.

He’s often flustered around you, even when you’re already courting, as one of his ideals of chivalry and respect is treating ladies kindly. He acts like a strict old man and a shy schoolboy at the same time, wanting your touch so desperately but bashing himself for it.

You will probably have to enact most of the affection between the two of you, sneaking kisses when your chaperone turns away, holding his hand when you walk into a more private corridor of his residence, and cheering loudly at his games. The easiest way to get a reaction from Herman is by showing off your stockings; he’s a sucker for good hosiery.

Despite his proud and sort of arrogant personality, Herman is a shy and careful lover; he remembers all of your favorites and special days, and he loves receiving your praise. Whenever he achieves something, he immediately looks to you, waiting to see what you make of him.

Gregory Violet

You wouldn’t even know of his existence when he first saw you, but he was always there, with a thick black sketchbook filled with drawings of you, going about your daily routine and interacting with others in a way he only wished he could. The sheer amount of yearning he does could put the poets to shame.

You are his muse; even when Gregory is creating something completely irrelevant to you, he’ll remember you; you are so infused with everything he makes. Because he has put you on this goddess-like pedestal, he doesn’t think he deserves you, which is why he’s so surprised when you agree to court him.

Gregory’s affection comes in bursts; some days he’ll be too nervous to look you in the eye, but other times he’s practically joined at your hip. He’s not the most talkative lover, but when his eyes flit through you, examining you closely with a blush stretched across his features, he appreciates you like you are art.

He plays the role of the gentleman in public, keeping his respectful distance, but he often seeks your comfort in the few moments you can sneak alone, laying his head on your lap as you brush through his two-toned hair and rambling uncharacteristically about the struggles of his role. He’s a non-conformist, and he often wished the society you lived in wasn’t so strict, so that you and him could act as wild and free as you did in the leather binding of his sketchbook.

[fossore]

Interview with Rick Celebrini, ft. some of his thoughts on the Sharks team culture and the Celebrini and Smith friendship, how often he brought Macklin around the Warriors as a kid, and part of what he says to him on the phone before every game, among other things.

Experience sports talk radio! Or save yourself listening to a couple of guys saying Daddy Rick far too many times and read the transcript below. Slightly trimmed and ads removed, original here.

Greg Silver: What's going on everybody! We're focusing on one family and one family only. No it's not the Papa family, it's not the Silver family, in the last 25 minutes of the show it's the Celebrini family. Macklin is going to be joining us coming up in about 15 minutes, but first, it is Warriors Director of Sports Medicine and Performance Dr. Rick Celebrini hanging on the guest line. What's happening Rick?

Rick Celebrini (RC): Hey guys, how's it going?

Silver: It's going great! Great to have you on, Greg Silver, Greg Papa, and I guess I just want to start with a Warriors related question because everybody's going to be wondering about the health of Steph Curry and I know that he's been navigating this knee tendonitis throughout the season. So just if you could tell everyone kind of how he's navigating that, if it's continuing to improve over time, if doing that back-to-back the other night was a lot of wear and tear on him, what's kind of the status of the superstar of Golden State?

RC: Man, you guys are starting with a tough one, you know I can't ans- I can't divulge that kind of information. But I will tell you Steph's in a great place, just the professional that he is and how committed he is to every aspect of his professional and personal life. He's a treat to work with and he's in a good place I think physically and mentally.

Greg Papa: And he's in good hands with you. Now we did not invite Dr. Rick on, we invited Daddy Rick on 'cause your son is coming on. And you were on the Dad's trip, we saw ya, Greg went and watched him play against Sid the Kid, what a thrill that was to score the game winning goal. The game last night in Seattle didn't go great but he did score a goal in the third period (transcriber's note: he did not score, he assisted on Toffoli's goal. KNBR is not quite beating the doesn't care about hockey allegations). Rick just how is it, being able to watch your son play at this level, how many games do you get to watch him in person?

RC: Well, like I tell everyone I'm adjusting to now becoming Macklin's dad, I'm not Rick Celebrini anymore, I'm known as Macklin's dad (chuckles as he speaks) so I'm adjusting to that. It's surreal to be honest with you, it's incredible to see him make this transition, to see him have the kind of season that he's having right now. And I guess, more than anything, as a father, to see him kind of do it with the joy and just the good nature and the fun that he's having doing it? It's one thing to sort of see what he's doing, but also you see guys like the Steph Currys and the Steve Kerrs that preach having joy in this environment which is not always easy to do and to see him doing that at 18 years old with all the pressures and expectations that come with that transition is probably the most satisfying from a parent's perspective.

Silver: Alright, so enough of me prying Dr. Rick, I'm going to focus on Daddy Rick as well. So just what would you say your influence has been on Macklin being NHL ready and just kind of knowing so much about preparation, being in the right physical state and all of that. He's only 19 years old which is hard to believe but how have some of your habits translated to him as he's really testing the waters in the NHL for the first time and killing it? (transcriber's note: he's 18)

RC: Yeah, you know guys it's not just this past offseason, it's sort of been something that I'm really blessed and fortunate to have. Four kids that have their own sort of unique sport-related goals and they all sort of have a dream to get to the highest level of sport. So having a passion and professionally being in this world, there's nothing more enjoyable or satisfying than to take some of those professional knowledge and learning and apply them to your kids. So the four kids, some of them tell people, some people kick back and maybe watch football or go golfing, I have my greatest joy and relaxation when I'm out working with the kids in the off season (transcriber's note, I'm not sure "some of them tell people" is correct). The four of them quite often work out together. This past season for Macklin has been a little in that you're trying to get him, as much as you can for an 18 year old, physically and mentally ready for the rigors of an 82-game season coming off a college season which, again, it's a challenge but he's as professional as you can get at 18 years old in terms of his approach and his commitment to his craft.

Papa: And he's got great lineage obviously, with you being a former soccer player and your whole family, I know his brother is a great hockey player as well (Translator's note: there are two brothers, both of whom are play hockey). You've been in the Bay Area, we've watched you work with the Warriors for years since you joined them in August of 2018, Dr. Rick. Macklin was just a baby back then, how much did you bring him around the Warrior locker room where he could interact with Steph and Klay and Dray and Andre and even Kevin Durant when he was there?

RC: Yeah, I wouldn't say in all honesty that is was a lot, but I think that the opportunities that he and the others did have, one, were really impactful, just to see how these guys approach their craft and two, it's just the influential age that it happened at. I think it was kind of that perfect timing of just as they're getting very serious in terms of where they want to go with their sport, being exposed to that type of environment.

Silver: Talking to Dr. Rick Celebrini here slash Daddy Rick as Macklin will be joining us in about ten minutes and I know this has been quite an awesome experience for you Rick, so just kind of want to get your sense — I don't know how much you've gotten to observe the season, I know the two seasons, NBA and NHL, have quite a bit of overlap, but what's your sense so far of the dynamic between a lot of the youth on this Sharks team and some of the older vets. How do you think Macklin's integrated himself with a lot of these vets, but also having other young guys like Eklund and Askarov making a name for themselves at the same time?

RC: Yeah, especially just coming off this father's trip I got the opportunity to see it sort of first hand and first of all, they have a great group of just people. Never mind players and athletes but just people that the dads — you can see kind of where their sons have gotten it from. Macklin, I think, has really benefited form coming in as a rookie with Will Smith, they've developed a really close bond and friendship and so I think that's helped immensely. You mentioned some of the other young guys, I think there's a really nice balance of rookies, and the veterans that they do have around there have taken a real interest in helping these guys along. So I think all that has helped. I mean, obviously it hasn't necessarily translated in terms of results for the team, but if you're building for the future I think they're going about it the right way in terms of getting good quality people to support these kids as they're building for the future,

Papa: Yeah, Will Smith and Macklin go back to BC BU I know, and that great rivalry and the Beanpot there in Boston and everything and to hang with his dad I know was great for you in Seattle. The one thing that struck me as interesting is that Macklin is back home. he could live with you and your wife and your family, but the way they do it in the NHL is unlike any other sport where he's actually with Jumbo Joe. And what Will Smith is living with Patty? I don't remember Brandin Podziemski moving in with the Currys when he got here Rick. How is — we'll ask your son, he's coming on in a few minutes, we'll ask him directly, but why doesn't he just live at home with you and your wife and your family rather than trimming Jumbo Joe's beard?

RC: (Laughs) Well, first, from a practical logistics standpoint we're out in Livermore so with traffic, as we all know in the Bay it can be a monster, so he's far more proximal to the rink with Joe. But I think over and above that, just the incredible value you have of him living with the family. With Joe's family, they've all been so welcoming, and to have a former number one overall pick who's had an unbelievable hall of fame career to lean on and to be guided by and to keep perspective and things that I can't necessarily relate to, to Macklin, I think it's just been so incredibly valuable for him. Like you said, hockey is unique in that way, stories of Sidney Crosby with Mario Lemieux, the list goes on in terms of different individuals that have had that type of setup. I think it's an incredibly valuable way to transition into the pro game for especially an 18 year old like Macklin.

Silver: So we are having him on in a moment, and since it's such a short interview Rick, we want to make sure we maximize the minutes we get with him but, is there anything you want us to — is there any message that you have for Macklin that we can play coming back for him.

Papa: Make you bed, brush your teeth, wash behind your ears.

RC: Yeah, that's right (laughing). No, I would say, my message to him is, he actually calls before every game, we've done this for probably the last four or five years and I really cherish that time. One of the things that I consistently remind him before every single game is just to enjoy it and to keep perspective and to find the, even in the grind of the season at this point, is just to play with joy, have fun, it's what he's always loved to do. So that's probably the main message.

Papa: (Transcriber's note: at this point Papa relays that George Kittle's father hand writes him a note before each game and says it's nice the Celebrinis can have a similar moment of connection, which is cut for time/I didn't want to transcribe it) Because you're so well versed in the body and how to get through it, it's a hard challenge, He's just 18 years of age, the NHL schedule is grueling, they've got little time off before they play their next game. What's the advice to him as far as getting through this first NHL season as opposed to a much shorter collegiate season, Rick?

RC: Yeah, it's two-fold. One, get your recovery when you can and try to really maximize that, that's sleep, that's all the different modalities. Fortunately I've got peace of mind in that Mike Potenza, who was my performance director here with the Warriors for the last couple years, I actually stole him from the Sharks and now they stole him back. Selfishly for Macklin I'm thrilled that Mike is back there with the Sharks and looking after the group and specifically Macklin. Again, it's being as professional as you can with taking care of yourself. In this day and age it's unlike back in the old days where guys could have late nights and still kind of get by and play themselves into shape. It's just so demanding, the pace that the league's played at, the physicality, the expectations on and off the ice, it's really something that you have to, again, maximize your recovery when you can.

Silver: Rick, thanks so much for coming on and I hope it's not rude to cut you short for your child but in a true fatherly fashion I would say I think you're gonna be OK with it.

RC: As Macklin's dad, yeah, I'm great with it (laughs).

Papa: Anything you want us to relay to him since we're going to talk to him in a moment? Anything we should tell him?

RC: Tell him to give me a call later.

(Laughter)

Papa: Call daddy. Call daddy, Macklin.

RC: (overlapping slightly with previous) Yeah, or maybe call his mom. Even more important.

Papa: Yeah, call your — forget about dad, call mom, would ya.

