May - Monthly Writing Updates

Hey all, sorry I haven't done one of these the past two months. It's been a loooong two months. My butt has been kicked but I'm doing my best to get back to everything.

Firstly, welcome to all of my new followers. 👋 I really appreciate the follow!!! 😊

Secondly, in case you haven't seen me talking about it recently or checked out the A/N on I need your hand but I don't want to burn it, I lost a loved one back in February and then I had to put down my fur baby in the beginning of April (suffice to say, it has not been a great year so far personally). The only reason I'm mentioning it is it has unfortunately affected my writing drive, severely. So right now, I'm just focusing on implementing as much self-care as I can, I'm taking my time, and not pushing myself (or the drive) too hard. My writing muse has been all over the place, bouncing from WIP to WIP, outline to outline, idea to idea, etc, but I'm trying to get her back under control and focused, more disciplined. So please bear with me as I continue to work through this.

That being said, I am currently trying to work on a few things in the fleeting moments I've been able to get into the zone:

part 2 of i need your hand - I'm finishing some things up for certain chapter events and then it should be ready to be posted

Chapter 3 of Ghosts

Chapter 4 of Holding (just gotta flesh out the last scene a little more and then it should be good to go)

Part 2 of Follow Me

Chapter 1 of Keep Me (I know you guys have been waiting for this one for a while, I apologize, I just want to make sure I have the tone right for this reader character and the initial setup overall)

the Dean/Bella one shot I previewed here

Prompt responses for: multiple characters (and yes, this includes Part 2 of both Dean and SB's Sleep I'll Keep You Safe prompts)

a still untitled Beau 3-part short story I mentioned back in Dec

dropping of two new story masterlists (looking to do that in the coming week)

delving back into the Jake one shot I mentioned here

finishing a Jason one shot I previewed here

outlining a new short story for Rip

a Jenny/Reader one shot that just needs finishing touches, literally down to the last few paragraphs

diving back into the Daenerys short story I started a little while back as well as the Alec McDowell short story I mentioned a while back in January I believe it was

delving once more into the CJ project I previewed a while back in January I believe

Chapter 3 of Their Silent Thunder (and getting back into some Beau/Cassie goodness in general, especially to finish up those prompt responses and one shots I have listed on their ship masterlist)

finishing up the other short story for Beau I previewed here

(sorry I have no idea if the links above work anymore or not, I had started this post back in April before losing my fur baby and had them linked then, hopefully they still work!)

I also have some new works coming for:

Arya Stark

Bane

Optimus

Beau Arlen

Jenny Hoyt

Soldier Boy

Billy Butcher

Anael

John Winchester

Castiel

Sam Winchester

Rachel Gatina

Hermione Granger

SDV Leah

SDV Haley

SDV Shane

HM Ann

HM Karen

Jonerys

Beau x Jenny

Cassenny

Destiel

Buddie

BuckTommy

Daenerys x Margaery

and more

Just want to say thank you for all of your kindness, compassion, words of support, and virtual hugs. As well as your patience and understanding. Thank you. ❤️

Fresh Crops! January 1 - January 7, 2024

This week's newest stories and chapter updates for Harvest Moon and Story of Seasons on AO3!

The Harvest Moon - by HarmanSmith; Complete, 1/1, 2.4k

Rating: General Audiences; Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Fandoms: The Legend of Zelda, Harvest Moon 64 Relationship: Link/Malon; Characters: Link, Malon, Maria the Mayor's Daughter Summary: A visitor from the famous Lon Lon Ranch arrives in town. With beautiful red hair and a lovely voice to match, she secretly yearns for her knight on shining armor to sweep her off her feet.

Our Story of Seasons: Pete x Claire - by Ry2_Sinheart; WIP, 26/30, 39k

Rating: General Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Categories: F/M, Gen Fandoms: Friends of Mineral Town Relationships: Claire the Farmer & Pete | Jack, Claire the Farmer/Pete | Jack; Characters: Pete | Jack, Claire, Thomas, Zack, Dog, Harvest Goddess, Ann the Innkeeper | Ran, Karen Additional Tags: Romance, Slow Burn, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Romance, Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Slice of Life, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings, Developing Relationship, Strangers to Lovers, Friends to Lovers, Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, Video Game Mechanics, Game Logic, Male-Female Friendship, Eventual Fluff, Eventual Relationships, Slow Romance, Digital Art Summary: A story that revolves around the protagonists of Mineral Town. After a series of unfortunate events, Pete and Claire agree they'll have to raise the farm together, whether they like it or not. Through their farming-ventures, they realize that maybe farming together… isn't so bad.

Here You Come Again - by SeasonSuite; WIP, 18/24, 73k

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/M Fandoms: Trio of Towns Relationships: Female Farmer/Wayne, Minor or Background Relationship(s); Characters: Farmer, Wayne, Frank, Lisette, Ford, Ludus, Trio of Towns ensemble Additional Tags: Crushes, Falling In Love, Love, farming, Fluff, dolly parton references, Friends to Lovers, cowboy aesthetic, idiots to lovers, Day At The Beach, Flowers, Romance, Bonding, Feelings, Humor, Slow Build, Did I Mention Fluff, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Love Confessions Summary: On the first day of her new life, June meets a handsome, smooth-talking postman. Caught between his seemingly earnest words and his philandering reputation, she writes him off as bad news. Over the year, as June struggles to build her new farm, Wayne proves her wrong—then right—then wrong again. or, Westown's charming postman is known for being perfect, and he's usually happy to play the part. But when a new farmer tries to get to know the real him, Wayne learns that to be loved, he has to submit to the mortifying ordeal of being known.

Remaster: Yuki - by darkryuu; WIP, 1/15, 5.7k

Rating: Explicit; Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings; Category: F/M Fandom: HM DS Cute Relationship: Pony | Aya | Jill/Skye | Steiner; Characters: Pony | Aya | Jill, Skye | Steiner Summary: Sequel to Remaster: Step Toward the Future: Kaede ("Pony"/Jill) is caught in a situation where she may be the only hope of peace and freedom for a certain Prince of the Stars.

Late Date - by SymphonicFantasia; Complete, 1/1, 3.9k

Rating: General Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/M Fandoms: Hero of Leaf Valley, Save the Homeland, Magical Melody Relationship: Dia/Kurt | Hayato; Characters: Kurt, Dia Summary: It had taken her forever to ask Kurt to join her for the Starry Night Festival. She wasn't a very courageous person when she needed it—but with help from Gina and Martha, Dia finally did it. With her date set in stone, what could go wrong? An unfortunate thing, that's what.

