#otp: aeon

[ivyial]

Canonicity in the Context of Ships (and Ship Wars)

Essentially, what makes a ship canon? Does it even matter that a ship becomes canon?

So, disclaimer before we start:

1. This is my interpretation of the meaning of "canon" and what it means for a ship to be canon. As always, I'm open to disagreements and constructive criticism, especially if it can tame the constant aggression in some fandom spaces

2. I like ships, but I don't support ship wars because they're all fucking pointless and if you're a grown adult or close to being one and you're still harassing people over ships on the internet, you're a fucking loser

That being said

As we all know, online fandom spaces have developed their own vernacular over the years: canon, fanon, headcanon, OC, AU, OTP, the infamous 'Dead Dove: Do Not Eat', etc. Fandom slang has also evolved since it was first coined. A prime example of that would be the use of the term "lemon" to refer to erotic fanfiction, which while still used, has suffered a sharp decline in favour of the word "smut" (although smut has its own use and meaning outside of fandoms).

The word "canon" is arguably one of the most important words in fandom, since it refers to the official source material from a game, book, TV show, movie, whatever form of media said fandom is about. In essence, it's the official story: what actually happens and what was intended by the creators. Some universes are easily accessible and the canon isn't really subject to much debate. Most TV shows have very straightforward canon: assuming that everything is contained within, let's say, 5 seasons of 22 episodes each, with no spin-offs, movies, or exclusive bonus episodes, the canon of the show will be laid out in these episodes. That's it. Some other fandoms will be much more obscure: think of game franchises such as Resident Evil, where many games have been released over the years, remade, and some have been largely forgotten and can even contradict the current version of events. In this case, it can be much harder to define what canon is, which events are official and still applicable to the story and which should be discarded completely. (And I have to say, as a law student, canon is weirdly reminiscent of the hierarchy of norms, but that's for another day.)

I could discuss the importance of canon in fandoms, but that's irrelevant to the point of this post. Let's talk ships. I don't need to explain to everyone what a ship is. There's no point of contention there. In most media where romance is either dealt with or hinted at, fandoms, and therefore, shippers, will jump at the opportunity to write about or make art of their favourite ship. However, there's always something rearing its ugly head and contributing to the toxic atmosphere in fandoms: ship wars.

Ship wars are in essence extremely simple, and I'm sure we've all been in a fandom that participated in a ship war, whether we were involved in it ourselves or not. Long story short, shippers argue over which ship will become canon. Writers are toying with the idea of two or more major ships and teasing that both have their chances. So, in the end, it's all about who comes out on top and who becomes official.

The canonicity of a ship is a lot more complicated than the canonicity of media itself. I'd argue that even if the canonicity of the story is simple, it's likely that the canonicity of ships will necessarily be harder to draw conclusions about. So you can imagine how complicated canon is when it comes to ships from franchises that barely know their own canon.

Since I've seen a lot of arguments over canon ships in the Resident Evil fandom as of late, and this is what inspired this post, I will be using this example primarily - and since ideally I'd like this post to reach fandoms outside of RE, I'll be explaining and illustrating my examples. Other fandoms and ships might also be referred to.

1. Canon, semi-canon and non-canon

When it comes to ships, there are 3 main ways to describe them:

- Non-canon: quite straightforward. The ship has not officially expressed any desire (even implicit) to get together whatsoever. They may or may not interact in canon, and if they do, there's just no romantic interest there. Non-canon does not necessarily refer to a ship being into each other but not doing anything about it, as this is characterised as:

- Semi-canon: there's something there. Maybe both characters like each other romantically, maybe it's one-sided, maybe there is potential but it could either sail or be ruined completely by Character A's reaction to Character B's feelings. But overall, the general consensus seems to be that semi-canon ships have not acted on their feelings. This definition is not set in stone - we'll come back to it later.

- Canon: yay, your ship has sailed!! The pairing has officially been confirmed. The characters have acted on their feelings and you have won the ship war.

These are the general definitions of canon ships. And if you think they're clear and satisfactory, in what world are you living?

2. Past canon vs current canon

You finally got around to watching the season finale and there it is: Character A and B confessed and kissed. Finally, it's canon, and you can gloat on social media about how you were right all along.

But then it turns out that by the final season, your ship breaks up, and Character A gets with Character C. Even worse, Character A stays with Character C and the show ends with them being officially together. What the fuck.