(General sign offs)

[ranchstoryblog]

Ranch Story Community Q&A Volume 3: Igusa Matsuyama Returns!

Igusa Matsuyama, the legendary artist behind the Story of Seasons series since the original 1996 game has once again agreed to a Q&A featuring questions from fans from around the world! A big thank you to all the members of the community who helped make this possible.

Some aspects of the text have been altered to match localization people are familiar with. (Japanese names to English names, for example: Bokujou Monogatari (牧場物語) was formerly localized as Harvest Moon and is now localized as Story of Seasons, etc). Images were not part of the original text and have been added as a visual aid. Though we translated as many questions as we could, we did not include questions involving personal information or regarding unannounced releases. Please understand.

If you would like to read our original correspondence (in Japanese), that will be provided in a separate post.

Additional cosplay photo provided by Foxface from our community Discord.

Translations: @artycharmy (correspondence, outline) Editing and Clean-up: Jerome, @artycharmy, and @regularcelery

——— Anonymous asks: What is the relationship between Jamie and the Harvest Goddess?

Igusa Matsuyama: Jamie was treated as a fairy or spirit. I'm sorry, but I'm not sure if there's any points that link them and the Goddess.

Editor's note: the term Matsuyama uses is "妖精."

Tomato asks: I would like to ask about what their inspiration was for the outfits designs in the original release of harvest moon another wonderful life. Since I got reminded of the girl clothing brand Mezzo Piano when looking at the I love Kuma/I love bears outfit.

Igusa Matsuyama: I remember the only thing I thought of was using Spring-like colours! (All designs were made with seasonal colours In mind) When I knew that Daachan, who was planned to be used in a lot of events, wouldn't actually play a big role in the game, I put him on the T-Shirt so he could at least get some attention as a mascot-like existence.

Pansy asks: If you were able to create your own game for the Story of Seasons franchise, with no rules or limitations whatsoever, what do you think it might look like?

Igusa Mastuyama: Since I love dogs, I'd like to try making a Story of Seasons that's set in a world just full of dogs. Though that dream of mine probably won't come true.

Anonymous asks: The look of Story of Seasons has changed a lot over the years! What would you say is more challenging to create - simple designs, where you have to work with very little space, or complicated designs, where you have to consider many little details?

Igusa Matsuyama: A long time ago there were a lot of things you weren't able to replicate in video games. There were constraints for things like the number of colours and patterns for hair styles and clothes. It was difficult to work around those constraints, but at the same time a lot of fun. Nowadays, it's the complete opposite. Now we can design anything with hardly any constraints. And unlike a long time ago, now I'm asked to make more complicated designs, like patterns and decorations. However, if it's a big request, sometimes I run into quite a lot of trouble when designing. They each have had their own difficulties.

Anonymous asks: Hello, Matsuyama! Thank you for bringing the worlds of Bokujou Monogatari to life for many years. Your art has had a huge influence on me!

One of my favorite candidates is “Rock” from “A Wonderful Life.” I’d love to know any particular influences for his character design from 21 years ago, and his new design for the remake.

Igusa Matsuyama: I was told that he was a young, wannabe playboy, so I somehow ended up with that sort of design. For the remake, I made his clothes a little looser without changing his design, so he'd look even more playful. I, too, wanted to avoid changing him as much as I could as there are other people among the staff that also like the original for his “Rockness”. So, he got that makeover after everybody shared and checked their opinions with each other.

Jerome asks: On page 130 of the "Special Comic" manga there's artwork of Super Famicom characters that have never been printed anywhere else. Do you or Marvelous still have these? It would be great to see them in more detail in the future some time.

Igusa Matsuyama: They're all characters that appeared in the SNES version of "Harvest Moon." Nina's parents, Ellen's mother, Ann's father, Maria's parents (The mayor couple). I'm sorry. My SNES illustrations have gone missing...

Raven Bloom, Ryan, and Moth ask: How did you feel when your designs for the men in A Wonderful Life were repurposed to be bachelors? What do you think of the changes made to the bachelors in the remake of A Wonderful Life? I miss the “Bruce Campbell” look Matthew used to have.

Igusa Matsuyama: Matthew (マシュー) is Masshu (マッシュ) in the Japanese A Wonderful Life (Editors note: Charmy made a careless mistake when translating the questions, sorry Matsuyama san 🫣) When I first heard this name, the first thing that came to mind was Evil Dead's protagonist, Ash. You're right. I designed him after Bruce Campbell. I still love Bruce Campbell today. When Wonderful Life was under production, I had heard they weren't going to make a girl version, so I designed him not as a love interest, but as a quirky character. Knowing that he'd appear in the remake as a marriage candidate, I redesigned him as a character that would be liked by many. I hope you can enjoy the game for its nostalgia, as well as for being a shiny, brand new release.

Salmon Axe and Anonymous ask: I personally adore Doraemon x SOS game. Are you interested in working directly with or collaborating with other franchises in the future? And is there a series outside Story of Seasons you would like to work with now as a guest artist? (Could it be Pokemon?)

Igusa Matsuyama: I've loved Doraemon manga since I was a kid! Working as a guest artist? Hmm, I'm happier being the main illustrator, so nothing in particular comes to mind. I enjoy a lot of games in my free time, such as Fallout, Far Cry and Border Lands.

Anonymous asks: Even though we never see his face, was there ever a concept of how Woofio would look without his costume?

Igusa Matsuyama: I designed Woofio as the being that is Woofio, so there's no design of him without his costume.

Idris asks: Your style has upgraded a lot over the time to match the trends. Do you think you will ever go for an old school look (early HM) for a SoS game again? What do you think is the secret to your art’s charm?

Igusa Matsuyama: What I'm particular about when designing for Story of Seasons is making characters with head/body proportions and an atmosphere that go well with that release. First, I listen to the client's request then think of a design according to that. These days, game visuals have gotten fancier and fancier, so there's not many opportunities for characters with short proportions to make an appearance. To me, what's important when designing is "playfulness." More so than "pretty" or "cool" and such, I get attached to the character, have fun making the character. I find joy in character creation itself.

MacGyver asks: Yasuhiro Wada has shared some interesting stories about how chaotic the original game's development was. Is there anything interesting you remember from around that time? 

Igusa Matsuyama: Now it's a memory I can look back on and laugh about, but I'm not sure how much I can talk about it so please forgive me. If Wada hadn't been there back then, then "Harvest Moon" wouldn't have become a thing.

Toyberb and Anonymous ask: There’s a lot of different cow designs now, which is your favorite to draw?

Igusa Matsuyama: I've loved drawing animals since I was a kid, so I love all of the cows. Although the easiest one to draw is the cow with the big nose.

Anonymous asks: Were there any games where you made designs for protagonists of genders that did not end up available to play as? (Like a girl protagonist for Save the Homeland/Hero of Leaf Valley or a nonbinary protagonist for any game before A Wonderful Life)

Igusa Matsuyama: There's so many designs that got scrapped, but as far as I recall, there's not really many where that character's setting itself was scrapped. (Excluding Thumbelina, mentioned below)

Koharu asks: Were there ever any character designs made for other older SNES characters like Ellen for 64? Some magazines had Marie with blue hair, like the SNES character, so it made me wonder if she (SNES Maria) was meant to also be there at some point.

Igusa Matsuyama: I'm not in the position to make settings or scenarios where characters from other games appear, so I can't say, but I like the idea of older characters making an appearance!

Amina/k0iisu asks: Hello! I really love Hiro’s design specifically. Could you tell me a few facts about him/his design that might not be well known information? Thank you so much! I love your art :D

Igusa Matsuyama: Thank you very much! Hiro is a future doctor, so I tried to make them look as much like a doctor as I could. Also, to make him look friendlier, I designed him as your average everyday boy you'd see in the neighbourhood. He doesn't have a flashy face or hairstyle, but he's one of my favourite designs, too. I wrote this in the guidebook too, but what I like about him is the Asian flair I added to his clothes and the spot of colour around his feet.

Bunbun asks: I'm excited for the Nendoroid that was announced of Claire! I hope there will be ones of HM64 designs too. Since you have a lot of figures on your blog, how does it feel to be able to add one of your own characters to your collection? Are there any of your other characters you hope will get figures of?

Igusa Matsuyama: A nendoroid of Claire! I'm looking forward to it too, but when is it going to be released? If it's possible, I'd like one of Woofio.

Editor's note: Preorders are open for Nendoroid Claire now!

Chickee asks: A purple-haired princess character was rumored to have existed in Harvest Moon 64, but she didn't make it to the published game. Did you create a design for this character?

Igusa Matsuyama: That's probably Princess Thumbelina. Wasn't she Incredibly small? What I designed didn't end up being used. Speaking of HM64 characters, I pushed for them to include a pet turtle, but in the end it only appeared as an ornament. For A Wonderful Life, I asked for a turtle to be included again and designed a tortoise with a scarf, but it didn't make it as a pet and appeared only as a wild turtle that walks around the pond. I'm waiting for the day they finally include a pet turtle in the game.

emery flower147 asks: omg  I saw the pics where the AWL girls are in a team and Muffy has a shotgun and stuff? Do you think any other characters would work in a cool team like that?

Igusa Matsuyama: For the Friends of Mineral Town guide book, I had the five girls, Popuri, Marie, Ran, Elly and Karen work hard as Harvest Sprites. Also, for the guide books, I drew Pete (The old male protagonist), Sarah (The GB version female protagonist), and Claire doing whatever I wanted them to. I don't know if you can call it cool or not, but it was fun being in charge of that.

Ixur asks: A lot of the PoOT character designs for the regular villagers seem more popular than the marriage candidates in my region. Is that something that's been noticed by you/Marvelous in Japan? Lars, Clemens, Beth, and Misaki for example.

Igusa Matsuyama: Marvelous doesn't really talk about that sort of thing so I'm not sure if they're aware of it or not. I don't do social media so I'm also not sure which characters are popular. I'm happy as long as the characters are liked. The design on Lars’s shirt is modeled after my beloved dog, so I’d be especially happy if you like his shirt too.

Anonymous asks: What do you think about people cosplaying your designs?

Igusa Matsuyama: It makes me very happy! I'm no good at sewing, so I really admire people who can make their own clothes. It's an honour having the designs I made be made into real clothes, and I think it's great to have fun acting out the characters.

Afro Fae asks: When creating designs for characters, how do you settle on a specific color palette? Do you take color meanings into account with a character's personality or do you go purely off of feeling?

Igusa Matsuyama: I keep in mind the overall colours the client asked for while designing. Sometimes I propose a new colour when I think there's one that fits better. I'm also careful when choosing colours and everyone's traits to make sure it's easy to tell which character is which when seen from a distance. However, in the cases of families and such, I do the opposite and give them all a common colour to give them a sense of kinship.

———

From all of us at Ranch Story, we'd like to thank Matsuyama from the bottom of our hearts for answering our questions again! Whether a fan has only just discovered the series or has grown up alongside it, so many people have loved these characters and worlds that Igusa Matsuyama brings to life, so it feels truly special to be able to have this opportunity. We'll end this article with Matsuyama's own words, as well as a parting gift.

Igusa Matsuyama: I'm so glad I could answer your questions again. I'm the one that should be saying thank you. It means the world to me knowing that everyone enjoys my illustrations! I added an illustration as thanks. I'll keep up the hard work!

