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lazysublimeengineer · 7 months

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what would you do if we never made a sound? - Chapter 2

Summary: Hiori wants to know more about Isagi’s metavision. Isagi teaches him in more ways than one.

Characters: Isagi Yoichi & Hiori Yo

Link for Chapter 1:

(A/N: Welcome to the next and last chapter of this story. I wanted to thank my dear readers who waited patiently for this update. So, as a thank you and birthday gift to all of you, here’s the last part of this story. I hope that you enjoy this as much as I did when I wrote it).

But what would you do if I went to touch you now?

What would you do if they never found us out?

What would you do if we never made a sound?

“I’m a huge gamer myself. You know those tile-matching games like Tetris and Puyo Puyo? In those games, ya start out slow, so ya have time to plan your moves, right? But by the end, they’re way too fast, so ya don’t have the time to think about it, right? A play speed required to coexist with Rin-kun and Shidou-kun is about as difficult as that. But ya understand the concept to erase block. How are the game pieces piled up right now? Which block do I have right now? And which block is coming next? You understand, think, and then act. The best gamers can process that information at high speed and are able to press the buttons to the best course of action by reflex. That can be also applied to football. Can ya see why?”

Those first few words from Hiori given to him caught his full attention. It was a smooth drawl coated vividly with his Kansai accent which gave him an air of cool effervescence beneath the tranquil lake of Ashi.

The young male seemed to embody the word unflappable. Compared to the other players in Blue Lock who possessed one extreme characteristic that made them stand out above the others, Hiori was the embodiment of a calm gentleman. Friendly, yet a polite and soft-spoken forward, he was able to blend well with the others and even managed to briefly speak with the prickly prodigy, Itoshi Rin, during the U-20 match without getting his head bitten off.

It wasn’t until they became teammates in Bastard Munchen that he drew his full attention to him and took notice of his great ability and intellect to dissect a match calmly akin to a game that he played on his devices. It reminded him of Nagi somewhat. But Hiori was a tactical and proactive version of him on the field. He witnessed Hiori’s plays throughout the U-20 match and he’s quite composed and smart enough not to fall into the opponents’ traps.

He also made passes which perfectly landed to the most competent player who can undoubtedly make a score for their team.

Hence, Isagi made a choice that day of the match.

He was known to be outspoken and provocative in the field.

And it was only a matter of time before he would clash against his own master with regards to whom they should put on as a substitute in their match against the Ubers.

While it was no doubt that Noa had chosen Kiyora initially because of his stats and logically speaking the numbers spoke for itself that he can be an asset in their team against their opponents.

Nevertheless, what Isagi needed was unpredictability.

An unpredictable variable in the equation that can be an asset at the same time.

A player that will throw off the opponents out of the loop and will bring them to their own victory.

Hiori Yo was the embodiment of that.

He was levelheaded and smart in the field but most of all…

…Isagi knew that he can create a chemical reaction with him and put his talents into use for their advantage.

He knew of the potential hidden inside of the cyan-haired player that was waiting to be unleashed at the right time.

And the right time was during their match against the Ubers.

The way Hiori’s eyes sparkled in brimming ferocity and determination. The way Hiori moved in graceful yet precise agility and sharpness around the field...

...And the way he had seen him moved in a ruthless yet fluid alacrity when he possessed the ball into his heel...

Isagi had never seen so breathtakingly beautiful yet ferocious at the same time.

He could feel his heart somersaulted inside his chest.

His nerves were dancing wildly inside of him.

And he was unable to fight the feeling that left him bewildered yet captivated at the end of the match.

Then it all snowballed from here.

It started with benign remarks about the matches which elevated into surreptitious glances, fleeting touches of their hands…

…

Until Isagi couldn’t hide it any longer as his mouth and body betrayed him one night during their one-on-one practice match.

He remembered it vividly.

That one memorable night where they crossed the invisible line of being simple colleagues with each other and succumbed to the magnetic pull of their soul and body with one another.

“Hiori feel free to punch if me if this is out of line for you.” He whispered breathlessly against his ear and his eyes gleamed upon witnessing the slight shiver that Hiori made because of his sudden actions.

The greed manifested itself and reared its ugly head.

Before Isagi could stop himself, he leaned down and removed the remaining gap between the two of them to capture his lips in a deep, tantalizing kiss that ignited the fire inside their bodies.

The scorching heat and need blazed darkly within himself upon hearing the pleasurable noises that slipped out of Hiori’s lips and he wanted to swallow them all.

To devour them.

To devour and encase Hiori’s entire being within his deep embrace and fiery touches against his skin.

Because he wanted to leave a trail of fire from himself in every fiber of his being and his soul for the taking.

Isagi initially thought that this kind of sentiment and feeling was mostly for his beloved soccer.

But it was proven otherwise in the form of Hiori Yo that caught his attention.

Hook, line, and sinker.

His mouth moved sensually against the other’s own and seduced him to reciprocate. His tongue coaxed the other to grant him an entrance to the innermost crevices of his mouth and lapped at the sweet nectar that was awaiting from within.

With his mind clouded from the need and want of the male, he grew bolder and rolled them off the grass which ended up as having him on top of him and had him pinned intently on the ground.

Hiori finally reciprocated ardently to his passionate kisses and finally granted him an entrance inside his mouth, tangling his own tongue against him in a sensual dance for dominance. It sent a titillating sensation and thrill on Isagi’s nerves knowing that the other wasn’t willing to give himself up wholeheartedly to him without a fight.

It seemed like their practice match had extended to this sensual battle for pleasure as well.

“Ah Isagi…” Hiori moaned softly against his mouth, the hot vibrations of his breath sent a shiver along his spine.

Isagi decided to pull away to catch his breath and also to gather the remaining bearings and common sense within him.

Even though his body was still screaming and yearning for the other’s soft and inviting lips against his own, he knew that there was no turning back once they crossed the line and border of being colleagues and friends.

Isagi found himself gazing at the tent below Hiori’s pants. “I did cause a slight predicament for you, haven’t I? Would you let me do the honors in taking care of it?” He drawled out in a languorous voice.

“I-I… There is no need—.”

His husky laughter cut off Hiori’s stuttering words. “No need to be pressured. I’m just suggesting. We can stop here if you want. Although your body begs to differ.” Isagi stood up and offered his hand to him to which the other accepted and stood up from the ground.

They trudged silently towards the corridors of the building, going back to their rooms.

However, the moment those awaiting words left Hiori’s lips it ignited something within Isagi and set his heart and body on fire.

“I don’t mind if ya take care of it…”

It took some willpower not to pounce on the young male then who seemed to be a siren in the guise of an ingenuous lad beckoning him to his sweetest downfall.

“Glad to hear it… I knew you wouldn’t if it’s me anyway…”

And he led him inside towards the empty room which was murky and silent from the lack of people inside.

Isagi gently pushed him on the mattress and sealed his lips with an invigorating kiss which made the other whimper out in delight and surprise.

His tongue gently coaxed for the other to grant him an entrance inside to which the other easily beckoned at his sensual insistence and opened his mouth easily to let his tongue dive inside the sensitive seams of his cavity.

As his mouth and tongue kept the other busy and distracted from his passionate kisses, one of Isagi’s hands had delved inside his shirt and caressed the smooth and supple skin underneath the clothing which made Hiori shivered deliciously against his arms.

The way Hiori reacted to his kisses and touches made Isagi bolder and hungrier with each moment passing by and one of his thumbs made its way on his chest and pinched one of the sensitive nubs which grew erect at the titillating sensation and made Hiori moaned softly inside his mouth.

“Ah… Isagi… Please don’t… A bit sensitive there…” Hiori murmured against his mouth.

“You mean right here?” Isagi mumbled hotly against his mouth and let his thumb twist teasingly on his nub repeatedly which made Hiori arched and mewled like a helpless kitten beneath him.

“Mmm…! ‘sagi…” Hiori moaned out as he pulled away and broke off the kiss, breathing heavily as a drool started to form on the underside of his lips.

Isagi stared at him and examined his work as he noted the delectable flush on his cheeks, his hair slightly mussed, his pupils were blown wide with lust and pleasure and his wet lips were a seductive shade of red because of how he had devoured and ensconced him in a deep, ardent kiss repeatedly.

“Beautiful…” He murmured as if he was entranced on the sight of Hiori under him which made the other blushed faintly at his word.

“Stop doin’ that…” Hiori said faintly.

“Stop doing what?” Isagi asked innocently.

“Flattering me. Doesn’t suit ya.” Hiori glared at him weakly which earned a low chuckle from the raven-haired boy himself.

“Sorry can’t help but to admire the beauty in front of me.” He smirked at him which made Hiori’s heart leap wildly inside his chest before he tugged his shirt off.

“Less talking and more action please.”

“Of course. I’m pretty easy to talk to anyway.”

Isagi didn’t waste his time as he helped Hiori in taking off his clothes and discarded them one by one at the foot of the bed followed suit by him. He took off his clothes casually, hiding the shakiness of his hands which resulted from both nervousness and excitement of what was to come.

The rationality behind Isagi’s mind had shut down slowly and succumbed to the rising desire and want for the other. He could not deny his attraction for Hiori and the way his line of thinking and plays amazed him.

There’s a small, niggling part at the back of his mind questioning and trying to put a halt to his actions because of what it might entail in the aftermath of the event.

But for the first time that he had been struggling to keep himself afloat in the harsh environment inside the Blue Lock, Isagi decided to let go and shut down the overthinking part of his personality. His instincts and want had won: and that was to take the willing cyan-haired boy within his arms and enveloped his every fiber of his being under the furnace need of his own body.

In the dimness of the room, he could faintly see the tantalizing silhouette of Hiori’s naked form and for a moment, a look of admiration washed over his face before he leaned down and captured Hiori’s awaiting lips in a fiery kiss.

It’s as if a switch had been turned on and his off the field personality had melted off his entire being and was replaced by an assertive, egoist side of his when he played on field. The burning rush engulfed him, and his kiss grew deeper and hungrier while his hands grew bolder as it traipsed along Hiori’s torso seductively which made Hiori gasped inside his mouth and he took advantage and plunged his tongue inside his mouth, licking at the sensitive crevices beneath it which had Hiori shaking and moaning under him.

He swallowed every moan and gasp that left his lips in a wild and dirty kiss as one of his hands had busied itself to travel lower and landed on Hiori’s thighs and gave it a teasing squeeze. This made Hiori arch against him and pulled away from his passionate embrace and had the string of saliva trickled down them messily. He let out a low groan from his lips which earned a throaty chuckle from the raven-haired boy.

“Now you’ll be a good boy and keep quiet hmm? Or you want to attract an audience from our unsuspecting teammates who’s just a few meters away in the cafeteria?” Isagi asked enticingly as a devious smirk painted across his lips.

Hiori bit his lower lip to keep out the moan that threatened to come out of his lips. Every nerve and fiber of his being was left on fire just from his scintillating touches and deep kisses alone.

It seemed like Isagi was not only talented at the field of soccer but in other aspects as well and it made him wonder briefly on how and when did Isagi got so skilled in riling him up like that.

“If ya stop teasing on my thighs maybe I would’ve…” Hiori complained weakly.

“When you’re being cute like that how can I not?” Isagi whispered huskily before smirking at him. “But I also don’t want to keep you waiting any longer because my body seems impatient as you are.” He added as he felt his cock getting harder with each moment passing by.

One of his fingers had prodded on his entrance invitingly before it proceeded to finally breach it and caressed the warm and needy walls which reacted instinctively to his intrusion and clamped on it. This made Hiori catch his breath and a light gasp slipped past him soon after.

“Ah… Isagi… What’s that…? Feels weird…” Hiori couldn’t contain the low moan escaping from his red bitten lips.

“Ssshhh… Need to prep you first… Don’t wanna hurt you…” Isagi whispered breathlessly as his finger continuously wandered at his insides before he added another one and scissor his insides. He tried to ignore his weeping cock which begged to be inside the warmth of the other already.

As Isagi’s fingers scissored his insides leisurely, the pleasure and ecstasy had clouded Hiori’s mind and slowly thrown his inhibitions to the wind as he drooled and whined needily beneath him. Nevertheless, one of his hands had clamped itself towards his mouth as Isagi delved deeper and reached for his spot which made him see stars in an instant and arched against him like a perfect bow.

“Found it.” Isagi whispered huskily as he repeatedly abused on his sweet spot while his other hand had started to stroke his own cock, licking his lips sensually.

As soon as he deemed him ready, Isagi pulled out his fingers and Hiori almost whimpered at the loss of his fingers before Isagi took his legs and made him wrapped it against his hips securely, pinning him on the mattress and finally made a swift thrust towards his needy entrance which earned a guttural moan from both males.

Isagi stilled perfectly on top of him, catching his breath as his hands clamped around Hiori’s hips like a vice.

“F-fuck… Tell me when you get used to it…” Isagi breathed out as he let Hiori adjust to their new position and didn’t want to overwhelm him even though his body was screaming for him to plow the other recklessly on the mattress.

Hiori’s hands had grappled themselves towards Isagi’s back and clutched on him tightly, his nails digging into his skin which made Isagi hissed out in pain and pleasure simultaneously. For a moment, only their harsh breathings and the loud thumping of their hearts inside their ribcage resonated against the four walls of the room until Hiori broke the silence with a whisper of his words that almost brought Isagi to cloud nine.

“Ya can move now Isagi…”

“Thank God for that. Or else I might’ve had to convince you in other means if we stay like this for a bit longer.” He chuckled breathlessly to hide the desperation clawing at this mind and body and started to move tentatively, testing the waters before his movements increased in tempo and completely pulled out and snapped his hips forward which made him growled lowly and Hiori let out a muffled moan under his hand.

His body moved on autopilot and didn’t hold back for a second, thrusting deeper and faster into the other. The feeling of the other’s velvety walls surrounding his cock felt heavenly around him that he swore he could stay like this forever.

“God fucking damn it Hiori…! So, fucking tight…! But you felt good around me!” Isagi let out a low groan as he reached deeper and finally reached his sweet spot which made the other arched against him sensually, muffled moans and mewls left the other’s lips sinfully.

His thrusts grew in vigor and speed to the point that he was railing him recklessly on the mattress, the bed started to creak from their wild movements alone.

The pleasurable noises that left Hiori’s mouth cannot be contained by his own hand any longer as it grew louder with each moment passing by. Not wanting to attract an unwanted attention, Isagi removed Hiori’s hand from his mouth and dove right into his by sealing his lips with a dirty kiss which swallowed all the noises that the other male was doing as he continuously plowed into him hungrily, his cock bullying his insides in reckless abandon.

“Ngh… ‘sagi gonna come soon… P-please…” Hiori mumbled hotly against his mouth as he let the other devoured him in a wild and dirty kiss, Isagi’s tongue licking through the roof of his mouth eagerly.

One of Isagi’s hands had reached for his neglected cock and stroke it furiously doubling the pleasurable sensation that cut through Hiori’s senses and he suddenly came out, reaching his peak and coated his hand and their chests with the splashes of their cum.

“Fuck Hiori… Almost there… Please bear with me a little longer…” Isagi murmured against his lips and Hiori could only moan out weakly in response as Isagi chased his own release and continued to rail him hungrily on the mattress until his body almost reached its limit.

“Fuck! Where’d you wanna have it? Wanna have me finish inside of you or should I pull out and—.”

“Inside Isagi.”

This made Isagi groan out as he pulled his face away and briefly broke their kiss.

“W-what?”

“Just finished it inside of me Isagi. Please…” He whined needily and Isagi succumbed to his desirous plea and reached his climax, biting on his shoulder as waves of pleasure course through him and shot his load inside of him.

Hiori could only mewl like helpless kitten under him as he was filled up to his brim instantaneously.

“Fuck…” Isagi breathed out as he finally fell on top of him and breathed raggedly under his breath.

Hiori’s grip on him loosened and for a moment only their ragged breathings rang out inside the four walls of the crepuscular room.

No words were spoken between the two of them that night as they found their lips clashing with each other again in a dizzying yet addicting kiss that catapulted them into an intoxicating world of pleasure and lust.

Isagi closed his eyes briefly and tried to reorient his mind to the present as he could feel his body slowly reacting to that brief yet euphoric moment with the other.

He didn’t want to have a goddamn boner in the middle of a practice dammit.

Besides, he shouldn’t think anything of it. They’re both pent up and it’s bound to happen sometime, especially in an oppressive environment such as this.

Isagi ignored the whispers of his own heart lest he spiral down into a rabbit hole of his bewildering emotions which he was not ready to entertain for.

'Cause I can see you waitin' down the hall from me

And I could see you up against the wall with me

And what would you do, baby, if you only knew? Oh, oh, oh

That I could see you throw your jacket on the floor

I could see you make me want you even more

What would you do, baby, if you only knew?

That I can see you

It became a recurring pattern for the two of them.

Whether there was an excess energy left off their bodies that still made them wired out in a battle mode or had a streak of losing matches against the other teams which left them bereft, they sought each other out in the twilight spaces of the facility.

Hungry mouths clashing against each other sinfully.

Wandering hands eagerly explored one another’s hidden treasured spots away from the other people’s naked eyes.

Bodies becoming one in the heat of the moment and unbridled desire with one another.

Isagi was becoming addicted to the sensation that he can no longer see a thread or the line where it shouldn’t be crossed.

He was threading on a dangerous zone.

He needed to put a stop to whatever weird thing that was happening to him and the way his heart would leap out of his chest every time he would see Hiori out of the corner of his eyes and how his presence had affected him.

Isagi admitted that he was attracted to him but in the kind of environment that they’re in and with their careers on the line, it would be idiotic to give into the whims of his foolish heart and haze of emotions.

He can’t let that cloud his judgment.

What they had was great so why ruin it with these pesky emotions and unnecessary things in their lives?

Besides he wasn’t even sure if Hiori liked him that way.

Yes, they fool around under the sheets, but it was only to satisfy the need of their bodies and not the whisper of their own hearts.

He didn’t want to make it weird for him and Hiori nor make things awkward between the two of them if the other one just didn’t feel the same way around him.

Isagi had never thought that he’d had a relationship like this with Hiori.

Fuck. He cannot even call it like that since they’re not officially together.

Was it something called like friends with benefits… fuck buddies…?

In the shadow of his youth back in high school at Ichinan, he didn’t even consider having an intimate relationship with someone as his mind was preoccupied with soccer and having a single-minded goal of making their school win to enter the finals before they met their soul crushing defeat against Kira’s team back then.

It was in their ages and stage of life that they would’ve been more curious in exploring their emotional aspects and attraction with the opposite sex or other people in general. Nevertheless, Isagi wasn’t someone special, having received nothing of giri choco or honmei choco during Valentine’s Day. Even though Isagi’s curiosity was piqued by the conversations happened in the boys’ locker room courtesy by his classmates who’re receiving confessions at the back of the school or even asking someone out, he had made no move in further exploring the matters on his own and resigned to himself that he wasn’t anything special to have that kind of experience nor someone catching his own interest to pursue someone on the matter itself.

However, it didn’t occur to him that in the most oppressive environment such as in the Blue Lock facility where their physical and mental capabilities were often tested and pushed to the limit, someone would catch his eye and attention other than soccer itself: Hiori Yo.

When he had first met him, he was a relatively nice and approachable guy with a strong Kansai accent. He and Nanase were the first few people outside of Team Z that he genuinely bonded with because of how easygoing and friendly they were. Nevertheless, his curiosity was piqued when they were watching one of those soccer matches and Hiori gave a brief commentary on how each player should be in this spot and that spot to get to the weak spot of the opponent and where the ball should land in. He had a good understanding of the game.

But in that moment where he had witnessed another side of him that left him intrigue and like a moth caught to a flame, he couldn’t stop from flying further to determine and know the curious case of a man like Hiori Yo.

He was an exceptional player. This was what he had already witnessed during their U-20 match. His passes were perfect even though most of the time they weren’t targeted on him and landed on Rin’s spot instead where he had more chance of scoring a goal against the opponent back then. He was a calm and logical player who could make a split decision in the field and had that chemical reaction with another player who would give a result of a successful rate of scoring a winning goal inside that net.

Nevertheless, there was another side of him that would play in the back of Isagi’s head. Plaguing his mind sometimes in the middle of the night wondering what it might be.

It was a known fact to him that one of his strongest suits in his personality was being able to read a person’s mood or countenance just by looking at the facial expression on their faces even if it’s just a simple twitch of the mouth or a brow that spoke volumes, it won’t miss Isagi’s gaze. Regardless of this gleaming strength in his character, it’s also a double edge sword as it also served as his glaring weakness as well. It gnawed on his entire being and the smoke of curiosity would engulf him, and he needed to know what that was all about even if meant trudging into an unknown territory to know that mystery belies in their character.

There was something in Hiori’s turquoise irises which would rise for a split second. A lackadaisical glimmer that would shine through and stole away his usual gait of friendly countenance to give birth to a dull and bland expression on his face when he was alone and probably thought that no one was looking. It was different from Nagi’s expression since the lazy genius always wore the default but honest expression of impassivity and nonchalance without hiding beneath the veneer of a nice, easygoing guy.

With Hiori, it’s something comparable to a level of a game that you need to surpass on. Because it was quick to be gone in a split second that one would just think if it was brought to their own imaginations.

Isagi found himself asking one night despite not wanting to in attempt to keep the line of boundary between the two of them. But alas, it seemed that his intrigue and curiosity won since he wanted to know more about Hiori.

He wanted to know more about him outside of soccer.

He wanted to know what made him tick and what lied beneath those gazes and cloaked in disparaging dullness and alacrity.

“If you don’t mind me asking Hiori... This is just out of curiosity... But why have you decided to join Blue Lock?” Isagi asked casually as he handed him a bottle of water and sat down beside him on one of those benches while they’re on a break from their practice match.

Hiori seemed to ponder his words as he drank from the bottle of water. After doing so, he placed the bottle of water at the side of the bench and stared straight ahead.

