#its why i liked ffxv so much | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

paracosmicparadox · 1 year

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So I finished FFXV ages ago, but I've been thinking about it lately bc you know, I elaborated the chocobros' story far further than it was meant to go and got way more attached to them than I should have. So here're some things that the game did really well and some of the things it didn't. (you don't have to agree w anything here; I'm not trying to corrupt y'all w my opinions; I just feel like talking)

Let's start with the bad to get it out of the way:

CINDY. I swear to everything holy her character had the potential to be So Cool if she hadn't been so overtly over-sexualized. Like, I'm a woman-liker too and I get it, lady mechanics are hot af, but you know what else is attractive? Safety in the workplace. Cindy's outfit was not something any mechanic would be caught dead wearing. Yeah, it was designed to be sexy, but do you know how many burns she would've accumulated from the hot oil and metal she works with? There's a reason mechanics typically wear clothing zipped up when they're actually working on something. If anything, Cindy's character design just made me uncomfortable. Her character itself? Great. No qualms there. Her design? Please acquire more than two square feet of fabric I'm begging you. I just feel like Cindy deserved to be so much more than fan service.

Luna's brief time on-screen. Yet another potentially incredible and deep female protagonist who got short change from this game. People joke a lot that Luna wasn't at all an important character because the game never really treated her like one. She was MEANT to be important, clearly, but it felt like she existed just for her tearjerking death scene? Like there was SO MUCH overlooked potential to bring her into the storyline as more than Tragic Love Interest In White, and yet?? Idk it frustrated me.

The emotional aspect of the game felt rushed. There were a lot of emotional scenes covered throughout the plotline ranging from King Regis's death to the deal with Prompto at Zegnautus Keep. I feel like the game TRIED to cover them realistically and show the characters' grief, but it didn't quite get there. It was just sort of an "Oh, how sad. I'm so upset and angry. Hm, what's that? My friends believe in me without truly understanding and I can kill someone to ease my pain? Oh okay I'm better now." I get that realistic healing cycles are kinda hard to portray within a set timeframe, but having some lingering effects of the blatant trauma inflicted would've been nice. You don't recover from shit like that in a week's time.

Character personalities tended to be one-sided. Noctis was edgy, Prompto was happy-go-lucky, Gladio was tough-guy, and Ignis was... nevermind, Iggy was great--- HE had some on-screen depth. Personally, I've developed these characters myself far more than what the game gave us, but I wish we'd gotten more canon depth beyond their surface-level traits. I love them with my whole heart and they deserve genuine complexity.

Now the things I actually really enjoyed:

The graphics were on-point. The amount of detail put into character design and into monsters was insane. You could zoom in and see individual textures on skin and hair and feathers, bringing a level of realism to the game that I personally enjoyed.

All of the Latin and Norse mythological references!! As a Latin nerd, I found little gems everywhere in this game. Esp in the names--- (Noctis Lucis Caelum = Of-the-night Sky-of-light (the genitives in there make the literal translation kinda a mouthful ik) Gladiolus Amicitia = Sword-flower Friendship (the gladiolus is an actual flower that gets its name from the Latin word gladius, meaning sword, for its sword-like shape) Ignis Scientia = Fire Knowledge; Prompto Argentum = Ready Silver (the word prompto is actually in the dative (possibly ablative), making the literal translation nonsense, but if they'd made his name Promptus, it would've sounded awkward, so I can see why they picked the dative/ablative form of the adjective for stylistic reasons and I put the rough translation instead)) WOW THAT WAS A LOT OF PARENTHETICAL INFO WHOOPS

Ardyn's character. I'm not saying this bc I'm one of the fans who fawn over him---Ardyn is DEFINITELY NOT MY PREFERRED FLAVOR OF MAN, but character-wise, he made an excellent antagonist. He was witty, slick, and classy in an I'm-gonna-outstep-you-like-it's-hopscotch sorta way. He was a poetic villain done well, which made him an antagonist you could both sympathize for and absolutely detest given the situation. He was both the master manipulator and the pawn one space away from the edge of the board. He can sway a crowd, but you know deep in your gut just by the cunning greed in his eyes that You Cannot Trust The Man. He was definitely Not a good person (tragic backstory isn't an excuse), but he was a good villain.

I loved the bond between the chocobros?? This is probably bc I'm a sucker for the found family trope, but their interactions were so amazing to me?? Like, not even the cutscene stuff. Just their little sidebar conversations during fights or while you're walking around or driving the Regalia. They're Roadtrip Buddies™ and I think that's excellent.

THE FOOD. By god, the food in this game looked absolutely scrumptious and I would like to partake. The Daggerquill Soup? Give it to me I'll pay you. The Creamy Crustacean Omelet? Stop it right now I'll eat that so fast it'll be a criminal offense. Like I know I touched on the graphics earlier, but broski I was not kidding. I guess I know why the game took so long to make it to the market bc the detail that went into these recipes is absolutely mouthwatering.

#prompto #noctis #ff15 #noctis lucis caelum #gladiolus amicitia #ignis scientia #ffxv #prompto argentum #ardyn lucis caelum #critique #fr this is just me talking to talk #you don't have to agree w anything here #there are more flaws than I listed for sure but I didn't feel like ripping the game to shreds

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oveliagirlhaditright · 9 months

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I saw an article about how one of the things Final Fantasy XVI had in common with some other FFs--to make it a FF (which is still a silly argument that we even need to have to me, but whatev)--is flower importance in the story. And that's certainly true. So I decided to make a post about that... And prepare for the longest post in the history of the world, because I may have gone overboard in screenshotting some of these. I also decided to include Kingdom Hearts here, since it's a Disney and Final Fantasy crossover (with its own story, of course).

We'll never know how similar or not Final Fantasy Versus XIII and Final Fantasy XV's stories are or were to each other (after Tetsuya Nomura, director of Versus XIII, got kicked off the project and the game got a new director and became FFXV, and the story did at least slightly change)--even with Nomura now putting some of his Versus XIII ideas into Kingdom Hearts. It seems here, though, that even when it was Versus and Noctis and Stella, instead of Noctis and Luna, there was at least one flower scene with them. Perhaps this is the aforementioned Noctis and Luna flower crown scene (maybe originally it happened with Noctis and Stella, and that was then repurposed for Noctis and Luna). Like, for whatever reason, something upset Noctis' childhood friend here (the responsibilities her mother had to endure, perhaps, if this part of the story was still very much like XV's. Mayhap that hurt Stella to think about), and Noctis comforted her with the sylleblossom, and then we got the flower crown scene Luna alluded to in XV... or maybe it was something totally different from that with Noctis and Stella. Maybe sylleblossoms didn't even exist in Versus. Like I said, we might never know. But here, at least, was another couple (again: how similar they were to the later Noctis and Luna: who knows?) where flowers were at least important to them for a hot second.

Kairi likes to pick flowers, as we see here and in a scene in the BbS credits (that I'd show, but picture limit is keeping from doing it [I'd show a lot more pictures for a lot of these girls, if it weren't for picture limit)].

She also has a flowery Keyblade, of course, surely because of her love for flowers:

And I guess part of her Keyblade's design is that a king chess piece--which Sora's chess piece was the king one in KHIII, of course--is attached to a red string. And we all know about the red string of fate (I bring that up, because another common theme in all of this, is that all these gals with the flowers are part of a star-crossed lover pairing).

Kairi's heart is also in the shape of a flower in Re:Mind and Melody of Memory?

Yep.

