#sans as aqua because he’s just Like That and this gives an explanation

[lovelesslittleloser]

Imagine yet another Undertale AU, but the thing that’s different is that it’s just the plot of Oshi No Ko.

If you know you know

[kyleoreillysknee]

Blue Tinted World

Part 1/?

Pairing: Orange Cassidy x Ophelia “Lia” Freeman

Word Count: 2036

Warnings: ABO, hints of emotional baggage, Orange holds a baby

Tag Squad: @snarkandsarcasmftw​ @adampage​ @cowboyshit​ @unabashedwrestlefics​ @cabotcoves​ @rampagewriting​ @goodnaito​ (bolded means you got a cameo in here)

A/N: Special shout out to Aj who encouraged the shit out of me. 

Spiraling had such a deceptive name. It sounded like fun. Like something exciting. Carefree. Not that it mattered. She wasn’t spiraling. She couldn’t be spiraling. She was running late.

Snatching her finger away from tracing the kaleidoscope of blues etched into her forearm she gave the contents of the baby bag one last look over before taking her keys off the counter. Lia exhaled sharply before leaving her apartment, dropping a gentle kiss to the newborn strapped to her chest as she locked the door. This was going to be an awkward conversation with Charlie.

Once she got to the arena, she kept her eyes down to avoid all the strange looks and double takes. It was like no one had seen a baby before. Not wanting to let the tension fester, she followed her nose and found Charlie inspecting some rigging and jotting notes on a clipboard. She didn't have to wait long and watched his shoulders tense before he shifted to sniff at the air a few times. The broad smile on his face stuck awkwardly as he turned and dropped his gaze to the baby blowing drool bubbles against her collarbone. She could only shrug.

“So. Immaculate conception?” Charlie tried, folding his arms across his chest.

“Nephew. Godson, actually.” Lia mumbled, fighting against the nervous tick of reaching over to her forearm. Silent recognition crossed over her manager's features before he gave a small nod.

“I … can’t afford to miss any more work.” Especially now was left unsaid but lingered in the air between them. After a beat she felt a giant hand roughly pat her head and when she looked up Charlie had a soft smile on his face.

“Obviously no climbing the racking, but there’s still a shit ton that needs to get done. Glad to have you back.” Charlie pulled out his phone and she felt a buzz in her pocket, “Sent you Ash’s number. Her and Viv run a daycare, reach out and see if they can take him in.”

Lia’s breath caught in her throat and a rush of heat burned her eyes but she set her mouth in a flat line to push it back, “I- thank you.”

Charlie crouched down to meet her eyes, “I’m here if you need anything, alright?”

With a sniff, she nodded and managed to try at a smile. It was pathetic but this new life didn’t come with a manual or anything so of course the first time anyone offered the bare minimum of help it struck her raw heart. 

“What’s his name?” Without her realizing, Charlie had taken the baby bag from her and she naturally fell into step beside him as they walked to the lighting area.

“Sam. Short for Samson.” Lia finally felt like she could breathe and she knew it was Charlie letting out some of his alpha pheromones. Sometimes having a giant overprotective softie for a boss was a good thing. The baby currently trying to snuggle deeper into her skin was probably triggering some deep rooted omega thing in her too but she didn’t want to dwell on that.

After Charlie made sure she was situated comfortably in the booth, he went back to doing his rounds and barking and whoever needed barking to get the show running. Lia let out a happy sigh as she hovered her hands over the switches and dimmers for a second, settling back into the familiar for the first time in what felt like forever. Grabbing the walkie, she announced the start of testing and received a string of cheers of her name from the rest of the tech crew.

Letting the cycles start, Lia sat back and absently rubbed along Sam’s back through the harness as she scanned the program for tonight. Sam let out a gurgle as she felt a slight tickle of air against her shoulder, causing her to flinch as aqua blue sunglasses crept into her periphery. That pure shot of fear caused every muscle in her to tense but she still had the sense to not shout, not wanting to disturb Sam. 

Orange immediately went ramrod straight, his hand shooting up to pinch his nostrils closed. Stumbling backwards, he leaned against a nearby barricade and waited until they both had their bearings. Lia almost felt bad, knowing that he just got a metric ton dose of pure omega pheromones slammed into him but he could’ve at least knocked or made any noise. It didn’t help that he was a void of scent, which led to many instances of him suddenly appearing beside her and nearly getting punched.

“For fucks sake, Orange.” Lia sighed, pushing a clump of hair out of her face as she turned to look at him. He gave his head a shake before sinking his hands into his pockets and giving her a shrug. It was the closest thing to an apology she ever seemed to get from him so she accepted it as her body slumped in her chair now devoid of any adrenaline.

“Cool baby.” He mumbled as if he was complimenting her getting new shoes or a haircut.

Lia just stared at him, trying to figure out where he was looking at behind his sunglasses but all she got was her own bewildered expression mirrored back at her, “thanks?”

His head snapped to the side and she could hear a faint low rumble come from him that only confused her more. Is he growling? Lia didn't need to follow his gaze to know that the Inner Circle sans Jericho prowling around the equipment. The heavy cloud of cologne and spicy unrestrained alpha scent was heavy in the air. She had started expecting Orange to show up in places he wasn't supposed to but the Inner Circle pack only came here for one reason: to annoy the shit out of her. Sammy deemed it that she owed him a date because she looked at him once after he nearly knocked her over while vlogging and now she couldn't go a day without having to reject him. She could feel a headache forming and sighed as Sammy finally saw her and they all thundered over.

"Heard your sweet little voice over the radio- ew." Sammy grimaced at the sight of Sam which had her seeing red. She felt a warmth draw closer as Orange placed a hand on the back of her chair and stood beside her.

Hager had to elbow Sammy before he could recover and he was soon flashing his giant toothy smile, "if you just agreed to be my princess you wouldn't have to babysit. I'd take care of you."

"I'm not babysitting. He's my nephew." She snapped, letting her anger pulsate off her in sour waves. Orange tilted his head slightly and Lia realized that what she said wasn't much of an explanation. But it was the truth. He was her nephew and she was his … aunt? Guardian? Mom? 

"It's complicated." She whispered, mainly for Orange's benefit. She didn't give a shit what the Inner Circle thought. He gave a barely perceptible nod before shifting his attention back to the now fuming Sammy. Clearly he didn't like the spotlight being moved from him a few centimeters.

"What are you doing here?" Sammy sneered and Hager stood straighter and cracked his knuckles in a display of dominance. Lia felt a slight shake from Orange's hand as her shoulder brushed against it as they both struggled to not burst out laughing at the pathetic peacocking.

"Chilling." Orange muttered simply as he couldn't help himself and made a show of copying Hager. Lia finally couldn't contain it and let out a giggle that she had to slap a hand over her mouth to stifle. Prompting Orange to break and snort as the corner of his mouth twitched into a small grin.

The Inner Circle just stared at them as if they both grew an extra head before Sammy got tired and dismissed them with a wave of his hand and left. Hager frowned at them before plodding after Sammy and Ortiz had to pull Santana away from trying very hard to get a peek at Sam. Now alone again, Lia smiled up at Orange who was trying to rub away his grin and settle back into his perpetually cool stance.

"Thanks," she said softly, realizing that whole scenario would've played out very differently without him here.

"Wasn't for free," as he spoke he flopped into the chair beside her, close enough that she could feel the warmth emanating from him but they were not actually touching. 

Lia simply raised an eyebrow at him that morphed into genuine surprise as he took off his sunglasses and placed them on the table. When he looked back at her she swore he was a little sheepish.

"Can I hold the cool baby?" 

There was such an earnest gleam in his eyes that it took her breath away. They were so blue. It had to be an omega thing that was making her heart race. Any man showing a bit of interest in children and that whole caregiver bullshit. Right?

"Sorry. Stupid question." He mumbled, eyes downcast as he reached for his sunglasses.

"No!" Lia blurted out, suddenly very unhappy at the idea of not seeing his full face. That thought did not at all make any heat rush up to the tips of her ears, "sorry. It's ok. I just … not used to seeing your eyes. Or something."

His head perked up as she carefully moved to unstrap Sam from her. All that understated confidence melted off him as she stood and gently slid the harness away revealing a snuggly swaddled bundle of baby blue dinosaur print. If she wasn't so taken with staring at Sam's face she would've noticed the slight tremor in Orange's hands as he moved them to his lap. As she stood, she hesitated for a moment and Orange just silently watched as a myriad of emotions flitted across her face for split seconds each. Remembering herself, she found a small smile and shifted to place Sam in his perfectly positioned waiting hands.

The expression became genuine as she watched Orange expertly adjust so that Sam was securely nestled in the crook of his elbow. His motions oddly practiced until he started using his other hand to trace absently along Sam's back.

"Hey cool baby," he muttered softly, head bowing to let Sam take up his entire vision. She wrestled down the urge to coo at the sight, instead wrapping her arms around herself feeling a bit of a chill in the arena.

"Sam," Lia softly provided, only now recognizing that she was still standing and moved to sit. Nudging her chair a little closer, their knees ended up touching but neither made a move away. She relished in the contact, letting his warmth seep into her as she draped herself across her chair arm. All those sleepless stressful nights finally catching up to her now that she was allowed a moment to not be vigilant.

"Hey cool baby Sam," Orange corrected, utterly captivated. Peeking over at Lia, he watched her struggle against her eyelids and shifted so that she could see Sam better resulting in their shoulders almost touching. A distantly familiar ache settled in his chest as her head rested against his bicep after she finally lost against her exhaustion. He ignored the eruption of itch that took over his forearm, specifically the swirl of vibrant blues that covered his inner arm hidden beneath his guard.

Charlie later found them all asleep in the booth 30 minutes before recording. Orange with his cheek resting against the top of Lia's head as Sam mouthed at the tip of his finger was the first to wake. Lia was roused by the rumble he let out for a moment before catching himself. He tried to play it off as a yawn but Charlie flashed him a knowing look that he ignored. In under a minute Orange had placed Sam back in Lia's arms and was sauntering out of the equipment area with a lackadaisical flick of his wrist to push his sunglasses back in place.

[honney-boy]

Wonder (Part 1)

Rudy Pankow x Oc!Reader

gif by → @riobeth​

Wonder Series Masterlist | Wonder Playlist

Chapter summary:  Rudy and Nevaeh meet in person for the first time and things aren’t awkward. Yougurt cups, bananas and ice blended in a cup and maple syrup.