So, what does that make your ship? It's officially a sunk ship, sure, but what about its canonicity? Should it be considered canon? I mean, they dated for 2 seasons. So technically, there was a period of time when your ship was canon. It just isn't anymore.

This is the first hurdle we meet when trying to define a ship as canon. It all hinges on the when aspect of it. This is also where ship canonicity differs from story canonicity. Storywise, the ship is rooted in canon since they were together at some point. Shipwise, however, they are not canon anymore, since they have broken up. It's canon that they happened, but they themselves aren't canon anymore.

At this point, I would argue that most people consider that a ship that is together by the end of the show/game/movie/book etc., by the end of canon essentially, is canon. Don't worry, we're still far from having solved this.

3. What does it take for a ship to be canon?

You will have noticed by now that, so far, I have instinctively referred to a canon ship as a ship that is together. I'd argue that this is what most people think of when they think of a canon ship.

But what does it mean for a ship to be together? Do we mean that they have to be a couple? Is it marriage, is it a relationship, is it friends with benefits? Or is it a simple kiss and confession? Do they even have to make out, or have sex, or put a label on their relationship?

This is when we venture into the territory of canon vs semi-canon. Earlier, I defined semi-canon as a ship that has feelings for each other, or is one-sided, but no one has acted on their feelings. Mind you, this is the definition provided by the Internet.

Let's say Character A confesses to Character B. Character B feels the same way, but they don't want to get into a relationship right now. The show ends there. I mean, technically, they like each other, right? That much was confirmed. They acted on their feelings by confessing. Technically, that gets them out of semi-canon territory. But does it get them into canon territory? Nothing came out of the confession, really.

We can't in good faith argue that two characters confessing is enough to make them canon, since the term semi-canon also exists, and could very well apply depending on your own definition of it.

The problem lies in defining what it takes for a ship to be canon. If we go back to the very roots of canon, it's confirmation that a ship has an official romantic nature.

Is liking each other enough? Doubtful: if a main character flirts with a minor side character, who reciprocates, does that make them canon? They're into each other. But it would be ridiculous by fandom standards to deem them canon when the side character might never be seen again and has no real bearing on the story.

Truth is, what makes a ship canon fluctuates depending on the standards set by the media itself. If a piece of media is heavily romance-based, canon will most likely be defined by the ship that makes it out in the end, the one that has proclaimed to be a couple. If the piece of media is not keen on romance, and never creates romantic relationships between characters, it might be enough for the fandom to consider canon a pairing that has simply alluded to being into each other.

Whether the last example is good enough reason to hail a ship as canon depends on the fandom and the shippers. Some might think it's a stretch, some might think it's more than enough.

One possibility would be to look at the writers' intention for the pairing, read interviews if they're available, etc. However, most of the time, franchises have changes in writers over the seasons/games/movies, and it gets even worse when you take into account franchises that are adapted from another source material - say, Game of Thrones vs ASOIAF: David Benioff and D.B. Weiss' intentions for the characters certainly differ from George R. R. Martin's intentions.

I'm going to start using actual examples now, to better illustrate my point. I'll be using Resident Evil ships, like I said. RE, despite having constant ship wars, is not famous for making ships canon or focusing on romance at all. The most you'll get is indicators that two characters are into each other or you'll get established relationships that are not subject to ship wars since they have no other love interest (see Mia and Ethan Winters: married couple, established as part of canon and the validity of their relationship with regards to other characters is never questioned). As a matter of fact, you could probably argue that the Winters are the only canon couple in the REverse.

Most RE ship wars happen as a result of Leon ships, the main ones being Aeon (Ada/Leon) vs Cleon (Claire/Leon). There are other Leon ships out there, mainly Chreon (Chris/Leon), Serennedy (Luis/Leon), Leshley/Eagleone (Ashley/Leon), and many more, but they don't engage in ship wars because they have the common sense to be normal human beings about their ships. (Seriously everyone, chill the fuck out.)

Aeon shippers are known for one thing: banging on and on about how their ship is canon - which, in their eyes, automatically discredits all other Leon ships (what's the point of shipping if it isn't to win, right? I'm obviously being sarcastic). Which, knowing the canon nature of Aeon, makes it the perfect test subject for this discussion and post.

