#zidane knows of kuja

[asheanon]

@xkuja — From this thing.

🤍 Sal is pleased by this offering. The "it was actually stolen from Zidane" part would prove objectionable otherwise; alas, she missed that part.

She is a little curious as to why there's so much empty space in the cup, though...

[zottower]

Goodbye brother !

I think it's interesting to draw a parallel between Zidane and Cecil, because both at the end of their adventures have to forgive their brother and nemesis. Some elements are repeated like the fact that the villain brother says goodbye and admits he has been doing things so terrible he can't live among the other people of earth.

Then the main character reflects on the fact that he could have been the criminal if circumstances had placed him in the same position as his brother.

Yes, because Cecil, Zidane, Golbez and Kuja are moon boys, lol. Different stories, but the fact is that their origins make them a threat for Earth.

From there, things are reversed ! The situation is a bit similar, but the characters reactions are totally different. Cecil is reluctant to forgive Golbez and everyone encourages him to help him and forgive him, while Zidane is the only one who thinks he should go save Kuja despite the danger.

Rydia and the other repeat that as a brother, Cecil should forgive the only family he has left. Zidane while his friends tell him that even though they share the same origin, Kuja's atrocities are reason enough to leave him to his sad fate, says that this is not the point :

(translation by the youtuber Vagrant Chocobo) Sure there are differences. Golbez had been brainwashed, asks for forgiveness and claims his will to put an end to Zemus' evil doing while Kuja has been doing evil because it was his mission and then because he doesn't want to die alone : anguished, he goes to the end of his nihilistic madness and it sends Zidane and his friends confront "the darkness of eternity" ; when the team comes back victorious, he simply calls the airship for them to flee destruction, urges Zidane to leave and live his life, without asking him for help. One will rejoin his people, the other dies. But in either case, it seems that it is when the brother's life is at stake that brotherly feelings seem to be awakened. I think Cecil and Zidane are also different because of what they have experienced. I don't remember Zidane being betrayed by his friends, he is a thief and has a vision of good and evil that goes beyond common morality, it's more a question of life and death (main theme of FF9), solidarity in hardship, while Cecil's world is more divided between right and wrong, and having suffered many betrayals, he has every reason to doubt the validity of brotherly feelings, of which he learned the bitter way that their dark side is a harmful rivalry.

Is FF4 more simplistic because of its format ? I don't know, while Zidane's generous impulse is very sympathetic and heartwarming, I think Cecil's reaction is very understandable too, even if we can expect better from a paladin who was himself given a second chance. But I think it's more about a variation on the morality of each story : FF4 trying to emphasize that even though it is difficult to make, peace is preferable to revenge and justice (justice in the sense that someone who does something evil needs to pay), while FF9 instead asserts that good lies in protecting life and making it meaningful.

(FF9 translation by the youtuber Vagrant Chocobo)

[lightwithinthedarknessu]

Getting a chance to share my fic focusing in Vivi for @ff9zine with spot art from the amazing @mariibeann thank you so much for bringing this story to life with your beautiful art!! I had so much fun writing an epilogue for Vivi, he’s such a sweet little guy and deserves all the love.

Leftover Sales are open for @ff9zine ! There are still a few merch items left and a chance at the digital zine. It’s such a gorgeous zine, so if you haven’t yet go on over and take a look at the options here

You can check out the fic here below or on AO3

Summary: The ultimate gift of a journey is one well lived. As Vivi comes to terms with his life, he looks back on the letters he once sent—deciding to compile them together as a last message to all of his friends. One in particular for his dear friend Zidane in hopes he’ll return someday. Set before and after the epilogue.

At One with the Sky

Vivi bobbed his head back and forth, teetering his bum on the edge of a small wooden stool. Life had changed drastically since his dear friend Zidane had gone off on a journey that even now, Vivi wasn’t sure when he’d return. Back then, Zidane had said he was taking life more seriously because of Vivi’s influence. With those words, Zidane went off to save Kuja and never came back.

Vivi knew someday his friend would come back. Just…Vivi might not be there to welcome him. And so, today the little mage decided to put himself to the pen once more. His journey had been filled with nights spent writing in a small “journal” given to him by his Grandpa. Unlike most journals, it was a simple leather folio, bound with black twine that wrapped around a brass button that acted as a simple closure. Vivi gingerly unraveled the twine until he could peek inside. The space was large enough to hold the mage’s quill and pen, alongside a stack of nine completed letters.

Master Vivi, what is that? Steiner had asked him that question once.

Letters to my Grandpa, Vivi had replied, adjusting his hat to stealthily hang over his eyes. He couldn’t bear to explain that at first, he thought it was a “journal.” Over time, and after learning more about the world Vivi had come to know keeping a journal was different than the art of letter writing. Still, in his own way—writing letters was an act of keeping a record of his life.

Zidane was the one who explained the difference. The memory tugged at the edges of Vivi’s whirring heart. Back then, his friend had caught him writing by candlelight after they spent the night at the Black Mage Village. Zidane, being Zidane had swiped the letter Vivi had been writing and began teasing the little mage after he told him to “give his journal back!”

A Journal? Isn’t this a letter? See it reads like one too! Zidane laughed, then began to tease Vivi by reading his letter out loud. Slowly, the rogue’s face fell as he read Vivi’s statement that the little mage probably had a year or so left to live, maybe more. Maybe.

Neither addressed the moment and instead quietly went to sleep. But the next morning, Vivi found a scrawl from Zidane on his letter. He wrote that Vivi shouldn’t think about it too much and just keep moving. Vivi took the words to heart. If Zidane, Dagger, Steiner, Eiko, and Freya were able to keep moving forward—maybe someday he’d stop worrying about it.

Vivi tugged on his hat. The memory made his head feel fuzzy. Tears pooled at the edges of his golden eyes as he looked out the window of Alexandria castle. The sky. Right, the sky was so blue the day Vivi had finally had enough. He was frightened, scared that the feelings plaguing him would never go away. He wanted them to stop.

You don’t have to do everything my way, you know? Vivi…Well…in the end, it boils down to two simple choices. Either you do or you don’t. You’d think with all the problems in this world, there’d be more than two answers. It’s not fair…but that’s the way things are. The choice is yours. I just wanna protect the people I’m with. Doesn’t matter whether I can or not. It’s what I believe.

Those words Zidane spoke took root in Vivi’s heart and slowly but surely, a sense of peace overcame him. It helped Vivi keep searching for the answers he sought—and when he found them—life made no more sense than before. But Vivi kept going. Even when Zidane wasn’t there to encourage him anymore: he remembered those words.

Vivi took a deep breath. Time was fleeting. Life was slowly seeping out of him. But he wanted to leave something and relive his journey one last time.

The little mage set out a leather book cover he had obtained from Queen Garnet.

I’d be honored to hold your memories. Hold them for him—for his return.

Vivi shook away the ache forming in his throat. Words that couldn’t be said. Words of thanks that conveyed a journey well lived. Slowly, the little mage began to unwrap each letter and put it inside the cover. Soon it would be bound by the court archivist.

As he picked up each one, Vivi began to relive his journey.

****

Grandpa, I set off today on my adventure.

It’s been about a week since you faded into the sky. For days I didn’t know what I should do. It was scary, being alone and not hearing your stories anymore. So, today I decided to head to Treno. It was scary at first, there were so many people! But I met a Moogle who gave me a ticket to see, “I Want to Be Your Canary” in Alexandria. I hope it’s as good as your stories. Next time, I’ll tell you tomorrow about what the town is like!

I met a Moogle!

The world is so much bigger and sometimes scarier than I thought it would be. But the sky, it’s so clear and bright here. I keep looking up at it and wondering just how far I can go. I’d like to think I’ll be able to visit everywhere the sky touches.