Full Summary and Story Concept

Warning(s): language, shenanigans, jet laggness, social media zombies, teenage girls

Words: 5k+

A/N:  This is my first attempt at a Rudy fic. My first series too! But if this flops, let's pretend it never happened, okay? :) But If you guys want to read more, please do let me know. Your love and support is the encouragement I need. I got the concept from tik tok haha. Fair warning, I am handwriting out chapters with a pen and paper before converting it digitally, so updates with be spread out. THERE WILL BE GRAMMAR MISTAKES! I'm human, and Tumblr is my test run for this series. Anywho, hope you enjoy :)

taglist

One | “Social Zombies”

            In Nevaeh's opinion, airports were the worst. It wasn't due to the 38,000 feet in the air flying ride or the nothingness in the sky you see your whole flight; it was the people, the airports themselves, and the limited space.

Airports were much worse than flying - especially the San Francisco International Airport. Also known as SFO Airport. The few times, literally very few times, Nevaeh has been to the airport, she had poor experiences. Now, SFO Airport is definitely smaller than LAX and not as busy - it's a nightmare. You would think with a much smaller airport, there would be fewer crowds, but no, it's like a family reunion every day but with strangers. If you bump into the wrong person, your day on the off chance will get ruined.

Along with the busy crowds, there are many places to eat. From pizza to Italian to pie, your choices are endless. That's until half or more restaurants are closed or have long lines. Nevaeh never ate airport food, so she couldn't give her opinion on it. She'll leave that to the professional reviews. She wasn't at SFO Airport to judge the food or traffic flow, not even the staff's attitude - except she already gave a flight attendant a glare. The flight attendant took a bathroom break before their next flight and griped at Nevaeh because she used the last paper towel so they couldn't dry their hands. Air drying is a thing, and it works well, she thought to herself while leaving the restroom. She was not going to let one grumpy flight attendant ruin her great mood. She was going to meet someone who she hopes is special today.

Over the past two months, Nevaeh and this person had gotten to know each other well, virtually, that is. They met online, and Nevaeh lived in San Francisco while they lived in Alaska. Countless messages, facetime calls, photos, and videos were exchanged, and a bond was formed. Who would have thought that two people could meet through a video sharing social media app and hit it off? Most people start with dating apps, meet and get to know different people, but Nevaeh met them all because a video of hers popped up on their for you page.

Nevaeh created and shared a variety of things on the app. From cooking to creating and her little hobby of disco skating. She wanted to keep her followers and supporters entertained and herself; she didn’t want to be stuck, making the same content, so she did many things. Nevaeh thought maybe one of her disco skating, videography, or cooking videos drew them in, but it was one of her mini vlogs. In the video, she showed how she would scout places before spending the day getting footage for a short montage film or scenes for a movie she is working on. Not long after the discovery, they - he sent her a message asking about a more in-depth explanation of her process, and it went up from there.

Now, after all this time of them chatting back and forth, they get to meet. Nevaeh gets to meet him. 

Standing by the arrival gate, her eyes bouncing around the room at different things just to keep her mind centered and not all over the place. She wanted to pick at her nails, or hold her hands to her chest but she couldn’t hold them in place for long; she opted for playing with the white beaded bracelet he bought and sent to her in a box full of other things. It was so sweet of him; just thinking about the box she received makes her smile and her heart swell. Just last week she received a box full of thoughtful gifts. Inside were some of her favorite snacks, a movie she loved, one of his hoodies - it was the hoodie he wore the first time they facetimed. The hoodie was one of his favorites, but he had the urge to send it to her, he just wanted her to have it. And finally was the white beaded bracelet with a single aqua blue bead on it - he had the matching one with all aqua beads and one single black bead. She was having an uncreative and pretty shitty day until that box arrived on the front door step of her shared apartment.

“I wanted to surprise you, so I messaged Birdie asking her for your favorite snacks, I added the hoodie and got the two of us distance bracelets. You know, because we are long distance.” He told her later that day when they talked on the phone.

“Until you come here, or I go there,” she replied. She hasn’t stopped wearing the hoodies since and she has had the bracelet on since the moment she got it.

Nevaeh watched different people walk past her; none of them were him yet. The dirty blond mess he sported for hair shouldn't be that hard to miss, but the longer she searched, the more she doubted her assumption. 

It was another couple of minutes that went by, and she didn't see him, so she pulled her phone out to see if he had sent something. Maybe he has to catch a different flight, and he forgot to tell her, or perhaps he didn't want to meet after all. Her fingers type out a message to send, but a figure stands in front of her before she hits the send button. Nevaeh could see the shadow of their body from her peripheral vision, but she did not look up, hoping they would go away - but they didn't. Sending her message, the woman was preparing to turn away until she heard the stranger's phone go off. It's just a coincidence that their phone went off a couple of seconds after I sent a message. She said to herself, then she looked up and there he was. Dirty blond hair - a little long all over, but instead of it being in his face like it always is, it was pushed back and tucked underneath a red cap. His eyes were more lovely in person. The pair ranged from a light blue to gray, depending on the day. Today they were light blue. He sported stubble across his chin and cheeks with a blond mustache above his top lip. He wore nothing flashy, just a simple red ACDC sweatshirt, cargo shorts, and a pair of vans. He looked tired, but that didn't throw off the good vibes and smile he had going on. She couldn't help but smile back. He's here in the flesh. Rudy.

"Hi," he said light-heartedly, breaking the silence.

"Hi," she echoed; the smile on her face grew some more. "Wow, you're really here in the flesh."

He chuckled, and the sound woke up the butterflies in her stomach. "Yeah, I am. And you...the pictures and videos don't do enough justice for the actual thing." His eyes scan over her, noticing the navy blue Hilfiger sweatshirt he sent to her. Nevaeh couldn't help the dust of blush that appeared on her cheek.

“Talk about me, what about you? Who knew those Snapchat filters were hiding such a god-like person.”

“Oh, stop, you’re making me blush,” he joked while bashful. No matter online or in person, Nevaeh was still able to get him flushed; it was something he didn’t want to admit, not while he was flying blind with this.

Nevaeh smiled and had a tiny giggle; the full laugh was muffled by the hand she brought up to her mouth in an attempt to hold the sound back. He could watch her smile for a while. Is that weird? “How was your flight? I hope it wasn’t too horrible.”

“It wasn’t too bad,” he admitted. “Definitely long, but nothing a pair of earbuds, music, and a couple of movies couldn’t fix.” The two quickly began walking toward the direction of baggage claim. More of Rudy just following whichever direction Nevaeh was going. She did know the airport better anyway.

“Which movies did you watch?” she asked.

“Since I had six hours to waste - Joker, 1917 and Pride & Prejudice.”

“Oh, I see you listened to my suggestions; not surprised you watched Joker again,” Rudy shrugged his shoulders with a hum. “I’m surprised you didn’t watch the Harry Potter movies.”

Rudy rolled his eyes and scoffed. “Actually, I already watched them a couple of days ago,” Nevaeh hummed as if she were to say, ‘of course’ “You can judge me all you want. I won’t pay you any mind. Just the same as I did with the guy that had the aisle seat in my row. I guess other guys find it weird that a guy decided to watch a period drama on a flight.”

“He was just jealous he didn’t think of it first. Mr. Darcy’s pinning for Miss. Bennett and the film’s  overarching theme is too good not to watch.”

“That it is, who would want to miss the warnings heeded against trusting one’s first impression or prejudices?”

“Or the character arcs that grow throughout the storyline. I pity that aisle sitting man.”

“I do too,” Rudy agreed. “He missed out on a classic and had to get up to let the other person and me out to take a tinkle.” He did it again. He made her laugh genuinely. The conversation between them flowed. The small worry Nevaeh had earlier about the two of them not being able to continue the light-hearted and enjoyable nature they had over text had diminished. He seemed just the same - goofy, charismatic, charming, and caring - as he was over the phone the past month and a half. She, too, was still kind, compassionate, and sarcastic as before. Yet both of them had their own doubts about the thing they were doing; they didn’t know what it was or where it was headed, but they were willing to find out.

           In the car, Nevaeh drove the route she knew from the airport to her shared apartment. Rudy sat in the passenger seat; his gaze focused out the window, watching the San Francisco scenery appear, disappear and morph as they passed by the window. The radio played while they sat in a comfortable silence - it impressed her how easily they fell into it. Wasn't it common for an uncomfortable silence? Two people who just met for the first time should struggle in an attempt to make a conversation, but not them.

To Rudy, the comfortable silence was almost expected. Granted, he did expect one of them to talk the other's ear off - he's glad neither of them was. The six-hour flight took its effect on the man, but he wasn't going to let his fatigue ruin the time they had together. He'll rest later. Spend time with her now, sleep later.

The car rolled to a stop, a red light shined on the traffic light hanging in front of them. Rudy's eyes watch a girl across the street riding down the sidewalk on a skateboard. Her stance relaxed, feet planted in a way that helped her ride easily; she was experienced, probably skated regularly. Watching her skate triggered a longing in Rudy for his board back at home. He rides on concrete and in the snow, but he was missing snowboarding the most. It was beginning to be summer, so the temperatures in Alaska were warmer. To warm for snow but warm enough for the evergreen to take over. Now he was in California, the state that was sunny all the time. The state that thrived in the summer and its soil hardly ever to never had the chilled touch of snow. His longing grew more for the chilly weather and white flakes.

The woman sitting next to him took the next couple of seconds between the light change to look at him. Catching the moment of his gaze out the window of her jeep. "I know you're probably tired from your flight. I had some ideas about the things we could do, but we don't have to do anything today." She spoke and after, glanced at the traffic light only to see it was still red.

Rudy tore his gaze from the distant image of the skater and met Nevaeh's. "I am, but if you want to do something, we can. I'm more than happy to hang out." He said.

Trying to reason, she said, "I know, but you just got off a six-hour flight." 

"Nevaeh, it's fine. I'm not that burned out. Time zones are an hour apart, and seven am isn't that bad." she begins to give him a skeptical look. She heard his words but feels as if he was only saying that to make her happy. He sat by her, leaned back, and relaxed. His head sat lazily against the headrest, and the smile he was giving her was light but tiresome. She switched her gaze from him to the traffic light, which turned green, and she didn't know when. Nevaeh eased her foot off the brake and to the gas pedal. "Seriously, we can do something."

“Fine,” She says after a moment. “I won’t wear you out too much more.” Flicking her left turn signal on after checking her mirror, she merges into the lane beside her. “There’s somewhere I wanna take you - well, maybe two places, but we’re going to the apartment first.”

“Alright, sounds good to me.” Nevaeh drove them to the apartment she shared with her long term friend. Rudy followed behind her as she led the way; they only spent a few minutes there. After a short tour, a bathroom break, and dropping off a couple of suitcases later, Rudy and Nevaeh left the place. They began a walk along the San Francisco hills to the mysterious place Nevaeh had in mind.