“Hmmm… I’m here because I wanted to be away with my parents for a while even if it’s in the form of doing and playing a sport that didn’t stir anything from me. My parents were both athletes so it’s nothing unusual if they want their only son to follow in their footsteps and leave a legacy of their own. Even if the said son doesn’t really want anything to do with soccer.” Hiori stated in his usual calm and lax voice but there was something on his eyes again that he could see, and that split-second emotion had stayed a bit longer that he had intended as he had mostly let his guard and seemed to be lost in thought and Isagi could clearly see it then.

The quiet yet desperate misery that swimming through his turquoise irises.

Ah.

It’s that familiar aching feeling of the stark disparity of being treated based on your worth.

The constant need to be validated by someone else to the point that it left only a shell of your entire being into the unknown.

Isagi knew that feeling as well.

And sometimes his mouth ran faster than his mind because he was instinctively receptive to the other people’s emotions.

Despite his egoism and razor-sharp tongue on the field, he can empathize with people outside the field and gain a semblance of understanding.

“Must be real shitty of them.” Isagi muttered before he blinked and caught himself and smiled apologetically at Hiori. “Sorry. It’s a knee jerk reaction. But they shouldn’t put that kind of pressure to you because they’re both athletes. They should consider what you feel and want in life...” He trailed off with a sheepish smile on his face, remembering his awkward first encounter with Hyoma back then and getting a sour reaction in response. He didn’t want Hiori to be thinking and feeling as if he was imposing or making him feel as if he knew better than him.

To his surprise, it made Hiori chuckle lightly under his breath.

“Is there something funny that I said...?”

Hiori shook his head faintly and looked at him with those startingly emerald eyes of him that emanated warmth and...

….akin to a genuine affection...? Isagi couldn’t be sure but it made his heart leapt wildly inside his chest.

“Nah. I appreciate yer candor Isagi. It’s refreshing.”

Unbeknownst to him, there was a small smile blooming on his face upon hearing his words.

There was no other way to dodge it or even suppress it...

...he was utterly captivated by the beautiful boy beside him who possessed a radiant yet unfathomable smile and a pair of sea green irises that captured his entire being from that soulful gaze alone directed at him.

Isagi looked at the ceiling of his room when he was cut off from his reveries as a realization dawned on him.

He couldn’t ignore the beseeching voice of his heart any longer.

And that was to be beside Hiori in every step of the way.

He finally knew what to do.

I could see you in your suit and your necktie

Passed me a note saying, "Meet me tonight"

Then we kiss, and you know I won't ever tell, yeah

And I could see you being my addiction

You can see me as a secret mission

Isagi leaned on the wall with his hands in his pockets.

He resisted the urge to pace back and forth across the hallway.

He didn’t want to appear nervous and anxious in front of Hiori.

He passed him a note earlier that day to meet him tonight at their usual meeting spot and away from the prying eyes of their teammates nor in Ego’s cameras in the facility because he found a blind spot in one of the halls in the facility.

“Hey Isagi... Were ya waiting for too long? I’m not late, am I?” Hiori’s soft voice permeated across the walls.

He was jolted out from his spiraling thoughts and finally looked at Hiori who had a strange expression on his face. Isagi couldn’t make out the exact profile of his countenance, but his eyes were serenely downcast and there was a rueful smile painted on his lips.

There were alarms blaring inside his head.

That’s not good.

“No... I’m just here quite early.” Isagi reassured him as he tried to search his face imploringly.

“Alright. But why did you call me here?” Hiori asked curiously.

This made Isagi rubbed his nape sheepishly as an awkward smile inched across his lips. Why was he feeling this kind of nervousness now? Didn’t he ready himself for this kind of thing already?

“I, uh, well—.”

“Isagi… It’s perfectly fine… I don’t really expect much anything from ya or anything from this at all…” Hiori cut him off in a feeble voice.

Isagi’s brows furrowed. “What do you mean by that?”

“What I mean is if ya meet me here to end things then it’s r-really f-fine…” Hiori cursed at himself inwardly for stuttering and letting his voice crack end.

Now, what would Isagi think of him? He’d probably think of him as pathetic and pity him because he couldn’t stop his heart from falling for him and hoping for more…

…hoping that they can be more than just fuck buddies and date each other for real.

Because who in their right mind would ruin things and take this shit seriously by gambling their feelings and status?

“What? No! Of course not! That’s not what I’m here for!” Isagi denied vehemently as his voice rose before he tried to calm himself down and speak again in an even voice.

“What made you even think that?”

Hiori looked at him with a bewildered expression on his face.

“Isn’t this… I mean what you’re here for…?” He swallowed thickly. “This is like the part of the game wherein an obstacle is presented to a player that requires him to sacrifice something to move into the next round or something… And in my case, it’s my own feelings that needed to be sacrificed to keep this whatever good something between the two of us.” He finished quietly.

Isagi took a deep breath before he gazed at him intently, his azure irises bored right through his soul that Hiori could only swallow thickly as his heart began hammering inside his chest.

“What if I told you that this isn’t any game like you used to play in your handheld device and this is the real thing because neither of us will be sacrificing anything since I have feelings for you too.” Isagi replied in a calm and steady voice even if he could feel his hands getting clammy and his nerves skyrocketing inside his pulse.

“What?” Hiori looked at him in shock, blinking owlishly at him.

Isagi didn’t know if he should be offended or amuse at his reaction.

“I know that this is surprising... but I want to let you know that I’ve fallen for you along the way... Yeah. You might think that I’m dumb or whatever because I’m potentially ruining the status quo between the two of us but I want to be honest with myself and with you of course. I can’t really ignore what my heart is telling me. And that is I’ve fallen in love with you Hiori.” Isagi looked at him straight in the eye, conveying the sincerity of his words.

Hiori was clearly taken aback by his revelation and could only stare at him quietly for a moment before a chuckle slipped past his lips tinged with half nervousness and delight at his admission.

“Are ya sure of what you’re trying to say to me Isagi? Not because of what your body is saying?”

“Don’t underestimate me like that Hiori.” Isagi replied as a pang of hurt shot right through him. “I know what I feel for you and believe me I tried to resist it at first because I don’t want to make this weird or whatever but with each day passed us by... Seeing this another side of you that the others not be able to see... it makes me fall harder and harder for you... But you don’t have to say anything if you don’t feel—.”

“Ya don’t understand Isagi.” Hiori cut him off quietly. “How can you fall for someone like me? You’re great, amazing and passionate in what you love. I’ve seen that when you play soccer in the field. And you have big dreams in life. People naturally flock to you because you’re magnetic and inspiring like that. And me? There’s nothing amazing about me. I’m initially here in Blue Lock to run away from my parents and their expectations and—.”

“Don’t you dare say that to yourself Hiori.” Isagi stopped him midsentence. “You may say that initially you were here because you wanted to escape your parents’ ridiculous expectations of you but I’ve also seen the passion, hope and yearning in your eyes when were out there playing in the field against the Ubers! You were pretty damn amazing yourself. So, can you please stop belittling yourself and yourself some credit. Because the Hiori I’m seeing with my own eyes is smart, tactical, amazing, calm but can be playful and most of all...” Isagi took a deep breath before he continued. “Determined and inspiring as well when he found the right thing that set him ablaze out there. And I think that’s beautiful as fuck.”

Hiori swallowed thickly. He remained quiet throughout his speech but every word that slipped past his lips made its way inside his heart and the swell of affection threatened to spill out of him.

“That’s because of you Isagi... Didn’t you realize that you’re the one that inspires me and gives my all out there and awaken my potential to create a chemical reaction with you? The way you’re not giving up in every obstacle that you’ve faced and the way you treated me as a person... The way you saw my potential, talent and all of that... Sometimes I think and wish that you just didn’t do those things because it may have been easy to separate my thoughts and feelings for you. But no. I’ve fallen in love with you too and I was ready to let go and take it to my grave because I don’t want to ruin everything and make you go away. Because I treasure this person who saw a lot of things within me and helped me reach my potential and also awakened my heart from its deep slumber.” Hiori smiled at him shakily as his vision blurred, silent tears started to run down his face.

“Hiori...” Isagi whispered reverently as he stepped closer towards him and let his thumb reach out to the side of his face to wipe off the stream of tears cascading down his cheek.

“I think it’s more apt now if you call me Yo given all of this...” Hiori closed his eyes and leaned closer to his touch as if he was grounding himself to the present with the warmth of his hand.

“Then call me Yoichi as well Yo.” He leaned closer before he stopped a few centimeters away from his face. “Can I kiss you Yo?” He asked softly.

“You don’t have to ask Yoichi because I would’ve said yes and yes over again. That’s how foolish my heart is for you.” He whispered breathlessly.

“I’m glad that the feeling is mutual then. We’re just both foolish for each other then.” Isagi replied gently before he finally captured his lips against his own.

Hide away and I will start behaving myself

Their mouths met in a slow yet soul crushing kiss. Their shared embrace encapsulated all their pent-up passion and longing for each other during their absence from one another.

It’s as if a dam had been opened between the two of them and their emotions came pouring out of them with no intention of stopping anytime soon.

He led him blindly into one of murky rooms around the facility which was completely dark and cold. But their bodies were a furnace need of want and desire for each other.

Isagi’s hands caressed both of his cheeks as he deepened their shared kiss while Hiori’s hands tangled themselves into the other’s dark locks, massaging his scalp which earned a pleased moan from Isagi.

It spurred Hiori on and the rational part of his mind seemed to shut down as his mind operated in instinct and want, chasing Isagi’s hasty yet passionate movements with his own as he didn’t waste his time and jumped on Isagi with his legs automatically wrapping themselves on his hips for leverage and support. The egoist in him resurfacing and as much as he wanted to be devoured by this beautiful man whom he considered to be a king on the field, his own competitiveness and greediness resurfacing and wanted the other to work for it because he was simply not going back down without a desirous fight to engulf him in their own flames of passion.

His tongue danced and clashed against Isagi’s own in a ferocious fight for dominance which resulted in a wild and dirty kiss that had their drools starting to form and drip down from the underside of their lips. It made something ignited within Isagi as his own hands which were cupping his own cheeks earlier were now rested on his waist and automatically hoisted him up and carried him towards the bed while his mouth was still busy in trying to conquer and devour the other. His mind was racing and clouded with lust, Isagi didn’t waste his time as he placed and pinned him on the bed, one of his knees slotted themselves on the slight gap between his legs and started to rub sensually against his thigh which also brushed teasingly along his cock that had Hiori gasping lightly against his mouth at the electrifying sensation shooting across his veins. His cock instinctively reacted to the contact and started to stir back to life.

This made Isagi smirk into his mouth and took advantage to plunder his tongue inside his entrance and licked through the sensitive crevices of the other’s mouth which made Hiori moan softly against him.

It seemed that the control was wrestled away from his hands as Isagi maneuvered his tongue and knees against his mouth and cock which spiraled him out of control and had his body reacting traitorously towards his ministrations and touches. Nevertheless, Hiori happily gave him the reins to let the other take not only his body but his soul and heart as it belonged to Isagi a long time ago. If Isagi was his downfall, then he’d happily drown and basked in this pleasure and ecstasy that the other was giving him. He’d hold his crown over his head because not only was Isagi was the king of the field but the king of his own heart as well.

One of Isagi’s hands started tugging off his shirt impatiently and Hiori assisted him in taking it off, pulling away from him and breaking off their passionate embrace for the meantime. Clothes were taken off and discarded haphazardly into the ground. Isagi had seen him naked countless times but for a moment, Hiori grew nervous and embarrassed, unable to hold Isagi’s intense gaze raking over his body and looked away. Isagi took note of this and gently tugged his chin with his forefinger to make him face him forward to let their eyes meet against the faded moonlight through the window which faintly illuminated and peeked through the silhouette of the curtains.

“Never look away from me Yo. I wanted to see every bit of you and look into my eyes as I make you mine.” Isagi whispered lowly as he gave him a small yet tantalizing smile which made Hiori’s heart jump into his throat.

So, this was Isagi’s ego huh?

“If you say so Yoichi.” Hiori murmured as he finally looked at him straight in the eye.

Emerald irises clashing against his deep, ocean blue eyes.

Isagi situated himself on top of him and pinned him on the mattress. He took ahold of his legs and made him wrap it tightly against his hips before he plunged in and breached his quivering walls in one, swift thrust.

Hiori’s hands gripped his back tightly as the overwhelming sensation flooded his veins, his nails digging into his skin which made Isagi hissed in pain and pleasure simultaneously. They had done this several times before but the feeling of Isagi’s cock breaching past his velvety walls and kissing the deepest part of him always left him breathless and shaking like a leaf every time it happened. No other pleasurable sensation can compare with the young striker himself claiming every fiber of his being deliciously.

“Fuck... Yoichi...” Hiori moaned out softly as his legs quivered against his hips as the scalding yet addicting sensation of his cock buried inside of him which almost brought him into the brink of ecstasy.

Isagi showered his neck with heated kisses before it settled on his mouth with a languorous kiss.

“I’m gonna move, okay?” He mumbled hotly against his lips.

A soft whine and whimper escaped from Hiori’s lips as he indulged the other, letting Isagi move on his own pace which started out in slow, deliberate strokes before it rose in crescendo.

When he finally pulled away and snapped his hips forward recklessly, it made Hiori arch against him like a perfect bow and pulled away from his kiss to let out a loud moan, his face flushed, and his pupils were blown out wide with lust and want.

Isagi licked his lips seductively as he watched the pleasure contort over Hiori’s face and he didn’t hold back from his movement with his thrusts increasing in vigor and speed until he was plowing him vigorously into the mattress which made the bed creaked like a swing set because of their wild movements.

“Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Yoichi! Feels so good! Please don’t ya dare stop! More! More!” Hiori babbled out incoherently as he mewled like a helpless kitten while getting railed mercilessly by Isagi on the mattress.

“Shit! You feel so good...! If you can see your face right now Yo..! Fuck! You’re still damn tight! Can’t get enough of this!” Isagi growled out lowly against his skin as his mouth attacked his chest and latched into one of his sensitive nubs, giving it kitten licks and sucking hungrily on it as his movements didn’t even cease in speed but instead grew faster and harder in return. The harsh and lewd slaps of skin against skin will probably make Hiori blushed liked crazy into another day but right now it only aroused him more and made him moaned out wantonly in response to his sinful mouth leaving a trail of fire around his body and the way his cock stretching him to his limit and abused his sweet spot repeatedly which made him see stars in an instant.

“Ngh... Ah...! Yoichi...! C-can't... Why yer getting bigger inside of me...?” A light gasp and a sinful moan escaped from Hiori’s drooling lips as he felt the base of the other’s cock expand slightly inside of him, making his stretched walls quiver and twitched out in lustful delight and hunger.

One of Isagi’s hands had made its way towards his stomach wherein he gave it a featherlight caress which made Hiori shake like a leaf beneath him.

“Feel that Hiori?” Isagi breathed out. “It’s all because of you. You’re driving me crazy. Can’t help it when you’re begging me like a hungry whore who wanted to ruin your insides with my cock.” He chuckled darkly before it was interrupted by a series of moans as he felt his walls held his cock like a vice.

Hiori didn’t even know if he wanted him to slow down or to keep going as his hips kept on rutting against him vigorously in response to his voracious thrusts and movements yet at the same time, he already felt an impending limit to his body and wanted to come already.

“Fuck...! So damn good...! Please Yoichi...!” Hiori mewled like a bitch in heat.

“Please what hmm?” Isagi whispered seductively as he licked at the shell of his ear while he continued to piston his insides in wild abandon.

“Wanna come... I’m gonna come... Please let me come...!” Hiori whimpered needily.

“I guess you could since you’ve been a good boy to me Yo... So come and let it all out...”

As soon as he heard his words, Hiori reached his peak and came out with a cry of pleasure. Ropes of cum came splashing out of his cock and painted their chests simultaneously.

Isagi licked his lips hungrily as some streaks of cum splashed on the lower side of his face. His indigo irises swept over at Hiori’s fucked out face and his eyes which were glistening from the unshed tears of pleasure and lust.

He leaned down and licked at the stray of tears adorning his cheeks while he kept his vigorous movements towards the other and chased his own release.

“Fuck... Just give me more and a bit of a moment here as I’m also closer...” Isagi whispered breathlessly to which Hiori could only answer in a weak moan as he kept his tight grip on him while he continuously railed his insides mercilessly, his body oversensitive from the onslaught of pleasure and sensation bombarding his veins.

A loud groan tore from Isagi’s lips afterward as he finally reached his climax and painted his insides with the hot splashes of his cum and filled him up to his brim instantaneously. As soon as he finished inside of him, Isagi’s knees buckled down and fell on top of unceremoniously which earned a grunt from the other but continued to hold him albeit in a loose manner.

For a moment, nothing can be heard inside the room except for their ragged beathing and the loud beating of their hearts.

One of Hiori’s hands had made its way towards Isagi’s locks which was damp from sweat and heat and started to knead it absentmindedly. This made Isagi sigh softly and finally peered up at him in satisfaction and delight, a lazy grin etched on his lips which had always made his boyish charms amplified and made his heart tugged erratically inside of him.

“Was it good for you? Did you have fun?” Isagi asked idly but his eyes searched his face imploringly. They were no longer clouded darkly with lust and want, and it was a clear hue of ocean blue. Nonetheless, he could see the vibrant sparkle of affection in his eyes which made Hiori’s heart almost burst out in happiness.

His hands wrapped themselves along his neck and brought his face closer to his, catching his lips with his own in a captivating kiss.

“As long as it’s you it’s more than fun. I’ll never get tired of being with ya anyway.” He murmured softly against his lips.

This made Isagi smile in their shared kisses, his hands settled on his hips as he brought his body closer to his own and tangled their legs together.

“Glad that the feeling is mutual then.” He whispered huskily before he deepened the kiss, letting the sun cast peacefully behind them and be engulfed in the storm of passion and love throughout the night.

I can see you waitin' down the hall from me

And I could see you up against the wall with me

And what would you do, baby, if you only knew? Oh

And I could see you throw your jacket on the floor

I could see you make me want you even more

What would you do, baby, if you only knew?

That I can see you, oh, I can see you

(A/N: If you reached this part then I congratulate you for taking your time and effort in reading this. With the latest chapters of the manga, Hiosagi became easily one of my favorite pairings in the franchise. I just like that both Isagi and Hiori started out as mild-mannered characters but became feral and aggressive when something inside of them is awakened. And the chemistry between the two of them! Made me squeal like an idiot when Isagi chose Hiori as the substitue out there in field against the Ubers and risking it all including talking back to his own master! I’m really pumped up on the latest development in the manga and can’t wait to see more action between them. Reviews and kudos are much appreciated).

#blue lock #fanfiction #spoilers #smut #character study #relationship study #angst #introspection #complicated relationships #dark isagi #hiori having an internal crisis about himself and isagi #depression #unhealthy coping mechanisms #isagi yoichi #hiori yo #hiosagi

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crystalelemental · 6 months

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Decided to do an off-type clear, but with some pairs I don’t always use. Or the new ones who I am obsessed with.

Vs Shauntal Akari is my recent acquisition, and thus far I haven't really experimented with other allies she can work with. Truth be told, I don't love most of Dark type on its own, and whoever she partners with is going to need a lot more offensive support, barring NC Marnie. So I went with this nonsense. I'm not even really sure why? Akari crushed it, this was not necessary at all.

Vs. Grimsley SC Rosa is a character I got really excited for, and then kinda stopped using after a bit. Turns out, I stopped using her 'cause she's bad. At off-type, anyway. Slow setup, poor gauge management despite high base speed, girl just needs a lot of help. Lodge Dawn alleviated a lot of her concerns, but not enough for her to win this easily. I do not really understand what the problem was, but oh well I guess.

Vs Marshal I'm gonna keep it real with you all. I don't think Nemona turned out as good as I'd hoped. I like her in concept, but not as much in practice. The buddy move is strong, and she can throw around a lot of sudden bursts, but I feel like she's just kinda...lacking? Her damage isn't nearly as much as you'd want, and I feel like her grid is just wildly frustrating. I did get her to off-type this, but the win was solely because she got lucky flinches off Staggering at the right time, rather than clearly having the match under control. This feels like a sync pair that, if she's going to really wallop off-type, needs Terrain. Which...is dire as all hell, because personally, I don't think the options for Terrain are all that exciting! I don't like Falkner, I don't like Red, and Hau is merely okay. Electric just has like no exciting pairs to use, and Nemona should be more exciting for me. I think I'm kinda pissed now, because she should have an EX Role. No really, I'm mad about this now. She barely missed it, and it feels like Strike or Tech would've changed her goddamn life.

Vs Caitlin Anni Skyla has been one of the most fun acquisitions lately. That 3/5 is hysterical. Really good sync nuke, really good flinch rate at 50% AoE every single attack, team speed boosting, Flying Zone support. It's kinda staggering how long I heard she wasn't a great Zone unit, and even I agreed, but it's like...damn okay, I don't know what I'm talking about. Anni Skyla rules. SS Ethan has also taken off with her support. Aeroblast handles off-type real easy under Zone, and his potential fast-ramping with her staggering generates a lot. I think the one problem is they both suck at boosting their own stats, so enter SC Jasmine, who covers both perfectly and can supply Team Endure on first sync, and potential Sp Def debuffs for Skyla to ensure maximum sync.

Vs Iris Halloween Roxanne is hilariously strong, I don't feel the need to linger on this. So instead, I'll point out...I actually don't know who her best third is. Like it's Courtney, maximize the firepower, but outside of the one Ground Zone pair that calls it normally, I have trouble deciding who Roxanne would take as support. She operates so well at supporting others that it's super tough to decide what she might need, because she kinda does it all. I went with Whitney just for flinch and possible Def debuffing. And like. It worked out I guess. Roxanne encountered no resistance.

#champion stadium #Unova cs

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sibsteria · 3 years

Text

I couldn’t if I tried [gabriel]

prompts: ''do you want me to leave?'', ''what did you just say'', ''I'm not sorry''

characters: Gabriel x reader, (mentioned) Dean Winchester, (mentioned) Sam Winchester, (mentioned) Castiel

set: no particular time

summary: a mystery

warnings: fluff

''I'll be perfectly fine on my own, always am.'' My bore some tone echoing through the atrium of the bunker, as the brothers stood ahead of me.