Edit: Oops. I forgot Squall and Rinoa: Squall's promise to Rinoa that if she comes to Edea's orphanage--that is full of flowers outside, giving us our flower connection--that he'll be waiting for her, so she'll find him.

Also, I think Yeul gave Noel a flower in Lightning Returns for some reason? Though I don't remember why. I've only played Lightning Returns once--and only watched the cutscnenes once, in said playthrough--many years ago at this point. I really need to replay Lightning Returns again, as I actually love the Lightning Trilogy and found the gameplay in Lightning Returns very enjoyable. I also know that one of the Yeuls in FFXIII-2 loved flowers.

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captainadwen · 4 months

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Watching the FF Versus XIII trailers and

- what would eventually become ff15 thing has been into development since 2006??? Jesus

- it used to be for the ps3 lmao

- so many familiar characters?? Aranea was there from the start ah

- the trailers show a fair amount completed! Aside from graphics overhaul, it's super easy to notice similar locations. I wonder how much of the game actually got produced. Because there is a LOT of mechanics that seem fully finished, various locations, and some plot

Speaking of the plot though, I get the feeling it wasn't very long either. I wonder if that's why they changed it to a main series game?

- full (affectionate) offense to ffxv but them actually fighting their way out of insomnia after noctis gets a power trip is fascinating and much better than the, admittedly fun though awkward, "ardyn is feeling like projecting himself and his fiance onto noctis and luna and arranged their marriage but Regis got the wedding set in a different country thus getting noctis out of insomnia"

- like I understand why they did the change-- noctis /aquiring/ his op power is the main plot of the game and its already short -- but the original one sounds much more fascinating. Like where exactly was the plot supposed to go from there if noctis starts out with his full armiger??

- that said I do like the stabby stabby armiger acquisition from ffxv.

Though It's impossible to compare with "death goddess gave it to me" bc versus13 didn't get made at all so I don't know how it would vibe

- also I get the vibe that some of the strongest parts of 15 are remnants from versus13. BUT like I said, i also get the vibe that versus13 was already suffering from lack of really meaty plot. All the trailers only focus on noctis and Co escaping insomnia/fighting in accordo, with some little hints of weird death magic (?). Of course a game trailer showing just the first 1/3rd of a game is smart but it does make me wonder just... what this game was supposed to end up as?

Like it's clearly sold as a revenge tale with fantasy strangeness in the trailers. Would it have been them going after the empire????

- prompto looks SO different and it's weird.

#adwen plays ffxv #technically fits into that tag anyway

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heartlessfujoshi · 10 months

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hiya 💙 i have two dialogue prompts for you:

"can't sleep?" and "when I first met you, I had no idea you'd mean this much to me"

rip my heart out with ignoct if you wouldn't mind, I'm feeling nostalgic for the boys

i hope you're having a wonderful day/night!!

HELLO, YES OF COURSE I'D BE HAPPY TO DO THIS FOR YOU!!! I was very happy to see your request, and I hope that you'll like what I came up with for those particular prompts. It sounds like you wanted angst, but I went the opposite route so I hope that's okay. ;A; Hope you enjoy it!!

Title: My Other Half Fandom: FFXV Pairing: IgNoct (Noctis Lucis Caelum x Ignis Scientia) Rating: General (Established Relationship - Tooth Rotting Fluff - Wedding Fluff) Word Count: ~2,115

Dialogue Prompts: “Can’t Sleep” & "when I first met you, I had no idea you'd mean this much to me"

Summary: Noctis can’t sleep, as tomorrow is a very big day for him. Luckily, he has someone to join him, as it seems they can’t sleep either.

---

Noctis quietly gets out of bed, slipping on a pair of slippers as he grabs his robe from the chair and leaves the bedroom without a sound. He ties his robe shut, hiding to the world that he wears a pair of boxer briefs to bed, and a plain black shirt. He’d worn clothes to bed purposefully, because he knew if he didn’t, that he would do something stupid. And tonight is not the night to do that.

The world is asleep, calm and collected. Everything that he isn’t right at this moment. His stomach is in knots, his palms are clammy, and he has a thousand thoughts in his mind. It’s part of the reason why he can’t sleep - there is too much going on in his mind that it makes it impossible to shut everything out. He looks out the window, and then decides he’d like to go up to the roof.

Looking out at Insomnia from the top of the Citadel tower, he stares out at the city and wonders how many people are going through something similar to him. Surely he isn’t the only one with these complex thoughts that seem to have no outlet. The hamster runs constantly on its wheel inside of his brain, chasing after thoughts like they are going out of style.

A warm hand touches his shoulder, Noctis breathing out as he recognizes that touch immediately. “Can’t sleep?” It isn’t so much a question, as it’s an observation. Which, considering the person who is now with him would be the best person to observe such things, brings a smile to Noctis’ lips as he looks up.

“What makes you think that?” Noctis scoots over, allowing the person to sit next to him. “You shouldn’t be out here, Ignis.”

“Traditions be damned.” Ignis mutters as he sits down next to him. Noctis immediately gravitates towards Ignis’ body, needing to be closer to him as it doesn’t feel right staying apart from him. “You can’t sleep because you miss someone.”

Smirking, Noctis rests his head on Ignis’ shoulder. “And you want that person to be you, don’t you?” He loves to tease him. It’s become so easy to do so. “You really should be asleep, Ignis.”

“As should you.” A strong arm finds its way around his shoulder, letting Noctis get more comfortable against him. “It’s an early morning tomorrow.”

“Today.” He corrects him, lifting his head. The moon shines off of Ignis’ glasses, hiding his beautiful eyes away from him for just a moment. When the moonlight is gone, he is able to see Ignis staring down into his eyes. “It’s already morning, Ignis.”

“I know, Your Highness.” Ignis turns his head away, Noctis sighing with contentment as he feels Ignis shift next to him.

“How did you know where to find me?” He asks, very aware of Ignis’ hand on his hip, his fingers now touching the silk of his robe. Noctis wishes he hadn’t grabbed it, as he could be feeling Ignis’ hand on his body right now with limited restrictions, but the robe is an extra obstacle that can’t be ignored.

Warm breath caresses his forehead, but the kiss he waits for never touches him. “I always know where you are, Noctis.”

“Does that upset you?” The words are soft, almost a whisper, as he feels fear begin to creep into his heart. “Ignis, if you’re having doubts, then now is the time to-”

Two fingers touch his lips, silencing him. “Enough, Noctis. No, I have no doubts. Do you?”

“No.” He shakes his head, as if doubly affirming he has zero doubts in what’s to happen in the morning. “I couldn’t be more sure of anything.”

“Then there is no need to say anything else.” Ignis removes his fingers, then pulls Noctis against his side.

They sit up on the roof for a good long while - the city noises help to keep him grounded. Being this high up, he can hear everything. But right now, all he can hear is the beating of his own heart, as he snuggles up against Ignis, who is holding him with a strength he knows he can always count on. The million thoughts in his mind quiet into nothingness as he listens to Ignis’ breathing, and matches it with his own.

The silence breaks as Ignis dips his head down to be closer to his. “You should go back to bed.” It’s a soft murmur, one that causes Noctis’ heart to accelerate. “Would you like for me to take you back?”

“No.” He knows that it would be going against everything right now. “I’ll go.” Standing up, he offers his hand to Ignis, who he pulls up with little effort. “What time again tomorrow?”

Ignis narrows his eyes. “I hope you are joking.”

“Of course I am.” He grins, then steps away from him. “Good night, Ignis. Get some sleep, would you? Tomorrow is a big day!”

“Don’t I know it.”