Are Ada and Leon into each other? Sure. Ada confessed to falling in love with Leon in OG RE2, they flirted in OG RE4, Resident Evil: Damnation suggests that they have shared at least one night together, and in RE6, Helena guesses that Leon has feelings for Ada. These events, however, have changed in the remakes: Ada no longer confesses to being in love with Leon in RE2R, though she does kiss him to manipulate him, and they don't exactly flirt much in RE4R. But then, by discussing this, we'd end up discussing what is canon in a game franchise plagued by obscure secondary sources of canon, and that's not what I plan on doing here (I also severely lack the extensive knowledge to do that).

Despite all of this, Ada and Leon never actually get together. It's a constant game of cat and mouse, will-they-won't-they, whatever you wanna call it. Since they are on opposite sides of the same fight, it's practically impossible for them to get into a normal, healthy relationship. Going back to what I said about the canonicity of a ship being defined by the standards set by the piece of media itself, you could argue that Aeon is canon by those standards: since they can't get together, it only matters that they have shown reciprocated feelings towards one another.

However, that's not entirely true, is it? RE hasn't set those standards for romance. It doesn't act on ships, but it hasn't deterred romance as a whole: look at Mia and Ethan Winters. It is possible to get into a relationship in RE - now whether it is possible to get a happy ending is entirely less likely.

But I mean, there are other love interests for Leon that aren't on the side of who he's fighting. Look at Claire, or Ashley, or hell even Jill. We can't, as a fandom, reasonably ignore the flirting that went down between Claire and Leon in RE2R (and Infinite Darkness at times) and Leon and Ashley in both OG RE4 (though he does reject her at the end of the OG) and RE4R. And he was probably trying to flirt with Jill a little in Death Island, too - he's a bit of a whore (affectionate).

How do you even define the canonicity of a ship in a universe like RE, in which most characters can't form normal, healthy romantic relationships? Is it enough to kiss/sleep together (Aeon)? Is it enough to unabashedly flirt and to practically be parents to a practically adopted daughter (Cleon)? Is it enough to share all sorts of romantic tropes and overtly flirt with each other (Leshley/Eagleone)? What happens when you start removing all of the events that used to be canon, but might not be anymore/be part of a different canon than the current one?

4. Conclusion (kind of)

I really want to offer a definition of a canon ship that suits everyone, but every time i come up with one, I bump into yet another wall. Tentatively, we could define a canon ship as a ship that has, by the standards of the piece of media they belong to, acted on their desire to be together in a lasting manner that disproves all other potential ships for the characters. I'm sure that can be perfected, and there might be elements of this definition that can be refuted, but this is how I would characterise a ship as canon. Which would, you guessed it, make pretty much every Leon ship non-canon in the context of the REverse as a whole.

The one true conclusion of this post, however, is that shipping amounts to playing with Barbies and should not be taken so seriously. There are a lot of shippers who know that their ships have no chances of becoming canon, yet still choose to have fun with it, make content for it in their own space, and some of you guys are dicks enough to go and bully them over it. Go outside, take a breath, and understand that canonicity is not the be-all and end-all of shipping.

I went a bit overboard with this and I'm sorry (not really). I'd love to know everyone's opinions on what makes a ship canon, if there's scenarios I haven't considered, etc! Constructive criticism is more than welcome and as always, my ask box is always open <3

[the-shotce-newsletter]

[juuuuunaaaaaooooo]

The fact that Ada and Leon always smile (real or flirty) when they talk or see each other, I'm...<333333

[writing-for-life]

Lupē

Finally, finally I manage a Calliope/Morpheus fic (the Sandman Rarepair Fest had to come along to kick me into gear). It’s just a short vignette, but I hope I did them justice because they will always be the OTP to me. The prompt is Hurt/Comfort.

You can read on Ao3 or here. And no matter where you read, your kudos, comments, shares and reblogs are so appreciated and help writers to get their stuff discovered 🖤

Lupē (616 words) by Writing-for-Life Chapters: 1/1 Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Calliope/Dream of the Endless | Morpheus, Calliope/Dream of the Endless, Calliope & Dream of the Endless | Morpheus Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Grief/Mourning, Reconciliation, Past Relationship(s), Rare Pairings, Canon Compliant, During Canon, Canon Related, Canon Rewrite Summary:

Calliope had wept for him so many times, and she felt the tight grip of grief resurfacing. She had mourned the laughter that would never echo through these halls again, the stories of his father he would never pass on to children of his own, the promise of a future shattered. […] And she was tired of mourning, of a grief that felt like it was hers alone to bear.

Lupē

The moon hung low in the sky, casting a silvery glow upon the twisted spires of the castle. She had not returned here since that fateful day.