“This place is somewhere I walk to every other day. It’s Birdie’s and my favorite place.” It was a short six to eight-minute walk. Nevaeh reassured him before briefly going into a conversation about the impressive things you see in the city. Just like Nevaeh told him, they both come up upon a corner shop with a couple of large windows to see inside and out, a brown exterior with outside tables with green umbrellas and foldable outdoor chairs. The corner shop was known as the Nasik Cafe. For a small cafe, the place was doing well. There were a handful of people inside sitting, chatting, or ordering and quite a few sitting outside.

“This place is pretty health-oriented, and like Starbucks, it has things you could make at home for free, but their stuff is great,” Nevaeh explained to the man.

"So you spend way too much on yogurt cups, fruit drinks, toast, and other food you can make at home?" She nods her head like it was evident at what he said. Rudy shook his head. "Couldn't you just spend ten dollars on a yogurt cup?"

"Oh my goodness, they don't have yogurt cups, Rudy." She shook her head in disbelief.

"Okay, so ten dollars for a banana blended with ice in a cup - still sounds ridiculous to me."

"I can't with you," She tilted her head back, but she wasn't annoyed. She found his witticism amusing. At this rate, Nevaeh should prepare to always smile all the time around him. "You should find a table out here, and I can grab us something - wait, do you want to sit out here?"

Rudy nodded, then began to scan the area but only briefly seeing a couple of empty tables. "Yeah, it's nice out, let's enjoy it. Out here is great."

"Great," she says, pleased. "I'll grab something; I wanna surprise you. I'll be back." Nevaeh turns to walk inside. The smell of strawberries, oranges, and granola invaded her nose. It wasn't a new smell to her, but a new one for the day. She would always smell fruit and granola wherever she would walk into Basik. Some days it smelt like bananas and chocolate, or honey, peanut butter, and coconut. The smells varied, but the most prominent one was the tropical smell. To her left at a table was a couple enjoying smoothies. Both cops were a little under half full. A person sat at another table, invested in their laptop. To her right, more people sat. Art adorns the walls as realism paintings along with abstract images. There was a line at the counter; no more than four people stood waiting. She took the time to look up at the big and wide wood board hanging from the ceiling. When Nevaeh told Rudy she wanted to surprise him with something, she knew what she was getting for the both of them. The colorful and fruitful acai bowls.

Nevaeh and her roommate Birdie loved acai bowls. Birdie was the one to introduce her friend to the fantastic bowls she grew to love. Now it was her turn to turn another friend onto them.

The line moved along smoothly and grew smaller by the minutes. Once Nevaeh got closer, her lips stretched into a grin as her eyes caught sight of the barista.

"Hi, what can I get you? Could I interest you in our new fall to-Vae! Hey." the blonde barista's mood brightened significantly when she realized she was taking Nevaeh's order. She leaned across the counter and grabbed hold of Nevaeh's hand, and laced their fingers together. "What are you doing here? I thought you had to pick up your friend." She said, then making finger quotations. The barista was her roommate, Birdie. Birdie was a full-time college student and full-time barista to get by. She was more than happy to talk to her friend now that she wasn't as busy - Nevaeh was the only person in line for now.

"I was - I did pick up my friend. No air quotes, we're friends."

"For now."

"Whatever," she rolled her eyes at the blonde. "He's here with me, just outside." Birdie looked past Nevaeh and out the window in search of this guy. Nevaeh looked around for him, too; she didn't get to see where he chose to sit. "He's...the one with the red cap, right there." She pointed out once she spotted him. Birdie hummed and squinted her eyes to get a better look, which was difficult with the angle he sat at.

"He looks nice...from here," Birdie leaned back, so her fingers could let go of Nevaeh's and tap the terminal screen as she put her friend's usual order in. While Birdie did that, Nevaeh nodded in agreement but kept her gaze on him. "Lemme guess, the usual?"

"Kilauea; everything but-"

"No pollen and extra honey." Birdie finished with assuredness and not a drop of doubt in her answer. Her friend smiled, her eyes looking to Birdie with amazement.

"You know me too well."

"Well, you order the same thing almost every time."

"Touche," she couldn't argue with that. When it came to her acai bowl, she liked the Kilauea - made with mango juice, granola, berries, papaya, honey, and acai - the best. "And water, of course - make that two." She stepped back to look over the menu. Rudy wasn't familiar with the place, and he didn't know what they served, so Nevaeh wanted to get him something he hopefully liked. She decided to go with something not too fancy - directing her attention back to her barista friend. She went ahead and finished her order. "And...let me get the Islander acai bowl." That one was made with hemp mylk, granola, banana, berries, cocoa shavings, and honey.

Birdie rang up the rest of the order for Nevaeh. After catching a glimpse at the total, Nevaeh reached in the little card pocket of her wallet and grabbed her card. Unbeknownst to her, while she was getting her card, Birdie took her name tag and gave her friend her employee discount - she got it for half the price.

“I know you’re an independent woman and paying for the first date, the least I could do is give you a discount. Just don’t tell Daniel.” She winked, and Nevaeh gave her a thumbs up with one hand, and with the other, she made a zipping and locking motion over her mouth before throwing the key.

Outside, Rudy sat at the table he picked out for the two of them while waiting. While Nevaeh ran inside to get their order, he observed the small San Francisco scenery around him. California weather was sunshine with fluffy clouds. Just about everyone was either in shorts, a tank, and a cut-off shirt or any other summer clothing that provided them some comfort in the blazing sun. He dressed just right for the weather, though in Alaska, it was more on the chill side, causing him to wear a sweatshirt while he left. Now that he was basking in the California weather, he took off the warm sweatshirt and left it at Nevaeh’s apartment.

There were other people outside along with him. A group of girls sat a few feet away at a table in front of him, trying not to giggle as they attempted to make a video. At another table, there were two guys, perhaps brothers. They were eating something colorful from a bowl - it looked like yogurt to Rudy - and having a conversation with one another.

Rudy shook his head at the drastic difference between the two tables. Maybe it was just him, but it was amazing how much the world - more specifically America- was wrapped up in technology and social media. Sure the brothers at the one table had digital watches that told them the time and lit up, catching their attention with a vibrate when a text or notification went to their phone. But at least they could carry on a conversation without having their phone in their hands. On the other hand, those girls haven’t put their phones down longer than a few seconds. After those seconds, they tap away or show the other something they thought was worthy enough to gauge a reaction out of them.

Rudy wasn't one to judge. He didn't have much right to because while watching them and waiting for Nevaeh, he had the urge to pull out his phone. It was almost like a habit, but he chooses not to feed the temptation. He wanted to enjoy the day with Nevaeh; notice the burn on his skin from the sun, get to know her, have fun, pick up on little cues she has, and find out what he likes the most about her. And though it was kind of ironic that the two of them met through social media, he hopes Nevaeh is not one of those social zombies. Then this trip would be a waste of time and effort.

Ruby pulled his sunglasses down due to the sun starting to bother his eyes. Then he also wanted to cover his eyes and focus on something else while he waited. A minute later, Nevaeh walked out of the cafe's door backward with her back pushing the door open. In her hands, she had what she ordered; he wondered what she got. Rudy briskly stood up out of his seat to help her out.

"Hey, let me help you out," he walks around the table towards her, but she only nods him off.

"I got it, you sit."

"You have all the food and drinks in your hands; it's the least I can do." he stood off to the side, not interfering but reading despite what she said. He watches her struggle a bit and almost drops the stuff. Rudy immediately reached out, but Nevaeh had already saved herself and looked at him with a smile.

"I got it, Rudy. I was just pulling your leg." He picked up on the playfulness in her eyes, which made him pull his lips into a smile matching hers; her smile is definitely contagious.

“Alright, alright,” he raised his hands, backing away and then taking his seat. Nevaeh took her seat across from him, sat everything down before passing him the items she got him. “What’d you get us?”

“Well, I don’t know if you have had this before, but it’s my go-to thing to get here. It’s an acai bowl,” Nevaeh’s eyes caught his confused expression before he tried to cover it up with an understanding.  She laughed softly and explained further. “It’s like a smoothie bowl with other things in it.”

“Smoothie bowl…” he murmured more to himself, but she still heard it.

Shaking her head, she continued. “Acai palm is the main ingredient along with bananas and granola, but you can add other fruits or peanut butter and syrups. Or take things off.”

“Like maple syrup?” he asked, looking at the acai bowl she got him.

Her face begins to twist in disgust until she covers it with a shrug and looks down at her bowl, ready to dig in. “Uh, I guess if that’s what you want, then yeah.” She answered, and Rudy nodded his head and grabbed his spoon to take a taste. Before Nevaeh tasted her own, she watched Rudy, waiting for his reaction. He took a bite, letting the flavor invade his taste buds.

“Wow, this is good,” He says after swallowing. He glanced up, catching Nevaeh already looking at him. She quickly looked away and stirred her bowl.

“I’m glad you like it; it’s my second favorite one,” she peeked back up, and Rudy was still looking at her. Laughing softly to herself, then shaking her head, she takes a bite of her own, almost moaning at the taste. “I’m surprised you haven’t had one before.”

“ I have wanted to try one, but never really went with actually going out to get one.”

“Well, maybe now you will get them more often,” She says but stops herself before taking another bite. “Wait...you aren’t allergic to any fruit, are you? Or granola?”

He lifted a brow while getting another scoop. “Oh, only bananas,” He replies. Nevaeh watches him as he lifts the spoon to his mouth and takes another bite that includes bananas before she could reach across the table and stop him in time. “What?” he looked at her. Her eyes were wide with shock and fear, her mouth opening to say something but closed when nothing came out. “Is there something wrong?”

Nodding her head slowly, she sat down her spoon and reached for her phone in her pocket just in case. "You ate a banana, and you just told me you were allergic to them." Nevaeh wanted to yell at him for being so careless, but that would mean she was too for not asking before ordering something random for him. She pretended to remain calm but was internally panicking.

"I actually eat them all the time," he held back the smile easing its way into his features. "I eat them quite often. They're a great source of potassium and vitamin C."

"So you aren't allergic to bananas?" she noted, and Rudy shook his head. His mouth broke out into the smile he managed to hold back for a few seconds. Nevaeh relaxed a bit, her shoulders dropping as she was no longer tense. "You're an asshole, you know that, right?" Rudy gasped softly, a hand placed on his chest as he looked at her, offended at her comment.

"What, me, an asshole? That can't be right, I'm really nice," he said and made Nevaeh huffed. "What do you not believe me?"

The woman shrugged, the smile still on her face when she looked down at her food. "Well, you did play a mean joke just now; I thought I almost killed you." She reminded him and picked at her bowl.

"I wanted to see how caring you were, and you passed the test. Now you love me, don't you?"

"You wish," she said, taking a bite then pointing at him with her spoon. "We're going on a road trip together, let's see if I survive that, then I'll let you know if I like you enough to be your friend or jump out of a moving car because you're an annoying little shit."