But Grandpa, Alexandria is filled with so many people! I fell over once and almost lost my ticket, but it wouldn’t have mattered if I did. The man at the ticket booth said it was a “fake” and I wouldn’t be able to see the show with it. I wandered around not sure what to do next. But then, another guy as little as me came running through the streets with a ladder! He helped me get a spot on the roof to watch the play. I think I like it better this way, you can see the sky and the tops of the houses for miles. I’ll tell you how the play was later, the show is about to start!

The Evil Forest is really scary…

I’m scared. I don’t know how it happened, but I was taken away from the play on an airship with a bunch of “kidnappers,” a “knight,” and the princess herself! Somehow right after we took off the airship broke apart and we fell into this dark forest. My head feels a bit fuzzy from it all, so much has happened. I know you told me there were things out there that wanted to eat me, but I didn’t think plants would! I passed out after that, then Mr. Blank gave me some yucky medicine to get the seeds out of me. I thought I was going to die. The world really is dangerous.

I hope the princess is ok. My new friends Zidane and Mr. Steiner said I could help save her with my magic. I couldn’t do anything before. I was able to help myself but not the princess. I feel like I’d just be useless. Can I really help? Mr. Steiner called me Master Vivi and seems to believe in me. I’m not sure what to think about that, but I’ll try my best.

Maybe I can be useful too!

I was able to use my magic! I feel better that I was able to be useful. I’m happy to have made friends with Zidane, Mr. Steiner, and maybe I will be with the princess too when she wakes up. I hope she’ll get well soon. Right after defeating the monster, the entire forest attacked us! We barely made it out.

Grandpa, it’s strange. I’m all messed up inside. Mr. Blank worked so hard to save us but—the Evil Forest took him too. I couldn’t do anything again. From now on, I’ll work hard to not be afraid and use my magic to help keep everyone safe. So far, everyone’s said my magic is really useful. That made me really happy. Is it strange to want to be needed by my new friends? I feel like, maybe they can help me find where I belong.

What am I? I never thought about it before…

In Dali, I found dolls that looked like me. What does it mean? Why do they look like me? I don’t know what to think. Zidane said that they only looked a bit like me. Maybe he’s right. They don’t act like me at all, and their clothes are different. But when I got on the airship, they were up and moving—just like me! I tried talking to them—but it’s like they don’t even see me at all. Then another one of the Queen’s mages attacked us. The dolls tried to protect me. And that mage killed them all….

I couldn’t do anything…they were swallowed up by the sky. I got so angry. I asked my friends: “Were those black mages and I…the same?”

Steiner said it didn’t matter, even if they were. And Zidane said that I’m an “individual.” I’ve decided to believe in those words. I’m me and no one else.

Grandpa, I’m so happy to have friends. Maybe they’ll help me find out who I am. I miss you. If you were here—what would you say?

Lindblum’s Grand Castle is so huge!

Dagger,

Thank you for bringing me here! The food was really tasty, I think my Grandpa would have loved it. I even saw something that looked like his sesame buns in one of the shops. It’s so busy and people from all over are trying to live their dreams! I’m sure you know that…you’ve been here before after all.

I was really excited about attending my first festival until Zidane signed me up to hunt the monsters. I never thought I’d be using my magic that way! Zidane won, but I had fun touring the city while hunting monsters.

I felt useful until we saw that Burmecian soldier die. When I heard that the enemy soldiers might be the same black mages—I realized it’s even more important to find out who I am. Dagger, I’m like you��I was really sad to see him die. And scared. I’m scared to find out what I am. Maybe, I’m not even human. But, I feel it’s my duty to visit Burmecia and find out. I think—I understand why you did what you did. In your own way, you’re fighting too.

The rain just won’t stop falling…Burmecia is gone…

Freya,

I’ve never seen so much death before---so much sadness. Grandpa once told me death was a part of life. But, is this really what he meant? I don’t think so. I’d like to ask Zidane, but something aches in my chest. Freya told me that it’s possible the answers I seek will change my life for the worse. But—I think it’s worse if I don’t find out what I am. Thank you Freya, for worrying about me even when you’re the one hurting the most. As we journey together, I hope we’ll both understand someday and be able to turn our anger and hurt into something meaningful.

I don’t understand…

Puck, I’m sorry! Steiner, what can I do?

So many people have died. I keep seeing the Black Mages kill people over and over. I haven’t been able to stop them—tell them that they don’t have to kill. But that’s all they’ve kept saying: KILL. All I’ve been able to do is watch—watch them kill. When will it stop? I don’t understand—why does everyone around me keep dying? How…how can I help?

I’ll keep going. I gotta know why.

I visited a village…filled with mages like me!

Grandpa,

There ARE others like me! They talk and they’re scared of humans! I couldn’t believe it, there was a whole village! It’s in the middle of a dying forest and Black Mage 288 told me they traveled all the way across the ocean to get here. But…I found out something else. One day, a Black Mage will “stop moving.” When Mage 288 told me that, I ran away. Zidane asked me if I was ok, but I lied. I’m scared.

These mages talk and live like me. They have hobbies, jobs, and people they love—friends. They don’t kill, they just live peacefully away from humans. Earlier tonight I asked Black Mage 288 more about it. He said, our lifetimes are limited—it varies but after a year most die. He too fears death; he doesn’t want the others to know—sometimes he’d like to run away too.

“The joy of living with them far outweighs the fear of death. Isn’t it the same for you? Traveling with your friends gives your life meaning.”

I didn’t know how to answer him. I don’t know what to think. What does it mean to live? To exist?

Everyone in the village asked me to see the outside world and tell them all about it. I think continuing my journey will help me find the answer.

It’s not fair, but don’t think about it too much. You should keep writing your letters, Vivi. I know all of us would like to read them, even your friends in the village. So, just keep moving forward. That’s all you gotta do right now. – Zidane

A new friend!

Quina,

I made a new friend, her name is Eiko and she can summon Eidolons just like Dagger! It’s a bit annoying but Eiko likes bossing me around. It’s ok, I think she does it because she’s lonely. Maybe being around friends will make her stop teasing me someday.

I’m learning a lot!

Grandpa, I’m running out of ink…so it may be a while before I write again. Once I can, I’ll tell you all about everything that’s happened. I think…I’m beginning to understand myself more.

Holding onto anger doesn’t help anyone.

Grandpa,

I got so angry after we ran into Kuja again. He’s the source of everything—all the pain and death. But thanks to Zidane I was able to pull myself together. I’m still mad, but I was able to get a new pen and quill in Alexandria at Dagger’s coronation. Kuja…he’s caused a lot of pain for Dagger too. She lost her mom. Brahne was terrible and I hated her too–but seeing her not moving anymore and how hard Garnet cried made me realize something. Life is precious. My existence too—I want to make it all mean something.

I’m so glad I met my friends

Eiko,

Zidane hasn’t been himself lately. He was angry and said things he didn’t mean. But Zidane is like me, he was created too—so maybe that’s why he got so angry back then. I was able to help him like he helped me, I think. Zidane is Zidane again.

I’ve learned that someone be there for you when you need it is important. I think I’d still be angry, lost, and scared if I was alone But my friends helped me realize that it’s ok not to know yet what your existence means. We all still have time to think. I’m so thankful to have met my friends. Regardless of what we face next: I’m ready to face it all.

It’s been a while…

Zidane,

This is my first real letter. Remember when you said I should keep writing them? Well, I’ve learned how to properly write one thanks to Steiner. Everyone’s gone their separate ways now. Garnet is doing well as Queen with Steiner and Beatrice protecting her as always. Eiko was adopted by Regent Cid, can you believe it? She has a family now and seems really happy. Freya went on a journey with Sir Frately. Even if he doesn’t remember her, she’s getting to be with the person she loves. I see Quina now and then eating at places all over. Amouranthe—I hear stories about him everywhere I go. I hope to see him again.