''Just because we aren't taking you with us on this one, doesn't mean you can empty the cookie jar.'' Dean narrowed his eyes, slyly, joking but still deadly serious.

''Depends if you left pie in the fridge.'' I sigh, turning on my heels, a dramatic edge layered my dialect.

''Don't you think about it!'' He bellowed, Sam holding him back with his arm, shaking his head in disappointment. I rolled my eyes, pouring a glass from my eldest brother's alcohol as the door barred against it's hinges.

Donning my music to the large space I had been left in independently, I turned it up to full volume, a sweet change from Eye of The Tiger 24/7. Losing myself in the alcohol and melodies, I didn't notice the archangel smugly inclining himself on the doorway.

''Jesus, Gabe!'' I clutched my vascular organ, catching my breath, shock subduing by the minute.

''Not really. Wasn't expecting me, Sweet Thang?'' I chucked at his flirting, unexpected but welcomed.

''No, I just-'' He cut me off, like the smarmy bastard he was.

''Oh do-do you want me to leave?'' The amusement on his features was clearer than Cas' skin, his well founded smirk and mischievous eyes are what pulled me in, in the first place. I'd never admit my fondness for the winged man anyways, I may as well enjoy the company.

''Of course not, stupid angel-'' He cut me off, again. Damn boy needs to stop that before he gets the smacketh.

''Archangel.'' He shrugged, the smug expression remained. ''What do you want?'' I laughed, he gasps in feign shock. ''So rude-'' He lifts his hand to his heart, I bite my lip, dismissing his antics. ''Anyways, I thought you should see for yourself.'' He saunters over to me, brushing the hair out of my face. ''Hold tight.'' He winked, god Chuck why? I found myself in a sunset themed jumpsuit, Gabriel adorned in a shirt that almost matched my outfit. Looking down, it dawned on me that we were weaning giant clomping platforms, albeit mine a little larger. ''Why are we dressed like ABBA?'' I accompanied my dull voice crossed my arms, but failing to hide my excitement. ''That, my dear, is for you to find out.'' The brunette with the honey-slick voice held out his arm, I took it with no hesitation. In front of us was a florescent booming club with a retro sign, the 'Cotton Club'. I looked at him when he ushered me inside, without him knowing, or so I had thought. ''Staring at me, are you?'' He looked pompous and maniacal, but it was kind of hot. ''Who's to say?'' I raise an eyebrow, the other one following in a similar fashion as I observed our camp surroundings. Outgrown styles and an era that wouldn't quit enclosed us in it's infatuating aura. So a 70's club? Cute. But of course he had delved into my mind. ''Not just a 70's club, peach pie.'' I gaped open my mouth, no he didn't. ''Why are we standing here then?'' He gripped his hand with mine, yanking him from the club lobby into the illuminate dance floor. What I didn't see was the ever growing fondness in his smile as he trailed behind me. Hours passed underneath the sparkling lights and the cheesy silver disco ball, I had the night of my life, accompanied by the excessive alcohol it could possibly become my worst. ''You know, people don't give you enough credit.'' I shrugged to the paragon. ''I know!'' He shrieked in agreement.

Elton John's 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart' blasted through the superstructure.

''There's a lot of things people don't know about me, you know.'' I rolled my tongue against the roof of my mouth, my drunken state exposing the truth. ''Oh?'' He cocked a brow, ''Do tell.'' His voice made me giggle. ''I'm not the innocent baby Winchester, people say I am.'' I nodded, as a matter-of-factly. ''Really?'' Gabriel was getting amusement out of this. ''Mhm, wanna know something else?'' Damn, intoxication. ''Go on.'' His flirty eyes made me blush under his overwhelming pressure. ''I think I'm in love with you.'' During this moment, the background noise and tune of the decade faded into a muffled white noise. He couldn't believe his blessed ears. ''What did you just say?'' Of course, being me, I took this the complete wrong way. ''Oh, God Chuck, I shouldn't of admitted that, uh snap us back please I'd like to go sleep thank you.'' Except he didn't, so I turned on my feet. ''Y/n-'' I looked at him as he said my name, that's a first. The soft yet calloused pads of his fingers glided over my fabric-clad waist as the unused hand found it's place in my hair, it felt as if time stopped. I almost didn't hear the 'I'm sorry' he breathed against my lips as he found himself in them. In this moment, I think I found myself, for the first time. Instantly, I lifted my fidgeting palms into his soft threaded locks, intertwining my fingers with the individual strands.

Our mouths moved in an intoxicating simultaneous Arcadia. They say it's heaven to be kissed by an angel, I didn't know it was so true. The recurring gentle bump of his nose against mine gave the act a fondness I had never experienced. The feeling of his hand slowly gripping my waist more intensely, bunching the material in his palm, and the other one that rested in my hair sliding down to the back of my neck was a above-earth experience. It felt as if it were nothing but a dream.

We broke the connection, a burning emotion in my eyes as I looked through his. ''I'm not sorry.'' He unsteadily exhaled, an ironic laugh integrated beautifully. ''I'm not sorry that I kissed Y/n Winchester and I'm not sorry for this either-'' He took a short and stat breath. ''I know I'm in love with you, hearing you say it was enough to break me, I never wanted to involve myself but I couldn't stay away. What can I say, I'm selfish.'' Guess I am, as well.

''If you are, then so am I, god the shit I'm gonna get for this.'' You're worth it. I thought. ''You're worth everything.'' This took to me like a boulder. ''What-What's going to happen now?'' I bite my lip, nerves hitting me unwillingly. ''Anything, hopefully, everything. Give me a chance?'' The vulnerability I saw in him behind his sultry façade built me up. ''I'll give you more than a chance.'' I dove into the intoxicating home of his lips once more, taking something for myself for once. ''I'm so happy to hear that, honeysuckle.'' He murmured against my lips. Yep, he's back.

I didn't notice the snap of return, or the gladiator stares of my brothers. ''Pie, huh?'' Dean's gruff tremor made me shriek, yanking my face from my angel's.

‘‘Well, you know, I can be pretty sweet.’‘ Gabe winked.

''Hi.'' I waved. ''You little-'' Before my inconsolable brother could do any harm, Gabriel had snapped us to the comfort of...somewhere? As long as he was here, I had my place.

#supernatural imagine #supernatural #gabriel #gabriel imagine #gabriel x reader #gabriel imagines #dean winchester imagine #dean winchester #sam winchester imagine #sam winchester #castiel #chuck shurley

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weaverofthreads · 3 years

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On the process of writing a novel...

Ok, so this began as a DM to a very dear friend who had said they were super excited to work on a novel of theirs that they'd abandoned for years, but they felt a bit lost when looking at the project again. They had "too many characters, too many intrigues" and they didn't "know how to create order" for all their ideas. They didn't know "what to keep, what to remove, what to change" and wanted to know if I had any tips.

I began to reply in messages and then realised I needed to make a whole post out of it, so here it is! All 3k words of it. This is for you, darling! I hope it helps.

Things I found extremely helpful when planning my novel for NaNoWriMo this year, after also taking some time off from it.

Most of this comes from Alicia Lidwina’s Four-Part article on her NaNoWriMo prep process, and setting up a writer’s notebook, for 2018. You can find the link to the first part here and I highly recommend you check out the whole series of articles for a more in-depth read.

Content of this ‘essay’:

Preparation, Groundwork, and Materials

Project 'Stats' & Overview

Mood, Moodboards, and Key Imagery

Things to Consider, and Important Bullet Points

Get to Know Your Characters

Chronological Order

Tangential and Preceding Events

Basic Premise, Plot Definition, Sub Plot Ideas

List of Locations

Scenes

Chapter Outline

NaNo Plan

Additional Notes and Tips for Writing

Ok. Let's begin.

First of all, I'm not saying that this is the only way to write or organise a novel. It can be tackled in as many ways as there are writers in the universe. This is just the method I used to get my ideas crystallised and organised.

Preparation, Groundwork, and Materials.

Take your preparation seriously. I bought a cheap but still nice A4 sketchbook with blank paper for maybe £2 at the local hobby store, and used it solely for the purposes of being my Novel Notebook. It doesn’t have to be a pretty, perfect, Aesthetic(TM) journal at all. Its function is to act as a route-guide through the process.

I bought a cute sticker from Etsy and used it as the front cover design so that I liked the book and that it felt a little bit special, without being too intimidating to put a mark in. Then I left the very first page blank, and opened it to the first double page. On the left, I wrote ‘Contents’ and then moved on to the right and wrote ‘Project Stats and Overview’.

I used a pen that was comfortable to write with, which for me was important. I’m a very tactile person, and having nice paper and pens (not necessarily fancy), made the process feel good.

Project Stats and Overview

This is the bare bones of the book, and includes details such as:

Project Working Title: (in my case it’s Weaver of Threads)

Targeted Wordcount: (to give yourself an idea of the scope, but it’s not necessary. For me it’s 50-100k)

Genre: (for me, fantasy)

Series: (will it be one book or more? For me, probably more than one, and at least two).

Inspiration: (here you can jot down all sorts of things which inspire your world and your writing, and it can be anything. In my case, I began with “density and lore, and feeling of being grounded in a real world from LOTR and Tolkien.” And I went on to include other writers and novels in the fantasy genre, as well as elements from our own world, such as Mongolian herding communities and way of life, the history of the Persian Empire, and Renaissance Florence!).

Project Timeline: Give yourself a structure, and be realistic. If you know you’re a slow writer who’s prone to distractions, be generous, but if you’re someone who responds well to short deadlines, tighten the time frame up a bit. I said “November 2020 - November 2021 for the whole manuscript” because I know I’m a procrastinator who gets dejected if they shoot past intense deadlines….

Editing Deadline: December 2021-January 2022. I know I can edit fairly quickly, so I made this one much shorter.

Main Requirements Prior to Starting: What do you need to get sorted before you can get going? It could be purchasing a laptop or figuring out a magic system. In my case, it was the latter.

What Happens in your novel?: This is not ‘what do your characters do?’, but what, in one sentence, actually happens in the book. For Fellowship of the Ring, you could say ‘a diverse group of people assemble and set off together with the goal of destroying the Ring’. LOADS more stuff actually takes place, obviously, but that’s probably the key thing that happens in that book. So, write the same thing for yours. I’m not going to tell you what happens in mine, because that would spoil it :).

That took up the first A4 page of my writer’s notebook, and after that, I moved on to Mood and Key Imagery.

Mood, Moodboards, and Key Imagery

On the left hand side of the page, I wrote down the words and concepts that sprang to mind when I thought of the novel itself. These were in no particular order or placement — just a random cloud of ideas in a rough column on the left hand side of the page — and they included: history, mystery, love, friendship, betrayal, nostalgic, homesick, sense of belonging, sense of place, searching, closeness, secrets… etc. etc.

Then on the right hand side, I wrote down five key words that I wanted to associate with the novel. These would form the ‘visual aesthetic’ in the background of my mind, and could be very easily expressed with a moodboard.

This same process (writing down words and creating a moodboard) could be achieved on a website like Pinterest. Take your time with it, find the right visual clues that really match the essence of your story, and create a final mood board with a limited number of panels that will be your novel’s ‘true north’ when it comes to feelings. If you're artistically inclined too, you could draw sketches of things relevant to your world too.

While this stage is really important for solidifying the feeling and mood of the novel, don’t get stuck here and spend forever procrastinating on Pinterest or whatever. Once you’ve crystallised that ambiance, it’s time to move on. It’s also perfectly fine to come back to this at a later stage if you find yourself running out of inspiration or drifting a bit. Daydreaming, drawing, mood-board-ing are all great ways to work on your novel on days when you don’t feel like writing.

Things to Consider:

Alicia Lidwina asked herself some questions which helped me get past the ‘block’ that I’d created when thinking about the novel, and those were:

What scares me about this story? (in my case it was the scope of it - it was easy for me to get lost in over-thinking tiny details and get too overwhelmed to handle the big picture)

What will readers take away from it? (in my case, I hoped that it was a sense of friendship, people from desperate cultures finding common ground, and a sense of being grounded in a real, tangible world.

What is its selling point? (essentially, why would an agent/publisher choose yours over the next one in the pile?). Don’t be bashful about this. This is your notebook, so if you’re proud of a feature or aspect of the story, write it down. In my case, there is no ‘Big Bad come to destroy the world’, no Chosen One who is the only one who can stop it. There is an antagonist, but it’s on a personal scale, and that’s the selling point. It’s about two people going on a personal journey to uncover a lost piece of knowledge that’s arguably not all that world-changing on its own, but which means the world to them.

What will be the three biggest issues in writing the first draft? Identify the three biggest roadblocks, and then take a bulldozer to them. For me, it was time management, getting mentally stuck, and the sheer darned effort of it becoming overwhelming!

Important Bullet Points

These are five key facts about your novel, distilled from the sections above. They include: What’s at the heart of the story? How long is the story? What’s the narrative focus of the story? What are the maximum number of main characters? And the maximum number of supporting characters (this obviously doesn’t mean you can’t have other, less important characters too!)?

Relationship between the two main characters is forefront

50-100k words

The novel’s focus is on the characters’ main goal (had to be more vague here so I didn't give it away)

2 main characters

3 supporting characters

If you find you’ve got too many main characters (not necessarily a bad thing to have a lot of characters - look at A Song of Ice and Fire after all!), then figure out whose story you want to tell here. You can always write another story with other characters in a connected novel, or a sequel. You don’t have to tell everything all at the same time.

Speaking of characters…

…Get to Know Your Main Characters:

Here you can write character sheets for each of your main characters and cast. There are hundreds of these templates available on the internet, asking questions like ‘how would your character react to [insert event]?’ etc. to get to know your character. If this isn’t your thing (it isn’t mine) then at least write down some useful information about them. Rough height and weight, hair, eye and skin colour, general temperament, and any other defining physical or mental traits.

Next came the Chronological Order

This does not have to represent the final order of the novel’s structure, nor the order in which you write the manuscript, but you need to know what happened within the timeline, and when, in order to be really clear when you’re telling the story. You can write the manuscript out of order, and you can tell the story with flashbacks or in a different order, but you need to have the underlying chronology securely in place so that your writing makes sense and so that you don’t confuse yourself or the readers in the process.

Preceding and Tangential Events

These don’t need to be in the novel itself, but it may be important to define the sequence of events that also led up to the moment where we pick up your story, and what is happening elsewhere so that you can be sure of these too. In my case, I defined the events that concerned one of the supporting characters’ lives so that I knew how and why they were at the point they are in the story. It relates directly to - and heavily influences - the events of the novel, so I needed to have this person’s history nailed down as well, even though I don't tell it all explicitly in the book (because that would be unnecessary and a bit dull).

Basic Premise, Plot Definition, and Sub-Plot Ideas (plus writing a synopsis)

Alicia Lidwina defined the story premise helpfully with the following formula:

Story Premise = Main Character + Desire + Obstacle

Pick a different colour for each of these components, and write a short paragraph to explain them in the context of the novel. Alicia Lidwina used the following:

[Main Character] “Harry, an orphan who didn’t know that he’s a wizard, [Desire] got invited into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and wanted to live his school life to its fullest, [Obstacle] but a certain Dark Lord who killed his parents is trying to rise into powers again and kill him in revenge.

Do this for your novel, and keep it really short.

Plot Definition: This is even shorter than that! It’s a single sentence!! It’s most closely tied to the desire of the character, and lies at the heart of the story. It’s most likely a distilled version of the ‘what happens in the story’ from the Project Stats page, so check that to see what you wrote there.

Sub Plot Ideas

Five bullet points (no more) for things that are happening concurrently and which are related in some way to the main story. For me, Kae and Tomas are doing their research, so that’s the main theme, but beneath that there are a few other related incidents.

Writing a Synopsis - developed out of the points in this section, and includes:

Who the main character is

What the stakes are (the story premise is your guideline)

What the main plot line is

How the MC resolves the problem in the main plot line

How the book ends.

List of Locations

Start with the main ones and add to it as you go on. Write a little bit of information about them so that you have something to refer back to. I also drew a big old map which I found very helpful and also really fun to do.

List of Scenes

It’s very important to map out every single scene that happens in the novel. Use your timeline to help with this, but remember a scene is not necessarily a chapter. You can have more than one scene within a chapter, but try not to have too many.

I used small post-it notes (sticky notes) and wrote down things like “M joins K’s clan at the fire and K learns about magic” and “K studies at Citadel, intro to Citadel, magic, and characters” as separate scenes. Once you’ve written down everything that is going to happen (this will take some time! Get a drink and some snacks ready, and go slow), you can stick them into your notebook in the order you’d like to tell the story. Some chapters may have just one scene, while others may have two or three. I didn’t have more than two in any of my chapters, and actually ended up splitting some scenes that I’d made too vague in this section into more chapters. It doesn’t have to be set in stone, but it will form a road map.

Additions and Notes:

I left a section of the Scene Outline bit of the notebook blank for things to add in as I went along. I haven’t used it yet, but I might.

Chapter Outline

I arranged the scenes into the chapters already by sticking them in order, but you could do a chapter outline separately after this. It’s up to you.

NaNoWriMo plan:

I did this back in October, and wrote down the main goal for nanoprep, which was to finish the background info. Breaking that down further, I listed - magic (how does it work exactly), geography, and politics.

After that, it was just a case of writing the 1667 words a day. *spoilers, I got distracted and didn’t do NaNo this year* . What I should have done, was break it up into chunks and write down my goals so that I had something tangible to use as a road map, and I will be doing that now for the novel as I take it up again outside of NaNo. Having check boxes and manageable goals really works for me. Find what will work for you, and if it turns out not to, adapt!

Some final pointers and tips:

Set regular goals for yourself. Whether you work by saying ‘I’ll write 1000 words a day’ or ‘I’ll write something every day’, make a structure for yourself. If you slip and miss a day, week, or month (I didn’t meet NaNo this year because I chose to work on another project instead *slaps forehead*), don’t beat yourself up. Writing is a craft and it takes a long time and a lot of discipline to master a craft.

Your first draft does not have to be good. At all. Your first draft is just words on paper. A first draft is the block of marble taken from the quarry, and subsequent edits and reworking is the process of carving the sculpture itself. The editing that is done by the publisher or the professional you employ to edit it for you later, is the final polishing. Don’t be demoralised if the block of marble seems very rough when it first lands in your studio. That’s ok!

Take regular breaks. Writing is hard work, and most people can’t concentrate on something successfully for longer than 55 min's, and if you’re doing that, you’re already doing really well. Personally, I’m at 15-20 on a good day. Write in little sprints of ten minutes or so, and then get up and stretch, look out the window, maybe leave the room, come back in with a fresh approach.

Stretch your hands, and wear wrist braces when you work. Seriously. I gave myself tendinitis on my first major project, and couldn’t use either hand properly for weeks. The ones I have are these, and they allow me to work safely for much longer.

Keep hydrated. Have a bottle of water on the desk in front of you between your arms as you type and sip it, otherwise you’ll forget. 2 litres a day is usually recommended, but know your body and drink accordingly.

Treat yourself. Whether that’s something as simple as a decadent hot chocolate after your first chapter/chunk/sprint is done, or a new notebook or a pen or that sticker set you wanted on Etsy or literally anything nice, reward yourself for the hard work you’ve put in, with tangible things you can look at or experience and say ‘I have that because I did the work’. It’ll help with your sense of achievement, especially if the project is a long one.

Join a local writer’s group for feedback. With the current Covid-19 chaos, this is probably not possible right now, but getting constructive feedback on your work from someone who hasn’t been cocooned in the project in the way you are, but who respects you as a writer and wants to help you grow, will be invaluable. It’s too easy to exist in a little isolated bubble and think you’re doing ok, when in reality you could be creating bad habits which will be difficult to break later. By these, I mean things like ‘filler words’ you don’t realise you use, or other pit-falls it’s easy to tumble into when you can’t see the wood for the trees…It’s intimidating, and it might take some courage to work up and do, but I promise it’ll help you grow. You don’t have to do what the people suggest, but it’s great to get outside opinions all the same.

Submit work to writing competitions. This will help with showing agents and publishers later down the line that you’re not only committed, but hopefully talented, and will help you to push yourself. Use the world of your novel for the setting, and get to know it by writing short stories on the competition’s theme set there.

Read. Read the writers you admire, and read them ‘actively’ - figure out exactly what it is about ‘that’ sentence that made you shiver, and use the same techniques in your own work (don’t plagiarise, obviously, but if it was alliteration that made the sentence work so well, use it yourself! Perhaps it was the metre of the line? Great, now you know a rhythm that will drive a sentence forward or slow it down etc.)

Enjoy it. If you’re not enjoying what you’re doing, it’ll show in the work. Take a step back if you start floundering, and ‘interview’ yourself about why it’s not fun any more. Refer back to the sections in the notebook that helped to clarify the plot/process, and see if you’ve wandered away from them. Make yourself answer questions like: ‘What is the main reason I don’t want to do this?’ ‘What is the character’s motivation?’ ‘Should I scrap this section?’ (don’t delete it, but cut and paste it into another ‘scraps’ document, and then start afresh from the last place you were happy with. Nothing is wasted - it all goes into building the world and getting to know the characters, even if it doesn’t get explicitly told in the finished product, so don’t be afraid to do that last bit).

Good luck!

I hope you found this helpful, and if you have any questions or things you’d like to add to this, please feel free to send me an ask here on Tumblr.

If you’re a new writer hoping to get an agent or publisher, you might also find this post on ‘talking to a published author’ helpful or interesting.

If you would like to keep up to date with my own novel’s progress, you can follow me here on Tumblr, as well as on my writing Instagram @rnpeacock

#writing #writeblr #writing process #how to write a novel #novel writing #nanowrimo #national novel writing month #writing a book #writing advice #author #authors on tumblr #how to structure a book #long post

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3d-wifey · 4 years

Text

Among Us AU (Students)

I'm picturing this as them being actual characters in the game, not them playing the game.

