#I’m almost done with zelda so I’ll draw more soon probably maybe

[syrasenturi]

Hello everynyan

[bokettochild]

If you’re still taking requests maybe Legend showing off his outfits from Triforce Heroes (if you consider that one of his games) or just the fierce deity outfit if that’s to much

Good grief! This one really took it away! I liked the prompt so much, and had so many ideas for it, that I think this might have to be a multi-parter (wasn't expecting that).

I touched on three outfits in this one, but I have six more I might do as well. For reference, I included the Kolkiri Clothes, Linebeck's Uniform and the Cozy Parka.

I also realized while writing this that this is the first time I've written from Wind's perspective, which is positively criminal!

I am still taking requests by the way! If you want to see something, shoot it at me!

(Fic below the cut)

It started so normal, Wind never thought it would get so insane.

They were in the Old Man’s Hyrule, too far from the ranch to make it by nightfall but close enough to still be in a relatively safe location. Time had called for them to set up camp and as they were close to a stream, Twilight had called for the additional order of baths.

Watching Twilight drag his protégé into the water was almost worth having to have his head scrubbed by Sky.

Most of them had taken the chance to cool off and mess around once they were clean, and while Warriors attempted to duck Time under the water (a mistake, they soon realized, when the man easily overpowered the captain, who ended up getting dunked instead) and Wild sat in a tree watching their backs (hanging up to dry, Twilight had joked), Wind found that the rest of them were content to swim idly in the water, with only the occasional splash from one or another of them. Usually, there would be more noise, but Twilight was teaching Hyrule to doggie paddle, and they needed calmer waters so as to not scare the Traveler.

He cast his eyes over their group. A red-faced Warriors was coughing and spluttering out insults at a smug looking Time (boy he needed his picto-box), Twilight was gently coaxing Hyrule to the other bank in a manner highly resemblant of a parent urging a baby to walk, Wild was keeping watch, and Sky was relaxing in the shallows.

Where were Four and Legend?

A glance upwards and a signed conversation with Wild later and Wind was making his way upstream a way, around a bend that blocked off most of the noise but that Wild could still see over if needed, to where Four and Legend sat together one the bank.

Or rather, Legend sat, Four was floating in the shallows with a curious expression as he watched the vet- cleaning clothes?

“We’re out here having a good time and you’re doing the laundry? Boring much.” He drawled, drawing the attention of the two heroes.

“I don’t like swimming around others.” Legend scrunched up his nose in disgust, it wiggled, almost cutely. “And my things needed a wash.”

He snorted, turning his questioning gaze to Four.

The smithy shrugged. “It’s quieter over here, and Wars will try and dunk me if he gets the chance.” A heavy sigh escaped the shortest hero. “He really needs to be taken down a notch some days.”

“Some days?” Legend snorted.

Wind just rolled his eyes. So, what if Wars had a bit of an ego and spent a lot of time messing with them? It was just the way the captain expressed himself, Wind would do the same if he could get away with it and had a few inches on the others.

A flash of color in the spring caught his attention, bright pink against the soft blue of the water, and he surged forwards. “What’s that?”

Legend’s hand hit his face as the vet reached out to push him back, effectively pushing the excited child under water, and for a brief moment, Wind could swear he saw a pink skirt drifting just before his face before it disappeared and he was popping up out of the water again with a splash.

“You have pink clothes?” He grinned at the bundle of fabric in the Vet’s hands.

“I have clothes in all colors.” Legend sniffed, batting another piece of fabric at him in a shooing motion.

“Doubt.” Four and Wind deadpanned. “Nobody has that much clothing.”

Legend’s face was drawn, eyes dark with that haunted look that Time sometimes got when looking at the moon. “I do.”

Wind and Four exchanged a look. “Why would you even need so much clothing?”

“Adventure number six.” Legend sighed, returning to his washing.

Another shared glance was exchanged and the two boys swam closer to the older teen. “And you used all of it?” Legend nodded. “All by yourself?”

The vet paused. “I had some...friends, with me.”

“You have friends?” Wind sat up again, who knew the Vet actually got along with people other than Ravio and Zelda?

“Ouch.”

“Yeah, Wind, that’s kinda mean.” Four murmured.

“I don’t mean you don’t have friends,” He huffed bangs from his eyes to look at Legend better, it did nothing, they still drifted into his view and cut off his view of the top of Legend’s hat. “I mean, we’ve never seen them so I didn’t realize you were on good terms with more people than Ravio.”

Legend shrugged. “You probably won’t ever meet them, I... became acquainted with them outside of Hyrule and they’ve never been seen leaving the land where we traveled together.”

“What were their names?” Four asked lazily, eyes trailing after leaves that floated off downstream towards where the others were.

Legend’s snort caught them off guard. “You don’t want to know.”

Now that was interesting, Legend never shied away from giving names to the people he had met in his travels, what was so different about these people? He’d had nothing against telling them Ravio’s name. “Why not?” Curiosity was tickling at his just like his hair was, and it was the only thing keeping him from ducking under again to relieve the itching of slowly-drying hair.

Legend cocked a brow at the two of them. “Their names are worse than ours.”

Now Wind really wanted to know! “What were they?”

Four echoed his question, eyes glinting in the light as he stared over at the vet, who was now beginning to pack away his things again. It took some nagging (something Wind had plenty of experience with) to finally get Legend to answer, but when he did, he didn’t disappoint.

“Red, Blue and Green. A set of nut cases if you ask me.” Legend drawled, not looking at them as he stuffed something glittery and gold in his bag. Four froze, eyes flashing four colors, one after another for a moment before he turned his sharp gaze on the vet.

“Did they call you Vio by any chance?”

Wind stared. “Why would they do that? He already has a name, he wouldn’t need to match, besides, Legend doesn’t even wear purple.”

“His eyes are purple.” Four pointed out, and Wind turned to very pointedly try and see what color Legend’s eyes actually were.

They were purple.

“No, they didn’t call me Vio,” Legend rolled his eyes, pushing Wind out of his face again. “They call me Link, same as any sane person does.”

“We’re sane.” Wind protested.

“Debatable.” The two older heroes deadpanned.

Wind pouted, but let it go, gaze drifting for a moment as he let silence fall over them. Four was staring at Legend in a suspicious manner, eyes blue again, but he didn’t say anything, and the vet didn’t seem keen on saying anything either, instead getting up and walking over to the clothes he had draped across one of the trees. He wasn’t kidding, it looked like a rainbow over there.

“So, if those things belonged to your friends, why do you have them?”

“Only one with a bottomless bag.” Came the clipped reply. “That and I’m the only one who’s likely to need them again.”

“Your friends don’t need clothes?” Four balked.

“No! Of course, they do!” Legend made a face, swatting a hand at Four. “Wild’s the only one who goes around naked, I’ll have you know, and if any of them had done the same they would have been shunned by the whole kingdom.” The vet huffed, voice dropping to a mutter. “What with the fashion laws and all.”

“So, if they already have clothes of their own, what did you need all for this for?” He gestured towards the various garments that Legend was still packing away.

“They’re all enchanted, or otherwise intended for special purposes.” The vet winced. “Hopefully I’ll never need most of them again, but there’s always the chance.”

“Will we ever get to see them?” He watched as Legend stuffed another garment into one of his bags many pockets.

“Hopefully never.” Legend spat.

But when did things ever go Legend’s way?

It was a hat first.

A battle in the forest ended with black blood spattered everywhere, but with Legend and Wild having provided support from the sidelines in the form of arrows flying across the battlefield, injuries were more scarce than normal.

Of course, that could be attributed to the fact that there had only been a few of the black-blooded monsters in the camp they had just destroyed.

As most of them had gathered their weapons and wiped away the blood, Wild had come leaping down from the treetops with Legend following after at a more sedate pace. Wind wondered if that was because of the Vet’s arthritis is because of the huge hat on his head.

“Nice accessories, do some shopping while we were down here fighting?” Wars snarked, huffing a laugh at the vet as Legend’s feet touched the earth again.

Indigo blue snapped at the captain as Legend adjusted the pointed cap. “No time for that when I have you all to keep an eye on.”

Twilight sniggered. “What’s with the hat, Ledge?”

“Yeah!” Wind bounded up to the older hero, eyes wide as he looked at the strange accessory. “Where did you get that?”

“Is that one of the things you got on your last adventure?” Four mused, sparking further excitement in the sailor, if it was, than maybe Legend would actually be willing to tell them more about it!

“Yeah, is it?”

No one addressed the confused stares of the taller heroes as their three shortest members conversed.

“Yeah,” Legend lifted the hat off and brushed at its brim in a clearly fond display; if he even attempted to say anything about hating his adventure again Wind was not going to believe him, not after that smile. “A Kolkiri hat, made to aid archers and help them shoot more arrows. I don’t usually use it, but it helps when you need to take out more than one enemy at once.”

“You could just learn to shoot better.” Wild chuckled, plucking at the hats brim only to have the garment whisked out of reach by a glaring veteran.

“I can shoot well; this just helps me see better because it blocks the freaking sun.”

“Kolkiri you say?” Time mused, stepping forwards to peer at the pointed green cap.

“Sure, you didn’t just steal it off of a witch?” Wars teased.

“No witch could replicate this sort of quality,” And if there wasn’t pride in his voice than Wind would eat his boots. “Not even the finest tailors in all of Hytopia could imitate it, and they’ve tried.” Legend spun the hat in his hands before popping it back on top of his head. “Don’t know the tailor, but what I wouldn’t give to learn their tricks. Kolkiri know what they’re doing, and they do it better than most Hylian craftsmen.”

Time was smirking, and Wind really wanted to know why. “You should see the tunics they can make.”

Legend returned the smirk. “Oh, I have, I own one.”

“As do I,” Their resident old man chuckles. “Although I doubt I could fit in it any longer.”

Wind giggles, trying to imagine Time in the clothes he’s seen on the spirits of the kolkiri, it’s hard, what with how big their leader is.

“Hat might fit you though.” And as the words ring through the air, Legend is already reaching up to pull the brim of his pointed hat over Time’s face. Their leader chuckles, brushing Legend off and adjusting the hat to sit more securely on his head.

Somehow, Time looks more comfortable in the hat than he does in his armor, and even though the two clash terribly, he doesn’t seem to mind, a light smile gracing his features as they set off again.

It’s a few days before Legend brings out another item from his collection of clothes, and when he does, it’s only after the others have drifted off to sleep. Wind would have been sleeping too, but you can only stay awake so long when your mind replays the horrors of the past, and Wind can only watch in silence for so long as giant ocean-monsters attempt to destroy those he loves the most. Tetra’s scream echoes in his own cracking voice as he startles awake.

The stars shine brightly overhead, brighter still as they blur from his tears. Despite what the others might say, or the confident way he tries to convey himself, Bellum frightens him, even now, and everything he had to deal with on that adventure... it weighs heavy on his mind.