The Gatekeepers stood before her, eyes like onyx reflecting the aeons they had witnessed. Last time, they had been impassive, their voices cold as they denied her entry.

But tonight, something had changed: They recognised her.

"Calliope," the wyvern’s voice echoed through the mist. "You seek the Lord of Dreams."

She nodded, and her throat felt so tight she could barely swallow. "I come to speak to him."

Calliope's fingers trembled. She remembered the bitter words they had exchanged—the accusations, the tears. Later, Oneiros had been unyielding, her attempts to speak to him ignored. She was not even sure what would have happened had he acted differently then; the thought of bringing forth an apology entered her mind and was as quickly dismissed. She felt her hands ball into fists, bitterness resurfacing.

No, this is not the time.

The guardians exchanged glances, their expressions unreadable. "Why are you here, muse?" the hippogriff asked.

She hesitated. "Our son's absence binds us, even in sorrow."

There was no more talk, no further interrogation. The gates just creaked open.

Calliope stepped across the threshold, and her footsteps echoed on the stairs and the marble corridors. With every step, her heart picked up pace until it was racing so fast she could hardly catch a breath.

The door was as she remembered—unchanged, the wood dark and polished, etched with symbols whose meaning she understood and yet didn’t.

Just like him.

But that wasn’t true. He had been changed when last they met. Familiar yet different, faint echoes of what once she loved—and hated.

Calliope pushed the door open, and the air itself seemed to hold its breath. For a moment, she wondered what she had expected to find. How she had expected him to greet her. And then she knew that this was exactly it:

His back turned on her, no sign of movement, frozen in space.

She crossed the room, her breath catching in her throat, unable to speak.

She didn’t have to.

"Calliope," he whispered, still not turning. There was a rawness to his voice, even in that whisper, that caught her unaware.

She reached for him, without any hesitation, and while it surprised her, it felt right. As her hand touched his shoulder, he flinched subtly, but he didn't pull away.

When he finally turned, his eyes held galaxies, and their shared history was etched on his face—the pain, the longing—it was all there, laid bare.

And it was hard not to see Orpheus in him. Hard not to remember how he had told him stories, his voice like a melody spun from darkness and light, stardust and moonbeams, while the boy’s laughter would echo through the halls of the castle, and his cries for more brought a moment of happiness to everyone who heard it.

And then it was gone.

Calliope had wept for him so many times, and she felt the tight grip of grief resurfacing. She had mourned the laughter that would never echo through these halls again, the stories of his father he would never pass on to children of his own, the promise of a future shattered.

She had sung dirges and sought solace in memories, but they only deepened the pain.

And she was tired of mourning, of a grief that felt like it was hers alone to bear.

In that moment, his eyes searched hers. “You came.” And perhaps, they were seeking answers and forgiveness.

“You called.”

And perhaps, they were also holding the faint glimmer of hope…

[enden-k]

finally.....my aeon otp....

[miasmaghoul]

aether?

TWO FOR THE BEST BIG BOY HELL YEAH

How I feel about this character:

Love. Adore. He was the first ghoul I ever wrote, and remains one of my favorites. He's a big teddy bear, but the kind that will rip your throat out under the right circumstances. Summoned by Secondo, but destined to become Copia's right hand. Took on a lot of responsibility soon after his summoning, and remains one of the most reliable ghouls even in his retirement. Works in the infirmary full time now, and while he does miss the stage from time to time, he's happier with a stable life that let's him care for the pack the way he desires. It's the sense of control - after so much chaos and upheaval over the years, it's nice to know what to expect most days.

All the people I ship romantically with this character:

Dew

I mean, everyone is on the table, but I am forever and always a Dewther Trewther. Those ghouls are IN LOVE and they're absolutely disgusting about it (pos). Other fabes include Aeon, Copia and Cumulus, but they don't come close to Dew for me <3

My non-romantic OTP for this character:

Hmm...probably Mountain. They're still good together, don't get me wrong, but I see them more as being they closest of friends. They have dedicated time to have tea in the library once a week, just the two of them. They frequently make dinner together, sometimes with Dew or Cumulus joining in. They know each other inside and out, and Mountain was one of the ones who encouraged Aether to retire. He saw the exhaustion in him, and that's what it took for Aether to finally get the ball rolling. They love each other very much.

My unpopular opinion about this character:

Again, don't know how unpopular it is, but I am convinced that ge is one of the kinkiest motherfuckers of the whole bunch. He favorite thing is to dope someone up on quintessence and then give them all the pleasure they can stand, and then more. He gets deep into role roleplay scenarios and sometimes craves things only Dew knows about - and no one else ever will.

