#and I love V and Judy and Panam

[the-teddy-bear-butch]

I’m posting Cyberpunk Ronance thoughts because it’s my blog and I can do what I want

I’m just, I know the game isn’t the best in the world, but god if the storyline didn’t break me, okay?

If you care about Cyberpunk spoilers (not including the show), do not read any further

I think there’s a lot of different ways this au could be played

I think Nancy being V makes good sense if you look at V’s characterization as this badass, ambitious person who ends up in a shitty situation but keeps fighting because it’s all she’s ever known. Bonus V and Nancy and GUNS and general badassery. In this version, perhaps Robin is Johnny—chaotic mess of a human who’s life went to shit, although I see her being less of an overall bastard. Robin in aviators? Robin in aviators. The banter between them with Robin literally stuck in Nancy’s head and apologizing over and over for literally being a sentient brain tumor? Kill me now. Bonus, Barb is Jackie, the good natured friend who helps Nancy and gets killed early on as a consequence of her and Nancy’s ambition. As much as my sad little heart loves angst, I like to think the ending could be twisted, like maybe they find Robin’s body so her engram can be put back into it and Nancy can survive. I just don’t want the ending to be sad, damnit. Panam could be Max maybe? Hmmm. Or maybe El.

I’m also fond of the idea of Robin as V, however, and it boils down to the V/Johnny relationship. Picture with me for a moment: Eddie as Johnny. He fits the bill too well. Bastard of a rocker boy who did drugs and has pretty hair. He gets stuck in the head of one Robin Buckley, and it’s instant wlw/mlm hostility (but it morphs into solidarity, I promise). In this version, I think Steve is heartbreakingly Jackie. Their personalities line up too well. Throwing a bone to the Steddies tho, Steve could be Kerry and all the Johnny/Kerry moments become Steddie. Then Barb could still be Jackie? Or Steve is Jackie and Barb is T-Bug, RIP. Who is Nancy, then? Well, I think Panam or Judy are both excellent options. Just think, Nancy Wheeler, the tech genius who reports and edits brain dances on the side, an ex member of the baddest girl gang in Night City, the Moxes? Sick. But! Nancy Wheeler, badass mercenary who strikes out from her clan on her own to follow ambition and independence, but eventually coming back as a leader. Tbh I’m leaning more the Judy route, as much as I love Panam. The underwater date? Nancy finally being vulnerable, showing Robin her flooded home? Memories of Mike—long since moved away—and her family? Nancy saving Robin from almost dying because of Eddie’s damn chip? Robin being so soft with her afterward? Nancy giving Robin her key? Also Nancy is a vengeful woman and the whole Clouds arc would be something she could do, I think—and Robin helps because ofc, it’s Nancy. THEY’RE GAY YOU’RE HONOR. And, because of course I’m choosing the ending where you leave with the nomads, Nancy leaves Night City with Robin, and she promises to help Robin find a cure (and they do because fuck you ambiguous game ending). I’m thinking this is the ideal scenario for me.

Or the above but it’s Eddie as Johnny, Nancy as V, Robin as Panam, I like that too.

Chrissy is undoubtedly Misty in any version, only she’s not dating the Jackie character because she’s a lesbian in my mind and you can pry that headcanon from my cold dead hands. Maybe Vickie is Victor (heh, Vic, same nickname) and they have a little tension going on with Chrissy’s Esoterica being right outside Vickie’s Clinic.

Maybe agent Owens as Takemura? Henry is Yorinobu, Brenner is Saburo. The female agent who’s name I can’t remember is Hanako. I feel like these all fit scary well.

Ofc Hopper is Saul, you can’t tell me he doesn’t fit that role damn near perfect. Most of the rest of the Hawkins crew are probably Aldecaldos as well. I’m thinking Jonathan is Mitch and Argyle could be Scorpion (I know that one is a bad fit but fight me on it, Jargyle boyfriends and also Scorpion/Argyle gets to live because it’s my au and I can do what I want). Thinking about El as Panam more now actually, her stubborn personality and whatnot. It’s vibes, okay? It’s 1 am, let me enjoy my brain worms.