A strangles sob escapes him as he sits up to bury his head in his knees, arms wrapped tight around his legs as he tries to shake of the after-effects of the dream.

That’s all it was, after all, just a dream.

Just like the Ocean King, like Lineback, like everything else in that world had been.

It’s just a dream.

“Hey,” Legend’s voice is soft and almost lost in his sobs and the crackling of the fire, but Wind is used to listening for even the softest of sounds in the night; be it due to Aryl having a night-terror –her own dreams aren’t free from their adventure- or someone sneaking around to make trouble. “Sailor, you all good?”

It’s clear he’s not, and he knows that, so Legend really has no business asking, but at the very least he isn’t being told to stop being a baby. “’m okay.” His own voice betrays him and Wind wants to sigh in irritation. Usually, he’d pout and groan at the way his voice cracks, but right now he doesn’t have the emotional or mental strength to do anything about it.

There’s shifting from across the camp, and even though his head is still pressed against his raised knees, he sees a flicker of golden pink in the firelight as Legend crouches down before him.

Thank Hylia the vet doesn’t sit back on his ankles, Wind doesn’t want to know if he’s not wearing shorts under that skirt of his.

“None of that now, what’s eating you?” It’s a weird term, especially coming from Legend, who’s usually so clipped and professional in his speech, and Wind can’t help but huff out a short laugh.

“Nothing,” His hand dashes across his eyes, wiping the tears away, only to have more of them prick at the corners. “Go back to watch, I’m fine.”

“And Twilight is a dog person.” Legend drawls. “Look, if you have an emotional moment or whatever, you’ll be tired as shit when we have to leave in the morning. I don’t know about you, but I don’t feel keen on dealing with another Sky.” It’s rough and gruff, but in a way that reminds him of Lineback rather than make him upset.

“I’m fine, just...” He dwells on his next words for a moment. He’s not scared, not really. It’s just the aftershock of a too-real dream about another too-real dream. He’s not really sad either, even if the island is gone now, he’s just... “I’m drained.” He whispers, scrubbing his eyes. “I miss everything back at home but,” He pauses, wondering briefly if Legend could even understand what he’s trying to express. “I guess I miss the things that aren’t there too.”

“Like what?” He doesn’t look up, but he knows the exact expression on Legend’s face; brow raised and mouth pulled into a thoughtful frown.

“Places... people. It’s all just dreams but..” He fiddles with the end of his blanket. “I miss the warmth of them I guess, miss the sea and the islands, even the fake ones, they were so... comforting.” He chuckles, surprising himself with the bitterness that tinges his own voice. “Even if I did spend so much of that time trying not to get killed.”

“Warmth, huh?” Legend hums. There’s a brief pause, one Wind almost takes for Legend rolling his eyes and deciding to leave him to his thoughts, but then there’s a brief rustling and something warm and thick settles over his shoulders as Legend sits at his side. “It’s no pirate uniform, but it still smells like the sea, if that helps at all.”

Wind wants to tease Legend for the sentimentality and love in the action, but when he turns to look at the Vet, his gaze falls instead on the royal blue coat that has been draped around his shoulders.

Too-long sleeves fall to fold at his waist while the rest of the long coat trails and puddles around him, rich, warm fabric blocking out the night chill. It’s a lovely coat, but it’s painfully familiar, and Wind finds himself running his fingers over the stitching and inspecting every detail with a precision that he only ever shows to his swordsmanship and sailing.

His eyes don’t fool him either, the coat is an exact copy of Lineback’s own.

“Where... where did you get this?”

“Like it?” The vet chuckles softly. “Hytopian tailors. It’s a sea-coat, made to aid traveling sailor’s in searching for treasure. Don't ask me how it works though,” A ringed hand waves lazily overhead. “I could never make sense of it all. What matters is that it’s warm, not even the ocean can chill you in that thing, and trust me,” Buck teeth and small canines shouldn’t look so chilling, but Legend’s smile is just that. “It’s tried.”

Wind decides not to push it. There’s no way Legend could know about Lineback, not with the gaps of time and timelines between them. So, instead, he nestles down into the coat, one which bears the promised scent of the sea, with just a hint of smoke and rum to it, and lets his mind drift off again while Legend hums something under his breath.

The vet doesn’t realize he’s humming any less than he realizes Wind is slumping into him, but by the time he does recognize it, Wind is out cold, his head pressed against Legend’s shoulder, the coat still draped over him as he snores softly. Legend doesn’t push down the warmth in his chest as he smiles down at the golden curls, no one will see him anyway. Gnarled fingers decked out with countless rings card through sun-bleached curls as a lilting melody pierces the silence around them, no one will hear it anyway.

In the days to come, Legend allows Wind to don the heavy sea-coat from that night. Warriors makes a comment about poor coordination between fabrics, and while Legend doesn’t seem to disagree, both of the older heroes seem of the opinion that it's for the best he holds onto it, what with the cold and all.

The last switch landed them in the mountains, and while the Hyrule they are in has not yet been confirmed, everyone knows one thing for sure: it’s cold. Wind buries his face in the raised collar of the heavy sea-coat, which, despite being in Legend’s bag for so long and the vet refusing to smoke or sail, much less swig rum, the coat smells of all three, and Wind buries a smile at the thought that maybe Legend didn’t get it new like he’d let on.

It does a good job of keeping him warm though.

He wishes he could say the same for Four.

The poor smithy refuses to be carried, but as snow whips around them as they trek through the knee-high snow, the diminutive smith is left chattering and shivering in their wake.

It really shouldn’t be a surprise that Legend has something to help with that.

Yes, the vet still isn’t wearing pants, but he doesn’t seem too poorly off, no matter how badly the others shiver. He and Wild only share a look and scoff when Warriors asks through chattering teeth how the two of them aren’t freezing.

“You should see the mountains in my Hyrule.” Wild chuckles brightly.

“Done this before, cold is cold, you get used to it.” Legend grins, swinging his fire-rod.

“N-not all of us c-can s-st-stand the c-c-cold.” Four chatters grumpily, sounding startlingly close to the minish he’s shown Wind in the past. “Jer-jerks.”

The concern on the faces of the taller heroes is obvious, but with Twilight’s teeth chattering nearly madly (the rancher's nose is somehow frozen) and Time wrapped as tight as possible in one of Wild’s extra cloaks, it’s clear most of the others don’t have warm things to spare.

They were separated in landing in this world, and even when they had all been pulling themselves together again it had become clear that there was nothing of Wild’s that could even fit the smithy, and not even the blue scarf that trails over his shoulders seems to be doing much good against the freezing winds.

“Hang on a sec.” legend huffs, already turning to rustle through his bag. The coat he pulls out is ridiculously plushy, and in a soft shade of violet that makes Four chuckle past his chattering teeth. The chattering doesn’t last for much longer though, not when shoves the garment over Four’s head like Wind has done to his sister so many times with the sweaters Granny has knit them. The smithy’s blond hair is mused beyond recognition, chunky and flying every which way as he pushes his face out of the plush, but the healthy flush to his cheeks assures the rest of them that he won’t be freezing any time soon.

“I- Oh...” Whatever Four was about to say cuts off as he looks down at himself. The coat is long, but not too long. Where Wild’s shirts would drown the smithy, a coat made for Legend only brushes against the smithy’s ankles.

Legend smirks. “It prevents slipping too.”

“Why aren’t you wearing it then?” Hyrule questions, the Traveler’s cheeks are rosy in the cold, but borrowed clothes from Wild, while also too big, seem to be keeping him warmer.

Legend winces. “It’s a pain to get off.”

“And inconvenience is enough reason to freeze?”

“Do I look cold to you, captain?” Legend snarks, turning an expectant look on Warriors. “Because I certainly don’t feel it.”

“Stop rubbing it in.” The captain huffs, unfortunately too big to borrow from the others, and now highly irritable from the cold. His scarf is still on Four, and if what Legend says is right about the coat, Wars won’t be getting it back for a while, leaving the poor captain to shiver as he clings to another fire-rod.

Four seems comfy enough anyway.

[halberdierminister]

July Monthly Goals Check-In

1. Write 250 Words Each Day Well, I started out very faithful to this. But sometime around the middle of the month, I got pretty choppy. I honestly don't know exactly how many days I skipped. I'm gonna try to write a fair amount today when I can and hope that it is enough to make up for it. Which is fine. It has been an otherwise very productive month in many other ways, so I cannot be too upset about it. I may start running a wordpress blog with a friend of mine, and if I do that may keep me more on track with these.. We shall see. We shall see.

2. Read 55 Books This Year I finished reading 55 books in May! Last month I read 10 more books. THIS month, however… I read 31 books. That brings me to a total of 97 books read for the year!!! A lot of them have been VERY short books. Lots of poetry collections, manga volumes, graphic novels, etc etc etc. But not exclusively!! I was hoping to get to 100 books by the time I wrote this but the last couple days, I have not been able to make the magic happen. But that's fine! That's TOTALLY FINE. This will be a very significant get, but I have months to get over that hump. By the time you hear from me on this goals check-in next month, I will undoubtedly be decently well over 100 books, and I can talk about why that personally feels so good then!

3. Get A Full Time Job I did not get a full time job this month. BUT. I applied to 38 full time jobs. Got a bunch of rejections. HOWEVER, I have scheduled EXACTLY ONE JOB INTERVIEW so far so that is good news! And that would be a VERY good job if I were to get it! Some of these jobs are actually pretty exciting things and I feel confident for the first time in a while that I might actually find a good job IN MY CAREER PLAN!!!! Also I almost lost my part time job but the library director was able to convince the village to let me stay on as a substitute, and it has paid off surprisingly well. I've been working two to three shifts a week on that, which is more than any of us expected. So I guess what I'm saying is I am making good progress again and I hope I can have something positive to report by the time I'm thirty. Eugh.

4. Move Out Speaking of being almost thirty. I really do not want to be here. If I get the job I interview for, I would be able to move in with my friends in Milwaukee just about as soon as possible. So that is good news. Every day it gets more tempting to just say "screw it" and live down there. But that won't help me find a job. And the job really is the important thing.

5. Drink Less Soda I mean yeah. Occasionally, I drink-a the soda. But not too much. I am good at drinking less soda than I did last year or the years before that. That's because I would have several sodas each day, to the point where it worried some of the people I know.