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

Simular to my answer about Ifrit - what went down backstage after Terzo got dragged off? Aether was the first one to give chase, and I want to know if he drew blood for his Papa. I hope he did.

[st-danger]

If you're still doing the character breakdown AETHER please

MULTIPLE AETHER REQUESTS, LFG

How I feel about this character

Aether, my beloved. Holy shit. I just. He's practically perfect in every way, and I'm all twitterpated. I think he's one of the most committed to the ministry and the mission, but that he's the most "human" out of all of them in regards to the mannerisms and interactions. I see him as the most interested in various aspects of life on earth, and would be the first one to drag someone onto a rollercoaster for the first time (spoiler alert, Dew despises them), or to go antiquing because human trinkets are just charming and interesting. I think the attention and interest he has in mortals outside of working with the ministry was a point of contention with Alpha, Omega, and Ifrit, who all ultimately view themselves as greater than a person.

Intensely affectionate, curious, and with a bigger desire to connect with everything Above Ground has to offer. Probably just as charmed by pop rocks as he is old movies.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

Dew, first and foremost. Listen, I know I write so much goddamned Swiss/Dew, but Aether/Dew was my first love and some of the first fics I read before coming back to Tumblr and joining the fandom. I'm an absolute sucker for their dynamic, and all the little "fights" on stage are hilarious, because by the end of the ritual? Bro just look at my profile pictures. Holding Dew, with Dew holding back just as tight. Obviously we're all in agreement that everyone is in love and polyamorous, let's be real. But the two of them have Something Special, show the greatest range in their interactions on stage, and will always be a personal favourite.

I'm a big believer in Aether/Copia/Dew.

Strong arguments to be made for Aether getting wrapped around Swiss and Rain's fingers as well.

My non-romantic OTP for this character

Mountain. I think they both have some goofy humour that would see them playing off each other better than playing with each other, not that it doesn't or hasn't happened. I think they'd do a good job grounding each other.

My unpopular opinion about this character

Okay, uh. Buckle up.

There's a lot of writing the ghouls as very specific two dimensional characterizations, and I wish with all my heart that people would consider him as more than just "dad" (like writing Cumulus as only "mom"). He's wildly affectionate and carries himself as the most outwardly whimsical and friendly ghoul on stage, and he's one of the oldest remaining summons. He's had a lot of experience in the ministry, and a lot of time to become a little cynical or jaded about the entire thing. Does he enjoy playing the caretaking, kind role? Of course, it's a very obvious thing, the love he has for the others. But his tenure and experience, to me, leads me to think that it's not all sunshine all the time. I think he is more likely than Dew to be possessive, demanding, and needy between the sheets, and is more of a power bottom than a top. I think he is often rougher and crueler to Dew than the reverse.

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

I cannot express the depths of my love for Aeon, but Aether was a delight to have in the line up. I would love an "official, in universe" explanation of where he went, but in lieu of that, I choose to believe it was a simple retirement after so many years of being involved in touring. Would he return to the Pit? Nah. He's too curious and interested in the world around him. Someday, but not today. There's more rollercoasters to ride on, more books to read, more movies to watch.

More opportunities to sneak out into town with Dew and spend an afternoon walking around.

[everybodyshusband]

I’d love to hear your cowbell thoughts! Cause I wanna hear everyone’s cowbell thoughts.

ooooo this is gonna be hardddd, i'm excited >:)

How I feel about this character

i looooove cowbell okay ??? i think he's a weird little freak but they're also such a chill, relaxed creature with the best of intentions

All the people I ship romantically with this character

once again, i'm a poly ghouls believer through and through so... everyone !! but i've recently been thinking about the possibility of aro/ace cowbell so perhaps no one :0

My non-romantic OTP for this character

i said it in aeon's so i've got to say it in cowbells: aeon !!! they the bestest of buds and love spending time with each other whenever they possibly can <33

My unpopular opinion about this character

i occasionally write cowbell with it/its pronouns but i wouldn't say that's necessarily an unpopular opinion ? apart from that i don't really think they're as much of a freak as i used to think they were sdkfnfjk naturally he's a menacing creature a lot of the time but he's also got the capability to be really soft and gentle when it's required

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

I WISH COWBELL HAD MORE STAGE TIME !!!! BABYGIRL DESERVED SO MUCH MORE THAN A COUPLE OF SHOWS :(((

[avaetin]

I'm intrigued by your ships on Nico (since I'm a multi-nico shipper) can you rank them 1-10 ? 1 being the literal pits of Tartarus, no but if I find good media then maybe and 10 being THEY'RE CANON IN MY EYES.