Beyond who’s who: think about Nancy Wheeler with mantis blades. Need I say more? She’s a badass with a katana and throwing knives, and REALLY scary good at hacking. She has a professional cyberdeck and all the best tech. I think she’d be a Corpo background V. Don’t put her in hand to hand combat though, she is small and will get her shit wrecked.

But! Robin Buckley would have less tech. She doesn’t trust it—maybe she’s a conspiracy theorist, sue her. She’s a Nomad background V, and she is really good with bigger guns and weapons that require less finesse. I’m picturing her with a trusty baseball bat and a shotgun that she alternates between. When she does hack, it’s usually cameras and whatnot for stealth missions—but we all know she’s bad with coordination and most stealth missions turn into guns blazing missions. Oops?

[blighted-elf]

Cyberpunk 2077 - All Along the Watchtower

[timaeusterrored]

‘V is a dumbass’ group chat featuring Kerry Eurodyne, Panam Palmer, River Ward, and Judy Álvarez

RW: Has anyone seen V in the last like, 24 hours?

JÁ: They were with Panam last

PP: They said they were going to Kerry’s-

KE: *image sent*

Everyone: WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED?!

KE: YOU TELL ME

[moldwithsparkles]

Not being able to romance Panam as female V is my villain origin story (still love Judy tho)

[floofy-tanuki]

I think cyberpunk 2077 is a beautiful story about hope and love and change and what life means actually

[sansevierias]

the real reason why V doesn’t kiss kerry on the balcony in the sun ending is bcs V didn’t brush his fucking teeth.

[soft-jihyo]

personally really hate the "devs should just make all characters bi so nobody feels excluded" take.

[spaceswifty]

I finally finished cyberpunk 2077 and I'm gonna give it 4/5 stars. I absolutely loved the vibe of the city and the aesthetic and most of the characters were interesting but I wish it was more of an rpg and in 3rd person and the ending was just ok but didn't feel that special

[fictionisthebetterreality]

Ok I know you can't actually romance Johnny but it felt wrong NOT to include him??

Haven't seen anyone do one of these yet so figured why not :-)

[swankyjami]

A couple of new pics of my V in Cyberpunk 2077!! The first outfit is my "Ass Kickin" outfit along with my assault rifle that's my pride and joy. Btw I am now over 130 hours, which is the most time I've put in a game in a very, very long time! It's still kinda janky, but it's getting better and totally playable. Just wished I had it on the PC, so it would handle the game better and load faster. Oh well!

[sakasamurai707]

Oh boy I can’t sleep so here’s some Cyberpunk Relationship Headcanons!

Kerry x Male!V

-Kerry genuinely sung the ‘I love you, bitch. I’ll never stop loving you, bitch’ song to V on their three month anniversary, complete with the guitar. V had no idea what to say, and didn’t understand the reference.

-Kerry sleeps starfish style and with his mouth open. V has had to close his mouth because he drools in the night.

-Kerry swore he would never have an animal in his mansion before Nibbles came to be. After he met nibbles, Kerry bought him a throne style cat bed.

-Kerry doesn’t understand that not every kiss has to be with tongue. V has genuinely bitten his tongue because he just wanted a quick smooch before a gig.

Panam x Male! V

-Panam is allergic to pollen, but due to being in the badlands, she never knew until V brought her organic flowers. She sneezed for a week straight before realizing.

-V and Panam like racing, but V is terrible at driving. He once accidentally crashed her car into a pile of cacti.

-V and Saul sometimes have family dinner together, and Saul asks really personal questions about the relationship every time. (Example: ‘sooo…have you two screwed yet?’)

-when V can’t sleep, Panam takes him out to look at the stars. The first time she did, he cried, since he’d never seen them before due to the city lights.

….”if we don’t fix this chip thing, V, I’ll be looking up at those. You’ll be the prettiest star out there.”

Judy x Fem! V

-Judy loves telling V about her ocean and fish hyperfixation. Sometimes, she wishes she could afford to go to a real aquarium. V swears if she gets the money, she’ll take her on a date there.

-Judy and V have made braindances before, all to be kept in Judy’s “private folder.”

-V doesn’t understand why Judy is so emotional sometimes, but she’ll awkwardly hug her or kiss her when she starts crying.

-Judy’s favorite movie to watch with V is Ponyo. Judy knows the song by heart and sings it during the credits.