Rudy raised his eyebrows, smirking at her now. "Me being an annoying little...alright. Let's make a deal," he starts; Nevaeh gestures for him to continue. "If you survive this road trip, meaning - if you have a great time - I get to take you to my home town in Alaska. Ah, ah. I'm not finished." he held his finger up to stop her from making a comment. She rolled her eyes and sat back in her chair, attempting to hide a simple, but you could see the amusement on her face. "If you don't have a great time, I'll do whatever you want."

"So, If I understand right, If you win, you get to take me to Alaska - assuming I haven't been there already,"

“Wait, you’ve been to Alaska?” Nevaeh held her finger up, echoing his movements moments before.

“If you win, you take me to Alaska, and if I win, you do whatever I want, correct?”

“Yeah, as long as it’s not too inappropriate or impossible,” He says, already finished with his acai bowl, which Nevaeh didn’t remember seeing him eat the rest. It didn’t matter when he ate it, she didn’t care, but that was quick. Looking down at her own, she wasn’t more than halfway done. “So, so we have a deal?”

Nevaeh looked up from her food, meeting his ocean-like eyes. The pair were becoming more familiar over the past few weeks from countless photos and videos the two have shared over Snapchat. Messages over text and facetime calls. They got to know each other digitally, and now they have to learn more in person. 

“We have a deal.” She says, and Rudy sticks his hand out, which she gladly took. They shook hands. While doing so, Rudy thought of a million possibilities to get the woman across from him to a great time and not just so he could take her to Alaska, his home. He found her intriguing, and he wants to take the time to get to know her better and maybe have a solid standing friendship at the end of it all. If the cosmos had a say, perhaps something more would blossom.

➣ End Note:

So, I honestly don’t know how the next few or future chapters will go but hopefully they turn out well. Here are the Revaeh interactions we all needed and plenty more to come so just you wait. ;)

AGAIN IF YOU WANT ME TO CONTINUE THE SERIES I WILL, JUST LET ME KNOW.

Wonder Taglist:

@Scooby6, @ifilwtmfc​, @rudypankowswife​, @themaddies-obx​

[If your username is bold and slashed out it means i can’t tag you. If you want to be added to the taglist add yourself here! If you no longer want to be on it let me know. :) ]

[excusemewhileiplaykh]

tell me about recoded

I can talk a lot about re:coded but in the interest of my time and yours I’ll try my best to give you a short but concise explanation of everything that I find important from re:coded and why I think re:coded is one of the most important kh games to understand.

1. Kairi is not in the game. She appears in promo art for re:coded and yet she is mentioned only once in the game all the way at the end (more on the scene where she is mentioned later)

2. Data Sora learns about hurt in re:coded and it is very important for his development as a “real” person. It is then stressed by Data Namine at the end of re:coded that while Data Sora has learned what hurt is, the “real” Sora must learn what hurt is before he can save everyone (i.e., Roxas, Xion, Ventus, Aqua, Terra, etc.). Keep in mind that re:coded happens immediately after 2 and before DDD. DDD takes place at maximum in like... a week. When in this timeline does Sora learn about hurt or examines this concept? We never see it and there is no reasonable time within this period that he would have properly explored that concept (more on this later)

3. There are two Rikus in re:coded. No, really. It’s weird. There’s Data Riku and a hooded Riku whose face we never see.

4. Speaking of the other hooded Riku, he speaks to Data Sora at the end of re:coded and speaks to him in... a weird tense. To see more of what I mean, refer to this post.

5. So if you clicked on the post, you would have seen that the hooded Riku mentions Data Sora saving Kairi and himself. This is the only time Kairi is mentioned like I said in my first point. Why does this hooded Riku say Data Sora “will” (as in, in the future) save him and Kairi?

6. Considering the point 4 and 5, I invite you to consider the strangeness around Dark Riku in KH 3 and how he can summon dark cubes (like the ones in re:coded) in San Fransokyo. Moreover, pay attention to what he tells Sora in this scene. Does the way he explains Baymax’s death remind you of how someone else died in KH 3? Also, why does Dark Riku say this:

Does this wording remind you of anything? If it seems familiar, it’s because Riku-Ansem says almost the exact same thing to Sora when he finds Kairi in Hollow Bastion.

Now think back to my first point. Is this all related? I cannot say for sure, but it seems... strange. There’s more I can say about this, but again, I’m trying to be concise.

7. Now, let’s think about my second point. It was said Sora needed to learn hurt to save everyone. We see Data Sora learn hurt but not the “real” Sora. At the beginning of 3, we see a KH 1 Sora go through a mirror and seemingly switch places with the “present” Sora. Data Sora looks like KH 1 Sora. Did Data Sora switch with the “real” Sora because Data Sora knew hurt and not Sora?

8. This point is not directly related to re:coded, but I believe re:coded adds context to this situation in Re;MIND. Sora is in a computer at the end of Re:MIND. We are told that it’s not the real Sora and just data. I would be suspicious of how Sora’s presence in the data is very simply brushed off.

[aquilaaqua]

The Path You Take

A oneshot of a possible conversation between Kidou and Aphrodi after the Raimon v Kidokawa Seishuu match in Go that we were never given. Takes place after the match in ep 31.

 The match between Raimon and Kidokawa Seishuu was not a perfect one for Kidokawa with their hiccups. But thanks to Aphrodi’s guidance and Taki Sousuke’s eventual corporation with the team, the team had come together stronger than they were before.

 It was amazing how the coach’s supervision managed to unite a team that was close to falling apart completely, Kidou thought. He was alone at the stadium at Raimon’s bench, thinking back to the match. The players had retreated to the changing rooms and the audience was trickling out. Someoka was kind enough to distract the team with his stories of his team in Italy for them to question him staying out here.

 Beating the opponent team pre-Aphrodi would give the Resistance a huge boost in votes, showing the flaws of the Fifth Sector’s soccer. But clearly Ishido Shuuji was not going to sit back on his fancy throne and let that happen. It was puzzling why he chose Aphrodi of all people and why Aphrodi accepted. Kidou was certain that the blond would join the Resistance, and he hated being wrong.

 Initially, he sent a message to the former Zeus captain when he learned he was back in Japan. However, it was never replied and it fell to the backburner of Kidou’s mind when he had to focus on Teikoku’s team and keep the Resistance secret from them.

 “Kidou.”

 Kidou tilted his head at the speaker, lips twitching into a smirk, “Aphrodi, long time no see.”

 Said blond haired man smiled back and sat down beside Raimon’s coach. “I have to complement you and your team. You put up a good fight for us.”

 “I could say the same for your team. Despite being your first match as their coach, you already had a grasp of your player’s capabilities and came up with a strategy for the pitch downs in a short time. Though, I am surprise that you did not know about this field’s traps.”

 Aphrodi listened to what his former teammate said and quietly sighed. “I want a fair fight against Raimon.” His eyes met Kidou’s googles with an intense stare. “You of all people should realize that.”

 “Then why join the Fifth Sector?”

 There was another sighed and Aphrodi tilted his head back to stare at the sky. “Nothing about me becoming Kidokawa’s coach is related to siding with the Fifth Sector. And nothing about this match is about determining whether the Fifth Sector or the Resistance is right. I only did it to save the team.”

 “And the Seitei let you?” Kidou snarked.

 “He and I do not want to see the team be destroyed by soccer, that is more than enough for him. Kidokawa Seishuu needed someone who didn’t make them side with anyone. I was a neutral party in this fight and understood the destructiveness of soccer better than anyone.”

 They sat in silence for a few minutes. It was not very uncomfortable between them. Neither interacted much when Aphrodi briefly joined Raimon but there was always a mutual respect between them for their skills and ability to break free from their past.

 “Why didn’t you join the Resistance?” Kidou finally asked the question that was on his mind for a long time. “I heard that you left the Korean national team and came back to Japan last year. But you kept on a low profile and never replied my messages.”

 “Hm, it’s a long story actually.” Aphrodi shrugged.

 “I got time.”

 “Very well.” Settling himself to get comfortable, Aphrodi began his explanation, “When I was in Korea, I did a few modelling gigs during my spare time. I met my wife during then.”

 Kidou perked up when he mentioned his wife. “I did not know you are married.”

 “We kept it a secret, but Nagumo and Suzuno knows. They were with us when we got married. She is a Japanese lady who was training in Korea to be a makeup artist. About five months ago, we found out that we are expecting twins.”

 “Then this might be late, but congratulations.”

 “Thanks.” Aphrodi nodded in thanks. “Anyway, I realized do not want to put my kids in the spotlight of being the children of a pro soccer player. I never told anyone about it, but it was because of my father’s fame that it drove me to use the Kami no Aqua to get stronger.”

 “I never realized.” Kidou said quietly. “So you decided to quit and return to Japan. It does explain why you kept a low profile.”

 “Yes. I later learned about the Fifth Sector when I got back. But because of my wife and my kids, I could not risk getting under the Fifth Sector’s radar and let anything happen to them.”

 “I understand. But that does not explain why you became Kidokawa’s Seishuu’s coach.”

 Aphrodi’s eyes darkened at that. “I was getting to that. Somehow, Ishido Shuuji found out that I’m back in Japan and where I live.”

 “…He didn’t.”

 “He decided to drop by to see me. I did not want to listen to him at first, but he showed me Kidokawa Seishuu’s matches.” There was a heavy exhale. “It was bad. Despite playing according to the Fifth’s score order, there was a clear divide in them and signs of infighting. He asked me to replace their last coach and save the team. I could not in good conscience let the team fall apart like that. That’s why I agreed.”

 “I see.” Kidou huffed. “Then, what will you do now? With the team united again, the Fifth might remove you since you have fulfilled your role.”

 “I’ll cross that bridge when it comes. But for now, I’m going to support my team in whatever they decide to do, whether it is to continue to side with the Fifth Sector or play free soccer.” With that finality, Aphrodi stood up and gave Kidou a parting smile. “I will take my leave. We should not keep our students waiting.”

  When Aphrodi rounded the bench, he found Kishibe standing awkwardly. The awkwardness grew when he realized his coach knows that he overheard their conversation.

 “Kantoku…”

 “Let’s go.” Aphrodi simply said. They walked back into the stadium’s corridors in silence. When they were approaching the locker room, Aphrodi came to a halt, causing Kishibe to pause as well.

“Kantoku, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop…”

 “How much did you hear?”

 “Just the last part.” There was a pause before Kishibe hesitantly ventured, “Are you going to be removed from your position?”

 “Who knows?” Aphrodi shrugged. But there was a secret knowing smile on his lips. “But for now, the Seitei and I have an understanding. He will not remove me as Kidokawa Seishuu’s coach as long as the Holy Road is happening, I am confident in that. I’m afraid the team is going to have to put up with me indefinitely.”