[the-artist-grimm]

Hi, I have just discovered your AU and I like the design, also the name made curious about what's the AU about

(Note this Lore Post is HIGHLY Outdated!!!! See the masterpost for current lore!)

Thank you! And for the ‘Crimson Angel AU’ think of it as translating to ‘Blood-Soaked Angel AU’, since I think that’s more of a better visual/description, but crimson just sounds prettier for an actual title.  This is gonna be a little long for more-in-depth lore dump so see the READ MORE for well, more! And my apologies for the rambles that have slowly taken over my brain, it's a little chaotic but the basic gist of it XD

(Note Anthea goes by she/they and I alternate between the two so if that causes reading issues let me know)

In this case, the ‘Blood-Soaked Angel’ is my lamb, Anthea, who starts off the story as being a seemingly kind, friendly, and optimistic person just wanting to help, but is really just someone who is trying to understand why they lived when their family and people did not, and just going with self-sacrifice and self-destruction as the only way to ‘prove’ they deserved to live. 

Got a mini backstory comic here with some explanations, though TLDR Anthea already had this sense of being responsible for keeping everyone else’s spirits up after losing their father, and when heretics destroyed the rest of their family/village at age 12 and they survived by the shear luck of just being out on a routine supply run, they feel as if they don’t deserve it. 

From there Anthea bottled everything up and wandered the forests for a bit until being found and taken in by Ratau, who taught her not only how to fight but also told her stories of his time as vessel, of which any involving The One Who Waits were the most interesting. A lonely, bitter, and kinda angry god of death, despite  his appearance, kept and appeared to care for the two young kits by his side. TOWW sounded different from the other bishops Anthea had only ever known to be violent, and thus she began to worship him as a sort of comfort-since thinking a gentler god greeted her family and would one day greet her was a better thought than the horror they must’ve faced prior to death. She lived day to day just pretending everything was fine, being a good kid, and helping out around the shack, while internally treating every moment like borrowed time, thinking she had to keep being useful to everyone else. (Ratau knew she had people-pleasing issues but didn’t realize the extent for a long, long time) 

Cut to Anthea being 26, and after she and Ratau were heading back one afternoon after some errand or visit were ambushed by heretics who managed to injure Ratau when they tried to escape, and though they got away, they were pursued. Thinking she’d lived on borrowed time long enough and wanting to prevent another person she loved from dying, Anthea took advantage of Ratau’s injury keeping him from stopping her and drew the heretics away, being captured as a result. 

Bishops, execution, Anthea gets the shock of hearing that they’re the final lamb prior to sacrifice, then suddenly they’re waking up in the gateway to the god they’ve worshiped for years, and he’s just as Ratau described. A lonely, bitter god with two young kits (I place Aym and Baal as teens since it leads to some interesting moments), by his side. Yet where that’s all Ratau saw, Anthea also saw the chains. The wounds bleeding an endless stream of ichor. The way TOWW struggled prior to their approach, how his voice and smile were strained. This god they’d built up as this better to the bishops is trapped and painfully so, and when offered the chance to help him, Anthea jumps at it. They must’ve lived for SOMETHING, must be the last for some greater purpose because there were so many other lambs who ‘deserved’ to live more, so if it’s for this prophecy then so be it. 

Game plays out, Anthea begins to see past the bitterness/anger Nariender puts up to see someone genuinely hurt by those he cared about and struggling to trust after while also seeing he’s not exactly perfect, whilst Nariender in turn starts to call Anthea out on the whole self-sacrificial stick as them just trying to die to make themself feel better instead of just facing the fact that they lived, others died, and that’s all there is to say. Slowly the two become friends, got an idea for example that Anthea starts to use the crown to show Nariender what he’s missed in the world as a means of comforting him/helping him remember not all was as bad as he recalls (aka they’re unintentional dates lol), Anthea also starts befriending the twins since they remind them of their own brothers which gains more Nariender friendship points at someone making his kids happy, and that friendship slowly turns to a genuine love from both sides. 

Anthea plans to keep her feelings hidden until after Narinder’s free, though secretly starts to work on an engagement present to confess by leaving the crown at the temple and going to the Lonely Shack at night. (the engagement also meant to be a symbolic ‘hey you don’t have to feel the same but just know I’ll be with you from now on I won’t leave you’). Is also Anthea finally taking steps to live life for herself and move on to something that makes her happy. Meanwhile Narinder has no idea what these feelings he’s having are-just that this weirdly kind, cheerful, but also melancholic and frustratingly self-sacrificial lamb makes his heart race, and is now for some reason being a little distant. He’s been trying to figure out how to return to the world above without sacrificing Anthea, but now has whatever this is distracting him, and thus has the crown follow one night, only hears part of Anthea discussing/being teased about planning a proposal but not who said proposal is for, and being unused to jealousy but very used to being cast aside and betrayed gets angry/scared/heartbroken and decides to just go through with the sacrifice anyway since it’s easier than trying to figure out why he’s feeling like this. 

Endgame battle hits, during which Anthea feels very confused/hurt by his order to sacrifice themself, as just the other day here was their dearest friend lightly scolding them for willingly dying just to visit. They try to reason with him and Narinder doesn’t want to hear it, so he orders the twins to fight Anthea which neither are willing but are forced, and Anthea has no choice but to kill both since Nariender refuses to hear reason. The anger, grief, guilt, and heartbreak they’ve bottled up finally boils over as red wings appear on their back like they briefly do in-game when the lamb refuses (this all started when I saw the scene in-game and thought the visual/symbolism was really cool), and they fight and defeat Nariender. 

When back at the compound Nariender’s just lashing out and cursing Anthea on the dais because he’s angry and hurt at her betraying him until Anthea just calmly tells him why he was spared-she loved him. Nariender finally looks at her and is hit with the realization that this lamb who’d always looked at him so warmly with adoration is now giving him the most blank, lifeless expression as she tells him he’s free to do as he pleases before leaving. And he now realizes that because he didn’t stop and think things through and instead let anger take the focus he completely neglected to realize that here was someone who loved him-who loved him even as they learned of his faults, saw his lowest, ect, and he just threw it all away over a misunderstanding he could've EASILY just asked about. He even sacrificed his guards (read sons) just because that was somehow easier than talking. Which begs the question, who else loved him? Who else did he miss? Was his imprisonment really all on the bishops, or was he also to blame? Whilst Anthea’s now stuck with a godhood she didn’t want, two more loved ones dead, and a broken heart. 

The two gotta learn where to go from here, the now blood-soaked ‘angel’ who’s begun to realize just how much giving pieces of yourself hurts, and a fallen god who’s begun to realize things aren’t as black and white as he thought. They get better! Eventually...

Might try making a fic, might just keep this as drabbles and rambles along with art, but right now I’m having fun making fanart/aus for the first time instead of just watching from the sidelines, so I hope you enjoy the ride. But for now enjoy some angsty doodles :D

[briarandhissecretgarden]

A Minecraft Movie Trailer Dive

Alright!! I have a hard time talking about things in a more real? manner like this but I feel like it's important to be honest and share thoughts.

So the Minecraft movie trailer is a trailer that exists and it's incredibly upsetting to say the least. i had always had hopes of it being entirely animated and be a sort fo film version of Minecraft: Story Mode but it's clearly not that at all. It's a shame too, it's incredibly disappointing to know it's live action as I am a HUGE advocate for animated movies and blockbusters and such. I think Minecraft is a game that is so fantastical and developed and normalized within it's own plane of existence that trying to translate it as anything other than an animated movie fundamentally goes against what the game is supposed to be.

Minecraft is creativity incarnate. It is a canvas for you to do quite literally anything with. And i think turning it into a pathetic cash grab live action movie is about as hard away as you can get from it's core values. You lazily slap real people to into the game to mock and laugh at and disrupt the flow of it's own universe. Treating this game as if it is nothing but a child' plaything despite the fact that people of any age can play it and find joy and excitement. I think the jokes and the overall childish view of the game is disgusting I think it belittles it, I think Minecraft as a whole, encourages all ages and helps develop personal understanding of the world around us and our own ideals. Maybe we'd like to build a large house, go on, here are hundreds of blocks to choose from! Loads of colors, be free!!! Perhaps you'd like to calm down and play with friends or even challenge yourselves, go on with multiplayer! There's servers and achievements!!! There's plenty of things to do. And I think one of the most important things is that, none of this is wrong or weird. None of this is an incorrect way of playing, nothing you do is bad. This isn't supposed to be humbling this isn't supposed to be stressful or something to laugh at. Your desires and plans are valid.

Perhaps as an autistic individual myself, I find that so comforting. I understand it's just a movie, but it's a movie that fundamentally gets everything wrong about this lovely game. I don't understand how these trailers and jokes and plot points are treated as if it's okay to be bad if it's for children. It's saddening.

Either way, moving onto a different subject that I have much more knowledge about and care too much of, the Piglins.

This trailer shows off that Piglins are meant to be the main antagonists, as well as the The Seer having a role in the plot. I have many problems with this, and I will be discussing this through the lens of my own experiences, especially as it comes to my race. (I am latino for those who don't know)

First things first, no, the Piglins aren't evil by any means. I know a lot of media has a very black and white view of them but honestly, take a moment to think about this.

Piglins are minding their business, having fun, living their lives, when a bunch of explorers come barging into their home, exploiting them for their willingness to barter, stealing their valuables right from their houses, and on top of that, being killed and hurt because they dare fight back and attempt to protect one another.

To me, it's incredibly disheartening to see Piglins being portrayed as some kind of aggressors, savages and barbaric monsters all because they want to protect their way of life. I don't understand how emotionless people seem to act toward them. They aren't even physically accurate to the game models. They wear clothes, they use tools, they talk amongst themselves. It's very disgusting to see how this group that is CLEARLY INTELLIGENT BTW (they make music, tools, clothes, armor, buildings, homes and have a complex social system) being drawn and shown in less clothes, more violent tendencies, a more destroyed home and life, even showing violence among themselves to portray them as anything other than the interesting and complex species they are.

I'm just tired of the racist undertones that most Piglin plots seem to have. I find it insulting to them, i find it concerning regarding the language used. 'barbaric' 'crude' 'savage'

Just makes me angry.

[dr-spectre]

If Callie wasn’t brainwashed then what happened? Wasn’t it like she just grew disillusioned with inkling society and decided to go underground?

Alright so, I've said this in other blog posts and i have gone into it multiple times, BUT! I'll try and sum it all up on what happened to Callie in Splatoon 2. It is very vague and i don't entirely blame people for coming to certain conclusions because the game didn't do a good enough job in my opinion, and the English translation has issues too which doesn't help at all...

So during Splatoon 1 and when it was getting content updates, we got to learn about Callie and Marie. If you look at the dialogue present in Naughty Vs. Nice, Early Bird Vs. Night Owl and Callie Vs. Marie Splatfests, their dialogue is rather harsh and personal towards each other, showing that Callie has these dark traits about her.

These mean and harsh qualities of Callie were built up since Splatoon 1 and they come into the forefront in Splatoon 2 and I'll go over that shortly.

After the final Splatfest and Marie's victory, the Squid Sisters became a lot more famous and stepped down from their news presenting duties and gave it to Pearl and Marina. During this period, Callie and Marie became more estranged with each other as Callie became more and more popular, meaning she got a LOT more busy and had to work day in and day out every single day at an acting gig. In the Squid Sister Stories web series, Callie is stated to be "lost at sea herself" meaning that her acting career and fame are taking a tole on her, and it's pretty easy to see that with the Sunken Scrolls in Splatoon 2.

