#this is actually my first time in years drawing Seph!

[soldier-lodbrok]

"You're gonna live... Sephiroth." / sketch

I told you, since Zack can have his dramatic death-scene and that EC event threw the Glenn&Sephiroth and Zack&Cloud comparisons in my face, this would happen.

[strayheartless]

There is a wonderfully loud three year old in my house and while my sensory issues don’t think it’s a vibe, my fic brain is now thinking about how baby Cloud just wouldn’t be like that.

Three year old Cloud is, first of all, tiny. Like, he’s properly, properly small. His Ma really doesn’t have much in the way of money so they rely on hunting and foraging, which didn’t always garner the best results so Cloud was skin and bone for most of his childhood.

Cloud didn’t speak for a long time. He could, physically he actually had quite a developed vocabulary on account of Claudia constantly talking g and reading to him. But he didn’t want to talk for a very long time.

Cloud didn’t play like other kids. It’s my personal headcanon that Cloud is on the spectrum so I often imagine him lining up his tin soldiers, but I also imagine he was obsessive about brushing his Sephiroth dolls hair.

He had dolls of Angeal and Genesis too that he played with, but he took the Seph doll everywhere. To the store? Better take sephiroth in case of monsters. To the Forest? Better take Sephiroth in case of monsters. Bedtime? Sephiroth will keep watch.

Baby cloud wasn’t cuddly. He wanted to be. God was he desperate to be cuddly, but adults have smacked Cloud in the face for less. Not Claudia, never Claudia but one of the first memories Cloud has from his childhood is being three years old and struck across the cheek by a lady in the general store for being ‘rude’ and not answering her.

The times Claudia can coax him into her arms are special because they are the times Cloud talks. He sits in the circle of her arms and plays with her fingers and speaks just above a whisper about the new newspaper pictures of Sephiroth, or chatters placidly about the vegetables in the allotment and the ones he wants to grow in the summer.

I feel like actually Seph and Cloud would bond over how badly adjusted both of them were as children. Cloud shares being dragged in front of the town council and publicly caned and humiliated after saving Tifa. Sephiroth shares the time that Hojo injected with a test drug in front of president Shinra after he dared to question orders. Angeal, Genesis and Zack sit in silent horror though the entire conversation.

Cloud giggled very rarely, and the first time Claudia ever heard him laugh in delight was the birthday he got the FIRSTS dolls. He immediately enacted the latest Wutai defence strategy that was in the papers, going outside to draw battle lines in the sand and set up a battle front against the vegetable patch.

Clouds has a problem with authority… the problem is he’s scared stiff of it. There are certain words that will have Cloud lock up and not be able to speak or move. The firsts learn this the hard way. A single ‘don’t’ is enough to pull him up short, but the first time Genesis yelled at him as his mentor Cloud reacted so badly he disassociated hard. All Gen said was ‘how dare you…’ but it was enough. One second he’s angry about insubordination, the next he’s following a sprinting cloud into the bathroom to rub his back through panic induced nausea.

One day I’ll stop torturing him. Today… is not that day.

[dyradoodles]

Hiiiiii! 💕 I was just wondering….. what are your preferences for Zack & Seph? Do you ship ‘em, is it up to circumstance, does the age matter to you/do you consider their age and their gap? Why not even throw in how you fell in love with Zack & Seph to begin with? Do you have sources?? MLA format for Zack’s fandom page???

*plops down on floor*

Details plz! ❤️

Ah yes hello person that I definitely do not know, who definitely didn't see me say I could write an essay about this very subject on discord LMFAO

I'll put the actual essay under a cut for people who don't want to scroll through my Many Feelings about these two lol As a TLDR to your questions:

Yes I ship them, but also Yes it's up to circumstance! Yes I consider their canon ages/the age gap (which most visibly manifests in me only drawing them platonically if I'm drawing Zack as a Second/with the puppy hair, or writing a fic taking place during CC)! I was actually into Aeriseph first and stumbled into ZackSeph fics, and realized it was a similar dynamic, but with someone who spent time with Seph canonically before he went bananas! All of this was before CC came out and I've been loving these characters for 20+ years!