River x Fem! V

-Both River and V really want the other to quit their jobs, so sometimes they jokingly leave resignation papers on each other’s desks. V doesn’t really have a ‘boss,’ so River just leaves a sticky note that says “quit.”

-River really likes iguanas, so when V hatched hers, he cuddled with it more than her for a week straight. V had to deal with it being in between them in bed.

-Joss and V talk a lot, to the point where V will show up at his house just to completely ignore him and talk to his sister. River just ends up standing behind them awkwardly.

-River does the ‘broke boyfriend stance’ every time they’re in a store. Johnny makes fun of him for it.

-River and V are really cuddly, to the point River can’t fall asleep correctly without her beside them.

Bonus!!!! Johnny x GN! V

-Johnny has tried to convince V to kiss the mirror to see if it feels like an actual kiss. (It doesn’t.)

-V has a habit of telling Johnny ‘I love you’ out loud. They said it in front of Hanako right before the relic malfunction, and Hanako looked at them and said

“Uhm…thank…you…?”

-V eventually figures out how to get Johnny a new body and repair the chip. (In my heart I’m delusional.) Once they did, they didn’t let go of each other for weeks. They had the worst honeymoon phase.

-Johnny excessively jokes about soul killer. V does not find it amusing.

Bonus Bonus!!!! Takemura x GN! V

-Takemura cooks most of their meals after V revealed they mainly eat frozen tv dinners instead of real food. He’s Also really insistent that they drink water and shower.

-Takemura once brutally cried after seeing the full effects of the Relic Malfunctions, comparing it to when his Arasaka implants got revoked.

-Takemura didn’t know how to hug someone, so he accidentally nearly choked V.

-he also didn’t know how to kiss, so he just…opened his mouth.

-Takemura doesn’t understand sarcasm, so he takes whatever V says to its fullest meaning.

[mrpink-things]

Judy: Here, Val. I made you the Alvarez sandwich

V: *drowning* Oh I love this sandwich, thank you. Can you please tell me the secret ingredient??

Judy: nope, that's an Alvarez secret

V: well then I guess there's only one way for me to learn it

Judy: And how's that??

V: I gotta marry ya. *she finishes eating the sandwich*

Judy: w-wh-what, what did you s-say?? *internal happy screaming*

V: I said I have to marry you, anywho. Thank you for breakfast,

V: I gotta get going now, *she kisses Judy goodbye* love you, bye

Judy: y- yeah, love you. Bye

*later at Lizzie's*

Judy: And then she just left, I mean who just leaves after saying something like that??

Roxanne: So I should get ready for your wedding??

Roxanne: How do you think she will propose?? when do you think she will propose?? I'm so excited!!!!

Roxanne: Just Imagine it, V Alvarez. *gasps* KIDS!!! how many kids?? Names for the kids??

Judy: maybe, your jumping the gun

Mateo: she did say she'd have to marry you

Roxanne: Exactly!!! She could be playing, maybe she is playing right now

*V & Panam having a competition to see who can shove the most burritos in their mouths at once*

[fyeahnix]

So Panam. I love her. She's honestly great. Great character, great design. It's such a shame you can't romance her as the female body, female voice V. Actually sucks. BUT as I've played through her quests, I've developed a nice little story in my head about her and my V…

They are BESTIES. Absolute chaotic besties. Like straight up, "this is my new best friend" vibes. V wants to blow some shit up? Call Panam with a job (when she isn't busy!)

V def flirted with her when they first met but Panam was like "uhhh….sorry no?"

V: UNDERSTANDABLE, HAVE A NICE DAY.

V shrugged it off, but they just continued on as normal. Did not take them long before they found a common interest.

These two are the epitome of "share the same brain cell." Judy has never met Panam but V talks about her a LOT. And it kinda irks her sometimes. Like "damn what is so good about this Panam woman? She better not be interested in her…."

(Neither of them are interested in each other but the "flirty/fuck you" way they talk to each other could fool anyone).

And then Judy meets Panam and she's like "yep nvm that makes sense they are literally the same brand of idiot."

[elvenbeard]

Maybe the biggest gift is the friends we made along the way 🎂

Happy Birthday, V!

Was staying up way too late and getting way too emotional over these fictional gonks last night, but yes... I've wanted to do a bigger scene like this for so long, and what better occasion than male V's canon birthday today!