At some point Callie and Marie managed to hang out and they decided that they would go to Calamari County to visit family. However.... As we know, it didn't pan out that way. Callie at some point in chapter 7 became flustered at work and basically ran off, which her manager thought she wanted to go home.

But... She didn't... She stumbled across DJ Octavio after he broke out from his snow globe (don't ask how, we don't know and plus, octopuses are very clever and can easily get out of trapped spaces).

Now, Octavio is a man who knows how to use manipulation and propaganda to his advantage. He is the leader of an entire race of people that are on the brink of collapse, it's either they all die, or he pulls the right strings to motivate his people to fight and take the Great Zapfish so that they don't die. And now we have an emotional and mentally unwell Callie who is suffering from so much attention and overwork, of course Octavio, the main antagonist, wanted to take advantage of that. Callie is a very powerful woman with the ability to influence and inspire others with her voice, of course Octavio wanted that kind of power to help his race and get them motivated again after their loss in Splatoon 1.

So what did he do? Did he grab her and kidnap her and put on some "evil brain warping shades" and brainwash her while she was kicking and screaming trying to stop him? WRONG!!!!!!!!!! As stated by the OFFCIAL Splatoon 2 relationship chart that i love to bring up all the time, there seemed to be an on going conversation about Callie joining the Octarians, Octavio possibly appealed to her sense of isolation, hidden resentment for Marie and her being so overworked. And she says "Ok, fine. I'll hear you out." Does that scream kidnapping to you? I don't think so.

She's even called "the lovable rebel" implying she felt some distain for Inkling society from the way they treated her and wanted to rebel. Would the developers and writers of a character who was forcibly brainwashed and kidnapped display as her a rebel and pose her like this? I don't think so.

Like you would not see Marina Agitando for example in these sort of poses in artwork because the circumstances and conditions are so vastly different.

So now let's get into those god damn mother fucking bitch ass hypnoshades. As their name suggests, they are shades with an element of hypnosis of some kind, if they weren't hypnotic shades and just turned people evil and forced Octarian ideals into their brains then they wouldn't be given that name. "Hypno" is a very specific word choice and it's done on purpose. Callie was hypnotized, not brainwashed, that word is only used in English translations of the game and outside media and if you ask any hardcore fan of a series made in Japan then you would know that English scripts kinda fuck up the Japanese ones most of the time. Take me for example, I'm a Sonic the Hedgehog fan, the Japanese versions of Sonic stories are vastly different from the Western versions in tone, dialogue, call backs, personalities, etc. Same thing with Splatoon unfortunately. Take the English translation of the Splatoon scripts with a MASSIVE grain of salt. Like a meteor sized grain of salt lmao.

Now, what is being hypnotized like? is it like being a mindless puppet that follows the orders of the person doing the hypnosis? Well... Nope. Not true actually. The way it' s portrayed in media is completely wrong and untrue. Hypnosis is similar to being in a flow state, or being incredibly relaxed while also having heighten attention and suggestibility. Imagine being in a daydream while still having hyper awareness of the stuff around you. Now that part about suggestibility is important because this is where people mess up. If a hypnotized person is given a suggestion that goes against their morals and ideologies, they will NOT!!!!!!!! follow through with that suggestion. If a hypnotized person is told to murder their family, they will not do so UNLESS they secretly want to murder them and it's in line with their psychotic and fucked up wishes.

If Octavio told Callie to murder Marie instead of Agent 4, she wouldn't follow through with the suggestion. Callie doesn't wanna murder Marie but instead she wants her to leave because their relationship is ruined. Callie doesn't mind trying to kill Agent 4 because firstly, she's mentally unwell and isn't thinking clearly from having a mental illness, and two, she doesn't have any personal attachments to Agent 4 so she can just listen to the suggestions from Octavio and follow through with them. Even in the rematches, Callie doesn't know Agent 4 all that well compared to Marie and it's clear Callie is still not doing so well after Splatoon 2.

Callie while under the hypnoshades is more like herself than not. Like this line for example is just typical Callie but she's more aggressive and mean.

If she was truly brainwashed then her personality would be A LOT more different. She would be a lot more subservient to Octavio and the Octarian race and her dialogue would show this too, but it does NOT! In fact Callie berates and talks back to Octavio during the final boss.

The only real differences between Callie and Hypno Callie is that she's more harsh and angry compared to regular Callie. However this anger... this rage... this hate was always there. It was always under the surface, and due to Callie's mental state from being overworked and now under hypnotic shades, that pain and anger is at the surface and is clouding her mind and making her not think rationally. She's more chaotic, she's aggressive and doesn't care for Marie anymore.

Now i do wanna discuss this line as it has been brought up multiple times to me and other discussions on Hypno Callie i see online.

First off, like i mentioned previously, the English translations of Splatoon stories and media sometimes gets it wrong. If you want examples then look at Commander Tartar and Marina's dialogue in Octo Expansion. You can look up retranslations of Octo Expansion to see the differences of the English and retranslated version. The only other mention of remixing a brain is in the Dutch translation. The other translations mention hypnosis and nothing about warping Callie's brain directly.

Second of all, DJ Octavio is... you guessed it... A DJ! He says musical terms to make puns and he's a loud personality.

In fact that "remix" line is actually a call back to the Splatoon 1 final boss and you know what, I'll give prompts for the English translation team for doing that... Still hate them for everything else tho lol.

DJ Octavio didn't literally remix her brain with evil brain warping shades. He is just saying that because it's to show that he got Callie on his side. So the "remixing" is just Callie becoming "evil" and hearing out Octavio.

Brainwashing implies that there is a forcible aspect to it, however from the evidence i just laid out, that cannot be the case as Octavio didn't force Callie into anything she didn't want to do. He didn't torture her, he didn't abuse her. He didn't put the shades on her by force as if he tried to do that he would get destroyed by the more energetic, younger and stronger squid woman that isn't a disabled 130 year old Octoling stuck in his octopus form.

He let her decorate bases and added glittery ink which motivated and inspired his people. Hell his approval ratings went up because the Octarians were happy and inspired by Callie's presence.

Now you may say "but didn't she lose her memories while under the shades and therefore she got brainwashed?"

Well.... Not really. I want you to put yourself in the shoes of Callie, you're in a very focused and hypnotic state, like being in a very concentrated flow state and you have a lot of anger and aggression in you. Your head is so cloudy and you're under a lot of mental distress. So imagine an ink bullet flying at your eyeball, flinging you out of that hypnotic state in a very fast fashion. It's like someone snapping their fingers in front of your face while you're concentrated on a task, or someone smacking you at the back of your head while you're working on something in a deeply concentrated manner. You are left confused and dazed and need a second to gather your composure back. Callie when the shades are removed from her, acts dazed and holds her head like she has a bad headache, only left to sing and dance cause she's an idol and that stuff is natural to her.

Some of the side effects that may occur when under hypnosis include headaches and nausea, and look at Callie when she's flung out of that hypnotic state, it looks like she has a headache and is in pain.

Now when Marie plays the Calamari Inkantation, what is actually happening here is that the song is energizing and motivating Callie. It is not freeing her from "brainwashing." That is a very common misconception about the song, implying that all Octarians are brainwashed and are just mindless drones when that is NOT TRUE AT ALL and is yet another case of bad translation. The song is just extremely catchy and it gives Octarians the motivation to wanna leave to the surface. It also makes Cuttlefish get the strength to break out of his restraints in Splatoon 1 and makes Smallfry transform into Hugefry. The song is so damn powerful and catchy, that's all it is, it is not a mind control cure, that is fucking false.

So what is happening with Callie is that the song is motivating her and flooding her head with good memories of her time with Marie. When the shades are flung off of her, she's still mad at Marie and still fights Agent 4, it takes a while but eventually she starts thinking more rationally, realizing that Marie has come to get her and what Callie has been doing was wrong. Songs are VERY powerful tools for memory and hearing a song you loved back when you were younger can bring out certain feelings and memories. Those happy memories flood Callie's mind and she goes "wait... what am i doing!? This isn't me, I REMEMBER! YEAH!" And she jumps into the air and transforms back into her iconic outfit sailor moon style.

With all of the information and context i presented, it really elevates everything that comes after. It makes Spicy Calamari Inkantation more powerful as a song as Callie has truly reunited with Marie. Fresh Start makes sense and fits perfectly with the narrative the writers wanted to tell. If you take the common and untrue narrative that people keep saying about Callie, Fresh Start literally makes zero sense in that untrue context.

It makes her eventual healing in Splatoon 3 and return to the public WAY MORE SATISFYING!

Callie has matured, she has grown up, she's more comfortable being in the spotlight again and can handle it as she has worked out her relationship with Marie. She used to suffer from being overworked and having an addiction to the shades as it gave her an escape from her life. She would rather be in a hypnotic state then go through her current life. It was only when Callie and Marie came together and truly changed things is when Callie was able to finally heal and get better.

That's why I'm so passionate about this, Callie truly went through a character arc, even it was rushed and poorly presented. I care about Callie and want people to get her story straight. Splatoon 2 was always about the Squid Sisters breaking up and eventually coming back together and becoming stronger. Callie is my comfort character and i want people to treat her better. She wasn't a powerless kidnap and brainwash victim. She was a woman with deep flaws, anger, sadness, aggression, that pain is gone now from her. She's finally... Happy. And that... makes me happy too.

[anamoon63]

Real Life Update and Sim Resolutions (sort of)

Hi guys, I hope 2025 is treating you and your sims games really well. I know I've been a little bit absent lately, but I needed a few days to recover from all the Christmas-New Year's Eve madness, which included two exhausting shopping afternoons, intense cooking, therapy sessions, (which were not suspended for the holidays), translation work (of course), and a dental treatment consisting of two root canals (one of which is still in progress), plus a last minute small emergency (also dental) as a result of eating so much candy. (Yeah, I know, getting old sucks, lol!).

Anyway, I'm not gone, and I'm ready to come back to the fullest with all my sims characters.

Regarding Sims 3, for the time being we'll continue with The Cho Brothers Hidden Springs, about Tyron, the oldest of the Cho's. Then we'll go back to college with Dale and Kelly, (I really hope I can finish that part this year, lol).

For Sims 4 we'll continue with Allan and his family, the Wilsons, and I'd also like to introduce some of my other Sims 4 characters, if possible, but no promises, because with all these Sims 4 updates I never know how my game is going to end up. 🙄

Also, at some point early this year, finally, my Time Traveler story will continue, I'm pleased to announce that the first two episodes are almost ready, I'm not saying an exact date because, again, I don't want to make promises, all I can tell you is that it's a matter of days before these new episodes see the light of day. So, folks, this is a good time to catch up with past episodes you might have missed, to re-read or start reading the story from the beginning if you've never done so. You will find the first two (complete) parts in the Time Traveler tab from the main menu of my WP blog, here.

If you just want to read the most recent TT episodes and posts, then you can go to the Time Traveler category in the side menu of said blog, here.

I hope I can continue reading all your guys' stories too, some of which I'm way behind on, but I'll catch up with all of you soon!