6. Get Something Published Just found out that I'm getting something else published today! So that is one new poem published this month! I also had my fic in the Lalonde Zine come out, but it turns out that the Lalonde Zine was more of a shared Google Drive folder than an actual zine. Maybe I should offer to compile the zine into one document? I should do that. That would be a good thing to do and it would give me a lot of experience with doing that, something I haven't really done in a while. So the practice would do me good! And then I would feel better saying that I got published there too. But yes so besides the Lalonde fic, I have had two poems published in zines, one poem published in an online literary journal, and one fic published in an online fanzine this year! If you include the articles I wrote for school newspapers, I have gotten at least one thing published every year for the past fifteen years. If you don't count the articles (or the Lalonde fic yet), I have had 30 pieces of fiction and poetry published since 2005! That's pretty neat! I want even more though!!!!!! I found a publisher's website that accepts unsolicited manuscripts. I'm going to try to put together an honest to god actual collection of my poetry, one bigger than either of the two digital chapbooks I have made. I have a friend who is a professional editor -- not of poetry, mind you, but I might be able to convince her to give it a shot -- and I would honestly hire her at full price to take a look at it. I actually will need to seek a lot of feedback from a lot of people, so if you want to read a document full of a bunch of my poetry, lemme know and I will show you what I've got when I've got something.

7. Finish Writing A Legitimate Businessman Finished in April! No new news. But just because I completed this goal doesn't mean that is the end of it! I do still have the sequel to work on, even though I haven't done any of that this month. And one of these days I am going to get around to sitting down with the printed copy and a pen and editing the shit out of it so that I can write draft #2! I think I'll probably throw draft #2 up on wattpad (why not?? I've been curious about that website and know absolutely nothing about it) and maybe I'll make a nice looking e-book out of it that I can distribute on noisetrade or itchio or something! I wonder if I could get it printed on demand or something. Obviously not for profit. But like, maybe I have friends I want to send a nice printed copy to.

8. Write More The Revelation of Takaya According to Jin Finished in Februrary! No new news. A friend of mine has offered to bind a copy of it when he has access to the materials, and I think that'd be dope as hell. I ought to work on compiling it into a nice document. I don't know if that's what he would need. He would probably want to do that work himself. Sometimes I think about the concept of making an illustration for it? I don't know. I can't draw. But I might not need to draw for the thing I have in mind. Really I should be consulting with him on that. Ah well. Either way, I hope that ends up happening. That would be so friggin cool.

MINOR GOALS

9. Finish Playthroughs Of 1. The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild: Finished in January! 2. Persona 1 Main Quest Good Ending: I didn't do anything on this whooooops. Getting into the second half of the year without once having touched it. I ought to get back to this. 3. Pokemon Sword: Finished in March! 4. Pokemon Let's Go Eevee: Finished in February and March! 5. Persona Q2: I have finished the fourth dungeon and gotten to The Twist!!! It's weak. This really is the kids' version of a Persona game. Minus like… the fact that it's still rated M for partial nudity. There was exactly one moment of horror and even that was like… just a bit scarier than The Nightmare Before Christmas. But I did some of the side quests and those are actually decently fun. So I have the final dungeon left. I just wanna sort of power through this. I'll worry about completion when I do new game plus, whenever that might be.

10. Record More Ukulele Videos I did not do this. I want a new microphone. These are not inherently related things, as I do have a microphone already. I have everything I need to do this. I just haven't done this. And I would like a new microphone. Also, an amp for the uke would be nice. I should text my old coworker, see if he still has one to sell.

11. Record Let's Plays Neither did I do this. How could I? My parents think video gaming is the Devil's Lettuce. And they are always home. They would notice if they heard me talking to my computer. And that is assuming that I had something I could play on my computer that anyone would want to watch. I need a better computer. A gaming computer. An editing computer. I'm lucky that these are the same thing.

12. Duolingo? I was SUPER gung ho in the end of June and the beginning of July, but before too long I petered out. I've used a couple streak freezes and have really been doing mostly the bare minimum to not drop out of the emerald league. But I've got a streak of about 208 days, and that is nothing to sneeze at! Do I feel like I'm learning? I dunno. But I am at least interacting with Spanish just about every day so that… that's got to be helpful, right? right?

This was over one thousand five hundred words. Wait! Sixteen hundred exactly.

[clumsydarknut]

The Spirit of the Hero - Chapter 5

My take on the AU by JoJo over @linkeduniverse . Posting this in celebration of finally acquiring a NES and SNES plus the gold cartridges of Zelda I and Zelda II. Took me a little longer to get a good handle on this one. Longest chapter yet. Enjoy.

Beginning | Previous | Next | Most Recent (More to follow!)

               The morning air was crisp and cool, frost glistening on every surface. Though the sky was still dark and the forest almost black, Link – now named Courage – knew the sun was up and simply hidden by the mountains to the east. It would be at least another hour before the sky lit up, and another hour beyond that for the light to penetrate the towering trees. Still, their party needed to set out.

               The night before had been an interesting one, to say the least. Setting aside the strange revelation that he now traveled with eight other variations of himself, the discussion on why they were brought together, how they ended up here, and what exactly is going on was plenty for his mind to chew on. Despite all their theories, they had only been able to determine one thing: someone was in danger, and a lot of it. The rest, Time had said, they couldn’t figure out without more information. It was agreed they would head to Castle Town – hopefully to speak with the Royal Family – and that they would break camp as early as possible the next morning.

               Courage took another breath, enjoying the near-silence of the sleeping woods for a moment longer. I’ll have to wake them. We can’t afford to wait for true daylight. He stood and looked to the fire where Light sat. They had kept it going for the sake of their islander, who couldn’t manage to keep warm without it. Wind was curled up in three extra blankets not a foot from the firepit and still shivering. Courage had done plenty of travel and was very used to acclimatizing quickly, but to live your whole life on a warm, tropical ocean and then be dropped in the middle of a pine forest at the start of winter? That would test even his abilities.

               “It’s time, then?” Light asked softly.

               “From the looks of it,” Courage replied, then gestured to the quivering bundle, “Wake him last, though. Doubt he’s had enough rest in this cold.”

               Light nodded and stood, making his way to the next-closest bedroll. Courage knelt next to Wild and put a hand to his sword before nudging the man gently.

               Just as he expected, Wild jolted awake and drew his sword halfway before realizing who was there. Courage smiled. I suppose we all have that in common. He motioned for Wild to sheath his sword and to try to stay quiet, nodding his head in the direction of Wind. Wild nodded in return, calming his pant and setting to preparing breakfast.

               The others awoke in a much similar way. Most started to draw swords and rose with a burst of adrenaline. Light almost had an ear taken off when he nudged Twilight, for which Twilight apologized profusely. Courage approached Legend with that reaction in mind, but to his surprise Legend didn’t stir after a first, second, or third nudge. It wasn’t until Wild sprinkled some pine needles over his face that the man showed signs of life, and those signs were… less than ecstatic.

               Once Legend was awake and no longer bloodthirsty, they set to breaking camp. Light and Courage were already fully equipped, having been on watch, and most of the others only had to strap on their weapons. Time and Warriors, however, had opted not to sleep in their armor. The time it took Warriors to don his vambraces and Time his plated cuirass allowed for Wild to roast some of the frozen boar, which, when Wind awoke, he found he desperately needed.

               “I c-can’t believe how w-well this is warming me up,” he chattered from inside his blanket cocoon.

               “Pink safflina does that,” Wild stated through a mouthful, “as do sunshrooms, if you cook them. Handy in a pinch.”

               “These will help, too.” Light held out a pair of boots. Wind dropped his breakfast and shoved them onto his feet.

               “Ohhhh man that’s so much better,” he sighed, flopping back on the forest floor.

               “I’ll need them back eventually,” Light intoned. “You can probably get your own when we get to Lehara.”

               At that Wind heaved himself back into a sitting position, shoved the rest of the boar steak into his mouth, and leapt to his feet. “Weshl ngu bem!” In one motion he had his gear off the ground and on his back, and without another word was headed down the road. The other Links exchanged surprised looks and hastened to get going themselves. Courage quickly rolled up the abandoned blanket cocoon and stowed it in his enchanted pouch, jogging to catch up with his lobster-shirted friend.

               Courage had expected the journey to be less quiet than it had been with only five of them, but he was soon proven wrong. While Legend’s occasional cursing was joined by Wind humming here and there, no one said a word. Rather than tense, though, it seemed peaceful. I suppose, Courage thought, we all have probably spent a fair amount of time alone. He certainly had.

               Courage’s mind drifted to his time in the labyrinths. He’d been so young then. How old had he been? Could he even remember? Maybe somewhere around thirteen, fourteen? That time was so foggy. Even if he had known how old he was when he encountered Impa, the ancient underground of Hyrule didn’t show the passage of time. Devoid of light, warmth, and populated only by monsters, the months he spent there – or perhaps years; he did not know – had left him without a lot to say. When your lantern went out and all you could do was feel your way along the walls, silence was survival.

               More than that, silence was safety. In the dankness of a decrepit dungeon, it gave him comfort to hear all that was going on in a room. To know with a surety that nothing could sneak up on him. To always have the upper hand. Silence gave him that. In silence there were no surprises, and when surprises included blades to the gut, it was better that you didn’t encounter any. Whether or not the other Links shared his reasoning, he had no doubt that they had their own.

               The walk went rather quickly, for being so quiet. Midday came and warmed their skin as they paused to pass out some of the deer jerky, then passed quickly into dusk as they came up on the town. The forest gave way into outlying farms leading up to a mess of buildings set on a river. Lehara was less of a town and more of a small city. Courage hadn’t seen many of this size, and felt something twist in the back of his stomach looking at the complicated streets. It made him uneasy, being only able to see where the town began and not where it ended. Too much potential for surprises.

               “Courage?”

               Courage gave a start and turned to Time. “Hm? What?”

               “He asked if you were alright,” Legend sighed, tilting his head. “’Courage’ is seeming less and less like a fitting name. You look like you could be sick.”

               Courage gave him a short glare and turned to answer Time. “I’m fine. Just got a bad feeling is all.”

               Time nodded. “Let’s find an inn quickly. A heavily armed group of our size is sure to draw attention.”

               “I need my own boots, still,” Wind piped up. He kicked the toe of one foot into the ground and looked sheepishly at Light. “They’re, uh, a bit small.”

               “All the more reason to find an inn,” Warriors put in, stretching his arms over his head. “The innkeeper – if he’s worth his salt – can tell us where the best cobbler is.”

               The group set off into the town at a quick pace. The streets were nearly empty, with only a few stragglers rushing about their last-minute errands. Courage noticed suspicious glances being cast out from under the awnings of roadside stalls and windows that quickly slid shut. The feeling of mistrust wasn’t new to him – in his time the people were necessarily suspicious of everyone – but feeling it on this scale was something else. I guess I am traveling with some pretty conspicuous partners. He generally didn’t wear much chainmail and blended in well with any crowd of travelers; Time’s full suit of armor, however, did not.

               “Mommy,” a little boy squealed, clutching his mother’s apron, “Is that man a soldier?”

               The boy’s mother patted his head and glanced warily at the group. “I’m not sure, sweetie, but it’s rude to point like that. Come along.”