These aren't all my favourites from the game (the sofa wouldn't be big enough for it xD), but the people Vince would like to invite over for the occasion for sure, let it be a year or two down the line when they all actually are in the same area at the right time and come together like this (and uuuhhh... obvious problems with one certain ex-bodyguard set aside and solved because I said so!). It would really be a special thing to have everyone there that's been with him during one of the worst times of his life. Thanks to them (amongst many others) he even gets the chance to celebrate another birthday.

Some more ramblings about some of the interactions I'm picturing here and why I placed everyone the way I did under the cut xD And some more pics to come in a separate post later :3

Front and center obviously Vince and Kerry and Judy, my faves, my loves <3 I think this would probably be one of only a handful of times Kerry ever meets Judy in person. He only ever hears her over the holo and knows her from what V told him, because she left Night City before they got a chance to meet prior to the game's endings. I think they would go along so well though, and besides Kerry, Judy is the person Vince feels closest to out of the group pictured here, and he'd be so excited to know Kerry and her get along as well.

Then Judy and Panam... I lowkey ship it so hard, and I mean, they would make one power couple, but at the very least I think they'd become good friends, maybe Judy even travels with the Aldecaldos for a while or joins them, like in the Star ending when she's romanced.

I put River in the back and center cause he's the biggest of the bunch and I think he'd love being there, watching over everyone in a way (and keeping an eye on Takemura, cause he doesn't trust him xD). I'd like to think him and Viktor get talking about boxing, workouts, maybe make plans for a friendly sparring match. Maybe they've even met before on some occasion, only just realizing it now. Viktor is btw out of the whole bunch the person Vince has know the longest, almost as long as he knew Jackie in my background story for him.

Goro keeps himself in the back because he definitely is the odd one out of the bunch (probably didn't wanna come in the first place), but maybe he's starting to realize this moment that a life without Arasaka is not the end of the world after all. That there's always room for new beginnings, no matter how unlikely it seems (but he's still gonna give V shit, and V is gonna give him shit, obviously XD they're bickering like an old couple probably, much to Judy's and Panam's amusement who previously were rather wary of Goro).

Then a pair I only really got thinking about when I set this up were Misty and Kerry because... It does kinda make sense, and I think they'd get along really well? Like, Vince and Misty have known each other for a few years, and he likes her a lot, but he's not as close to her as he was to Jackie for example. She was definitely a positive guidance throughout the whole mess in 2077, and he really appreciates her for always seeing the good in everything. And I think Kerry would be a bit confused about her in the beginning, but since he also has spiritual leanings I think they'd find a lot of common ground. I also think Misty would just treat him as Vince's partner, some guy, not be all in awe about him being famous - aware of it, but ignoring it, because it does not matter in the grand scheme of things how rich and famous you are but whether or not you're a decent human being.

And Nibbles is there because she lives there, obviously, this is her penthouse, her sofa xD Needs to make sure everyone behaves!

I had been thinking about including Rogue in the scene, but then I also thought... she probably wouldn't come xD Be like "nah kid, thanks, but you do you", and she's not that close with Vince on a personal level. Same goes for Claire, I love her so much, and while I think she and Vince get along very well, they're not as close (or maybe she just didn't have time).

I was pondering also if I wanted to include Jackie and Johnny in some way, because they can't be there physically for known reasons (and even though Vince wouldn't have invited Johnny just to annoy him, Johny would have come anyway to annoy him back, so there's that XD). Decided against it in the end because the ideas I had would have meant more editing than what I was ready to do just now, but I have some more ideas with Vince and Jackie and Johnny that work better in a different setting anyway.

if you've read this far, here's a piece of birthday cake 🍰

[silverdynetruther]

a lot of ppl on this app and others where there’s a cyberpunk fanbase have this idea that kerry ‘moves on too fast’ or ‘doesn’t care about v’

hi i’m here to prove you wrong, and tell you that kerry is the only person v can actually stay with if he survives.

something about kerry to understand is he’s always been repressive when it came to how he expressed himself. something else to understand is that kerry loved v more than he had ever loved anyone or anything else, and that’s because of what v did for him.