 Kishibe blinked but realized that his coach was joking and laughed softly. “We’ll follow you, no matter where you bring us to.”

 “No.” Aphrodi gave him an intense stare that made the captain squirm. “I can only guide and support you and the team. But what you want to do after this, it has to be a path of your choosing as a team as a whole.”

The words sank into Kishibe and he slowly nodded. Glad that his student understood, Aphrodi clapped his hands and smiled. “Now, is everyone waiting outside?”

 “Yes, they are already at the bus. I told them I’d come and get you.”

 “Good.” They started moving again, this time to the exits. “I’m craving for some ramen now that the match is over. Think we have time to grab something to eat before we head back to the school?”

 “We should.” Kishibe replied drily, “Sousuke was bragging about a place in Tokyo that he wanted to try out.”

  Their quiet voices slowly faded out of the corridor and Ishido Shuuji and his right-hand man, Toramaru stepped out of the shadows where they were watching them.

 “Bringing him in was a huge risk to our goals and the Fifth Sectors, but I’m glad that it all worked out.” Toramaru commented to his friend.

 “I knew that he was the best person to save Kidokawa Seishuu. No one knows how to overcome themselves better than he does. But yes,” Ishido tilted his head at his friend, “It was a risk involving him. However, he is already busy with Dragonlink and his next plans for Raimon. I will make sure that nothing happens to Aphrodi or his family.”

 Toramaru nodded in approval. “Good. But what are we going to do about those plans for Raimon?”

  Ishido only exhaled softly. “Nothing. But I have high hopes that Raimon can overcome it. And Endou and his team is there. If anything, they will intervene if Kibayama goes too far.”

 “Are you sure that you don’t want to tell Endou-san about your plan? You already told Aphrodi-san.”

 “Telling Aphrodi was a gamble. I’m glad that it paid off, but already at the risk of endangering his family should anyone find out the truth. I cannot do that to Natsumi and Endou.”

 Toramaru sighed at his friend’s stubbornness in not telling their close friends the truth. Already Gouenji told Saginuma and Aphrodi and it worked out for his plans for Seidouzan and Kidokawa Seishuu. Although, the latter was more spontaneous no thanks to the incompetence of the Mukata brothers who were the coaches before Aphrodi. He is not sorry to learn that all three were arrested for starting a bar fight after their removal.

[flynn-science]

Ryan Reacts to Kingdom Hearts 3

Okay, so this is a mix of live reactions and post-world reactions. Lot of live reactions in the beginning and end, more sporadic in between. You can probably guess what I’m reacting to most of the time from the sequence of events.