Last but not least, just as I mentioned in the title, this post is not just a real life update but also a response to the Sim Resolutions tag by my dear friend @nocturnalazure Thanks Noctie for tagging me! 🤗❤️

I don't usually make resolutions or set goals with my sims, cause I almost always end up breaking them. I don't set deadlines either, for the same reason, deadlines I leave for work, my sims stories are my happy place, something I do to relax, not to push myself. So, again, no resolutions, what I have just posted here is kind of the idea of what we will be seeing this year. Basically, there are still plenty of sims to go around!

Well, that's it, happy simming to you all, and please stay tuned! 😉

[daezedglownut]

I thought I’d already found all the possible little hints in XI that Sylvando/Sylvia is trans-coded.

There’s the throwaway party chat line at the French private school:

Ah, to travel from place to place collecting mini medals, learning all about the world and blossoming into lovely young ladies! The students of this school are so lucky!

If we find any mini medals on our travels, we should bring them back here right away so that we can blossom into lovely ladies too! Wouldn’t that be wonderful, honey?

There’s the fact that Sylv in Act 2 bends down to pick up items in the exact same way the girls at the academy practice with mini medals, echoing the statue at the gates of ‘La Collectrice’ - “an elegant young lady picking up a gold medal in a distinctly dignified fashion”.

Very demure. Very mindful.

There’s also the name angle to consider. Though it could be argued that if you leave home and don’t want news of where you are getting back to your dad, you’d probably go by a pseudonym or a stage name. So I don’t think that Sylvando/Sylvia not going by Norberto is a very strong piece of evidence at all.

Adding to that, the fact he ran away from home could yet be seen as a gay young man running away because he didn’t feel accepted at home. But it could also be a trans character doing the exact same thing, so I’d say it’s still very plausible. Not to mention Sylvando inadvertently following in his mother’s footsteps during Act 2 with his gang of gay little ducklings, as mentioned by the Ringmaster is actually a really cute detail, however you want to slice it:

I saw her when I was just a child. She was simply the most incredible performer… She led a parade of people out of a kingdom destroyed by monsters, and on to a new home and a brighter future. And she kept them smiling from start to finish! You can’t imagine how inspirational it was for those of us who were lucky enough to wave them on their way.

You remind me of her, you know. The look on her face as she proudly led all those people out of danger, spreading joy and laughter wherever she went…

Then there’s the fact Sylvando/Sylvia goes by female pronouns in the JP version of the game. Again, not concrete evidence based on the fact that “extremely flamboyant gay male characters” in JP media are often (sadly) treated in the exact same way, reducing them to a comic relief sort of “hodgepodge mix of everything queer” Okama stereotype. This doesn’t erase their cisness or their homosexuality. But I can see why from a western viewpoint it might seem like really strong evidence of their transness when it’s something particular to Japan that got lost in translation. The closest comparison I can think to make to “make it make sense” is in the west where gay femme—but entirely cis—males call one another “she” and “her”.

However, I found what could be the most concrete “HEAR ME OUT” evidence completely by accident:

Boxer shorts are a common suit of armor in the Dragon Quest series. They are generally considered a gag piece of equipment notable for their low defensive properties and they can only be worn by male characters.

And wouldn’t you know it, only the Luminary, Erik, Rab, and Hendrik can equip the boxer shorts in XI…

I checked.

Now. I don’t want to say this is canonical or 100% proof by any means. Sylvando could just be a flamboyantly gay man who has too much self respect than to be seen dead in those striped monstrosities. After all, I can’t imagine someone like Jasper would deign to equip them either lol

What I love most about Sylvando/Sylvia is how open to interpretation the character is. I’ve seen so many conflicting theories that are all written beautifully, and all hold merit. (I myself enjoy dabbling with how I interpret the character depending on the needs of the story I’m writing, and whatever tf my gender is doing on any given day…)

And the best thing about Sylvando/Sylvia is the overwhelmingly positive reception to the character from fans. How Sylv could’ve been a cheap throwaway gag without substance, yet arguably became the character who ‘stole the show’ at every turn and got some of the best storylines.

In the end, I didn’t want to save the world for the rest of Erdrea - I just wanted to do it so Sylv could go home and make up for lost time with his adorable, crotchety dad! 🥺💕

[dkniade]

Localization: Tartaglia’s Title & In-Game Self Introduction

I feel that Tartaglia’s codename as a harbinger, “公子” (gong1zi3), is better translated to “Young Master” rather than “Childe” since the former is more easily understood and blends in with Liyue culture (more on that shortly). Does the English word “Childe” sound like a title or a name to the average player I wonder? Even though the title “childe” refers to “an archaic English word that refers to the son of a nobleman who has not yet attained knighthood” or so the etymology section on his wiki page says.

And I believe the name Tartaglia comes from the stock character in traditional Italian theatre, commedia dell’arte. Please correct me if I’m wrong, but “Tartaglia” translates to “the stutterer”, I think? I’m not familiar with Italian culture; I wonder if the stock character has any relations to being a childe.

The Chinese term 公子 understandably comes up often in Chinese 武侠/wuxia (Chinese martial arts) and 仙侠/xianxia (spiritual cultivation, fantasy with gods/immortals/etc) genres, so if Tartaglia really wanted to blend in with Liyue… I mean, if his title was “Young Master” then it wouldn’t be suspicious if in Liyue you hear someone be referred to as “Young Master”. It could be Xingqiu for all they know. Of course in the game the word “childe” is pronounced (?) like “child” but if said “child” sounds like a young man, wouldn’t the facade be broken easily…?

Zhongli and Traveler calling him 公子 all the time wouldn’t rouse suspicion if in English it’s just “Young Master”. “Young Master did this. Young Master was at that place,” sort of feel.

More importantly, his introduction:

Edit: Final line can be better translated as “Things like names are really just aliases” for a casual tone more fitting to the original

.

(Original Chinese)

？？？：你们可以叫我「公子」喔。

派蒙：哇…性格好糟糕，救过我们一次就把我们当仆人？

公子：哈哈，我没有那个意思。「名字」这种东西啊，只是代号而已。

.

(Official English Localization)

???: Call me Childe.

Paimon: Childe? What, so we're supposed to dote on you?

Childe: Haha, no no, not at all. It's an alias of sorts.

.

(Actual English Translation)

???: You can just call me “Young Master”.

Paimon: What kind of attitude is this?* You saved us once and now you’re treating us like servants?

Young Master: Haha, that’s not what I meant.** Things like “names”… are just aliases.***

.

* T/N: literally, “Wow, what a terrible personality you’ve got.”

**T/N: literally, “Haha, I don’t have such intentions”

***T/N: literally, “codenames”

[coolfire333]

Still thinking about the mercs as parents...I'm being really indulgent and assuming they're all good with kids in their own way, in the sense that they really would love a child of their own (even if they're terrible influences or let their kids do dangerous things) but anyway here's my thoughts on each of them as dads:

Scout: not used to being responsible for someone else since he's everyone's favorite youngest child of 8. He's a bit awkward with it and scared at first but he'll catch on eventually. He's not the best influence though and definitely teaches his kid things that shouldn't be taught to young children. Family means a lot to him considering his own dad left early in his life so he'll always try to be there for his own kid

Soldier: who let this man have a child. He loves his kid with all his heart but he is a terrible influence in the sense that he doesn't understand how fragile children can be until they get older. He tries his best and likes roughhousing and playing strategic games like capture the flag so at least he's fun to be around

Pyro: surprisingly good with kids! He's got a childish whimsy that translates very well into keeping children entertained. He'll probably play pretend with his kid for hours if you let him. He'll teach his kid all about the usefulness and beauty of fire (and probably commit a ton of arson in the process so he's not exactly an ideal role model)

Demoman: very loyal to his family (despite how messed up his backstory with his parents is) so he'd do anything for his child. Not the most attentive dad in the world but he tries his best and would never do anything to hurt his kid. He is very chill and goes with the flow when it comes to parenting. He's fun at parties and would love to pass the time having a drink with his kid on the porch in the evening

Heavy: he grew up with little sisters so he loves kids and pretty much knows exactly what to do. Most responsible merc when it comes to parenting by far. Loves his family so he'd really find it special to have a kid of his own, he'd probably worry a lot but once the initial fears subside he'd be a great dad. If he has flaws it's that he'd very much baby a kid past an age where that'd be appropriate or wanted so that may seem a bit condescending (he's only doing it because he's extremely protective though)

Engineer: he doesn't entirely know what to do at first but he's very genuine about it. Loves helping his kid make things and playing music together. Would totally kill it at a parent-child science fair making all sorts of weird gadgets that do new (and probably terrible) things. He's got a pretty big heart and is generally pretty tolerant of things that other parents would be annoyed with

Medic: who let this man have a child (part 2). Besides the obvious concerns of him using his own kid as a guinea pig for all kinds of weird experiments he'd actually be an ok dad. Very proud of his child and pays very close attention to stuff like growth milestones. Also would totally kill it at a parent-child science fair. Probably helps his kid make all kinds of weird Frankenstein-esque, cobbled-together toys and is very blunt about the whole "circle of life" thing

Sniper: oh man he has no idea how to do this properly, he's just gonna try to remember how his parents raised him and give it his best shot. He's a bit distant but always makes sure to spend quality time with his kid even if he doesn't say much. Probably takes his kid out for archery lessons, just in case his talent runs in the family. He felt awkward growing up (never knew he wasn't actually Australian by birth) so he makes sure to never treat his own child as less-than

Spy: oh boy. Assuming he actually sticks around to raise a child (this time), he'd actually be a decent dad. He definitely overthinks things, is very strict and overprotective, and is kinda a "no fun allowed" type compared to the other mercs in that he wants his kid to have the most normal and safe life possible. Spends time and effort on a good education, especially regarding the finer things in life. He prays that his kid doesn't "end up like him" despite not really elaborating on what he means by that. Overall he doesn't trust himself to raise a child properly but if forced to he's actually more than capable of it

Anyway these are just my thoughts. Again this is probably not the most realistic but I'm oddly optimistic about this kind of thing, plus I think it's interesting and kinda funny tbh imagining how the mercs might be as fathers :)

[frozenjokes]

Lost In Translation

“Right. You all have thirty minutes, or until I get tired of you; a far more likely outcome to happen in very little time, so think twice before you two go on yelling and talking over each other,” Etho threw an aggressive point at Scar and Grian from their place on the sand, tail flicking irritably. They had some sort of human game in front of them, thinly sliced human scraps with shapes and symbols Mumbo didn’t understand, but given Etho’s less than joyous mood, Mumbo held off on the questions. He got the feeling he may have been pushing it already by asking Etho to come back to the shore to speak with all of them, but the other mermaid had only looked tired, not completely unwilling. Mumbo understood. Very little peace with those two. He nodded along as Etho translated what they’d said to Mumbo, but startled at their next words, ‘You first, Mumbo. Say whatever you want to say.’

Oh goodness. He hadn’t prepared for this. Well- obviously he’d thought about what he wanted to say, but he hadn’t expected to be first! Etho made a small huffing noise in response to Mumbo’s anxious clicking, which was entirely indistinguishable between amusement or annoyance, but they didn’t say anything, fins patient. Not patient, however, were the two humans on the shore, boring holes with their barely contained excitement right into Mumbo’s soul. Goodness. Oh god. To escape their eyes, Mumbo dove into his bag of trinkets.