a lot of people say that it was ‘out of character’ or ‘disappointing’ the way kerry reacts in the tower ending, but in reality it is the most consistent one of all the romance options. throughout the game, kerry is shown to still deal with the issues johnny left behind. he still struggles with the inability to move on, to cope, to form healthy attachments or even live happily. but because of v, kerry is able to reach a level of contentment. kerry says to v, in the sun ending, when he asks kerry if he ever thinks about johnny;

‘i’ve got someone more important to fill that hole with now.’

kerry was incomplete, or at least he felt it without johnny. and we know that, with the conversation during boat drinks, that because of v, kerry is able to move on. boat drinks is where he confesses this. because of v, kerry reaches a level of self-satisfaction and even acceptance. in this gig, kerry and v reach the conclusion that he has reached ‘maturity.’

kerry is no longer grieving johnny, and moves on and no longer thinks about him. he’s no longer suicidal or unhappy with his life, and he is no longer looking for external sources to fill his life with. despite kerry saying ‘to fill that hole with now’ we know that v taught kerry to healthily process and move on from things that hold him back. ‘someone more important’ being v, shows us that v allowed kerry to form healthy, good attachments that help him.

the way that they showed this development, in my biased opinion, was flawless and realistic. and the way they tied this into the tower ending was just as flawless and consistent with kerry’s character development. even after v disappears, kerry chases his dream to perform on the crystal palace. he couldn’t have done that without v. he releases new music that he feels proud of, and he couldn’t have done it without v. and he spends two years working towards these healthy, self-serving goals that help him work through the trauma of losing a loved one (again). and we know, from when johnny came back after FIFTY years, that kerry’s reaction was very minor. kerry expected johnny to come back, he waited for him. in those fifty years, he managed to produce the same amount as he did in the TWO years he spent waiting for v. and we know kerry was waiting for v because he reacts the same way, only completely overjoyed. this, being something that does not change when kerry matures and grows, must just be the way kerry is, the way he loves. he waits, and trusts.

kerry told v to wait for him. kerry was realistic about how long he’d be, and this, is a perfectly valid ask considering how long he had waited for v. kerry is overjoyed to see v alive and (mostly) well. he feels this for v, and not for johnny, which just further proves that v gave him what he needed to move on. he says to v, ‘i wish you were here.’ when we look at this compared to the other romance opinions, it’s more than clear that kerry loves v the most, and he means the most to kerry out of everyone. judy moves on and gets married to someone else after only two years, and then accuses v of trying to ruin her happiness. panam doesn’t even want to talk to v, and river tells v that he won’t see them, and hangs up on them mid-sentence. but kerry? laughs ecstatically when he sees v, tells him he wishes he was there too, and then promises that he’ll come back after four months at the absolute most. he doesn’t lie to v, he doesn’t ignore v, he values what v says, and offers to help in any way he can, and promises he will come back. that’s love.

how people got the notion that kerry moves on is genuinely confusing to me. he is on a contract, he cannot, even when he desperately wants to, just leave. also, bro was in SPACE he can’t just fly to earth on a whim.

kerry growing and maturing and learning to cope healthily is not kerry losing care for v over those two years. kerry, especially when we look at the other romance opinions, loved v an immense amount. and as a complex character, we have to look at the complex reasoning behind his actions and words, which CDPR did nothing but justice to.

[emeraldhaven]

Celebrating You and Only You

V hated birthdays.

Another tick of the clock towards inevitability, a step towards the end of a life she loved so very much. She didn't hate them purely because of this of course - she also didn't like the expectations that came on a day like today. Gifts, parties, celebrations of her life which, in the grand scheme of things, wasn't all that important. She'd much rather head out on her bike, drive by some Tyger Claws or Maelstrom and fry their brains to a crisp using her cyberdeck than have to accept gifts from her friends that, bless their souls, would be trying to make this year a "year to remember".

"Jesus V - could you be any more depressin'? Cheer up, live a little!" Johnny whined, appearing on the sidewalk beside V. He was looking wistfully over the Watson community centre, leaning on the handrail exactly the same as she was.

"C'mon Johnny, you've been trawling through my memories, you know why I don't like today." V said, looking over to see whatever Johnny was also looking at. She didn't really see anything other than a few people drunk or high stumbling along the sidewalk. She breathed in deeply, held it and closed her eyes, the stale Night City air burning her lungs, then dropping her shoulders and breathing out slowly, her hand gripping tightly onto the railing.