Noctis heads back to his bedroom, the room much warmer than the roof. He flops down onto the bed, Ignis’ cologne clinging to him in a way that makes it much easier to fall asleep. Logically, he knows that Ignis’ isn’t in bed with him when he wants him to be, but because he’d spent so much time next to him outside, he’s now floating in a small cloud of Ignis’ own unique smell. Rest comes easily this time, as Noctis falls asleep with no more rampant thoughts attacking his own mind.

***

“Where is he??” Noctis is trying not to panic. He looks at the cufflinks on his wrists, staring at the Caelum coat of arms. “Prompto, I swear to the Six-”

“Don’t panic!” Prompto’s voice is on the edge of hysteria. “It’s fine! Don’t worry!! Everything is going to be okay, Noct!”

“You are not reassuring me at all, Prom.” He groans, then looks at his reflection. “This vest looks awful. I look stupid. He’s going to hate it.”

A loud knock on the door stops his thoughts. The door opens, and he sees his Shield standing there, dressed in a tuxedo that matches the one that Prompto is wearing. “It’s time.” Gladio announces. “Are you ready?”

“No.” Noctis shakes his head. “I need more time.”

“Too bad.” Gladio grins, then looks at Prompto. “Come on, blondie - let’s go.”

Prompto turns to look at him. “You look great. Everything is going to be great. This is what you want, isn’t it?”

“It is.” If there is anything that Noctis knows, it’s that. He knows that this is what he wants.

“Then, come on! Let’s go do this!”

He takes one last look in the mirror. He’s wearing a three piece suit, the vest and tie a dark grey to stand apart from the all black that he is prone to wearing. “Right. Time to go.” He nods to himself, then follows Prompto out of the room.

The altar is to his left. Noctis wants to look out at the crowd, but knows that if he does, then he might charge back into the room. No, he looks at his two best friends, who are standing together, waiting for him to go to his spot. Noctis makes it there with minimal effort, and then the butterflies appear in his stomach. Doubt begins to cloud his mind again, wondering if this is some awful mistake, and then the door on the opposite side of the altar opens, and out walks the person he is about to pledge his life to.

Ignis Scientia walks out onto the altar, looking as handsome as he had earlier this morning, albeit with much fancier clothing on. He isn’t the only one to choose a three piece suit - Ignis happens to be wearing a vest and tie that are Noctis’ favorite color. Tears well up in his eyes as he looks at Ignis for the first time, and feels like everything is finally right. Noctis can feel his heart beginning to race as Ignis approaches him, Cor standing in front of the both of them.

“It’s not too late.” Ignis murmurs under his breath as they stand close together, while the crowd settles down after cheering for the two of them.

“Yes, it is.” Noctis returns. “I want to do this, Ignis.”

“I do too.”

Cor looks at them both, and then begins. “We’re gathered here today to witness these two come together in the holy act of marriage.”

The ceremony begins, and soon it’s time for Noctis to read his vows to Ignis. He’d rewritten them multiple times, the words never really feeling right. So he decides to speak from the heart, and if it winds up being awful, then at least they’ll have a story to tell about their wedding.

“Ignis.” Noctis turns to look directly at Ignis. This time, there is no moonlight to shine on his glasses; he sees his eyes perfectly, and can see the love shining in them. He takes a breath, then continues. "When I first met you, I had no idea you'd mean this much to me." It was true - the day he met Ignis, he could remember thinking that he might be a bit much, but he was anything but that. “You hold me accountable for things that I should be able to do on my own, but knowing you are there by my side - it makes it so much easier. Your companionship has always been something I’ve craved, and now, here we are - about to make this lifelong commitment to each other. And all I can think about is how lucky I am, that you’ve chosen to be with me like this. For that, I will always love you. Because you make me who I am, Ignis. And for better or worse, I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

He can hear people crying, and sees a solitary tear run down Ignis’ cheek.

Biting his lip, he waits for Ignis to start. “Noctis.” His heart soars at the way Ignis addresses him. “You have, and always will be, my other half. We’ve done so many things together, and we will do so many more. I’ve always loved you, and hoped that one day you would return those feelings towards me.” Noctis can feel his eyes beginning to tear up, as Ignis isn’t really one to share his feelings like this. “You are going to do a great many things for Eos, and I’m the lucky one that gets to call you my husband. You were meant for me, as I was meant for you. We will share this new life together. I wish to spend the rest of my life with you too.”

The tears begin to fall as he hears more people crying. “Now it is time to exchange rings.” Cor reminds them, guiding them through the next part of the ceremony.

Noctis feels Ignis slip the ring onto his finger, and says the words, binding them to one another. Noctis puts his ring onto Ignis’ finger, repeating the same words, sealing their marriage to each other. Cor looks at them, then smiles. “May I please present to you, Noctis Lucius Caelum, and Ignis Scientia, newly married! You may kiss your partner.”

He’s dipped down by Ignis, whose knee is pressed against the small of his back. “We’re married now, Noct.” Ignis whispers before kissing him on the lips. The crowd cheers and hollers for them, then the two of them run down the aisle together, holding hands as they make their way outside.

The rest of the day passes by in a blur. There’s food. There’s photos. There’s kisses. There are multiple dances. Talks with friends. Talks with dignitaries who have come to Insomnia for the wedding. By the time it’s midnight, Noctis can barely stand up as he slumps himself against Ignis, who takes him to their new room for the night.

He gasps when Ignis picks him up and carries him over the threshold, then laughs as Ignis lays him down on the bed. “Well, Mr. Scientia.” Noctis reaches up and pulls Ignis to lay on top of him. “What are your final thoughts about the day?”

“I’m glad that you’re my husband now, Mr. Caelum.” Ignis kisses him on the lips. “It’s the first day of the rest of our lives.”

Smiling, he nods his head. “It is. And I wouldn’t want to spend it any other way, Ignis. I love you.”

“I love you too, Noctis.” Their lips come together for a sweet, loving kiss. Noctis closes his eyes, and smiles as Ignis whispers into his ear, “My beautiful husband.”

xXx

Cross-posted to AO3

#ignoct #my writing #fanfic #request drabble #if you really want angst lmk and i'll be happy to write something else for you~

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silver-wield · 7 months

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Yeah, you heard it here first, Cloud Strife is apparently English and somebody summoning KotR in their gameplay is a "secret ultimate ending" and not just somebody using the materia in the game.

Sorry not sorry but I just gotta blow holes in this shit one insane tweet at a time.

Kingdom Hearts is not canon to ffvii. It just isn't. It's not the "canon game for a summon" and are you out of your fucking mind for thinking Kingdom Hearts is making some canonical link between a summon and Disney's Sword in the Stone?! Jfc this is already sounding crazy af 🤦‍♀️

No. There's no "secret ending" to ffvii. You chose a playthrough with a player summoning KotR. Literally every player can do that. Unless they're like you and never played the damn game, you insane carrot. I'm gonna assume you think ffxv's ending where Noctis calls up the kings of yore to defeat Ardyn, which has been confirmed as a callback to ffvii's KotR but at no point did anybody say the endings were identical or that KotR is a mandatory or secret speshul ending appearance. Cloud, at no point in KH, is ever intending to or looking for king Arthur. He is always searching for Sephiroth so they can settle their shit. He never becomes a KotR. Again, you're confusing ffxv with other games. Noctis's father becomes a King of Yore at the end of ffxv and helps defeat Ardyn. I mean, if you can't keep basic plotlines straight why are you even talking in the first place?

Show me where Cloud's an "Englishman"? Show me where England and Germany are on the map of the planet. He's no more English than he is German and you need to stop listening to that nutbar Calli and her made up garbage based on her own HC fap material. King Arthur wasn't a real person, dumdum. Plz don't talk about English history if you haven't ever learned it in school.