Mmm dat orchestral Don’t Think Twice Needed a minute on the menu. Finally seeing it say KH3 was A Lot. HOLY FUCK WHAT A COOL INTRO The speed is the same as 0.2, with that sprint that kicks in. Will take some getting used to. The stained glass looks gorgeous though Nice touch of KH1 Sora’s jump animation changing to KH2 Sora’s Making choices again like the original. Vitality is probably health, Wisdom is probably magic, and Balance is, well, balanced. I’ll go balanced. (I’m on Proud, btw) Guardian, Warrior, Mystic. Same as the weapons in KH1. In that case, I’ll make the same choice I do there: Guardian. SORA HAS AN IDLE ANIMATION OH MY GOD BLOCK AND DODGE FROM THE START! Also this sky place is new for a Dive to the Heart (AND THOSE HOOOORNS, LISTEN TO THEM) The water looks great A four-hit combo instead of the usual three? Huh Scan from the start too Nice detail of Sora’s head angling towards the locked on target All this music sounds SO GOOD I’MMA NEED THIS SOUNDTRACK ONCE I’M DONE Ahhh that little soft version of Sora’s theme WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS KINGDOM HEARTS II.9 SHIT These Instagram-style posts on loading screens are adorable Oh damn, we get a LOT of abilities from the start. And this is on Proud! Dodge Roll, Air Slide, Aerial Dodge (formerly a Master Form ability), plus all the Flowmotion stuff Wow, THREE shortcut menus! 12 total! Wow, and a LOT more control over how allies use items. That can be very useful! Sweet, synthesis materials are back! Water is an interesting new spell. And being able to reorder the Magic menu is nice (though I only use shortcuts). Kinda glad the item art has stayed the same. Also hey, Wellspring is from BBS. And first AP Boost of course goes into Sora, as will they all. WOW USING THOSE IS WAY FASTER NOW Yooo that Underworld music with the Titans’ appearance Take a shot every time someone says “Sora, Donald, Goofy” Sora, Donald, Goofy counter: 1 HERCULES HAS JOINED THE PARTY “Team Effort: Always start battles with a team attack command.” Damn, what are those that this ability is FIFTY AP?! (Are team attacks that move we saw Sora and Goofy do in a trailer? The throw?) I like that tutorials are playable at any time Also I was worried Save Points might not return with that auto save message at the start ALSO THIS IS NIGHT OF FATE PLAYING IN THE COMBAT TUTORIAL Ooh, Panacea art is nice. (Panacea has only appeared as a command in games like BBS and re:coded, so it hasn’t had art before) *reads Ability Ring* Damn, if 10 AP is a SMALL boost, I can’t imagine how expensive abilities are gonna get (well, Herc does have that one 50 AP ability) Ultima Weapon returns, looks like Synthesis recipes are based more on collector’s goals than finding them. Looks like there’s 60 synthesis materials, sounds about right. Ooh, synthesis item rarities, types: soothing and pulsing are from BBS, writhing, betwixt, sinister are new. Looks like everything goes in Shards, Stones, and Gems. Ooh that’s a lot of Heartless. Hey when is Jiminy gonna show up? Gonna need to complete that Journal again. Oooh battle music has bits of the old Coliseum battle music. Sora, Donald, Goofy counter: 2 Environmental fire damage followed by Sora’s butt on fire limiting my actions. Neat. Okay, these have been live reactions so far, but I’m gonna stop doing that because it’s slowing my progress. “What the heck is Rage Form?” “OH. OH THAT’S A THING.” I keep seeing hidden Mickeys, I bet those are gonna be a thing with the camera once I get it. Also damn are they giving me a lot of ingredients for the cooking minigame I can’t play yet. So the biggest thing I’ve noticed about the new combat is that because they give you so many really powerful abilities (grand magic at higher levels, formchanges, attractions, team attacks) that are all basically free (are you hitting things with your keyblade or magic? Can you hit this specific enemy once? Can you wait for your teammate to give you a prompt?), the number of enemies in each fight seems to have SIGNIFICANTLY increased from previous entries. KH2’s level design this is NOT. Lots more nooks and crannies to search. Me approaching the gates of Olympus: “Is this Anor Londo?” Yay nostalgic Coliseum music! And oooh little environmental puzzles are back! Like from KH1! I forged Goofy a new shield! Aaaand playable Riku. I have no idea why they were so dodgy about the second playable character. This is only the third time Riku’s been playable. Anyway, gotta fight the Demon Tower again. Damn, Riku is WAY stronger than Sora right now. Wish I could have read his abilities (and moved shortcuts). Nice emulation of the death screen. Also hot damn, is that Repliku talking??? I guess Riku’s “other me” really could be Repliku. Awwwww yeah, Lea’s getting new clothes too! YEAH JIMINY! “Dream Heartbinder” So Heartbinders must be this game’s summon gems, and this one lets me use Dream Eaters. SORA’S THEME IS THE RINGTONE!!! Ienzo’s here, with a bit of OrgXIII music from CoM. HOLY SHIT THE GUMMI SHIP IS THE BEST IT’S EVER BEEN UPGRADEABLE KEYBLADES?! I guess that makes sense, considering they all have different formchanges. They want all of them to stay viable throughout the game. OH MY GOD, DEMON TIDE HAS SO MUCH HEALTH I guess the bosses have to with all these powerful attacks I have Does Hayner have a new voice? Olette sounds different too. Checked the wiki, all three have different actors. Pence sounds closest to his original though. So judging by the Dusks and Snipers, no more enemy-specific reaction commands. The Ducklings sell Gummi blocks now?? Huh. Whoa wait, the road out of Twilight Town’s Tram Common leads back to the world map? Can I NOT go to the clock tower in this game?? Man, Twilight Town felt really small. Hope the remaining worlds don’t, though they’ve certainly seemed significantly larger than the two I’ve been to so far. Also, totally called the Lucky Emblems, though I’m gonna keep calling them hidden Mickeys. I think Tou Story is my favorite world. Granted, I’ve only been to three, but still. The Gigas are super fun, Woody and Buzz look amazing, and I can’t stop whistling/humming along! AHHH CREEPY DOLL Lol, the Verum Nox poster even has a Square Enix logo. First death, the Gigas battle in the video game. GOD DAMN! WOODY dropping an amazing “The Reason You Suck” speech to Xehanort! “Unless you’re in the ~real~ Organization too? Good for you!” Damn, Sora! Also love hearing that music from Chain of Memories every so often Glad flowmotion’s jump isn’t as level-breaking as it was in DDD. Same goes for the attacks. Wow, so Rapunzel permanently leaves the party. Was wondering they’d just give her a different moveset like with Mulan/“Ping”. This is the first time a character permanently leaves your party. And of course, Marluxia. Who I didn’t think could or would return. And Vexen who rejoined willingly, which is, man. Not something I’d have done. Both Norted of course. And was Saïx missing his scar? Maybe he’s just Isa now. I could tell it was Unversed, and Flood specifically, in that first Monstropolis cutscene just from the sound of them spawning. That’s how I know I’ve put a lot of hours into this series. Monstropolis feels the most linear so far. Arendelle’s ice labyrinth is awesome, the level design gives me some light Dark Souls vibes. I like how there’s zero explanation for Sora, Donald, and Goofy being able to breathe underwater in The Caribbean. And by that I mean I would have liked even just one line to explain it. The ship combat isn’t as good as AC3’s and AC4’s, but it’s still pretty good for a one-world mechanic! The ship is a LOT more responsive than the AC ones. And damn, is this world open. Okay, San Fransokyo is gonna be a pain to search for chests and Mickeys. PRESS TRIANGLE TO SORA IS THE BEST REACTION COMMAND I HAVE EVER SEEN Jiminy telling people about summaries on the gummiphone is Square Enix saying “IF YOU DIDN’T PLAY THE GAMES, READ THE FUCKING SUMMARIES” Giant battle at the start of Keyblade Graveyard was cool, but hurt the frames, especially on the fake shadows. And just as I was getting hyped at the possibility of having Riku and Aqua as party members. Oh hey, just realized Riku’s keyblade has a Mickey keychain now too. “And so, as legend foretold, darkness prevailed and light expired...” “Your hearts will be torn from your bodies” “To move through time, you must leave your body behind.” THE FINAL WORLD?! Wait, Sora’s been here MULTIPLE times?? Okay, so the star talking about the person who’d miss them, whose heart has been taken by another’s? Strelitzia? Talking about Lauriam? Love and hate? Going back for fight after fight? Hm. Cloud or Sephiroth maybe? (Longshot, but it doesn’t sound like a khux character, or anyone else) Identical pair? There’s no twins in this series. Like walking alongside a mirror... maybe it’s not an literal identical nature? Same clothes, same food, maybe Xion?? “Nothing left to teach you”? Damn, that’s not much to go on. Maybe Eraqus’ and Xehanort’s master?? “Just friends... stepped back” Skuld maybe? “I’m gone... they’ve added another member” Could that be Xion? Wait, no, how could Xion be here, she’s still within Sora’s heart. Are these actual named characters we’ve met before? Or not? The one who was defeated and supposed to fade... Repliku?? But he’s with Riku now... Someone searching for their Papa??? Most of the characters in this series don’t have parents at all, so my only guess here is Pinocchio?? No way a Disney character ends up here though. I don’t think all of these are characters we know. Someone holding onto a sliver of memory, and a servant?? Yeah, these could all just have been ordinary people. Naminé?! What happened to Kairi??? Okay, so the darkness split them. KAIRI IS KEEPING SORA FROM FADING AWAY OH MY HEART “GO TO HER” SHE SAYS "That's not the official thank-you!" Lol Damn, this area is fuckin huge, why is it so huge?? A PORTAL?! A DDD PORTAL HERE?! Well this place is rad. I better see that weird Darkside at some point here OOOOOHHHHHHHHHHH OH IT ROTATES THAT'S FUCKIN SICK God damn, this game's got some of the best level design of the series! Is... is this OUR Chirithy? “He doesn’t remember the past”? Although I guess it could be Marluxia/Luxord/Demyx’s too. Or Ven’s. My bet is that it’s Ven’s. DID SORA JUST TIME JUMP BACK A FEW MINUTES??? Aaaand did nothing different. So now we’re world-hopping like we did back in End of the World. OH WHAT IS THIS DIVING INTO STATIONS TO PICK A WORLD?!?! YOOOOOOOO Just Kairi and Lea are left. Haven’t hit San Fransokyo or Twilight Town yet. Guess they must be in those two. Last one is San Fransokyo. Lea must be here. Kairi’s probably gonna be the last. “Traversing hearts to reach worlds” That must be what I’ve been doing here. Not jumping between worlds, jumping between HEARTS. Was Sora just considering telling her he loves her? He should have. Wait, am I back in time? This already happened... OH SHIT! THE LINGERING WILL IS HERE! EPHEMER! OHHHHHHH HO HO WOW! OHHHHHH FUCK! YOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Congrats to all the lucky people who got their names in the game! PRESS TRIANGLE TO UNION X GIANT SHADOW MASTER XEHANORT IS TERRIFYING I like how Axel is holding his keyblade by the guard instead of the handle OH SHIT MASTER YEN SID! YOOOOOO! Okay KH3, I want to fight thirteen bosses now, you hear me? DAMN that Ancient Light finisher on Starlight’s Second Form is STRONG YOOOOOOO THREE BOSSES AT ONCE??? (I really hope this is as tough as they were before, but seeing as Xemnas was harder in 1 than in 2, doubt it) Went to help Mickey first, so I’m taking on Marluxia, Luxord, and Larxene Oh come ooooon, I barely got to fight them! Luxord’s out, 12 to go OH SHIT THE OTHER TWO Larxene’s done, 11 to go. With XI conveniently up next. Marluxia’s defeated once again. 10 left. Hey whatever happened with that comment of their ancient keyblade legacy...? Xigbar... might be gone? So maybe 9 left. Dark Repliku is defeated, and light Repliku gave himself up so the Replica could be used for Namine. That’s sweet. 8 left. YO actual time of day change! I like the door switches. Nice having little environmental things like this. Hm, Kairi and Lea one way, Aqua and Ven the other. Well that’s no contest, gotta go back up my girl Kairi! Mysterious new hooded figure??? Oh. Oh no. I think it’s Xion. D: Yeah. It’s her. *Xion stops Xemnas “YEYEYEYEYEYEYEYEYEYYE YEEEEEAAAAAAHHHHH” *Roxas shows up “OOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHH FUCK” THE WHOLE GANG’S HERE YOOOOOOOOOOO Shout outs to Ienzo, Ansem, Vexen, and Demyx for helping Roxas return! WHY THE FUCK IS KAIRI GETTING KIDNAPPED A-FUCKING-GAIN, NOMURA WHY WAS SHE EVEN TRAINING, FUCK Okay, so Kairi and Lea/Axel are out, BUT ROXAS AND XION ARE IN OH HOLY SHIT, SORA SQUAD FORM UP!!!! I HAD TO STOP AND LISTEN TO THE MUSIC FOR A MINUTE It’s all three of their themes! (Plus a bit of Another Side) THIS IS THE HYPEST SHIT Aww, Saix’s death mirrors Xion’s. AND THE SEA-SALT TRIO REUNITE! Saix is out, 7 left. Xion turned, 6 left. Vanitas fades again, 5 left. I know some people had hoped for a heel-face turn, but I knew it wasn’t likely. WHAT TERRA’S HEART WAS IN ANSEM’S GUARDIAN THIS WHOLE TIME. THAT THEORY WAS RIGHT! Terra-nort’s back to just Terra. 4 left. Just wanna say, I love that it’s Sora who gets to turn the tides of all these fights. Who’s dull and ordinary NOW, huh?? AND he’s still going! Oh boy, time for a triple Xehanort fight! UMMM NINE KEYS (but why are they No Name and not the X-blade?) OOOOOOOHHHHHHH THIS BLEND OF ANSEM, XEMNAS, AND YOUNG XEHANORT'S THEMES Guardando Nel Buio, Darkness of the Unknown, and Impeto l’Oscurito 1V3 ME, I'LL TAKE YOU ALL ON Young Xehanort returns to his time. 3 left. I like how we all agree to pause the fight whenever someone falls. Xemnas fades. 2 left. Ansem as well. Just 1 darkness left. WHAT THE FUCK, KAIRI NOOOOOOOOOOOO AH SHIT HE’S GOT THE X-BLADE AH SHIT HE’S GOT KINGDOM HEARTS Oh hey, everyone’s caught up. Donald: “You can’t do anything without us, Sora.” Me: “Donald, shut the FUCK UP.” Xion: “Kairi will be alright.” Me: “OH THANK GOD” Scala ad Caelum. Stairway to Heaven. It looks like a proto-Land of Departure. But the music is Case of the Foretellers from X Back Cover. Could this place and Land of Departure once have been Daybreak Town? Damn, Dark Kingdom Hearts is over the ENTIRE Keyblade Graveyard now Spooky twelve figures are spooky Why do they have the Organization’s weapons?! I love this return of Destati though They all had a shared HP bar? Scala ad Caelum’s world icon is kinda shaped like a heart Oh wow, full Inception Weird hearing Rage Awakened without the Lingering Will here “There is one sky, one destiny!” “DEEEESTAAAATI!” Ohhhhh shit Shout out to the heart in the floor design though And the figure in the middle has 7 points Classic Xehanort pose from the KH2 secret ending Aaaaand now he’s got ANOTHER Kingdom Hearts! GREAT WHOA HE FORCED ME INTO RAGE FORM DESTATI IN FULL FORCE WHAT A RAD FINISHING BLOW! The canon death screen, the heartbeat, Donald and Goofy calling from my controller! ONE BIG BLAST! So Xehanort sees himself as some sort of white knight? A templar to guide the masses with an iron fist? Yeah, no dice dude. Sora’s right, not your choice to make, and destiny is beyond your control. So Eraqus really WAS with Terra all this time. MARK HAMILL IS BACK!!! Xehanort just hands it over, huh? Wow, closure between Eraqus and his apprentices after all these years Eraqus and Xehanort mimic Sora and Riku from KH2, and pass on. Go get her, Sora. HIKARI ORCHESTRAL Ven met his Chirithy! Lea’s finally wearing his new outfit. Aw, Xion looks good too! And Isa’s here! Naminé is back too! And I bet the Namine/Riku shippers are happy! AWWW They’re all hanging out at Destiny Islands! Look at them all being friends!!! THERE THEY ARE! WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT

Epilogue: XIGBAR HAS BEEN LUXU THIS WHOLE TIME?! WHAT WHAAAAAAAAAAAT?! You know while watching Back Cover I was like “Man, the Master of Masters really talks like Xigbar for some reason.” BOY DOES THAT MAKE SENSE NOW So what was it about Ava’s role with the Dandelions that led to her absence here? AND WHAT’S IN THE GODDAMN BOX Is it a Book of Prophecies? Something else entirely? In any case, I doubt Maleficent and Pete would be able to get it away from them all. Secret Ending, “Yozora”: Ooh, “Another Side, Another Story” vibes right off the bat. SORA! And... Riku? Well this is just Japan. Wait, the guy from Verum Rex? And a black coat, who’s probably Xigbar/Luxu or the Master of Masters? After watching, a friend informed me that Riku is in Verum Rex. And Sora’s dead. Cause he’s in TWEWY’s version of Shibuya, since that one building said “104.” But which one is the black coat in? It could be the Master of Masters dead, in Sora’s world. Or Xigbar/Luxu, still watching things.

I have no idea what comes next. But I am excited.

[violethowler]

My thoughts on Kingdom Hearts III

My initial reaction to the ending of Kingdom Hearts III was equal parts confusion, devastation, and just being overwhelmed by the sheer volume of how much time was spent on the final battle. I had a lot of conflicting opinions about how some things were handled, but unlike when that happened with the final season of Voltron, I feel a lot better about everything after a good night's sleep, because I was up late at night finishing the game. I'll get into the spoilers under the cut.

So, for starters, let me put my reactions on a scale of negative to positive:

Major disappointments that should absolutely be done better in the next saga:

After Kairi was hyped up for so long that she'd have a more important part to play in the story, her role in the final battle was a letdown. I can swallow her not being as amazing a fighter as the others because she's never been in combat before and she's been effectively thrown into the deep end on her first day, but I at least expected her to resist when Xemas grabbed her, instead of passively standing there like a helpless damsel in distress. The only in-universe explanation would be if after stress and panic of the previous fights, she froze up when Xemnas made a more for her. But after seven years of being built up as a Keyblade Wielder, and her relationship with Sora, she could have done so much more. I sincerely hope that Testuya Nomura learns from this and lets her shine in the next saga.