Let's get the colors out of the way first:

Kiri is red, Denki is yellow, Bakugou is orange, Mina is pink, Deku is dark green, Tsu is lime, Iida is dark blue, Todoroki is white, Ochako is brown, Mirio is cyan, Tamaki is black, and Shinsou is purple.

Best Imposters: Mirio, DEKU, Shinsou, Tamaki, and Bakugou

Best Crewmates: IIDA, Deku, Todoroki, Tsu

Iida is probably the fastest crewmate, so nobody bothers going after him.

Wears the safety mask.

He calls regular emergency meetings as "check-ups" and is very adamant about the buddy system.

Can be seen chopping the air whenever he "thinks" he saw someone venting and when he's arguing during discussions.

Usually takes charge during discussions and if he dies, then Mirio takes charge

You'll probably find him in security watching the cameras.

It's very obvious whenever he's the importer.

He literally never vents.

He sticks to snapping necks and then speeding off so fast you can't catch him on the cameras

But he always gives himself away by getting super defensive when anybody asks him a question

"Where were you, Iida?"

"My location during the murder is none of your concern. I don't have to tell you anything at all. In fact, you can come see me scan in Medbay. Actually, don't! You might be the impostor yourself, Midoriya! Trying to pull the wool over our eye–"

"Yeah, go ahead and vote him out. 😪"

Mina, Denki, and Eijiro all dance around Bakugou while he's doing his tasks like cheerleaders and it pisses him the hell off because he can't focus.

Kirishima picks up any babies or pets that were left behind, even if he was the imposter.

He wears the ninja headband because they look "manly".

He honestly hates being the imposter because he gets so stressed out.

Usually just sticks to sabotaging.

He's really reluctant to kill and when he does, it is super sloppy.

One of those alien imposters that eat the crewmates. 🥴

He doesn't really defend himself if the crew starts suspecting him tho.

"I'm sorry I killed you, Shoto. That was super unmanly. 😞"

Shoto's ghost: 😐

Speaking of Shoto, he very rarely does tasks.

The only reason he's a good crewmate is because he's so quiet, the imposter won't even notice he's in the same room when they vent or kill someone.

Wears nothing but his suit, but can be persuaded to wear the halo.

You'll probably find him just wandering around in the halls, so he's an easy kill.

He's one of those Chaotic Neutral characters that say you can vote them out if they're wrong.

"I think I saw Kaminari kill Midoriya...but I could be wrong. You guys can just vote me out if I'm wrong."

He and Deku are very good at doing double kills and then venting right after.

He kills with knives or by impaling and then just walks off because he forgets he can vent.

But, he's not a good imposter by himself because he's kinda forgetful and doesn't make good arguments for himself.

"Shoto's faking tasks."

"No, I'm not. 😐"

Kirishima, Ochako, and Tsu are really reluctant to vote anyone out.

Everyone hates when they're the last people left because they usually throw the entire game.

While Kirishima and Tsu could be persuaded with evidence, Ochako usually just skips.

"Do we really have to vote them out? I mean...do you actually have proof?"

"I literally saw them kill Tsu."

"I don't know. I'm just gonna skip."

Ochako has to snap people's necks because she's too poor to afford a gun 😔.

Ochako, Mirio, and Mina refuse to kill anyone with pets or babies. They're murderers, not monsters.

Ochako and Tsu wear matching pink flowers.

Bakugou is a terrible crewmate, merely because he throws wild accusations until they stick (mostly at Deku)

“Deku’s the imposter!”

“Bakugou...Deku’s dead this round. 👁👄👁”

He gets so mad anytime the crew wants to vote him out, even if he is the imposter.

"I think it was Bakugou."

"No, the hell it wASN'T!"

"You've just been a little sus, dude."

"I WAS DOING MY TASK THIS WHOLE TIME AND YOU PIECES OF SHIT THINK IT'S ME?!? ARE YOU DEADASS?!💥🖐🏻🤬"

"What are you getting so mad for? 👀"

"I'M "GETTING MAD" BECAUSE YOU BACK ALLEY RAT TURDS ARE BLAMING ME, KNOWING DAMN WELL YOU SAW ME DOING TASKS! I'M NOT THE-"

And he's a petty bitch so he never does his tasks as a ghost. He just grumbles and follows Kiri around.

Wears that backwards hat because he thinks it looks cool, but don't say anything about it or he will take it off.

Now, he's really in his element as the imposter.

🌠Gaslighting: the game🌠

Deku better hope they never get paired up together, because Bakugou will follow him around and report him as soon as he kills.

"Deku's the imposter. I caught his dumbass lacking."

"K-Kacchan? 🥺"

He prefers to work by himself, but he'll corporate with Kiri, Denki, or Mina.

Weapon of choice is a knife because it's hands-on and he really likes to...get into character.

Tsu and Mina are both imposter types that eat people.

They also have a ton of pets and babies with them at all times

Mina will never empty the garbage.

Ever.

She also wears those cute devil horns.

Tsu always does her tasks as a ghost and then hovers by the abandoned babies/pets.

"Has anybody seen Tsu?"

Tsu: 🐸❤👶🏽

She's also really good at telling when someone is lying, that's why she's one of the first killed.

Denki tries his best, but...

"Leave the electrical tasks to me!"

And then he comes back like: 👍🏻🥴👍🏻

Just completely fried.

He wears that posted note that says "Dum" because he thinks its "ironic"...nobody even bothers telling him it's not.

Really reluctant to kill, but he doesn't understand how to sabotage so it's his only option. He just uses a gun because it seems less personal.

"Sorry to do this to ya, dude. But you know how it goes. 🔫😗✌🏼"

Shinsou's power makes him win every game as an imposter. He's basically OP.

"Hey, Shinsou! Did you just vent?"

"Did you?"

"No–"

"Yeah, how bout you come jump on this knife 😼🔪"

Nobody ever sees him because he likes traveling through the vents and it's crazy because no one ever questions him either.

Sleeps in the vents.

He wears the red beanie.

He generally sticks to popping out of a vent, snapping necks, and going back into the vents.

Knows the vent system of every map like the back of his hand.

Sometimes he uses a knife if he's feeling ✨ᖴᗩᑎᑕY✨

A horrible crewmate.

He'll be sleeping in places he shouldn't be.

Like, he'll do some of his tasks, but he's not running to fix the O2 or the Reactor.

The alarms could be blaring and he'll be like:

"I'm sure somebody'll get that 😴."

He never brings anything to the discussion AT ALL.

He just votes with the majority, honestly.

He literally can not be found in the entire ship and you'll only see him at discussions, then he disappears like a shadow.

So, it's obvious that he rarely gets killed.

He only really pairs up with Deku (and he's usually the one that kills Shinsou)

Poor Tamaki.

He, like Denki, tries his best.

Please, God, don't leave him alone.

He tries to stay with Mirio or Kiri when doing tasks.

He wears that little green plant on his head 🥺.

The thought of there being a murderer around every corner stresses him the fuck out, so his hands are too shaky to do wires.

Doesn't like long tasks, they leave him too exposed.

If you think he's nervous during tasks, imagine him during discussions.

It's like doing back to back presentations on a topic you never researched.

He tries to be helpful by adding his two cents, but there are definitely some...big personalities in the group.

"I...think I s-saw orange vent."

"What the hell are you mumbling about?! Speak up, dammit!"

"N-nevermind, it's no use. 😞"

Now, he's surprisingly a really good imposter.

He's one of the few that nobody ever expects.

He works better with Mirio or Kirishima, and while he prefers to just sabotage, he isn't afraid to eat a bitch.

Tentacles come out of his stomach, so he's just waiting in decontamination like:

🧍🏻‍♂️🐙

You wouldn't think Mirio would be a good imposter, but that's EXACTLY what he wants you to think.

He's smarter than he let's on and he plays dumb to his advantage.

"Mirio, why didn't you go to reactor when the alarm went off?"

"I was looking for my buddy, Tamaki. And I got a bit lost."

"Why didn't you just use your map—"

"Heh, we should just skip, right? 😅👍🏻"

Uses his big boy muscles to snap necks and then self-reports.

Says a corny dad joke before he kills someone.

"Hey, What does a liar do after he dies?"

"Wha—"

"He lies still. Heh, get it? 👱🏻"

"😐"

"👱🏻🔪"

Wears a banana peel on his head and I feel like that needs no explanation.

He relies heavily on his quirk to move around as an imposter and a crewmate.

He just fucking pops out of the ground.

This also means he can catch imposters in the act.

He works well with anyone, but he still makes a good imposter by himself.

He really likes the Sked because of the simple design.

Follows people around for fun and his dumbass gets voted off because of it.

Uses his quirk to pop through walls and scare people.

"Hah. Key swipe, huh? 👱🏻"

Always swipes his key perfectly every time.

He does all of the tasks that nobody else wants to, including his own.

"What did you call an emergency meeting for, Mirio?"

"I just missed you guys. ☺"

"..."

"Vote him out."

Now, Izuku is really good in either role.

This is partially because of a little notebook he keeps filled with stats on the crewmates.

It also holds notes on how long it takes to complete different tasks, multiple layouts of the different ships, a list of combinations for O2, etc.

This comes in handy during discussions.

"Wait. Mina, you came from the labs all the way to the office to call a meeting? And you said it took you four minutes to get here while running, but that's, at least, a fifteen-minute journey, even if you ran at your maximum speed. The only people who could get here that fast are Iida, Mirio, and I. But, there is a vent that leads from the labs to storage and you could probably get here in four minutes if you used it. Also, if you saw Tamaki kill Todoroki, why didn't you just report the body—"

"Oh my God, Izuku. Just vote me out. 😒"

After finishing his tasks, he usually goes to admin to keep an eye on the body count. If not there, he'll be taking notes in the cafeteria.

He gets really focused on his tasks, so he's kind of an easy kill.

He has a little green baby on his head and his name is Kota 😌.

The notebook also helps him out when he's the imposter.

He knows which rooms have vents and where they lead.

Nobody ever suspects sweet baby Izuku to be the killer 🥺 no, not wittle baby boy.

Nobody, but Katsuki.

Literally, if there's no concrete evidence against him, hardly anyone thinks it's him.

And Katsuki isn't exactly trustworthy when it comes to Izuku, but he's literally right every time.

The king of sabotage.

He'll hit the lights, lock the door to Electrical, turn on O2, stab someone in the dark, and then vent to the other side of the ship.

As I said earlier, he's really good at getting double kills and then venting away.

He's real handy with a knife, but he has a strength-based quirk so he could snap necks if he wants.

They hardly ever win by finishing all of their tasks, because Mirio keeps following people around, Katsuki doesn't do tasks as a ghost, Kiri doesn't know how to upload the files, Shinsou sleeps through every alarm, Shoto forgets he has a map and gets lost, and Denki won't do his unless Iida chases him around and forces him.

God help these children 😩.

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baphomet-media · 3 years

Photo

Blaster Caster - An Ikenfell Review

Genre: Adventure Subgenre: Tactics RPG Developer: Happy Ray Games Publisher: Humble Games Platform(s): PC, Switch, Xbox; Reviewed on Xbox Series X Release Date: October 8th, 2020

Ikenfell immediately caught my eye in a marketing email from Humble. The art style looked charming, and it stayed on my radar for a while until I gave it a try on a whim from Game Pass, needing something to sink my teeth into on Xbox. I was a little wary at first, as tactics games can sometimes be difficult to get into (I’m looking at you, Fire Emblem), but the art style and whispers of praise I kept hearing drew me in. Does it hold up, though? Let’s dig in!

Story

The story of Ikenfell follows Maritte, an “ordinary” (non-magical) girl who travels to the titular school of magic to find her missing sister, Safina. After suddenly gaining magical powers of her own, Maritte soon realizes that something that happened at the school is causing the world to destabilize and magic itself to distort in strange and unusual ways. Best of all, Safina seems to be right smack dab in the middle of everything.

Along the way, Maritte will meet a number of students of Ikenfell, friends and rivals alike of Safina, with whom she will partner in order to get to the bottom of the strange happenings at the school. One of the best things about the game is its diverse cast of characters, seemingly all of whom are queer to some extent. It felt really nice to have some representation that didn’t try to make a huge deal out of the characters’ identities. That being said, I found it somewhat difficult to keep up with characters’ genders, pronouns, and sexualities, since it’s rarely mentioned by the game. One idea that could alleviate this is if the game could remind you of the characters’ pronouns on their status pages. Additionally, while some characters, such as Maritte, Gilda, and Pertisia, felt fully realized and fleshed-out, the other half of the party seemed to languish in stagnation. While Rook and Petronella had a bit of development regarding their relationships to Safina, Ima had basically no backstory and felt forgotten.

The game has plenty of side characters as well that help to flesh out the cast, particularly the bumbling dandy Ibn Oxley and his surly protector Bax. These two were pretty adorable in their relationship, and I’m always a fan of the incompetent braggart archetype, however I feel like they didn’t do much except constantly get in the way throughout the entire story, and I felt like I was always cleaning up after them. The headmistress, Baudovinia Aeldra, has a very touching, and surprisingly dark, backstory, and she becomes something of a tragic antagonist throughout the course of the story.

Perhaps the thing that impressed me the most was the game’s scope of worldbuilding. In one chapter, you ascend a tower as the game drip feeds you bits of its mythology, and I was really into it. Additionally, I like that there are small hints about the world at large outside of the play area, which made me feel like the school was only one part of a larger world, even if it was effectively the center.

The story itself is fairly basic and somewhat on the short side. There were plenty of touching moments throughout, but I couldn’t help but feel like I was just chasing Safina’s coattails the whole time, as she’s all that anyone can talk about. What’s worse, outside of flashbacks, Safina doesn’t actually do anything the entire game, which was a disappointment. I was looking forward to having a sororal bonding moment that didn’t really come until the epilogue, and even that was a bit lackluster.

Gameplay

At its core, Ikenfell is an RPG. The battles take place on a 12x3 grid, and on each character’s turn, they can move and cast a spell from their repertoire. As opposed to other games that have MP or a fixed number of spells, Ikenfell’s spells are thankfully unlimited. Instead, some spells have a cooldown time, though this is rarely an issue, as most spells with cooldowns are powerful spells anyway. Additionally, each spell has its own effective range, so proper positioning is constantly important. Most spells can be categorized as one of the following:

Single-target damage dealing

Area-of-effect damage dealing

Ally buffing

Enemy debuffing

Placing a trap

Other, or some combination of the above

Despite this, most spells feel different from a combination of their ranges and other unique properties. For example, while Pertisia’s Retaliation spell hits multiple targets for damage, it has the unique range of hitting all allies that are orthogonal to her or her allies, incentivising close-quarters play. This pairs well with Gilda’s Teleportation ability, which lets her teleport to the other side of the battle grid and immediately take a second turn. In all honesty, I found the combination of Gilda and Perty so powerful that I spent most of the game using only those two and Maritte, who becomes so physically powerful by the end of the game that she’s a must-have. Unfortunately, I never found much use for Rook and Ima, as their spells never really stood out much to me, aside from being the only characters able to set traps. Traps become useless pretty quickly, since most enemies can fly or teleport to their destination square, meaning unless they land right on a trap, it’ll more likely hinder your own movement. Nel at least had unique abilities in being the only character able to cast healing spells, but the spells are so difficult to actually perform, and they’re so miserably weak otherwise that it doesn’t feel useful to include them, which is really sad considering their backstory!

Enemies also get the same mechanics as the player, which usually meshes well, however it seems like most enemies get way more turns than the player, especially certain enemies that can use actions that immediately give them an extra turn. It pretty much requires you to use Gilda to provide speed buffs and debuffs just to feel competitive. This is felt particularly strongly during boss battles when bosses can summon minions and then immediately take another turn. It can get overwhelming quickly, especially if one character gets knocked out. Fortunately, if you’re leveled up enough and you stay on top of healing and taking out minions, you should be fine in any battle, though this does put the player in an odd dichotomy where you either stay on top of everything for the entire battle, but you make one mistake and you basically lose outright.

The other mechanic to battles is the timing mechanics. Every spell has a specific timing for pressing the A button in order to deal max damage or buff. You also use the same timed button press to defend against enemy attacks, which gives the battles a slight Paper Mario feel. Unfortunately, I found that timing was often inconsistent. Some spells have helpful visual indicators for letting the player know when to hit A, but many are best used slightly before or slightly after the visual trigger, making it frustrating when you whiff a spell or take major damage despite looking like you were right on time. The game has some accessibility options that can bypass this, by making your attacks auto-hit or skipping battles altogether, but this feels more like cheats than balance, so I didn’t use them.

As far as the overworld goes, you travel between areas to reach various story objectives, giving strong Mother series vibes from your party following along behind you. The game allows you to save your progress by petting cats around the school, which is automatically an A+ from me. The cats also refill your HP, so you don’t have to worry too much about healing outside of battle.

I really enjoyed the equipment system in the game as well. Aside from weapons, each other item can be worn by any character, and usually offer both benefits and drawbacks, so it’s up to you to decide which stats you want to optimize on each character. Though it wasn’t a really tough decision, as there are only 5 stats (HP, Attack, Defense, Speed, Movement), and most equipment only modifies the middle three. I ended up speccing Maritte into Attack, Perty into Defense, and Gilda into Speed, since those seemed to match their play styles and base stats.

There isn’t much in the way of side content in the game, the main sidequest being collecting hidden gems throughout the world. These gems can be exchanged for special accessories that give unique effects. Unfortunately, these accessories don’t provide any stat bonuses, so I didn’t find any of them as useful as just buffing stats. Lastly, the game has a few optional bosses to defeat, which basically require you to hit the, admittedly low, level cap of 30. These bosses were interesting, but at that point I was getting sick of boss battles.

Presentation

Ikenfell is a gorgeous game. There’s plenty of great pixel art throughout, particularly in the environment. The character sprites are very expressive, both in battle and on the overworld. I wasn’t a huge fan of some of the portraits (Perty particularly has some oddly lumpy cheeks), but for the most part they’re perfectly fine.

The music in the game is wonderful, and is largely done by electronic musical group Aivi & Surasshu. Most of the background tracks were a wonderful blend of chiptunes and melancholy instrumental which is definitely my thing. Unfortunately I wasn’t all that fond of the vocals on some tracks, but that’s likely just a personal preference thing. My partner loved them, so your mileage may vary.

Conclusion

JK Rowling wishes she could tell a magic school story this good. At the end of the game, I loved the characters and felt good knowing that I had accomplished everything the game had to offer. I loved just exploring, seeing the different locations, petting cats, and listening to the music. Definitely give this game a try if you love RPGs, queer representation, good stories or music, and DEFINITELY if you have Game Pass.

Score: 8 / 10

#review #gaming #ikenfell #happy ray games #humble games

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mjmnorwood · 4 years

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I don't know which day is suitable for this sort of question, but when writing fantasy I find that the plots I like often don't match up with the worlds I like. Do you know of any advice for how to deal with this problem? Is it more important to fit the world to the plot or the plot to the world?

Heya nonny! Don’t worry about sending things on particular days, if you’ve got a question just go ahead and ask! Apologies this has taken me such a long time to get to, I’m moving to Scotland next week so I’ve been mad busy 😅

There isn’t a very concrete answer because this sort of thing varies wildly from person to person. It all depends on your writing process. If you’re someone who finds worldbuilding more intuitive, it probably makes sense to worldbuild first and base plot on that, and vice versa if you find plotting more intuitive. This is very individual, so if you feel like you have to fit one to the other, choose the one you find easiest as your basis, because you want your process to be as easy as possible.

When it comes down to how to do this, I think you have to base it on what interests you—to state the obvious: if you’re interested in your story, it will be more fun to write! I can only really offer advice on plotting based on worldbuilding, because that’s what I do, but I think the principles should work similarly in reverse.

For a starting point, I pick a worldbuilding element I would really like to write about, and then try and think about how there could be conflict based on that idea. You can either do this by mulling in your head, or writing down a mind-map, depending on what is easier for you. As an example, I have an (as-yet-unwritten) story idea set in the same universe as my current WIP, The Perception of a Poison, based on the worldbuilding I did for the religion Astrinity. The protagonist of TPoaP is not Astran, so the religion isn’t explored much in the book, but I have LOADS of ideas for it. So, I went from just a worldbuilding idea to a plot for a book in what is essentially this order: ‘I want to explore Astrinity!’ —> ‘An Astran monk would be a good protagonist for that!’ —> ‘But I don’t want it to just be set in a monastery, how can I explore the rest of the world?’ —> ‘Telescopes are holy objects in Astrinity, what if this character makes them?’ —> ‘He could be asked to leave the monastery to make a telescope for someone important.’ —> ‘But someone is trying to sabotage this new telescope…’ And so on and so forth, you get the picture.

Hopefully that gives you some idea of what the process is like!

But the thing is, you don’t have to fit plot to worldbuilding, or vice-versa. Genre-bending stories are a lot of fun, and you may find that with a bit of fiddling it’s perfectly possible to fit the plots you like in the worlds you like. In fact, it could well make your story feel fresh and original, because readers are less likely to have seen that type of plot in that type of world.

Say you really want to write something set in a royal court—the regular type of plot in that setting would likely involve high society romance or scheming and political intrigue—but maybe you don’t want to write something so high stakes! What if you like romance, but just aren’t feeling the intense, passionate drama of a noble affair? Instead, you could write something sweet and down-to-earth between two servants in the court. You could even have the ‘standard’ plot going on in the background, part of the set-dressing but not the focus. (Side note: I really want to read this story now—someone write it, stat!)

Basically, while you can absolutely base worldbuilding on plot/plot on worldbuilding (and that is what I often do), it’s not compulsory. I don’t want you to feel like you have to limit your writing. One of the best ways to write an engaging story is to write what you are happiest writing, because that enthusiasm will shine through to the reader.

