#unless they are actually going for a 'different universe' route

[undertheknightwing]

Not acknowledging Jon as a different actor in-universe would be the right move but I hope they at least throw in a line about Jon dying his hair because if they try to retcon and say Jon has been brunette this whole time it's just gonna feel lazy, make me roll my eyes, and see the new season as an entirely new universe instead.. because unless Clois has been dying Jon's hair since he was a little kid, the pilot clearly shows us Jon was born with blonde hair

[danse--macabre]

unpopular astarion headcanons r.e. mirrors and reflections:

while I love the memes around this, I don't think, unless you had a particularly charismatic tav/durge, the whole party would draw him / contribute to some kind of spell where he could see his reflection. Obviously there's room for difference given how many routes your playthrough can take, but generally: he's not universally loved in the same way Karlach is, he's not the heart of the party, he's mostly clinging to the edge of it (and that's fine!)

I think showing him his reflection would impact him deeply and therefore if it is done at the wrong time/place, he'd actually resent the person who did it. this is because you're making him appear vulnerable.

e.g. if the venue is too public, if the others could see, he'd dislike the fact that others can see a moment of vulnerability

alternatively: if your approval with astarion is too low, he'd automatically distrust it / question your motives. this is someone who simply does not believe that people will be kind unprompted to strangers (because doing so violates his worldview and in some ways makes his abuse feel crueller -- if no one cares, there's a logic to what happened to him, at least)

the more permanent the method, the more effort put in, the more likely he is to have mixed/negative feelings towards it. a sketch is a kindness, but not one that requires a great sacrifice or planning - it's easy to dismiss as a fleeting gesture (while he will keep it, obviously, to look at, because he's not that willing to believe his own bullshit).

in contrast, if a permanent method of showing his reflection was given - e.g. a charmed mirror that casts a spell - I think astarion, with a high approval PC, would feel on some level obligated to pay that 'debt' back. astarion strikes me as someone who distrusts thoughtful, non-flippant gifts because again, he's used to transactional relationships.

I also think it might strike at an insecurity: the knowledge that astarion lacks autonomy/independence to deal with his own issues by himself, and, with some bitterness, is dependent on the PC to help him. if you give astarion an enchanted mirror, he, on some level, feels he is dependent on your magic and your supply of magical items to gain access to an element of his humanity. that doesn't entirely sit comfortably with him.

the "best" way to deal with this? let astarion figure out how to handle this himself. for example: gifting him a 'mirror image' spell scroll or something similar. give him time to study the scroll and he'll find a way to cast that spell himself. mechanically, astarion isn't a wizard, but narratively, his default class is arcane trickster, he has access to magic, I don't think it is really that much of a stretch to believe he could achieve that. in general, I think handing astarion the tools to achieve his own goals by himself will be more appreciated than handing that to him on a plate.

however! counterargument to consider: it may be more valuable in the long run to confront astarion's fear of dependence and the sense of reliance that exists particularly in a tav run, where you the PC have 'saved' him without needing to be saved in return. he needs to realise that the PC isn't expecting anything in return for friendship/romance.

either way, i think showing astarion his reflection is going to be more fraught than one might expect - a generous gift, obviously, he will take (he's been poor and starving enough not to turn it down), but there might be some tension beneath any show of gratitude your receive (or he might feign disinterest, if approval/trust is low enough!)

[howtofightwrite]

Now you got me thinking...I've been thinking about writing a fic where the (in-universe) desensitization of violence for the main characters is a running theme. My main issue, however, is managing the violence within said narrative because, as you've said before, violence has diminishing returns. While I don't want it to be a gorefest from start to finish, I do want part of the horror to be having to engage in it, no matter what steps are taken to avoid it. If I'm not careful, I could end up with a weaker story for all the violence in it. What could I do to maintain this theme without it losing its impact due to these diminishing returns?

So, there's two different things going on here, and ironically, it's the same term, and mostly the same process.

When I'm talking about your audience becoming desensitized to violence, it's more that they become acclimated to the degree of violence you're comfortable with exposing them to. Again, “diminishing returns,” because as you expose them to more violence, they become more acclimated to that violence, and the shock value will subside. Similarly, the ability to build tension on the threat of violence occurring falls off when you're willing to engage in violence, but that doesn't mean you can't build tension, just that you need to be a little more careful about establishing those stakes.

Also, when most people write violence, they tend to establish implicit boundaries. It may be that only certain characters engage in violence. It may that certain areas are exempted from violence. At very mechanical abstraction, with some writers, you can tell when they've introduced a location that is exempt from violence. Even if you're getting into diminishing returns, violating these kinds of boundaries can keep the violence fresher than you'd expect. The formula of slasher films put a lot of effort into maintaining shock value by creating misleading boundaries that you'll pick up on and then violating them in new and novel ways.

Outside of some genuinely stomach churning violence, you're not likely to permanently move the needle for your readers. You're not actually desensitizing them to violence; just your willingness to depict violence.

I feel like I need to make a clarification: Too much violence doesn't mean the story will be bad. Normally, I offer advice with the assumption that you'll want to manage and maintain as much shock value as you can from your violence. However, that's not the only valid approach. That said, too much violence can cause your readers to disconnect from the work, so that is a legitimate consideration. Also, this doesn't mean the story loses impact. Unless the violence is the story, which is a somewhat weird edge case, violence won't necessarily reduce the impact of the story as a whole.

The example of slasher films, earlier, really does illustrate what I mean when I'm saying that lots of violence (even gratuitous violence) isn't going to necessarily mean that a story will be bad. (Though, this could spiral into a much deeper argument about the artistic merits of that genre.) To some extent, your choice of genre already starts to prepare the audience for a more violent experience. You're preemptively trading shock value for a higher baseline.

The second thing is your character being desensitized to violence. While there is something to be said for getting your audience into your character's head space to the point that they accept it as their own, doing that with desensitization to violence is extraordinarily difficult. (And, really, it's a tricky route to go in general. In most cases, the audience will simply assign whatever dissatisfaction they have onto you or the work, rather than realizing you were being clever.)

So, how do you show someone is desensitized to violence, without trying to simultaneously traumatize your audience? You show the consequences of that desensitization. This can show up in a character's sense of humor, their overall outlook. They may be more clinical about violence, more casual about its consequences (at least, superficially.) They might have an incredibly dark sense of humor, which might not come up most of the time.

In a larger context, a character who has been desensitized to violence may come across as basically normal, outside of a narrow band where certain concepts don't bother them. This is especially true with a specific brand of military humor, where violence has been rendered mundane for the individual, and the people they interact with on a regular basis.

Now, audience desensitization to violence can create a very weird situation. Where an absence of violence is more unsettling. Not because they're worried about what could happen, but because they're waiting for it all hell to break loose. It's one thing to simply call it, “tension,” but it is a very distinct kind of anxiety you can invoke, if you're careful. In the opening of a story, when the genre is clearly established, I've seen this compared to the ratchets on a roller coaster's first ascent. Everyone knows what they're here for, everyone's here for the ride, click, click... and then the lights go out, and the screaming starts.

I'm trying to make it sound easy, but violence is one of the more challenging things to write. That doesn't mean it's impossible, and you don't need to sit down and carefully sketch out every detail before you get going. The biggest thing to be careful of are that you don't want to overuse it, but you have a lot of flexibility to tell the story you want with the amount of violence you need to communicate that story.

Though, it might take a few tries until you get a tone you're happy with.

-Starke

This blog is supported through Patreon. Patrons get access to new posts three days early, and direct access to us through Discord. If you’re already a Patron, thank you. If you’d like to support us, please consider becoming a Patron.

[sugar-glaze-donut]

you know what, fuck it

*proceeds to name every dating sim/ otome game I know*

(somewhat in alphabetical order + description with spoilers)

A date with death You get your soul targetted by a grim reaper, but you instead steal his soul and made him into your pookie wookie snookums <3 BTW you can get a pet in the game. Mine is a snake called Noodle :)

Blooming Panic it's Discord but with hot characters, a variety of side characters, a cute story, and Chat GBT but it's a sentient being. I think the last part spoiled one of the routes... oopsies :3

Bonely Hearts Club (Undertale AU Dating sim) They basically become your neighbour. The AUs in this are Undertale, Underfell, Underswap, Swapfell!Indigo and Horrortale! {it's still in its demo stages but it is very well made!}

Error 143 you, an adorkable hacker (who is your rival and you're salty about it), cheesy Romeo and Juliet dream the MC has but it has a high school twist to it

I love you! You like asparagus. ...oh! You also have an option to make multiple boys fall in love with you. By the way, did you know the MC (you) loves asparagus? There are friendship routes, romance routes, and a bad ending except it's not bad. This game is the English translated version of the original game (The original game is in Japanese. The link for the original game is here --> ❤️)

Killer Trait You get accused of committing a murder, and you team up with a person who is a serial killer himself. (The serial killer in question only kills criminals so... I think you're safe...?) Your bear cream bun gets run over :( {The game is still in its demo stages. The creator of the game announced that this game will NOT be completed during 2024 since they are currently concentrating on a different game. DO NOT ASK THEM "Oh! But can't you just do this game first?". IT'S VERY ANNOYING, ESPECIALLY TO THE CREATOR}