With trailers and interviews hyping up how big the worlds were this time around, having Twilight Town and 100 Acre wood be just one small area each was seriously disappointing. I was really looking forward to seeing more of the 100 Acre Wood. They could have fleshed out the whole "Sora disappearing from the cover mystery" for at least a little bit, maybe let us run around the other characters' houses instead of just Rabbit's. And for Twilight Town, I would have liked to have been able to see how the other districts looked.

Going straight to the endgame after San Fransokyo. I know that the creators decided to focus on quality over quantity when it came to the worlds in this game, but I was hoping for just one surprise Disney world that could give fans one last breather after rescuing Aqua and Ven. If not a Disney world, then I would have at least liked to have been able to explore more of Land of Departure or visit Radiant Garden outside of cut-scenes. I love RG's look from BBS and I would have loved to walk around and see the world restored to its former glory.

Vanitas was frustratingly underused in this game. For all the hype surrounding his return, I expected more from him. Especially because the Kingdom Hearts concerts kept including his theme music with the "heroes and heroines" meddley, tantalizing us with the possibility of him getting a redemption arc. And instead, he just dies all over again, only this time, he's calmly accepting his own demise instead of freaking out like after his final fight in BBS. As someone who loves the idea of him getting redeemed, that was a big disappointment. The only thing I'm hoping for is if he somehow comes back in the next saga, because it was kind of unclear whether he's really dead, if there's a way for him to come back, or if he's just faking it like Xigbar was.

Things I wish had been handled differently but I can ultimately live with and hope are handled better in the next saga:

The lack of focus on or explanation of the X era mysteries we've been pondering for years disappointed me on first playthrough, but now that I've had time to think about it, I realized that X/Unchained X/Back Cover/Union X/Whatever-They-Change-The-Name-To-Next isn't truly a part of the Xehanort Saga, but rather, the connective tissue that sets the stage for what comes after Xehanort. It was supposed to set just enough things up that we'd know who the Foretellers were and what Xigbar being Luxu meant. But because it was released before KH3, the fandom built up our expectations that the mysteries of what happened would ultimately be answered in III, so when they alluded to Marluxia and Larxene's past as Dandelions without following up on it, I was kind of disappointed. But now I realize that it was meant to open the door to them playing larger roles in the Lost Masters Saga.

Maleficent and Pete just lurking in the background despite trailers and previous games hyping up her interest in Luxu's box and the Book of Prophecy. This is something else that was clearly being set up for the sequel, but I wish Maleficent had at least had more to do. A boss fight with Pete followed by a conversation to establish that she's waiting for the dust to settle between the Guardians of Light and Seekers of Darkness before she makes her move would have been nice.

The sudden introduction of this mystery girl. At first, I thought when they kept mentioning this girl, they were talking about Kairi, and that we'd be starting to learn more about her past in Radiant Garden. I soon realized that the implications of Kairi's life pre-Destiny Islands were a red herring, but the more they kept bringing this girl up, the more I was expecting there to be some kind of explanation for who she was in the game itself. I can understand in retrospect why Isa and Ansem SoD would suddenly bring her back now, because both knew they were going to die (Isa at least had the promise of recompletion) and wanted closure on burning questions they hadn't thought about in years. Considering that the epilogue and secret reports imply she's amnesiac Ava, I think this is another case of planting seeds for future installments in a way that I wish had been done better.

After years of Aqua being celebrated as a badass Keyblade Master, her not really getting to do anything in this game is upsetting. Sure, things make sense from an in-universe perspective: she sent her Keyblade to Destiny Islands as a beacon for Sora, Riku, and/or Mickey to find her, which weakened her already worn down defenses when Xehanort’s heartless came for DiZ. With how much warping Terranort does, I figured he’d attacked Ven at speeds so close to superhuman that Aqua didn’t have time to react. And in Land of Departure, Nomura wanted to have Ven’s awakening be a dramatic moment where he swoops in to protect someone he cares about. But having Aqua kick Vanitas’ ass only for her to get taken down by a single Firaga spell feels like a poor way to achieve the desired result.

While having some Disney worlds follow the plots to their respective movies was expected, Sora, Donald, and Goofy's presence their felt a little insubstantial. I mean, I'm not saying they should have just copied the movie shot for shot with SDG there in the background, but it felt like they missed out on large chunks of the movies. It was forgivable in Kingdom of Corona because they were there for the important parts and Marluxia basically told them what they missed re: Rapunzel. With Arendelle it felt weird that they were really only involved with Elsa running away, the Marshmallow fight, and the ending. The rest was pretty much spent with Larxene coming up with elaborate ways to keep them away from the plot of the movie. With Pirates it was just ridiculous. They were really only there for the escape from Davy Jones locker and then just ran around with fake!Jack doing their own thing until it was time for the final fight of the movie. It's hard to not know the plots of Tangled and Frozen due to pop culture at this point, but if you're playing this game with no knowledge of the pirates of the Caribbean movies, you're going to be very confused on what's happening in the maelstrom fight.

Minor quibbles:

An explanation for what happened to Demyx would have been nice, but then, that could just be another mystery to be addressed later.

The whole "rewind time and replay everything before Sora's near-death until things change at the last moment" thing didn't really make a whole lot of sense, but it wasn't too big of a deal, and Xigbar's "we don't need you to make a second blunder" implies that he had something to do with it, which can hopefully be explained properly at a later date.

Little moments that weren’t necessarily big for the story, but I enjoyed anyway for personal reasons:

At first, I was crushed by Even’s return to the Organization because I loved the fanfic Why The Sun Sets Red where he becomes a surrogate parent figure to Xion, and wanted that relationship to be a reality in canon. Then when he saved Ansem, Hayner, Pence, and Olette from Fake Ansem, my head was saying “this is probably a trap”, but my heart screamed #ShittyScienceDadConfirmed. And I was so relieved when my heart turned out to be right. I will probably end up writing a post-III fanfic of Even bonding with his Science Daughter at some point.

I generally stay away from shipping in the KH fandom, but after years of having SoKai as my first OTP, I came to start shipping SoRiKai, and as upset as I am about Sora’s fate (I can’t really complain about that too badly since Nomura already promised that Sora would still be the main character in post-KH3 installments so having this kind of ending should have been expected, if not for 3 than for a future title), I at least take comfort in the fact that there’s enough wiggle room for SoRiKai headcanons set after Sora’s inevitable return.   

Everything else that I absolutely loved:

The visuals were absolutely freaking gorgeous. On every single world, they went out of their way to make the graphics as beautiful as possible.  The 2D fire effects on Olympus, the different shaders used each world to make Sora, Donald, and Goofy fit with the aesthetic...

The Skein of Severance. While I wish we'd gotten to explore more of the Keyblade Graveyard during the final battle, or that the maze was a little more elaborate, I loved having to fight multiple members of the new Organization simultaneously, and oh dear god the aftermath of every fight: Xion's return, Terra regaining control of his body, Saix's death.... I was sobbing after every boss fight.

Despite how complicated the lore has become, the story itself was actually pretty straightforward. It was pretty refreshing and reminded me of KH1 and BBS, where the heroes have a clear overarching goal and a reason for why they're traveling to other worlds.

As much as I wish that Unchained X had been held until after KH3, there's a stroke of genius to the epilogue: Because of Xehanort's whole "balance between dark and light" obsession and Riku's whole "dark is not necessarily evil" character arc, I've seen a consistent idea within the fandom that the main villain of the next saga after Xehanort should be one of those who fit into the "Light is not good" trope. And by implicitly setting up the "Lost Masters" for that role in the epilogue, they've both ensured a masterful conflict between the Keyblade Wielders of the past and the ones of the present, and ensured that the next saga will be as heartbreaking as possible by ensure that the fandom is already attached to these characters.

Honestly, despite the issues I've had with the game above, I absolutely enjoyed Kingdom Hearts 3. It was worth the wait in my opinion, and I can't wait to see what the future holds. My only hope, given the epilogue and secret ending, that we get an announcement of Kingdom Hearts IV within a year or so. Doesn't need to release next year, but it definitely needs to be announced for development.

[monasatlantis]

Kingdom Hearts 3 and why I was disappointed

(Obviously, Spoilers included.)

We were waiting forever for this game and I think that makes it natural to have high expectations, which of course also makes it easier to be disappointed in the game. Which, sadly, I was. I would give the game barely a 7 out of 10 and even tho that is not exactly bad, it isn’t as good as it should be.

 The biggest disappointing point for me in this game was, that visiting the Disney-Worlds either had no purpose at all or that sometimes the purpose was never (fully) fulfilled.

 We go to Hercules to find Soras lost powers. We do help Hercules solve the problem of his world successfully, but that’s it. We do not find a way to bring Soras powers back, we don’t even really get a hint on how to find them – besides of course, you think it is a worthy hint that Sora has to figure it out himself. I mean, come on. Even Donald says that this mission was a huge failure.

 We visit Twilight town to find Roxas… or to find a way to bring him back. But the only thing we do for it is to convince Hayner, Pence and Olette that they knew Roxas and were his friends and for some reason that I totally do not get, we opened the way to the “other Twilight town” but I have simply no Idea why we did that. It definitely did not bring Roxas back. So once again, we leave a world without fulfilling our actual goal.

 Next, we going to visit the world of ToyStory. At this point I totally lost track of why we even did that. I heard something about searching for Terra… but honestly? Did we do that? Not really, if you ask me. Besides, did Sora even know how Terra looked like or had any other hint how to recognize him, just in case he has lost his memories or something – which doesn’t seems so far off given the fact how long he has been missing. In this world, we did not even fulfill the actual goal of the world, all we do is save the people that were in danger because we interfered with this world. Yes, at least now the characters of the world know what is going on, but that’s all. I get why the characters couldn’t go back to their original world immediately, as Sora should have still been able to visit this world for training, hidden Mickeys and stuff… but why didn’t we at least found out how to get the characters back and then they decide to stay a little bit longer for Soras sake, since they can now go back whenever they need to? I felt really empty after this world, because I had the feeling all we did there was cause more problems. We solved almost nothing.

 We move on to the world of Tangled. Still I was missing a purpose and here… something else starts that made me somehow dislike most of the Disney/Pixar-Worlds. Sora becomes less and less part of the story of the actual movie that the world is based on. He misses out on several pieces of information that are needed for some things of the story of this world to make more sense. And while it was mostly minor stuff in the Kingdom of Corona it gotten worse in Frozen and Pirates if the Caribbean. The World is finished and a few pieces of information about the future of the Characters that grew on Sora were given. Okay. At least we fulfilled the purpose of the world, although Sora himself didn’t find anything but new friends and the chance to gain more experience in fighting. And even tho we constantly meet members of the organization, at that point, most of the stuff they say doesn’t make any sense or lose any meaning at the end of the game. As we never officially found all 7 new lights, nor did we actually need them. It seems more like a cheap excuse for the fact that in every world a member of the organization showed up. Like, at least they needed a purpose, although the purpose of keeping an eye on Sora was good enough for them in my eyes.