‘Gifts. I want to give them their gifts. Music boxes. The music boxes. Tell them they’re fragile, please, very fragile. I don’t know if they work above water, and I don’t quite see why they wouldn’t, but I’ve never tested it- I don’t want them to break. Tell them they’re fragile.’ Mumbo dug out the boxes, gingerly placing them where the water met the shore and backing away.

“He brought you two both a gift from where he’s from, a very important cultural thing, so for the love of god, don’t break them. They’re music boxes, they play mermaid songs. They work underwater, so don’t try to play them outside of it. He wants to stress that they’re fragile, but I think Mumbo thinks humans are a bit clumsier than..” Etho trailed off, staring the two humans down, “Nevermind. Treat these like glass. The boxes are sturdy, though.”

“Okay, I’m making a conscious effort not to be offended by that.”

“Gifts?” Scar, barely contained, squealed over the tail end of whatever Grian had said, launching himself toward the water in a way that made Mumbo’s stomach lurch. He was going to break it. No doubt.

“You’re making him nervous, Scar,” Etho mumbled, and Scar stopped short over the boxes, looking almost startled from Etho to Mumbo to Etho to Mumbo to Etho again.

“What? He’s not doing anything. Did he say something?”

“No. Do you say something everytime you’re uncomfortable?”

“No. Usually I make a face about it though,” Scar gestured vaguely to Mumbo, who was really wishing Etho would do the translation thing he came here to do right now.

“You own a zoo, Scar. You are the animal guy,” Etho sounded exasperated, which was really making Mumbo anxious now. Come on, Scar! Don’t ruin this. But Scar didn’t look any less confused; if anything, he looked frustrated, brows furrowed and frowning.

“Alright, great, yeah, I do animals. I don’t know if you noticed, but that’s a whole ass person!” Scar made a grander gesture, and Etho flicked his tail, but Scar wasn’t done, “I know Mumbo doesn’t really emote like people do, but he’s obviously sentient! I don’t understand how dehumanizing him is helping anyone! I mean, besides making some people feel less badly about plotting to murder and sell the bits of our friend here-“

“Okay.” Grian bristled, but Scar didn’t stop.

“I won’t draw a line between the two of us like we’re any different. I don’t respect Mumbo any differently than I respect the both of you, and that isn’t to say I think down on Animals In General either, because I don’t, obviously, but it isn’t the same. It kind of bothers me that you think of Mumbo so differently- especially you-“

“Scar.” Etho said flatly, eyes lidded, “Shut up.” Scar blanched, but didn’t speak, so Etho went on, “That,” he pointed to Mumbo, “Is not a human. That is a mermaid. I have no idea what’s running through that head of yours, but Mumbo is not a human person. You can not read him like a human person. He does emote, quite expressively at that. With his fins. Just like a dog or cat does with their ears, or some other equivalent.“ ‘-you complete fucking buffoon, what the fuck are you going on about.’

“Oh.” Scar stared at Mumbo for a moment, who was doing a poor job at pretending he wasn’t very irritated right now. “Oh. I see it.”

“Have you not been looking at his fins?” Grian asked, the question more genuine than anything, but Scar clearly interpreted the tone otherwise, hunching his shoulders with a defensive huff.

“Of course I have! When they’re moving a lot I do! But they don’t usually move that much.” Was Scar angry? Mumbo was having a difficult time telling. He didn’t really sound angry- more.. squeaky. What did it mean when a human was squeaky? Grian opened his mouth to say something, but clearly thought better of it. Etho did not have the same reservations.

“You haven’t been looking at his face, have you?” Etho paused, fins flaring in sudden thought, “You haven’t been looking at my face have you?”

“Of course I’ve been looking at your face!” Scar threw up his arms, “I look at all of you!”

“That- Scar. Mermaids don’t make expressions like humans do. We literally do not have the muscles in our faces- mermaids don’t emote like that! Do you know how weird it was to go from nothing to my face just Moving all of the time?” Etho’s exasperation seemed to shift, looking more like he had been wronged by The World than just Scar.

“Are you really worried about where I’m looking or do you just want to complain,” Scar huffed with just a hint of a smile, and honestly, Mumbo had completely given up trying to puzzle out how anyone here was feeling.

“To complain!”

Scar snorted, “Well then, human Etho doesn’t make many faces anyway, so I don’t bother looking much at all.”

“Good! I don’t want anyone looking at my face while I’m possessed. Scratch that, I don’t want anyone looking at me ever.”

“We can all tell.”

“Good!”

“What.” Mumbo cut in firmly, unable to take any more of this, before remembering there was someone here who he could complain to in far more detail, ‘You two are just as bad as Scars and Red. Do I get to know what you’re bickering about, or do I have to stay in the dark forever?’

Etho blinked, staring for a moment before looking back to Scar, “He’s mouthy.” Mumbo bristled with a short hiss.

“What? What did he say?” Grian perked up, then, after a quick glance at Mumbo, puffed up defensively, “Well I bet he feels left out! No wonder!”

‘They’re defending you,’ Etho clicked with a short gesture, and Mumbo was too struck between vindication and annoyance to react, ‘Scars wasn’t using their brain. They’re weird about you.’

‘Weird? What does that mean?’

Etho rolled their fins, a wordless non-answer, and Mumbo had to consciously lay his own fins flat to avoid screaming his frustration to the world. Humans! The WORST.

‘I don’t like how you talk to each other,’ Mumbo huffed, fins twitching, ‘You didn’t used to be so mean. Now whenever any of you are together all you do is argue without any regard for anyone else. What changed? Are you all in season or something?’

Etho gaped at Mumbo for a moment, a human expression, before breaking out into that odd human half-laugh, wheezing a howl with flared gills. The longer this went on, the more Mumbo was convinced that Etho might actually just be dying, and given the strained looks on Grian and Scar’s faces, it seemed they were thinking similarly, but Etho did straighten up eventually, making a gesture of wiping something from their face that Mumbo didn’t understand the meaning of.

“Mumbo thinks you two have been so bad to each other because you’re horny, and he’s right.” Etho wheezed (laughed?) once more, holding their chest, but whatever they’d said (a translation, maybe?) definitely had an impact, both Grian and Scar jumping in alarm, their faces ranging from strained to outright distressed.

“What- how- Mumbo!” Scar wailed, but in his loss for words, Grian took over.

“We haven’t- Where’s he gotten this impression from! We hardly even visit together at all! What, did we argue one time and he’s just- What exactly did he say!?”

Well, Mumbo hadn’t really been serious, but he was starting to think he was onto something now. Huh. The more you know. Maybe he should make a mental note to avoid humans in the late summer- how long was this going to last? Etho said something in human that Mumbo missed, Grian only cutting through his thought with the sheer volume of his protest.

“That is not true!”

“Is it not, though?” Scar looked thoughtful, but the facade cracked when he snickered at Grian’s affronted expression; wow, the way humans changed color was so odd! Could they turn colors other than red? Mumbo was pretty sure he’d have seen it by now if they could, but still.

‘It’s complicated,’ Etho settled at that conclusion, infuriatingly vague, ‘Humans don’t quite have a season like you’re thinking, but they’ve both been worked up for a while now. Human relationships tend to reach a point of complexity that is rarer for us. Every relationship dispute I’ve known in the deep is dealt with..’ Etho paused, frequent clicks filling the silence as they thought, ‘Well, if we’re unhappy enough to fight with teeth.. No. Whatever they’re doing isn’t normal for humans either. Freaks.’

Mumbo cocked his head, just slightly, curiosity like claws longing to pull the whole story from Etho’s throat, ‘They’re fighting over someone?’

Etho snorted, ‘I guess you could say that.’ Wow. Etho was quite possibly the worst person in the world they could have had to translate between them. What did that MEAN. Etho sure wasn’t going to elaborate, their attention already back on Grian and Scar, who were still bickering, though quite a bit redder in the face than before.

“Alright, who’s next,” Etho cut in, eternally unamused, “Less uncomfortable flirting, more Mumbo.”

“That was not flirting!” Grian hissed, but Scar was unfazed, eyes bright at Mumbo’s name.

“Me first, me first! Please tell Mumbo ‘I love you!’ from Scar. Or just teach Grian how to say it, and maybe one day I’ll be able to say it too.”

“You-“ Etho snorted, “Seriously? That’s all you want to say?”

“That’s what’s come to mind right now. I mean, most of the time we run into issues it’s kinda on the spot, y’know? I didn’t really bring any human stuff for him to look at today- augh! What a complete missed opportunity! Then I’d have more to talk about! I mean, I could talk about my week like I do normally, but I don’t really feel very strongly about it. I do that anyway, regardless if Mumbo can understand me or not. He likes listening!”

“He likes listening, huh?” Etho huffed, but the way their fins were waving, Mumbo was pretty sure they were amused. Grian snorted as well, but raised his hands in defense when Scar turned to admonish the two of them, though Etho didn’t look much like they cared at all, eyes narrowed and tail twitching in a sharp focus that lasted so long, Scar looked up, confused by the silence.

“Is something wrong?”

“Uh..” Etho’s fins lowered, looking embarrassed, “No, I just.. I’m not entirely sure how to do that. It’s- the language is complicated, and a lot of it isn’t even said out loud- and big feelings- love is a big feeling. You usually communicate something like that with song, and never on the behalf of someone else- I mean, maybe, but the context would have to be there.. Everything I’m thinking of saying with words just sounds.. Well, he might get the wrong message. This is an unusual thing for a mermaid to just say to another.”

“You guys don’t tell each other you love them?”

“We do, just not the way humans do. Most of it is wordless, and most of that is acts of service. Time in each other’s company. If a mer isn’t fond of another, they kind of just swim away.”

Scar chewed on his lip, distress in his furrowed brow, “But I want him to know.”

“I’m sure he knows, Scar,” Grian tried, but despite the soft tone, this didn’t seem to make Scar feel any better.

“Can you try? Even if it’s a little odd sounding or not quite right, I don’t care, he’ll still get the idea.”

Etho didn’t look convinced, fins wavering, “Maybe now is a good time to say I’m a bit rusty.. It- it’s been a while since I’ve been home, even before I became human, and listen, I’m not looking for sympathy or anything, but I lived in a pretty remote place with pretty stony inhabitants, and they were not the most warm or loving supports-“

“Etho,” Scar crouched to Etho’s level, “Any time, any place, I will always be free if you want to talk about how your parents never taught you how to say ‘I love you’-“

“Oh god, no. Absolutely not. Also, Scar, again, that is not how the mermaid language-“

“-But it doesn’t matter to me how you say it or if it’s awkward or whatever. I don’t care if the translation is completely incomprehensible. It would just mean a lot to me to be able to tell him, that’s all. That’s all I want to say, I won’t bother you with anything else.”

“Somehow I doubt that,” Etho returned dryly, but Scar looked so desperately hopeful, so intensely genuine, and despite avoiding eye contact, Etho still cracked, “Okay. Just give me a second.”

…

‘Scars,’ Etho started, and for an uncomfortably long time, that was it, though they kept shifting their tail in a gesture Mumbo didn’t really recognize.. Was Etho trying to say something, or were they just nervous? Without the mobility in the water, it would be a lot harder to speak properly, but Etho made no move to abandon their human game. Etho made a couple sounds like he was testing the language, but perked up a moment later, looking hopeful. ‘How do you say it, ‘love?’ On behalf of someone else?’

Mumbo straightened with a soft click; ah! They weren’t sure of the translation! That made sense, especially when Etho had been away for so long with no one to talk to- they were still fluent of course, just a few things slipped through the cracks- wait a minute.