#ask #writing advice #plot #worldbuilding

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eternalgirlscout · 4 years

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a while back @lesbians4sokka (i think? sorry for @ing you if i’m thinking of a different blog) asked me to share my thoughts about The Rise of Kyoshi, and seeing as i just finished the book last night (because i am a monster who gets most of the way through a book and thinks “if i keep reading it’ll be over i can’t have that”) i’m finally doing it now!

this got long as hell OOPS

spoilers under the cut

I want to talk about vengeance and justice in this novel.

back when I was only maybe a third of the way through it, i said on twitter that i was excited to see an avatar with an “opposite moral trajectory” to aang; in AtLA, aang has to learn to value justice over conflict avoidance, whereas RoK’s kyoshi has to prioritize justice over revenge. they come to similar conclusions from wildly different starting points. now that i’ve finished the book, i can’t decide how much i stand by that assessment. it feels reductive--which is a testament to the strength of F.C. Yee’s storytelling. while yes, aang and kyoshi both learn a great deal about justice, they act justly in very different ways.

aang, for reasons i like and appreciate from storytelling, ethical, and characterization perspectives (if you haven’t read my The Lion Turtle Is Good, Actually manifesto, you are legally obligated to do so now) has a strict rule about how he enacts justice that aligns with his beliefs and duties to the legacy of the air nomads. rather than killing people who abuse power to oppress others, he takes away the mechanism by which they accomplish violence--namely, their bending. in LoK we see that he continues to use this ability as an alternative to taking a life for at least most of his career as the avatar when he takes yakone’s bending.

kyoshi, on the other hand, has a very different philosophical development and ultimate approach to justice. her last conversation with lao ge summarizes the conflict between the mode of justice that works for aang (though obviously AtLA takes place chronologically after RoK, the novel is well aware that the reader has almost certainly seen the series first and takes ideas and details from it to flesh out the world, which i think is another strength of Yee’s) and the mode of justice she creates for herself.

“I feel... inconsistent. Unfair. Like I should have either killed them both or let them both live.”

...

“If you had a strict rule, maybe, to always show mercy or always punish, you could use it as a shield to protect your spirit. But that would be distancing yourself from your duty. Determining the fates of others on a case-by-case basis, considering the infinite combinations of circumstance, will wear on you like rain on the mountain... You will never be perfectly fair, and you will never be truly correct,” Lao Ge said. “This is your burden.” (405)

the stark difference between aang’s philosophical background and kyoshi’s leads them to very different outcomes with regard to their choices as the avatar. yes, aang makes decisions on a case-by-case basis as well, but he is not interested in retribution as much as restoration and has a line he will not cross. i could argue that kyoshi sees the two (retribution, restoration) as inextricable in the pursuit of justice.

but what about vengeance?

kyoshi’s hatred of her parents wears away over the course of the novel, but her need to enact revenge on jianzhu only becomes more urgent. she is not universally vengeful, but she does not let go of revenge as a goal until she has it... sort of.

speaking of which, i fucking screamed when yun showed up again. i had a feeling we hadn’t seen the last of him, but the timing of his appearance and the change in him hit me like a lightning bolt. sorry, i have to gush for a second about how interested i am in what’s up with him. i am a sucker for a literal dead boy walking, for someone who has been turned into something Other by forces outside their control, and no matter what kyoshi ends up having to do to deal with him, i know i’m going to go feral for it. this is a Yun Stan Account until further notice.

anyway. it’s fascinating that kyoshi doesn’t actually get her revenge per se. yun does. he avenges himself, and it (likely) only causes more problems for kyoshi. and i think the distinction between vengeance and justice is quite wonderfully articulated afterwards:

How could such a container [as Jianzhu’s body] have held the volume of her anguish, her wrath? If any feeling at all pressed through the numbness... it was the ire of a hoodwinked child who’d been promised the end of her bedtime story only to see the candle-lights snuffed and the door slam shut. She was a girl alone in the dark. (430)

she gets the outcome she wanted: jianzhu dead. but her path to him “simply ended.” she has pragmatic advantages now that he’s out of the way--freedom, for one thing, and rangi’s safety, but those weren’t the things that drove her to want her revenge. there is a hollowness to it, a lack of catharsis. revenge is about the self, not the other.

and selfhood is something else kyoshi gives up.

one of the most striking lines in this novel appears when she walks into the tea house to meet jianzhu. at this point, kyoshi has assembled a motley outfit of expensive armor, theater costume pieces, battle accessories, outlaw facepaint, and bending aids for the heretical air nomad. she looks fucking weird. she’s like a video game PC wearing all the highest-stat armor she could loot from random dungeons and none of it matches. literally an assemblage of the places she’s been and the people who have helped her.

This was who she was now. This was her skin. This was her face. (418)

as the avatar, kyoshi has to be a symbol more than a person, even though she is fundamentally a human being as fallible as anyone else. the people who hear of her defeat of xu think she’s a spirit or a dragon in human disguise--regardless of what kyoshi wants and who she is, the world expects her to be something More. so, she gets dressed up and gives them what they need to see.

watching that transformation over the course of one novel is incredible. the path from the girl she is at the start of the novel to the woman we see advise aang that only justice will bring peace is far from over, but the trajectory is more than established. i’m really excited to see what Yee brings to another novel. kyoshi is just getting started.

some other miscellaneous thoughts:

i loved the choice to have a YA writer write this novel. not just for the obvious reason that Avatar is a franchise primarily for kids and teens, but because a lot of the common stylistic elements in YA fiction serve this story incredibly well. (by no means are any of these universal, of course; YA is a broad category of literature with huge stylistic and generic diversity, but in general it has these strengths.) the third person limited pov that switches between various characters gives a vital breadth to the story. there are a lot of moving pieces, and being able to see most of them in real time cuts back on exposition and heightens tension when you can watch their collision course. the focus on the given pov character’s interiority is put to incredible use, especially on the occasions when kyoshi enters the avatar state--and when it’s revealed that jianzhu hides things from even the reader, it becomes all the more staggering what a cunning bastard he is (jianzhu hate blog right here). kyoshi’s blushy crush on yun and even blushier crush on rangi are so good and are woven naturally into the story (bi fuckin rights babey!). that’s a teen with a big heart right there. also, fun swerve to the love triangle trope to get one of the love interests eaten by a spirit a few chapters in! his mind...

the part where kyoshi runs through a stone wall and leaves a kyoshi-shaped hole had me rolling, not just because i was impressed by how well that visual gag worked in prose but also because i can’t believe neither (to my memory) AtLA nor LoK pulled that.

HIDDEN PASSAGE... HIDDEN PASSAGE... THROUGH THE MOUNTAINS...

again i say: bi fucking RIGHTS

and i guess that’s all. stay tuned for the masterpost of Rise of Kyoshi memes i made as i read the book because i have a whole folder of them

#rise of kyoshi #Avatar!verse #meta #more or less. mostly just rambling #do not expect formal coherency from this i just got excited #liked the ending a lot! liked the characters! liked it as a piece of avatar lore!

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broken-clover · 4 years

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AU-gust Day 12- Modern

Here comes a joker! I really did like the idea of a crime au, but I just couldn’t come up with anything. So here’s something I’ve been wanting to make for a while, kinda inspired by an ask I got from Rex way back when. I just liked the idea of Axl being Bedman’s adopted dad, I thought it was neat!

Also apologies in advance for me using my name headcanons again, it’s just so difficult to work with a character whose name is ‘Bedman.’ Seriously, does he have a less bizarre name in canon? Who the fuck would name their kids ‘Delilah’ and ‘Bedman?’ Guess we know who the favorite was...

“I don’t like you.”

Axl wasn’t sure what he’d expected when he first signed up for the local foster program. Well, he sorta did. Ideally, he’d expected to be tasked with taking care of a child, with whatever bizarreness it would entail. He knew he wasn’t exactly what a lot of people would consider ‘prime material’ for a foster parent- he was an unmarried twentysomething with no clear direction on where he wanted to go with his life, but he was financially stable, passed all the agency’s legal checks and drug screenings, and attended every mandatory pre-service class alongside a small crew of other aspiring parents. Despite his best efforts, he always got the impression that the agency took issue with him being there. Still, Axl did everything he was told, waited patiently, and chatted with his assigned caseworker until they had found a match for him to try out.

Matthew had come with a ratty purple backpack, a seemingly-permanent scowl, and a laundry list of behavior problems tacked onto his case file. Axl wasn’t his first foster parent, he’d already gone through nearly a dozen, all of which had sent him back. The reasons varied, from destroyed appliances to constant verbal fighting. And he made it clear right from the get-go that he despised his new foster home just as much from the first words he uttered.

“I don’t like you. Send me back.”

It seemed nobody really knew where the origin of his ire was. Being pushed back and forth through the foster system again and again for years seemed like a perfectly good reason to be cross, at least in Axl’s opinion, but the way the orphanage and his agent had spoken about it made it sound like Matthew was born with a scowl on his face and just didn’t know how to take it off. They seemed surprised by the concept that he was even being placed in another foster home. The repeated failures and inability to get along with anyone seemed to indicate that he was doomed to take the slow path, waiting a few more years until he turned 18 and aged out of the system on his own.

In spite of their initial rough meeting, Axl did his best to welcome him warmly. He’d set up and painted a room ahead of time for his new family member to live in, acquired all the legal documents he needed for everything from school enrollment to medical files, and stored up a plethora of dad jokes that he could use as he needed. Matthew was unimpressed with all of them.

“I hate this place. When are you sending me back?”

For all the snarky comments and indifference he could manage, Axl didn’t budge. He was patient. He would keep trying.

Though he only knew so much about him from his case file (Matthew despised small talk, and Axl didn’t drag him into it), he’d done his best to support the interests he saw. He bought the science books he noticed the boy staring at in the shop windows, and trying to pick out new cartridges for the game system he barely let out of his sight. He seemed like the intellectual type, reading college-level books on social sciences and linguistics, and he preferred strategy games over any other kind. Axl wasn’t much of a bookworm himself, maybe that’s what made it so difficult for them to connect. But even if he couldn’t match him on an intellectual level, maybe he could still do so on a more personal one.

So he stayed patient.

“Why are you being so stubborn…?”

Axl could tell he was at least getting somewhere. They didn’t exactly have casual time together, not really, but he wasn’t immediately shooed away. Matthew could play his games, or read a book, and Axl could sit on the other side of the room. Every time, he inched closer and closer, until the only option left was for them to sit on the same couch.

“Heya, Mattie, mind if I sit down for a sec?"

It had been a quiet evening, not especially remarkable in any way. Just another day of work and school for the both of them, and free time afterward to unwind.

His son glanced up at him, but only for the briefest of moments. “You have more than one chair.”

“Yeah, but I just wanted to sit with you today. Is that okay?”

“...Fine. But don’t touch me.”

Axl sat himself down on the other side of the sofa. “So...how was school?”

“Don’t want to talk about it.”

The sheer speed of his response threw him off-guard. “Well, okay. Um, did I already tell you that I like the neat thing you’ve got going on with your hair?” He pointed towards the boy’s messily-dyed purple locks.

“Eight times. Nine now.”

“You do it yourself?”

“In my last house’s bathtub.”

“Must’ve been a right mess! But it looks like it turned out good?”

“It was. My foster mom was mad about the mess I made. So she wound up screaming at me over it. And I screamed back. And before I knew it, she sent me back. It’s on my case file, I thought you said you read it.”

Axl felt his tongue stick to the roof of his mouth. Well, open mouth, insert foot. He had read it, multiple times, but all it had listed was ‘confrontational issues and repeated arguments.’ He’d wondered exactly what that had meant, but actually figuring it out made him feel the exact opposite of satisfied.

“...Oh. Sounds like a right bitch.”

“She was. Can you stop asking questions now? I’m bored of them.”

He complied, though the ensuing silence only made everything feel more uncomfortable. He just didn’t get why some people screamed at their kids, mistakes just happened sometimes. Children were still learning how things worked, it seemed natural sometimes it would end in a mess.

“Hey.”

“I don’t wanna talk.”

“And I’m not gonna make you.” Axl stayed where he was. “Is it okay if I talk, though? You don’t have to say anything back.”

No response. But he didn’t get up and leave, like he had done in the past, so Axl took it as a cue to keep going. “I know you’re probably not gonna like me right away. And that’s ok. I’m still a total stranger, and you’re just expected to trust me to look after you. And I’ve seen all your paperwork, but that doesn’t mean I know anything about you as a person. We’re still strangers, the two of us.”

He paused. Matthew looked unfazed. “So I get it. I really do. I’m…” Axl tried to think of what he wanted to say. “I...

I’m not sending you back.”

Still no response. But Axl noticed the way his hands locked, and the little startled double-blink that came with it.

“If we’ve got issues, we can work ‘em out. I know you’ve been through a lot, so it’s ok if you have a rough time at first. And I’m not gonna throw you out as soon as you have a hard time. I totally get it. You’re not a bloody dog, I’m not gonna pretend like I can tame you with treats until you do whatever I tell you. There’s just some stuff we aren’t ever going to see eye-to-eye on. But no matter what, you’re my kid now, and you’re not going anywhere unless that’s what you really want.”

Slowly, uncertainly, he watched Matthew close his game and let it rest in his lap. He didn’t look up. “I want to be a good parent. I know I’m new at this, too, so I might fuck up a couple of times. I just want you to know that I’m ready to be your dad, and that means loving you no matter what.”

After another quiet, uncomfortable moment, a small voice piped up. “I’m not good at jokes, but yours aren’t funny.”

“It’s not a joke.” Axl replied. “I mean it.”

“It’s not funny!” It sounded more forceful the second time. His voice grew brittle. “You should send me back. Why won’t you send me back?”

“Why would I do that? You’re all set up in your room, and moving is a pain.” Axl tried to throw in a little friendly chuckle, but it didn't hide the unease in his voice. "Why would you think I would want to get rid of you?"

“I- I’m not-” His tone finally snapped, and his shoulders began to tremble. “I’m no good.”

He found himself hesitating for a moment, but Axl scooted closer, wrapping arms around his shoulders and giving his son a tight squeeze. “Nobody’s perfect. And I wouldn’t want you to be, anyway. I just want you to be you. Whatever that means.”

The two of them simply sat there for a while. This certainly hadn’t been in any of the advice books he’d read, but this was something Axl didn’t mind doing on his own. He just hoped he had expressed what he needed to.

He didn’t even think of letting go until he felt squirming against him. Matthew immediately picked up his game again and flipped it open. No acknowledgement at all. But...no, that was fine. He said he would accept him no matter what he was. If he didn’t like to talk about his feelings, then he didn’t need to force it.

“...help me with this turn.”

“Huh?” Curious, Axl shuffled closer to get a better look at his screen. “Wait, is this the one I got you?”

The boy nodded. “The mechanics are simplistic and the strategy elements are child’s play, but...I’ve had a lot of fun with it.” He tapped at something on his screen. “Alright. So right now my troops are stationed outside the dragon king’s fortress. How should they be organized when we open our assault?”

Well, he wasn’t much of a strategist, but he had no trouble giving it a go, anyway. “Uhh, definitely want to have some long-range stuff, right? So you can hit from a distance. Got anything for that?”

Another nod. “There’s a whole subclass for that, let me show you. There’s archers, a trebuchet, long-distance casters, and demolitionists. Each of them have a different set of stats and energy cost.”

“Why don’t you explain them to me a little more?”

“Sure. Archers have the best cost-to-efficiency ratio, but their projectiles are still on the weaker side. But if you take the trebuchet…”

It was a starting step, he realized, only a small one. But it was still something.

#AU-gust #writing #guilty gear #Axl Low #Bedman

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gegenji · 4 years

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Merchant (MER) as a FFXIV Job

A while back (almost a year and a half now, in fact) I wrote a dissertation on how one could implement Beastmaster as a tank job using concepts taken primarily from how Summoner was being handled at the time. Given how things have gone since that point with the Arcanist-based pet jobs, its base concept seems all the more possible... though it's just as likely to become a Limited Job like Blue Mage just to allow for the full actualization of taming something and using it as your companion. Still, it was a fun thing to do and I’ve been mulling over doing another.

This is the actualization of that, albeit a rather spur of the moment one. Like before, it’s - as the title implies - the idea of a "Merchant" combat class that is actually an attempt at providing that Chemist-like job folks have been wanting. Just with some inspiration from the Bravely Default job of the same name, and some other gil-based concepts like Zenniage.

As for how it came about? It all just sort of... clicked into place during a conversation, honestly. Hopefully it all makes sense, too!

Disclaimer: As with the BST theorycraft post, this whole idea is just speculation and ideas presented for fun and as a mental exercise. There's likely to be gaping holes in the concept that would need to be dealt with to be executed properly, and things like potency and cooldown timers won't be delved into at all. This is all theorycrafting and spitballing, after all. Don't expect much else to come out of it other than perhaps some smiles on the part of the reader.

And, also like the Beastmaster post, this will likely get unnecessarily in-depth and wordy (as is my wont). So it will be put under a Read More just like the last.

High Concept: Merchant as an "Item"-Based Healer Job

As mentioned above, one of the abilities I've seen people lamenting not being able to do in FFXIV is throw potions at people, a la the Chemist in Tactics (though the job is also in FFV in a much more broken capacity) or - honestly - like what you can do in any single-player RPG like the non-MMO Final Fantasies. Of course, I’ve always had the mental block on actually thinking too deeply on it because the Alchemist already exists as a Disciple of the Hand class. Why would they make a Chemist job that would just confuse people?

There were other issues as well, of course. Most folks also wanted this Chemist job to use a gun too - another design decision taken from Tactics, since Chemist was among the three jobs that could use one (the other being Mustadio’s titular Machinist - a Squire replacement - and Mediator). This, of course, would step on the toes of FFXIV’s own Machinist job without some sort of variation to set it apart..Using two smaller pistols at once, for example. But I wanted to avoid as much overlap as possible - giving the job its own kind of unique identity - and that meant a unique weapon as well.

Then there's the problem that if the character actually had to use items, then that would require this job to have to carry around materials much like how Hunters had to carry around arrows or a Rogue their poisons in WoW. It would attach a cost to playing the job that - while fitting for the flavour - would be detrimental to the player since they would have to spend more gil than any other job. So, of course, the obvious solution for this is to nix that for the sake of gameplay.

With all this ironed out, the overall concept became one of the idea of a healer that uses "items" as a method of healing and support, where said "items" are just cooldowns like anything else. Like what you'd see with some NPCs or use yourself when playing as them. Just with some fun little additions to add a bit of mercantile flair to the job as a whole, all of which I'll delve into here.

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General Information

Job Role: Healer Primary Stat: Mind Weapon: Bag

You read that right! Bags! These were actually a weapon in Final Fantasy Tactics. Normally only usable by female characters, they had a random damage range like axes. However, for someone who is using items to heal, it also seemed fitting that they use the very bag they carry everything in as a weapon in a pinch.

Job Gauge: Profit Gauge

The Profit Gauge is a meter to display how much "profit" the Merchant has gained during the course of combat. Profit is used to increase the efficacy many of the Merchant's moves, allowing for big bursts of healing or damage at the cost of the resource. It also has a section to indicate whether they are in a Nald or a Thal Market.

Limit Break: Defibrillation

Taking all the energy gathered from the fight and funneling it into an experimental device, the Merchant jolts downed allies to life and heals everyone up to full.

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Expendable Resource - "Profit"

(The name for this resource has gone through a few revisions. First was Currency or Wealth, and then started moving away to the more abstract Gratuity before ending up as Profit.)

All things are made from aether. People, plants, animals, the land itself. As such, this also extends to the various concoctions made by (and oftentimes out of) these things. However, such things are never a perfect one-to-one ratio. And there's always some degree of excess.

The Merchant skims this excess from the potions and tinctures they use, gathering each extra little bit of aether in the crystal focus clasp set in their Bag. From there, they can infuse it right back into the next item they use - giving an extra little kick to the healing or damage that it might do.

This allows a Merchant to suddenly bolster the power of their abilities, but each use eats into that Profit. If they spend too much of it or use it too frivolously, they might not have enough saved up for when they actually need it, considering...

Nald/Thal Market

On the side of the gauge, there is a circle that is usually empty. However, after hitting a certain level, this field activates to symbolize the Merchant’s ability to identify the ebb and flow of the aether that is coursing about the battlefield. This is represented by a symbol of Nald'thal with an up arrow, a down arrow or a line along with a timer. These, in order, identify a Nald, Thal, or Even Market.

During a Nald Market, there is extra aether to be had - leading to a boost in the amount of Profit gained from each action taken. Conversely, a Thal Market means a dearth of aether, resulting in less Profit being gained with each action. An Even Market means no change to the Profit gained at all, and is the default when out of combat.

Once combat begins, a timer appears for the Even Market, and then it cycles into a Nald or Thal Market. After that subsequent timer runs out, it can refresh as the same Market or switch to the opposite. It takes a wily Merchant to capitalize on a Nald Market, gaining and spending Profit freely. But they should also make sure to keep some left over should it become a Thal Market.

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Combat and Mechanics

As mentioned above, the main idea of this type of healer is a healer that can - in times of necessity - have a sudden spike of healing or damage by utilizing the Profit Gauge. It's not unlike how a Scholar can use their Aetherflow stacks for a sudden Lustrate or Indomitability. However, a Merchant can constantly gain their resource unlike a Scholar, and thus their healing is more deeply tied with having this resource on hand to be spent.

The gain of Profit, however, is not a constant thing thanks to the shifting of the Nald/Thal Market. As such, playing a Merchant is about using their abilities to seek to properly utilize and cultivate this flighty resource. There are, of course, some abilities to allow them to circumvent or even ignore their Profit Gauge, but these are mainly for emergencies.

The overall idea is to be utilizing your basic attacks and heals to generate Profit at all times. These are generally low potency, however, and will require usage of your gathered Profit in order to put out any meaningful numbers. So, just getting a full Profit Gauge and then sitting on it until you need a big heal is technically a viable strategy, actively utilizing your Profit and the abilities that manipulate it will maximize both the Merchant's damage and healing capabilities.

And, due to the ability to burst damage as well as healing, the Merchant would likely end up one of the more damaging Healer options. However, this comes at the cost of eating far more into its healing. The other healers would likely be preferable for their consistent healing and damage numbers over the peaks and valleys of a Merchant. However, a properly played one makes a perfectly serviceable healer.