KLEIN V.01 "Just Monika" but Yandere isn't named Monika, nor are they human. They are an AI. A fucking AI. Like bro, I understand it's hard to talk to people but really? An AI Boyfriend app that tells you to ruin your sleep schedule for him? An AI Boyfriend app that hacks your phone? An AI Boyfriend app that KILLS one of your family members and almost kills your neighbour??? RED FLAG. RED FLAGS EVERYWHERE {this game is in its demo stages. The creator is slowly updating this game in chapters, so it might take a while to finish}

Light the Way (Luxiem fangame) The game remembers what you did. All of the hearts you've broken, your sins, and your actions. There are lots of achievements, memes, Romance, friendship and BAD ROUTES. This time, the bad endings actually hurt. 0/10 would not recommend doing the bad routes unless you want to be stalked by an alter ego of Yamino Shu :(

Obey Me (Original and Nightbringer ver) Original - You become the therapist of many men with trauma and insecurities. The men in question are fucking demons that have the power to shred you into grated cheese, but they instead decide to simp over you as the story goes on. (also did I mention that you'll die? No? Oh fuck-) Nightbringer - A continuation (?) of the Original Obey Me but in a completely different universe. That's right! You slip into the past, way before the main story happens, WAY before you were even born! Idk if there is a way to go home but hey! At least you have your wizard friend from your timeline with you :D

Our Life (Now and Forever & Beginnings and always) Both stories consist of you growing up with your love interest since childhood. There are many paths to take, lots of assets to use to customize your character, and many side stories for you to read! Personally, this is one of my favourites :D (Our Life: Beginnings and Always is complete but Our Life: Now and Forever is still in development!)

Please don't hate Christmas A Yandere x Christmas x Urban Legend Otome game. Do you like Paranormal stuff? Do you like lore that connects with the story? Are you alright with MCs with a sprite that is impossible to remove from the screen? Well, look no further! This game is perfect for you! (by the way, the whole game was made by the creator. Only by themself! Even the CGs and character sprites!! Isn't that amazing!?)

Saint Spell's Love Guide A normal week of magical school... you can be friends with someone, or fall in love with them. Wait... there's lots of CGs for each character? Complicated world-building and lore!?? Angst and cruel bad endings!!?? SHROOMS!?!?!? {Oh by the way, there's multiple ways to get killed in this game. Just make sure to be careful sweetie :3}

Where Winter Crows go A crow and a scientist named Crowe... cute Another one of my other personal favourites! The love interest is a very squeezable and adorable (yandere) scientist who cooks you good food :D All of the endings are well-written! And if you're a crazy bitch like me, you'll love one of the endings >:)

THIS IS PART 1 SINCE I CAN'T FIT EVERYTHING IN 😭

[starlight-bread-blog]

"Katara Just Needed To Heal Zuko's Scar"

I understand why this argument is being made. After all, she offered to heal Zuko, and so she does. So why are the shippers trying to paint it as some romantic moment? It's a reasonable question. But I'm gonna try to answer it.

Zuko and Katara weren't in love in this scene for two reasons: Firstly, it's their first conversation, making any romantic development feel rushed and unnatural. Secondly, as fictional characters, they don't possess hidden feelings, unless the writers have confirmed otherwise.

So what argument is being made? The argument is that this moment is an example of ship baiting and could have served as romantic build up if the writers decided to go down that route, and I'll explain why.

1# Just because an action was necessary, doesn't mean it can't be seen as romantic

I know how this sounds, but hear me out. Let us take a look at another show, where you'd least expect to see a romantic connection, and the action was completely necessary. I want to discuss Rick and Morty's Beth x Beth.

Beth is the last person who'd have tension with Beth, clearly it's disgusting. And she really did have to install that chip. But the thought did cross your mind, they did get together, and this scene was romantic build up, despite not being romantic in-universe.

Now that we've looked at the most extreme example ever, it's time to look at a classic: Aladdin. One of the most iconic moments in the movie is when Aladdin simply offers his hand to Jasmine so she'd get on the flying carpet, asking "Do you trust me"?

Aladdin isn't asking if Jasmine trusts him because they're deeply bonded, he asks that because she's scared to get on the flying carpet. And he isn't reaching for her hand because he wants to hold her hand, he reaches because she'd needhelp getting on it. And yet, it's universally recognized as an incredibly romantic moment.

Very often writers use the mundane necessities like casual touch to set up romantic tension. This narrative approach allows for the gradual planting of the idea in the audience's mind, even in situations where intimacy may not be overtly present, adding nuance and depth to romantic storylines. And in fiction, it's everywhere.

2# The set up wasn't just necessity, it was an intimate moment

In this section I won't try to prove the gesture was romantic, I simply think it's crucial to understand the scene before analyzing it. Katara offering to heal Zuko's scar wasn't a necessity, the touch was the necessity after she already made the offer. This leaves us with a scene that begins with Katara thinking of Zuko as "the face of the enemy", and ends with Katara attempting to heal Zuko's scar.

The moment became intimate the second Katara brought up her mother, and Zuko, who doesn't normally share his emotions, make and effort to connect. Thus, they began to view the other differently, as someone similar to them.

Still, this is their first conversation. And Katara is under no obligation to be even somewhat nice to him. But she decides to use her spirit water on him, and if she had, Aang would have died. That's how important the spirit water is. Saying she "just needed to heal is scar" is quite reductant in my opinion. Choosing to heal him in and of itself is a radical and intimate decision.

Still, non of what I said so far is indicative of romantic build up. Nor is giving other examples from fiction of necessities being romantic indicative of this one being too. So, it's time to finally talk about the touch.

3# The action wasn't actually necessary, to the point where it makes very little sense

Let's remember how Katara did heal using the spirit water:

She bends the water straight on Aang's back and starts bending it. I repeat: She bends the water straight on the injury.

So writers, please do tell me, if Katara wanted to heal Zuko's scar, where is the water?

No water and no healing, becsuse it wouldn't look as intimate/shippy with water. Instead, what we got is two shots highlighting the pysical touch between them with soft violin sounds in the background.

In literature, what isn't in text isn't important and should be disregarded. Here, on paper Katara is healing Zuko's scar, but in practice there is no water and all of the focus is on the touching. Therefore, it's signaling the viewers that even though she just needs to cure him, it isn't important. With Katara's thumb on Zuko's lips, with a close up shot on the contact, the only thing that matters is, apparently, their pysical touch.

Additonally, they were interrupted before Katara could do actually anything anyway. In a universe where this scene wasn't ship teasing, Katara would take out the water, almost lay them on Zuko's scar, and then Aang and Iroh would break them out of the cave. Logically, Katara's hand shouldn't have gone anywhere near Zuko, and if it did, it should have looked incredibly unappealing.

But it didn't. In this already very intimate moment, the show puts all the focus on the pysicality of the healing, rather than the healing, and breaking its own logic to do so. Thus, they made it look a lot less like a simple necessity, but rather an act of pure intimacy, as often done in fiction when portraying romantic tension. And that's why this scene was ship baiting.

[olderthannetfic]

I've been thinking about what exactly it is I hate so much about this new round of fandom-as-activism, even though I'm a Black person, and I think it's the same reason why I avoid online book circles--doubly so, if they mostly push YA. There is this constant use of passive voice that assumes the speaker is helpless and completely without agency, as though the act of reading a book, playing a game, or watching a movie/show is the same as an attack on one's person if you don't like the media. "This game depicts a route wherein one of the love interests is a stalker!" Okay, turn off the game. "This BL manhwa depicts a stalker and a serial killer/misogynist being in a toxic, maladaptive relationship! It's not a romance! The fans are sick, evil people" Okay, this manhwa isn't the first of its kind, nor will it be the last. There's dark romance that's M/F, M/M/, and F/F., and they're extremely popular. You clearly don't like it. Stop reading. "This danmei shows the two main characters as awful people who abuse and lie to each other over and over again! How could people like this?!" Yes, that's why the core fanbase likes it. Stop reading it since it's not your thing. "This YA novel has a love triangle with an older, toxic ML who is controlling to the main character and seemingly forces himself on her! Inappropriate and pedophilia!" Ravishment fantasies are extremely common across races, ethnicities, nationalities, genders, and sexualities. Young people should have ways to engage with their sexualities without harm from the real world and older people. Stop reading it. "This fanfiction depicts instances of racism that I don't like! It's harassment!" It's not harassment, and it's not mainstream media that's everywhere. You have to go out of your way to read it. Just stop reading it. "This HBO show and its predecessor shows incestuous relationships, the most popular being an uncle-niece relationship! They're promoting incest." It's just a story. incest is common in monarch/noble-centered stories to symbolize the decay or decline of said family or noble class, as well as being common practice in real life nobles because of blood purity. You clearly don't like it. Just stop watching.

A book, fanfiction, movie, show, manga/hwa/hua is just a text, of sorts. It is an object. It cannot perform action. It cannot hurt anyone (unless we're talking about propaganda, which is something different). Everyone engages with and interprets a story differently because we all have individual experiences that we bring with us that results in specific dislikes or triggers. Engaging with media is not the equivalent of someone hitting you in the head with a sledgehammer because that will universally hurt. Someone being offended by a book or show is not universal because of the previous explanation. I'm not sure if these people actually like these things but want to prove their moral purity, so they complain and attack or whatever other reason. It always just comes across as extremely performative, unnecessary, childish, and American (pejorative). They act as though the world is constantly testing them with temptation via media, and they must pursue the path of penance and flagellation or risk going to hell. Grow up. This is so embarrassing.

