#strel and lauriam...

[fantasiallamarcia]

i am very normal about kingdom hearts union x :) you can trust me to talk about kingdom hearts union x in a very normal manner :) i definitely won't lose my absolute marbles if you give me an opening to talk about kingdom hearts union x :)

[starlightwayfinder]

bleeding hearts 🩸🥀

[gulava]

We could [pair up], but that won't help you in the long run. Maybe when you get strong enough to protect me. Then we'll pair up, and you can carry me through battle.

[stresslitzia]

If nothing else, my weird flower trio piece got a lot of work done on it today

(as in, I sat there for a solid few hours putting colors on Strelitzia. that's it.)

[lightandfellowship]

Going a little more in depth on the Strelitzia + Rapunzel parallel...

Strel is known as a reserved girl who doesn't interact with a lot of people and is easily scared, but she desires connection, strength, and independence. Despite her shyness, the people who know her recognize how bright and passionate she is. She watches Player from a distance atop the rooftops of Daybreak Town, but doesn't get the courage to actually approach them until it's too late.

Rapunzel, meanwhile, has had very little social interaction for most of her life, and Mother Gothel has gotten it into her head that the world outside is dangerous and scary. Despite this, Rapunzel wishes she could leave and experience the greater world. She watches the world from atop her tower through a window, her bright and passionate personality hidden behind walls. In contrast to Strel, she gets the courage to pursue her dream before it's too late, and lives.

And if you can compare Strel and Rapunzel, you can also contrast Lauriam and Mother Gothel. Lauriam genuinely loves his sister and wants what's best for her, even encouraging her to be more independent and experience the world on her own without using him as crutch. Meanwhile, Mother Gothel is merely using Rapunzel for her own selfish ends and doesn't care about what's truly best for her, and she manipulates Rapunzel into being completely dependent on her.

Interestingly, when you shift to a Namine + Rapunzel parallel instead (lonely blonde girl who likes to draw and who is locked away and exploited for her magic powers), Lauriam/Marluxia is no longer contrasted with Mother Gothel, and is instead compared, for as Marluxia he is actually no better than her.

And let's not forget the flower, dandelion, and sun (daybreak?) motifs in the world, too.

Really, I think having Marluxia be the Organization member you meet in the Tangled world was a fantastic choice.

[blazernot]

During the finale Elrena and Brain are giving each death glares because they both assumed the other was long dead. No one notices because a lot is happening

"Hello, friends, today we are going to do *one* mission. ...Okay yeah, sure, we'll fight the strong Heartless for more rewards. Who forgot to equip their medals THIS time-"

Brain and Elrena got horribly lost because Elrena wouldn't listen to him. Strel got dragged behind a heartless awhile ago. The three of them accidently got high in wonderland. The three of them have agreed to never speak to each other again

[houseofsannae]

How are you handling Ventus’s history with the Union, btw? Or I guess Ventus’s and Vanitas’s dad’s history with the Union?

For the most part, it's going to be unchanged from canon aside from the lack of the Darkness entity possessing him (and thereby him having nothing to do with Strelitzia's murder). Ven is one of the chosen Dandelion union leaders, but he's specifically Strelitzia's replacement after she's murdered. Once it becomes apparent that this is the case (because Lauriam is also one of the union leaders and he and Elrena are actively trying to find Strels), Ven is conflicted about it since he wasn't one of the ones Ava picked. However, Ava will eventually explain to him that true, Ven wasn't her first choice for a union leader... but he was her sixth choice. She was asked to make a list of ten names and pick five from it, with the other five as backup in case the first five said no or otherwise couldn't take on the role. So when Strelitzia vanished, Ven's name was next on her list, and he was picked to be there.

The only other major thing to note about Ven is that his Keyblade at the time was called Persistent Memory, a "whole" version of Lost Memory (Vanitas will eventually gain a Keyblade called Persistent Loss, the other half of the damaged Keyblade). When Persistent Memory breaks, another Keykid will offer Ven their Keyblade as a replacement (as they're being yanked away from the battlefield and Ven needs a Keyblade more than they do in that moment). And that Keyblade is Wayward Wind. In present day, Ven does not remember any of this, but he's still using his fallen friend's Keyblade without knowing it.