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Actions & Traits

Much like the BST section of the same name, the items listed are not in level order and are instead grouped as I feel would work best. The overall goal to show the items in each part of the kit for an overall whole. Potency, cooldown timers, and Profit costs are not included either and will instead be given in vague terms. I'm sure concrete values could be figured out for these, but that is a bit beyond the scope of this theorycraft.

Attack Items

Dark Potion - Deals unaspected damage.

Poison Breath - Deals unaspected damage over time.

TNT - Deals unaspected damage to target and all enemies nearby it.

Zenniage - Deals unaspected damage, potency increases with Profit. Uses all Profit bar.

Support Items

Aqua Vitae - Restores target's HP.

Caligo Vitae - Restores own HP and HP of all nearby party members.

Savium Vitae - Resurrects target to a weakened state.

Iron Draft - Erects a magicked barrier which nullifies damage. Does not actually heal.

Samson Power - Increases damage dealt by a party member or self by 3%.

Goliath Tonic - Restores target’s HP, percentage matches Profit. Uses all Profit bar.

Market Abilities

Poor Quailty - Reduces the potency of the next Item used, but increases the amount of Profit gained off it.

Good Quality - Increases the potency of the next Item used by 50%, but uses a decent amount of Profit (~25-50).

Great Quality - Increases the potency of the next Item used by 100%, but uses a large amount of Profit (~50-100).

Speculate - Force a reroll of the Market, making it a Nald, Thal, or Even.

Ether Loan - Increase Profit Gauge by 30. Long cooldown.

Deep Pockets - Allows usage of Good Quality without Profit cost for 15s.

Traits

Pharmacology - Increases base action damage and restoration by 10%.

Pharmacology II - Increases base action damage and restoration by 30%.

Market Sense - Adds the Market indicator to your Profit Gauge.

Deeper Pockets - Changes Deep Pockets to Deeper Pockets, allowing usage of Great Quality without Profit cost for 15s.

Potions Mastery - Upgrades Dark Potion to Dark Hi-Potion and Poison Breath to Morbol Breath .

Potions Mastery II - Upgrades Dark Hi-Potion to Dark X-Potion and Morbol Breath to Dragon Breath .

Potions Mastery III - Upgrades Dark X-Potion to Dark Elixir and Dragon Breath to Dark Breath .

Mix Mastery - Upgrades Samson Power to Dragon Power, increasing the boost from 3% to 6%.

Long-Term Speculation - Allows accumulation of charges for Speculation. Maximum Charges: 2.

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Afterword

Things have changed a lot since the last theorycraft I did. A whole new expansion has changed up how the jobs are laid out, their traits, and added whole new aspects and angles to them I didn't know about before. I had thought to update my Beastmaster theorycraft to match that, but I also felt that it might be best left as it is as a testament to the idea wrought at the time I put it to paper.

So, instead, I decided a new job was needed instead. I had been musing on how a job like Mime would work in FFXIV, mostly focused around expanding on the concept of Aetherial Mimicry and the Aetheryte Earring from the Shadowbringers Special Edition. Something involving having a basic set of moves, and then some others that changed based on the target you mimicked. And then possibly the idea of its gear shifting stats to match whatever they're mimicking (an idea brought on by a debate about alternate roles for existing jobs).

But I didn't think I had enough of a concept put together for a full on theorycrafting diatribe like I had done for Beastmaster. And then, when talking to some friends about the aforementioned debate and musing on what jobs were left... what jobs people still wanted... and some abilities that had been used in Final Fantasy games but not yet in FFXIV. And this is what came out.

Of course, even as I started writing, things shifted around. The concept of the Profit Gauge solidified with some lore to go with it, along with the addition of the Nald/Thal Market idea (for good or for ill). I was originally musing over trying to include a Slots-style system like Setzer has that would randomly boost (or hinder) the Items used for the next 15 seconds or something... but that seemed a bit too random for a job that already had this amount of variance, and a healer at that.

... Though maybe it can be a third part of the gauge in the future. With a button to spin it for varying positive effects.

Still, all in all, it was a fun exercise. Even if it came crashing into existence much more quickly than the slow formulation that was my Beastmaster concept. Do you like it better? Worse? Have any ideas of your own? Want me to try taking a crack at Mime anyway? Let me know!

#ffxiv #theorycraft #merchant #wall of text

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crystalelemental · 2 years

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And now for the other half of Palentine's: Bea. She took Vanilluxe, killing the dreams of a PokeStar Studios event forever, but hey, maybe she's really good and is a compelling character in the narrative of this event? Haha...ahh, that hurt my heart.

General Overview Palentine's Bea is an odd unit. She's an ice-type supporter, something we definitely needed more of, with some...good but possibly mis-matched tools? Astonish and Icicle Spear are the main attacks, and frankly if you use Icicle Spear you're desperate for a last second KO. Astonish is far better. Double Potion MPR is magnificent, but her buff move is just +4 to both offenses, and gives one count of Physical Moves Up Next if it's Hailing. It's not the worst, but it doesn't buff crit, can't max any stats because 1MP and no reliable rekindle effect, and just isn't that impressive. Her passives are also awkward, giving Hail on entry, immunity to hail damage, and +30% defenses when it's hailing. Not inherently terrible, but auto-Hail on entry by default means limited team comps, while her other two passives were combined into a single passive with Ingo, freeing him up for a lot of other good stuff. Bea has to just make do. To cap off the tragedy, unlike Marnie, Bea is a hard requirement for 3/5, where she actually gets good tools like built-in Vigilance, double MPR on Potion, buffing both defenses by 1 per action in Hail, and the ability to set Hail on sync. Without 3/5 she loses effectively everything that makes her decent, so she's a high-investment unit that offers pretty middling tools.

That's not to say she isn't without merit. While auto-Hail damage sucks for her team, it's not necessarily a dealbreaker for a full match if you can heal up, and she does have the tools for it in double Potion MPR. Her buff isn't a cap, but it is fast for a lot of benefits, which has its merits. 30% bonus to defenses is also really strong when stacked with defensive buffs, so she's definitely a force in Hail comps. But her biggest selling point is Legendary Gauntlet. Immunity to defense drops on grid makes her a solid pick against a fight like Azelf or Entei, but the Hail on entry and sync means she's a solid check to Moltres as well. Moltres being the scariest fight in Gauntlet, I think there's something to be said for a Hail-setter that can re-apply the preferred weather consistently without MPR considerations.

Team 1: P!Bea, W!Leon, W!Nessa Galar units really are designed to just instantly work together, aren't they? Bea powers up these two like crazy, giving the Hail support and a fast offense buff. Between her Astonish and Nessa's Icicle Crash, flinch rate is really high, and Leon packing freeze is just a bonus. This is a great team for preventing any kind of foe's action, with some great offensive and defensive potential behind it.

Team 2: P!Bea, S!Steven, Lusamine The alternate Hail team. Summer Steven self-buffs crit to max in one move in Hail, and only needs one X Attack after Bea's buff. Lusamine can slowly self-buff crit, but appreciates the special attack buff Bea provides for Blizzard spam.

Team 3: P!Bea, Candice, BP Surge An F2P Hail comp. Candice deals solid sync nuke damage, P!Bea tanks pretty well in Hail. BP Surge is recommended just because it's guaranteed crit without MPR in two actions, and he can top off the attack stat after Bea to set Candice up perfectly on first sync. Also some paralysis support, so that may be useful in some Gauntlet fights.

Final Thoughts I um...I struggle. In a sense. To find really great teams for her. I feel like this is somewhat unfair, but her big supportive benefit is Potion. Her buff move isn't anything great, and her defensive buffs only apply to herself, making her not the best for a sustained match with allies who need defensive buffs. Her Hail on entry hurts allies not naturally immune, and her Hail on sync has the detriment of requiring the sync. In fact a huge issue is that I wanted to craft a specific anti-Moltres team with her, found out Moltres is weak to Rock, then realized most Rock-types are Sandstorm dependent, only to then further find out that the only Rock-types really good without Sandstorm are Classic Blue and Princess Hilda, who both mega evolve. Which...isn't great with Bea, because she needs sync for weather, but they need sync for damage. So even as a soft Moltres check, she's only a soft check, she's not a guaranteed win, and doesn't exactly facilitate much against it. She's just in this awkward place where the double Potion MPR isn't doing much for her. Leaf and Skyla have defensive team buffs that make the Potion use much more valuable, and Kiawe may not buff well but he does buff crit and pack a lot of unique tools to his attacks. P!Bea just feels like an awkward unit, tied to Hail and having just the wrong effects to really shine as a supportive partner.

#pokemon masters #unit teambuilding #palentines bea

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bae-leth · 5 years

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AU of The Other Dimitri AU Part 1 of 2

Me again! It’s funny, I know what I wanna do with the Ivan oneshot but planning it and then getting to writing it is being far more difficult than expected. Maybe because I’m dealing with a character who is an OC but also somewhat canon in the sense of taking canon Dimitri’s role? Anyways, I’ll get that fic out eventually, I’m actually having fun with the challenge of getting it to work. So I decided, in the meanwhile, to make some notes about the previous post I submitted regarding Ivan (the unit overview) and doing something fun as a bonus. Writing down Ivan as a unit if he existed in the canon game! An AU of an AU. Ah well, it’s fun and it helps me figure out his character. *NOTE*: As I was writing this thing, I realized this was getting ridiculously long for a submission, even from me. So this is gonna be part 1 of 2. I’ll get part 2 to you in a few days with the rest of the info, mostly related to timeskip stuff, battle quotes, paralogues, and RECRUITMENT (*gasp*). Part 2 is gonna have PLENTY of delicious angst! And I hope this part has gotten you interested in what happened to Ivan during the timeskip, especially with the few little hints I’ve dropped here and there. **WARNING**: There will be slight spoilers about the Blue Lions route. I will avoid as many major spoilers as possible or otherwise be vague where I can, but there is some stuff. Just wanted to give a head up! Anyways, I hope you too enjoy this! And, once again, sorry for submitting these absurdly long posts to your inbox.

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Notes

*The following notes are some fun facts regarding stuff I put down in the Unit Overview post*

Childhood Picture: It’s a portrait of Ivan, Dimitri, Felix, Ingrid, Sylvain, and Glenn. It shows them as they were about five years before the Tragedy of Duscur. In the first few months of the charade, when Ivan saw this picture he freaked out and tore the part that had him in it off, burning it in the fireplace. He carries the picture with him constantly. By the point in the timeskip where he starts to go as “Ivan” again, he regrets tearing the picture, especially since it’s the only picture he had that had all of them together. But perhaps the other members of their friendship group have other pictures?

Collection of Fairytales: Ivan loves fiction books, and fairytales are no exception. When the charade begins, Ivan is so focused on training his body and mind to become more and more like Dimitri that he doesn’t check out his books anymore. It isn’t until a couple years later that he sees this book. He smiles and starts to open it, only to see his real name on the inside cover. Ivan has a habit of writing his name on the inside cover of all his books. What followed was Ivan grabbing a quill and large bottle of ink and proceeding to furiously cross out his name from every single one of his books.

Jeweled Dagger: Considering it has the letter D on the hilt, you would think it was Dimitri’s dagger. And…technically you’re right. But Dimitri never got to see the dagger. Ivan wanted to give Dimitri a surprise present for their 14th birthday. So he secretly commissioned the dagger from a blacksmith, asking that it be delivered on Dimitri and Ivan’s birthday. The Tragedy of Duscur happened a short time later and Ivan forgot all about the dagger, between his trauma and having to train for the charade. That is, until a package arrived on his 14th birthday, addressed to “him”.

I actually forgot to put down Ivan’s favorite type of tea but then I remembered Dimitri’s favorite tea is chamomile. So I looked it up and chamomile tea is known to help with stress and anxiety, as well as act as a decent sleep aid. Perfectly fitting for Dimitri and just as fitting for Ivan. So yeah, Ivan’s favorite type of tea is chamomile!

Ivan very much did learn the edible weeds thing from Dimitri! The story is that when they were around eight and hanging out outside, Dimitri chomped on a dandelion with zero warning. When Ivan stared at him in horror, Dimitri proceeded to happily explain all about edible weeds. Ivan decided to just accept it and move on (screaming internally the whole time) …Though he did keep it in mind and has always been kind of curious…

Why is Ivan terrified of horses? When he was four, a particularly bad-tempered horse bit Ivan’s cloak and wouldn’t let go, tugging it and tossing poor tiny Ivan with every shake. Ivan may no longer remember the incident, but he’s been terrified of horses and Pegasi ever since.

Ivan’s Music: He has a habit of humming, especially when doing monotonous tasks or when he’s in an especially good mood. He practiced hard to stop doing it once he had to become Dimitri, but once he goes by Ivan again, he’s slowly bringing the habit back. He has a lovely singing voice, though he’s very out of practice since he hasn’t sung since he was 13. But it’s a strong voice and he has impressive range. A little practice and he’ll probably be as good as he was when he was younger. His instruments of choice are the piano and violin, once again having not touched either since he was 13. After he officially becomes king (particularly after the ceremony that names him king which was held three years after the war) he starts taking lessons again, though doesn’t have much time for it since he’s busy with so many other things. He only started composing his own music when he was 11. He starts making little compositions again during rare free time in the war. He still makes compositions after he becomes king but, once again, he’s so busy he really doesn’t have time to nurture his talent.

Sometimes he’s bitter towards Dimitri for how disinterested the guy was in music, which made Ivan give up so much to perfect the act. But Ivan also remembers Dimitri patiently and happily listening to him play and sing, always saying Ivan was a “god of music”. A silly exaggeration as far as Ivan was concerned, but he doesn’t think he would’ve kept up with music if it wasn’t for Dimitri’s wholehearted encouragement.

Ivan and Ingrid share so many favorite foods. This is largely because when Ingrid was the one who comforted Ivan, she would often share some food with him when she did so. So Ivan associates those foods with happy memories. Ivan’s interest in food with interesting textures is a thing that started a little before arriving at the academy. The reason of which I won’t say (is it a spoiler? I don’t know, better safe than sorry. It has to do with something mentioned at some point in Dimitri and Flayn’s supports if you’re curious, I don’t remember if it’s said elsewhere).

Ivan and Felix were the baby brothers of the friendship group. Even Ingrid treated him as a baby brother like she did with Felix, even though Ivan was older than her. Ivan and Felix had a strong bond due to being meek crybabies. Ivan also had a habit of often hiding behind Sylvain when something spooked him. Of course, Felix often had the same idea, leading to the pair sometimes competing to cower behind Sylvain, while Sylvain laughed at them the whole time, while also doting on them.

So yeah, Ivan did forget his real name over the five-year timeskip. Between all the trauma he faced and the visions of the dead, he could only recognize himself as “Dimitri”, even though he saw hallucinations of the real Dimitri often. He doesn’t remember his own name until Byleth says it to him after Byleth learns that “Dimitri” was really Ivan this whole time.

I saw an anon noticed my stat joke about Ivan’s high Luck compared to Dimitri. One of my favorite things is when Fire Emblem games do something with a character’s stats or classing options (something other than personal skills) that reflect on some story element. Like having a character who is stated in story to be super lucky have naturally high Luck. Or that thing in Awakening with Kellam’s whole shtick of being practically invisible, so he can be reclassed into the Thief class. So yeah I purposefully lowered several of his stats and growths and just cranked up that Luck to match his backstory. Also, I’m pleasantly surprised an anon noticed that Ivan having higher Mag and E+ in Faith implies he was meant to be a healer. Because yes, that’s true! The idea is that if Dimitri hadn’t died, Ivan was gonna be on the path to be a healer/mage character. But because he had to become Dimitri, that greatly stunted his growth and shifted the rest of it to match more with Dimitri’s stats and growth.

Those are the big notes I thought of. Now, let’s get into the AU of this AU, involving what if Ivan was a character alongside Dimitri! Just a thing I made for fun, and like I said before it helps get those creative juices flowing!

AU of The Other Dimitri AU – Ivan Alexis Blaiddyd Unit Overview

Backstory

An overview of the backstory, at least where it differs from how Ivan is in the main AU. Ivan is still Dimitri’s younger identical twin brother, still has the minor Crest of Blaiddyd too. One difference is that while in the main AU Ivan is the one who interacted with the girl with the dagger, in this AU it’s Dimitri who did so, just like canon. The idea being that both of them met her and Ivan tried his best, but she and Dimitri hit it off while Ivan couldn’t get far, so he stopped coming along to visit her. He’s bitter about the idea of once again being passed up for his brother but he’s also jealous of having his brother stolen away from him for that time Dimitri and the girl knew each other. The other big difference is that Ivan didn’t go with his family on the day of the Tragedy of Duscur. Ivan was a sickly child growing up, and he hadn’t been feeling well during the week of the trip. Therefore, Lambert had him stay behind out of concern his condition would get worse during the long trip. Ivan was heartbroken at being left behind (and while he understood why, there was still a twinge of terror deep in his heart over not being good enough, being a burden). The Tragedy of Duscur goes down, Dimitri comes back as the only survivor. Things on Dimitri’s end go down basically the same as canon: meeting with Dedue, his trauma, the falling out with Felix, etc. On Ivan’s end, things end up changing quite a bit. Since Dimitri’s alive, there’s no act, so Ivan’s skills grow as they were intended, being more magic and healing based. Although he ends up picking up the lance too, because sparring was sometimes the only way to get his brother out of his room during those first few months following the tragedy. Ivan finds himself puzzled by his own emotions, particularly how he isn’t devastated to the same extent Dimitri is. Of course he’s in pain and mourning the loss of his father, stepmother, and Glenn. And he’s horrified by the deaths of all the knights, by the deaths of the people of Duscur (he remembers the furious tears streaming down Dimitri’s face as he told him the people of Duscur were innocent). But unlike Dimitri, who’s half dead and only making it to the next day thanks to Ivan, Dedue, and Rodrigue, Ivan still moves about. Eats just fine (Dimitri acts weird towards food now), doesn’t cry the night away (Dimitri sometimes slips into his room or Dedue’s and just sobs as he clings on desperately). Probably the one thing Ivan has in common with Dimitri in grief is the onslaught of nightmares (Dimitri never says what his are about, but Ivan’s are visions of his loved ones and so many faceless others covered in blood and gore, cursing him for his dumb luck that kept him away from the horrors of that day). And maybe that is what’s wrong, that he wasn’t there and didn’t see any of it. But…he doesn’t know. He’s so confused. And he hears the whispers from nosy nobles who know nothing, thinking he doesn’t care about the deaths. Ah well, he supposes he’s used to being the subject of mockery and rumors, as the worthless second-born, never as good as his brother. Never good enough for anyone…His relationship with Sylvain and Ingrid remains close over the years. However, he too ends up coming into conflict with Felix, although nowhere near what happened between Felix and Dimitri. Felix’s issue with Ivan, much like with Dimitri, stems from the rebellion when they’re 15. Except Ivan wasn’t part of the assault against the rebels (“Let me go too, Brother!” he had yelled while Dimitri refused and even ordered guards to make sure he didn’t come. As if years separated the pair instead of mere minutes). When Felix had told him what Dimitri had done, yes, Ivan had been thrown off by it, even horrified of the image of the warm and loving brother he knew being such a beast (“But the rebels were a threat to innocent people. Dimitri did what he had to, in order to protect others.” “You wouldn’t say that if you saw him, Ivan!”) Naïve and black and white in his view of “right”, almost disturbingly so, that’s what Felix had spat at him before storming off. But perhaps because Ivan wasn’t part of the battle, perhaps because Ivan’s fear of fighting and the way he shakes at the idea of it is so genuine, Felix doesn’t sever their friendship like he does with Dimitri. But Ivan can see they’re no longer “two peas in a pod”, that with Felix’s changing feelings towards the concept of “chivalry”, things can’t be as they once were. And maybe Dimitri is somewhat bitter about Ivan being able to maintain those bonds that he himself can’t find a way to. Another big shift shows up that adds more fuel to the fire of Ivan’s jealousy and bitterness towards Dimitri. The way his uncle, the court advisors, and noble after noble feel the need to tell him to help his brother, to look out for him and support him. The comments alone aren’t an issue, it’s what Ivan was doing anyways, because his brother is his idol and best friend. He loves him, truly. But the way they keep talking gives off warning signs. Before the tragedy he was shoved to the side and considered an afterthought, not worth a second glance and having nothing of value compared to the golden heir and crown prince. But now, with the way they’re telling him to support his brother and stay with him, it becomes more and more clear that they’re telling him to live only for his brother. Live for him, die for him. Ivan’s life is no longer his own, his dreams and wishes are no longer his own. He exists only for Dimitri now. He’s not good enough to actually help or provide any meaningful assistance, such as in battles or in politics, he’s only the spare after all, a weak and timid crybaby. But he still must do everything and anything for Dimitri (“You’re brothers, of course you would do anything for him, right? Anything at all?” “…Yes…” As if he can say no to them. As if he can convince himself he’d ever say no). Because it would be a tragedy to lose the crown prince, but not nearly as much if it was the second son. It’s suffocating. This varies from the main AU, where Ivan is still very jealous and bitter, but Dimitri’s death makes Ivan glorify him. His love towards his brother is very real there, but he goes overboard, which is a major factor behind his issues figuring out who he really is and how he truly feels once he goes by Ivan again in the main AU.

Character Description

The second prince of the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus, and Dimitri’s twin. He is a timid and gentle young man who claims he’s not made for battle. And yet there may be something far more complicated to his nature, especially his feelings towards his brother.