Strife isn't a last name. It's a bloody noun. And Strauss is the German word for ostrich.

He's the fucking player character. He doesn't know how to get the materia. You know how to get the materia.

Kh isn't canon to ffvii or the KotR. Kh1 and 2 leaned heavily on squareenix to grab a player base and build its following. Once kh became established in its own right they began to phase out the FF cameos because the characters aren't needed to keep real players interested in the plot. You aren't a real player, so shut up.

You're an idiot who can't accept an in game email talking about things characters have seen and done isn't canon compared to WoFF, another game that isn't canon to ffvii.

Again: WoFF is not canon to ffvii. Serah isn't married at the point her character appears. Zack isn't with Aerith. He's a soldier 2nd class. I know it's hard for your small brain to comprehend but SE takes characters from different points in their own lives to mix and match in cameos for fanservice. Cloud appears in multiple titles as OG soldier Cloud and post AC Cloud. Tifa appears in WoFF as cowgirl Tifa at age 15 before she's traumatized. Get a fucking clue.

Again: Zack is single at that point in his life.

Aerith is lying and sucking as much copium as y'all do. The translation is also shit in OG because she doesn't call him a ladies man in JP, she says he's a friendly guy.

Idky you think kh, WoFF and KotR are some weird ass "canon" link that proves your garbage ship or disproves Zack is a decent guy, but you need to shut up.

That's all. Don't bother trying to educate yourself, just shut up. We don't want to hear from you. At all.

Shut up.

#ship war #cult bs #slam debunk #petty bench mode activated

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ertrunkenerwassergeist · 10 months

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I finally finished Final Fantasy XVI

Holy shit that game was good. And that ending. I cried. Multiple times.

After the game was done I had to go for a walk to get over the ache in my chest. It’s hot as balls outside, but thankfully I did not melt into a puddle. Heat aside, it helped me get some thoughts in order.

The characters, the plot, the music and the world will live in my brain rent free for a long, long time. (Cid for favourite character, in case anyone was wondering.)

There was emotional weight behind every character.

The world feels lived in and crowded. As much as I love FFXV, one of the criticisms I have towards that game is that its world feels woefully underpopulated. Here, in FFXVI, this was very much not so. There are people and it feels like their decisions have weight. It’s not just the protagonists and the antagonists, but also the secondary and tertiary characters.

I’m a sucker for political fantasy stories, and this one absolutely hit the sweet spot for me. In its politics it made sense to me. The fight for resources, the religious aspects, the very human pride that can make everything so much worse.

And the slavery, well...

This might actually deserve its own post, but imo it lent everything an extra devious note that you couldn’t distinguish a non-magical human from a bearer (that is the English word, right? I played the game in German), if the latter didn’t have a brand on their cheek. Humans can be cruel to each other no matter how they look like.

Bearers are objectified, not considered human. And with objects you can do what you want. They don’t feel pain, and when one breaks, you can get another. Logic like that is scary, not only because of its cruelty, but also because of how plausible it can be. In the sense that it has happened before in history.

I really appreciate it that this story is, in large part, a tale against this type of thinking. Against slavery, against greed and senseless pride.

It’s about learning understanding and appreciating the world around you.

The only thing that missed its mark a bit imo, is that by the end of it all, magic is gone. I can see the sense behind it, a little bit, but I don’t like it.

Clive associates magic with greed and pain. His trauma has in large part to do with magic. He was born a bearer and hated by his mother for it, he thought a Domini murdered his brother in cold blood and was branded himself soon after, to be pressed into military service for 13 years. Only then to learn that his brother’s murderer was himself. All of that, all that pain and misery, because of magic.

So yes, I can see why Clive would think humanity would be better off without magic.

But

Wouldn’t it have been more impactful, if the people had learned to use magic responsibly, that it isn’t just an easy shortcut? What if they had found the wonder that lies in magic?

That would have gone against everything Ultima thought magic was.

Imo erasing magic is an easy cop out, but that might also be fit for a post of its own.

And it also invalidates the development the people of Valisthea went through. As well as Lubor’s whole quest line. Which honestly frustrates me a bit.

Oh yeah. The side quests are amazing. I did every single one and many build on one another into whole mini quest lines. The stories they tell make the world so much richer.

All in all, I love this game. It’s not perfect. But then again, nothing ever is.

#ffxvi #geist plays ffxvi #ffxvi spoilers #I FINISHED IT #I'm more than one emotion #this got long #my thoughts are a mess #this is all over the place #and by no means comprehensive #I don't think I articulated some of this very well #I have so many thoughts #long post #the ending was very emotional #but it also frustrated me #will I be writing fanfiction for this?#y'all bet I will #there's so many things I could talk about with this game #is there someone out there I can yell with?

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blackkatmagic · 1 year

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Me, once more on a FFXV kick, stumbling on hearth and home again: Ah yes, the fic that dragged me right into the deep waters of the Star Wars universe

...

Just want you to know that you have dragged me into rare pair hell and loving side/minor characters and reading your fics fandom blind is sort of like "idk if this is an OC or not but I love them", finding out they're a canon side character, then wailing in anguish at the like 50 fics on ao3 about them

💗

“Here, Commander,” Rex says, and tries not to let his relief show when Ahsoka looks up from her slump and takes the canteen from him. Sometimes, when they’ve been going for too long and she’s particularly tired, she’s slow to respond, and—

Well. Rex maybe has had a few too many memories of clones who got decommissioned for being below the standard to not immediately want to hide her from view when that happens.

“Thanks, Rex,” she says, though, and smiles, and Rex gives her a tired smile in return, sinking down beside her in the grass. The hills here are steeper than in the east, with unexpected cliffs and lakes, and HUDs aren’t doing much to give them advance warning. It’s tiring going, and they still haven’t seen any trace of either droids or more stealth ships.

“All clear?” he asks, because a Jedi’s senses are about the only reliable thing they have right now.

Ahsoka grimaces, taking a long swallow of water and recapping the canteen, then passing it back. “So far,” she says, and leans forward, resting her elbows on her knees. “Anakin hasn’t found anything, either.”

Comms are down, but at this point, Rex is willing to take her word for it. “Denal’s lucky. He’s been getting the quiet shifts.”

Snickering, Ahsoka rests her chin on her arms. Rex has been serving with her long enough to recognize when she’s protecting her lekku from the cold, and he wants to frown, but—they don’t have any cold-weather gear with them, and no extra blankets he can offer.

“I wonder if that guy has found any,” she says, and Rex pauses, startled out of his worry.

“In the mask?” he says, frowning. From their two encounters with the stranger, he’s either good at finding droids or good at finding trouble, and Rex isn't entirely sure which to put his credits on. If he had credits, at least. “Maybe the Force is leading him to them.”

“Well, I don’t know why it’s leading him and not me, then.” Ahsoka wrinkles her nose, clearly displeased. “I messaged Master Obi-Wan, but he didn’t know if there were any Force cults that used lightning. And—he’s not Dark, I don’t think. But I haven’t been around a Dark Jedi before, so I'm not sure I know what to look for.”

Rex thinks of Dooku, of the swamp gas toxin, of all the clones who have died so far in the war. Dark in the Force is probably its own thing, but—Dooku wouldn’t have thrown himself off a cliff to save Kix.