Oh, that’s right! I’m traveling again too and making a big book filled with drawings and stories to share back in the village. I…don’t know how much time I’ll have left. So, Zidane. When you get back. I’m going to ask you a favor, ok? I’d like to meet you again, but even if I don’t—I’ll always remember what you taught me.

I feel like I have so much to say, but there isn’t enough time. So, I plan to write a letter to all my friends. A letter that tells them how thankful I am. Maybe, I can leave more of myself behind that way. Maybe…my memories will become a part of the sky and keep going on with you. I really…love the sky. I hope a part of me keeps journeying with everyone, somehow.

****

Zidane closed the bound record of his friend’s life with a reverence he had never experienced before. The soft light of the sun peeking through the glass latticed windows of Alexandria castle warmed the cold sensation that had been seeping its way into his heart. Vivi really was gone—at least the Vivi who left this journal. He had come back to find so much had changed, and yet so little. It felt overwhelming at first, but Zidane being Zidane sorted through it all quickly with Vivi’s help.

Garnet had handed him the journal with tears kissing her eyelashes. He didn’t fully understand till now what those tears really meant. With a sigh, the former rogue made his way to the top of the castle. The bright sky above was such a deep blue he could almost feel himself falling into its cloudy maw.

“One with the sky, huh? Cheeky kid. Making the sky all about him.” Zidane chuckled. Soon he found himself opening the journal again, staring at that last line. Hastily he scribbled his own words beneath it.

Alright, well if this journey is going to continue with you: then I hope you don’t mind me borrowing your journal. I’ll finish filling out every last page. Till we met again, little guy.

[icycoldninja]

My darling (Kuja x reader)

Hello? Is-is that you? Oh, Gaia, it is you! You're here. You're talking to me...this is incredible! Finally, finally, I can tell you how I feel! I remember the day you turned on my game, the day you came across me while controlling Zidane. I remember how you battled me through him, how you used him to defeat me; how you watched me die. I wonder, did you feel as pained as I did when you watched me take my last breaths? Ah, but never mind that, for I have something to tell you, something I've been waiting to tell you for so very long.

I love you.

It's silly, a perfect, powerful being like myself falling in love with a lowly human whom I've never even seen before...but here I am. In love. With you. Every time you turn on my game, my heart races with joy. Though I cannot physically interact with you, I am ecstatic to know that my elegance and grace is at least being beheld by you. And when you turn off the game, my heart sinks into sadness. All that is around me is darkness and emptiness; I feel so lonely. So afraid. Though it is a great blow to my pride to admit this, without your presence....I am scared.

I wish you were here, holding me in your arms, keeping me company so the darkness doesn't swallow me up. I wish you would tell me everything was alright, even if it wasn't. I just want to be able to hear you, to see you, to cherish and love you to the best of my abilities. I wish...I wish I was real!

Oh, but darling, don't despair. There is a way I can be real: in your heart. As long as you carry me in your heart, I will always be with you in spirit. When you hear a song that makes you think of me, I will hear it too. When you take a walk and see something you wish I could see, I will see it too. And at night, when you sleep, I'll be there too, and together, we shall build a majestic kingdom in your dreams.

Sleep well tonight, my darling. I'll see you soon.

[goatofgehenna]

(FFIX) Necron made sense as a final boss and here's why...

I would like to break down this argument by addressing his lines of dialogue in the original script (Japanese) because it's a better representation of who exactly Necron was and why he was there.

Necron only gained the name Necron in English. His japanese name is 永遠の闇 (Eternal Darkness) or 'The Darkness of Eternity.' I implore you to observe Necron as existential dread and death itself embodied in physical form.

The script (paraphrased to make more sense in English):

"Fear is in the hearts of all living things, from the moment they are given life; there is no exception. Life itself is a cruel thing... each abolishing the other in the struggle to survive. That which lives is constantly burdened by the anxiety and suffering caused by the fear that someday it will die. Upon realizing death is inescapable and cannot be overcome this fear is awakened... The greater the fear of death is, the more one will say he does not want to succumb to it. To be spared the enormous fear of death all life must cease to exist. Kuja gave into this fear and came to the conclusion that he could be saved by destroying the Crystal, the origin of everything."

Kuja was also afraid of death but more specifically, he was afraid of his life being meaningless, of not having control over his destiny and of the kind of life he lived.... before he ever knew about his shortened life span, this is why he sought to defy Garland so strongly.

Vivi, upon learning he was an artificial being made for war, started to question his own fate and consciousness. Throughout the game, he comes to the conclusion that it doesn't matter if he gets all the answers he wants - what matters is the choices he makes with the time he has. Vivi carved the life for himself that he wanted to live instead of succumbing to the dread of his shortened life span or his violent purpose for creation.

Zidane also learns he was an artificially created being made for destruction - at first this realization causes him to spiral as he thinks everything he knew about his life was a lie and that he has no control over his fate, that it was only by lucky chance he didn't come to kill everyone he now calls friends. His friends remind him that he is not defined by the purpose of his creation but rather the choices he makes and that he is in control of that.

I could go on.. almost every character in FFIX has this sort of theme (Garnet, Steiner, Freya, Beatrix, Kuja, the Black Mages, Mikoto even makes a speech about it after Kuja dies, etc.): Questioning the meaning of their existence, if the choices they made were right or wrong, if they are created for the wrong reasons or bound to a destiny that was handed to them OR if they have the ability to change and carve a new path for themselves.. if they are in control of their fate.

I say all of this to say, it is very important that all of the cast conquer their fear of death in order to live life without dreading the end of existence or what may or may not come after it. In defeating Necron they are saying: "We know that by choosing life we will not be spared it's hardships and that for all of us, death is inevitable, but the joy of experiencing being alive is a price we are willing to pay."

Necron states that he cannot actually be defeated when you finish fighting him because he is more of a metaphor for a feeling, for a reality of existing.

He was originally going to be represented as 'Hades' - god of the underworld - who is not actually a wicked force but a neutral force - one that anyone can greet with fear or acceptance.

Vivi, by his letter in the end, made peace with this reality and showed deeper understanding that some symbolic version of himself would live on in the lives of those he knew and the stories he told (memories).. this is how he kept Zidane's spirit alive despite never getting to see Zidane again in the flesh before (Vivi) passed.

Kuja, after witnessing the party defeat Necron and Kuja used the last of his remaining magic to teleport them to safety.

This line from Mikoto (talking for the Genomes) is a little tricky to translate to English. The real meaning of it from the original Japanese script is this message:

"Kuja.. what you did was wrong.. but you gave us all one thing.. hope. We were created for the wrong reason, but you alone defied our fate. We do not want to forget this. We want your memory to live on forever... for we want to believe that our existence has meaning."

What she's saying is: despite the fact that we were created for the wrong reason (to take over one planet and eradicate an existing people there) you alone challenged the idea that you had to live by someone else's design (Kuja wasn't following Garland's orders, he only wanted to appear that way to double cross him, but in reality he wanted to be the ruler of Terra and Gaia, not it's destroyer). Kuja was also told that he was 'a failed AoD' and Zidane made as a replacement which rendered his life meaningless initially - Kuja also defied this. He lived as an individual through and through. Kuja's memory reminds the Genomes (And the Black Mages) that they can choose their own meaning in life by the way they live and think despite any 'destiny' that might have been handed to them by their creation itself.

SO YES - Necron is the correct final boss.

And his foreshadowing is literally one of the largest themes of the game.