‘Love?’

‘To love. A friend’s affirmation. Humans like to affirm each other often.’

Mumbo’s fins waved, light amusement, ‘They say we are friends, then. That is sweet.’ But Etho wasn’t satisfied, tail fin thumping against the grass.

‘Stronger feeling. Deeper.’ Surprise set Mumbo’s fins on end, but Etho was distressed by the reaction, waving their hands in what had to be a frantic human gesture, ‘Not that deep!’

‘You’re confusing me.’

‘Scars is your friend. They feel strongly, they wanted you to know. A human gesture. Friendship sets a distance. Scars feels closer- there is no distance, he wants you to know. It is not- not- mating. Between? No. Forget I spoke.’ Etho put their head in their hands. “I’ve ruined it.”

“What? What did you say?” Scar didn’t look any bit alarmed, though Grian behind him was glancing from Etho to Mumbo and back again, wary. Mumbo had little idea what to make of that.. Everyone except Scar seemed to be nervous, but Scar was always the confident type. Was this something nerve wracking?

“I don’t know! I don’t know. Who knows what he took from that!”

“You could ask?” Grian suggested, but Etho shook his head fiercely.

“I’m never speaking again.”

Hm. They seemed to be distressed. It was overall difficult to tell, but the general vibe made this seem like some sort of confession? Poor Etho, Mumbo wished he could have been more helpful with the translation. Even Scar looked a little down now, though, humans tended to absorb each other’s emotions quite strongly. Scar wanted.. not courtship, apparently, but not friendship either? What did that mean? Something about puzzling out Etho’s words had the logical part of Mumbo’s brain firing rapidly, but the moment that slipped, he felt his heart rate rise and his fins in turn. Did- Just the idea had him so flustered- humans! What was Mumbo going to do with them!

The three of them began to talk again on the shore, but Mumbo didn’t even try to listen, lost in the fantasy world where someone like that would even be possible. Had he misunderstood? But Scar must not have seen any issues if he intended to make a grand confession out of it, even if translation problems got in the way. Did humans have more stages between friendship and partnership than mermaids? Is that what Etho had meant by ‘between?’ Perhaps Scar meant to gauge interest, see how Mumbo reacted.. Is that why Grian was so nervous? He wanted this to go well? Oh, poor Scar! Mumbo hadn’t given any reaction at all! No wonder he was disappointed!

Actually, before Mumbo got ahead of himself here, how did he feel about this? Intrigued, surely, but for the right reasons? Scar could be abrasive, certainly, but Mumbo always got the impression his heart was in the right place, and he was always so patient, wasn’t he? He loved to swim, loved to try keeping up with Mumbo when he had no chance, loved to play- oh goodness, Scar had been bringing Mumbo gifts for as long as he could remember! Was that- had Scar always been interested in him? How could Mumbo have been so daft!

In his defense, this felt a little like an objectively odd thing to happen. Scar was always so full of energy, but Mumbo had never considered part of the reason to be infatuation! Mumbo was aware he did well for himself aesthetically, most if not all having to do with his size, but Scar had little base of comparison.. though, maybe humans didn’t care for the same attributes? They had eyes, for one; distinct features mermaids could sense without sight probably didn’t matter as much to humans. Maybe Scar liked Mumbo’s fins? They were colorful, weren’t they? Oh, Mumbo loved color.. Humans had quite good ones, though not as good as a lot of fish. But the way they wore color, oh, Mumbo would kill for some human clothes..

Perhaps he’d gotten off topic. How did he feel about Scar? Scar.. Mumbo liked Scar. He appreciated that Scar met him where he was most comfortable, spending hours trying to teach words of a foreign language to.. varying levels of success. It was damn hard, frustrating at the best of times, but that didn’t seem to bother or discourage the human.

Scar was also mildly terrifying in every way, and Mumbo was never sure if the human would survive the next week. In fairness, he didn’t know how humans survived at all, but at least Grian seemed to value his life!

Goodness, how odd it was to be considering a human of all things.. But they were sentient, weren’t they? Mumbo couldn’t really find a problem with this. Experimentally, this seemed like an incredible opportunity! Scar wasn’t looking for any firm commitments, and that was fine; Mumbo wasn’t about to trade scales over Scar anyway, especially given their distance. Oh, this was sweet, wasn’t it? Scar was very sweet..

Ah! Mumbo had so many gifts to make up for! He nearly forgot Etho altogether, just about to turn tail when the other mer spoke.

‘Red wants to apologize for the net, and for how he tried to kill you afterwards. They-‘

‘RED-‘ Mumbo’s head spun, that little tidbit setting his fins completely on end and quivering, ‘RED TRIED TO WHAT!?’

Etho stared, glanced at Grian, then back again. “Oh. That’s awkward.”

“I- What did he say-?” Grian squeaked, distress clear, though he could not be nearly as horrified as Mumbo.

“He didn’t know,” Etho said simply, and Scar drew a sharp breath.

“Oooh, yeah, that is bad. That is. Hm.”

“HE DIDN'T KNOW!? He didn’t- what did he think I-” Grian shrieked, and that really frightened Mumbo, jumping back just a bit further away. “Oh god. Oh god.” Grian stopped, turning to Mumbo stiffly, eyes alight with- an emotion, surely- ‘I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry-‘

Etho cackled, the noise more human sounding than any of their other ‘laughs,’ while Scar only sat in the sand, hands over his eyes.

‘I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry-‘ (and so it went for quite a while longer)

[ikemen-translations]

Mugenro & the Sleepless Butterfly: prologue 10/10

Warning: this game is +18 so if you are minor do not interact! English is not my native language and the translation was made with Google Translate and modified by me but I don't not know Japanese and English is not my first language so there may be errors.

This is a fanmade translation, please support cybird buying their stories, if we are lucky we will have this game in english.

Gashadokuro: "They are your partner for tonight. I'm sure it will be a special, wonderful, and unforgettable night."

MC: "These people are...male prostitutes?"

Gashadokuro: "Yes! My recommendation is..."

Gashadokuro: "This is Yato-san! He is the most popular male prostitute in Mugenrou."

Gashadokuro: "He's called the ice man, but I think he's actually a kind person."

Gashadokuro: "And this is Kuzuha-san! He's an incredible person who has garnered support from a wide range of people."

Gashadokuro: "The way he receives fleeting love from all sorts of people makes him the male prostitute among male prostitutes."

Gashadokuro: "This is Mr. Rai. He's a charming man with a mature air of composure."

Gashadokuro: "What's particularly noteworthy is that he is able to see through the masochistic tendencies of others, he is a true sadist."

Gashadokuro: "And this is Ryo-san. He's a kind and reliable person who treats everyone with kindness."

Gashadokuro: "He's kind to everyone, but he never gives anyone anything special, and many people are hoping to become his disciple!"

Gashadokuro: "Next up is Tsubaki! He's a clean freak who doesn't even allow kissing, and usually specializes in a certain butterfly."

Gashadokuro: ``However, there are rumors that it uses various tools and sometimes the power of plants to give you a unique pleasure.''

Gashadokuro: "And this is Heiron-san, who is in some ways a person to watch out for. He's a man brimming with dangerous charm..."

Gashadokuro: "From what I've heard, they relentlessly and thoroughly attack the other person until they break..."

Gashadokuro: "And lastly, this is Shishio-san. He's a male prostitute with a habit of serving others and is filled with a spirit of service."

Gashadokuro: "You can take the offensive sometimes, or be completely served, and any wish you have will be granted."

(Hey, do I know these people...?)

That's what I thought, but perhaps because I was in a dream, my mind was hazy and unclear.

Gashadokuro: "So, MC-san, who would you like to spend the best night with?"

MC: "Umm, well, I guess so..."

(If I had to choose one, I would choose...)

Since it's nothing more than a fleeting illusion, no one would blame me for indulging in my "greatest dream."

I looked once more at each of the male prostitutes in line, then made up his mind and pointed to one of them.

MC: "I want to spend time with this person"

The dreams I had as a child were all innocent ones.

But right now, it's not enough.

A mysterious and lewd, exquisite dream that cannot be told to anyone.

With our wet breaths intertwined.

Hold me tight to my heart.

If you are completely immersed and drowning to the point of not being able to breathe, then go deeper and deeper.

Is this love and joy I feel really just a dream?

Previous / Routes

[merakiui]

Oh so real!! Aaa I would love to learn more about RSA. It's been, like, what? 4 and a half years now? They've gotta give us something eventually!! (coping) I do think in general we should get more fun traveling events. I know we're getting those obviously with the hometown events, but I'd love to learn some more about the world that isn't the few countries surrounding Sage's Island? Like we still have no idea where Sam's hometown (Port O' Bliss) is! Though considering what Sam's twisted from maybe they could be saving it for something like halloween??? They probably won't tbh but it WOULD be really cool.

I want to update and say I unfortunately did Not pull b7 eel cards (Jade got me to about 87 before the banners ended, no chance to pull on Floyd 💔 so greedy) so I'm handing in my Jade lovers card and twirling his poor twin around. Floyd wouldn't do me and my savings like Jade did. Trust. This does remind me actually to reread some of your Floyd fics ,, it HAS been awhile I fear

It is a really cool feature!! And AAAA I LOVE BARB !! We share,, many fictional men. Right down to my poor poor childhood crush on Kyoya. Reiji though has plagued my brain for YEARS I would love to see what all you think of him if you ever do read a full translation!! There's been fan-made english patches made actually for the first two Dialovers games on the vita if you have a pc and patience with the silly silly world of emulators. It's how I did his Haunted Dark Bridal route :-) and goodness what a trip that game is!! Ohh Reiji and Laito the interesting little critters you are,,,,

Vampires though in general,, auughfhh,, I think about vampire fish a good bit honestly. I can't remember rn if I've stumbled across any works like that but maybe I should check ao3 after this,,, for science. of course. Also don't worry about answering these quickly or anything. You could respond to this in a month and I'd still have the same joy reading your response as I would if you'd responded immediately. So always take your time.

(Also I wasn't sure how to throw this into my ask, but have you ever shared your twst friend codes here? If not, would you be open to doing so? If you aren't it's totally chill!! But I'd been wondering for awhile :]! )

- :3 anon

Begging twst for an RSA event!! OTL I want to see the inside of RSA and see more characters from there,, more Neige and Che'nya!!! Omg and it would be so fun to learn more about places beyond Sage's Island and the other areas nearby. I would love more Sam crumbs, especially hometown crumbs!! Thinking about a Princess and the Frog inspired Halloween event,,,, AAAAA THAT WOULD BE SO AMAZING!!! OTL OTL hoping with all of my heart for something.....