Opposites Attract - by SymphonicFantasia; Complete, 1/1, <1k

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/F Fandoms: Hero of Leaf Valley Relationships: Alice/Gwen; Characters: Alice, Gwen Additional Tags: Enemies to Lovers, Established Relationship, Dating, Date Night, Lesbians, Drabble, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Cute Ending, Cute, Fantasizing, Daydreaming Summary: She tried to tear the valley apart. She tried to stop her plans. When she won and the valley was saved, she thought she would never have to see her again. She was wrong, though. And the more she saw her, the more they talked and opened up to one another, the more they fell in love.

For the farming sim game: 🥔, 🍋, 🍅, aaaand 🍐 for FoMT and Stardew! (I had a hard time picking questions lmao these are all really fun)

Aww, thank you 💕 I'm glad people are enjoying them.

🥔(Potato) - Favourite non-romanceable character

FoMT:

Is it any surprise that I pick Harris? 😅 He was just another NPC to me originally, but over time I've really grown to love this big Teddy bear.

If Harris was a bachelor, though, then I'd choose Barley/Mugi. He's such a sweet, kind old man. I want to adopt him as my grandpa, please.

Nearly everyone in Mineral Town feels like family to me, at this point 😅 I love (almost) all of them.

SV:

Kinda hard to choose just one, tbh. I like a lot of the side characters. Linus is a sweetheart, and Clint reminds me somewhat of Harris.

But I think I like George the best. Grumpy old man who warms up to you gradually as you show him kindness? Check. Tragic backstory? Check. Genuine heart of gold beneath his gruff exterior? Check.

🍋(Lemon) - Least favourite character

FoMT:

I'm sorry, I just don't like Won/Huang. His first event - where you meet him at Zack's, and he ogles Karen and gives her preferencal treatment because she's pretty - just left a really sour taste in my mouth. And it doesn't help that he's quite arrogant and so obsessed with money.

SV:

Does Morris the Jojamart manager count? 😅 No? OK, then.

Probably Mayor Lewis. He refuses to settle down with Marnie, even though she clearly wants to, because he's "worried about his reputation"?! Big red flags there, Marnie! And besides, what kind of mayor uses town funds to commission a golden statue of himself instead of putting that money back into the town through, say, repairing the bus service to the city?!

🍅 (Tomato) - Favourite and least favourite festival?

FoMT:

Since I've already talked about the Animal Festivals and the Horse Races, I'll mention another event I really love: the Harvest Festival.

The whole town getting together to cook a giant potluck, with everyone bringing something along, has such a warm, homey vibe for me. I really get a sense of community from this festival. I love it, and all its variations across the games.

Least favourite is probably White Day/Valentine's Day. It's a non-event if you're not high enough with anyone. And if you're high enough with enough candidates, you have to hang around on your farm most of the day waiting for them to arrive. I want to get on around town and the mountain on my daily routine, not sit around at home waiting all day.

SV:

I think the festivals are sadly lacking in this game, especially after all the interesting events that HM/SoS has to offer.

My favourite of the few available is the Stardew Valley Fair, because you can interact with a lot of the stalls, and because its the only festival where your farming actually comes into play.

My least favourite is probably Spirit's Eve: after you've done it the first year, there's really nothing to do in subsequent years.

🍐(Pear) - Favourite rival pairing (Canon or non-canon)?

FoMT:

Karen x Rick is a brilliant pairing. So is Gray x Mary. Both of them feel like they complement each other really well.

Non-canon: I'm really growing to like the idea of Ann x Kai. I feel like they'd have some really good chemistry.

SV: No rival pairs in this game, alas, so we'll have to go with non-canon.

I think Harvey x Penny would be a sweet couple. Probably extremely traditional and low-key, but I think they'd work well together.

I'll answer your other ask separately, since this has gone on quite a bit 😅

Here's my contribution to the @bokumonobigbang! I created two illustrations for "Stir Fried Denim," which is a warm, fuzzy, heartwarming story written by the amazing @durotoswrites! Make sure to read it here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/37615525

Here's a snippet of my fanfiction for the @bokumonobigbang! I was absolutely gobsmacked to be paired with the talented @spinachartichokeditz who provided artwork. I had such a blast collaborating with you on this! 

The story can be read at the link below at:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/37615525

hm... Anne for the character ask?

aww heck yeah

Favorite thing about them: idk if this is exactly abt anne, but i love how everyone’s just agreed thats she’s trans. especially since we’re all right

Least favorite thing about them: uhhhh there rly isnt much i dont like abt her! i kind of wish she spent a bit more time with marcy while in newtopia, but i still think she’s rly cool

Favorite line: some highlights: “hoopada boopa!” “whoa mama you clean up nice!” “…so whatever i put on, i just wanna see the same me looking back.”

brOTP: spranne against the world, of course. but also wally and anne bc trans solidarity

OTP: sashannarcy bc i love all of them

nOTP: anything involving weird age gaps is a given, but also anne x maggie because… why?? shes literally only been seen bullying anne for her culture??

random headcanon: uhh there have been a few occasions where anne went karen mode and almost (if not actually) got her family/friends kicked out of restaurants and other places. this happens a lot more often after amphibia

unpopular opinion: i feel like a lot of anne’s actions and behavior are excused out of protagonist bias, and a lot of ppl seem to forget that while anne is a victim of toxic behavior, she can also be kind of toxic herself. she may preach about having changed in amphibia, but she still has a bunch of development to go through

song i associate with them: so uh i havent rly listened to music much lately and i dont rly know that many songs, so… aagmsjs sorry i cant think of any