Johnny shook his head and scoffed, pushing off of the railing and crossing his arms.

"Hey, I'm not sayin' you need to like today, just at least visit the people who care about you most. Quit bein' a little shit and make people feel like you appreciate their efforts."

V sighed. She really didn't want to go and see anybody today, but maybe Johnny was right - maybe she ought to go see some of her friends? Taking out her phone, she opened up the contacts menu and scrolled down, tapping on So Mi.

The phone rang, and rang, and rang, and rang.

"Huh. Why isn't So Mi picking up?" V wondered. It's quite unlike her little Songbird to not pick up the phone when she called, given everything that happened between the two. Granted, she'd just come back from her little trip up to Tycho, and any kind of operation is going to be taxing on somebody - maybe she wasn't feeling up to chatting?

V tried to contact her other friends: Kerry went straight to voicemail; Judy was on do-not-disturb; Panam was "out of cell range" - whatever that meant; River was "at work". Tapping her phone against her chin, V hummed out loud some familiar tune that was stuck in her head whilst she thought why every single person she could possibly want to hang out with was suddenly completely unavailable.

She hears a ping from her cellphone - it's a photo from So Mi and it's of the front door to her apartment. The caption reads:

"Come home."

V's heartrate shoots up - what does she mean, come home? Songbird has no idea where her apartment is, she'd never gone there during the whole Dogtown event, instead staying at the various safehouses that Reed and Alex had set up. It was a worrying thing for So Mi to know both where she lived and that she was there - it wasn't a particularly safe megabuilding.

Hopping on her Kusanagi, she turned the key and kicked off the pavement, pulling the throttle hard and speeding off to her home. After some incredibly reckless driving (Judy calls it "literally asking for trouble"), she arrives in quite possibly the shortest amount of time it's ever taken for her to drive across Night City. V practically jumps up the entire flight of stairs in front of her block, somehow leaping up 4 stairs at a time to reach the elevator, barely even registering the small red-electrical glitch on the TV screens, and once it arrives at the top sprints towards her apartment door and opens it.

The first thing V notices is that it's too quiet. Taking a quick scan around her apartment with her eyes, she can't see anyone and even her Kiroshi's aren't registering anything out of the ordinary. It takes one, two, three steps into her home before anything happens. A red glitch takes over her vision; quite similar to how the Relic would give her trouble, but she feels completely fine; until it all starts to clear and…

"SURPRISE!!" A loud cacophony of voices and cheers and party horns and poppers go off, showering her in a sea of noise, warmth and a shocking amount of confetti. V blinks away the odd bit of static to see all of her friends standing before her: Panam, Mitch, Judy, Rita, River, Kerry, Misty, Reed, Alex, Jackie, Viktor, Takemura and right in the middle as though she was illuminated by the stars themselves, So Mi holding a cake with the cutest little artistic (and quite edible) depiction of V at work, Mantis Blades in hand.

"Guys, you didn't have to do all this!" V exclaimed, shocked that they could have even set up something as elaborate as this without her really knowing.

"V, choom, we wouldn't have had it any other way." Jackie said softly, walking over and placing a hand around her shoulders. "Now kick back, relax and grab a cold one - it's time for celebrating you, and only you, today. None of this back and forth shit."

V looked up at Jackie and back towards her friends, her eyes starting to well up from all the emotions. She started to see all the little details - the cake, the small pieces of ribbon around the apartment, the bunting celebrating her 24th birthday, and all her friends dressed up and here for her. It wasn't something she was used to, but it was definitely something she could grow to enjoy.

As the party started, Jackie left V to go talk to Viktor and Takemura about some boxing thing that V didn't really know a whole lot about. She walked over and sat down next to So Mi, dressed in an immaculate jacket and jean combo that was quite similar to what her Relic-form had actually looked like. She was stunning, truly a beautiful woman in her own right, but since she got back from Luna she had this sparkle in her eyes that made V's heart flutter.

"Hey V - didn't see this one coming did you?" Songbird smirked, her soft lips accented in a beautifully red lipstick. V felt almost unable to take her eyes off of them, flicking down between her two newest vices: Songbird's eyes and lips.