[bladesmercy]

001 for sfkr and clerith!

oomf u know me so well. thank you for letting me yap >:-)

001 | send me a ship and I will tell you:

sefikura 🐍♡☁️

when I started shipping it if I did:

there's actually a funny story to this one. > be me. > guilelessly playing kingdom hearts 2 in 2019. > "what the hell is these dudes' deal. i wonder if people ship them at all" > open ao3 thinking there might be a handful of fics > "oh there's a couple more than a few, huh" > life ruined.

my thoughts:

my favorite little guys in anything ever. they surgically removed my personality to make room for more sefikura. truly i have never loved a ship as much as this one. literal otp of all time.

What makes me happy about them:

everything? they're so funny and silly to me. extremely pathetic creatures. two absolute losers. i think of them and i always smile. i love the fact that each of them have independently made their personality revolve around each other at different points in time, it's so funny.

What makes me sad about them:

EVERYTHING. the fact they will never have a happy ending. the fact they will be enemies in every (canon) universe. the fact they are two extremely broken people who are uniquely equipped to understand each other and that won't be enough to save them.

things done in fanfic that annoys me:

tbh i'm so picky with what i like and don't like about how both these guys often end up characterized, but i also think all interpretations are valuable in their own way. i can't think of any huge annoyances, except that i have very Specific feelings/headcanons about sephiroth in crisis core era, and usually won't read things that veer too far away from that.

things I look for in fanfic:

i love any and all fics where the author makes it obvious that sephiroth is just. completely besotted. and i think cloud feeds off of that, even if he won't admit it. i'll read just about anything with these two, but i especially love stories where authors can articulate the crux of their dysfunction really well. yes, these two have have immense amounts of hate, and blood, and pain between them, but (especially on sephiroth's end) there is also an Intense desire for intimacy, of any kind. these two things juxtaposed well is just magical to me.

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: 

no one. i say that as a joke but it's pretty much true. for cloud i do also ship him hardcore with aerith (somewhat against my own will XD), but outside of that i don't really multiship these two anymore. i used to be a Hardcore multishipper, and while i still appreciate things like some polyshipping (other cleriseph enjoyers where are you, i need food of that ot3 so bad), i honestly can't enjoy the thought of them being with anyone else. i miss being a multishipper, because these days pretty much every single other ship with them (outside of clerith) has become a notp for me. ;w;

My happily ever after for them:

in canon? haha. the closest i could see them in canon ffvii (and the closest i think part 3 of remake would get to giving them a 'happy' ending) is having a moment of resolution similar to what kuja and zidane get in ffix. i would be satisfied with that for canon. BUT if we're taking all the stops off, i want to see the dramatic epic pining slowburn post-AC where they eventually figure out how to lead semi-normal lives alongside each other. this is making me want to write that now....maybe that will be my next fic project.

who is the big spoon/little spoon:

there's an obvious answer here with consideration to builds and hair lengths, i think. i like to think cloud has accepted his fate to have this 7 foot tall piece of brick clinging to him like an octopus.

what is their favorite non-sexual activity:

this is another obvious one, and i'm tempted to say 'fighting', but i'm not sure that clears the bar of non-sexual for them. my second choice is that i think they would just genuinely enjoy being around each other in silence. they're both such introverts, and i like to think of them just recharging quietly with each other.

clerith ☁️♡🌎

when I started shipping it if I did:

let me preface this by saying that when remake came out in 2020, i had less than zero interest in vii's infamous love triangle. i wanted no piece of it in my heart or my home. then the game came out and cloud and aerith gripped me by the throat and violently dragged me into falling in love with them by being so damn charming and heartfelt and perfect for each other.

my thoughts:

i love these two so damn much. i really Really loved them in remake, and rebirth intensified this to a level i could Not have anticipated and is currently ruining my life. i love them. i love that they are soulmates, romantic, platonic, or something in-between. i love that their bond and chemistry is near-instantaneous, i love that cloud blooms into letting himself experience softness around her, i love that aerith finally has someone who cares about making her happy and standing by her so damn much.

What makes me happy about them:

so much. their love is so pure and tentative. their vibes to me run parallel to how i see and experience the early 20s as a queer person, essentially the second teenage-hood where you're still feeling yourself out as a person, and you have no idea what you're doing. you feel like you're missing out on a lot of the fundamental experiences that 'normal' people have already had, and i feel like both cloud and aerith mirror that emotion, thanks to the fucked up circumstances of both their lives. aerith is cloud's first real friend after nibelheim (and potentially ever, depending on how close you think he was with zack. to me, i hc cloud and zack were pretty friendly, but not especially close prior to the nibelheim incident.) and cloud is also one of aerith's first friends. they've both suffered such acute loneliness and isolation in their lives, and the fact they find healing for that in each other is so so special to me. the fact that aerith is the person most able to reach through to the person cloud Really is, even under everything he's got going on, makes me so deranged.

What makes me sad about them:

well. there is a very obvious answer. so there is definitely That. that's kind of a big deal.

things done in fanfic that annoys me:

honestly i feel like i don't have many specific fanfic annoyances in general, because if a fic annoys me i just stop reading it, and then my adhd makes me forget i read it to begin with.

things I look for in fanfic:

i really love everything with these two, i love all the cute fluff happy ever afters they don't get to have in canon, but i also love the angst and the drama and the trauma. usually i just gravitate towards any fics that i feel understands the characters well or has interesting ideas, the exact plot or type of scenario is less important to me.

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: 

in my heart, cloud's endgame ship is always sephiroth. as for aerith, i'm also a Huge zerith shipper (yes i am in constant emotional pain, how did you know), but aeriseph also firmly has a place in my heart.

My happily ever after for them:

any. any of them. i want the most tooth-rotting fluffy ending for these two. (admittedly, their iconic tragedy is a part of why i love them so bad. without it, my emotional investment would be Nowhere near as high.) i've been reading a lot of wedding/alternate future fics with these two lately and they all make me ;w;

who is the big spoon/little spoon:

i genuinely think it goes both ways, but if i had to say i think cloud is doomed to be a little spoon in any lifetime.

what is their favorite non-sexual activity:

oooh tough one!! i think aerith would love teaching cloud to garden....though i'm not sure he would be any good at it. but i have faith in him to learn.

[megashadowdragon]

FF9 also has a completely different story than the Japanese version, and in particular, the dark and sentimental aspects of Zidane that appear from time to time have been thoroughly eliminated, making him look like just a pick-up guy who likes women.

Listen, translation is hard. That's why it can take so many years for certain works to even be available in certain countries, but I don't blame people for being incredibly cynical when the characters are so poorly conveyed. @AkumetsuLord · 23h I’ll sorta give a pass on older translations because of how different things were (and the reasons aren’t as asinine compare to the ones now) but it’s crazy seeing some changes warped a character so differently. I didn’t even mind womanizer Zidane but how he should been is neat

What's most surprising about FF9 is that the film's signature line, ``Do you need a reason to help someone?'', never appears in the English version. Nothing. The last scene where Kuja asks "Why did you save me?" is translated into English as "Because you saved me."

As a result, fans who don't like that type of music and want to enjoy the original atmosphere, and English speakers from outside North America who don't know anything about American pop culture, are taking a toll, but if a company prioritizes profits, it's something like this. The answer will be correct.

However, this kind of excessive localization can clearly detract from the quality of the story. For example, in FF7R, the characters say "fuck" and "shit" a lot, but in some places, foreshadowing and important details are lost because the lines are changed that way.

For example, Barrett: “Hey! What happened earlier?” Aerith: “It’s different.” Barret thinks this Sephiroth is the one he saw in the Shinra Building, but Aerith says that's not the case.