favorite picture of them: you. you are trans

i love her expressions. quality reaction pic material

oh also this art by alexa (one of the story boarders) is rly cool :0

uhhh i think thats it

Three strikes Ben Mason x Reader Summary: Y/n was with the 2nd Massachusetts from the beginning on. When Ben came to them, they quickly became friends. Within time Ben makes mistakes, and after Maggie having her spikes inserted Ben made his 3rd strike and Y/n showed no more mercy. Words: 2345 Warnings: swearing, spoilers A/N: inspired by the song ‘three strikes’ by Terror Jr. gif credit to owner A strike in baseball results when a batter swings at and misses a pitch, does not swing at a pitch in the strike zone or hits a foul ball that is not caught. A batter is out when he get 3 strikes. It was a game. It was just a game to him and he had just made his 3rd strike. Game over. Strike number one was Maggie. It wasn´t like Y/N hated her, actually the girls went along quite well. But after Maggie had her spikes inserted, something changed. Y/n was with the 2nd Massachusetts from the beginning on, but she was a no one. They saw in her a little girl, who couldn´t protect herself. And so they stopped seeing her and she became invisible. Not for Ben, he stayed with her, star-gazing and talking all night long about things they missed. He laughed with her, when they made small jokes to lift the mood. And he fought with her, not allowing her to leave his sight for any second and having her back at any time. But the moment Maggie got her spikes, he stopped doing all of that. She didn´t blame Maggie for it, not even the spikes. It was his decision. Then his second strike. Ben had stopped talking to her. They had shared their most private and inner thoughts, worries and dreams. After Maggie, she would have taken an apology from him. But he didn´t apologize, heck he just acted like nothing happened. She didn´t care about his new feelings for Maggie, she cared that he didn´t tell her about his feelings and she had to find about it indirectly. And now his last strike. Underestimating her. Y/N still looked at him shocked. Since Ben had been the only one talking to her before, she had been alone since strike one. To distract herself she often went to train, her newest training tool were daggers. And like she knew it would happen, someday Ben would catch her training. “Y/N what are doing here?” He asked surprised, but not in a good way. Y/n didn´t turn around and kept her back to him. She spun the dagger in her hand, aiming it at the next target. She wound up, but Ben suddenly grabbed her wrist. His hand fit around her whole wrist and he applied a strong pressure, strong enough to leave bruises. “Ouh! Ben! What are you doing?” With his other free hand, he grabbed the dagger. “You cannot just train here! And especially not alone!” He explained, getting louder and gripping harder around her wrist at each word. “Ben, you´re hurting me!” He didn´t listen, he never did. Maggie was behind him. Y/N hadn´t realized she was there, but now even she tried to calm him down. “Ben…” She started off, but he didn´t let her talk. „You know you can´t train in here, we need this room.” “What?! And I am not allowed to train? Am I not strong enough? Or is it because I don´t have spikes?!” He yanked her nearer to him and lowered his voice. “No because you are and always be useless.” Game over, asshole. Rage rose in and there was no more getting back. She twisted her hand, to free herself from his grip. Then she spun around and her foot kicked his head down to the ground. In the next second she aimed a gun at him. Maggie stepped back, both surprised and afraid. She knew she couldn´t calm Y/n down. Ben looked up at her, surprised. “If you ever touch or talk to me ever again, Benjamin Mason, I´m gonna shoot that bullet right through your damn head.” Never had Ben or anybody from Charleston seen her like that. But the times of the little girl were over. It was time showing them her real face. With quick steps she left the room, letting Ben lay on the dirty floor. Her feet made quick steps through the halls and when she left the underground system, Maggie and Ben and Tom followed her. Y/N had walked past Tom, who had seen her anger and when he saw Maggie and Ben, he followed her as well. When they arrived overhead, Y/N was already at the vehicles. One of the Berserkers was watching them, making sure no one would just steal a car, but Y/n had a plan. The last feet before the watch, she started sprinting and when the man realized she was about to attack him, it was too late for him. She slid through his legs, jumped off the ground and gave him a blow to the jaw, which made him faint. Rule number one: don’t mess with a girl that knows how to fight. “Y/N! What are you doing?” Tom screamed over to her, which caused even more people to stare at her. Y/N didn´t even thing about answering, jumped instead on a motorcycle and started the motor. A car had just gotten through the gates and they were about to close, but the men closing them looked too surprised at shocked to even think about closing the gates. Especially when they saw that the girl on the bike didn´t slow down the speed and instead stepped even harder on the gas. In the last second Y/n drove through the gates and left Charleston. About a week later, she was still missing. The first few days there were search party’s, but rule number two said if a girl doesn´t want to be found, you won´t find her. The week was a busy week, most people didn´t even think about Y/N by the end of it anymore. Tom was still worried, but he needed to protect Charleston, he couldn´t waste his thoughts on trying to find a girl that didn´t want to be found. Most of the people thought like that, not Ben. Neither his family, nor anyone else in this world had seen him like that. He was the terrible. He didn´t talk, he didn´t eat, he didn´t sleep. All he could was think about her and the things he had done wrong. On Saturday evening Maggie, who was feeling all of Bens emotions, was done. She could feel his inner fight and she could see his feelings for Y/n. She saw that Ben loved that girl and she knew that there was a potential chance of never seeing her again. Maggie had decided to take her spikes out and Anne was way more comfortable taking them out than inserting them. The night from Saturday to Sunday was the worst. Ben didn´t sleep and everybody could hear his screams all night long. He stood on one of the broken buildings, screaming out all his pain. Around 5 a.m. Tom climbed on that building and embraced his son. While lying in his arms, Ben cried. “I´m so sorry Dad.” He repeated all over again. And every time Tom would whisper: “It´s okay.” “What if she´ll never come back? What if I never see her again? I could never apologize!” “She will, Ben. She will.” Ben looked at his father. “How do you know?” Tom just smiled at his son. “Dad?” “Hm?” “I think I love her.” Tom didn´t answer. Of course, he knew about his sons feelings and he knew if Y/n had the same feelings, she would forgive him. Tom and Ben feel asleep around 6p.m. Both having a restless sleep. At 6.30 screams woke them up. The screams woke up most people at Charleston but no one could figure out from where they came from or who screamed. But it didn´t take them long to find out. The gates opened and through them stepped a girl. Scratches and bruises made her seem dirty, like she had never seen a shower before. Her clothes were ripped and had blood stains all over them. Her hair was greasy and put in a messy ponytail. Her face was strained and her eyes focused on the ground in front of her. She looked down and every step she took, took all her energy and power. From the dark circles under her eyes you could see the sleepless nights she had gotten through. And her clenched teeth showed how much it took her to did what she had done. Her hands held a rope tight from her shoulder. The rope led to the ground behind her, where different knots formed a net. In the net there was an alien, not just any alien; an Espheni. One of the Overloads himself. The alien was full of blood and you barely could tell that it once was a full Espheni, because it was so badly hit. Sure the people of Charleston had killed one or two of them, but only in big groups of men and with heavy weapons. Now there was a teenage girl dragging one of them behind. She didn´t look at any of the people until she stopped a few foot away from Tom, Ben, Hal, Maggie, Anne, Colonel Weaver and some other soldiers. The yard was dead silence, everything you could hear was Y/n´s heavy breaths. She dropped the rope and finally looked at someone. First, she stared at Ben, then directly at Tom. Then she turned around, opened the net and took out the head of the Espheni. She held the head high in the air and then screamed. “I am not letting them take my home. They think humans are weak. They think I`m weak. And if anybody ever again underestimates me their head will be next!” She screamed while turning in a circle so everybody could see the head and the anger in her face. The last sentences Y/N said while looking directly at Ben. Then she dropped the head on the ground, which made a dull sound. Y/n made her way through the Mason family and the walked to the showers. After starring at the dead Overlord for some minutes, Ben quickly followed her. He now had the chance to apologize, and he would take his chance. When he entered the Common Bathroom without knocking, which was a pretty stupid idea, he stopped. Y/N stood there in her underwear and the bruised and cuts on her body. Her hair was now open and framed her dirty face. “You have two minutes.” “I am sorry, but I know just apologizing won´t work and I know I was a dick. Because you were there for me. You were there for me when no one wanted to talk to me because they were afraid. You were there for me when I wanted to jump off buildings in the middle of the night, even though you were tired and wanted to sleep. You were there for me when Karen tricked me into freeing her. You were there for all the time when I needed you and when you needed me the most, I left. And I know that leaving you is unforgivable and I can only imagine how you felt, when the only person you had left and trusted, hurt you the most. I don´t know if you can ever trust me again or if our friendship is ruined forever, but for me you were always more than a friend. Those nights on the roof I wanted you there not to watch me, but because we were alone. And you don´t know this, but how often did I held back the urge to kiss you and tell you that everything will be alright and how much I love you. You sat there staring at the stars not knowing in how much pain you put me in, while doing nothing else than just being next to me. But you saw me as a friend and I didn´t want to ruin that, so I kept my mouth shut. Then Maggie got hurt and I wanted to save her, because she is my friend. So, she got my spikes inserted and suddenly all the feelings I had for you, I had for her. I hated me for that and I stopped talking to you, because I could barely look in to your eyes. Next you were training, I freaked out and said things I shouldn´t have said. After all I still tried or at least wanted to protect you, but you didn´t need me and…” “Time is up.” Ben wanted to talk back but Y/n held up her hand, showing him that it was useless. “You are right. I never needed you to protect me. But do you think that I just taught myself to fight like that in a few weeks? No of course not. I trained my whole life. My dad was a Navy Seal, my mom had worked for an Russian secret service. This whole time where you were protecting me, I stayed with you, because you were my friend.” “Were?” She sighed. “Ben look, I don´t think we can be friends anymore. Not like we were.” Y/n took a break, but then kept talking. “Maybe we just need to build a new friendship, but it won´t be the same.” Ben took a step forward. “But Y/N I swear I will try everything!” “It won´t be the same because we might end up being more than just friends.” She smiled and for the first time in weeks, they both smiled at each other… Months later… “Once upon a time there was a place called America… But now going forward because before we were countries, we were human beings. Despite the horror, the loss, the death. The war might had made us even better beings, because we discovered; we are not alone!” Y/n looked to her right were Ben was standing. Next to him Colonel Weaver, then Tom on a pedestal. On the other side Maggie and Hal, Anne and Matt. The crowd was cheering and Y/N smiled, unable to keep a straight face. The occasion was just too happy to not smile. Ben leaned down to her to whisper in Y/N´s ear.” What do you think?” She grinned at him. “Homerun.”