"Uh, um, n-no no I didn't actually. How long have you known?" V stuttered.

"Ha! Well, it was a combination of everyone really. I got back from Tycho and, well, I got contacted by Panam - something about you not really having a lot of time celebrating your birthday in the past?" So Mi took a sip from her drink, lips wrapped around the straw in her cup.

"Ah I shouldn't have gotten drunk and chatted life with Panam - didn't realise that I'd have left something like that slip." V chuckled. "What was your little part to play in all this, Song?"

"The whole fact you couldn't see anything - hooked into the Relic and altered your visualware for the whole effect. Might have spruced other things up, as well, but y'know that's just for personal fun." Song couldn't have looked any more smug, nor more beautiful given that it seemed like, to V at least, that she was literally glowing.

"You're beautiful." V muttered, completely unaware that she'd said that out loud.

Songbird blushed a deep red. "Thanks V, that means a lot coming from you." She started to play with the top of the typical red cup she was holding.

V's eyes widened and her own scarlet blush creeped across her face, the tips of her eyes going ever so slightly pink. Taking a swig of her drink, she placed her hand on top of So Mi's, their pinkies ever so slightly hooking onto the other's.

"No, thank you Song - for all of this. I really, really appreciate you being here, and I'd want nothing else." V smiled softly at So Mi, flicking down to her lips again. She suddenly got quite aware of how close they were actually sitting on the couch.

"V… I-"

"Hey V! Come check out this sweet new gear that Judy's got!" Panam called over, rushing to grab V's arm and pull her away from Songbird. V looked back guiltily at Song, mouthing out "I'm sorry, talk later!" towards the redhead who smiled back and nodded in return.

The party would continue into the late night, and one-by-one people said their farewells and see-you-laters until everyone had left except for Jackie and Songbird.

"Alright V, I'd best be off - got a cute date with Misty in the morning, and I don't wanna miss it." Jackie said, slapping his legs and standing up. V walked him over to the door and hugged him.

"Thanks Jack - I had a preem time today." V said, choking on the last few words and giving Jackie another hug before he left.

"And then there were two." Songbird chuckled, lounging back on the couch, heels off and feet up on the couch, arms outstretched over the couch's spine.

"Well it was one at some point right, back when you were just a cute ghost in my head?" V chuckled, the room slightly swaying. V stumbles over and flops down onto the couch, falling right into the space between So Mi's side and her outstretched arm. V's back is suddenly warm, the machinery within So Mi's body heating up as the alcohol within their systems work independently, but seemingly together.

So Mi wraps her arm around V's chest, slowly stroking her abdomen, fingers raising and dropping at the curves of her abs. "Mmm - only a cute ghost? I seem to remember a certain someone thinking quite a lot about other things that involve the 'cute ghost in her head'." So Mi giggled, squeezing softly.

"Would be a gonk ass move to think too much nowadays though; pretty sure I was getting quite visceral feedback myself." V looked up at So Mi, gazing back into those captivating eyes. "Couldn't help it, Song, you had me when you invited back to that bench."

So Mi hummed, a multitude of thoughts, feelings and pure emotions coursing through her head. As her heartbeat ramped up, the whirring in the motors in her spine lowly increased, and V noticed.

"Not gettin' too mushy on me, are ya' Song?" V giggled back, placing her own hand on Songbird's, the dark glow of both her apartment and Night City from her window illuminating the two.

Songbird shook her head and then slowly, softly and with the most care anyone has ever given to V, leant down and kissed the top of her head. Burying her nose in the plushness of V's soft, delicate stained-red hair, she exhaled in complete comfort.

"No V, I'm just as mushy and as happy as I want to be right here, right now, with you. Spending as much time as I can while we still have it to spend in whatever ways we want. Happy birthday, V." Songbird murmured, closing her eyes.

Taking a minute, V calmed her screaming heart and said quietly: "It's, um, it's Valerie. My real name is Valerie."

"Then happy birthday Valerie - you deserve it." Songbird affirmed.

V hummed happily, sleepily planting an ever softer kiss on So Mi's hand, entwining their fingers and drifting off, her eyelids fluttering closed as the comforting embrace of Songbird enveloped her in her wings.

Maybe V didn't hate birthdays after all.