 In Monstropolis the Story was nice for once. The information given on the original movie weren’t that big, but enough to understand what was going on right now. It was one of the worlds I enjoyed a little bit more and also when Vanitas showed up, he was there with a purpose that made sense. He wanted Ventus to be finally complete and Sora has his heart hidden – which also finally added some useful information for Sora. (Which brings me back to the question of how Mickey and co. took so long to figure out that Terra was norted… because it also seemed weird that Sora so far only realized Roxas was in his heart, but not Ventus…) The worlds purpose was fulfilled and finally we see Sora doing something useful with his keyblade by locking a door. Wasn’t that always the purpose in the first two games? Weren’t we visiting the worlds to lock or unlock doors or hidden paths? Sora finally using his keyblades real power again made me almost happy.

 When we were in Frozen, we had time to actually watch a fully animated version of Elsa singing “Let it go”, but we missed out on A LOT of plot of the actual movie the world was based on. If I hadn’t seen the movie, almost nothing would have made sense in this world. I wondered why Sora never quotet Olafs “Who is this Hans?” – line as his character was just some random dude who kidnapped Elsa and tried to kill her, because Sora had basically no idea of who that guy was and why he was doing what he was doing or what connections he had to Elsa in the first place. The end of this world was also… irritating at best. Sora did not talk with the Characters again after the worlds purpose was fulfilled. No explanations, like in Tangled, no one worried about the Snow Monster despite it being blown to god knows where when he helped Sora in the fight against dark Hans – granted, we see him well in the end, but it is so not like Sora to not worry about a friend who has helped them in need and then seemingly vanished after that. This world was advertising and minigames and that’s basically it.

 The Caribbean was also a big disappointment for me (adding to the fact that I hated beein in control of this ship and fighting with it instead of with Keyblades and Magic most of the time XD) as we basically fell right into the plot of the second part of a two-part-movie and then got kicked right out of it again, then we were in again… but then we weren’t because we had to search for over a hundred fucking white crabs in PortRoyal as if there was nothing better to do with the plot of the world still somehow happening somewhere in the background. In the end Sora technically doesn’t even have enough information to understand what happened to Will or why Elizabeth suddenly is Mrs.Turner. In fact, he should barely be able to understand anything at all with the lack of informations he had. I think the only purpose of this world was Sora being able to be a pirate – don’t get me wrong, my little sunshine deserves that, but it would have been nice if he would have gotten what he deserved while actually being part of the freaking plot of that damn world.

 San Fransokyo was my favorite world, as the plot was made in a way (like in Monstropolis) that made sure that the few informations we had about the original movie were enough to mostly understand what was going on. Plus, this time too, you were mostly part of the plot yourself and not just someone who goes in and out of the worlds plot so that in the end you have no idea of what is going on. Plus, I really really liked the plot of this world and the ending of it as well. Still… we had no purpose in this world either. Granted, bad-Riku caused the problems here, so I guess it was our job to solve them, but why did we go to that world in the first place? There was no reason for it. Like in almost all the other worlds, we were just there because… well… because the game needs us for some advertisement-reasons to visit Disney-Worlds before the real Kingdom Hearts Plot can happen.

 And happen it did afterwards…

 Something that also bothered me a lot was… that suddenly, no one had trust in Soras amazing ability’s. We’ve all seen Sora doing amazing things, things people never expected him to do. He was not suppose to be chosen by the keyblade and yet he managed to be the most amazing and most powerful of all the keyblade-wielders of that age. He never got his master-title and for some reason they constantly had to pick on that, but he is yet the one who in the end did all the hard work in KH3 and made the biggest difference in almost all of the battles against the organization and also finished of Xehanort. So… when he said he wanted to go save Aqua… why did no one actually see that he was the best choice for this mission no matter how you looked at it? If anyone can show Aqua the way home then it is our Sora and I can not understand how not even Riku, who said himself that Sora would be able to swim his way out of any darkness,  believed he would indeed not be able to save Aqua. I mean, screw the power of wakening. I mean, putting aside that he never really needed that power to save Aqua or that this damn power was never lost in the first place, Master Yen Sid said it himself, that Sora can do miracles in moments of need, so why didn’t they trust he would be able to save Aqua the way he has worked countless miracles before? Mikey and Riku failed twice in the realm of darkness – since Riku would have probably not been able to win this one battle without him literally summoning Sora for help. Two fucking Keyblade Masters, who laughed about Soras wish to go and save Aqua, got saved by a guy who should not have been able to even get into the realm of darkness on his own and still managed to do so. The same guy, without a mastertitel, without finding the power of wakening in himself yet, also fought and saved Aqua himself in the end. On his own. How on gods mighty earth is it possible that people like Soras best friend Riku ever doubted that he would be able to do all this? That didn’t make any sense to me. It was totally out of character for Riku and they only did it to have an excuse to send Sora to all those Disneyworlds (for pure advertisement-reasons….) before the actual real Kingdom Hearts plot could start and I don’t like that. It makes the game look cheap in a way. I am well aware that Kingdom Hearts has always been advertisement for Disney. But this time, they overdid it, by not giving Sora any real reasons to actually be in most of those worlds.

I could also talk about the fact that it took them a damn lot of time to save Aqua, despite the fact that right at the beginning, Riku was urging Mikey on to hurry as he knew how awful it felt to be stuck in the realm of darkness. And yet they did spend multiple worlds in Hollow Bastion (and no, I am not even getting into the fact that all the Final Fantasy Characters were missing from this game…) with excuses like “finding someone that is connected to Aqua” – especially since at some point they must have screwed that idea again – or getting sidetracked and making sure they find a body for Roxas. Once again, a lot of bullshit that didn’t make much sense and once again only served the purpose to postpone the actual Kingdom Hearts plot. And I somehow get that it was necessary, but could they not have made it more realistic? Why not saving Aqua earlier but then she had to rest for a few worlds so Sora can continue his Disney-trip before saving Ventus? They did a really bad job in this game with mixing the plot of the Disney-Worlds with the Kingdom Hearts plot. And seeing that they didn’t do so well with the plot of the Disney-Worlds themselves, that makes you wonder what they were doing with this game.

 A hug point that a lot of people seems to miss when the criticize Kairis role in the Final Battle is the fact that they were starting the final battle so damn unprepared. Lea and Kairi have hardly any real-world-battle-experience. They trained in a different realm, were time didn’t really matter. Did they really learn how to beat heartless and nobodys in this world? Did they learn how a real battle feels like? How different it is to fight when there is no one who would save you if you fuck up? Did they ever fought against a keyblade-wielder who had more experience the themselves? Honestly, Kairi has always been protected. There was this one battle in KH2 were she fought, but here too she had Riku by her side, who would have never let anything happen to her. And Lea might have experience in real-world-battles against heartless and experiences keyblade-wielders, but not while wearing a keyblade himself. I mean, that showoff-scene with Sora in the Big Heroes 6 world would have never looked the way it did if Sora would not have had gained a lot of battle-experience over the past years/games. But instead of sending Kairi and Lea to some of the Disney-Worlds to give them some more real-world-experience and training, they straight up all ran into the final battle. They didn’t even train together to see how they would do as a team. In all honesty, it is well deserved that they all die when the final battle begins… because neither of them was really fully prepared. Like… at all. I mean, look at Sora, he was crying and on his knees after loosing everyone. They should have emotionally prepared them for possible losses. They should have prepared them for a lot of things. I mean… how did they even beat that damn organization if they couldn’t even take on a mass of heartless? Not to mention that no one could beat the big bads without Soras help. And Lea lost his Keyblade for a moment (however that was possible… lets not talk about that) really early on in his fight and Kairi was abducted soon after the fight started….anyone still thinking these two were really prepared at all? What was Master Yen Sid actually thinking? Was he thinking at all? Was anyone thinking?

 Something which was… a problem for me personally while playing this game was, that I felt like I had no time for emotions. Like… I was so happy when our two long lost trios were finally reunited but it just happened so… badly timed. I didn’t really had time to process it, to enjoy it. Also… the scene with Sora crying on his knees? I had tears in my eyes when I saw it in the trailer. When I saw it in the game… I felt… empty somehow? Like… I couldn’t feel it. And it happened so damn fast. And at first I wasn’t even sure that they were all dead and then suddenly we already were in this nice looking cloudy-place and… were searching for Soras. When was I suppose to let it sink in and cry with Sora? The same goes with the Ending. We have no freaking idea what happened to Sora. I felt so devastated after he vanished, but I barely cried a minute, because I… had no idea what I was crying about. What happened to my poor baby boy? And why was everything nice and fun and games before he suddenly vanished? What the hell? I really felt like the game didn’t give me any time to actually really, really, feel something. Everything happened so fast and there was no time to process it. And I wanted to feel this game so badly… this also disappointed me a lot.

 (We could also discuss how it wasn’t weakening Soras abilities that Ven and Roxas left his heart… but… lets not even go there…)

 Of course, the game had also some good side. The worlds and characters looked simply amazing. The  CGI-scenes were looking even more awesome. I have to tell you… most of the time I was simply drooling over Sora because he looked so… amazingly beautiful all the time. Speaking of Sora, it was also really amazing to be finally reunited with him. I really enjoyed being on an adventure with him again. The nostalgic-feelings he brought by simply being himself were amazing. The game was a bit overdoing it with the possibilities in fights, if you ask me, because I really think Disney-World-Rides AND transforming Keyblades were a little bit too much. But I appreciate the possibilities it could bring – although I personally never managed to use the possibilities as I found the Disney-Rides rather… annoying most of the time, as they kind of disturbed my kind of battle-style. Anyway… I was also really happy about what they did with the Story of Big Heroes 6. It felt… really good how this turned out in the end. It was also really nice that we could control Riku and Aqua for a bit, but I would have preferred actually controlling Roxas as I remember how much fun it was to fight with two Keyblades XD Also I have to tell you, I am currently watching my cousin play the game and I really have to say that you have to appreciate all the foreshadowing. Starting with the freaking Intro and continuing with the various talks with the organization-members that doesn’t usually make much sense the first time…. but make so much more sense the second time. I really loved how my cousin sat there with a big questionmark over her head while I was sitting there like: “OH! Now that all makes so much more sense!” XD And of course I was happy to be able to save all those people and reunite them with their friends. It felt good and right. Anyway… as you can see, there is a lot I do not like about the game, so getting a 7 out of 10 was actually pretty generous of me if I look at it now.