Edit for this imagine–>

Fresh Crops! March 6 - March 12, 2023

This week's newest fics and chapter updated for Harvest Moon and Story of Seasons

The Heart of a Westown Cowboy - by Mya_Stone; WIP, 11/?, 16k

Rating: General Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/M Fandom: Trio of Towns Relationship: Female Farmer/Wayne; Characters: Frank, Ford, Carrie, Brad, Megan, Hector, Colin, Daryl | Darius, Marlena, Lynn, Wayne Additional Tags: Slow Burn, Romance, Romantic Friendship, Guy Falls First, I Wrote This For Me But I'll Share It With You Summary: Wayne is Westown's perpetually single lady's man. He'd like to settle down but he just hasn't found The One and he's fairly certain he's met everyone in town. Then Melody moves in, taking a plot of her uncle's ranch to fulfill her dream of being a rancher. A college-educated business woman, Melody doesn't accept failure - especially not her own. As Wayne falls hard for her, she struggles to return his affections until she has what she came for - and when she continually comes up short at the cow competitions, she begins to wonder if Westown is really the place for her.

Anonymous Love Letter - by SymphonicFantasia; Complete, 1/1, 2.7k

Rating: Not Rated; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/F Fandoms: Save the Homeland, Hero of Leaf Valley Relationship: Dia/Gina; Characters: Dia, Gina Additional Tags: Post Saved Valley, Unrequited Love, Lesbians, Heartbreak Summary: Dia has loved Gina for a very long time. She had thought such feelings would disappear when she grew older but they didn't. It was time to do something about it.

Barriers - by krose13; WIP, 27/?, 210k

Rating: Mature; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/M Fandoms: Friends of Mineral Town, DS Cute Relationships: Claire the Farmer/Gray, Ann the Innkeeper | Ran/Cliff; Characters: Claire, Gray, Ann the Innkeeper | Ran, Cliff, Kai, Karen, Popuri, Mary the Librarian, Rick, Basically the whole Mineral Town cast, plus Forget-Me-Not Valley Additional Tags: Drama & Romance, Complicated Relationships, Sexual Content, Slow Burn, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Not for the kiddos, Fluff and Angst, Jealousy, Unplanned Pregnancy, trying to fit a realistic pregnancy in hm time is a challenge but we doin it, POV First Person, Mutual Pining, Drug Use, Dreams and Nightmares, Drowning, I’ll probably have to add more tags as we go along but Summary: Unlike everyone else in town, Gray wants nothing to do with the new farmer. He can't stand Claire, despite all her attempts to befriend him. But when one small mistake leads to an even bigger problem, he might be seeing a lot more of her than they both had planned.

Living in Color - by rockyroadster95; WIP, 14/?, 27k

Rating: Mature; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Categories: F/M, Gen Fandoms: A Wonderful Life Additional Tags: Canon Compliant, Canon Universe, Light Angst, Slow Build Summary: At her father's funeral, Aya was given an offer that would take her far from her stale and directionless life to a place she hoped would give her something to live for.

Good Morning, Sunshine - by SaturdayPeople; Complete, 1/1, 1.5k

Rating: General Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/M Fandoms: Friends of Mineral Town, Tree of Tranquility Relationships: Mary/Jin, Past Jin/Sabrina; Characters: Mary the Librarian | Marie, Jin Additional Tags: Established Relationship, Fluff, Literal Sleeping Together, Sunsets, Sunrises Summary: A beginning to hopefully more beginnings.