I should also note that even when characters from KHUX start showing up again, Ven's never going to be getting his memories of that time back, just because it's less messy that way, and the characters who do remember will both explain what happened to him, and tell him he's probably better off not remembering directly

[missingmywing]

Oh this one is fun - it’s amazing how making one different decision can so strongly alter someone’s whole course.

@khoc-week Day 6: One Choice, New Life

Etheria:

Etheria is really hard because her entire character is based around the choices she makes, especially as the protag Keykid, and while she could make different choices she probably wouldn’t. Not for the major things. So what if, instead, it was a minor thing that wouldn’t normally have much effect - but in this case changes everything. Because what Gula told them was… a lot, and Skuld has to leave, and Etheria really needs time to process. So she and Skuld say goodbye there, and Skuld leaves, and rather than wandering off and running into Dark Chirithy Etheria instead stays, sitting in the house trying to wrap her head around everything she’s found out.

So when Strelitzia shows up, she’s there. And Ven is as well, controlled by Darkness, and suddenly some very rapid decisions must needs be made when the Darkness attacks them. Etheria defends Strelitzia of course, but Strel fights back too, and Darkness is strong but so are they and Etheria manages to break its hold over Ven and drag both him and Strel away into the streets. She knows there’s a very limited amount of time before the Dandelions leave - they’re already in the process of leaving, so she drags them directly to Ava (and if she gets any strange looks for being a Unicornis member with an Ursus and Leopardis member in tow in the Vulpes headquarters - well, Vulpes knows the most about the Dandelions, it shouldn’t be hard to piece together.)

Ava is extremely alarmed at the information she brings, because of how close it was, and that someone is trying to alter the future that isn’t her - she asks Etheria to go with them and watch over them. Etheria is hesitant - she’d planned to stay, this wasn’t - but Strel begs her to come along, and Ven is terrified and unsure now that even he should go if he’s going to be a puppet of darkness -

Ava tells him very firmly that he is a Dandelion, and that the fact that Etheria managed to pull him away was proof that Darkness didn’t have a hold of his heart. They’ll just need to protect both he and Strel, and who better than Etheria?

Etheria caves, keeps her memories, and she, Ven, and Strel form their own Dandelion trio even once they meet up with the others. Strel is technically the only one who’s a leader, but Etheria’s playing bodyguard to both her and Ven so the three of them are always together, so… they kind of end up accidentally having their own input into stuff (mostly because she keeps getting asked and is just like guys pls I’m not even supposed to be here, you’re supposed to be unbiased.

Brain, Ephemera, Skuld, and Strel: lol, unbiased.

Lauriam: I was until you saved my sister.)

Not that it ultimately stops everything or changes Etheria’s ultimate fate, but Strel survives and is sent forward alongside Lauriam, Elrena, and Ven.

Yiskah:

If Yiskah had accepted Ava’s invitation to join the Dandelions, he would have been at the finale right alongside Brain, firmly at his side. He would have taken the final unused pod to return with him to the real world, and send Lauriam and Elrena on their way, and would have been there for that conversation with Luxu, likely participated in whatever deal it is that they struck. He’d have made the jump forward along with Brain - or Brain’s heart as it may be - and they’d have landed in Scala ad Caelum together to find Sigurd waiting.

From there… well who knows, we’ll find out in Missing Link, but it will either be very different thanks to the time jump or Yiskah will end up in the same role as he would have even if he’d died and reincarnated haha.

Aella and Vale:

If Aella had decided not to switch Unions and had stayed in Vulpes with Vale, both of their fates would have been very different. They would have been a lot closer, been there to support each other, and would have agreed to Ava’s offer to become Dandelions because it made more sense than staying and fighting a losing war. Vale wouldn’t fall to darkness and betray her, and she wouldn’t die dueling him in the Keyblade Graveyard.