To borrow a phrase (from crylin iirc), honestly, I like just seeing them standing next to each other, romantic or no LMAO <3

NOW, FOR THE ESSAY.

So to expand on what I said earlier, I think it's obvious from my blog and ZS server that I ship these two LMAO That said, the way I ship them is based heavily on the era of fandom before CC was a thing. I got into FF7 around 2002 (possibly earlier, I just don't have the dates on drawings that old), five years before CC came out. At the time, we knew next to nothing about Zack beyond the very short clips of him in OG. So, fandom did what fandom does best, and tried to fill in the blanks!

Some of the efforts to figure out who Zack was went all the way down to his name, because it's Zakkusu in Japanese. So you'll see him as Zax, too - There were heated debates on whether to use Zack or Zax. And no last name! Fandom had to come up with surnames themselves. We also didn't have much of a reference beyond his polygon model, which seemed to have darker skin and, (as many fics described it) violet eyes. It was also assumed that, since he was a First who worked closely with Sephiroth, he was probably around Sephiroth's age. You likely already see where I'm going with this, laying all that out lol The Zack I draw and write is very much based on that time period, and if I'm honest, that's the character I really ship with Seph. I still joke in my fics sometimes that Zack's last name might be Donovan or Darklighter, etc., which are old fandom surnames!

Now, obviously CC came out and threw all this on its head, because we finally got a whole GAME about this (important!) minor character. I have many beefs with CC's writing and Square's insistence that so many of their characters need to be child prodigies (they can't ALL be prodigies, Square!!!). With Zack going from an assumed early 20s to suddenly being 16, and all the craziness of CC's plot, the way I approached the ship changed as well.

This is where I would firmly say my stance is: I don't think Seph had any interest in Zack romantically, in CC. Because that's a kid lmao If I'm engaging with the Compilation as a whole, I definitely lean way more into the mentor/mentee relationship for the two of them. As a personal rule, I only draw them platonically if Zack's got the puppy hair, because that was the most obvious visual cue I could think of that could draw that line between Zack's teen years vs. adult. If Seph managed to not go insane, then yeah, later in life I could still see them getting together! But clearly that's already AU territory lmfao

Ultimately, what I like best about Zack & Seph is how they treat each other (while Seph is still sane lol). That goes for platonically and romantically. Zack is so genuine and kind, and treats Seph the way he always wanted to be treated - like he's human. He can joke around with Seph in a way most people simply can't. Meanwhile, Seph treats Zack's feelings with respect, even during the times he's laughing at Zack for being ridiculous. He's also honest with Zack. He answers truthfully when Zack asks what's wrong, and it's clear that it's because he knows Zack is not a threat; Zack will take Seph's feelings seriously, too. I can enjoy the drama of the trauma and heartbreak that comes with Sephiroth's descent into villainy, but my favorite stuff definitely involves a lot of Nibelheim fix-it fics lol

Despite all the changes CC made to Zack and his relationship to Sephiroth (RIP Second in Command Zax Donovan/Darklighter/Knightblade, my beloved), their actual dynamic with regard to how they treat each other stayed, miraculously, intact. That's the real reason they're still my favorite characters, and how my enjoyment of FF7 has remained as strong as it is after literal decades. Square can retcon as many things as they want in the Compilation, but they'll never stop me from making art and fic of the characters I grew up with. Unless I get a C&D for some reason LMFAO Until then, I'll keep enjoying my AUs (and if anything, I have even more reason to enjoy them now that AUs themselves are canon - you bet your ass I'll be in the AUs where ONLY OG happened and I can ignore everything else LOL)

Thank you for the questions!! It was fun to get all my thoughts written down in one huge chunk, as opposed to my typical disjointed ramblings to my friends. Hopefully it was an interesting read!