               Time chuckled as the woman scurried away, herding her son along in front of her. “I forget how extravagant this armor is.”

               Warriors raised an eyebrow. “Is that not your usual garb?”

               “I wouldn’t say that it is,” Time replied, examining the back of his gauntlet. “I’ve certainly used this equipment before, but not often, and not for a very long time.” He laughed. “I suppose, though, that even if I were dressed more plainly, your fine tunic and pauldrons would still draw the same attention.”

               Warriors chuckled. “You’re right, but in my case that’s what they’re meant to do.”

               “Over there!” Twilight rushed to the front of the group, pointing down the street. Courage quickly found what he was looking at – a carved hanging sign of a gluttonous cyclops with the name “The Drunken Hinox” embellished in tarnished silver underneath. On the street below was a barrel with a plank leaning against it that read “Lodgings Available” in a messy scrawl. The Links exchanged nods and pushed open the door.

               The bottom floor – as expected – was a tavern of sorts. Considerably larger than the one at Beaverville, the spacious room held a dozen tables and had a small stage on the opposite wall from the bar. Courage breathed a sigh of relief at seeing most of the tables full and hearing raucous singing fill the air. Their party would likely go unnoticed, even with their heavy gear. Assuming they didn’t stir up any trouble, of course.

               “G’devening, young masters.” A short, round man with a shiny bald head and scraggly red mustache called to them from behind the bar. “Here for a drink? Finest ale in all of Hyrule is served right here!”

               “Actually,” Legend said, stepping up to the counter, “we’re here for the ‘inn’ part of your fine establishment. How much is one night?”

               The man looked at the party and stroked his chin. “Nine of you, eh? Well, each of my rooms only has two beds, but I suppose if you paid for four I could give you three and haul an extra mattress into each of them. That’d run you… 800 rupees?” The man ignored Legend’s dumbfounded face and picked up a stein and a washcloth. “No, 850 with a ninth breakfast thrown in. I can discount you on the rooms but my wife’ll have my head if I discount her work in the kitchens.”

               Courage could barely believe his ears. 850 rupees? He’d never so much as seen that much money, let alone spent that much on a room. Based on the expressions the other Links bore, he wasn’t alone in that. What kind of economic boom is Hyrule in right now that an inn warrants that kind of pricetag?

               Light choked out a cough before cutting in. “Sir, I’m sure this town has many other inns where we can find a better price. Surely you can cut that down a little further?”

               The man smiled. “Now, son, I know what you’re thinking. ‘He’s taking us for fools and raising the price for us cuz we’re from out of town’, right?” The man knocked on the sign above the bar with the back of his fist. “I don’t roll that way, young master. My prices are set right here. Lehara gets enough travelers for me to make a living without that kind of dirty work.”

               Courage squinted at the board, and sure enough, his prices were listed there, however faintly. 200 still seems ridiculous, especially where one night was only 30 in the next town over.

               Wild laughed suddenly, startling the other Links out of their stupor. He sauntered up to the bar and leaned over it, turning his back to the rest of the tavern and blocking any strangers view of the three, shimmering gold rupees he placed on the counter. Courage could barely believe his eyes.

               “900 rupees for nine travelers in three rooms seems a fair price,” Wild hummed, “wouldn’t you say? ”

               The shock that overtook the Links was nothing compared to that which hit the barkeep. Courage nearly jumped out of his skin when the stein the man was cleaning hit the ground with a loud clatter. It wasn’t loud enough to draw the attention of the whole room, but a few drunkards down the bar glanced their way. Exactly what we need.

               The barkeep stammered his reply. “Y-you don’t seem to have much sense for bargaining, son, I wasn’t asking for that much.”

               Wild slid the shiny gold gems discreetly across the counter. “Oh I know, but decent people deserve decent rewards. I can’t imagine it’s easy to compete in a hub town like this with a policy of honesty.” The long-haired man took on a sly grin. “It’s not like I’m short on cash anyhow.”

               The innkeeper’s eyes were nearly as round as his figure now, but he took the jewels and nodded. “R-right this way, young masters…”

               Wild sauntered after the man much more confidently than his awestruck fellows. Is he really that naive? Courage kept his hand on the hilt of his blade as they followed the pudgy little man out of the room. This is the second time he’s flaunted something valuable within earshot of others. Doesn’t he know that makes him a prime target?

               “Here you are, sirs,” the man said, gesturing to the three doors at the end of the first floor corridor, “I’ll have my staff bring you those cots right away.” He pulled two large key rings out of his apron pocket and fingered through the heftier. With a changle he unhooked three marked keys and handed them to Wild, gave a casual salute, and waddled back to the tavern.

               Wind clapped Wild on the back with a whistle. “Wow, Wild, didn’t know you carried that kind of cash on you.”

               Wild smiled and examined the keys with fascination. “These are high-quality keys. I sure hope he didn’t give us his best rooms.”

               “Oh shut up,” Legend growled, snatching them from his hands. “I hope to the Hylia he did. We’ll need them with the giant, flashing ‘rob me’ sign you just hung on our backs!”

               Wild looked taken aback. “’Rob me’ sign? What?”

               “He’s right,” Light sighed. “You really shouldn’t flaunt your wealth like that.”

               “Flaunt?” Wild scratched his head and looked at Wind, who was equally confused. “I wasn’t- I just- the man’s a nice guy!”

               “Unfortunately,” Time added solemnly, “I don’t think the innkeeper was the only one privy to our conversation.”

               “And even if no one else heard exactly what was going on,” Twilight added, “I’m pretty certain the people down the bar picked up on the fact that something interesting happened.”

               Wild opened his mouth to respond, but Courage couldn’t stand to let tensions rise any higher – he may agree with the others, but berating Wild now wouldn’t change what happened.

               “Making a scene like this isn’t going to help,” he cut in, passing a level stare around the circle. “We have more pressing matters than a few thieves in a random tavern. Let’s just settle in for the night.”

               “You’re right,” Warriors said firmly. “We need to focus on the big picture right now.”

               The men shared uncomfortable looks but all hummed in agreement. Courage felt a twinge in his gut. He still couldn’t remember what had happened after he began his toast at the feast. Is she safe? Is she even alive? Dear Farore please let her be alive.

               Sky broke the tense silence with a change of subject. “Let’s decide on rooms. That’s a good place to start.”

               “I call Twilight!” Wind shouted excitedly.

               Courage felt himself relax. She’s fine. I’ll take care of this mess soon enough and then I’ll be back. He put a hand to the lump in his pouch and smiled. I’ll be back soon, Zelda.

               Wild rolled over uncomfortably on the feather cot. It was well past dark now – likely past midnight – but he still couldn’t sleep. Not that taking one of the nice, plush beds would have helped; he took the cot on purpose since he knew it wouldn’t matter. He hadn’t slept comfortably since… since before he could remember. Sure, there had been the occasional specialty bed at an inn or spa somewhere that made it so he could at least dream something, but even that hadn’t been deep or particularly restful.

               He chuckled to himself. He had tried a Zora waterbed once, but if one even so much as wiggled a toe the watertight mattress would tremble and make all sorts of noise. When he had finally drifted off, he shifted his arm, startling himself awake and leaping off the bed with a screech, sword in hand. He grinned at the memory. That poor innkeeper nearly had a heart attack.

               Luckily he didn’t usually need much sleep, either. He hardly slept the night before in their camp, and didn’t feel particularly tired now either. Did he even remember what a good night’s rest felt like? He couldn’t recall. He’d never really wanted one anyhow. At least, not more than to see what the difference was. Was there a difference? Would he function better with more sleep?

               A knot formed in his stomach and his smile faded. He ran his hand over the web of scars on his arm. Did I function better? Something tugged at the back of his mind – a gnawing feeling he couldn’t place, but couldn’t ignore. Impressions trickled into his consciousness. Complete blackness. Water. He was underwater. Weight on his chest. Couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think.

               He shook his head and pulled his hand away, rolling onto his stomach and shoving both fists under his pillow to stop himself from tracing the wounds. I don’t need to think about that.

               That was one disadvantage of not sleeping much – it left one far too much time to think. In his opinion, though, there were far more advantages than disadvantages. You didn’t absolutely need it, for instance. If you were in a rush, you didn’t really have to stop for camp. You were also less likely to get caught off guard. You could be your own watch when you camped on your own, and an extra set of ears when you had companions. In general he considered it a blessing.

               Sky shifted in his bed, shaking Wild from his thoughts. He listened as the man’s breathing fell back into the slow rhythm of sleep. Courage lay in the other bed, his breath almost imperceptible. Wild was glad these two were the ones rooming with him. The others had all gotten so upset with him earlier. Had it really been such a big deal that they had to go and lecture him on it? He had been discreet, hadn’t he? At least he wasn’t actively showing it off!

               He frowned. So I’m being obvious, but Time and Warriors with their expensive armor aren’t? Time’s pauldrons have gold inlays! And Legend’s got like, 30 shiny jeweled rings on each hand. Why are they so worried about me making us a target? Honestly if any of them are half as good at swordplay as I am we really shouldn’t have to worry about bandits at all.

               Almost as if summoned by his thoughts, he suddenly felt a hand grab his hair and yank his head off the down pillow. He gasped as a sliver of cold metal met his throat.

               “Where’zzz yer wallet?” a raspy voice slurred quietly into his ear. Wild felt a boot press down on his back as the man pulled harder, and he swallowed the cry that attempted to escape.

               “C-cabinet…” Wild breathed. The man didn’t seem to hear and yanked harder, and Wild hissed.

               “Where’z yer wallet?!” the man said louder. His breath smelled of booze and the way the knife wobbled against Wild’s skin said he was very drunk, never mind the fact that he was no longer maintaining any semblance of stealth. “Tellme whereitiz! I’llzzslit yer throat!”

               Wild heard feet hit the floor as the man started to scream. Courage’s voice started to call out to him but the man drowned it out.

               “Donnntry it, boy!” the madman shouted. “Whozzzzswordoyou think’m using, huh?” Wild felt the steel sliver into his skin just a hair as the man cackled maniacally. “Damn, kiddo, if I didn’know yer friend’ad sucha hefffty wallet I mightajustaken thizzz beaut!” He leaned into Wild’s back and gave a tug. Wild couldn’t stop the yelp.

               Footfalls sounded in the next room and Warriors’ muffled but commanding voice penetrated the wall. The bandit tensed and pressed the sword closer.

               “ShhhhhhhhhhhhhHHHHHH!” he demanded, “Dammmmmitnow there’zzzno clean getaway. I tol- told you to be quiet!” The man removed his boot and yanked Wild to his feet, keeping the blade against his neck. If Wild weren’t so preoccupied with his life hanging in the balance he might have stopped to admire Courage’s ruby-encrusted blade – or the miraculous fact that the inebriated bandit hadn’t slit his throat by accident already. Instead, now that he could somewhat see the dark room, he searched desperately for a solution.