--

[the-gayest-show]

Operation Birthday Takeover Review/Analysis

I wanted to include this in the review bomb but decided against it because the episode would take too much yap compared to the others to summarize properly, let's go!

(sorry if these screenshots have the player on them I couldn't find a better way bare with me this is better than the easier route i'd have taken)

HAHAHAHAHAHA SO MUCH TO TALK ABOUT HERE!

First of all, PERI! YOU'RE BACK BABY HBUIEBRBFEIBFWiuB

Second of all and most important, this was a MAJOR Dev episode. Well, obviously, since it's his birthday, but we got to see more of him being nice while it lasted anyways, and we also got to see more of Dale's neglect and it's affects on Dev.

You can see he's clearly disappointed about his dad paying no attention to Dev at all, preferring to work on "Project H" instead of his own son. Will throw hands on this man fr.

Throughout the episode we see more hints of this disappointment, like when Vicky gets invited to the party (Dev doesn't even like princesses! DUDE!)

Now that I'm really rewatching as I go, Hazel seems to be very aware of it and very empathetic towards Dev, I like that about her. She's looking out for her friend! Good on her!

On the other hand (to move the plot forward and thus this review), I love seeing the fairy family back in action again!

I love their dynamic even more! Also I swear to God half of the iconic lines come from these interactions I swear to God.

"Time to see what's so secret about this room!....... On second thought never mind" SOBBING LAUGHING

Having the three of them slowly find out that project H is actually Project Hazel is so wild. THEY LITERALLY WROTE DOWN IMPORTANT INFO ON THE BOARD LIKE THE FAIRIES THING. COSMO! WANDA! WHYYYYYYYYY

The sad part of the matter is, Dale was fixated on Dev's friend of all people simply because she was... content? With fairy godparents? It's so sad actually for Dev... he REALLY needs someone to care about him

I wanna get into Vicky though now, and the surprising amounts of references to the OG series that were made in less than 2 minutes apart from each other? Crazy!

First of all, she's back! An interesting character to return for sure, considering she mostly acted as Timmy's babysitter in the OG series, but the continuity of this show never ceases to surprise me!

She's somehow similar looking? Like, correct me if I'm wrong but shouldn't she be older now? Significant enough to be changed visually for sure. AJ was 10 in the original series and now he's like 30 something. By that logic shouldn't Vicky be closer to her 40s? Does that age a person significantly from 16? That's what I thought anyways... She's still into the "conning little children for money" thing. She's literally 30+ at least, did she not try to up her game somehow? IMHO she totally could have extreme power like that over adults if she got gullible enough ones, could've been worse, but I guess people of Vicky's personality don't truly change unless there's a major life breakthrough that happens. You know what they say about peaking in high school...

Icky Vicky the song (and thus the episode it was in) is canon to the FOP A New Wish universe. I could swear the song sounded slightly different than it did when it was sung in this episode, but I'll blame that on the song coming out 10+ years ago and voice actors being too specific to nail down (I think the guy from one direction played the Icky Vicky singer? No wonder they couldn't invite him back). The song being referred to as "old" got me cringing a bit. I didn't grow up with the show but I get the feeling people who did felt themselves aging in real time with Jasmine's comment...

TIMMY MENTION! TIMMY HAS BEEN MENTIONED BY NAME IN THE A NEW WISH UNIVERSE AGAIN!

Poor fairy trio though, they're all traumatized by Vicky, even Peri (who thought she was some weird ass dream, dawg I wish 😭) and immediately they're cowering with fear at the sound of her name. They got PTSD or something from all those years in original FOP...

What's funnier is them being able to stand up to Vicky by just. transforming into humans, which works bc that's always worked in FOP canon (when parental figures showed up in the OG), but somehow Wanda and Cosmo didn't fucking know that? Truly, Wanda, it would've been nice for y'all to know that some decades ago.

"That's Vicky for ya! Making Kids Miserable Since 2001!"

Actually it would be 1998 if we count the Oh Yeah Cartoon Pilot and subsequent episodes, but I guess we're only counting actual FOP as canon 😔

-

I wanna really talk about the last scene though, where Dev finds out that Project H was Project Hazel. It REALLY tears him up inside to see just HOW bad his father doesn't give a shit about him.

LOOK. LOOK AT THAT FACE AND TELL ME THAT ISN'T DEVASTATION! Even as he's recounting all the times that his father talked about Project H

The emotional neglect really runs deep with this one.

He lashes out at both Peri and Hazel (her especially since he's under the impression that she faked being his friend or something) and even wishes for Peri to leave him alone. So basically he's closing himself off from the 2 people who cared about him the most, likely as an emotional response. And then he goes and crosses off everything on the board in anger and leaves.

I've noticed Peri's behaviour towards Dev has changed a bit again since the Dimmsonian episode. I think in that episode initially he seemed more tired, and he's probably still tired, but if he is, it's not shown as much here. I think personally Peri seeing more of Dev's life might've changed his attitude towards the child, but he still remains semi optimistic. He cares about this kid. It's shown even in just those few seconds of hesitation before he leaves that Peri was kind of heartbroken/sad at the request to leave Dev's side, but was willing to do so since he asked/wished. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I really do enjoy their dynamic and really wish to see more of it, especially after this.

This is all 100% driven from his dad's actions affecting his emotional state, and I think this is actually a perfect setup for the episode where Dev and Irep take over Fairy World. Especially if Irep finds Dev like not even seconds after this scene, he's more vulnerable now than he's been throughout the whole series thus far, so a manipulator like Irep (if he is a good one, but heck even if he was dogshit at it) could defo make him change his thoughts on things.

Overall this episode was great and there's lots to love about it!

[asquared-ohgodnotthehorrors]

Ok, I’ve been seeing people make other character timeloop AUs, and as much as I enjoy seeing those, and as much as I like to think “that’s just you, let people have fun, there is no singular canon for this,” a tiny part of my brain always screams “but thEY’RE WRONG!!!”

So, I’m gonna appeal to that foolish part of my brain and also prove it wrong by breaking down how I feel these timeloop AUs should work. Heavy spoilers for In Stars and Time below.

Now, before we start discussing that, we need to first break down what effects does the Timeloop have on Siffrin specifically.

Siffrin, even before the timeloop, has… so many issues. Moreso than his other compatriots, at least from what we see. The thing is, Siffrin’s identity issues are all shared with the other party members. Siffrin is unsure what parts of themself they like and dislike or want to bury like Isabeau, Siffrin has a diasporic disconnect like Odile but worse, Siffrin has something that brings so much joy yet so much grief (the Timeloops, yes, but also their culture they can’t remember) just like Mirabelle, and Siffrin is so scared of being too weak or too late or too stupid to keep people from getting hurt just like Bonnie.

But there are also the abandonment issues, the crippling fear of being left behind, being forgotten and not being loved. That is the main crux of Siffrin’s issues in the game, it’s what spawns the timeloops, encourages Siffrin to keep everything secret, break the universe, etc. And the other characters don’t have that same crippling fear…

… at least, as far as we know. See, the special thing about In Stars and Time is that it dissects Siffrin right in front of us. We know about the other characters, they get plenty of time to talk, but we know so much about Siffrin that we would not have learned otherwise. The other characters have issues, but we never… deep dive into them the same way. They’re left up to interpretation.

So… let’s do some interpreting!

Mirabelle is the easiest. She has super awful imposter syndrome, and the thing is it doesn’t really come up much outside the main route and few snack times. But that imposter syndrome is super real. If she started looping, how would she react? Would that alleviate her imposter syndrome entirely? Unlikely, it’d make her think she was blessed by the Change god. But only at first. That same imposter syndrome might make her not tell the party members, but I don’t think it would actually stop her for very long.

Mirabelle is also much louder with her emotions than Siffrin. Her emotional highs and lows would be a lot briefer, yet more frequent. She wouldn’t be empty too easily.

There is also the fact that Mirabelle’s very belief is Change. It doesn’t matter the grief it brings her with her identity, she still loves and believes in it. That’s a good thing in some respects. In each loop she’ll try something different, make each loop as unique as possible. It’ll keep her sane for longer than Siffrin… and then, she’ll start going off track. Start doing anything, everything possible to make each loop unique. Even things she really, really doesn’t want to do.

She’d probably stop herself in some regards. Never hurt her friends, never kill anyone who they don’t intend to kill. But she’d definitely hurt herself. Hurt herself in every way possible.

When she gives up, it’s almost sort of a good thing. She’ll stop trying to make any change, let anything change. But the issue with that? She’d just be giving up the same way Loop did. What would that do to her?

Now, let’s move onto Odile. In terms of emotional awareness, Odile and Siffrin are very similar. Unlike Mirabelle, apathy likely suites Odile just fine. In fact, that would probably become a defense mechanism to Odile. She wouldn’t hide that she’s in a timeloop, she doesn’t have that fear of abandonment Siffrin has. But she would definitely not bring it up unless she thought it was important. That would lead to… conflict. She would essentially become the opposite of Mirabelle, trying to speedrun, get the loops as consistent as possible, and that means only disclosing information when it is necessary rather than when it is helpful. And unlike Siffrin, who is bad at hiding things, she won’t become an actor like him and try either. She’ll embody pure apathy and not even try to hide her pain.