Barrett: “I’ll do it, you asshole!” Aerith: "Stop it." It's becoming. Barret utters a meaningless curse, only for Aerith to stop him. nuance is completely lost

There was also a line in the pillar where the Shinra soldiers were tricked into thinking in Japanese that they heard that Avalanche was about to blow up the pillar and came to stop them, but this also makes no sense in English. (I looked for it, but couldn't find it because I don't remember the specific scene).

Original (roughly): Ignis: Looks like that daemon's attracted to the crystal. Gladio: But I thought daemons are afraid of the crystal. Ignis: I'm just saying it's a possibility, but we shouldn't be discussing it now

[xkuja]

"I'm curious- do you ever let anyone touch your tail?"

|| ||                    "My... what now~?"

      Kuja's mind raced. How could this measely waif possibly know about that!? Kuja was always meticulous, never letting his tail slip, much less in public... Right? He couldn't have-- It was impossible!

      ...

      Somehow, this must be Zidane's fault. No other explanation sufficed. He was going to draw and quarter that brat by his own belts.

      "My, what a vivid imagination you possess, mon moineau~. Of all the fanciful tales~, a tail~ ! I am amused, so I'll generously indulge this flight of your fancy."

      Leaning in close, near nose to nose with this audacious young beau, his kohl-lined eyes abruptly sharpened, red as embers, gleaming against a pale face most otherworldly...

    "N E V E R."

[jessjustplay]

I finished replaying Final Fantasy IX!

September 12, 2024

I finished replaying Final Fantasy last week. I played this game a lot when I was a kid and my last playthrough was back in 2021. It's my favorite Final Fantasy!

Game: Final Fantasy IX First Time/Replaying: Replaying Game Time: 33 hours Console: Nintendo Switch Started: July 7, 2024 Finished: September 3, 2024

I had a lot of fun replaying this. When I started this game, I was in the middle of playing Tales of Berseria. That game is huge and kind of fast-paced, so getting on the Switch to play FFIX took some getting used to because it has such a slow start. But once I got in the groove, I was hooked! It was so relaxing starting my mornings with the FFIX soundtrack, leveling up, exploring and seeing the story unfold.

Here are my endgame stats!

Can I just say, Kuja is such a great villain. He's so believable. He was created to wreak havoc then got greedy and wanted power to prove he was better than Zidane. And then when he realizes he's mortal, he just loses it! It's not complex at all, which is quite shocking for a JRPG, lol.

Individual character stats right before the final boss fights.

When I was younger, this part of the game used to confuse me. Alas, as they say, I was an idiot. Lmao.

Let's just say the final final boss was HARD. I died so many times! Thank God I had a lot of Elixers and Eiko learned Full-Life which came in handy to get my team back on their feet (multiple times.)

I really don't know how I did it, but I must admit I'm impressed with myself.

Yes, yes, such sad. And then there's Eiko, being sooo extra. I love her.

A redemption arc!? I'm telling you, a great villain.

Don't look at me during the final cutscenes. 😭

Also, the nerve of them to play Melodies of Life during the end credits. It doesn't help the tears!!

Thanks, Final Fantasy IX. You were as magical as ever.

[snakegorl212006]

When they want attention/affection and how they act when you don’t give them your attention/affection

------------Kuja---------------------------

-ok probably not the most affectionate person but does require your full attention -if he doesn't get at least a hug or kiss from you he would be upset -not like full temper tantrum but definitely would feel a bit sour -especially since he dealt with neglect with Garland -he’ll probably feel like he’s not need which would make him feel salty -part of him wants to be patient like if you had a long day or something -and then a big part of him says to do something extreme to get your attention -he has very elaborate methods to get your attention all on him -he would call on you giving you his affection so you can return his feelings -maybe even whisper sweet words to really try to get a reaction -another thing he could do is be dramatic but it’s very subtle -using his poetic words to express is boredom or longing for your gaze -”If only something could cure me of this insufferable mood” something like that -if nothing works he would just give you the silent treatment and would look irritated

---------Zidane------------------------

-if he doesn't get any attention from you he would act just as dramatic as his brother counterpart -unlike his brother he’s more opened about it -”hey what’s got you so hooked!?” -he’d probably pout -last case scenario he would just take you away from whatever you are doing just to spend time with him -he’s not clingy buttttttt… -good luck getting a needy zidane off of you -when he’s not that needy he would leave you alone with similar thoughts like kuja -you might want to be alone -or you might be actually busy -which is fine for him but he’ll like if you told him before you’re off to your lonesome -he worries about you and he cares for you

--------Dagger/Garnet------------------------

-her being needy doesn't happen often especially with her independent personality -I feel like she would prefer if you seek her out vs when she want to seek you out for some attention -If you reach out to her even if it’s just a simple hello or to check up on her, she would be happy and view it as you care about her -but lets say she wants to have your attention -if the shoe is on the other foot i feel like she’s more than capable to just tell you her feelings -she can be straight forward especially to her S/O -if she feels neglected she could just summon you and just say the she want’s to spend time with you -although i also feel like she would also be shy with it but also understanding about having a busy life(she is queen after all) -”I was wondering if you and I go out for a walk sense we haven't had time to ourselves in a while” 🙂

------------------Vivi---------------------

-i doubt he completely understands his need for attention or affection -but he dose understand how lonely he’d get when you don’t hang out with him for some time -as much as he would love to ask you to hang with him, he gets a little shy -he might feel a little embarrassed for he doesn't know how you would react to him asking for some attention -sometimes he would be quick to back down on his request and just wait until he sees your not busy -”can we oh..umm.. Nevermind” or “hey can we umm.. Wanna go see a play”

---------------Eiko------------------------------

-she’s not shy at all when expressing her need for attention -when she see you not giving her the attention she deserves she his huffy -it starts out as “it’s rude to ignore a lady” -then it ends with “I’M NOT INVISIBLE YOU KNOW” -she wouldn't be happy at all that her favorite person is ignoring her -Ekio would get very upset and would stay like this until you apologize or explain why you weren’t involve as much with her -”oh! I see… well you could’ve said something! You had me worried for a second..”

[circle-bircle]

purging a bunch of stuff from my drive... gosh there are still a lot of things i want to write but it's hard to tell what's there when some of my file names are "gh384t90g8h" or "2" as i look through the drive i will put in this readmore any cool ideas i come across (mostly ff some fe and gbf and will sort them by fandom if ur into it)

please know i am deleting all of these drafts as i go along so if you want me to post snippets of what i have tell me in like 3 days before they are permanently deleted

fic titled "virgin in the dynamo" where i make vigorous reference to henry adams in my ff2 emperor redemption fic... well ok then!

doc called "BACK ON MY BULLSHIT" is an isekai for ff2. i've written a few of those but i haven't liked how any of them have turned out. idea for another day

more emperor fics; i have some where y/n gets fired as a servant, some reverse isekai drafts, and i have about a good long chunk of drafting for another vampire au where (spoiler alert) the emperor is not a nice guy and murders a bunch of people in the first chapter. the drafts are still there but i just don't know where to take the fic in the last stretch.

another emperor fic but this time it's an arranged marriage au (y/n is a noble of altair and i take the book canon and shake it vigorously)

edward chris von muir reverse isekai - i remember writing this. some really bad irl stuff happened and edward was the character i wrote a fuckton of to cheer me up. i'd still like to write it properly. in another fic i wrote an arranged marriage au and i still think i could write it and it'd be fun

doc titled "k"; rewrite of an old fic with zidane & kuja with the in veno veritas vibes... i'd like to post it but it's not done so it won't get posted

i write a 210 fic in firion's pov where tidus gets lost and firion comes to help him. hehe!

more tidus ideas; one of them was where y/n was a nurse taking care of tidus, another idea that i still might write where y/n is a total stalker of tidus and makes him love them... i still want to write that.

seymour fic with another isekai... circle be creative sometimes smh!

some gorefic of ravus nox fleuret... i really don't talk about ffxv but ravus is one of my favs i think he's so cool

"2" is a fe15 gray high school au. it's goofy i guess

more kurth ideas; i wrote a dreamsharing fic with him as well as a timeloop? i could have SWORN i published the timeloop fic but i don't think i did. i got 4k words into the draft. whatever, down the trash it goes!

doc titled "UNKIE JANNIE" where janaff takes care of a wounded shinon...

i've written a janaff/reader and a janaff/reader/ulki but not an ulki/reader. none of the ideas i have have been any good though and i still feel like they're not cute enough.