Remaster: Step Toward the Future - by darkryuu; WIP, 31/41, 569k

Rating: Explicit; Archive Warning: Major Character Death; Category: F/M Fandom: Back To Nature Characters: Cliff, Popuri, Kai, Doctor | Trent, Gray Summary: Jill ("Claire") is struggling to find a goal in life after high school. After her parents boot her off to her late grandfather's farm, everything around her is never quite the same as she struggles to find herself and her future.

Our Story of Seasons: Pete x Claire - by Ry2_Sinheart; WIP, 18/20, 28k

Rating: General Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Categories: F/M, Gen Fandoms: Friends of Mineral Town Relationships: Claire the Farmer & Pete | Jack, Claire the Farmer/Pete | Jack Characters: Pete | Jack, Claire, Thomas, Zack, Dog, Harvest Goddess, Ann the Innkeeper | Ran, Karen Additional Tags: Romance, Slow Burn, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Romance, Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Slice of Life, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings, Developing Relationship, Strangers to Lovers, Friends to Lovers, Childhood Friends, Childhood Memories, Video Game Mechanics, Game Logic, Male-Female Friendship, Eventual Fluff, Eventual Relationships, Slow Romance, Digital Art Summary: A story that revolves around the protagonists of Mineral Town. After a series of unfortunate events, Pete and Claire agree they'll have to raise the farm together, whether they like it or not. Through their farming-ventures, they realize that maybe farming together… isn't so bad.

Thank you so much for your patience on part two of your ask, @dougs-inn !

So... I got a little excited because Ann’s one of my favorites, and I might have written, too much, but!

I now present my character breakdown/analysis of Ann/Ran!

I'm going to include all incarnations of the Ann known as Ran, as I've played all the games she's in, and she's very different in HM64 as opposed to the other games.  I'm going to refer to the different incarnations of Ann as HM 64 Ann and Mineral Town Ann.  If you were looking for an analysis of Inventor Ann (SNES and Magical Melody) let me know, and I'll add a breakdown of her as well.

I’ve put this behemoth under a cut to save space, but I’m still open for asks!  Please just bear in mind they’re taking me a while to write. ;)

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How I feel about this character

Ann is an absolute delight.  A+ Best Girl... as long as we're not talking about HM64 Ann, but I'll get to that in a moment.

Ann has a lot of traits that I really strive for myself – she's confident, cheerful, energetic, she knows how to make people smile, and she is great at helping people open up.  She's helpful and considerate, organized, and has a commanding presence.  I honestly can't say enough great things about her.  I love that she isn't shy around food, as a lot of female characters are written as having complicated issues with weight and food, especially around the time these games first started rolling out.  Ann enjoys food, so she eats it.  I love that it's that simple for her.

Now let's get into HM64 Ann.  I have very complicated feelings about her, and I'm sure some of them fall under the “unpopular” category. She loves animals and her relationship with her older brother, Gray, is really sweet.  She definitely gives off “kid sister” vibes and I'm not sure how big the age difference is between her and Gray, but it feels pretty big.  She has that cheery demeanor and is friendly with Karen, her best friend, and the player character.  She seems less mature in this version of the game, often losing her temper, and even physically hitting others.  All the girls in HM64 have an event where they not-so-subtly hint that they'd like a blue feather. During this event, she asks the player character to show how they feel about her.  Our boy Pete moves in for a hug/smooch? and gets slapped away.  I understand that she's establishing a boundary, but I didn't feel that physical force was necessary to communicate, especially if Ann and Pete are close enough emotionally to be talking about marriage.  I just feel that it was played for a cheap laugh and I'm not a fan.  She slaps around Cliff in their final rival event when he tells the player he's leaving town because he's afraid of being betrayed.  Ann hits him with such force that he falls and skids a bit.  After the two marry, there's a portrait with a black eye for Cliff and he says that they fight often.  HM 64 Ann seems to run very hot and cold, which is okay and could be written well, but the physical violence isn't cute or funny.  I'm not sure if they were going for humor or making the game a bit darker, but it kind of left a sour taste in my mouth.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

HM 64 Ann needs someone who can match her spunk.  I feel that HM64 Karen would a good match for her, their fiery personalities meshing well together and helping each other grow.

Mineral Town Ann can have whoever she wants, lol.  But I do a lot of pairings I like with her.

Ann x Harris – I've written a bit of them before and I think that Ann could remind Harris of happier, more carefree days and help him move on from his one-sided crush on Aja.

Ann x Karen – They're a great match regardless of the game.  These two ladies just have such great chemistry.  Playful, fun, flirty – I feel that Karen would allow Ann to be herself and not worry about if she's feminine enough.

Ann x Farmer – Ann's chipper personality is shown in both main incarnations.  I feel like she'd loooove farm life and all the adventures that come along with it.  Her heart events are cute. <3

Ann x Kai – This is probably my favorite rare pair for her.  They both have fun energy, they're playful, they enjoy cooking.  Kai, this supposed womanizer, falling in love with Ann, who is insecure about her femininity, just makes me so happy and makes all those insecure walls and preconceived notions about them both just fall down.  I'd love to know how Doug would react.  Would he be excited to have his daughter date his competition?  So many fun ideas...

Ann x Gourmet – Okay, hear me out.  They both love cooking and food is their passion.  Ann could share tips and tricks from him and vice versa.  They could perfect each other's favorite foods, and Gourmet could move into the inn, and they could have their own happy little cooking family.  I know a lot of people dismiss Gourmet, but there's a lot of wiggle room for a personality that could vibe well with Ann.

My non-romantic OTP for this character

Mineral Town Ann/Cliff – In addition to the lousy post-marriage event where Cliff is a total jerk to Ann, demanding her to be more “feminine” and Ann asking him to just love her the way she is, there are so many references to Cliff saying how Ann reminds him of his sister that I feel kinda weird shipping them romantically.  I could see them being really good friends, almost like brother and sister.  They do have a great vibe, and I feel like they could have lots of fun adventures around Mineral Town together as Ann helps Cliff emerge from his shell.

Mineral Town Ann/Gray – I will never not see these two as siblings.  I love that dynamic, and you can pry it from my cold, dead hands, haha.  I love to think of the inn as a big, dysfunctional family, and I feel that Ann is really the glue that holds it all together.

My unpopular opinion about this character

I feel like HM64 Ann is not really marriage material, at least not the way she is written.  I really get the impression that she feels pressured into getting married by her father and she ends up settling for either Pete or Cliff.  She seems particularly unhappy in her marriage with Cliff.  The marriage events with the player character are actually kinda cute.  I thought her pregnancy cravings for fodder were kinda funny, but she just seems so scared of the idea of married life to me.  I just want her to be happy, and I feel like living on Green Ranch with her family is what she really wants.  Can she just date Karen and let her live at the ranch with them so Karen can escape her super toxic family?