One could argue that the fates of the Dream Eaters aren’t much better - except as a demigod of death himself Vale can take certain liberties with his and others’ hearts and souls. And as Chirithy pointed out, death and sleep share a boundary. Vale can pull them both into the Underworld in the aftermath of Daybreak Town falling, then bargain their way free. From there… well, the world is open to them. Perhaps they go join Ephemera in creating Scala, or perhaps they stay in Olympus and mark their names in the stars as heroes. This time, that’s a choice they have to make.

Solis:

Ahh Solis my sweet sunshine idiot… I’m afraid to say that you are… very doomed. The best I can do to say that his fate would be altered with his choices are if he also joins the Dandelions, but unfortunately that doesn’t save him because unlike Etheria, Yiskah, and Vale he doesn’t have friends in high places. Even if he survives the keyblade war, he’s stuck as a dream eater. He can help Sora out in DDD, though, so there’s that!

Rosalia:

Rosalia is much the same as Solis in she’s somewhat doomed no matter what she does as a Keykid, so why don’t we go earlier? If she hadn’t jumped aboard that particular pirate vessel, had instead grabbed the next one leaving port, perhaps she’d have instead landed on Captain Teague's ship, and found herself shadowing one Jack Sparrow as they worked aboard his father’s ship.

A particularly notorious pirate duo, they may go their separate ways for a time when he tries to leave the pirate life behind, but she rejoins his crew aboard the Black Pearl after Beckett brands him a pirate and burns his ship. Perhaps she dies in Barbossa’s coup, or perhaps she escapes and later - much later, once the world dies and is rebuilt over centuries - she stumbles over a boy with a brilliant smile and an endless will to help people with the strange key shaped blade of his. The adventure to defeat Barbossa, save Miss Swan, and reclaim the Pearl is a short one, but she finds him endearing nonetheless. Perhaps she’s even the one to give him the keychain, wishing him well on his long journey ahead.

[tina-nina]

Does Lauriam ever figure out that Caelum was there when Strel died?

Also, everyone knows that Xehanort is 'No Heart' with an X. However, I just realized that he wielded No Name, the keyblade, and had a crew filled with No Bodies. Do with this info as you will.

:)

Lmaoo he truly had nothing

[blazernot]

I was not ready for that, but hmm

I think Strel would be a good Yashiro and Elrena as Aoi, maybe Lauriam as Akane?

@blazernot @autumn-may-main so what we thinking?

[claitea]

sora fights alone in the trailer. do we not get party members this time? is sora alone? no friends to be his power??

on that note i’d also like to bring up the possibility of Playable Strelitzia since she’s the only other character hehe

[fisherrprince]

K wait does Strelitzia have a crush on You no matter what gender You play as? I know that the game has changed cutscenes depending on gender before, so... pls help me out.

Yes!! She never outright says the word crush, but she gets teased pretty heavily by her big brother. “ohhh I want to see player again” “ohhhh I wish I could talk to player” “ohhhh player’s so cute” ... Strelitzia is pan, totally.

[blazernot]

Idk who has more bass energy Skuld or Brain. I can see Strel or Lauriam on keyboard. Also the fans would make a lot of edits because everyone is hot

We as a fandom are sorely lacking in a Dandelion Band AU. We must remedy this immediately.

C’mon guys who plays what instrument. Ephemer gives me big lead vocalist vibes but what’s up with everyone else

[stresslitzia]

never underestimate the power of ffxiv music, adhd, and an art tablet

(me, considering putting some Tunes on to finish my art backlog and possibly draw The Trio™ with an Endwalker theme? whatever gave u that idea)

[lightandfellowship]

Do you have any headcanons for Xehanort and Strelitzia? I enjoyed your comic about them.

Aw, thank you, glad you liked it. As for headcanons...let's see...

While I don't know exactly how Xehanort in Quadratum would work, I do think that, if it does happen, it'll have something to do with the "nature taboo" stuff from KH3 Re:Mind and Xehanort's "joke" in KHDR about wanting a 14th lifetime. I imagine the Xehanort in Quadratum is some sort of backup plan or maybe the Xehanort that was meant to continue on in the new world that Xehanort would create with Kingdom Hearts.