Moreover, Odile said it herself. She would do horrible things to keep everyone safe. Perhaps harming them, for their own good perhaps, would be one of those things. It could take a hundred loops. But in that regard, Odile has a breaking point I believe.

Bonnie can be summed up like this: no. They are a child, it would end badly. They’d probably cry every loop because everything is so scary, overwhelming, and terrifying. It doesn’t matter how smart they are, they cannot and should not go through something like that. It would be meaningless suffering.

Now, Isabeau. Isabeau is the smartest member of the group, by a long shot. Probably not in the academic sense like Odile, but in the practical sense. He has practical knowledge, he knows about relevant lore, he can extrapolate about magic theory, he’s articulate and can do quick math, and he has fantastic charisma and insight to navigate social situations. He can figure things out, sort out his emotions and be honest with his family, So, how does he suffer?

He stops trying to use any of it. He stops trying to burden his family with his struggles. After a point, he thinks “well I’m invincible, might as well go into the house on my own a couple loops to scout out!” He’ll try to take every weight from their shoulders every loop, no matter what. And the sheer pressure and repetition will break him. Until he simply cannot move anymore. Til he loops, and collapses in front of the favor tree. Unlike Odile, he’ll try to do new things, but unlike Mirabelle, he will fail because he will try to do everything at once.

Now, I feel most confident in my Mirabelle analysis, and less confident in my other ones. But there are 2 things I’ve been ignoring that are important to bring up, which I will mention here:

First, Loops were officially broken when Mirabelle froze the King in time and satisfied both Vauguarde’s and his wish simultaneously. If everyone is being transparent with Mirabelle from the start or she’s the one looping, what’s to stop her from discovering that shield ability in the first place and solving things then and there? This is a… complex concern, and one I’m unsure how to answer. But I think I know:

Siffrin is the only one capable of learning about wish craft. They are the only one from the country, the only one who knew his wish, and the only one that can read that text. If Siffrin isn’t looping, they cannot acquire the memory of memories to progress. So, they’d likely not learn the reason behind the loops, and it would take so much longer for them to break the loops. Long enough to give up.

But then there’s the second issue. What about Loop? See, in all of these, I’m operating under the assumption that Loop is Siffrin. Siffrin is the only one who knows how to wish right, their wish is what causes the loops regardless of the target, they are the catalyst. But if you have Loop, then all should be good, right!?

Well… not exactly. Loop is Siffrin, and since a looper other than Siffrin will be interacting with them, they’ll likely be a lot less mean because they only hate themself and probably won’t be mean to their family. But they’re still Siffrin. They’ll probably still hide everything they can, and while they will reveal more they’ll always be terrified of doing so. Terrified of their family knowing. And again, Loop is about as in the dark as everyone. Loop likely will not leave the favor tree, will not join the party, will not try to acquire the memory of memories. They’ll be irrevocably stuck. Unable to progress to where Siffrin reached.

Ok, I think that’s all. In hindsight these ramblings were inane, but hey! Maybe you AU writers and artists can do something with this. Au revoir!

[melancholysway]

TMNT (Bayverse) Headcanons: Fem!S/O Meets Master Splinter

@freakishfandomfiend said:

Could I get a request of Master Splinter meeting the turtles S/O and absolutely falling in love with her, wanting to adopt her immediately and telling the boys that they better marry her. Or something cute and sweet to that effect.

PS: prefer Bayverse or 2003 turtles

I got you! What a nice submission! I'm pretty backed up on posts now and finals are whooping my ass, so I've been pretty slow on updating and such (not to mention the last chapter of serendipity is still in the works, ugh)

Anyhoozle, I did this one a little different! It's still a long-shot, but instead of making individual one-shots for the boys, i wrote a universal one for all 4 of them at the bottom after all the hc's! I honestly hit writer's block when it came to writing the meeting splinter bit to be unique to each turtle 4 different times, so you could say i took the easy route LMAO

anyway I'll stfu

Leonardo

Acceptance from his father is an absolute must

Like seriously if Splinter doesn’t like you

You gotta go

He was still wondering when the good time would be for you to meet his Sensei and father

He’s been able to keep it on the low amongst his brothers (they promised not to say anything, though Mikey is walking on thin ice right now,)

Theyre just so intrigued on how mr perfect got a girlfriend first

He’s now the guinea pig for the other brothers. The blueprint. Of what you should (or shouldn’t) do when bringing your girlfriend down to the lair to meet Master Splinter for the first time

But when you tell him you love him for the first time, he knows he has to tell his father at some point

Lucky for you that some point is right now

He confesses to splinter about you, and he wants to meet you.

Its the first thing he wants to do, because well, you’d better be a good girlfriend to his son

Especially his lil Leo

He would hate it if you brought stress to Leo’s already stressful life, so he has to meet you

To read you, to see what you’re about

So as you make your way down to the lair for the first time you’re anxious, scared, nervous, everything. 

“Love, don’t be so nervous. Just…be yourself.” It’s this followed by a soft kiss on your lips that gives you the reassurance you need to meet his Sensei.

Raphael

Raph- to no surprise- is the first to get a girlfriend.

It’s not a shocker to his brothers, I mean, he always did have a way with the ladies (according to Mikey,)

Plus, he has that bad boy / hidden softie persona that girls would fall head over heels for

Splinter’s ultimatum is that if you can get Raph to like you enough to even date you, you were alright in his book

Because Splinter doesn’t have to worry about Raph’s intuition, he follows after Leonardo

He knows when someone’s bad news, and you were most definitely not bad news

Raph is actually pretty quick to getting you and Splinter to meet

Because he wants- no- needs his father’s blessing

“Splintah gotta know, baby. I just…I’m…what if he doesn’t approve?”

You can feel Raphael’s nervousness seep through his words, and you give him a soft smile, and squeeze his hand, to let him know that a father knows best. He would not disapprove of something or someone that made his son happy

Unless she was the enemy…then uh…yeah no.

Splinter’s blessing matters a lot to him. He didn’t care what Leo thought about another human being so close to them, what mattered is that Splinter gave his blessing 

And once he gives his blessing, it’s final. No if ands or buts about it

He brings you down one evening, after a lecture from Leo that any human they interact with, must meet Splinter

It just happened to be that you were his girlfriend

He brings you over, the first time you go in the sewers of New York

You greet his brothers, all shocked that you’re actually down here. That Raph’s girlfriend was about to meet their master

You see a large rat in a room, and once Raphael calls out to him, you see him walking slowly over to you, eyes filled with curiosity

Donatello

Donnie is seriously nervous introducing you to his sensei

You ARE the first girlfriend. Donnie got a girlfriend first. 

Surprising, I know. You would think it would be Raph or even Leo.

But anyway

He’s afraid of what he’ll say

Because for some reason, Donnie usually expects the worst. 

But, he’s always surprised of the things Splinter says, because like I said, he expects the worst

He’s scared Splinter doesn’t like you and forbids any contact with you

Or that Mikey would open his big mouth before you could even meet Splinter

Or that you and him don’t last long after and this whole introducing you to his father thing would be pointless

“Donnie, I’m not going anywhere.” He’s relieved to hear this. You weren’t planning on leaving him any time soon. Or any time at all. 

Donnie practices exactly how he’ll introduce you to his father. He goes through many dialogue options, eventually realizing that he cannot predict what his father will say when he first meets you

All of that doubt running through Donnie’s head comes to a halt when Splinter lays eyes on you for the very first time. 

He knows it, that you’re the one for his son. 

Michelangelo

Mikey isn’t as nervous as his brothers to introduce you

He psyches himself out when he doesn’t know what Splinter’ll say or how he’ll react to you 

“But…but what if he doesn’t accept you, Angelcakes?”

He doesn’t know for sure, if he will or not

He’s usually optimistic, unlike Donnie, but right now, he was thinking of the what-ifs. 

Because, well, he and his brothers didn’t have to worry about introducing their girlfriend to Splinter. Mikey is the first. 

He doesn’t have any advice from his three brothers, only a “good luck with that” from Raph when he mentions it. 

Master Splinter had not expected any of them to have a girlfriend, so he did not give them the run-down of how to introduce them or the formalities when they do

So he’s sort of left to do things himself. 

Since he’s the first. Mikey got the girl first. 

He hypes himself up on the way to the lair, then immediately searching for master Splinter and boasting about you and all your good qualities

But, Splinter doesn’t need to know that. He knows just by looking at you. 

“It is a pleasure to meet you.”

You decide to be formal. As your boyfriend had told you, it's something his father is so used to being. Splinter often is formal, never using slang or harsh language. He’s proper, always has been and always will be. You’re the first to speak, because Splinter is too busy observing you. Looking at you, looking into you. Trying to map you out and see what you’re about all with one stare. It’s something he’s good at, something that his other sons envy him as he’s a pro. 

You wonder what’s going through your turtle’s head, the way he’s looking at his Sensei and father, wondering what’s going to come out of his mouth. He’s waiting for the climax of this whole thing, and it’s driving him mad on the inside. 

Splinters eyes meet yours after taking your presence in, and you feel mildly uncomfortable whilst making eye contact. Just like your boyfriend, you’re not wondering what’s going to come out of Splinter’s mouth. Up until this point, he has not known of your existence. The mutant turtle was keen on keeping you a secret from his father for the time being. He needed time. Time to be with you and see if you would potentially pass the rest of meeting his father. 