I guess my other unpopular opinion is that I just don't care for Mineral Town Ann and Cliff as a canon couple.  At least there's not physical violence, but Cliff harping on something Ann is sensitive about feels really out of character and it just puts me off the pairing in general.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

Hehe, sorry I wrote more than one thing. :P

Well, I feel like I already kinda answered this one a little bit.  I wish HM64 Ann wasn't physically violent with others.  

I wish the post marriage events with Cliff were happier in both games, or at least give the girl someone she's happy with.  I guess it will have to be my farmer, haha.

I do wish that we heard more about Ann's mother during the games.  Ann doesn't speak much about her because she passed away when she was young, but it would be really neat if she told stories she hear from her father.

For Mineral Town Ann in particular, I really wish there was an event where we could showcase that Ann isn't happy ALL the time – no one is.  I have my own theories that she's so eager to cheer others up because she feels it's her duty, especially for cheering up her father, and later her husband if she marries Cliff.  When does she get a break where she can tell her deepest worries?  There is the event where her and Doug have a spat and Doug says that Ann's had it rough, but it would be so freeing to hear Ann let out her worries a little more.  I guess there's the event where she's upset that she was having trouble getting a stain out of a guest's clothing and not wanting to let the matter go, and again, I feel like it could allude to something else eating away at her.  I might be reading into it too much.  Honestly, as far as heart events go, Ann's are pretty well-written, and one of the reasons I love her so much.

Thank you so much for the ask!  I'm starting to realize how much I ramble during these, but I'm having a lot of fun, and I hope you enjoyed the read.  I'll continue answering the character breakdown asks, and I appreciate your patience. <3

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Character-breakdown-Game :D

Can you do Karen and (maybe) the Harvest Goddess? I would love to hear your thoughts on them ! Also if you ship the Harvest Goddess at all, lol! 😅 (she is marriage-able after all) <3

Thank you so much for the ask! These are both really interesting characters, and I'm excited to break them down.

For Karen, I'll do both Mineral Town and HM64 versions of her, as they're vastly different from one another and there's a lot to explore!

I'll include the Harvest Goddess in a separate post, as this one is quite lengthy, so this is part one of two. Thank you all for your patience as I work on these!

Character Breakdown Ask Game - Still Accepting! ;)

How I feel about this character

HM 64 Karen

So, in a way, I feel grateful that I played HM64 when I was a bit older, because I feel like I can understand where the characters are coming from better. I know that younger me would have absolutely hated Karen, finding her disobedience to her parents and her bluntness as her just being a bad daughter/person. She makes it no secret that she hates it in Flower Bud Village and that she has dreams of leaving. I see her as feeling really trapped. Yes, Karen can be a little immature, but dang, that environment she is living in is a nightmare. I just want to save her from her toxic family. I find it so sad that her sharper parts of her personality were a result of her upbringing, but it was probably the way she coped with living in the same house as them.

HM FoMT Karen

This version of Karen is vastly different, and I'm not sure how I feel about it. They're almost like two different people. While HM64 Karen has more focus on herself (which is completely understandable), this Karen is more of a “big sister” archetype. She's friendly and outgoing, even if she can be a little sharp with Rick during some of their heart scenes. Her blunt language during those scenes comes more out of a place of love than a self-defense mechanism – like when Rick protected her from a wild dog and got bit and she was frustrated he got hurt. There is an earlier event where Rick talks about how they used to wrestle as kids and she was pretty rough. Karen gets embarrassed and denies it, leaving him behind. I get the impression she's been trying to improve from being gruffer when she was a kid, and being reminded of that was humiliating in a way to her.

Either way, I really enjoy both of these Karens a lot, and in true Durotos fashion, I love mixing characteristics of the two of them together while writing.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

HM64 Karen

This lady is not in a good place right now and I doubt romance is at the front of her mind. I don't ship her with many characters.

Karen x Farmer – I can see her gaining her own bit of freedom in moving out of her parents' place. There are things she likes about the vineyard – I'm imaging the wonder and gratitude she has when the vineyard is restored. Living on a farm and seeing things growing and flourishing would be such a positive thing in her life.

Karen x Ann – I briefly mentioned the idea of these two ladies dating in my Ann ask. They're both a bit unstable, and some growing up would need to be done by both parties to make it work. Their friendship events are pretty cute, and I feel like they have good chemistry.

Karen x Elli – I really liked the scene where Elli and Karen talk about Karen wanting to leave town. I feel that Elli would lend a sympathetic ear to Karen, and Karen would take her to good fishing spots on the beach. I can imagine them having picnics on the beach together.

Not so much a ship, but I often thought that the woman that rejected Rick was Karen. I could imagine Rick being a bit meek and shy and Karen not really noticing he exists. </3

Mineral Town Karen

Karen x Ann – Again, I still love these two together, regardless of their incarnations. They're both more stable here, and I feel like their relationship would be full of laughter and fun times. <3

Karen x Gray – This is a bit of a guilty pleasure ship. I feel that neither of them would put up with each other's crap and be very blunt and honest with one another. There might be a bit of butting of heads at first, but once they start to understand the minds of one another, I think that they'd get along really well.

Karen x Kai – I really didn't care for this pairing in HM64, but their Mineral Town versions are so great for one another! Kai is laid back, and Karen has this cool, put-together vibe. They'd be the coolest couple in town and know how to have a good time, throwing the best parties!

Karen x Farmer – I think Karen's heart events are pretty cute, and I love the idea of Karen and the Farmer encouraging each other as they both try their hardest in the shop/on the farm. Karen is a romantic at heart, and a romantic personality in the farmer would create a really cute dynamic.

Karen x Rick – They're a pretty solid couple in this game, and while their heart events aren't the most “romantic”, it's clear to see that they care deeply for one another. I particularly love their post-marriage event where Karen reassures Rick that she will be there to help him with the farm.

I feel that Mineral Town Karen has such a warm presence about her and is outgoing and fun. I could pretty much ship her with anyone (except Cliff – in my mind they're ALWAYS cousins). I feel that her confidence would help bring out the best in people.

My non-romantic OTP for this character

HM 64 Karen:

Karen/Ann: These two have a great friendship and they both have a bluntness to them that they're comfortable with sharing around one another.

Karen/Elli: I could see these two bumping into one another in the mountains, maybe shooting the breeze while Elli is fishing.