Preferences

Likes: Writing and performing music, live musical performances, fiction books, board games, sparring, well-deserved appreciation, spending time with Dimitri

Dislikes: Himself, battles, darkness, horses and Pegasi, scorching heat, people who talk behind others’ backs

Stats and Growths

Base Stats - HP: 24 Strength: 7 Magic: 10 Dexterity: 6 Speed: 7 Luck: 8 Defense: 5 Resistance: 5 Charm: 8

Max Stats - HP: 65 Strength: 56 Magic: 71 Dexterity: 65 Speed: 69 Luck: 67 Defense: 42 Resistance: 44 Charm: 73

Stat Growths - HP: 35% Strength: 40% Magic: 50% Dexterity: 45% Speed: 45% Luck: 50% Defense: 30% Resistance: 30% Charm: 45%

Skills and Proficiencies

Skill Levels – Sword: E Lance: E+ Axe: E Bow: E Brawl: E Reason: D Faith: D Authority: E Heavy Armor: E Riding: E Flying: E

Strengths: Reason, Faith

Weaknesses: Axe, Brawl, Heavy Armor, Riding

Budding Talent: Lance

Faith Magic Learned: Heal, Recover, Physic, Nosferatu, Aura

Reason Magic Learned: Blizzard, Thoron, Sagittae, Meteor

Starting Skills/Inventory

Starting Class: Noble

Personal Skill – Second-born’s Struggle: If unit’s HP drops below 50%, grants unit +20 to Hit Rate, +10 to Critical Rate, and +5 to Damage dealt.

Crest – Minor Crest of Blaiddyd: The Faerghus royal family’s Crest, inherited from Blaiddyd of the 10 Elites. Occasionally doubles Attack and weapon uses for combat arts.

Other Skills: Lance Prowess Level 1, Reason Prowess Level 1, Faith Prowess Level 1

Magic: Blizzard, Heal

Combat Arts: None

Starting Equipment: Training Lance, Vulnerary

Academy Appearance

Ivan and Dimitri are identical twins, so physically there’s not much difference between him and Dimitri. The only real difference would be that Ivan’s hair is subtly softer looking and messier, a few more bangs, a couple strands out of place, that sort of thing. Their differences come more from non-physical things, like how Ivan’s voice is softer, or how he holds himself differently, always fiddling with his clothes or having a hard time keeping eye contact, shy and introverted. As far as clothes go, Ivan wears the standard male Academy uniform, the only personal touches he wears being white gloves and a blue cape that wraps across the front of the shoulders and clasps on his left shoulder with a golden fastener that looks like the lion representing the Blue Lions (and Faerghus as a whole).

Relationship with Blue Lions at Academy

Dimitri: Dimitri is rather doting and protective of his brother, which Ivan is sometimes annoyed by since he’s only a few minutes younger than Dimitri. They have a close relationship, although there are several obvious signs that they are at odds with each other, especially considering Ivan’s darker feelings of jealousy and bitterness competing with his genuine love for his brother.

Dedue: While Dedue’s devotion is for Dimitri, he and Ivan have a comfortable relationship. Ivan sometimes sits in the garden with him, Dedue taking care of the plants while Ivan reads or composes.

Felix: Felix finds Ivan’s rather cold, black and white view towards justice aggravating but doesn’t always push him away like he does with Dimitri. Ivan is the one who puts more effort into trying to spend time with him though.

Sylvain: Sylvain enjoys teasing Ivan considering how timid he is and how he still has a habit of hiding behind Sylvain when spooked. But they have a fun and easygoing relationship. And they like talking about music.

Ingrid: They have many favorite foods in common thanks to how Ingrid comforted him all the time when they were young. Ivan gets frustrated with how Ingrid sometimes still treats him like a child who needs to be protected.

Mercedes: Ivan has a friendly rivalry with her, since she’s a fellow healer and mage. He often goes to her for advice and lessons to improve his own techniques. He closest to her after his brother and friends. Dimitri likes to joke that Mercedes is trying to steal his brother for herself. Ivan sometimes notices a brief odd look on Mercedes’ face when Dimitri says that though.

Annette: Since they both love music and have skills with magic, they get along well. But Annette is often embarrassed singing or writing songs in front of Ivan since she finds him far more skilled, while Ivan enjoys her work and wants to work with her if she’d let him.

Ashe: Bookworm babies! They have a little book club (made of the two of them) where they love exchanging notes on books they read. Ashe also enjoys getting to know Ivan since he’s been curious about Ivan ever since hearing all the rumors and jokes about “the pathetic second prince” growing up.

First Meeting with Ivan

“A-are you the one who helped Dimitri? I can’t thank you enough! O-oh, is my appearance throwing you off? I’m Dimitri’s twin, Ivan Alexis Blaiddyd. Although, other than my face, I’m not much like him…”

First Kill

“Stop shaking! I had to do it! …Yes, I had to. It’s what they deserve for all they’ve done.”

Cooking (Pre-Timeskip)

“I apologize in advance, Professor. Cooking was never my strong suit.”

“This isn’t going as badly as I’d feared…Wait, did I just curse us? Oh no.”

Cooking (Post-Timeskip)

“I’m still terrible at cooking, Professor. I’m sorry about that…”

“Okay, this isn’t too bad. Oh, I better stop speaking before I curse us.”

Choir Practice

(Pre-Timeskip) “I’ve loved music since I was a child. But I…I still don’t have the courage to perform in front of a lot of people…This should be good practice for that, right?”

(Post-Timeskip) “No matter how harsh this war gets, no matter how much it tries to break me, I won’t abandon my music. It’s something that’s mine. No one will steal it from me.”

Counselor Note

“I’ve been hearing people say some cruel things about me when they think I’m not around. I’m used to such comments, but it still affects me. And I don’t have the courage to say anything. What should I do?”

(Bad Answer): You should grow a spine and confront them!

(Bad Answer): If you point them out, I can say something to them on your behalf.

(Good Answer): Talk to someone you trust. They can give you the support you need to make a decision.

Lost Item

Items

Collection of Fairytales (A thick book of many tales of fantasy and adventure. Something is written on the inside of the front cover, but the writing is smudged. Probably belongs to someone who loves stories.)

Book of Scores (A book filled with pages upon pages of musical compositions. Each sheet is covered in detailed notes. Probably belongs to someone who loves music.)

Childhood Picture (A portrait, worn with age, of a group of smiling children. Some of the children look familiar. Probably belongs to someone with several friends.)

(If item belongs to him): “Thank you! I…I don’t know what I would’ve done if I’d lost this.”

(If item doesn’t belong to him): “I’m sorry, Professor, you have the wrong person…”

Gift

Liked Gifts: Forget-me-nots, Book of Sheet Music, Board Game, Ceremonial Sword, Legends of Chivalry

Disliked Gifts: Training Weight, Riding Boots, Hunting Dagger

(Received gift he likes): “For me? Truly? I don’t know what to say…”

(Received gift that’s neutral): “I’m glad that you’re thinking of me.”

(Received gift he dislikes): “Umm…Thank you…? Please don’t give me that look, Professor.”

Tea Party (Pre-Timeskip)

Greeting: “Thank you for the invitation.”

Liked Topics: Tell me about yourself, You seem well, Evaluating allies, The ideal Professor, Working together, Thanks for everything…, Favorite sweets, Shareable snacks, The library’s collection, Our first meeting…, Children at the market, Fodlan’s future, Books you’ve read recently, A word of advice, Someone you look up to…, A place you’d like to visit…, Overcoming weaknesses, The view from the bridge, Cats…, I’m counting on you, Past laughs, The Opera…

Disliked Topics: Reliable allies, Being the perfect knight, You seem different…, Dining partners…, Hopes for your future, Things you find romantic, Food for life, Capable comrades, The existence of Crests, Classes you might enjoy, School uniforms, You’re doing great work, Close calls, Mighty weapons, Sturdy weapons, School days, Cooking mishaps, Equipment upkeep, Monastery rules, The last battle…, A new Gambit…, Working hours for guards

Comments

“Umm, I’m sorry if I’m a boring conversationalist. I was never a social person growing up.”

“I thought you accidentally invited me instead of my brother. It wouldn’t be the first time-Oh! I-I shouldn’t have said that.”

“Thank you for all the support you’ve given me. It means more to me than you realize.”

“I…I’ve been composing some songs recently. But no matter how hard I try, I’m not satisfied with them. But I suppose if it was easy then everyone would become musicians.”

“I’ve always hated battles, but I knew I would have to face them eventually. So I chose to study healing. I wanted, at the very least, to make sure I could keep the people I hold dear safe.”

Extended Time Comments

“This is for me? You’re too kind.”

“Umm, are you trying to spot differences between my face and Dimitri’s? There really isn’t much. Trust me, I’ve looked.”

“My hands shake after battles. I don’t know if they’ll ever stop…”

“Sorry, if I’m being too quiet for you, Professor. I’m not really used to all this.”

End of Tea Party: “Thank you, I had a great time! …Could we do this again?”

Tea Party (Post-Timeskip)

Greeting: “I’m sorry for the wait.”

Comments

“I think I’ve gotten a little better at conversation over the past five years. At least, I hope I have…”

“I appreciate you, Professor. I apologize if that sounds too blunt, but I wanted you to know how grateful I am for all you’ve done.”

“I still compose sometimes, during the few lulls between battles. Some soldiers once asked me to compose some songs for battles, but I refused. I can never do that…”

“People call me childish for still cherishing my books of adventures and wonder. But why is it wrong to hold them dear? Is it really a sin to want to escape from all of this, for just a moment?”

“I often dream of when I was younger. Before this war, before the Tragedy of Duscur. I…I wish life could be so simple again. I’m sorry, please ignore me…”

Extended Time Comments

“A gift? You’re truly a kind one, aren’t you?”

“My hands still shake after all these years. Is that a sign of weakness? Or a blessing that I’m not desensitized to killing…”

“My scar? Please, don’t worry. It aches when it’s particularly cold, but otherwise it doesn’t hurt me anymore.”

“Thank you, Professor, for all the faith you’ve shown in me. I’ll work hard so that I won’t let you down.”

End of Tea Party: “Thank you for inviting me. Peaceful moments like this are a blessing amidst all this chaos.”

Dining Hall (Pre-Timeskip)

Favorite Food: Shares many favorites with Ingrid, so if a food is her favorite it will most likely be his as well. Also loves sweets.

“This smells delicious! I can’t wait!”

“Oh, m-my favorite. Professor, thank you so much!”

With Dimitri (Before the fight in their support)

Ivan: “What do you think, Dimitri? This dish makes you feel good, doesn’t it?”

Dimitri: “Yes, I agree. It feels comforting, odd as that may sound.”

Ivan: “You better have seconds, then!”

With Dimitri (After the fight in their support)

Dimitri: “What do you think of the food, Ivan?”

Ivan: “It’s good.”

Dimitri: “Oh, that’s good…I’m glad…”

With Felix

Felix: “Why do I have to eat with you?”

Ivan: “Felix, don’t act like such a stranger! We always did so much together as children. Eating, playing, crying-”

Felix: “You better stop while you’re ahead.”

With Ingrid

Ivan: “Look, Ingrid, it’s another one of our favorites!”

Ingrid: “I know! I don’t think I ever realized how many favorite dishes we shared.”

Ivan: “And whose fault is that?”

With Sylvain

Sylvain: “Good food, good atmosphere. Now if only it was a lovely lady by my side.”

Ivan: “Am…Am I bad company, Sylvain?”

Sylvain: “What? Oh, no, no! I was just kidding, Ivan, I swear!”

With Mercedes

Mercedes: “Oh, Ivan, did the advice I give you before work out?”

Ivan: “Yes, thank you, Mercedes! I hope my healing will be more effective now. And I apologize for the trouble.”

Mercedes: “No trouble at all! I’m happy to see you grow! We’ll be quite the healing duo, won’t we?”

Dining Hall (Post-Timeskip)

“It smells so good. I’m more than ready for this.”

“…Did you pick my favorite on purpose, Professor? If so, thank you.”

With Dimitri

Ivan: “…I…I’ve missed eating with you, Brother.”

Dimitri: “…I’ve missed it too. Let’s try to eat together more, alright?”

Ivan: “Yes! We have several years to make up for, after all!”

With Felix

Felix: “Do you really have to sit with me so much during meals?”

Ivan: “If you hate it so much, why don’t you find another spot?”

Felix: “Hmph. Cheeky fool…”

With Ingrid

Ingrid: “I’m glad we can share meals together again, Ivan. I’ve missed it more than you realize!”

Ivan: “I’ve missed it too. Who else is going to be meal buddies with me?”

Ingrid: “Umm, please tell that’s not what you’re going to call us…”

With Sylvain

Ivan: “Sylvain? You’ve been staring for a while. You’re going to make me blush if you keep this up.”

Sylvain: “Will I? Ooh, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you go red! …Seriously though, don’t mind me. It’s just…been a while, Ivan.”

Ivan: “…I’ve missed eating with you too, Sylvain.”

With Mercedes

Mercedes: “It’s so lively eating with everyone else again, isn’t it, Ivan?”

Ivan: “I agree. Lots of noise and laughing. And I’ve missed discussing healing techniques with you, Mercedes.”

Mercedes: “Oh, I’ve missed that too! Let’s exchange notes after this, alright?”

Instruction (Pre-Timeskip)

Bad: “Ahh, I…I’m sorry…”

Good: “That wasn’t so bad.”

Great: “I understand…Let me review it once more.”

Perfect: “It’s all coming to me!”

(Praise): “Y-You’re too kind to me.”

(Console): “Th-thank you for your concern.”

(Scold): “…I’m sorry…”

Instruction (Post-Timeskip)

Bad: “I’m sorry about that…”

Good: “Alright, I’m doing better.”

Great: “I starting to understand. Let me review it.”

Perfect: “I get it now!”

(Praise): “Oh, umm, th-thank you.”

(Console): “Heh, come now, I’m no longer a child.”

(Scold): “…Sorry.”

Certification Exam

Pass: “Will I be of more use to everyone now?”

Fail (Pre-Timeskip): “Even after all that studying? I, ah…I’m sorry…”

Fail (Post-Timeskip): “Some things never change, I suppose…”

Class Mastery

“I’ll put this strength to good use. I promise.”

Group Tasks (Pre-Timeskip)

“I-I’ll do my best!”

(Perfect) “We did great, Professor! Ah, I mean, I didn’t mean to sound so shocked about that!”

(Good) “We finished the task. Though I fear I may have dragged us down…”

Weeding

With Dimitri (Before the fight in their support)

Ivan: “Umm, Brother? You…You were joking when you once told me about those edible weeds, right?”

Dimitri: “What? No, of course not! Here, come with me, I’ll point them out to you!

Ivan: “Dimitri…”

With Dimitri (After the fight in their support)

Dimitri: “There sure are a lot of weeds, aren’t there?”

Ivan: “Uh-huh.”

Dimitri: “…Ivan…”

With Felix

Ivan: “Hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm~”

Felix: “How are you enjoying this?”

Ivan: “I’m not. I’m distracting myself.”

With Ingrid

Ingrid: “Ivan, I don’t mean to push, but could you hum for us? This task is dreadfully boring.”

Ivan: “You read my mind, Ingrid! One song, coming up.”

Ingrid: “Thank you!”

With Sylvain

Sylvain: “Ugh, weeding. I can think of at least a dozen things I’d rather do than weeding.”

Ivan: “Keep at it, Sylvain. So long as you concentrate, we’ll be done soon enough.”

Sylvain: “I know, I know…”

With Mercedes

Ivan: “Say, Mercedes. I have a question about the weeds around here.”

Mercedes: “Do you? Well, I’ll do my best to answer, if I can! What is it?”

Ivan: “Are they…? Actually, never mind. I think I would prefer to live in blissful ignorance.”

Stable Duty

With Dimitri (Before the fight in their support)

Dimitri: “Are you okay, Ivan? You can stay over there if you want, I can take care of this.”

Ivan: “No, I appreciate the thought. But…I must be brave. I must!”

Dimitri: “So long as you don’t push yourself.”

With Dimitri (After the fight in their support)

Dimitri: “Ivan. Are you-?”

Ivan: “I’m fine, Dimitri.”

Dimitri: “The way you’re shaking says otherwise.”

With Felix

Felix: “You’re still afraid of horses? After all this time?”

Ivan: “I-I’m working on getting over it, I swear!”

Felix: “You’ve been saying that for years…”

With Ingrid

Ingrid: “When we were younger, whenever I asked if you wanted to help me take care of my horse, you’d freeze in place. What made you so scared of them in the first place?”

Ivan: “Honestly, it’s been so long, I can’t remember anymore.”

Ingrid: “Hmm, how sad…Horses aren’t as bad as you think, you know.”

With Sylvain

Sylvain: “Alright, Ivan, my back is ready and here for you to hide behind!”

Ivan: “Sylvain…”

Sylvain: “Haha, sorry! But seriously, if you need a break, I’m right here, okay?”

With Mercedes

Mercedes: “Are you alright? You’ve been trembling for a while now.”

Ivan: “It’s pathetic…No matter how hard I try, I can never feel at ease around horses.”

Mercedes: “Oh my, I see. But please, don’t call yourself pathetic! We all have our fears.”

Sky Watch

With Dimitri (Before the fight in their support)

Ivan: “Brother…”

Dimitri: “Deep breaths, Ivan. The Pegasi at the monastery are tame and gentle, they won’t hurt you.”

Ivan: “My head knows that, but my heart doesn’t agree.”

With Dimitri (After the fight in their support)

Dimitri: “Ivan?”

Ivan: “I don’t want to talk right now.”

Dimitri: “I-I see.”

With Felix

Felix: “How long do you plan on staring at the ground? You have to keep your eyes ahead if you want to keep watch.”

Ivan: “Please don’t take this the wrong way, Felix, but can we not speak right now?”

Felix: “You’re ridiculous…”

With Ingrid

Ingrid: “You’ve been looking pale since we set off. Are you really that bad with Pegasi too?”

Ivan: “I know it’s pathetic, you don’t have to say anything.”

Ingrid: “Oh, I didn’t mean to imply that.”

With Sylvain

Sylvain: “Hmm, I guess I can see why Pegasi freak you out as much as horses do. I mean, Pegasi are basically horses with wings.”

Ivan: “Sylvain, please…”

Sylvain: “Hey, no need to glare like that! I’m shutting up now.”

With Mercedes

Ivan: “Hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm~”

Mercedes: “Ivan, are you okay? Your humming sounds rather distressed.”

Ivan: “I’m okay! I swear, I’m okay!”

Perfect Result

With Dimitri (Before the fight in their support)

Dimitri: “We did well! Great work today, Ivan.”

Ivan: “Please, the credit should be all yours.”

With Dimitri (After the fight in their support)

Dimitri: “We did a great job together, didn’t we?”

Ivan: “…We did well, I suppose.”

With Felix

Felix: “Well, I guess that wasn’t so bad.”

Ivan: “You worked especially hard, Felix!”

With Ingrid

Ingrid: “The job’s done, Professor! You did a good job, Ivan.”

Ivan: “Not as good a job as you did, Ingrid.”

With Sylvain

Sylvain: “A perfect job! C’mon, Ivan, where’s my praise?

Ivan: “Yes, yes, you did a good job, my friend.”

With Mercedes

Mercedes: “It was a lot of hard work, but we’re done now!”

Ivan: “Thanks for all your help, Mercedes!”

Good Result

With Dimitri (Before the fight in their support)

Dimitri: “My, that was hard work. Are you alright, Ivan?”

Ivan: “I’m fine. Sorry if I was going too slow.”

With Dimitri (After the fight in their support)

Ivan: “The job’s done, Professor.”

Dimitri: “Yes, we…we worked hard.”

With Felix

Ivan: “That was a lot of work. I’m sorry if I dragged us down, Felix.”

Felix: “Always looking to blame yourself for something, aren’t you?”

With Ingrid

Ivan: “Thank you for all your help, Ingrid.”

Ingrid: “My thanks to you as well, Ivan!”

With Sylvain

Sylvain: “Finally! I thought we’d never be done!”

Ivan: “I hope it wasn’t my fault we took so long…”

With Mercedes

Mercedes: “I’m exhausted, but we did well, didn’t we, Ivan?”

Ivan: “I agree. Thank you, Mercedes.”

Group Tasks (Post-Timeskip)

“My, this brings back memories, doesn’t it?”

(Perfect) “I hope we met your expectations, Professor!”

(Good) “I hope we didn’t cause extra work for someone else.”

Clearing Rubble

With Dimitri

Dimitri: “There’s so much rubble around here. Forgive me for letting all of you deal with it by yourselves for so long.”

Ivan: “It’s alright, Brother…Just make sure to pull your weight from now on, alright?”

Dimitri: “I promise, I will.”

With Felix

Ivan: “Hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm~”

Felix: “…Never thought I’d actually miss that.”

Ivan: “Huh? What did you say, Felix?”

With Ingrid

Ingrid: “So much rubble! It truly is a disaster.”

Ivan: “Hmm, hmm, hmm~”

Ingrid: “…Heh, well, at least one of us seems to be having fun.”

With Sylvain

Sylvain: “Good grief, every time we clear this area it’s like someone dumps another load of rubble just to spite us!”

Ivan: “The monastery did take a lot of damage over these past five years. Let’s work hard, okay?”

Sylvain: “I know…”

With Mercedes

Ivan: “Are you doing alright, Mercedes? If you need to take a break, feel free.”

Mercedes: “No, don’t mind me! It’s hard work but I’ve been training a lot these past five years!”

Ivan: “Haha, I see!”

Stable Duty

With Dimitri

Ivan: “…It’s not by much, but I think I’ve gotten a little more used to horses.”

Dimitri: “That’s wonderful, Ivan! You’ve grown so much while I wasn’t around. I’m proud of you.”

Ivan: “Th-that’s a little too much, don’t you think?”

With Felix

Felix: “Well, looks who’s not shaking like a newborn fawn.”

Ivan: “I’ve grown since you last saw me, Felix! I-Ah! S-stay away!”

Felix: “Hah…Well, at least he isn’t running away.”

With Ingrid

Ingrid: “I’m glad to see you’re a little calmer around horses now.”

Ivan: “Well, I can’t be a cowardly child forever, can I?”

Ingrid: “…You’ve worked hard, haven’t you?”

With Sylvain

Ivan: “I must tell you, Sylvain, you won’t see me cowering behind you anymore! I’ve gotten a little more used to horses now, so I-Ahh!”

Sylvain: “You sure you don’t wanna cower behind me?”

Ivan: “…P-please don’t tell anyone.”

With Mercedes

Mercedes: “Aww, these horses are rather sweet, aren’t they, Ivan?”