No eels... (◞‸◟；) I am sorry you couldn't bring either of them home. Those rotten eels!!! ( ｡ •`ᴖ´• ｡) how can they be so troublesome and slippery!!! Friendship ended with Jade. Floyb is the new bestie and he would never treat you or your savings in such a disrespectful manner! Certainly not in the way Jade did. I hope he will comfort you more than Jade ever could. <3

We are on the same wavelength, :3 anon!!! Immaculate taste as always for us hehehe!! We are passing the fictional men around and letting them spin in our brains like conveyor belt sushi! I definitely want to learn more about Reiji because he was one of the brothers I sort of,,,, ignored due to my lack of interest. ^^;;; but now I am very intrigued. What do you MEAN he creates drugs and potions and other nefarious things!!!! I fear I am not immune to a cordial smile and the drugs slipped into my tea (winking and nudging Reiji). How terrible it would be if attractive vampire with glasses did that to me...... uuwaaaa,,, I want to be able to play those fan-made patches!!!! One day I shall have a PC that allows me to unlock full gamer potential like Idia. >:D haunted dark bridal route sounds so fascinating... 👀

AND LAITO!!!! Dare I say,,,,, what if Cater x Laito crossover!!!! Cater in Laito's outfit,,,, VAMPIRE CATER?!?!?!?!?!?! OTL my brain chemistry was irreversibly altered when I first watched that church altar scene in the anime. LAITO, THE VAMPIRE THAT YOU ARE!!!!! Truly the most interesting of critters.

Vampire fish my beloveds. AAAA I just love vampires. <3 gothic vampire Azul is amazing, but I also love modern-day vampire Floyd....... and of course vampire Jade who loves playing with the cute vampire hunter who is after him. Many thoughts for those three. May you find plentiful vampire works in your very scientific ao3 search!!!

UUWAAA you're too kind and patient,,, 🥺 thank you so very much... I would feel so terrible if I responded as late as a month later!!! orz but it's a relief to know you would still be happy to read my thoughts. Please also take your time in replying!! There is never any rush.

:o I haven't shared it before!! Here it is below! Feel free to add me as a friend! My profile is very Rollo as of this moment. I hope my level 105 tako card can be of use in battle. 🐙 ✨

[archivalofsins]

I realized one thing about me I'm pretty straight-forward. Especially when it comes to things I like and this can come off as complaining incessantly, being too critical, being too anal, talking people down or being uncompromising.

I don't miss the humor and irony in fans of a series about biases and opinions feeling that others are too opinionated or bias when it comes to the material. I mean that's the name of the game basically.

At this point that should be the expectation on entry.

Yet, I do find it interesting that people can see this with others but to an extent not their selves. Not even just with Milgram this mindset can be applied to most social interactions.

Honestly, I get it. Everyone enjoys believing that they're reasonable and that their beliefs are sound. I like thinking I'm the smartest person in the room sometimes as well. I'm not above it. I don't want to be either.

There's a good reason that people take personal offence to their interpretations of media being questioned or dismissed. A good deal of people's beliefs, how they interpret media, and the world around them is rooted in emotionality. Regardless of how objective a person believes they're being.

For example when I talk about any of the characters my interpretation of their narratives will always be intrinsically tied with my blackness and the sort of judgment I've faced in my life due to that.

This shows itself with characters like Mu. A lot of people may not have the same experience of deviating from the normative appearance associated with their ethnicity. Many who relate to Mu or consider themselves her diehard supporters may not understand what it's like to be something but due to how you look be told that you don't count actually.

People that are biracial or double as Mu puts it in her first voice drama would. Along with people who aren't biracial and would not be considered such by any societal standard being treated the same way for being light skin.

Mu was opinionated enough to tell Es-

When they did the equivalent of calling her a halfie or half-caste by the way. Just more of that casual racism undertone Milgram has going on.

Even to the point that the translation provided even mentions the term Es used can come of as discriminatory.

Gee I wonder... I wonder why it might feel discriminatory. I can't really pinpoint a reason. Nope none coming to mind. Funnily enough this adds more depth to Mikoto's second song title being Double along with his statement trial one that made it sound like he believed he was being profiled.

Though he states it was because of his gender and clothing not due to race.

Alright, then. For an innocent person like you to end up here alongside them... Why do you think that is? Uhm... They got the wrong person. Oh? I can't imagine they'd know the details of what we look like. They mistook me for someone else in terms of gender or clothing... something along those lines. So, Milgram made a mistake, is what you're suggesting? Yeah, exactly. It's the only thing I can think of.

Please tell me it’s a mistake, that’s it’s a lie. That I’m right, I’ll forgive you If you tell me now.

Yet, I can understand why someone in his situation would want to give as little information about themselves as possible. Imagine being falsely arrested and then going you can't do this I'm a minori-wait, fuck, that might make them treat me worse actually um I'm not the guy- You got the wrong guy.

My point is Mu told Es how she actually wanted her biracial experience to be referred to. Not in a um actually way she just forcefully went yes I am this used a different word and probably side-eyed Es super hard internally. Like any person would.

Then there's Yuno.

Someone that everyone seems to love but love ignoring way more. Yuno is the definition of opinionated. She has no issue telling someone how things really are,

20/07/08 Yuno: Hey, Mikoto-san. Don’t you get tired being so conscious of others all the time? I mean, you’re free to do what you want though. Mikoto: Eh…… Aha, what are you talking about? I’m not being conscious or anything. It’s normal to make sure to get along with everyone, right? I mean, when you put it like that, aren’t you the same, Yun-chan? You’re always smiling and getting on with everyone too. Yuno: I don’t smile unless I actually want to. But with you, when you’re talking with other people it’s more like you only smile deliberately. So I kept thinking, don’t your cheeks get tired? Ah, is this just what happens when you become a working adult? ……you see people like that sometimes. Mikoto: Haha, you don’t mince your words do you. …….that was never my intention, but now that you mention it, yeah, I guess I do. This might’ve been since I started my job too…… But like, if I was rude to everyone I met, all my efforts would come to nothing, right?

Q.06 Are there any prisoners you don’t get along with?

Kazui: To be honest, probably also Kashiki-chan. It feels like she sees through all the things I don’t want anyone to notice.

20/08/02 Mahiru: Yeah, I’m asking for what you like in the opposite sex! I mean, with a lifestyle like this we have a lot of free time, right? So earlier when I was talking with all the other girls we got onto the topic! It’s not often you get a chance like this to live with a mix of men and women together, so I thought it might be nice to use the chance to talk about stuff like this in preparation for when we leave. Kazui: Ah…… Haha, I understand. I can see that’d be the sort of thing girls your age would be interested in, huh. How peaceful. What I like in the opposite sex… I don’t know if what I say will really be a good reference for you…… Ah, you know, since I’m at this age. I like a girl who can just smile free of worries. Seeing that’d make my old, tired heart feel young again. Yuno: Uh-huh, I see, I see. ……that’s a total lie, right? Kazui: Haha…… Give me a break here. You sure don’t make things easy for people, Kashiki-chan.

She has no problem directly contradicting others in public and questioning them further if their statements sound untrue.

22/09/02 (Yuno’s Birthday) Kazui: You're helping Shidou-kun, aren't you? Well, to put it this way, it's a bit surprising. You seemed uninterested in others. Yuno: Hmm? Why all of a sudden? Yeah, I'm not really interested. But if someone is about to die in front of me, I'd help out. That's just normal, isn't it? Aren't you the same, Kazui-san? You're not interested, fundamentally. Kazui: ...Maybe. I'm not as quick-witted as Kashiki-chan. You know, I've come up in a world that's all about physical strength. I've never even thought about things like that. Yuno: Haha, we both lie, don't we? The difference is the reason for lying. Kazui-san, you lie to protect yourself, because you're important to yourself. For me, no one is particularly important. That includes myself as well.

Or turning the conversation back on the person who approached her. She's assured in her actions and that makes her the type ready to question others if she feels comfortable enough to.

She's opinionated to the point of being able to draw firm boundaries between the people she likes and dislikes. Stating bluntly,

Q.21 Do you have someone you like?

Yuno: Other than the people I specifically dislike, I like everyone.

Voice Drama 2

Really? If you ask me, Kotoko-san is someone I would never want to make my friend, though. She's the type who picks a conclusion from the very beginning and won't actually talk to you.

Hm?

Well, I guess it's arbitrary who one gets along with.

She also has no problem telling people when to shut up as we've all seen,

"Just shut it, will you? You know it all."

Yet her coarse way of speaking tends to be sanded down in favor of infantilizing her. In what I can only believe is an attempt to make her character more palatable at this point. People implying or downright stating that she's too naive to know better.

Even in the face of that she remains forward and earnest about her feelings,

"“Poor naive little girl”? So off the mark, what’s it to you? It’s just absurd."

Yet all of these statements do little to deter this interpretation of her character. Because when faced with opposition to one's preconceived beliefs it's easier to continue to believe the person disagreeing or criticizing the belief simply doesn't know what they're talking about instead of take their input at face value. It's easier to try to find subjective reasons the other party may be disagreeing with one's own well founded and rooted in reason beliefs than to even humor the idea of ourselves being wrong some times.

Even when it's someone discussing their own life.

Sometimes even more so when it's a person discussing their own life. Because then one can easily justify their belief by saying the person was too in the moment to be an objective party or and just doesn't realize why this was bad yet or that they were being used. This is something brought up in both the cases of Yuno and Amane.

Regardless of how belittling or dismissive of the person's perception of reality implying such a thing is. It's basically an attempt to make someone view the life they've lived and experienced under the other parties framing whether they've actually had those experiences or not. It can't be referred to anything other than what it is invalidating. A person has to go through something terrible and traumatic then when they try to tell others about it they get told they're internalizing it wrong, taking it too personally, misreading the situation, or being to positive.

In that sort of situation the only thing a persons words can be taken as is self-serving and hurtful. Which I personally can't fault Yuno for viewing as,

"So nauseating...so creepy..."

It's easy to say believe others when they tell you their experiences and feelings on them until one actively has to do that. Then suddenly another person's lived experience and words on them can be debated actually. Especially if one feels like they interpreted it wrong or is the one being blamed for causing that hurt. If one's concern and kindness is only extended to the people they haven't hurt. If it's only easy to say I'm sorry and that shouldn't have happened when the pain being discussed wasn't caused by us then does it really mean anything?

It's easy to get caught up in the idea of not being wrong. Even easier to lash out and get defensive when someone else tells you that you hurt them. Yet looking past your ego means facing the fact that every can be wrong and hurt others even ourselves. Yes even if we didn't mean to do it, just couldn't get the words right, or were having such a hard time. To me it's realizing yeah my feelings are valid but that doesn't mean the hurt I caused while feeling that way is.

Yes I think x, y, and z about this situation but that doesn't change how you interpreted it. That's just my interpretation.

To think that being wrong is worst than just taking a situation as it is does cause more harm than good.

It took me a pretty long time to get comfortable with the fact that I will be wrong and regardless of how well thought out I find my points to be people will view me as wrong. This is just in general not when it comes to theories or anything. I didn't really get comfortable with being wrong until I was taking a speech class in college. At that point I was faced with a dilemma is it better to wait until you can say something exactly the right way or to say it wrong but still say it.

In a graded situation the latter is much better than the former. I mean you can't really go to a speech class and not speak without failing. So I realized then that sure I hate being wrong but it honestly makes when I am right far more enjoyable. That I'm not as afraid of being wrong as I am of being so scared of being wrong that I ultimately fail to do anything right or anything at all.

There's no perfect explanation that will make people believe what you're saying is true. Even when it's about your own experiences. People will still measure others by their own metrics of success and failure or right and wrong. A lot of people will tell others it's how they said it even if they know full and well they didn't want to hear it to begin with.

In those situation you can contort your words to be as safe or light as possible that won't change their unwillingness to hear you though. A person may even get harsher, colder, show outward signs of depression. Even attempt to remove themselves from the conversation entirely.

None of it will matter to those intent on seeing someone only one way.