"the ranch fic" where shinon fucks a bottle of ranch. nsfw but an ex-friend did it out of curiosity and then he told me not to tell anyone but then he aired my dirty laundry so i air his dirty laundry back.

more in lewd news for shinon/janaff i tried to write a motivation chapter 2 but i never could decide on what shinon was going to do. i had a couple ideas, like shinon and janaff meeting up and fucking or continuing their parasocial relationship. in my latest drafts of it shinon was going to doxx janaff and say the most egregious sort of stuff before going back to his NEET ways (now without a purpose because janaff would be disinterested) but i couldn't make it as sexy as the first chapter so i just didn't finish it

nordion vampireverse multichap fic titled "diarmuid chomps" where it's not actually about diarmuid at all and febail gets really sexy and saves y/n from the evil vampires... i wrote that fic twice but neither are any good. idea for another time

speaking about nordion vamps, doc titled "sex sex sex sex sex sex" where the vamps get down and dirty with y/n. OTL i want to post it but it's incompleted as FUCK so it won't see the light of day ever

kempf mermaid au i would have posted for mermay if i knew how to write it. but every draft i did just wasn't right and i think fe is too technologically historic(?) for what i want to happen so i might write it with some other fandom instead

found my resume! been lookin 4 that

a kyd wykkyd fic... i had a moment

did i ever post a grimnir fic about hanahaki? i've written it a couple times but i don't think i liked any one of the drafts i wrote. an idea for another day!

there's also a lobelia fic where the captain goes to try and find him a hobby that isn't death related. music didn't work and at the end of the draft djeeta is trying word searches and crossword puzzles. i guess miscellaneous stuff, i wrote more lobelia fluff that wasn't published soo

i feel like i kept up deleting stuff so there is not much else. but that's all!!!!

[skymagic16]

I'm getting back to ff9 after uhhh....probably like 2 weeks (I got the ff rhythm game demo and been playing it non stop cause apparently rhythm games have a death grip on me) and like omg

Forgot how much I loved vivi and zidane

And kuja he pretty.....the long hair....hehe

But omg the drama I'm only like 20hrs in but it's getting good I need to know more lore especially on zidane's side like

I love my boy sm

[headcanonrepository]

Something I've been thinking about lately is how Final Fantasy games will often introduce some really interesting themes or questions and then almost immediately either gloss over them or solve them without any real exploration or examination of the issue. (In comparison, Tales of games often have one big issue or question and spend the whole game really examining it from multiple perspectives and build it into the fabric of the world and the motives of the 'villain')

For example, Nanaki (Red XIII) in Final Fantasy VII. His first appearance sets you up to assume that he's an unthinking monster, possibly one you will have to cut down to rescue Aerith. He's displaying aggressive behaviour, he's talked about as a beast by Hojo and he is non-humanoid. Then the game defies your expectations and has him talk eloquently about himself. That he was a victim as much as Aerith and he was acting to make people assume he was just a dumb beast, in the hopes he could escape.

We find out a bit about him - raised by an ecology expert after believing himself abandoned by his father, he knows a bit about the plight of the planet. He's one of the last of his kind. He's clearly educated and articulate. He's close to the equivalent of a teenager for his kind. And all of this is relevant for the next couple of plot points, after which he is very much sidelined and could honestly have been left at Cosmo Canyon for all the impact and agency he is allowed to have on the plot beyond this point. Even Advent Children seemed to forget he existed until the very last moment.

How interesting would it have been to explore the idea of a person who isn't human shaped a little more? Especially given the obviously non-human Jenova, it would have been a bigger tie to the greater plot. Or to linger on the idea of being the last of your kind, to believe that your only living link to your people fled and abandoned you, rather than have the truth revealed in the very next plot point - that his father actually acted to protect him, and all of Cosmo Canyon.

The thing is, Final Fantasy keeps doing this - dropping some really good hints of an amazing story but not putting in the work to deliver a more complex emotional payoff. In no particular order, here's some that have bugged me:

In IX, Vivi's realisation that he is going to stop someday. That this is by design as a constructed being. And how that ties neatly into Kuja's own motivations and also how this would become relevant to Zidane, too.

Also IX - Freya finding Sir Fratley and discovering he has amnesia. Never really gets explored beyond that. (Though I did a little post-game drabble myself)

Everything that happened off screen between XIII-2 and Lightning Returns. Snow getting people to safety and making another l'Cie pact in order to do so and provide lasting stability should never have been a little in-game text dump. Noel coming to terms with Serah dying just as they thought they had defied fate. Noel having to tell Snow that his fiancée is dead. Hope actually being a leader and helping with securing safety for the survivors.

VII starting the game by painting the problem as an ecological and capitalism crisis - that energy generation is killing the planet and the corporation generating the energy also controls the military, a lot of tech, most of the crime underworld and most of the larger population settlements in the world. It sets up a big structural problem - how do you remove the influence of a company/dictatorship with so much control over most people's daily lives? How do you square away the moral dilemma of definitely killing and certainly endangering a lot of people in the short term to destroy the corporation that will definitely kill everyone in the long term? What can you put in place to mitigate the worst of the fallout and help those affected most? All of which the game sidesteps neatly by having the real villain and the planet's own defence system do the dirty work of actually removing the worst elements of Shinra so you can focus on a much more personal enemy without all this moral complexity.

Fang and Vanille returning to their hometown in XIII long after everyone is either dead or a C'ieth and only having a few minutes to process before it's back to the plot. Like, EVERYONE they ever knew or loved is gone and never coming back. From their perspective, they've only been gone a few days, but they've been asleep for centuries. Everyone is gone. That is a hell of a thing to deal with. And the dialogue barely even acknowledges that their home is in crumbling ruins now.

I feel like I could write an essay just on the Final Fantasy XIII lost plot hooks, to be entirely honest. No one is allowed much breathing space because of the demands of the plot (and weirdly, Hope gets so much of it and does so little with it, but that's a nitpick), and it's particularly prominent in the first game. I'm also not touching the melodrama of Final Fantasy IV because that's just going to be every single plot point and I don't have time to type that all up! At least it provides some fertile ground for fanfiction to explore, I suppose. (As an aside, if you do want to take any of the above and expand on it, please do and send it my way? I'd love to see these ideas given the time and attention they need, and I already have so much on my own plate!)

[scriberat]

since i want this to go out relatively on time and ao3 is having some issues being upsy rn, chapter 110 of mysterious heart gifted miracles is here first :D @wolven-writer @deer-of-the-forest

Dinner proceeded apace, with Kuja adding his small additions to Zidane’s work of getting to know the people of Alexandria city.

“Don’t forget, Zidane, we have the tour starting tomorrow, and when we return, it’s Mikoto’s birthday party.”

It had cycled round again? Kuja looked between them.