Sure! Since they're my ships with Nico, I don't really have any below 5.

(Nion) Chronos/Aeon x Nico: ∞/10

Reason: Well, he's my OC, I can't give a better reason than that LOL. Also, I explained this in one post, but his love for Nico is very... extreme, I would say. To the point that he meant it when he said that if anything were to happen to Nico, he'd rather destroy the entire universe before he gets destroyed by Khaos/God, just because the universe will lose its right to exist (to him) without Nico. And while that might be romanticism taken to extremities, the reason why he said that is because he lost Ananke, and he searched for Nico for eons. In that time, the loneliness and pain he carried everyday was just immeasurable. He didn't want to go through all of that a second time.

(Nicobaster) Alabaster x Nico: 9.999/10

Reason: The 0.001 is just because Nion is my ultimate ship lol.

There's just so many possibilities between them. Alabaster isn't a canon character so you can come up with a hundred instances on how they could have met in the PJO universe. Ultimately, I like the idea that while they can be good together, Al can't find it in him to ask Nico to stay with him, just because there's no force strong enough to make Nico stay in one place. I just love the idea of Al staying at Claymore's house, and Nico being a free spirit.

(Percico) Percy x Nico: 9/10

Reason: This used to be my OTP until Nion and Nicobaster came long (I blame @drksanctuary for Nicobaster lol). I can go on a long rant on why I love them, but I think many fans have already elaborated these reasons. They could have been beautiful, you know? It just so happens that it was never the right place or the right time for them.

(Jasico) Jason x Nico: 8/10

Reason: I like the idea, but I haven't met someone who has properly dragged me to its depths lol. So yeah, 8/10. I'm sorry, I can't give a better reason. T u T

Bonus:

Erebus x Nico: 8.5/10

Reason: Just because he was never meant to be with Ananke, so he's also never meant to be with Nico. But he entertains the idea more often than Aeon would like. He's basically longing for the one person/being that he can never have.

[biohazard-4ever]

this lovely person not only supports Cleon but all sorts of variety when it comes to pairings with Leon such as OCs, readers, Ash etc etc

like i couldn't feel more happy and accepted because to find someone such as you in this crazy ass fandom of RE is a rarity in it's self XD

i hope you stay this time around <3

I support every ship. Every and any. Regardless of gender, sexuality.... And even the ones I don't ship and it was made well known for everyone (like Aeon), guess what, I'll still back it up and defend it if it comes to it. Cleon is just my absolute OTP and OBSESSION and THEY'RE MY PARENTS AND I LOVE THEM AND--! You got it! LOL

Before? I wasn't like that... I would want to pull out of my ass proofs to "deny people's HCs" and like? Whatever for?

Everything we once used to back us up, is now being reimagined and reworked on. Hell, even Capcom mentioned "Multiple realities" and what not. Even they are just: "Do whatever, man, just buy our games please."

who am I to tell someone how to interprete or which interview to "believe" or to "not believe"? So what if people are doing mental yoga to "justify" their HC? LET THEM ENJOY IT! They are having FUN!

Oh dear, I sure do plan on staying this time around! For GOOD! I admit maybe I would have to delete that old blog anyway because a LOT of what I said does not reflect on me anymore. I am a REMAKE of myself xD

I came to stay this time, dear :333

[leonluvsethan]

Hello Lethan Shippers !!

So in the Afternoon, recently I found these new 2 Lethan Haters (+ Aeon Shippers) from The Discord Server I'm in... HATED ME AND MY #1 OTP WHEN I SAY I HOPE CAPCOM WILL MAKE LETHAN CANON IN RE9 AND THEY MADE MY DAY RUINED !!!!

Here's 2 of them:

[spidercatenthusiast]

handing you a microphone for wenduag

@dragonologist-phd

Thanks so much for asking!! I really love everything that Wenduag has going on, and talking about her is really fun to me

How I feel about this character:

Really love her, probably my favorite evil character in any CRPG I've played ever, and a solid contender for favorite CRPG character in general.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

I can't say I really envision her in a relationship with anyone else in the game, for her romance I did an Aeon -> Legend / Zon-Kuthon -> Atheist character which had Parallels Galore, but I don't feel like it makes much sense for her to be with anyone besides the player, mostly because she wouldn't let anybody else close. When you trim down the list, you really only end up with evil Arue as an option and if evil Arue was an even slightly interesting outcome to me I'd love them conceptually but she's just not.