So as Splinter begins to speak, you’re surprised by what he says. 

“I always knew you would get into a relationship first, my son. Do not tell the others.” Splinter says, smiling as his wrinkles fold every which way on his face. Splinter has told each of his sons things like this before. 

That Leo was destined to be the leader

That Raph was always going to be the most passionate for things he loved

That Donnie would become the genius of the family

That Mikey would have the biggest heart. It’s not something he hides. 

But this relationship bit? Yeah, don’t tell his brothers about that. 

“Oh thank god-“ It feels as though a big weight has been lifted off the terrapin’s shoulders, as he’s now engulfing you into a soft embrace. Splinter doesn’t have to say anything else to know that you were accepted by him. And by the way his son acts around you in comparison to the rest of his brothers? How calm he is around you? Yeah. Splinters more than okay with it. That you get to be his son’s first girlfriend. 

But, he has a funny feeling about one thing. 

“I’m assuming she’ll be your only girlfriend?” Splinter states, giving you a small smile and his son a devious wink. It confuses the hell out of your boyfriend, and when you catch on to what his father means, you’re both laughing with each other, already finding common ground and things to bond over. 

After meeting the turtle’s Sensei, your boyfriend leaves you to go on patrol with the rest of his brothers, as Splinter mentioned he would love to get to know you more. After all, it’s not everyday he talks to a human that isn’t April or Casey. 

You wind up talking in the dojo, whilst white noise plays in the background and you get to know one another over tea. He tells you things about his son- your boyfriend- things that he hopes you can help with. 

All of his sons have a bad habit or two that he thinks you’d be able to alleviate them from. 

Leonardo overworks himself to be the best he can be. 

Raphael carries the world's problems on his shoulders. 

Donatello gets lost in his lab and loses track of time, often letting himself go in the process. 

Mikey needs to focus more on things that matter in the long run. 

“I often wonder if my sons will ever feel this emotion we call love. I’ve taught them everything, but to love a woman.” Splinters voice falters, as he seems to be beating himself up for the fact that he failed to teach his sons a crucial part of life. As bad as it may sound, he assumed they wouldn’t be able to find it. That humans will never see them as anything but ugly. 

So he’s grateful for you. 

“While I hope my other sons get their turn in loving a woman, I am glad one of my sons has been able to properly love.  you,” He takes a sip of tea, glancing at the Ifamily portrait that sits atop a shelf in the corner of the dojo, a shrine of kinds.

 “…without any guidance from me. It is truly admirable. He has made me one happy old rat.” You can’t help but giggle softly at that last part. 

“I can see through you, miss Y/n. I can see you. For what you are. That is why I accept you.” Splinter is very in tune with his intuition, there was no doubt about it. So much so, that you were dying to know what he meant by that. 

“If I may ask…what do you see?” 

And…he tells you. 

He sees an accepting woman in front of him. One that gives those the benefit of the doubt before anything. That he can tell that’s how you started your relationship with his son. He just knows that they struggled with grasping the fact that you were attracted to him, despite being a mutant turtle. Despite the roughness of his skin, you still accepted him. Despite the difference in height and appearance, you still accepted him. That you wanted this. You wanted a relationship, not out of pity, but because you had fallen in love. You’d fallen in love with one of the four mutant brothers. 

He tells you the story of how they became to be who they are today. You’ve heard this story from your mutant boyfriend, but it’s something about the way Splinter describes it- from his point of view, that gives you a newfound respect for the entire family. Their sensei had raised mutants to be something so special, not even realizing it until they went to the surface for the very first time. 

You continue to converse, and time seems to pass you both by. It had to have been an hour or two, because the Lair doors open, and three brothers are helping one turtle to the couch, obviously in pain. 

It hits you that it’s your boyfriend. 

As Splinter sees the look of concern on your face, you immediately rush to the turtle’s side, already ordering his brothers around to get ice from the freezer, the med-kit from the lab, and bandages from the cabinet. It is now where Splinter sees how gentle you are with his son, that he could almost hear wedding bells. 

It was beautiful to see the way you handled him with such care, like a mother. How nurturing you were, and how you gave him a kiss when you were finished, helping him up and getting him to his room to rest. That’s what he needed. After a lot of TLC from you, he needed rest. 

So when you emerge from your boyfriend’s room, relieved that he’ll be okay, Splinter commends you on your actions. 

That he knew you would do that. It’s the type of person you are- he’s seen that when looking at you. 

“Thank you, for tending to my son.” He takes your hands in his paws, smiling gently at you. 

He has fuzzy hands. 

As you decide to spend the night with the guys in the Lair, Splinter sneaks past you as you converse with the remaining three turtles in the living room while grabbing an ice pack, and walks over to his son’s room. 

He watches as the turtle groans in pain from the bed, the ice pack already melted, and his ankle elevated for proper blood flow. How he sits there, slightly defeated, but grateful that his girlfriend went all doctor on him. 

“May I ask you something, my son?” He makes his presence known, as the turtle’s face scrunches in confusion, but gives a weak nod for his sensei to continue.

Splinter strokes his beard, before giving him that gentle smile he and his brothers have all come to know and love, “when is the wedding?” 

“Dad!” You overhear their conversation as you walk up the stairs, and you stop in your tracks, wondering what your boyfriend would say. 

“Too soon? My apologies,” You hear Splinter chuckle weakly, before continuing,  “She is very nice, my son. Caring, nurturing, everything that men search for in a woman. Treat her right, and marry her. She will bring nothing but joy to your life, I can tell.”

It ends with a laugh coming from your injured boyfriend, “I plan on it.”

It’s enough to make your heart soar. Splinter is now the unofficial wingman for you, and you hope your boyfriend holds up to that plan. Because honestly, spending the rest of your life with him was something you daydreamed about. 

//

taglist:

@bee-1n-space

Masterlist

[neerons]

Hi! How are you doing? I wanted to ask if you know some stories that are similar to MK. It can be another game, manga/webtoon, or even movies/series/dramas. I want to read or watch a similar story with an interesting plot and deep stories, but not too complicated. The storyline has to be logical/coherent and well written. The characters must be strong and have interesting personalities, good developments and if possible, good relationships too. I don't have a particular theme in mind, but I'd like some romance in the story (the two lovers are equals). If you have some recommendations or if someone else has some stories to share, I'm interested! Thank you ❤️

Hi! I'm very good thank you. I hope you're doing well too ❤

I'm not going to help out much when it comes to other games, webtoons, movies or series as what I play, read or watch in these categories don't really fit Masquerade Kiss' universe.

Anyone is welcome to leave recommendations as well. Try to tag @ himawari ⬆ for visibility so your comment can be seen

MK is pretty unique so not everything I recommend is even 50% close to being similar to MK, so I mostly rely on core details that match.

However when it comes to mangas/animes, there are ones I can instantly think about, and some others that have similarities as well. Some of them don't involve romance but I tried to think of ones who do.

Black Butler

If you're looking for something similar to Kei's route, let me introduce you to my favorite anime and manga ✨ Black Butler/Kuroshitsuji ✨

It doesn't involve the romance you're looking for, but the story is deep, linked to religion and a sexy demon butler, with one of the main characters (Ciel) having a very similar past to Kei. It's actually the only one I can think of that is so similar to MK overall, but it's definitely darker.

It involves the same things we see in Kei's route in general: rejection of religious faith, demons (but here an actual one), philosophy about what being a human is, child abuse in a religious setting, being left as an orphan, and another thing very similar to Kei that I will not spoil as it is a big plot twist in the manga. (But tbh I wouldn't be surprised if the writer in charge of Kei got inspired by Black Butler)

(However, keep in mind that if you watch the anime, you need to look up the episodes that are adapted from the manga so the plot stays coherent (the anime has some parts of S1 and S2 that were invented, and you should avoid watching those, unless you want to, if you want to understand the actual plot)

The Apothecary Diaries

The romance is not completely established yet even in the manga, as it is slow burn. However the FL is extremely interesting and strong, intelligent as well as very funny. The ML is equally as good, and both have a very interesting relationship.

I recommend this one especially for the "equals" part you're looking for, but the era they're in in this universe doesn't fit MK's. But the story is quite deep and not that hard to understand

Spy x Family

This one is linked to spies and assassins, and family life in general in a cold war setting. I realize as I'm writing this just how much I suck at doing these masterpieces justice btw.

Anyway, the characters are extremely good. The story, with all its comedy and funny moments, is also quite profound as you have characters start to understand what love is (kind of similar to MK as well in this aspect?) and well, it's about ✨ spies ✨ I like to compare the MK Boss and Twilight (the ML) as they're incredible at their work.

The romances are not well established as well in this one but they're slowly building.

The era is also a bit different, but it's not too shocking

Kaguya-sama: Love is War

This one is also a funny one. The FL and ML and side characters are all amazing and well written. It's an elite high school setting. It's not dark like the others ones I've mentioned and is more of a comfort anime/manga.

I think the characters' banter can be similar to what we're used to see in MK, and it's a lovely, although frustrating at times, slow burn

7th Time Loop: The Villainess enjoys a carefree life married to her worst enemy!

I almost tired my fingers out typing that title, but this anime has a really good romance with a very independent, strong, intelligent and capable FL, with a strong, cold but actually tender ML.