               His own sword was tucked under the cot on the opposite side from where Courage now stood. Courage had the sense not to go for either of their bows, which were locked safely in the cabinets with their other possessions. Even if he had a weapon, though, the drunkard had Wild safely caught as a hostage – even if the others burst into the room right this second that wouldn’t free him from his grasp. He doubted he could overpower the man without getting cut in the process – any movement would drive the pristine blade edge right through skin and into his trachea. And most amazingly, how was Sky still asleep?

               “Put down the sword,” Courage urged calmly, “We’ll give you our wallets, just let go of my friend.”

               “Hellllyou will!” the man jabbed back. “Gimme the cashhhfirst!”

               “Easy, easy,” Courage continued, inching toward the cabinets. “Give me a second to get them.”

               The man quavered and wobbled slightly as Courage turned to unlock the pine cupboards, barely visible in the dark. The click of the key in the lock made the man flinch and Wild inhaled sharply as the blade jolted slightly. Courage exhaled and wrapped his hand around the brass doorknob.

               Just as he moved to swing the doors open, the other Links crashed into the room holding lamps and swords. Courage jerked around and started to shout a warning and the bandit screamed at the sudden interruption. Wild felt the steel shift and he sent one final plea to Hylia. Please, let Zelda be happy.

               Everything went quiet. Time came to a halt. No pain. No hurt. Just silence.

               And then, a gurgle of blood.

               Wild opened his eyes slowly and registered a few drops of crimson trickling down his bare chest. The thick liquid was sticky and warm, staining his skin and scars. But, still, the pain didn’t come.

               Wild turned to look at the bandit and suddenly realized why. He was an ugly man, with a ratty brown beard and wild eyes. Eyes now open in horror as he choked on his own blood, coughing and bubbling more up over his lips. His sword arm lay severed on the mattress below, and through his torso was run a very familiar blade.

               Sky pushed the man off the sword with a grimace, hefting it in his hand and frowning down at the dying drunkard. Even covered in blood, the sword glowed like a star. The holy light of the blade shimmered off the gem set in the deep blue hilt, which was carved in the shape of Hylia’s sacred bird. At the base of the blade was inscribed the most ancient symbol in Hyrule – the crest of the Triforce.

               The Master Sword.

[tiniest-hands-in-all-the-land]

Some “life” updates stuff--gonna be under a Read More not because it’s like sad or anything, but it’s long and I’m sure nobody wants my long aimless rambling cluttering up their dash lol

Anyhoo, sorry for the drastic shift in interests lately. If I’m being honest, I kiiiiiinda ran out of steam with pokemon. I’ve been in the fandom for almost two years in a row now, which is probs the longest sitting I’ve ever been in just 1 singular fandom, but like. I just kinda lost motivation and interest. I’ve been running low on ideas since the beginning of the year, and that’s taken a toll on my art and motivation. I fell behind on the show (last episode I watched was when Team Rocket gets their Z-Ring, and even then, I STILL haven’t even watched it with the subs), and I haven’t kept up on anyone’s fanfics for the past few months, of which I especially apologize for.

And for reasons unknown (coughdepressionandjealousyandspiteandeverythingelsethat’swrongwithmecough) I just felt like I had no reason to continue the stuff I was working on. I had a couple fanfics I was writing, one of which I actually finished and just needed to edit, but I lost all interest in them completely when I realized there was really no reason for them to exist. Y’all ain’t missing much by me not posting them--they ain’t that great, so don’t worry. But yeah--that’s a thing.

Fandom and interest shifts always cause a bunch of emotional turmoil for me. It shouldn’t; it’s a stupid thing to be upset over, I’m aware; but it does. I lose interest in doing anything related to my current fandom, but I feel guilty doing anything for my desired fandom, and it’s just a big hot sticky mess.

Y’all have probably noticed, but my interests have shifted mainly to Zelda: BOTW and My Hero Academia (and a wee bit of Aggretsuko). I’ve been avoiding a lot of new things because I’m always terrified of fandom shifts, but with this new content, I’m kinda able to expand my horizons and just draw new things and characters and indulge in different stories and stuff? If that makes sense. My mom always criticizes me for drawing the same 3-4 characters over and over again, and I get annoyed by that, but at the same time she’s right?? I burned myself out basically is what I’m saying, and it feels nice indulging in something new.

But uuuuuuuuuhhh yeah. BOTW and MHA and Aggretsuko are good. Y’all should check them out if you haven’t already. Expect possible content from me in the future? Maybe? Hopefully? If these things ain’t your cup of tea, and you need something tagged for whatever reason, feel free to let me know. Again, sorry about the change of interests.

I’m currently trying to make buttons with the new button maker I got for my birthday. I’ve already made Team Rocket buttons, and I’m working on making BOTW ones right now (currently I’ve made designs for Link, Zelda, and the 4 champions, and I hope to soon create ones for the New champions, Kass, and... Paya? Gerudo Link? Not sure about who to give the last spot to, but I’ll figure someone out--feel free to give suggestions if you have any). And hopefully when I get motivated enough I can make some MHA ones too. Once I figure out how sales work (also do y’all know what’s the best place to sell buttons?), I’ll work on selling those.

I’ve also been toiling around with the idea of opening commissions. But because I’m being a Big Dumb with insecurity and anxiety I haven’t actually done that yet. It’s mainly because I feel like I haven’t been arting very good recently? Tho that could just be because I don’t have any big plans and I’m doodling aimlessly--and I’m really bad at just doodling aimlessly. Regardless, I wanna art good again before I open up commissions.

Also, I feel like I’ve just been especially silent recently? To basically everyone?? I don’t mean for that to happen, and trust me when I say it is literally all me just being a Big Fuck, and nothing to do with you. I apologize for that; I don’t know what it is--maybe just my waning interests just kinda screwing with me, maybe anxiety. Who knows. But I’m sorry.

What else...... Um. I rearranged my room after having an anxiety attack about spiders, and now I’m not living in my closet anymore? My desk used to be in my closet, and that’s where I worked, but now it’s out in the open and feels very exposing because I’m not in my corner anymore but also I have ROOM NOW? Feels good but also bad. I don’t know why I’m bringing this up. Guess it kinda just feels nice to finally clear the shit out of my room and have new space to work in.

Anyway, tl;dr: Not creating Pokemon stuff right now because I’m burnt out, BOTW and MHA are good, buttons and commissions sometime soon??? Hopefully????? Sorry I’ve been a reclusive fuck and haven’t been interacting with anyone, and uuuuuuhhhhhhh depression and anxiety can go suck my big fat wiggly dick

Anyways, hope y’all are having a nice day. You guys are great and I love you very much. Sorry for this inconvenience

[eggoreviews]

13 Nintendo Direct Predictions! - 13.2.19

In case you haven't heard the exciting news, Nintendo is giving us a lovely 35ish minute direct tonight, which is all regarding viddy games for the Switch (I'm not crying over the 3DS you're crying) So below you will find my best attempt at picking out 11 predictions for this direct, all of which I've probably gotten wrong. Enjoy! Note: These are in no particular order, but I'm more confident about some over others. Also, Fire Emblem Amiibo Festival Three Houses news is absent here because we already have confirmation that's happening.

Luigi's Mansion 3 news

I think this one is almost a given, considering it's a title that we know is dropping in 2019 we know basically nothing about. Everyone wants to know what kind of direction the game will take this time around. Will the third in the series take the route of the first and have one big ol spooky mansion for Luigi to navigate? Or will it be a much more fast paced, moment-by-moment experience with multiple mansions to explore akin to Luigi's Mansion 2? Or hell, maybe they'll go down a whole new road with it, it really is all up in the air. All I'm sure of is that they'll be plenty of ghosts and also probably amiibo support. Weird request, but I'd love a King Boo amiibo. Animal Crossing news

Another (almost) given, Animal Crossing is a title we haven't even seen gameplay for yet. This means we've got arguably less of an idea of what kind of mechanics will return. But now the series is finally making its return to a powerful home console, it makes sense to take how the game itself plays into the next gen too. A popular request I've seen thrown about a bit is the ability to customise your town however you want, with the option to build literally anywhere you like. As a newcomer to the series, this would definitely draw me in, as I'm waiting for this title to experience AC for the first time. In any case, I'm sure Nintendo have cooked up a game with plenty of fishing, digging and also amiibo. Trailer for Bayonetta 3

One of my more risky picks, I think we're pretty likely to get our first proper glimpse of the Bayo threequel that isn't just a vague teaser. Whether this will kick off the direct or will be something they'll sneak in the middle, a tentative release date and a cheeky look at gameplay I feel are more likely than some may think. I think the basic rule is that if it's anything like 2, it's gonna be pretty darn brilliant. So watch this space, and if it isn't this direct, I'd expect it soon after. SNES for Switch Online

Another slightly risky pick considering Nintendo haven't confirmed any classic console support on Switch beyond NES, alongside the fact that they're still releasing NES games on the system, it could be that SNES is just that bit further away. But with the recent datamine leak listing 20+ games for SNES online that I feel to be credible enough to keep in mind, this could yet be something Nintendo surprises us with. And if it's true that'd be a little bit too exciting. As for the N64 Classic, I'm gonna go ahead and say we aren't getting that here. Or maybe not at all. Who knows at this point. NO Pokemon

Yep, you read right, this prediction is more of an anti-prediction, but I firmly believe that Pokemon will be entirely absent from this direct for a number of reasons. With this direct focused around Fire Emblem and seemingly other announced but yet to be detailed games, I feel that any games we don't know about yet will either get a small trailer or they'll be saved for something bigger, like E3. It's that and to be honest, I've just got a gut feeling that they're not quite ready to show off the new Pokemon just yet, Let's Go is still relatively new so I think Nintendo will let it simmer for a while longer and focus for the most part on games we already know about. But you know, we'll see. Super Mario Maker

Considering how well Mario Maker did as a whole on the Wii U and 3DS, and seeing how the business of Wii U ports is looking pretty spicy at the minute, I think either a Mario Maker enhanced port or even a sequel could be imminent. The versatility of the Switch would be perfect for a game like Mario Maker and I believe it makes a lot of sense for them to wait this long, as a game like Mario Maker would've very much undermined their recent port of New Super Mario Bros. U. It's either this or they'll have to think about Mario Golf Aces so I reckon they'll take this route. Pikmin

As the list of fairly current Nintendo IPs yet to be represented on the Switch grows ever shorter, fans seem to be turning their attention to the likes of Pikmin. Knowing that Pikmin 4 was finished a while back, but was unannounced as to what system it would appear on, makes a Pikmin 4 trailer pretty darn likely. However, if ResetEra leaker King Zell (who correctly leaked the date for this direct by the way) is to be believed, we could even be seeing a port of Pikmin 3 instead, although personally I find this a bit less likely, especially if 4 is already apparently finished. Zelda HD Port(s)