Mineral Town Karen:

Karen/Claire: I have such a soft spot for these two as besties. I love the idea of a confident Karen helping Claire feel more comfortable in her skin and helping her straighten her crown. These two would have a lot to offer one another in terms of emotional conversation and fun times. 10/10 Super cute.

Again, as I mentioned earlier, Mineral Town Karen is so versatile, I can see her being at least casual friends with anyone in Mineral Town. I feel like she'd even be friends with Kai despite Rick's hatred of him.

My unpopular opinion about this character

HM 64 Karen:

I don't think Karen's a self-entitled brat despite coming off that way in her initial introduction. I feel that she's trying so hard to get her parents to care about life that she's exasperated. Gotz has practically given up on the vineyard, and Sasha's default expression is a worried one and she speaks of her family like she's afraid she's going to get into trouble. There's clearly a lot of unhealthy stuff going on in this family and I don't feel that Karen wanting to leave and start a life for herself is necessarily selfish. If she's grown up in this environment where her parents just don't care, but she feels tied to the land, it creates a lot of complicated feelings.

I do not like Kai and Karen as a pairing in this game. There's a definite imbalance in power and it just makes me feel like the next generation taking over the vineyard is going to be just as unhealthy as the current one. Kai's passiveness is worrisome here – he blindly admires Karen despite her faults, but his most blind affection is towards Gotz, which could cause a lot of problems in his relationship with Karen.

Not sure if this one is popular – but I know it's a polarizing opinion. I love Karen's blonde streaks! I love that it's a shoutout to SNES Eve and ties her with Cliff as a cousin. Plus, it just looks so iconic and I associate it so strongly with Karen.

Mineral Town Karen:

Karen's “I suck at cooking” schtick gets a little stale for me once I see she's never going to improve. There's a heart event where Jeff is too afraid to eat her cooking and ropes you into it. I wish the player character could start a chain of events where you give her some encouraging cooking tips.

I'm not crazy about Karen's new hair. I do miss the streaks, but my biggest gripe about her new hairstyle is that she looks too much like Freya from Grand Bazaar. Still, it's a minor complaint, as she still looks pretty cute.

I don't get a mean vibe from Karen. I've read a lot of older fic where she is an antagonist to Claire, picking on her from time to time. I purposely made Karen be best friends with Claire to play around with the dynamics and it made me fall in love with her character and personality.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

I really wish that there was an opportunity for Karen's cooking to improve. She clearly has an interest in it, and everyone's so discouraging about it. An event with the player character teaching her a few simple recipes would've been really cute, and it would keep her from being a continual joke at the cooking festival. She wouldn't have to become an amazing cook, but it would be really neat if her Cooking Festival entries slowly improved over the years.

Thank you so much for the ask! I'll be working on the second part of it and have it out soon! ;)

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HM64 Cliff versus HM/SoSFoMT Cliff

Hehe, I guess I shouldn't be surprised I had a couple asks about Cliff. I'll combine them here, including the other anon ask for my unpopular opinion on him. I'll address HM64 and Mineral Town Cliff, so this should cover everything for both asks. ^-^

Thank you so much for your patience on this. I spent a good part of the week resting up and rehydrating, and I'm starting to feel a little more like myself. I'm grateful that our tests came back negative, but we caught something nasty. Anyway, thank you all again for waiting on this. Without further ado, here are my many thoughts on Cliff!

Character Breakdown Ask Game - Still Accepting! ;)

How I feel about this character

Overall, Cliff is probably my favorite character in the series. I genuinely feel like the writers put a little more time into his characterization, and I love watching him grow in both versions of the game.  I feel that he is really relatable in a lot of ways, especially for people who have been through a traumatic event in their lives or deal with depression.  When I see a lot of his events and pick them apart, I can relate with my own struggles, and I really appreciate this kind of representation, especially in a male character, as it’s been so commonly accepted for men to push back their emotions.

HM64 Cliff is a little rougher around the edges, and I honestly like that about him. He's socially awkward (not to the point of HM64 Gray, though) and he's uneasy about trusting others. He's been betrayed in the past and it affects his relationships with those around him – he's too afraid to get close again, and it leaves him very depressed. He strikes me as really lonely and wanting to join society again, but is too afraid to do so. I really like that he has Cain/Kane as a partner that he does trust, so he's not completely alone. The fact that the two of them are living off the land is so dang cool to me – the idea of being able to sustain yourself and your best friend. I love that he's Karen's cousin, and I have more opinions on it that I'll address later.

While HM64 Cliff is traumatized by betrayal, (SoS)FoMT Cliff is traumatized by guilt. He spends most of his waking hours in the church, unable to form complete sentences as he sits in the pew, trying to sort through his feelings. Again, he seems very depressed in this game and he has a fear of getting too close to people, as shown in his heart events with both the farmer and Ann. Carter tries his best to act as a wingman (which I looove the dynamic between the two of them) and just encourage him to try to open up a little bit. Once he starts working at the winery, we really get to see Cliff blossom into the person he really is, and I find it so heartwarming. That, along with his winter time event where he passes out in the snow leave me very soft for his character.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

HM64 Cliff:

I don't really ship him with anyone. He needs to overcome his worries of being betrayed before jumping into romance, and I feel like he never really gets that closure during the game, unless he marries Ann and has a toxic marriage with her for years. Cliff warms up to Ann as their child grows into a toddler. I hate the idea of having a child to save a marriage – it's such an awful trope and isn't healthy. (Might fall under unpopular opinions, but I stand by it).

Story of Seasons/Mineral Town Cliff

Cliff x Claire – My OTP, no surprises here, haha. I really like the idea of them viewing each other as equals and helping support each other when they are in need. <3 Plus, their heart events are super cute.

Cliff x Kai – I feel that Kai's easygoing attitude and his own issues with his family would allow him to help Cliff open up about his own problems. I could see them being really sweet together.

Cliff x Gray – Honestly, I think that these two have so much in common and are both a bit shy by nature. They are also verrry different, but I think their chemistry would be a lot of fun.

Cliff x Mary – I could imagine Mary spending time at the church and bonding with Carter and Cliff. Cliff and Mary could play with Stu and teach him more about insects and wild plants while they're outside. So cute! They're both shy by nature, so I imagine them being really soft and sweet together.

Cliff x Rick – Cliff could help Rick process his abandonment issues and also help with the farm with his previous knowledge of birds (see unpopular opinions regarding his experience with birds, haha). Cliff and Rick could be steady partners for one another, and I could see Cliff being very doting toward Lillia, since he never got to say goodbye to his mother.