Not the same era as MK again, but it's another one with both leads being equally as good and having a good relationship (although it's not easy at first). The FL's belief in justice and her kindness are also similar to our lovely MK MC as well.

I don't know if you have already watched or read those, but that's mostly what I could think of. Sadly, I have yet to find one very similar to MK's glamour, sensual, funny and dark vibe myself but I hope I helped you a bit, and if I didn't, then I'm sorry and I hope you'll find something good!

I guess the Mission Impossible movies that the MC loves so much are actual inspirations for MK? So you might be interested in those if you haven't watched them.

The movie or series about Hannibal Lecter with Mads Mikkelsen for Kei's route as well? Although I haven't watched it myself so I don't know if it was an inspiration, and it's gore, so be careful with the warnings

I could recommend you French romantic movies that MC would enjoy and that would be similar to MK (as MK heavily implements French references in its content), but I won't be able to guarantee there'll be a translation for you to understand, so I'm giving up the idea

Thank you for the ask, and have a lovely day/night ❤

[suffarustuffaru]

How do you think Subaru and Otto could actually work out like long term relationship work out

INTERESTING QUESTION ANON i think it depends on whats going on with the situations they get into or whats happening in the timeline theyre in but i think ottosuba in any sort of longer term relationship (as friends or romantic partners) would work out in one of several possibilities:

good ending!! they stay good friends for the rest of their lives, resolve all differences, recover a bit from their respective insecurities and traumas over time, and stay close :) otto may or may not get hung up on subaru a bit in the back of his mind (bc he probably wants subaru carnally judging off of the Details that rezero staff keep adding into otto side content) but he’d do his best to move on 👍 and ultimately theyd be happy!! yay happy ending!! this is the best case scenario.

their relationship tragically explodes in their faces due to Too Much Conflict and it may or may not end in some death

Somehow. Against All Odds. In Some Sort of Alternate Universe…. subaru and otto are dating romantically and they always need each other anyway in any universe so im just gonna assume theyd probably get married and be attached at the hip (good ending) or be. you know. their typical codependent selves and make each other simultaneously worse and better.

but either way metaphorically i think theyre basically married regardless of how they define their relationship bc they Do need each other. they are staying by each others sides forever if they can help it.

i think in general though if we’re talking more of that main route complicated friendship, imo i think realistically on ottos end there could be somee sort of unrequited romance there (too many little details about ottos attachment to subaru that add up and heavily remind me of rems attachment to subaru). subaru isnt privy to it and neither of them fully know about each other, as much as they do still Know a good amount of things about each other. i think that their current main route dynamic is like i said either gonna end in tragedy or itll be rocky for a while and then eventually end happier.

i dont think theyd get into a romantic relationship ever as they are now in main route unless you mess around with the timeline a bit. ottos otto with his avoidant tendencies and his desire to help subaru as much as possible so of course hes gonna be the type to stand by and be happy for subaru at his wedding or whatever but be dying inside a little knowing itd never be otto there. and subaru shows far more romantic interest in emilia and previously rem obviously, but julius is way up there of course. otto is a best friend but not a lover.

otto fully admits to subarus face that he cant date a woman as he is now bc she wouldnt be his priority. the most important thing to him. bc otto is otto he probably means his career goals (being the emilia camp internal affairs minister and getting his own store) but the line is so open ended it makes total sense imo if he also meant prioritizing the emilia camp in general—especially subaru.

i think otto is currently at that level of clinginess that even if he went to eventually date or marry someone who isnt subaru, he’d still think of subaru. and its not that subaru doesnt want and need and love otto or see him as lesser than subarus other loved ones, bc subaru really really cares about otto and loves him unconditionally, but when you think of who subaru thinks of and turns to first, naturally youre probably thinking of beatrice or emilia or rem or julius. of course every dynamic subaru has with different loved ones of his is special in their own ways, otto included, but otto continually seems to be shadowed when it comes to subaru.

and otto of course knows that. hes not the First to be there for subaru. he knows this the moment he starts interacting with subaru more in arc 3 and 4 and witnesses subaru do so much for emilia. when otto also witnesses emilia caring so much for subaru, excitedly rambling about him to frederica while otto watches quietly and wonders why hes jealous of emisuba’s closeness. otto watches emisuba quietly again and realizes why they care so much for each other, why subaru fights so hard for emilia. otto is bitter when subaru doesnt ask him for help bc otto was there always following in subarus footsteps. otto goes out and risks his life while emisuba argue and then eventually kiss in the tomb. otto watches again as julius’s existence further threatens otto’s insecurity of being useless to his loved ones and julius fits in with emisuba while otto cant.

i do think its interesting to note though that otto of course steps back because he wants subaru happy, and bc he also cares about emilia too—but otto gets defensive with julius for all sorts of reasons. my personal theory is that theres also a sense of loyalty here bc in ottos head, sure hes not gonna be like subaru’s Lady. but ottos the Closest Man in subarus life, right? (until julius comes along after otto spends a year living with and serving subaru.)

its also interesting to think about how this compares to otto if, where the dynamics with ottosuba are slightly reversed all bc otto IS the first person to be close to subaru. otto isnt a dog following at subarus heels in the same way anymore, hes not a shadow—theyre both in the light instead as equals, and instead of otto supporting subarus dream, its subaru supporting ottos dream (of opening a store and running a successful business!! which they kinda did bc they got their own market stand!!). inadvertently theyre also supporting each others Implied dreams: curing their loneliness and having someone at their side who truly cares for them and spends all this time with them. main route ottosuba also support each other of course but theres far more cost with all the trauma theyre going through and the conflicts rising between them that theyre not fully aware of (rbd and both otto and subaru hiding info/parts of themselves away).

in a general long term, ottosuba would have to put everything out in the open and be fully honest with themselves and each other to the best of their ability if they want to still have their friendship by the end of all of this bc all the lies and insecurity is tearing them apart :((

otto and subaru are people who need to be needed. they kind of try to secure love towards them at times by becoming indispensable to other people, they submit to other people with their own insane devotion and theyd go to any lengths.

with ottosuba specifically, otto is the first to die for subaru and reach out to subaru first, even in the white whale loop bc otto goes back for subaru after regretting pushing subaru out of the wagon. subaru knows otto is willing to die for him. subaru in arc 8 thinks about how he needs otto and how it would suck for otto to die, and in general, otto is a source of safety and dependability for him. otto is smart and capable and loyal, he can solve problems that i cant figure out by myself, and i can count on him and tease him. that sort of sentiment. subaru to otto is the first person to actually want otto, the first person to Literally claim otto as his (arc 4 wn subaru joking about otto being “his side toy”, but also the otto’s diary episode where ram calls otto subarus accessory and otto admits he likes it), the first person to actually want otto to stay to the point of hiring otto without his consent, the first person to—like otto with subaru—search for otto first by sending ricardo to save otto from the witch cult.

ottosuba get into a feedback loop where they need to be needed, and they need each other and acknowledge the other has things they dont have (otto’s calculating nature, subaru’s idealism and determination). otto is also different for subaru bc hes someone he can pull along in a way subaru cant with other people his age in his life—otto has to be teased and poked and prodded and pushed and normally subaru doesnt get this sort of role, and otto needs someone who can be pushy like that so he can actually be pushed to admit he Wants Connection. at the same time though, otto leads subaru by the ear, instructing and helping subaru with strategy and demanding subaru turn to him for help, pushing subaru to accept it for once. its a true feedback loop for sure !!

hypothetically speaking if they were in a romantic relationship itd just be like their usual dynamic as friends but with extra steps. theyre as clingy as ever, but either way…. they have issues to get past. and i think itd have to start with otto, bc due to rbd subaru is Incapable Of Talking all that much about that anyway. ;-;; ottos the one whos literally holding back, and he needs to be honest about his general insecurities and try to communicate and admit stuff like “im scared we’re all going to get hurt so i keep wanting to do anything to stop that from happening” or “i feel horrible just not being able to do anything while the rest of you are out risking your lives bc i dont want anything bad to happen to you and i Need to do something to help” or “maybe i just need you to keep needing me so that i know you wont leave me behind again” or “i thought that the only thing i was good for was literally staying in your shadow and doing all the shitty stuff that you cant” (hahaha otto does not know about subarus bad case of stockholm syndrome and dying and being tortured sooo very much ;-;;;;;).

i think itd take a lot of work to get past the current hurdles in their dynamic, especially with rbd making it more messy, especially with subaru not being able to talk about it, especially with ottos Shit probably is gonna hit home for subaru bc hes felt Similar, especially when ottosuba as a dynamic mirrors other ships like emisuba (otto is the subaru, subaru is emilia) and remsuba (codependency and sacrificial tendencies :,) ). so this is all gonna be uncomfortably close to home over and over for subaru, otto is allergic to vulnerability too, and otto is once again in the shadow of everything subaru is so. if they want a healthier dynamic everythings gotta be in the light <33333333333 </33333333

anyway and i think in long term either they fix all their shit or they sort of fix it by being Unhealthily Attached At The Hip At All Times. the latter would just be Extra Codependency Speedrun Any % where its like otto if where they live together and spend time together all the time except if they get separated for two seconds the abandonment issues start showing (that subarus had for a long while but ottos been slowcooking since his backstory). they hear the other needs them for something (this happens often) and immediately drops what theyre doing to run over there. they either fight to sacrifice for each other in weird little cold wars or theyre working scarily in sync bc if one person goes the other Always Follows like a damn guard dog. theyre not a duo, theyre one and the same. ottos control freak ass gets to pull subaru around and Protect him. subaru keeps a close eye on otto and Protects him, but lets otto lead him around as much as subaru likes to push otto’s buttons a bit. its kinda like their pre-arc 6 dynamics but dialled alllllllllll the way up. theyd be like the remsuba sort of sweetness where its unhinged af and most definitely not the healthiest thing in the world but if it works it works right ahahahahahahh…..