Continuing the theme of Wii U ports, Nintendo seemed to have wholly recognised that not many people actually owned a Wii U in the grand scheme of things and there's a heckton of people who are eager to play some of the games they may have missed on the last console. I certainly think this extends to the relatively recent HD remasters of Twilight Princess and Wind Waker, both of which I would basically swallow up if they were announced. While this isn't a certain pick, I'd say it's a fairly safe bet with the surprising amount of demand I've seen for this titles. In a really ideal world, this would be bundled alongside a brand new shiny HD remaster of Skyward Sword, but I guess we'll see. Oh, and going back to King Zell for a sec, he's said a new 2D Zelda is happening. As much as I'd love this to death, I'm also going to be saying that won't happen either. Smash Bros. Ultimate Joker Gameplay

Seeing how there's probably been a couple of dedicated months of development for Persona 5's Joker since he was announced at the 2018 Game Awards as the first DLC fighter, it's not outlandish to think that he might be at a stage that a gameplay showcase could be possible. Hell, maybe they'll even give us a rough release date for him, which would get me heckin excited bc I am V E R Y hyped to play as my best boi. Alongside this, a possible stage reveal or a music track list is gratefully very plausible. And although I could see yet another Smash reveal as unlikely but plausible, I think they'll get Joker done and dusted before they drop another one on us, but again, it's certainly not out of the question. Metroid Prime Trilogy

Here it is, the prediction I'm arguably most confident about. Since Prime 4 was halted this month, and the growing rumours around an imminent Prime Trilogy release refusing to go away, I reckon this direct is finally the time for a whole new generation to experience what brought Metroid into glorious 3D. As always, nothing's certain, but part of me would be unusually surprised if this gets skipped out on, especially since this direct is so close to the recent Prime 4 announcement and Nintendo will likely be looking for something to give to the Metroid fans to make them a little more patient. And, you know, to get everyone else excited too. DLC for Mario Odyssey/Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

As I've mentioned in previous posts, these two are basically DLC goldmines waiting to happen. And to e perfectly honest with you, I wouldn't be mad at all. New worlds to explore in Odyssey, perhaps even based on previous 3D Mario games, would definitely elicit some excitement, while the addition of even more tracks and characters to the already great MK8 would help to draw a bit more attention back to the launch titles that got the Switch its initial sale spike. And, you know, in a lovely dream world where BotW wasn't already announced as finished, there would be a DLC pack 3 for Zelda but I'll keep that locked in the hopeless dream box. Dragon Quest XI & Persona 5 for Switch

The latest installment in the long running, critically acclaimed Dragon Quest series has already been confirmed to be coming to the Switch at some point, with Switch exclusive content to boot, but we don't really have any indication when. This direct I believe is incredibly likely to finally deliver a release date. As well as this, Atlus' weird cryptic Persona trailer they released a little while back could very well point to a Switch port on the horizon and, even if it didn't, I still think it'll happen anyway. Especially now Joker's been Smash'd. And these are both must plays if you haven't had a chance to get hold of them yet!

Final Fantasy VII drops immediately after the direct

With the recent announcements of release dates for FFXII and X/X-2 for April this year, we’re still in the dark on when Square Enix plan to release VII and IX. Considering that FFVII has started appearing in Switch adverts, it feels like it’s getting close and I can definitely see them taking us by surprise and dropping this imminently.

Something Kingdom Hearts related?

For those who haven’t seen, Square Enix producer Shinji Hashimoto, co-creator of the Kingdom Hearts series and producer for several of the Final Fantasy games, retweeted the Nintendo Direct announcement TWICE. While this could just be a prelude to more Final Fantasy news, there’s a chance it could be something relating to Kingdom Hearts too. Reeling off the list of slight possibilities here, we could be seeing a 1.5. 2.5 and 2.8 port for the Switch, the announcement of a future Switch port for KHIII or, if we really want to dream big here, the reveal of Sora for Smash. But that won’t happen. So I’m trying to push down my hype as far as I can.

And that's all my predictions for tonight's direct! Want to see my personal wants for this direct? Check it out here and let me know what you think! Whatever happens, keep your expectations tempered to avoid disappointment, because I think we've all been guilty of getting a little too hyped at one point or another. But above all, I hope the game you want gets announced! Unless it's a new F-Zero, because that really isn't gonna happen. Sorry friend.

[rainbowsandbalian]

Below the read more is Balo’s entire thread with Sam (all graphics removed, lines between posts tho):

Sam had nothing to do. He’d worked out, eaten and even spoken with some of the higher ups. No missions had come in, but even he’d have to run it by Deryn before he signed them up for something. He was bored. Sam sat on the edge of the fountain looking at the piranhas. He could feed the Piranhas… But, they had already been fed this morning.

Sam didn’t want to spend the day in the training facilities. The last time he’d done that he was sore for three days. Commercials that said doing one more rep never told you about how sore you would be the next day. Sam sighed and looked to the Piranhas who’d all swarmed to him. “Dudes, chill, you aren’t getting fed.” Sam said standing up and the piranhas scattered.

If only there was someone around the courtyard today. Sam was looking for any excuse to not go back to his dorm or even back into the training facility.

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Balo was honestly in the mood to draw sceneries - and what better place to draw than the courtyard. It was peaceful, and fish were so pretty and friendly. She carried a sketchbook under her arm and a very fat tabby cat in her arms. Ches’s dog - Melody - was on a leash secured around her wrist. Ches swore Melody didn’t need one, but, it was better safe than sorry. Her owner was due back today, so, it would suck to lose the dog.

She felt like an animal whisperer or something, surrounded by not only her cat, but, Ches’s Maltipoo. It was nice. When she reaches the courtyard she sets the cat down on a bench before noticing a man near the fountain.

“Is it okay if we join you? It’s such a nice day, so I figured I’d take Catsby outside. It can’t be good for him to be stuck in a room all day - after all.” She gestures to the cat that was just laying on the bench, not moving from where Balo set her, purring up a storm. “and I have to take Melody out here anyway Ches should be back sometime today though, so, she’ll get to go back with her best friend real soon.” She pets the dog, a grin on her face.

“i’m Balo, by the way. I’m not sure if we’ve met before - if we have, just remind me. Sometimes I forget names.”

“You look as if you were an animal whisperer,” Sam smirked looking to the girl. “Sam, Sam Sansby. Son of Ares or whatever. Yeah, feel free to join me.” Sam leaned down and started petting the small maltipoo. Not expecting it to basically jump in to his arms and start licking his face. “Wow friendly.” Sam laughed looking at the small dog.

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Sam looked over the very big cat, who was purring, not making any move to pet it. “Catsby looks a little intimidating. He’s kinda, uh, big.”  Sam wasn’t against cats, he’d just heard a lot of things could go wrong. Plus they weren’t usually helpful in a fight. “Is Melody usually this friendly?” Sam asked petting the small dog.

He’d heard of some owners just keeping dogs as pets and Sam assumed this was the case with Melody. “Ches never told me she had a dog. Although I guess that wouldn’t really come up as a topic of conversation,” Sam shrugged and looked to Balo noticing all the art supplies.

“What are you drawing today?” Sam asked he knew Balo liked art, and although he wasn’t a fan. He knew she was good, and he gave respect where respect was due.

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Balo nods, okay, she knew Sam then. They’d met forever ago - but with so many people coming in and out of Half-Blood Inc, well, sometimes she had trouble keeping track. “Okay, I know that name. Sorry, Sam. There’s just so many people here - sometimes it’s hard to keep track of everyone.” She admits.

She laughs, “yeah, Catbsy’s a little on the lazy side. I keep telling him to stop sneaking out for Arby’s but, he’s stubborn.” She laughs. “he’s a good cat though, I dress him up sometimes and he doesn’t complain. He went as Maleficent’s dragon form last year for Halloween.” She tells him, turning her attention to Catbsy now that Melody was preoccupied with sam. “She is! You should have seen her when Ches first got her. She was literally being carried around everywhere with her. She got used to people fast.” She admits. “She’s also a pillow hog.  Ches lets her in the bed and it wasn’t like I could tell her; “no, you’re sleeping on the floor while Ches is gone.” That would be rude.”

“It’s not like Ches advertises it much. She’s not exactly allowed to bring her a lot of places either - with the whole no pets in the cafeteria rule someone decided to put in.” She admits. “Ches and I kind of have a deal - if she has to leave for a bit, I watch Melody. I have to leave? She watches Catsby.”

She shrugs, “I was leaning towards sceneries today. If something else grabs my inspiration today however I’ll draw that.” She admits.

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“I get it,” Sam smiled softly to Balo. He’d been traveling when he didn’t have a partner anyway. It wasn’t uncommon that people forgot he’d been here longer than some. “Lots of people come and go. Gets, uh, confusing.”

Sam’s jaw dropped hearing the cat had been dressed up as a dragon. “He let’s you dress him up?” Sam had never heard of a cat letting a human do anything to them. “Well, I guess anything is possible if you try hard enough.” Sam said petting Melody. He smiled looking down at the dog hearing the pillow thing. “You and Deryn share a few traits little dog. He’s a pillow hog too, and well, you’re both around the same size.” Sam laughed at his own joke, Deryn wasn’t even around and Sam was still thinking of him.

“That’s Zelda’s fault. Well a combination of Zelda and the higher ups.” Sam had heard the rumor through a few people but he didn’t doubt that she had something to do with it. “Something about being unhygienic?” Sam shrugged. “I don’t care though,” Sam said continuing to pet Melody. “You seem good with both of them so it’s probably not a hassle,” Sam said to Balo.

“Well i’ll try not to interrupt your creative process, i’ll enjoy myself with Melody. She’s super cute, and Catsby seems like he’s chillin,” Sam smiled petting the dog.

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Balo returns the smile, “Thanks for being so understanding, I feel bad about not remembering people - I try. It’s just hard if I don’t see them often.” She admits, “although, it’s been awhile. What have you been up to? If you don’t mind me asking.”

She nods, “Yup, and Catsby tends to he very awesome about it too. He has a leather jacket and and a Flintstones tie too - and a couple other outfits. He also doesn’t mind sunglasses if he’s laying down - he obviously doesn’t walk around with them though.” She tells Sam, “Catsby a good cat - it kind of helps he’s too lazy to fight with me while dressing him up though. Plus I’m his food source - so - there’s that.”  She shrugs, petting Catsby a little more. “I think Deryn’s taller.” She ponders - trying to remember which one Deryn was for a moment. “But yeah, Melody is a pillow hog. It’s not too bad, but, if you leae your pillow alone for like five seconds she’ll steal it.”