Cliff x Popuri – A lot of similar things I just pointed out for Cliff x Rick, only I feel like Popuri could help Cliff embrace his more lighthearted side, like in the later heart event in the remake where they play with the kids. I also feel like Cliff could teach Popuri some bird keeping tips that her father never taught her. Again, I'm also soft for Lillia taking in Cliff like another son. <3

Cliff x Elli – I headcanon that Cliff spends a lot of time at the church and sees Stu and May there a lot. Cliff could help take care of Stu and Ellen and I feel like it could help him get some closure on his own family situation. I could see them going on picnics together.

My non-romantic OTP for this character

HM64 Cliff:

Cliff/Greg: You can't tell me these two aren't sharing fish, rabbits, and foraged goods around a campfire together. I feel like they'd have stories to share, and Greg would be one of the few people that Cliff feels like he can trust.

Cliff/Elli – Elli loves to fish and is friends with Greg. I feel like on occasion, she might join the two of them at their campfire, and Cliff would slowly open up to her as he hears stories from her about the people in town.

Cliff/Cain – Best buds for life! Enough said! <3

Cliff/Farmer – Cliff does go out of his way to share things that he's caught with the farmer. I think it's really sweet, as he doesn't have much himself. I can see the farmer spending some time cutting wood and taking a break to see what Cliff is up to out in the woods with Cain.

Mineral Town Cliff:

Cliff with Duke and Manna – I adore this found family. It gives me such a case of the warm fuzzies, and I'm delighted at how the dynamic of Duke and Manna's marriage grows healthier as they accept Cliff as part of their family. Cliff also gains a sense of belonging and it's so wholesome and heartwarming. <3

Cliff and everyone at the inn – Seriously, they're one big dysfunctional family and I'm living for it. There are so many fun personalities and they mesh and clash so well. The characters at the inn are admittedly among my absolute favorite. <3

Cliff/Carter – I love thinking of Carter as a gentle source of guidance in Cliff's life and headcanon that they regularly share tea and biscuits in a little apartment Carter has behind the confessional. They share stories and while Carter is Cliff's mentor, the two of them have enough in common to become really good friends.

Cliff/Saibara – Probably an odd one, but I love it. Saibara respects Cliff for trying to forge his way in life, much to Gray's envy. Jealousy ensues as Cliff tries to maintain both friendships, and it causes all three of them to grow a little.

Cliff/Gotz – I headcanon Cliff as foraging quite a bit, and I can't imagine him not running into Gotz on occasion. They might share things they've found in the woods. Short on words, but they watch out for one another.

My unpopular opinion about this character

As I mentioned in the ask regarding Ann/Ran, I don't think that the two of them have the healthiest chemistry, especially in HM64, where Ann uses physical violence against him. Cliff is not completely innocent, though – he talks badly about her during the Flower Festival in HM64 (“Now I can see her as a girl” when she's wearing a dress) and his post-marriage event with her in FoMT is not cute. I hate that he goes after Ann's insecurities – it feels so out of character for someone who started out so meek and desperate for reassurance. I think maybe the writers were trying to bring back that same chemistry from HM64, but it didn't work then. Gah, I just don't like them being so cruel to one another. I don't find it funny or cute. Ann and Cliff are both such great characters, but they were so toxic to one another in HM64. I don't get why they didn't get shuffled in with the rest of the mixed up couples when Mineral Town/BTN came out. And even though they kept them the same and improved Ann's character– why did they make Cliff pick on my girl like that?

Another unpopular opinion - I actually like Cliff's new outfit in the Mineral Town remake. I like them both fine – I'm just lamenting the loss of his ponytail. It's slowly growing on me, but I still feel longer hair suited him better. While I didn't mind his sprite or model, I never cared for his super chunky bangs that stuck out at odd angles in some of his poses. His expressions were amusing, but he never initially struck me as handsome in-game – he was like this baby-faced DBZ-haired character, but that's where fan art comes in, heheh. I do think HM64 Cliff looks a little older and I appreciate that. But, gosh, he looks like a child in the Mineral Town remake – along with a majority of the dating pool, even if some of his expressions are dang cute. I've seen lots of gorgeous interpretations of his design in fan art, though. Keep doing your thing, you talented artists! You are so appreciated! As I've written my fics, I've made it no secret that I've, er, embellished on Cliff's hair a bit, making it long, flowy, and shiny. What can I say?  I like long hair on guys, and I'm gonna let Claire fawn over it.

A more serious unpopular opinion – over the years, I've seen a lot of people refer to Mineral Town Cliff in particular as lazy or a hobo. He is paying for a room at the inn just like Kai or Gray – he's not bumming off of anyone. As far as the player not seeing him looking around for work, I have a strong opinion on that as well, and I’ll tie it in with the complaint I’ve seen that he’s whiny (again, these are just general opinions I’ve read through the fandom for the past 20 years or so). My interpretation is that the guy is traumatized from his whole ordeal with his family. He hasn't been able to function beyond reliving his worst memories and drilling them into his head. He's very depressed and doesn't see himself as having a place in town, especially one that reminds him of his hometown (he mentions how similar the two towns are to Doug when he leaves town for good).  So I see him as struggling just to catch his footing, and learning to interact with people again - finding an income really isn’t the first thing on his mind, at least not at first.  

Was he selfish for leaving his home because he was unhappy? That's open to interpretation, as he never really gives any more details on what caused him to leave in the first place. Maybe his family was horrible and treated him badly. Maybe he was a spoiled brat. We don't know these things as canon. I do think he sees himself as selfish, though. But that doesn't mean that he doesn't deserve to forgive himself and move along. I do like that Carter is a constant for him here and he has that support, and that he finds that in the player and his found family in Duke and Manna as he starts working for the winery.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

I wish they had never gotten rid of Cain/Kane! Deep in my heart, I like to head canon that he's still out there and that Cliff keeps him offsite. That's what fanfic is for, I suppose. I just really thought they were so great together. <3

I would love to learn more about Cliff's sister, especially if you decide to marry him. She's rarely mentioned, and it would be awesome to hear more about her. I don't mind that his backstory is vague, but little snippets are so exciting to find!

I wish the fact that Karen and Cliff were cousins was touched down on a little more in HM64. I'd love to see Cliff come to the winery to meet his uncle and aunt and spend time with his cousin. Karen doesn't seem too keen on him, though, and I'm curious if that's because Ann's talked about him to her (Ann and Karen do have some friendship events in-game).

Phew, and there we have it. If you've read all the way to the end, I congratulate you. Thank you for the asks, anons, and I hope you enjoyed reading! <3

Character Breakdown Ask Game - Still Accepting! ;)