My non-romantic OTP for this character

Definitely her & Lann postgame, I like the dialogue Wenduag has for joining in Act 5 (and LOVE her little mourning bit if you end his quest with him dying), and I adore what we see of their dynamic if Lann's the one to join in Act 5, some really solid stuff and I wish it was incorporated into their ending slides.

My unpopular opinion about this character

I'm not really sure if this is *unpopular*, but I love how completely unrepentant she is. People will say that she's stupid for being so obvious about wanting to betray the player or whatever, but I think it plays really solidly into her character that she's such a proud person but feels like she has to act submissive to everyone. In her mind, there's really no material difference between Hosilla, pre-game Lann, Savamelekh, or a non-romanced KC, and she just lets all of that resentment stew in her because she only knows one way to act to people she has to submit to or deceive, so of course she grows to resent them all as we see in her Areelu's Lab dream, so she treats Lann and more obviously the KC the way she'd interact with a demon, and the eventual betrayal is a given for a demon or cultist.

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

I think she's really lacking in dialogue options/roleplay aspect for a non-romanced, good-aligned KC, like off the top of my head there's just a base conversation or two, and her act 5 betrayal, and the biggest issue with that is that to recruit her, you at least have to imply that you're chill with slavery. I think her offer to bring the mongrels up should've been like a thing she does for like evil characters/ones who use the demon power against Savamelekh/ones who brought her to the shield maze, and for everyone who doesn't fulfill like 2 of 3 or w/e of these requirements, she'd bring it up with them in Act 1, or even just during her Act 3 quest, or just have her directly tell Lann that they wouldn't be slaves, etc. Just kinda spitballing here, but there's such a wide gap between someone who'd bring her along vs. someone who would romance her and not be abusive about it, or anyone who'd just. not be an ass to her, and I think it should've been addressed.

[lipglossanon]

Do you have any dislike pairings? I'm only asking because I've come to myself liking a few ships and disliking a few but loving all the characters of RE which is weird because i normally don't always like or love all the characters- 💕

Hiya 💕 anon! 👋

And I don’t know if I actively dislike many pairings, but there are some I don’t seek out. But like if it happens to be a secondary pairing to the main it doesn’t bother me, if that makes sense? Like Aeon is okay, but they’re not my OTP 😆

I think Barry pairings are the ones I dislike enough to not read, cause he’s canonically the only one (I can think of) who’s married and has a family; like I’ve seen fics where they try to put him and Jill in a relationship and I just didn’t read it or backed out. (That was also a looong time ago back on ffnet lmao).

[coffeeghoulie]

Aeon, for the character thing?

How I feel about this character

I love Aeon so fucking much. It took me a little while to warm up to them, but once they got under my skin it was a 0-60. They are a curious bug, a fast learner, eager for new experiences once they come out of their shell. They're a little slow to trust, but incredibly affectionate and loyal once trust has been granted. I have unfairly dumped a large amount of trauma on them, but that's my own issue lol. I want to give them a big old hug and then apologize for what I've put them through.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

Swiss. 100% Swiss. I do also like seeing them with Dew and Rain, and I do really enjoy polyghouls, but Swiss will always be my go-to pairing for them. I think that's what I get for writing a 30k fic about them falling in love, but I digress.

My non-romantic OTP for this character

Aeon and Aurora are always gonna be best friends to me, summoned on the same day. They have that bond already, and since they're both the new guys, they grow super close super quickly.

My unpopular opinion about this character

I see a lot of infantilization when it comes to Aeon's characterization. Sure, they're new and inexperienced Up Top compared to the rest of the ghouls barring Aurora but they are a talented member of the pack and it kind of pisses me off when they're written like that.

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

I want to know why their character wears tape around their knuckles in canon. Again, we're playing fast and loose with what counts as canon since there's like. nothing canon for the new ghouls lol

[writing-for-life]

Shipper Tag Game

I was tagged by @ginoeh , thank you so much!

And also: I’m notoriously bad at doing these and still have many, many in my inbox I will eventually get round to answering (thanks to everyone still waiting), but I thought I can do this one since it will be a lot easier to write off the cuff because:

I don’t really ship; I don’t find it particularly interesting, sorry 🤣

Having said this, I’ll still try to answer the questions, so here goes…

What ship were you completely obsessed with as a teenager, but now you don’t care about anymore?