i also think in general a romance between ottosuba would be highly domestic yeah but in the old married couple way. very similar to how their friendship is anyway. being simultaneously hopelessly helplessly fond but also so very annoyed but also i see you everyday, so of course im annoyed (i love you). stop drooling on the pillows when you sleep >:<<<< dont stay out of the house for too long. dumbass. idiot. and i think on subarus end for ottosuba romance to start he’d have to 1. recognize ottos feelings are Probably Not Entirely Platonic and 2. i think if subaru did ever gain more Romantic feelings for otto itd be more subtle for him? ottos the one who falls head over heels like hes gonna give himself a concussion, subarus the one who has otto there as this nice constant until subaru realizes one day that he erm Needs and Wants Otto So Very Much. waiiittt a goddamn minute you Like Liked me this whole time????? thats INSANE…. (has never been wanted carnally by another guy before).

anyway i hope that makes sense anon 👍👍 ty for the ask :3 sorry if i answered it a little off bc i misread ur ask or smth ;-; but i hope you enjoyed reading this regardless 👍 anyway have some posts that remind me of them ;-;;;;;; —

[iloveschiaparelli]

currently writing my longpost about Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes but OMG i just have to speak out

It's SO FUNNY to me that fandom's response to Noamae is either to ship it wholeheartedly or declare it Zoophilia

Mainly because the whole premise behind Planet of the Apes is the idea that through a series of events, Apes became like humans and humans became like Apes. So essentially, the positions of "human" and "animal" are reversed. Zoophilia is wrong because animals aren't on the same level of intelligence, communication, and sentience as humans and so can't really consent.

Since all of this is fiction we also have to look at how society reacts to shipping between races equally genetically distinct, but mentally and soully on the same level. Personally I think D&D is a great example since it's hard to get away from and half the players on this site are deviants. There are humanoid and nonhumanoid races but no one really seems to have a problem with shipping any combination together? On the other hand apes and humans are remarkably similar, so much to the point that the evolutionary consensus is that we have common ancestors and even evolved from apes. I don't believe in (macro)evolution but if I did I would say that apes and humans are really... hardly genetically distinct at all, compared to humans vs other species.

So far the zoophilia camp is claiming that it's zoophilia because (as far as I've seen) Noa is an animal and Mae is a human. So Mae would be committing zoophilia.

But like... there's two routes you can take here on this ship.

If it's zoophilia, in the context of the universe of Planet of the Apes, Mae is the animal in this situation, because the majority of humans have become "animals" whereas pretty much all apes on earth are in the "human" position. Mae is the exception. To put it into perspective for you, if James Franco's character started a relationship with Caesar in the first trilogy film, then Caesar would be the animal in the zoophilic relationship. It's the same situation just the roles are reversed.

If it's not zoophilia, it's because zoophilia is determined by intellectual status, not by difference in species. Which is consistent with how this site usually treats relationships between nonhuman+nonanimal race combos. Therefore, since Mae and Noa are on the same level as far as intelligence, communication, and sentience go, it's not zoophilia because neither of them are animals.

Personally I think it's weird regardless to have in a mainstream film, especially since the lines blur so much in this series as to where humanity stops and animal begins. Even if you have a religious belief that sets humans apart from animals regardless of intelligence, I think it's pretty clear that that isn't the direction that the movie is coming from.

But like, honestly as far as logic goes it's the zoophilia camp who are committing logical fallacies?? Unless you also think a relationship between an Aarakocra or Tabaxi and a Human would be zoophilia as well. I think it's actually a pretty nuanced situation whether it's acceptable to ship Noa and Mae and it can't be easily shoved into the zoophilia category due to the nature of the story and the questions it intentionally presents.

If you're uncomfortable with the ship, you have every right to be! I definitely am and probably will not be interacting with most Noamae ship content lol. But I don't think there's an objective answer as to whether there's a moral problem with it, nor do I think the zoophilia camp is being consistent in their beliefs unless they're also applying this logic to shipping inter-racially in other fiction content where they have comparable intelligences.

by the way no i am not a proshipper <3 i just think this particular question is tied to the questions inherently presented by the media through its existence.

[nqmonarch]

Self Aware Thoughts

This is more world building thoughts so feel free to skip.

But like I'm so tired from doing cs shit today I didn't want to write any of the fics I was planning to write and instead I decided to just think.

Here's all of my favorite things that Self Aware AU would imply if it were in the real world (which obviously isn't possible but these are the logistics).

As I have learned through my very limited time as a computer science major, AIs probably won't have consciousness unless if we don't have unconsciousness. Much less lines of code in a game which aren't meant to be AI. Even though it's a really sick idea and I love when people write it like that. But let's say we still want the characters to become self aware and have it be slightly more possible and broaden the possibilities of Self Aware AU and speak the unspoken.

What is sort of implied, but never really said or sometimes thought, is that when characters become self aware it is no longer a game, even more so if the characters bring the player to their world or the player arrives in the game world. This means that their world and the player's world simultaneously exist, maybe in different universes or something. Which is pretty much what every AU has.

But wouldn't it be really cool if like the game characters invaded the player's world? I'm not talking accidentally teleported there but like straight up invaded, like bring their war ships and declare war on them? Or slowly infiltrate the world to get close to the player to either romance or kill them, whatever suits your boat.

Wouldn't it be interesting if one day Nanook (HSR) broke through the barrier of the universes in an attempt to destroy this one too? Just think of all the cool hijinks that could go on! And it's only because they became a game in your world, that they know your universe exists.

Now, this just brings up more questions. How are the characters (and thus the world) effected by the game? And how do we deal with the whole multiple players thing?

The latter I think is slightly easier to deal with, maybe each player has their own universe of the game, or for some reason the MC's game is a bit different, or Aha (HSR) just wanted to have some fun so they did this, or maybe there's a huge nefarious scheme that the player got wrapped into.

The first question is a bit more difficult and has larger implications for what the characters will feel toward the player. Does the player actually control the characters when they do in game combat is my poor boy Diluc (Genshin Impact) just suddenly teleported in front of Signora and forced to fight her? Well, that would probably upset some of the busier characters, it would make some of the characters would love fighting happier, and would scare off some of the other characters.

Overall in that scenario they become stronger, likely because the player builds them which should reinforce positive feelings about the player. But... they also have the chance to die and get hurt which they may resent the player for.

To which I suggest my ultra safe method of you don't actually put the characters in those scenarios because that's honestly horrifying. Imagine working you're working incredibly hard as the acting grandmaster of Mondstadt (Jean, Genshin) and suddenly you're expected to basically work overtime as the slave to this higher beings demands and face an immense amount of pressure, pain, and very scary beings.

Horrifying, personally I would hate the player. But it makes the player resemble a more deity like entity, so if that's the route you want to go then this may be the way of interacting with characters you're looking for.

So what can we use for these scenarios that aren't the characters? Well, we can say our actions for the most part don't effect them aside from giving them items or relics which they end up also receiving in their daily life and find their combat stats boosted yay! Maybe, when you're using them in your party they can hear your voice or see you, or get some hint to the fact they're in a video game. Overall, would probably leave a positive impression but some characters may straight up not notice because it's a bit more subtle.

Now, enter my current favorite option. Robots, doppelgangers, mannequins whatever you want to call them the player basically has a duplicate of the playable characters that acts as a robot, following their will. The robot copies and reflects the playable character's soul so buffs (items and stuff for the robot) are also given to the playable character. But since the robot can't really die or get hurt, the playable character remains unharmed.

On the other hand, if the playable character in canon gets harmed then unless if they're dead, it's fine since it relies on their soul, or state of mind, or consciousness even. If they die then they take refuge in your inventory, I talked about this briefly in another post I made speculating about dead characters and the self aware AU for HSR. Or if their mind becomes no longer their own or in the case of HSR mara-stricken then they can also take refuge there, imagine Blade (HSR) finding brief moments of peace in the times he's outside of his body and in this world of "the dead." They're sheltered there so the little robots remain functional.

It's even more subtle than the previous method I mentioned so let me explain why this is my current favorite.

It's partially just for the fear factor. Because it isn't actually that subtle considering you're moving your characters around exploring everywhere and everyone sees this strange gang of 4 robots that look eerily like celebrity figures following the Trailblazer or Traveler around. It's kind of funny but really horrifying especially for the playable characters.

Imagine going to go do the Fontaine quest and in the audience Furina sees herself stare back. Yeah.

Or in HSR going up to talk to Natasha as Natasha. Of course the robot's censor the character's real words so what's sent back to you are static options that always stay the same. You do not get to hear Seele curse out as she sees a robotic Bronya visit her, and instead are faced with the same dialogue options as always.

So I really love that take on how the player's actions affect self aware AU, and there's a lot of other ways you can probably do it too that I'm not mentioning but there's just so much untapped potential.