#hearth and home #kat answers

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sleepyowlwrites · 10 months

Note

Happy blorbo blursday! I was thinking recently about how I have very few outright villains in my writing and I got curious about other people's. So tell me about your villains (or your most villain-adjacent antagonists)! - @void-botanist

here is my incomplete list of villains/antagonists:

Masryune from Summon Story

his real name is Petirik Ov'Rine

somebody once told him the reason for why summoners stay away from the Field of Teeth and he was like "sounds like an invitation"

has some delusions of grandeur but from like. a business standpoint. he thinks a great business idea is to start a war.

he summons some shidha - the type of spirit summoners are warned against ever summoning - to possess dead dragons so he can start this war

he monologues a lot

in my head he's a cross between Ardyn from FFXV and Jan Van Eck from Six of Crows, two antagonists that are fun or interesting for a hot minute before you're like PLEASE GO AWAY

he has no idea that the reason his plans keep getting tripped up is literally just a group of nobody summoners accidentally interrupting them

he throws temper tantrums but the consequences are that people die and there's blood in the streets so that's great

Alexander Gold from Magick Story

he's the calculating, calm type of antagonist. he's playing the long game and he's very good at it

when he's through, all magick in TOWN THAT STILL DOESN'T HAVE A NAME TWO YEARS ON will be linked back to him and he can live forever and control everything. that's the plan

it's not a terrible plan but it's also not a great one because magick is lowkey almost sentient and it literally can't be coerced into a single intention so this is a doomed enterprise but also while it's on its way to doom it's causing a lot of havoc so there's that

he's got this weird fling with Heidi Chorus, his partner in crime, sometimes, and they flirt super weird and torture people together

he's suave and interesting but he also kills animals so we hate him

Max (and Cam) from City Story

he's my least favorite, I hate him so much

his crimes include: abuse, coercion, blackmail, drug dealing, running an illegal fight club thing, abuse, arranging a murder, being an asshole to everyone he meets, brainwashing his brother, abuse

he hasn't even shown up in the story yet because I don't want to touch him with a ten foot pole

he sends people to hurt Rune because he believes she's his property

Cam, the brainwashed brother, wasn't always awful but now he just agrees with whatever Max says and this isn't a Jang Hanseo situation, he is OK with hurting people as long as Max doesn't hurt him. we can feel a little bad for him but that's it 'cause he is willingly terrible

and Max is just the worst

he's slimy and my least favorite and I hate him so much

I dunno who the villain/antagonist of Mercenary Story, Guild Story, or Rain Story is/are. I do also have some evil/antagonistic girls, don't worry.

Rhea from Summon Story

she's Shae's half-sister and bent on revenge

Shae is happy to be reunited with her but Rhea just wants to kill things now and doesn't care about the collateral damage

she's not all bad. maybe. I don't know if she succeeds in killing her father. yet.

I mentioned Heidi Chorus from Magick Story.

there's also Fawn from City Story, Max's favorite girlfriend. she's awful. not in the annoying, brainless kind of way. she's smart and controlling and that's why Max likes her. goodbye.

there are plenty of unnamed characters in Guild and Mercenary Stories, both good and bad, because I keep not writing them, haha.

in Anxiety Story the antagonist isn't a person, though it briefly manifests as Aiden's father.

in Youth Story there's no plot, just vibes, so no antagonist there.

Train Story is also vibes.

Romance Story has John Rusalo but then he gets redeemed and then Jack Sanderson but we kick him out of the story for being just a terrible cousin and then it's like, English law, I guess.

Apocalypse Story is vibes again.

Space Story is as well.

Hunter Story, Summer Story, Princess Story, and Gang Story barely exist.

Thief Story's antagonist is the bridge they're trying to steal, because I don't know what they're stealing it for.

Dimension Story's antagonist is grief, and the fact that these two kids can't keep ripping holes in spacetime to see each other forever. golly that's such a sad story. no wonder I'm not writing it.

thanks for asking, Sapling

#sleepy answers #oc asks #wip: city story: supplemental #wip: summon story: supplemental #wip: magick story: supplemental

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altschmerzes · 1 year

Text

First Sentences Game!

tagged by @disappearinginq (thank youuuu!!!)

Rules: share the first lines of ten of your most recent fanfics and tag ten people. If you have written less than ten, don’t be shy and share anyway.

putting the rest of this under a cut so it’s not a huge long post! decided to take a leaf out of disappearinginq’s book and use only WIPs that haven’t been posted yet so >:) enjoy. we got 4 ted lasso fics, 2 9-1-1 fics, 2 locked tomb fics, 1 now you see me fic, 1 flashpoint fic, and 1 ffxv fic. yes that adds up to 11. it’s a surprise.

i have included the opening...... Couple Of Paragraphs. Or for these lmao because as always with me, i cannot help it and it is longer than intended.

tagging some folks up front no pressure but if you want an excuse to share your stories or brag on yourself this is your cue. i dont think it matters if it’s posted fics or wips - @heavensenthale @appalachianapologies @bold-and-nosy @nativestarwrites @impossiblepluto @roguelibrarian (and anyone compelled to do this who can go ahead and take this as a sign to say i tagged you and Do It)

1. Love Stuck - ted lasso

the aromantic jamie tartt fic. jamie realizes he’s aro, and this becomes a study of his and keeley’s post-breakup friendship and how aromanticism can open doors and allow for more freedom and personal choice in relationships for non-aro people too.

The only warning that Keeley gets before Jamie shows up at her house is a text message that she knows he sent by voice-to-text because of its use of capital letters and the complete lack of emojis. It announces his imminent arrival and apologizes for the lack of warning, explaining that he forgot to do that until he was almost there, all in one long, run-on sentence without punctuation. She has just enough time to grab a cardigan, because she’d been getting kind of chilly anyway, and pause the episode of Sex and the City she had been watching before he’s ringing the doorbell.

When Keeley opens the door, Jamie bypasses any kind of perhaps typically-expected greeting. While this isn’t exactly unusual for him, what he says is.

“I’ve got great news,” he tells her, smiling like he really does have great news, which helps to somewhat offset the sense of foreboding she’d been starting to feel. “I am not in love with you. Can I come in?”

2. Wriggle Up On Dry Land - ted lasso

au where everything is pretty much the same except for the part where jamie is the fifteen year old groundskeeper’s assistant who works part-time at nelson road. proceeds approximately through the timelines/events of seasons 1 and 2 (and maybe 3 depending on how that goes).

At this point, Ted has been in England for less than forty-eight hours, he’s slept for somehow both too many and not enough of those hours, and people keep saying things to him that are ostensibly in English but have no coherent meaning he can wring from his exhausted, jet lagged brain. This, he thinks, is a reasonable explanation for why it takes him several moments to process what he’s seeing when he reaches the coaching office.

One hand loosely gripping the strap of his backpack, the other holding out his keys in preparation to unlock the office, Ted stands there for a long time and blinks. The office does not need unlocking, it turns out, because the door is already open. The door is already open, and there’s what appears to be a kid crouching next to it, doing… something to the lowest hinge with a screwdriver. The boy glances up when Ted approaches, but makes no direct acknowledgement of him and goes immediately back to whatever he’s doing with the tool.

Now. On the one hand, this is a teenager Ted has never seen before and he is messing with the door of the head coaching office. That feels like bad news. On the other hand, he is wearing a grey zippered jacket with the Richmond logo on one lapel and STAFF embroidered underneath it in cursive. That, and his non-reaction to Ted catching him mid-potential-mischief, seems to indicate maybe this whole situation is above board after all.

“Uh,” Ted says after the silent pause has gone on long enough that he officially feels like he’s being rude. “Good morning?”