Balo pouts, “Maybe we can convince Zelda that they’re not unhygienic? I have to keep sneaking Catbsy’s dinner to him and someone’s bound to notice at some point. It would be easier if I could just bring him in the cafeteria, you know?” She’d have to figure out how to get Zelda convinced - of course - but she had hope. “It’s not too bad, Melody can get a little hyperactive at times - but she tends to be well behaved.”

“Yeah, that sounds good. Although you can talk to me when I’m sketching. Sketching doesn’t require my complete focus, you know?” She admits, starting to sketch the fountain.

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“Went to Europe to fight hell hounds. That’s always fun. I guess it makes sense you don’t really remember me.” Sam said scratching the back of his head nervously. “What about you? What have you been up to?”

Sam smiled at the thought of the Cat in a leather jacket. “You’ll have to show me Catsby in sunglasses.” He was sure there was a great Gatsby pun somewhere in there but he’d never read the book. “Yeah things tend to like you if you feed them. The Piranhas are like that too, greedy little bastards.” Sam shot a look to the fountain as if the Piranhas could hear him. “Deryn’s a little taller, but Deryn steals all the blankets too. It’s almost like they are building a nest.” Sam rolled his eyes at his partners antics. “Deryn is the child of Zeus. They’re pretty new but, they are nice,” They were Sam’s partner so they knew a lot about each other.  

“I dunno about that one. If she was that adamant to get it done I doubt we could change her mind. But eh, it’s worth trying. Sneaking his dinner does seem hard.” Sam had done his fair share of sneaking food out and he knew Zelda had a stash of food in her and Alan’s shared office.  

Sam nodded, “You’re really good at art, that doesn’t surprise me. Man, I can’t even imagine trying to do some sort of sketch and trying to talk to someone.”

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Balo nods, especially since she hadn’t been at Half-Blood Inc as long as some of the other people here. “Not too much - training occasionally with Alan and Zelda. They’re pretty cool. Hang out with Ches and Ivan, draw and paint.” She shrugs, “I’m waiting on getting a partner - I’ll hopefully get one at some point, it’s just for now I don’t have one.”

She nods, smiling, “That sounds like a plan. You’re more than welcome to visit him whenever you want? I mean I’m sure Ches would let you visit with Melody too.” She nods. “I don’t think I’ve met them officially yet? I’m pretty new myself - so it’s possible I’ve had training with them or something, but, if they’re as short as you say - I think I’d remember them.” She admits.

“It’s better to try and fail then never try at all.” Balo reminds him, a smile on her face. Plus Zelda didn’t exactly like Ivan’s pranks - if she talked to him, maybe he could help figure out a way to talk to her and convince her that it was a good idea- and at last resort - prank her.

“Thank you! A lot of practice, you know? Occasionally I mess up but I’m so used to it at this point it’s not too bad,”

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Sam enjoyed having Deryn as his partner but sometimes it sucked. “Don’t worry about getting a partner, having to do the test thing sucks.” Sam said nervously twisting his hands. “I can’t imagine seeing Zelda and Alan do their test. They’ve probably gotten really good at it since they’ve been partners for a while. Deryn and I, uh, aren’t, uh, good at it.”

“I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing this little dude again.” Sam said petting the dog watching it get all excited. “You should, Deryn’s very nice. They are, Sam approved,” He laughed. “They are aren’t that short, they’re,” Sam paused. “Five one?”

“Yeah I’m sure you could probably blackmail her into getting your way, she is lazy. I’d imagine her and Catsby could sleep for days.” Sam chuckled at the idea of Zelda sleeping for hours on end with a cat next to her.

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Balo nods, “They keep me here for training anyway - so I suppose not having my partner yet isn’t exactly a bad thing. it would be nice though - everyone seems to have partners they like so far.”  She admits. “I can’t imagine it either - I’m sure you and Deryn will get there though. Sometimes you have to know who you’re testing with awhile before you do well. - at least that’s what I’ve heard.”

“I’m sure Ches will let you hang out with Melody, honestly. She tends to be nice usually.” She probably had a bad side - but Balo hadn’t personally seen it yet to date. “But I’m glad to hear they’re nice - I’ll probably meet them at some point.” She nods, “I thought Ches was the shortest?” She ponders it for a moment, before shrugging. “She must be really happy about him being around then, she gets a little upset when people are taller than her.”

She pouts, “Well, I was hoping that I could convince her nicely to allow Catsby in the Cafeteria. But that gives me an idea - maybe if they become nap buddies she’ll allow him to eat with me in the cafeteria.”

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“It’s kinda hard to become enemies with someone who knows your greatest fears. Some sort of mutual respect.” Sam shrugged, he didn’t understand the thing that had formed in between him and Deryn but he wasn’t going to question it. “Zelda and Alan seem like to peas in the same pod so i’d imagine they get done really quickly. Hopefully me and Deryn get there someday.”

“I’ll definitely ask if I feel the need to cuddle with Melody,” Sam smiled to Balo. “Yeah Deryn is pretty short. They keep saying the rest of us are just giants. But, they are short. I’d imagine Ches would be happy if they meet, or have met,” He wasn’t actually sure who his partner had met. “Ches is average height though?” Sam liked Ches’ height it was nice and average, made him feel tall but not too tall, but he also wasn’t feeling short.

Sam shrugged, Zelda was fickle depending if she’d slept of not. “Photos, if you get Zelda and Catsby sleeping together it didn’t happen unless you have photographic evidence. I’m sure others will thank you if you end up getting the ban lift too.”

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Balo nods, “It’s happened though I’m sure. It’s harder - but I’m certain it’s happened in the past.” She tells him. “I’m sure those partners got reassigned though - you can’t easily work with someone you hate. I’m sure you and Deryn will get there at some point - it might take a lot of time and effort - but you can do it.” She tells him.

“I don’t know if they know Ches yet? I could ask next time I see her?” She ponders it for a moment. “Ches is average height - but from what little she’s told me about her father’s family. Her brothers are 5′11″ and her baby sister is 5′8″.” She tells him.

She nods, “I’ll be sure to get photos if it happens. I’ll see what I can do, maybe Catsby and her will get along enough the ban gets lifted.”

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Sam shuttered at the thought of hating Deryn or even someone who knew all his fears using them against him. “It’d be terrifying to know that someone else knows your fears though, not just your partner. But I guess it is bound to happen. Thanks Balo, a little reassurance always help, and hey if things go wrong i’m sure Melody and Catsby will always be here for me!” Sam said grinning to the two pets.

“Ah she got the short stick, literally.” Sam laughed at his own joke. “But I’d imagine it’d suck being the short one in the family. I didn’t have to deal with that mom’s a model although, sometimes she wear these intense heels.”

“We can only pray shes in a good mood, try to get her in between just waking up and going to eat. She’s usually the nicest in that small window.” Sam had seen the insomniac when she hadn’t slept in a few days, it wasn’t pretty.

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Balo nods, “They don’t tend to put people together unless they think they’re compatible though. So, hopefully you never have to deal with that.” She tells him, “I doubt things will go wrong, but, they’re always here if you need them. No doubt about that.” She tells him, giving him a reassuring smile.

“Yup! She says it sucks, and I suppose it does. I’ve never had to worry about that. I just have Ivan to compare heights with.” She had gotten out of her house as soon as possible so she didn’t have Grace to measure height with - but it was safe to assume with their father she was tall now. She had Ivan to thank for that though, home wasn’t safe - Camp Half Blood, and now Half-Blood Inc, was.

“I’ll try, maybe if she cuddles with Catsby a bit things will be okay and she’ll lift the ban.” It was worth a try, at the very least.

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“Deryn and I are pretty good together so I probably wont.” Sam had been doing his best to get along with Deryn and so far they’d been doing a great job. “I’m sure it’s nice to have at least one at all times.” Sam said looking to Catsby, he hadn’t touched the cat but it’s presence was soothing.

“How tall is Ivan? He’s not a giant like Loren or Alan right?” Those two were giants in every sense of the word. Sam liked his height he wasn’t stupidly tall and he wasn’t short. It was a nice middle ground. “You seem like a good height too. Not too tall, not too short.”

Sam snickered at the idea of Zelda cuddling with the big cat. “Again, photos. Zelda near any sort of animal is worth seeing given the fact that she seems like a totally neat freak.”

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Balo nods, “That’s good - as long as you get along with your partner, that’s what matters.” She tells him. She pets Catsby, nodding. “Catsby helps soothes me when things go wrong and when I wake up in the middle of the night. I’m so thankful Ivan got him for me.”

She looks around, “he’s average height.” She answers - “And Collen is 6′2″ so add him to your giant list - I swear those three hold the monopoly on tall people or something.” She jokes, “I like my height. Not too tall, not too short - it’s perfect.” She tells him, although she wished she was an inch smaller just so Ivan was a little more than an inch taller than her.

She nods, “Definitely, if she cuddles with Catsby, I’ll be sure to get photos.” She agrees.

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“I don’t think it’s possible to not get along with Deryn though, they are the gods gift to the universe.” Sam smiled he was positive Zeus would actually kill him for making a move on his youngest child. “I’ve never had any pets, although Catsby seems great, and same with Melody here.”

“Damn, forgot about Collen, how in hell do people get to be that tall?” Zelda didn’t look ridiculous standing next to Alan, but Deryn sure did. Of course Sam couldn’t help but think of all the advantages they had being taller. But, they could also hit their heads on beams.

“How’s it going with your drawing by the way?” Sam asked curious.

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Balo nods, “I might disagree on you on that one? Ivan’s pretty much been my saving grace through everything. I don’t know where I’d be without him.” She admits, “but - Deryn sounds great. I’m happy for you two - it must be nice having a partner you can trust and all that.”

She shrugs, “when you find out, let me know?” She tells him - “I know Collen can reach things off the top shelf in Gamestop though. I may or may not have ran into him there and had him grab me Disney Infinity once.” She had been with Ches when it had happened and Ches grumbled most of the way back to Half-Blood Inc.

“It’s going good, want to see?” She asked him, flipping the drawing of the fountain around. “Do you think the piranhas look good - I don’t want to offend them.”

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“I think you favor Ivan though, being siblings and all. Plus he totally doesn’t prank you.” Sam groaned jealous that Balo was a safe zone. Although Sam had never been in one of Ivan’s pranks he they were bad. “Uh huh.” Sam nodded, he enjoyed Deryn as a partner, it gave him an excuse to be near them all the time.

“I don’t even try for the top shelf anymore. I’ll just download it off of PSN it’s easier than having to ask someone else to grab something for you.” Sam was tall but there were certain things he wouldn’t ask for help. Reaching something that was on a high shelf was one of them.

Sam looked over the drawing impressed. “Piranhas look good, but if you want their favor give them food and they won’t care. Or if you want them to basically love you.”

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Balo laughs, “we’re not blood siblings - you know that right? My father brought him to the states from England.” She looks down at the ground for a moment, petting Catsby. “No, I just tend to help him with his pranks. They’re nice - I mean some of his meaner pranks I avoid because I don’t like being mean - but his nicer ones are always fun.” He got extremely good at pranks trying to protect her from her father, after all.