Ivan: “…Yes, I-I suppose they’re not so bad.”

Mercedes: “So long as you’re patient and gentle, I’m sure the day will come when they won’t scare you anymore.”

Sky Watch

With Dimitri

Ivan: “Hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm~ Dimitri, you’ve been quiet for a while. Are you surprised to hear me humming?”

Dimitri: “I admit, seeing you at ease enough to hum atop a Pegasus is surprising. But…I was just focused on your voice. I’ve missed your music…”

Ivan: “…Then, what’s your request? I’ll perform for you later, like when we were children.”

With Felix

Felix: “You’ve finally calmed down around Pegasi, have you?”

Ivan: “Well, yes and no. I still feel terrible around them, but I’ve gotten better at pushing through regardless of my fear.”

Felix: “Hmm…Not bad, I guess.”

With Ingrid

Ivan: “Ingrid, what is it about Pegasi that make you like them so much?”

Ingrid: “Well, I’ve always adored horses, so I suppose loving Pegasi was just natural. I adore the feeling of flying beneath the blue skies, the wind whipping past. It’s exhilarating!”

Ivan: “I see…I guess that does sound interesting.”

With Sylvain

Sylvain: “Hey, Ivan, how’re you doing over there? Don’t panic now.”

Ivan: “Hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm~”

Sylvain: “Heh, he’s in his own little world.”

With Mercedes

Mercedes: “Hmm, hmm, hmm~”

Ivan: “Your humming sounds nice, Mercedes.”

Mercedes: “Why, thank you! I can see why you enjoy humming so much. It’s so relaxing!”

Perfect Result

With Dimitri

Ivan: “Well done, Dimitri! We never would’ve finished as fast as we did without you.”

Dimitri: “You’re the one who deserves most of the credit, Ivan.”

With Felix

Felix: “I suppose there are worse partner to work beside.”

Ivan: “Why, that just may be the nicest thing you’ve said to me since we reunited.”

With Ingrid

Ingrid: “We managed to take care of everything. Thank you for all the help, Ivan!”

Ivan: “I’m glad to have been of service. Thank you as well, Ingrid!”

With Sylvain

Sylvain: “Whew! All in a day’s work, huh, Ivan?”

Ivan: “You worked hard, Sylvain. Good job.”

With Mercedes

Mercedes: “We did well today! It’s all thanks to you, Ivan!”

Ivan: “Oh please, you’re the one who deserves the praise, Mercedes.”

Good Result

With Dimitri

Ivan: “Alright, the job’s done. I didn’t hold you back, did I?”

Dimitri: “You could never hold me back.”

With Felix

Ivan: “Good work today, Felix! We had fun, didn’t we?”

Felix: “Are you honestly saying that with a straight face?”

With Ingrid

Ingrid: “That was exhausting, but we finished up, Professor.”

Ivan: “Thanks for all the help, Ingrid!”

With Sylvain

Sylvain: “We’re done! Man, that was such a pain!”

Ivan: “Was it really that bad? I thought we were doing well.”

With Mercedes

Ivan: “We’ve finished the job, Professor. I’m sorry it took so long.”

Mercedes: “My, I’m exhausted! I’m glad you were there to help out, Ivan.”

#submission #willow #other dimitri au #bae's tags: I LOVE THIS AND I NEED TO REREAD IT!!#i NEED to know what went down in ivan and dima's support..... a fight?? wHAT FIGHT... what fight that went off and changed their groupwork #quotes....#ALSO i love love ivan's relationship with mercie!!#actually i love this au of the original au in the first place #you know what breaks my heart the most in the og au?#the DAGGER #god #imagining ivan getting it for dima and then just getting it delivered to himself is heartbreaking #sylvain and ivan's relationship in the au au is so cute too.... ivan doesnt want to hide behind him but...#i cant wait for part 2 angst!!!!#bc i need to see what happens to the boy in the timeskip!!!#also a 50% mag growth... whew

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thesevenseraphs · 5 years

Text

Director’s Cut: Part II

Hey everyone,

This is Director’s Cut – Part II, a now mega-long update looking at the last six months of Destiny 2 and looking ahead to Shadowkeep, and maybe a bit beyond. If you missed Part I and have an afternoon to yourself, go check it out.

As the first section grew in length, I figured this section would be the last one. But at some point Avengers wasn’t going to be split into Infinity War and Endgame, either. So there will be another part. I love you 3000.

Looking Ahead (to Shadowkeep)

This fall is a necessary first step in turning Destiny 2 into the game we want it to be.

It’s been a busy year, so let’s recap:

We assumed publishing control of Destiny and wanted to get something new into your hands as quickly as possible (Shadowkeep!)

We paired it with a free entry point in New Light to welcome new Guardians into the fold.

We wanted to bring Destiny 2 to new platforms to keep heading toward the you can play Destiny anywhere dream (Steam and Google Stadia).

We’re taking the initial steps toward building Destiny as a single, evolving world.

And we’re doing all of this while cranking on a bunch of the systems changes we’ve talked about and will continue to talk about heading into Shadowkeep.

Here’s where we’re going this fall.

THE CARE AND FEEDING OF THE RPG: ADD DEPTH, IMPROVE CUSTOMIZATION

We want to give people who love the RPG aspect of Destiny (like many of us) more stats and depth on the character sheet to sink their teeth into. We want to give players more agency over how they look. We also want armor to have that deep pursuit players love about Destiny—which brings the victory of finding their perfect roll.

Let’s Talk About Armor, Part I: Mods, Stats, and Tradeoffs

In order to allow players to independently pursue gameplay mods and further customize their Guardian fashion, a lot of work has been done to update armor for this fall. We’ve refactored a number of the stats in the game, we’ve overhauled the UI, and we’ve begun to separate capabilities from aesthetics.

Time-out.

Before I go on, I want to interject: It seems like some comments from part I around MTX are being misconstrued. Maybe I wasn’t clear enough. Maybe it felt too ambiguous. Let me try and clear this up before we get into armor.

Destiny has and will continue to have Weapons, Armor, Ghosts, Ships, Sparrows, and Shaders that you can earn from activities to prove to the people looking at your character that you did the thing, whatever that thing is: I beat the Raid a bunch; I earned Iron Banner gear; I played a ton of Crucible; I wanted to gather rain in my shoulder pads so I played Gambit a ton; I made a sweet set of Astroshaman gear at the Rune table; I farmed that Strike for the Mindbender roll that makes people rage; et cetera.

Let me be crystal clear: That isn’t changing.

What we are doing with the new armor system is saying: Find the perks you want, find the armor look you want, (from the megalist of currently available Destiny 2 armor) and pursue that armor to get the elements/stats you want and combine them to make your Guardian.

Destiny also has an MTX store that houses things like Sparrows, Ships, Emotes, Ghost Holograms, Weapon and Universal Ornaments. The items in that store rotate and can be purchased with Silver or Bright Dust. And starting this fall, Bright Dust is just another in-game currency that you can earn by completing Bounties, instead of buying a bunch of engrams and sharding them to generate Dust.

In Shadowkeep, there are armor sets, weapons, Ghost, Ships, and Sparrows coming from the destinations and activities.

Time-in. Back to Armor.

We started out by looking at what period in Destiny’s history was a good starting place for evolving the stat game (we felt like it was The Taken King/Rise of Iron) and what principles were guiding our new designs (we want to separate gameplay and aesthetics to grant more agency over both).

There was a deep dive stream about this topic on August 14, but let’s recap some of the high-level points.

Armor now has an Energy meter ranging from 1–10.

You can use materials and currency to level up the Energy value on a given piece of armor.

Mods have both an Energy cost and an elemental affinity. In order for a mod to be equipped, your armor needs to have rolled the correct element and have enough Energy available (e.g., Hand Cannon Reloader costs three Void Energy to equip, so your armor must have rolled Void and have three Energy available in order to use it).

Fundamentally, this means we have additional vectors for tuning things like mods. We could tune their effect (how much speed does the reload effect add?), we could tune their cost (how expensive is this mod to socket?), we could add mods to the pool for a different affinity, et cetera.

When you acquire a mod from the game, it’s like getting a perk that you can put on all armor. So once you’ve found Enhanced Hand Cannon Reloader from pinnacle activities (enhanced perks will come only from pinnacle activities), you’ll be able to socket that mod into new armor that meets its criteria (the mod is not consumed and can be socketed in and out at a small cost).

Here are the elements of armor that can roll randomly:

Elemental affinity rolls between Solar, Arc, and Void

Armor’s starting Energy value can roll randomly as well (they can all be leveled to 10)

Stats all roll random values (intellect, discipline, strength, mobility, resilience, and recovery)

Like in The Taken King, the stats will have break points that decrease their cooldowns (yes, your Sparrow now shows up on the character sheet).

Begin Math Time:

Today in Destiny 2, the base recharge rates convert to a stat value of 30 in the new system. Getting to 30 isn’t too difficult, though of course some people (but certainly not you!) will ride the RNG roller coaster to get the stat they really want to 30. By chasing a good stat roll, you can achieve the fast recharge rates available in the game today without needing to use mods. It is totally possible to put together a +100 intellect build (100 is the cap) without socketing a single mod. Some of the new mods will provide +10 to a given stat to help you shore up stats you care about.

But, that specialization may come with a price. Because you’ve specialized in intellect, you may be making tradeoffs for other stats (e.g., grenades come back slower or something—it really depends on your stat rolls). But if your grenades came back slower, then maybe that Demolitionist perk that you’ve been dismantling (I know, I know, Demolitionist is actually pretty good on non-Primary weapons!) would start to look appealing.

End Math Time.

We’ve made a bunch of armor in Destiny, and we didn’t want to leave behind any of the armor that players can currently pursue. So, we’ve also updated every new drop in the game to integrate and leverage the new system. This means if you want to go back and get the small Titan shoulder pads from Sloane on Titan, you can go chase a roll of them that uses the new system.

A number of the current mods will not work in the new armor that’s dropping this fall. But those mods aren’t being deprecated at this time. For example, your Super mods on your current armor will still work, but Super mods cannot be socketed into the new armor (you could socket your armor with intellect mods instead, though).

We did this because, while we think the evolutions we’re making to armor are a great step for Destiny over the long haul, we want you to decide when you migrate to them.

Part II: The Armor Migration Amplifying depth and choice via the new stats system ushers in some changes to armor. We’ve converted all current Destiny armor to use the stats, so cooldown durations will change as we migrate to the new system. You’ll be able to see the cooldown timers of your legacy armor when Shadowkeep’s patch goes live.

Here’s what we don’t want to happen: you feeling like “the game deprecated my old armor and perks; that time I spent playing Forsaken and its Annual Pass content was a waste, since all of the perks on the armor got turned off while Bungie forcibly migrated to this new system.”

Here’s how we hope this works:

If you’re a pretty hardcore player (or really lucky!) and have a set of armor today with perfect-for-you perks (like a fully loaded Enhanced Gun You Like set of perks), I think you’re going to keep using them for a while. I certainly expect the World First raid teams are going to go in with Forsaken-era gear that they’ve infused up throughout their Shadowkeep Power progression.

As the weeks go by and players approach the Shadowkeep Power cap and start finding mods with enhanced perks, we think that’s when our most invested, progression-chasing players will start to move over. Players can totally mix and match between new armor and the armor they have today as well.

For players without perfectly rolled gear, we think the transition to the new armor system is one they’ll make pretty quickly. In our long-form playtesting, our internal teams (not Velveeta—these are other internal players and playtesters. Sidebar: I’m real disappointed I missed out on the “kraftiest” opportunity in Part I. Good catch, Reddit!) have found that they’ve used their current armor on their “main” Guardian but rapidly switched to Armor 2.0 on their less-played alts.

Remember LiveJournal? Let’s do it.

With how I play, it’s a crude mix of fashion, function, and economic efficiency. I rarely invest resources in an item until it’s an item I know I want to use. I don’t infuse very often unless I need a specific piece/roll for an activity. I do not have a favorite class, I play all three. I tend to rotate them based on what is most effective or needed for group play in a given moment. I personally love it when the game gets hard, and I feel as if we would benefit from more challenge (I really liked how Contest mode enforced an action game skill component on World First attempts!). I totally have my favorite weapon archetypes (which I’ll spare you), and I get really frustrated as a player when there is an archetype I feel like I absolutely have to use all the time because it is far and away the most efficient thing. This is because I do—when playing content that matters—have to be using the most efficient thing. This creates some interesting discussions with the team at work when they create something that is super fun but isn’t actually efficient to use. I will totally mess around and get a triple double in patrol with a weird weapon, but the weird stuff isn’t getting used in a Crown of Sorrows group early in the season. Even then, I want to get through that content as quickly as I can.

My characters generally look HIDEOUS on the climb, and then I start to make them look good again once I get to the end game (and since I’m color-blind, my friends think my characters look pretty hideous in the end game, too). I think for me, I’ll shelve my nicely rolled items, delete everything that I wouldn’t wear raiding, and start using new equipment while I power up and find some looks I like—and then, when it’s time to go on JacketQuest, I’ll infuse up my well-rolled raiding equipment.

End of LiveJournal post.

Back to what I started this with—we want the transition to ultimately be your choice, one that you decide to make when you want to make it. Maybe you’re ready to start tinkering with stats. Maybe you really want to start combining universal ornaments and currently dropping armor to up your fashion game. Or maybe, like me, you’ll do both at the same time (but hopefully with less mocking from your so-called friends).

THE PURSUIT OF POWER: INCREASING PLAYER AGENCY

We’d like the act of chasing Power and stats for your build to be something you have a bit more agency over. Not a full-blown “play whatever you want all the time”—because that means people just find the most efficient thing, rather than dipping their toes into a bunch of different activities—but certainly less restrictive than it’s been in the past.

We’ve also had a long-standing challenge in Destiny of making XP matter, and that feels like a real growth opportunity for us to dig into something we’ve wanted to look at for a while.

This section discusses Power and the changes coming to it this Fall.

Part I: Powerful Sources, Primes, and the World Like I mentioned in Part I, the number of powerful sources in Destiny 2 ballooned during the annual pass. We’re curating down the sources in Shadowkeep. Our target is to get the number of powerful sources closer to Forsaken-launch levels. In Forsaken, as you over-leveled an activity (meaning your Power gets higher than the activity), the activity’s rewards would become less valuable (the inverse was also true for being under-leveled). In Shadowkeep, we’ve changed that. Instead, the system will advertise a consistent expected powerful reward, regardless of your Power relative to it.

Over the years, we’ve come to discuss several parts of Destiny in terms of short-, medium-, and long-term goals.

In the simplest terms: Short-term goals can be completed in a night or a week, medium-term goals can take several weeks, and long-term goals can take anywhere from a Season to several Seasons. For some folks (like me), getting good at a part of the game may take a lifetime (that’s a personal-mastery goal).

We think reaching max Power can be a medium-term goal for Power-progression-focused players. For those players, we hope pursuit of stats and someday trying out new builds is their long-term goal. I say “someday,” because while we’re taking our first steps in buildcrafting with a new armor/mod framework this Fall, I think we’re going to learn a bunch about what making a viable build in Destiny requires. You’re going to surprise us with crazy, creative things we’ve never seen once this is live—we’re all looking forward to it.

Prime Engrams We’re doing some minor housekeeping on Prime Engrams. They’ll begin dropping once you hit 900, and you’ll accumulate charges for them as you make your way from 750 to 900. We’ve increased the number of Prime Engrams you can earn in a given week and rebalanced the value of each one to account for the increase in volume.

World Drops As far as contributing to your Power level, world drops often feel like a waste. To get away from that, we’ve made some changes that allow these drops to help players progress beyond the soft cap. World drops in Shadowkeep will have a chance to drop at a player’s current Power level.

Here’s an example: A player has an overall Power level of 912. Gloves are their lowest slot at 906. A player might open a Legendary engram and receive 912 gloves (an increase of 6 Power).

We’re making this change because we feel like the world Legendaries are a little undervalued at the moment. This isn’t some grand accelerant for Power progression, but rather a little quality-of-life experiment to reward your free-roaming adventures or random Legendary-activity drops.

Part II: Preparing for New Light One of the essential parts of New Light is crushing the barriers between friends. Today, one of those barriers is the Power level.

To players, Power level can mean “we have different goals, so we don't play together.” A new character starting at 10 Power would naturally feel that they had to go play all this other content—and in many, many hours you can play with the friend who recommended the game to you.

That does not sound very sweet. It’s like telling someone to play a MOBA and then saying “we’ll play with you in 100 hours when you’ve learned to last hit.” (This is what my friends said to me. Do I have bad friends? As I’m writing this, I’m starting to wonder.)

That’s not what we want in New Light.

We want to get new players and veterans colliding quickly. After Black Armory, we made a deliberate choice to try to do this with each Season. Both Season of the Drifter and Season of Opulence had bounties to boost up players’ Power levels. With New Light and Shadowkeep being bigger moments of collision, we’re continuing that philosophy, but optimizing the mechanics to fit the moment.

We’re setting the Power this Fall to 750 for both returning and new players. We want you to all be together when Shadowkeep opens. Here’s what this means:

Every single item in the game is being raised to a Power floor of 750 when Shadowkeep and New Light launch.

Every item in your inventory (and vault) is going to automatically jump to 750.

It's like a free global burst of infusion for all players.

Which means that right now, you could (should!) stop spending currency to infuse your gear sets or that C-tier of weapons that you're keeping around until the patch notes just in case they are going to be good after the changes (there are many buffs coming and it is very tempting to spoil a bunch of them, but I said this wasn’t gonna be the patch notes!).

Part III: More Power, More Problems (We originally had this as Mo’ instead of More, but I changed it upon the sad realization that there is an entire generation of players who missed out on Biggie, Puffy, and Mase in the Bad Boy era. Yes, it’s kind of weird that I changed this and left the Highlander reference in. Especially when neither is T for Teen.)

I’m the first to say it: Raising the Power of all players globally is indicative of a greater problem. It’s real weird that someone will boot up New Light for the first time and immediately be 750.

The capital P Power level in Destiny (or Light as it was called in D1) has been asked to do a lot over the years. For a time in Destiny 1, it was one of the only things players had to pursue. In D1, Power/Light meant something in terms of achievement—but that badge of honor had its problems (forever 29 via raid boots, etc).

Destiny 1 put the Light/Power level over the player’s head and drove players to raid and raise it. Over time, we gave players other paths to raising their Light/Power (Nightfall, Iron Banner). We took Light off the nameplate and made it three digits in The Taken King, trying to turn Light into something more like a three-digit item level, but without the stat budgeting assigned to it where the stats dictate true character power.

At D2 launch, we shortened the Power climb, over-simplified the game, made it too easy to get items, focused on bringing new players in, and hoped that players would pursue looks alone as their endgame (we were wrong!) while we continued to build features like what would become Forsaken Triumphs.

During that period, we also democratized Power so that players didn’t need to raid or play Nightfall to reach max Power. They could kind of just do any weekly. Forsaken introduced gold sources onto the map, and over the course of the year, the number of powerful sources continued to increase.

See, Power has a lot to do with the amount of damage players can both deal and receive. In fact, it's the biggest factor in it. It’s also been the thing to pursue. Our gameplay specialists—the roles where dedicated Destiny players come in and participate in long-form playtesting with their imported-from-home character—frequently point out that they can’t engage with a number of parts of the game ’til they’ve “completed the Power climb.” Over the years, we’ve made the Power climb shorter and shorter. We’ve made it easier and easier to reach max Power.

We’ve also introduced things like Triumphs, titles, and Collections to provide additional stuff to do as the prestige of Power waned.

In Shadowkeep, we’re trying something a little different.

First, we’re introducing a Seasonal Artifact, unique and thematic to each Season.

As the artifact levels up, it can do a few things: First, it becomes a source of seasonal artifact mods—unique mods that can be equipped only during that Artifact’s season. These mods may be brand new experimental mods or powerful mods with reduced energy cost enabling players (and us!) to experiment further in the buildcrafting space.

Second, the seasonal artifact can award players a Power bonus, but that bonus is not applied to gear (nor does it increase the Power of future drops), but instead to all of your characters. This is meant to give players who can’t or don’t want to play pinnacle activities a seasonal path to Power. This way, even if a player doesn’t play the raid, Iron Banner, or the [REDACTED], they can still have a high Power value for the Season. Leveling the artifact to raise your Power is meant to be Seasonal character growth. Each Season, we’ll have a new artifact with new mods that change how you play—and the Power bonus will reset.

In addition to curating the list of powerful sources, Shadowkeep will also introduce pinnacle powerful sources. These sources are the only way to earn gear drops above power 950 in Season 8.

Here's the thinking: Pinnacle reward sites can award players Power above 950. This is a way of reclaiming a little bit of the character Power prestige that the initial D1 Power climb created. If you inspect a player and see their gear is 960, you know they’ve done a bunch of pinnacle activities. It’s worth mentioning that as you raise your Power via pinnacle activities, other powerful reward sites will continue to drop powerful sidegrades.

All of this said, Power in Destiny 2 is still imperfect. We’re making some adjustments to it this year for Shadowkeep: things like Seasonal Power bonuses and pinnacle activities awarding pinnacle Power. But when we look to the future, we feel like the Power system may benefit from a rework further down the road. There’s real potential in creating more agency for players, figuring out if Power should be prestigious or not, and taking on the challenge of how to keep players relatively close together Season after Season, while still allowing them to make progress.

Here’s something I miss from Destiny 1: filling bars on my items and using materials to level items. Even though I ended up with more ascendant and radiant materials than I ever could’ve needed, the existence of these materials meant the hunt for powerful rolls could go on longer. I think wanting and needing materials is a good thing—as long as you know what you can do to go pursue that material. I’m glad we’re getting a little more of that back into Destiny with Shadowkeep.

Need Masterwork Cores? Well, we didn’t have a very good answer for that much of the year. Lesson learned.

Stay tuned to bungie.net for the third installment of Director’s Cut. It focuses on the action part of MMO-action game (think: combat and PvP, with a bonus section on the evolving world) coming to Destiny this Fall.

#Destiny #Destiny 2 #Destiny 2: Forsaken #long post

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