I don’t think I was ever obsessed with any ship, not even as a teenager, because I tend to like characters and their stories, but I don’t really ship them other than what’s already in canon. So very mildly, maybe Batman/Bruce Wayne and Catwoman/Selina Kyle because they never truly ended up with each other? But even that one was meh…

Which ship would you consider your first one?

Hm, again, too mildly too really care, but maybe Aragorn and Arwen from LOTR?

Your first fanfic was about which couple?

Written: Erm, despite having been a writer for aeons, I only wrote my first fanfic in 2022, and that was an OC x canon. So if we’re looking at canon x canon, it was Johanna Constantine x Rachel Moodie/Sandman.

Read: I’ve honestly no idea and can’t truly remember, but I’m fairly certain it must have been a Batman one.

Do you remember the first couple you saw fan art of?

Fairly certain it was Bruce and Selina.

Have you ever gotten into ship discourse?

When I was a teenager, people were fighting over whether Bruce/Selina or Bruce/Talia were the OTP, but we weren’t terminally online, so ship discourse in this disproportionate, unhinged way wasn’t really a thing. I stayed out of it back then and still stay out of it now because I think everyone is free to like whatever they like. I have opinions that I occasionally voice, but that’s rather about general fandom trends (misogyny drives me up the wall) than specific ships. So as long as no one tries to ram their ship down my throat, it’s all good.

Did you used to have a NOTP or have one currently?

No ship is generally NOTP, but the way some people ship can be annoying. I have to admit that Dreamling has started to get on my nerves a bit. Not because I have a general problem with the ship or people who like it (many of my mutuals do), but rather because it’s everywhere, it’s hard to filter, and certain people need to make every discussion—also the ones that have zilch to do with it—about it and literally claim every corner of the fandom.

I don’t mind if people ship them though, I just don’t constantly want to get bombarded with it. So I guess what I’m trying to say is: Have your fun with it, but leave other people who don’t like it out of it, and stop constantly encroaching on creators to make it “real”, and above all: Stop inboxing people hurtful crap. In short: Don’t be an entitled arse with OTP goggles about it.

Who were the last couple in the last fanfic you read?

Dream x Calliope/Sandman.

Currently, do you have any OTPs?

Yup, the one I’m writing, which is a canon x OC pairing, sorry. Other than that, I don’t. I usually can’t get over why pairings don’t work in canon, hence I write OCs. And if they work out in canon, they already have everything they need, so I don’t feel particularly tickled to write about them. It’s sadly how my brain works. The only ones that currently get remotely close are Dream x Calliope (because of second chances) and Dream x Johanna (because they’ll be a complete fuck-up, but in an interesting way). But I still wouldn’t consider them OTPs.

Is there any couple that, to this day, you are extremely mad about not getting into?

That question doesn’t make a lot of sense to me, but maybe I’m missing something? If I can’t get into it, it’s for a reason, and that’s not a loss or something to get mad over…

Is there any ship you used to dislike but now you think they’re kind of interesting?

Nope.

Do you have any ship that, in the past, would have been considered normal but now you would be cancelled over?

No because again: I don’t really ship. Unless it’s a =>

What is your favourite crack ship?

I am one of the main instigators of “Murphy and His Cool Hat”, so of course it has to be Dream x Helm.

What is the couple you read the most fanfics about?

None in particular. I either like the tone of something or I don’t. It’s probably easier for me to say what I don’t read/tend to avoid…

What do most of your ships have in common?

Byronic men who are shit communicators 🤣

What do you absolutely hate in a ship?

Nothing outright? I can get behind a lot of tropes if they’re crafted well, the plot is solid and the writing is good. If I had to pick one thing it’s power-over-dynamics. I abhor them in real life, and I don’t feel a massive desire to write them or read about them (as in: specifically seek for them or make them part of the plot myself). But even so, I have read fics with such dynamics and it didn’t massively bother me because the story and writing were good. Another thing I’m not massively keen on is enemies to lovers and/or lots of forced arguments just so people can angry-fuck. But hate is a strong word—again, if the story is well crafted and that’s not the only thing that’s going on, I wouldn’t drop a story just because of that.

I'm no-pressure tagging @rey-jake-therapist (shipping, friend, it’s about shipping 🤣), @marlowe-zara, @tickldpnk8 if you want to, or maybe just point me towards your post if you've done it already?