She looks up when he mentions the top shelf, “Well Disney Infinity is one of those games where you need the little figures that come in the starter pack to play. It’s a lot of fun, they just put the starter packs on the top shelf.” She tells him.

She grins, “I’ll have to try that sometime. I’m sure they’d like some food. Meat only, right?”

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“Yeah but you refer to him as your sibling so, eh.” Sam shrugged, he didn’t care if they were half siblings, or not even related. If they said they were siblings, they were siblings. “Yeah you help him, you’ve never been in one. And I’m pretty sure anyone who’s been in an Ivan prank doesn’t completely like him.”

“Dude the little figures suck, I hate having to spend money on more than just the game. Although I’ll admit to getting all the Amiibos shipped to me through Amazon Prime,” Sam loved smash bros. He didn’t even play some of the characters he got, but he had all of them. “I so get needing to have all of the characters.”

“Yeah, sadly no vegan Piranhas. I’d assume they’d just be considered regular fish. They don’t even like tofu.”Sam was a little sad that the Piranhas didn’t like tofu although it made sense.

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Balo smiles, “I’m just saying, it matters to some people.” She admits. “But he’s the best brother I could have asked for - he keeps me safe, and I try to keep him safe.” Ivan used to pull her father’s attention, and she’d try to pull it back to prevent him from getting hurt. It was a twisted cycle that resulted in two abused children. Her smile fades a little, “Ivan’s not too bad. You know? Ches really likes him.” Of course, Ches had a crush on him, it was obvious.

Ches just wasn’t exactly admitting it.

“I’ve been wanting to get a Wii U to play Smash, I’m still on PS3. Maybe someday, but, it’s not currently a priority if that makes sense.” She admits, “I have to make sure this little guy is fed.” She gestures to Catsby, who wasn’t exactly little in cat standards. “Do you get the Amiibos as they come out? I try to get my favorites for Disney Infinity, and occasionally Ches picks me up some when she thinks of me. There’s just so many Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars characters - you know?”

“They don’t like tofu? I thought that you can make it taste like meat though - isn’t that why vegetarians use it in their foods?” She wasn’t exactly knowledgeable in vegetarian foods, so, she could be wrong of course, but, that’s what she always assumed.

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“Ches likes Ivan? Is this a like like or just like?” Sam asked a bit stunned that the queen of makeup was into Ivan. “She doesn’t seem like the type to like Ivan. I thought she’d prefer someone she could mold into being her, I dunno slave?” Sam shrugged, he’d seen some Ches types pick a popular boy and make them into their ultimate boy toy.

“Feel free to come by and play with me any time you want. I have a PS4 and an Xbox one too. Although most of the games for those are Halo, Assassin creed, war games type.” Sam beamed, he loved playing Smash, it was the family friendly Halo. Sam’s face scrunched up at the mention of Star Wars. “Ugh, I love the new Star Wars movies don’t get me wrong but, it kind of sucks that Disney owns Star Wars, it lead to the meshing of some of the worse TV shows. But yeah, I have a dude who charges me and just orders everything for me. I have some that are considered ‘rare’ He’s probably charged at least a thousand dollars to me just on those alone, but it’s so worth it,” Sam laughed.

“Piranhas like the more gory side to meat and some how can tell the difference. I’ve never had any meat so I don’t know if there is a difference between the fake stuff and the real stuff. Plus I tend not to eat any of the fake stuff anyway, I like tofu, and I like garden burgers.” Sam shrugged, the only actual product of animals he liked was Cheese.

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Balo raises an eyebrow, “It’s obvious, isn’t it?” She asks, she thought it was at least - perhaps she was wrong. “That’s stereotyping, you know. Ches bores easily of boys - a boy who follows her like a puppy dog would bore her too much.” She hadn’t know Ches very long - but the two quickly became friends, to the point where Balo was aware of Ches’s dating habits. The ones that doted over her quickly bored her, that was a clear as could be.

“That sounds like a plan! I like Assassin’s Creed. I’m not any good at it, but it’s fun to attempt to play - if that makes sense.” She tells him with a smile, “I like Star Wars Rebels though - I get mega confused on where it sits in the timeline to be honest. I’m not a fan of Lego Star Wars though - I mean there’s a funny scene here or there but it’s not something I’m really into. A thousand dollars? That’s a lot of money.” She wasn’t exactly used to that kind of money - at least not anymore. Not since Ivan and her ran away.

“It could be the blood possibly? They eat what smells like it - although I suppose that wouldn’t explain the cooked meat.” She ponders it for a little bit. “Piranhas have weird diets - no doubt about that.”

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“I don’t know, I guess I tend to stay away from the touchy-feely crap.” Sam shrugged, he hadn’t known Ches liked Ivan. “Like she hasn’t judged me. Everyone judges people Balo, except maybe Catsby and Melody here. Although I guess that’s why she likes Ivan, I definitely would have done her every wish.” Sam chuckled to himself as he snuggled up to Melody.

“Assassin’s creed is by far more mental than they let it out to be. You should try Halo, it’s way easier and your fighting monsters in space. Or you could fight dragons in Dark souls, and Diablo holds a special place in my heart. Ah, the carpal tunnel of clicking furiously.”  Sam could talk about video games all day. Deryn thought it was ridiculous that one person could own so many video games but they warmed up to playing a few of them.

“A thousand dollars isn’t that much for video games though. each game is usually 60 dollars anyway, 17 games is more than thousand dollars and I own way more than 17.” Sam had never been truly poor in his life, he had a comfortable life in Malibu since his mother was a big time model. He didn’t know how to be poor, even in Europe he always had a bed and always had money for food and transportation.

Sam shrugged he didn’t get the piranhas he just knew they tended to like him. “Who knows, they’re weird.”

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Balo nods, “That makes sense. It might just be I spend time with both of them too?” She tells him. “I think Catsby judges people to be honest - he gives Ivan dirty looks when he doesn’t share his food.” She pets the cat, “But honestly? That could be it. Anyway, some people are better as friends - you know?” She says with a grin.

“I like Assassin’s Creed - it’s just I’m not good at it. I haven’t tried Halo yet - although I’ve heard rumors that the driving part of it is a little finicky. I’m easily scared - so Dark Souls is out. I jump at Rugrats - Reptar is scary, you know?” She admits, it wasn’t exactly the scariest thing out there she knew - but she wasn’t exactly a big fan of anything that jumped.

“That’s a fair point, just one Amiibo being a thousand dollars sounds like a lot to me.” She admits, maybe it wasn’t a lot of money for people like her father and her sister - but it was for her. She couldn’t help but wonder what Grace was up to - she obviously didn’t stay in contact after Ivan and her ran away, and it wasn’t like she googled her sister - so she was pretty much unaware of what her older half sister was up to.

It was probably better that way.

She nods, “friendly, but weird. They need to learn playful nips aren’t nice though. Maybe you should work on that with them? You seem to be good with them.”

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“Catsby you crafty SOB, you would judge people who don’t share food.” Sam laughed unable to help himself picturing the Cat giving people dirty looks who wouldn’t share. “A type is a type,” Sam shrugged still chuckling over the cat. “Don’t worry Catsby i’ll share my food with you although I’d doubt you’d like it.”

“Halo’s driving is ridiculous, but once you get the hang of it it’s all good. Dark souls isn’t that scary, the mechanics are weird though. Diablo definitely has creepier monsters in my opinion. But you can play whatever you want, I don’t care.” Sam liked the mechanics to Dark souls it did make you think but it also sucked trying to learn how to read each move.

“Hell no, I don’t even buy clothing that costs a thousand dollars. That’s ridiculous.” Sam technically didn’t buy any of the clothing he wore to events, they were given to him. But he’d never spent more than 50 bucks on any of his clothing.

Sam glanced at the fountain and shook his head. “I think that’s in piranha nature, can’t really train out something they do to survive.”

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Balo nods, “Catsby would probably eat anything - he likes the meat off the Arby’s sandwiches. Also you can’t open a can in my common room without him coming running.” She admits, “he’d probably love you forever if you fed him though - like - he loves food. Isn’t that right, Catsby?” She asks turning to her cat, who purrs louder in response.

“I’ll keep that in mind. Well, l scare pretty easily - so I might avoid Diablo and Dark Souls. But playing whatever I want sounds like a plan. If you ever want to come play Disney Infinity with me, feel free? All Ches likes doing is running around the Toy Boy Hub as Anakin and failing to kill the children.” Ches did it as a joke of course - she didn’t actually want to kill the children - though she had fun hitting them around the place with Anakin’s lightsaber. “That, or we play the fan maps - there’s this Black Ops Zombies one that’s a blast.”

“Okay, good, I must have misunderstood - it happens. I just thought that’d be a lot of money for one thing, you know? A lot of things - sure - one? That’d be pretty expensive.” She had exceptions for that rule of course - things like paintings she’d be willing to pay a lot of money for, but an Amiibo? Not so much.

She nods, “I suppose you’re right. I guess that’s why the signs are there, right?”

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“Well if I ever need Catsby’s help i’ll remember to feed him.” Sam smiled looking to the Cat and stood up leaving Melody on the ground. “He’s a really big cat.” Sam chuckled, he couldn’t get over how big Catsby really was.

“You should play splatoon or move or die, they’re fun co op games. Although I might take you up on the Black ops zombie fan map, that sounds awesome.” He was always up to kill zombies or monsters. Even in real life, fighting always was a rush of energy.

Sam rubbed the back of his head nervously. “Yeah, no, buying one of those little figures for a thousand dollars is a lot of money. M’ sure spending that type of money on Art happens a lot though.” Sam didn’t understand art prices but he knew his mother had spent money on art for around their house.

“I’m getting kinda hungry Balo, if you’d like you can join me in the cafeteria. If not i’ll bail, but this was really cool, I enjoyed meeting Melody and Catsby.” Sam smiled to Balo hearing his stomach grumble.

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Balo smiles, “He’ll definitely help you if you feed him. Just human food only, I don’t feed him anythign I wouldn’t personally eat myself.” She tells Sam, watching him get up.

“I’ll have to come over and check out Splatoon sometime.” She agrees, “although if you ever want in on that fan map - let me know? I’m always looking for people to play co-op with.” She had more fun playing co-op on Disney Infinity. No doubt about that.

She nods, “makes sense. Art tends to be expensive, just one of those things. But it makes a lot of sense to me - artists deserve to get paid for their work. You wouldn’t go to a store for a couch and go: “I want this for free.” You know.”

She grins, “Nah, I’m not hungry, plus Catsby and Melody aren’t allowed in there. But yeah, this was fun. It was nice seeing you Sam!”

She waits for him to walk off before she turns her attention to a new sketch, drawing something else in the area.