3. the bus curse 5+1 - ted lasso

Five Times The Curse Of The AFC Richmond Away Game Post-Game Bus Ride Home (Mostly Referred To Simply As 'The Bus Curse' For Conservation Of Time) Ruined The Night And One Time It Tried To But Couldn’t. tl;dr bus is haunted (roy voice It Is Not) (for fun and profit the chapter titles for this are ‘twitter’ ‘illness’ ‘the heavy existential burden of captaincy’ ‘nightmare’ ‘injury’ and ‘double birthday’)

The most important thing to understand about The Curse Of The AFC Richmond Away Game Post-Game Bus Ride Home (mostly referred to as ‘the bus curse’ for conservation of time) is that it doesn’t fucking exist.

Roy is fully ready and willing to die on this hill and go to his grave still swearing up and down that the ‘curse’ is superstitious bullshit, just like the one on the training room. Sure, he’s experienced two flat tires and a radiator overheating on the way home with Richmond, which never happened with any previous team, but that’s probably because management always hired the cheapest charter possible. Sure, the driver once stopped off for petrol and simply never came back from inside the station, but that’s because the bloke apparently had some kind of epiphany and decided to radically change his life, not because of the bus itself. Sure, there have been some dozen-odd other assortment of events ranging from inconveniences to calamities that have disrupted specifically the return bus journey from away matches, but there are explanations for all of them, none of which involve any kind of curse.

4. Never Been In Love - 9-1-1

the aromantic evan buckley fic. buck has a very rocky time coming to terms with being aro, and then telling everyone about it. ft internalized arophobia, romance repulsion, found family, the power of queer friendship, and the way the episode with red the retired firefighter was the perfect set-up for an aro character realization but of course they’d never go there.

The thing about dates is that, theoretically, at some point they are supposed to go well. And it’s not like Buck’s never been on dates that he has fun on. He has! A lot of them, actually! He’s a people person, he always has been, he likes spending time around others and spending time one-on-one is extra nice - it feels nice to bask in the attention and to focus his attention solely on someone else for a while. However, there always comes a point where the woman Buck is out with starts blatantly flirting and he knows he needs to flirt back, or he just… remembers that he’s out on a date and not just hanging out with a cool person he wants to get to know better, and it all goes sour.

The end of it is, even when Buck’s dates go well, they don’t. The mere fact that they’re dates is enough to thoroughly ruin the experience, either in the moment or in hindsight, particularly once there’s an expectation that there are going to be more dates and, at some point, a relationship. And that… Buck really just doesn’t know what to do with that.

5. One-Way Mirror - now you see me

oneshot set between movies 1 and 2 that gets at explaining some of the shifts in character dynamics and digs into what it would be like for dylan to mesh with the team when they were already a team and he was on the outside. lot of focus on what happened to create such a faith in him from jack specifically.

The nice thing about setting yourself up to look like the lawman who got duped by a team of criminals just a little too smart for him is that, when you announce your intention to take a sabbatical, nobody really asks too many questions. Dylan must have played his role effectively, because not an eyelid is bat when the Agent who got too invested in fugitives that ultimately eluded him decides to take off for a while. He has the leave accrued, it’s a matter of putting in the paperwork. Fuller is a little concerned but Evans waves it through with barely a thought. Cowan swans around the office dripping smug satisfaction, and Dylan keeps his head down and swallows it.

He goes to France to visit Alma first. While things are still white-hot in the fallout of the case, the Horsemen are laying low in the area. They’ll take off for a house the Eye has arranged soon enough, but in the handful of days intervening Dylan gets on a plane to Paris. Alma deserves some answers after everything she went through on this case with him, and if it means he’s going to get arrested after all, well, so be it. The others are set up, they’ll be okay.

6. untitled fic about mercymorn and augustine in a doc labeled ‘rotates them’ - the locked tomb series

this is simply me losing my mind about this dynamic, getting somewhat at how they came up with the plan they attempted to enact in ht9.

“Do you love your brother?”

Augustine stops in his tracks, facing away from her. His body twitches in a horrid, disarticulated little spasm, like a marionette that’s been electrocuted. The question has hurt him, and she can tell.

Good, Mercymorn thinks. Pain sharpens the senses.

“How dare you ask me that.”

Mercymorn does not back down. For one thing, she does not, as a rule, back down. Ever. For another, she’d caught up to him here and brought up the subject for a reason, and it isn’t just to torment him with it.

7. One Right Move - flashpoint

time loop of the episode one wrong move where lou young died. spike relives his best friend’s death over and over and over until he can figure out how to make it stop.

This is the way the world ends. This is the way the world ends.

This is the way the worst day of Michaelangelo Scarlatti’s life ends - not with a bang, but with the echo of one.

Explosions have not been an unusual occurrence in Spike’s world to date. Moments of ground-shaking thunder and fire have come and gone for him the way a lawyer conducts depositions or a surgeon draws a dotted line indicating where they plan to cut - something that is an incomprehensible oddity to those outside the profession, but as familiar as the tree on the corner of the street you drive down every day to those inside it. While the detonation of a bomb may be the worst or most shocking thing to happen in the life of just about any random person you grabbed off the street, it’s Tuesday for Spike. Even when they go bad, they still ultimately go. He doesn’t spend hours reliving them after the smoke has cleared.

This time, he does. Laying on his side on the couch in Greg’s living room, the moment that mine went off replays again and again. Sometimes it’s hard to tell if he’s imagining it or if something is still actually exploding, because Spike can still feel himself shaking from the percussive force. Or maybe shaking from something else. It’s hard to tell, now, in this diluted, slipping evening that doesn’t feel remotely real.

8. Can’t Grow A Proper Branch - 9-1-1

5+1 of five times someone got one of the pieces indicating that buck’s childhood and family were Really Fucking Bad and one time he just straight out told someone.

Man plans and God laughs.

When Bobby was growing up, the Nash family’s next door neighbor had been a Rabbi and his wife whose older daughter had been his age. Often, when his parents were working late, Bobby would end up at the Rose house, playing with Sarah Rose or doing homework with her at the kitchen table under Rabbi Rose’s quiet supervision. Man plans and God laughs. A Yiddish proverb Rabbi Rose had been fond of. Even though it’s been decades since he’d lived in the house in St. Paul next door to the Roses, decades since he’d last spoken to the man at all, the phrase he’d used so often still pops into Bobby’s head sometimes. It even makes its way out of his mouth now and then.

From the moment they meet, it feels to Bobby like Evan Buckley is God laughing at his plans.

9. Game Over. Try Again? - final fantasy xv

the first time noctis had to use a phoenix down on each of his friends. exploring game resurrection mechanics from a narrative standpoint.

Gladio has been twenty years old for all of nine days when he dies in an assassination attempt that leaves Noctis without a scratch. It all happens so quickly that there’s no time to feel the energy in the air change before the shooting starts.

A second before the first bullet shatters what had been a perfectly fine, unremarkable afternoon, Gladio’s hand closes around Noctis’s arm, the other plants in the square centre of his back, and he’s being shoved so hard it propels him several feet forward. He’s all ready to be pissed, to whirl around and demand that the big dumb bastard explain what, precisely, his issue is when a chunk of concrete explodes from the waist-high wall he’s landed behind. Noctis isn’t really sure what he thinks is happening at first, but ‘someone is shooting bullets at me because they are trying very hard to kill me’ is not it.

10. baby heist au - ted lasso

the one where bex decides to leave rupert, rebecca decides to help her, an extremely unlikely friendship forms, and i cast spell of ‘hold a baby’ on the entire richmond greyhounds roster.