That being said, I think it would be fun/interesting if this Xehanort wasn't really a villain at all. Either has memory loss or is simply a Xehanort from post-KHDR but before the villain turn thanks to MoM. So he's just been living a relatively normal life in Quadratum and would be on the side of the good guys (Sora + Strel) this time.

But anyway. I think at first Xehanort and Strel would have no idea that they're connected to each other through a common "friend": Player. Like maybe initially they're drawn to each other subconsciously because they can recognize that they're connected somehow (though I don't think Xehanort would recognize her by appearance because afaik Player never saw Strel in KHUX), but their friendship definitely lasts for a good while before they realize that they've been talking to each other about the same person this entire time.

Like Strel will talk about this person she really liked and desperately wanted to meet who she never got the chance to really know, Xehanort will eventually open up about his mentor/guardian who raised him on Destiny Islands, and one day it just clicks for them that...wait...why does this person they're talking about sound so familiar....

At which point Strel is like "Oh my god. No way. You have to tell me more about them. What were their favorite foods? Hobbies? Tell me everything!" And it's through Xehanort that Strel finally gets to "know" Player better, because, well, Xehanort knew them for like 15 whole years or whatever. In fact they were the only person Xehanort ever knew for those years; it's possible that Xehanort knows Player better than anybody else in the world. (I can imagine Strel feeling a little bitter/jealous about this...)

As for their friendship outside of Player...if Eraqus isn't in Quadratum with Xehanort, I imagine Strel almost being like a replacement Eraqus, as horrible/mean as that sounds lol. Like not literally replacing him as Xehanort's friend, but much like Eraqus she's the sun to Xehanort's moon. The gold to Xehanort's silver. The white clothes to Xehanort's black clothes. She fills a similiar niche. Maybe Xehanort even thinks to himself that she reminds him of Eraqus...and maybe that makes their friendship a little bittersweet because now Xehanort misses Eraqus even more.

I imagine people like Sora being kinda confused at first by Xehanort and Strel's friendship. Strel can be sunny and sweet and a little bit of a scaredy cat, Xehanort can be a little gloomy and blunt and quite confident in himself (though they both have the "socially and/or emotionally reserved" thing going for them.) After a while though Sora realizes that Strel and Xehanort's friendship reminds him of his own friendship with Riku, and then it starts to make more sense to him. And in any case, if this means that Xehanort is making friends and not causing trouble, then Sora's fine with it.

Now, I wonder if a recompleted Lauriam looking for his sister would be okay with their friendship, though, given that Marluxia has worked with a Xehanort twice at this point and even tried to betray one of them once. Lauriam would realize that Xehanort is dangerous and can't be trusted and would probably try to screw things up for Strel and Xehanort despite their friendship actually being genuine with no ulterior motives (can't really blame Lauriam, though.) But maybe Strel would put her foot down and try to convince Lauriam that Xehanort is perfectly harmless.

Strel: And anyway, he's my friend—what, you don't want me to finally have friends?? Huh??

Lauriam: Ugh. Fine! But the second he does anything fishy I'm slicing his head off with my scythe.

Strel: Okay. <3

Xehanort: WHAT DO YOU MEAN "OKAY. <3"???

[blazernot]

I am. Always going to take the chance to ask about the Foreteller Family AU if given the opportunity, haha, so: do Brain's relationships with the Union Leaders change at all within the context of the AU? And would anything about his pseudo-Foreteller status end up causing problems when he eventually arrives in Scala?

His relationships change depending on if I think they ever find out or not. Like in this au he's more closed off and actively pushes them away. And he has snark because he's processing a lot of stuff and just doesn't have a lot of experience interacting with normal people. Like a thing i have in this au is that he's more antagonistic to Lauriam because he's jealous of his relationship with Strel. Also Skuld is trying really hard to figure him out

And with the second part I really don't think it would come up. Like who would know? I think the only problems would be internal ones, at least until I know more about ml's plot