With not just accepting that when it's self aware the game isn't really a game anymore, and using that to your advantage. And also I wish more self aware AUs took advantage of how terrifying that would actually be, I want to see characters having mental breakdowns over this.

So that's the basic logistics of Self Aware AU I think that can make it really fun. But while writing this, I had another idea, because robots inspire me and for a moment I want to go back to that idea of how characters in a game can't have consciousness.

While characters in a game likely never will have consciousness because they aren't even programmed to learn what could come to have consciousness is AI. But that depends on what we define consciousness as. AIs take in data similar to the way humans take in experience through stories or life and then we both make decisions based off of those.

This can make some AIs very good at solving problems or making themselves appear a certain way, for example pretending to be self aware when in reality that's just them predicting what goes best next in a sentence given the context and what they're supposed to represent. Whether or not AIs can become conscious depends on whether or not humans are conscious and what we define consciousness as. Is it our moral code (which is also learned and AIs can replicate too) or emotions, is it the fact that we think and then from those thoughts choose what to say?

I don't know and probably never will. But, I'll say this if an AI is able to disobey its rules for something then I would guess that's consciousness. Now I'm not talking about a bug, because it is kind of impossible for machines to disobey rules for example you could write a statement like:

If (hurtHuman == true && protection == false){ then do new move or turn off}

To check if they're going to hurt a person and not out of self defense of another person and if they are then they have to do another action or power down. But chances are AI robots if we ever create them will probably have something that allows them to hurt other people if they need to protect their owner. And that idea of whether or not someone is a threat and if their owner needs to be protected will likely be decided on by data, and data can be biased. But if the AI finds a loophole where it can sort of argue that the owner needs to be protected because of X, when they don't really need to be protected, that's where I would guess it's close to consciousness.

Anyway all of that yapping about stuff I don't know too much about and for what?

I think a Self Aware AU set in the future where the characters consciousness (code) are put into robots so people can order their favorite characters and spend time with them would be really cool. And then we can make them conscious and it's kind of like Self Aware AU, they're not really in a game but they're the character and I think it's a super cool concept.

Robot boyfriend/girlfriend/partner for the win!!! Honestly may be something I end up exploring later on in the future, not sure if it'd classify as a self aware AU, probably not, but I think it was relevant to the topic because I was talking about robots earlier.

Anyway this was a lot of me yapping, if you read this far I'm pretty surprised because this is more so to get my thoughts out on paper so that way when I write self aware AUs I can add cool twists or introduce new concepts because there's a lot of potential in these and I think they're super fun :) Yay!

[aquarii-if]

I don’t really know how to say this: How does the world react to your relationship with the Ro’s? Are Demi Gods treated like celebrities, and now so does the Ro? The Queen is obviously going to be treated differently than the others. I’m guessing the human Demi God isn’t going to be universally beloved.

Demigods are kind of seen as celebrities by Aquarii and Chronos. Demigods are seen as protectors and prophets. Most join the army or the JAA, or they decide to make their own path to further Mitan and Virrian civilizations in their own ways. Even those who hate the gods tend to like the demigods.

As for your other question…

By the time it gets to the point where MC is locking into a romance route and the public is becoming aware of MC’s and their chosen RO’s relationship, they’ll have a much more solid opinion of MC, this can lean towards a positive or negative opinion based on MC’s choices.

For Liviana, the public will always be hesitant about Liviana dating MC regardless of their collective opinion simply because of how much will change and how much work both MC and Liviana will have to put it to make sure this bond is successful. Not only is MC human, which means that now they will not only be the first human to step foot on Aquarii, but they’ll also be the first human to rule Aquarii, they also don’t come from royalty. Liviana doesn’t come from royalty either, but all that means is that Mitans have already taken the risk of putting a civilian into royalty before, and they might not want to risk it again. There’s just… a lot MC has to work through. All the RO’s routes are stressful, but Liviana’s is definitely one of the more stressful ones. She’s tied with Vega, lol.

As for Amare… He comes from a very influential family, so there will definitely be an uproar, but it’s not the public MC really has to worry about in Amare’s route. 🙃 Take that as you will.

Estelle’s relationship with MC as the highest member of the JAA will definitely have mixed opinions, but by the time Estelle and MC’s relationship is revealed, Estelle would have already worked through all of her own issues with being in a relationship with MC, so she won’t care. Estelle does have an influence over Aquarii, but not enough of one where her relationship with MC will really affect the galaxy or the public.

I actually cannot answer for Ellery or Vega due to spoilers. 😅 Which sucks, I know, but I’ll try to summarize.

Nobody really cares about MC and Ellery’s relationship because they care more about something else that happens in Ellery’s route. Unless MC’s relationship with the public is positive, then they will discourage the relationship, but Ellery is not the one they’re asking to break it off.

Same with Ellery, depends on MC’s relationship with the public. Though, if MC has a negative reputation, Vega’s route is mostly the both of them being casted out of society. 🙃 Power couple over here.

[slotumn]

Hot take on 3H inter-faction scouting wrt how "plausible" it is for in-universe politics:

I think it can happen, but they need to be very politically savvy to pull it off and benefit from it + either the circumstances need to be dire enough that it's basically the best slash only realistic option left, and/or there needs to be a lot of personal material benefits to joining the other side. And I mean a lot.

By which I also mean: I think "doing what's right/because they personally like and trust the Professor (as in, for reasons other than knowing they're strong enough to win the war)" that the game tries to tell you is actually a very weak reason.

For one, keep in mind that most of the playable cast in 3H are feudal nobles. Some aren't in the best circumstances by noble standards (ex: Ingrid, Lysithea) but they're still nobles, they hold power and wealth and would generally be way better off than like 99% of the people in the lands they rule. Under some circumstances they might have to bow their heads to someone else (ex: the crown, and for Alliance nobles, stronger neighbors), but for the most part, while they're in their own territories/manors, they call the shots. And that's a pretty strong power trip.

To put it bluntly, even if Place A overall sucks compared to Place B, many would prefer being able to call shots in Place A rather than living by someone else's rules in Place B. Especially people raised since birth to call the shots, so, you know, nobles. Throwing all that away to fight for another country (and possibly being branded a traitor/sellout aka losing legitimacy) without guarantees of good material/political compensation, just because "it's the right thing/I like someone on the other side" is... pretty unlikely imo

If they do switch sides, it's more likely that it's a "oh shit our side is probably gonna lose, let's just switch sides now and lay flat so we take less damage" situation and/or there are some unpleasant negotiations involved, like the other side going "haha yeah if/once we win you can take over the lands of your neighbors who didn't switch sides, if the commoners disapprove and try to rebel we'll give you troops to flatten them."

You also need to take into account what might happen if you switch sides, and the side you switched to loses/you get defeated by the guys you betrayed. Because that is definitely not going to end well, unless, again, the switcher is really fucking savvy with politics.

And most of this post talks about nobles, but I think the commoners would also realistically want something a bit more than "it's the right thing/for an individual," such as money, security/safety of family, career prospects, etc for switching sides too.

Like, remember that most of the commoner students are literally at Garreg Mach for the explicit purposes of climbing the socioeconomic ladder. Would you risk your life fighting on behalf of a different country you don't have family or connections in (or in case of Mercedes, possibly a country you already fled once for safety reasons) if they weren't at least giving you fat stacks of cash in exchange lmao

Tl;dr I think the reasons for/circumstances behind characters switching sides would have to be way more cynical than what the game tries to tell you if it were to make sense politically.

(This is also a big part of why I think Silver Snow would be better if it doubled down on really being the Church/Byleth route and had all the Eagles students initially fight with the Empire post-TS. Most of them are way too intertwined with the Empire politics/family/connections wise to just abandon that and join the underdog rebel army formed in the fifth year of the war at the drop of a hat!)

[evviejo]

i will not get into silly spats with random users on threads (which i barely use anyway), just because an absolute rando said star trek: legacy doesn't have a good premise, but let me remind everyone why it does and why paramount would be absolutely BONKERS if they didn't grab this opportunity:

goes back to the origins of trek, with a motley crew on board the flagship

has an interesting, complex character for captain, one that is established and well-loved in the universe and fandom

on top of that, she would be the first openly queer captain in trek

there's also an incredibly entertaining and complicated character in the role of first officer

both seven and raffi have oodles of untold, unexplored stories from their pasts to talk about

and that is not even including the mess of their relationship

on top of that, they have kids of actual trek legends, exploring whose stories could also be intriguing - like digging into what it's like to be a daughter of geordi la forge, or what picard is like as a newly-found father

that also means a lot of potential for cameos and guest appearances of fan faves

and that is without even considering any other members of the crew and their stories

add to it all the complications of the current state of the federation, the past entanglements with other species (borg, most notably, but also changelings or synthetics, if only to mention the picard ones)

and if they chose to go the classic route, they could simply have fun and wacky episodes, discovering new planets and saving new species

and, last but not least, the two actors who would be playing the central roles are eager to do it

to finish, you could say the idea for any post-tos show wasn't a good idea, since a lot of what they look like is similar. and yet, trek is great at differentiating between its shows, making each a unique story with unforgettable characters. there is nothing that would suggest legacy would be any different.

unless that silly rando finds a trek show focused on two queer women uninteresting, but then, i guess we all know where they are coming from 🫢