The first thing that enters Rebecca’s mind when she gets the initial message is suspicion. She stares at her mobile, squinting at the text from the number - unattached to anyone in her address book - and trying to piece together who it could possibly be from.

Hello Rebecca. I was wondering if you might have time for a coffee and a chat soon. I have something I’d really like to discuss with you.

It came through just as she was walking to her desk upon first arriving at the office, and caught her so off-guard that she’s still standing there in the middle of the room looking at the screen when the second message arrives.

Oh, this is Bex by the way. Bex Harper.

A third, not a moment later.

Well. Bex Mannion I guess.

bonus 11. baby heist au 2: 2 heist, 2 baby - the locked tomb series

modern au (i know, but bear with me) where it’s like pov. you are ortus nigenad. you are in your very early twenties. you have come to the unfortunate realization that you are in a cult and you have Fucking Snapped and you cannot be here one more moment longer. on your way out, you decided to take a pair of toddlers with you. pov. you are abigail pent. you are a professor and you live with your husband in the top floor of a duplex. a young man with a pair of little girls just moved in downstairs, and you’ve got the feeling there’s something Going On with them.

The bottom unit of the building has been empty since before Abigail moved into the upstairs of the duplex on Primis Street. She’s never met the person who owns it, and so there has never been an opportunity to ask after this curiosity, despite her desire to know if there was a reason for it. Magnus tells her that it’s probably just not a keenly desired neighbourhood, especially for the university demographic comprising most of their area, but still she has always wondered.

When someone does move into it, Abigail doesn’t notice at first. It’s such a shock the first time she hears a sound and looks out of her unit just in time to see the downstairs door close behind someone that she nearly calls after him on the spot. She manages to repress the instinct, but she calls Magnus immediately upon going back inside.

“What? Since when?” he asks when Abigail tells him they’ve finally got neighbours.

“I haven’t the faintest idea! I just saw him coming home. Didn’t see much, just the door closing behind him, but I think he’s young. There’s not even a car out front! It’s all quite mysterious.”

Things do not clear up from there, especially not once Abigail catches her first glimpse of the children.

#gav gab #tag meme #writing liveblog #i did not tag ten people i tagged five people but frankly that much is a win #pls feel free to message or ask about any of these #i always need the encouragement slkdfjsfd #so drop me a line if there's one you're excited for or smth

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madeimpact · 6 months

Note

👽👨‍👨‍👧‍👧🗝🥂

It is Munday, my dudes || @vitrumbra

👽 AUs

Dude are you KIDDING??? I love AUs so much that back before I shortened my alias to not be an embarrassing Google Translate mishap, a running joke with my friends was (in the voice of "randy your sticks") NEGAU YOUR AU!!!!!

I'm a sucker for them. I love them. ESPECIALLY ones that stick guys from one fandom in the universe of another. My Madoka AU for the Evangelion kids is my precious baby brain child that I will cherish for the rest of forever and hopefully one day actually finish a fic or doujin or SOMETHING of. Bonus points if I can take the lore and fucking run with it like we're doing with the FFXV guys in Pokémon :^)

👨‍👨‍👧‍👧 fankids

Again: are you kidding? Not to put an RP partner on blast here, but @novuscaelum is a joy for me to interact with and bounce off of. Fankids are great! Just...with the caveat that it's mostly (not entirely but mostly) on the fankid to make sure that they're not forcing the parent to compromise too much on their portrayal. A little give and take on both ends makes for a happy RPing, but chances are if you're the fankid, you came up with your OC based on some preconceived notions you have about the canon parent(s) which you may not share with the person you're writing with. TL;DR: Communication is key!

🗝 selectiveness in the RPC

I think there's a tendency to equate selectiveness with elitism, which. It's just Not. People have boundaries, and it's important to make your own clear and respect those of others. I've been the person who didn't get followed back or got softblocked before, and it sucks!! I know it does!! But nobody on this website owes you RP interactions, and for every one person that passes on you, there will be five others that are more than willing to write with you.

🥂 my favorite part of the canon

I'll go with KH since that's one of my main things right now and you didn't specify LOL /nm

It's hard to pick one favorite thing no matter how I interpret this question. I could go with meta-wise what's my favorite thing about KH as a series, or in-universe what's my favorite plot beat, lore, etc. I'll go with the latter interpretation for the purposes of this meme, and for KH...one of my favorite things is how very not chosen one Sora is. The story goes out of its way to say that Sora is an ordinary kid who likes taking naps on the beach and is content with his life on the islands, if anything mostly going along with Riku's hunger to see what else is out there. For fuck's sake, the Kingdom Key was meant to be RIKU'S at first, and it chose his heart instead in the wake of what happened to the Islands. "I know that the Keyblade didn't choose me, and I don't care. I'm proud to be a small part of something bigger — the people it did choose."

The fact that he's just a kid who, through sheer force of will and desire to protect what matters to him, strong armed his way into being the hero is way more powerful than the Chosen One trope will ever be, in my humble opinion. It's why I'm so scared of the murmurs of theories that Sora will have some grand ties to some UX / ML era characters or be reincarnated or some shit, that would be such a massive shit on everything that the previous games set up and I hope to GOD it doesn't end up happening.

#THIS GOT LONG SORRY LOL #vitrumbra #❛ ooc: inbox.#long post cw

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savage-rhi · 1 year

Text

6 Questions Game

Tagged by @seradyn

1. Last Song? - I went through Prince's albums "Purple Rain" & "Parade". I had a LONG commute today into town and it was rainy on and off. The music got me out of a bad funk from the weather. Left off on his song Kiss. That one's fun! I know he's got controversy even in death as a person, but I like Prince as an artist.

2. Last show? - I don't have cable/network and use streaming services mostly. I'm not into too much at the moment. Nothing has really got my attention TV wise. Last Sunday I did catch The Last of Us on HBO Max. Wasn't a bad ep.

3. Currently watching? - I've been re-watching True Blood. When I was in high school and everyone was on a Twilight craze, this was my jam, my peanut butter, and my bread. After season 4 it honestly tanked for me. I wish it ended on better terms or was more aligned with the books. It's been fun though revisiting and remembering why I liked a lot of the characters as a kid, and remembering how my mom lost her shit at me watching this but my gram was like TELL ME WHEN THE NEXT EP IS OUT I LOVE IT! 😂

4. Currently reading? - I finished reading Dinosaurs: A Novel by Lydia Millet, and I'm currently on The Fictional Man by Al Ewing.

The first novel centers around the main character healing through his traumas and finding purpose in life again by connecting with others. The book is literally the embodiment of "enjoy the little things". The plot isn't too deep but its enough to give you pause and think about irrelevant moments that actually mean you're living. There's some good dinosaur metaphors in here too.

The second one is hella interesting (arguably too if you're into fandom stuff or have fictional crushes). From my understanding of the world thus far, "Fictionals" are created humans (either by cloning or advanced robotics idk yet) that represent, well, fictional characters that people love. Once the novelty wears off, many get discarded. I'm not sure if the main character is one yet, but it's been a fun read so far. Makes me sad too cause if this kind of tech was possible, I could definitely see abandonment being a thing.

5. Current obsession? - I don't think it's any surprise I've been on an FFXV binge for several months (and splurging on a crush on a fictional 2000 year old garbage pimp jesus dude). I've been playing a lot of Hades on top of it, and revisiting Death Stranding.

6. Unrelated obsession? - Pokemon, Resident Evil, FFX, FF7, FF8, Cowboy Bebop, Outlaw Star, Gundam, etc. I have a lot for fandom. Stuff outside of it I'm obsessed with are paleontology, space, and herpetology.