“I know, I know. I’m all packed for it.” Zidane smiled. “Two weeks, just the two of us, having a romantic getaway~”

“On business and guarded,” Garnet reminded, her own lips quirking into a smile regardless. “Which means, Kuja, that you are to stay within the confines of the castle. If you wander alone, it may cause panic.”

“A completely understandable decision, Your Majesty,” Kuja said, already thinking of the ways he could sneak out. The castle was an old one which was meant to give the royals a fighting chance to run away. There were plenty of secret passages about it that would lead outside to wherever might be safe.

“General Beatrix, you’re to make sure he doesn’t escape.”

“I have my nets ready, Your Majesty,” Beatrix said, watching Kuja, who just smiled innocently. “That look is just like Zidane’s. I can only imagine he must have learned it from you.”

“What a cherishable thing to know, if only the other half of someone learning from me were not that it was Zidane,” Kuja said. That got a small laugh. Zidane stuck his tongue out. Kuja sneered playfully back. Good. He was doing good at all of this camaraderie nonsense. It was finally sticking!

He retired to his room with Fani following close behind, the two going through the nightly routine as he thought on things. “Fani, you are also restricted to the castle. If I find evidence once more of you leaving, I shall not wait to collect it or for you to slip up and reveal yourself. I will eradicate you outright.”

“Oh, of course, of course! I understand completely, Master Kuja.”

Kuja smirked. He’d lock his windows and doors. Even if Fani were the more powerful of the two right then, and the better with magical locks, Kuja still knew some tricks from Terra’s restricted sections of Oeilvert, places that he was fairly certain were destroyed. The little that Fani had gleaned had been from the linguistic archives, not the magical, and certainly not the depths of it meant to be plunged and known only by the resurrected sorcerers.

With their nightly ritual complete, Kuja sent Fani away and started doing his hair, brushing it like they hadn’t just done so and collecting the downy, silky strands from their feathers. He braided it up, and with the time spent focused on that, the solution to how he was going to be locking his room revealed itself. It often did when he set his mind elsewhere. That was part of how he had gotten so good at brewing potions.

Kuja went to his door and made sure it was locked in the standard fashion, and then added tiny needles of magic, nearly undetectable, to one side and the other, locking them in place before putting an obvious ward over the cracks of the doors. If that one were broken, the needles would fasten themselves more tightly in their homes. He did the same to the windows.

It was an indication of fear, perhaps, but he figured that Fani would happily rise to the challenge. Still, if he didn’t keep Fani with him this entire time, as he’d been unable to do until now, he worried that the other would take advantage of his being unable to leave. How many times had Kuja gone to do things without Garland being able to intervene? Those precious years of the decade he had alone had been everything to him.

Fani would no doubt love to have the time to himself.

Kuja would need sleep for now. He could handle things in the morning, it was fine. If he warned Beatrix that his personal was not to leave either, with an open pout and a hidden concern, she would understand. She was sharp like that. Thus assured of himself, Kuja snuggled into his pillows and blankets, all so soft for someone who had hardly graduated from prisoner, and slept peacefully.

Slept peacefully, that is, until something awoke him. The ward on the door was broken and clinging to the signature of whoever had been there before. No, that person was still there, causing trouble and being a nuisance as they tried to figure out why their lockpicking wasn’t working. Kuja glided over to the door, a wraith in mist, and tested the signature. It wasn’t Fani. Odd.

Nothing like a midnight torture session!

With a wave of his hand, Kuja prepared a sound-proof barrier. Then he yanked open the door and stole his would-be interloper inside, throwing them into a chair.

“Well, well, what do we have here? I thought no one would have the audacity. The Queen and her consort have not yet left, you know,” Kuja said, smirking. He shone a light on a face he didn’t know. “What are you here for so late at night?”

The fox may corner its prey and pretend to be friendly, but the mouse knows better. The man said nothing. He was shaking all the same.

“Something got your tongue? I would like to know why you are here.”

“I will tell you nothing!”

Kuja tilted his head, then lifted the man’s face by his chin.

“If you would offer nothing, then you won’t be returning home. I do so hope you’re not a father. I’d hate to have to find a child crying in the street because her daddy never made it home.” He smiled, the dastardly, wicked smile he had always worn with pride as his hand raised, aether crackling. The man paled.

“I was sent to test the lock! To-to see what you did with it…”

“And what did you learn?”

“…Not much.”

It was the truth, he could see that much. “Go on and tell your employer it uses magic he is as of yet unfamiliar with and that the secret can be traded for. Good night~” And with that, Kuja sent the man on his way.

Once the man was walking through the halls, dressed as a servant but ever with that small bit of red the red mages were oh so fond of, Kuja followed after him, going high in flight. What an interesting thing to happen—for the second night in a row, and this time there was no Ruby to commiserate with.

The man was careful about how he went, knowing the guards’ routines. That would be amended. He looked behind and around him, but never up. They ended up at the servants’ quarters, and there was Fani. Kuja could have guessed that in a fit of delirium.

“Were you followed?” Fani asked quietly. All around them were bunk rooms and singles where the servants slept. The man shook his head, furtive still.

“No. I was thorough in my checking.” It was true, and Kuja had to give him props. For a red mage, he was a terribly capable thief. Even a mouse wouldn’t escape this fox!

“Good. What did you learn?”

“There was a basic ward on the door, but it was easy to break. Child’s play.”

Fani snorted. “He acts all big, but everyone knows his power is stunted. Even a simple Firaga tires him out. He was once found in a back alley after a Teleport.”

Kuja smiled to himself. It suited him very well that his reputation as a mage was in shambles.

“But, uh, there was more. Something weird in the lock itself. I couldn’t make it out.”

And that was the secret of it! Kuja’s smile turned into a grin. Terra prided itself on biomagitech, but even this, in the lack of something living to tie it to, was easy enough to encode. None but Kuja could get those needles to budge, as it was his Terran blood which was required.

“I’ll investigate when I go to him in the morning. You’re dismissed.”

“There was one other thing he said, sir…” The red mage shuffled on his feet.

“Well?” Fani asked, cocking his head.

“He said that it’s magic you’re as of yet unfamiliar with and the secret can be traded for.”

“Traded for? What does he take me for? Some lowlife?” Fani rolled his eyes and waved the man away. Kuja went back to his room and took all of the locks and wards off, giggling to himself the entire time.

In the morning, he heard a knock on the door, tentative, but unmistakably Fani’s. He roused himself and watched the door to see if the man would try to open it. He didn’t. Well.

Kuja rolled over and feigned sleep, still giggling to himself about this fun little trick. Was Fani afraid the magic would have a bite to it? That there had to be some trap involved?

Then there was a different knock at the door. “Kuja!”

It was Zidane, because of course it was. He was talking quietly to Fani before trying the door. It swung open. “There, see? I bet it just got stuck. They do that sometimes.”

Zidane bounced over to the bed. He leapt onto it, laughing merrily, bouncing Kuja. Kuja whipped around with a glare.

“Wretched hopmonkey, must you be so obnoxious this early?”

“Yes, yes I must~” Zidane laughed. Kuja smiled and tackled him, tickling him where he knew it worked. Zidane shrieked and struggled to get away, a purr rising unbidden from his throat. The purr made Kuja do the same until he struck it down in his throat.

“Aw, c’mon, Kuja, get in the spirit! Purr time!” Zidane cuddled him through the tickles and kept purring, kept laughing.

“Are you doing this because you’re going to miss me?” Kuja asked.

“Something like that. You take care of yourself and be good, alright?”

“Say that when you are about to get on the boat.”

“Alright, alright. Let’s get you dressed. Hey, Fani!” Zidane called. Fani hopped to, getting things ready for Kuja so Kuja could get ready more swiftly. Within a couple of minutes, he was dressed with his boots on and ready to go.