Thanks again Sera! Gonna tag @astrandofgold and see if they want to chime in what they been up to! 💙

#6questionsgame #this was fun #felt good to get stuff out #even if its random af #lol

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firefallvaruna · 2 years

Text

FFXV Fanfic: Double Blind

Summary: Ignis and Prompto's hunt for malboros goes wrong and Prompto is hit with the blind status effect. Set during the Long Night/World of Ruin. (Rated T for teens)

Also Available on AO3

Comments: When I was a kid, I pitched a fit over the "Blind" status effect. Like, how the heck was that even supposed to work?? My wonderful, fellow-nerd of a mom suggested a couple ways it might work -- which I adopted into my headcanon for every subsequent game.

---------------------------------------

“Prompto!” The panicked shout came again, though he barely recalled the first time it was shouted.

“Damn it all!” The voice shouted again, “Prompto!”

Ignis was uncharacteristically salty today.

It was a silly, even absurd thought. Prompto would have laughed and given Ignis so much crap if he didn’t feel so heavy, tired, and dizzy. His stomach, too, was kind of unhappy.

“I said piss off!” Ignis bellowed angrily from somewhere. Then the roaring howl of wind and biting cold. Prompto had never heard him this angry.

The next time he awoke, he felt something crack and wash over him. The next moment, his stomach lurched. He wanted to move before his stomach climbed into his throat, but he couldn’t move.

Then he realized he was being held on his side in a recovery position.

“Don’t try to move,” Ignis said, his hand painfully gripping his shoulder. He released him slowly.

Prompto felt something crack over him again, and his head started to clear. “What happened?” His voice was slurred. Why was his voice slurred?

“The damn malboros happened!” Ignis all but shouted. Or maybe he was just talking really, really loudly. He was so confused.

“No!” Ignis really did yell, “Stay with me, Prompto!”

Something cracked over him again, and the exhaustion eased somewhat, taking the remaining confusion along for the ride.

“Prompto, I am blind!” Ignis reminded him urgently, giving him a slight shake. “I don’t know where my bloody cane went to, and we have Mosaic Morbols in the vicinity! So I need you on your feet!”

That’s right. That was what they were doing.

The tipster had called these things “Mosaic Morbols.” The moniker didn’t say that it was like eight to ten Malboros had grown together into a towering pile. They were a perfectly natural variation of Malboros, apparently. All it took was for the seeds to take root in a deep, narrow ditch, and boom, they’d grow into a pyramid of nastiness.

The gas attack known among the hunters as “Bad Breath” could literally come from any of the mouths in a Mosaic Morbol, three-hundred sixty degrees both horizontally and vertically. And Prompto? He’d found himself cornered. Short of warping, there was no way for him to escape.

“I think I’m okay,” Prompto groaned and tried to open his eyes, but his eyelids refused to move. He sat up gingerly, the act taking far more effort than it should. Finally, he reached up, felt the thick, sticky crust clinging to his eyelashes and effectively gluing his eyes shut, and grunted in disgust, “Eye goop from hell.”

He felt Ignis’ hands upon his face, feeling their way up to his eyes, and put his own hands down to allow him to check for injuries. The hands left his face for a moment, and he heard Ignis pop open his canteen. Then one hand resumed its search of his face, and a small stream of cool water poured into his eyes.

The water softened the crust somewhat, and together they worked to wipe away the crusty goop, and finally, Prompto could open his aching, burning eyes.

All he saw was darkness.

No Ignis. No light from the lamps clipped to the edge of their jackets. Nothing.

A bolt of cold fear shot up his spine like an electric shock. “Iggy, I can’t see.”

Ignis sputtered an impressive string of obscenities that would have made the Kingsglaive very proud (possibly Gladio too, once he picked his jaw off the floor), and Prompto swore he felt him ransacking the Armiger for anything that might help.

Prompto was calling it now: They’d gone through their entire supply. They were literally running on fumes.

“Because malboros,” He said in answer to Ignis’ unspoken exclamation. He didn’t even need to say it. Prompto could feel it radiating in waves from his blind friend. But chanting “what the fuck” and its variations was his thing, not the Steward to the Crown Prince of Lucis.

“Malboros,” Ignis agreed in a resigned sigh. “I suppose there’s no other option but to retreat for now,” he added with even more resignation. “Can you stand?”

Prompto could but found himself flailing for Ignis before he was fully vertical, clinging to him with whatever purchase he could find. He was surprised at how dizzy and uncoordinated he still was, how his muscles didn’t seem to want to obey him.

“Our first move should be to locate the path,” Ignis didn’t seem too irked by Prompto’s unintentional groping. “Do you recall where it was in relation to us?”

“Literal blind leading the blind, huh?” Prompto mused halfheartedly as he tried to remember.

He’d spent the entire hike down here unfocused. He hadn’t hung out with Ignis in weeks, and his excitement had him talking almost nonstop. About Cindy, about his efforts to grow into his role of a Crownsguard rather than one in name alone. About Aranea’s super cute adopted daughter. About how when Noct returned, he had to be ready and equal in strength and skill to the rest of the retinue. (Ignis had interrupted him at that point to insist he had always been their equal.)

“Yes, well,” Ignis said with the tone that said he was smirking. Prompto could picture Ignis straightening his glasses if he wasn’t already holding onto him. “I suppose it can’t be helped.”

After some discussion, they decided to hobble in the opposite direction of the Malboro sounds. There were hiking trails parallel to the green area the carnivorous plants were calling home. They could find their way to one of the area’s Havens if they could reach the trails.

It was a slow walk with Prompto’s unsteady gait and Ignis’ uncertain one. Without vision, it was too easy to locate the smaller trees by walking into them.

Finally, their shoes scuffed onto the gravel path. They picked a direction, hoping for the best.

It was a blessing when Ignis announced he could sense light. An electrical substation from the steady hum. One with lights to keep the daemons away so it could be easily maintained. Together, they groped until their hands found the chainlink fence and then around until they found the gate. To their relief, it was unlocked.

They found a spot against a metal shed (at least Prompto hoped that’s what it was) and decided to wait. For Prompto’s vision to come back or until someone came looking, whichever came first.

“I’m sorry, Iggy,” Prompto was almost asleep when the irresistible urge to apologize overtook him.

“For what, I might ask?” Was his reply.

That Prompto didn’t have an answer for.

When he didn’t immediately answer, Ignis pressed onward. “Might I remind you how many photographs you got of Noct, in all manner of compromising positions? I recall one where he was utterly, disgustingly filthy and none of us had even so much as a speck.”

He did. Of course, he told Noct he’d deleted the photo. What he didn’t tell him was that he had a few memory cards on him and that they would be kept for posterity in their own personal collections. Most likely in Gladio’s collection. Because reasons.

“Or perhaps the time he threw his dagger but warped incorrectly,” Ignis had to be smirking now, from the conspiratory tone of his voice.

“And hit himself in the head,” Prompto finished. Fortunately, pommel first. Noct had rolled around on the ground, holding his head.

Ignis sighed from beside him. A silence fell between them, a surprisingly comfortable one.

“Guess my imposter syndrome is in overdrive,” Prompto said, leaning his head back against the metal shed with a faint metallic bang.

“Come now,” Ignis had that tone that said he was smirking again. “Are you even good enough to have imposter syndrome?”

Prompto shook his head slightly and laughed. “Shot through the heart there, Iggy.” The setup for the pun only then occurred to him, “Wait, don’t take that.”

“You’re to blame,” Ignis stated, and Prompto could hear the grin in his voice.

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