“Shall we?” Kuja said. Zidane nodded and led the way. While his dress in these walls was usually upscaled and classy, today, he’d opted for his old outfit, or rather, a remade version of the one he had fought Kuja in. Kuja recognized its semi-stylish forms.

They made their way to breakfast, where Steiner was getting a firm list of rules to follow, most of which were to do with being signaled to stay put when Zidane and Garnet wandered off alone together.

“But what if something befalls you, Your Majesty?” Steiner asked.

“You know Zidane and I are both strong enough to handle anything on our own. If we do need you, I know you’ll be there,” Garnet said reassuringly. Steiner looked at her and nodded.

“Besides,” Kuja added, walking in, “you wouldn’t want to get between the happy couple and the impending arrival of a royal heir, would you?”

Zidane smacked him before registering what he said. Garnet’s cheeks went up in flames. Steiner balked as Beatrix raised a cup to her lips and drank heavily.

“Sit!” Garnet commanded, pointing to a chair. Kuja snickered as he sat in it.

Breakfast came and went with everyone talking about what their plans were. Kuja commented that he currently had none.

“I will find a way to entertain myself. Now that I have two weeks alone with Fani, I will likely be learning a lot about magic, perhaps even trading secrets.” He tapped the side of his nose conspiratorially. Fani stiffened. Had he really not figured it out!? No matter.

“Good. Beatrix, keep us updated,” Garnet said, getting a salute in return.

“General Beatrix, can we have a night out on the town sometime?” Kuja asked. “I promise I’ll be good.”

“No.”

“Please? I am going to get bored being here for two weeks! I cannot learn magic the entire time—“

“No.”

Kuja pouted into his eggs. His morning was good. The others laughed, but he knew that they weren’t laughing at his expense. It was nice to have this, for once. He liked it.

He realized he was creating new openings for himself, new vulnerabilities. Somehow… it was okay. After all, like Zidane and Garnet, anyone he knew was more or less able to take care of themselves! He wasn’t needed to guard their every step against plots.

The pair and Steiner were off on a regal-looking airship. It wasn’t nearly as big as the Rose had been, but it was still quite spacious for the couple—and the sheer number of gifts they were likely to be given.

“Let me know if anything goes awry out there,” Kuja said. He opened his mouth to say more, to offer his services, but he couldn’t bring himself to.

“I will. If there’s magic afoot that we need investigated, we’ll send for you,” Zidane said. Kuja nodded and smiled.

“General Beatrix has this place well in hand. I am sure nothing will happen.”

Garnet waved from the boarding dock, smiling sweetly as she did. “Take care of yourself, Kuja. I want to see you alive and well when we return.”

“I shall do my utmost, Queen Garnet.” Kuja bowed as the pair went off on their tour of the kingdom. It was an important event, one which Queen Brahne had eschewed when she had her mind on conquering. Perhaps that was the first indication of her declining popularity, or perhaps that would be better owed to her husband getting murdered.

He waved as the ship disappeared from sight over the walls of the castle. Once it was gone and even the sound had dispersed, he turned from his thoughts and the walls and decided to do something productive. Namely, as he realized what Queen Garnet had said would be coming up after, finding a good present for Mikoto.

‘Congratulations on another year, Sœur. Can’t wait to see you.’

‘Thanks.’ She sounded happy. He retreated to his room for the time being and dragged Fani along with him.

“Now that we are restricted to the castle, my dear friend, it is time to pick up on those lessons. Sit! Let us begin.” Kuja pushed paper at Fani, along with ink and a pen, watching him expectantly.

“If this is to be a trade, sir, wouldn’t it be prudent for you to move first?”

“Oh, but I did. I already promised my special locks in trade, do you not remember?”

“How did you know it was me behind him?”

“How does one know if something on the dinner plate is food? All it takes is looking.” Kuja rolled his eyes.

Fani took the paper and wrote out a glyph, detailing how it worked together and everything. Kuja paid studious attention until they were fetched for lunch, and then they went to eat with Beatrix, who already looked annoyed.

“What happened, Rose of May?” Kuja asked, sitting by her. “Missing your Steiner already?”

“Not that, but it does have to do with him.”

“Oh?”

She sighed, then shook her head. “I have my duties to attend to. Kuja, can you go and check on the soldiers training together?”

“Of course.” Kuja went to do so once he finished eating, dragging Fani along. He watched them surreptitiously from the ramparts overhead, enjoying the process of the soldiers below throwing themselves into their work and bettering every tiny flaw. But… He did notice a few who were slacking.

“Fani. Make a note of that one, and that one there, as well as that one over there.” It made sense, now. If Kuja was watching, it was whatever. If Beatrix did, everyone went to the nines as they ought to be at all times. Fani made dutiful note of those who were slacking, and when they found Beatrix patrolling later, Kuja happily told her allllll about it.

“Excellent work,” Beatrix said, smiling. “I knew you’d catch on quickly.”

“It wasn’t difficult. You always demand the best at all times from your ladies.”

“Of course. Alexandria’s defense does not come from a lack of attention.”

“I do have to wonder what you’re preparing against, though,” Kuja said, tilting his head to one side and tapping his cheek with his finger. Beatrix sighed.

“Nothing. That is part of the problem. We trained because war was a constant possibility. If something fell through… But all of us learned the ways of war from those who have since retired, and it has not been our generation’s way of life.” Beatrix twiddled with the hilt of her sword and worried her lip. “What point is there in training in the sword anymore?”

“Why did you start in the first place?” Kuja asked. He often found it helpful to backtrack to the start.

“Father taught me. He said that it was the Knight’s way.”

“And these women specifically?”

“They wanted to learn. Once I took a higher position, many women came wanting to learn. They… Some have had hard lives.”

“At the hands of those who were stronger than them, no doubt. Were their progeny the start of the castle’s daycare center?”

“Yes.”

“Why not focus on the others who do not get to learn such things? Anyone in the employ of the castle is someone with wealth in the family, are they not?”

“They are, more often than not,” Beatrix said, narrowing her eye. She looked at Kuja. “Let’s sit for dinner and discuss this further.”

“Excellent!”

She had another problem awaiting her, one which would prevent her from quite a lot of her duties. As she followed Kuja to a secluded corner of the castle to eat together, her hand went briefly to her belly.

[omori-in-odd-places]

What if Sunny, Zidane, and Omori vs Kuja make this one happens please?

Sorry anon I don't know who Zidane or Kaju are. If they're omori characters I've somehow missed then I apologise but if they're from an omori au or another piece of fiction then it's your responsibility to tell me where the characters are from (5th rule in my intro post, I'm going to update it to include aus).

If you submit another ask with this request but tell me what piece of media they're from then I may be able to make it

[goatofgehenna]

Something that has always bothered me.. the idea that Cloud and Zidane are both canonically 173cm.. so roughly 5'7/5'8

Here's the more realistic depiction of Cloud. I could say, yes this person is about 5'8..

Here's a realistic depiction of Zidane... Yes I know he looks short in dissidia but honestly if you look at his model in the original game he has similarly 'short' proportions due to the chibi style.. despite the fact that Kuja and Steiner in the same game don't read visually as that short in that style..

Height by heads chart.. there's many ways to tell how tall a person is.. for example, studying their isolated bone length may give some indication.

My suggestion... Make Zidane like 5'5 in realistic proportions.

In dissidia he honestly looks smaller than this (4'5??) but in my opinion it's too small.. even looking at the Amano art.. it just doesn't look like Zidane anymore at that height.. him having a short stature has kind of become a part of his overall appearance at this point.

His fighting style would translate so well into 'spider monkey' like movements if shown more actively..

Just, make him short. That's all lol 😆