Sources:

Fanlore. “Zack Fair.” The Organization for Transformative Works, 2 Jan. 2023, fanlore.org/wiki/Zack_Fair.

Doodles, Dyra. "Way Too Much Fandom Lurking." Dyra's Childhood to Adulthood, Copious Amounts of Fanfiction, 3 Apr. 2024

[aria0fgold]

So I procrastinated drawing and decided to do a hunger games simulator with some OCs (couldn't remember much human OCs and I didn't wanna just include the entire family tree of Alec and Ray so some nonhuman ones are included). I decided to include myself in it too so I can give my OCs a chance to come at me for putting em through this.

Here in Day 1 and we immediately see THREE DEAD

Rozalynda btw is a human oc that's a parent figure to a nonhuman oc (that I didn't include here) She's very sweet actually, very mom coded, so seeing her team up with Alerik to drown Cas is insane. Mel being a boyfailure and steps on a landmine, you tried your best, Mel...

One, it's VERY FUNNY how a 13 year old kid snatched a mace from me. And two, Crystal finding a bag full of explosives is VERY IN CHARACTER.

Night 1

Alec just straight up killed the dude, didn't even gave him a chance to be in the situation longer, scary...

Now this is just... really sad. Marcie and Seph are BESTIES!!! WHY DID YOU DO THAT MARCIE???

Also btw Clarissa is Ray's younger sister.

Day 2

Seeing myself and Alerik teaming up for a short time to split up and search for resources is very on brand, I think. Considering Alerik's situation (his self-awareness) so I can see him arguing with the simulator Aria honestly. Also, you'll be seeing Rozalynda be VERY MURDEROUS throughout this whole thing.

And here's Ray questioning his sanity, very in character, I am so sorry Ray.

Night 2

There's so many things happening in this chunk. First, Crystal dying from a landmine she's trying to set up is REALLY POETIC in a way since Crystal is a Bomb Expert, her special interest are bombs, so the fact that she died from one she was trying to arm is poetic in its own way. Second, Aria girlfailure. Third, Felicity ambushing someone is in character for her but Man... Cedany is dead... (Cedany is Cressida's older sister). Fourth, seeing Alerik fighting Alec is honestly so insane to me cuz that's Alerik, my highly self-aware oc, and Alec, my baby, my favourite (Saying sorry to all my other ocs, excluding Ray cuz he became favourite by association).

So it's actually REALLY in character for Alerik to just have some Intense Beef with simulator Aria and Alec. Lastly, fifth, *Them, it's a lil sad that there's no nonbinary option for this but alas... Also Pharaoh is a nonhuman oc beefing with a human oc, like OFC YOU'D WIN! YOU'RE A DEMON! Honestly would be so funny though if Pharaoh lost that.

Day 3

RETRIBUTION! My sins towards my ocs has caught up to me via simulator Aria's own Stupidity cuz REALLY GIRL??? You got your mace snatched by a 13 YEAR OLD at the very beginning, why did you think fighting ANYONE is ever a good idea? Also very fitting that Alec's sister got to participate in the killing. She deserves it, as a treat, for all the torture I put her own brother through-- WAIT!!! I just realized the doomed yuri of that, Cressida is Ely's future partner... Cressida is... she's dead 😔 OH! I cannot believe! that even in her dying moments, simulator Aria decides to bring upon pain towards the ocs anyway (ngl it's kinda fitting for me).

Also yeah time to address the elephant in the room that is Odessa attacking Alerik cuz 1. Odessa is a human oc (she's Pharaoh's partner) 2. It's both SO INSANE and SO IN CHARACTER of her to just fight with a GOD. It would've been soooo funny had Alerik died by her hands.

Night 3

A peaceful moment during Night 3, well, kinda, mostly peaceful if not for Alerik ruining Gala's supplies (Gala is my nonhuman mhyk oc).

[chthonicgodling]

@marscats37 - re: this [which is re: this]

1. Yeah I make that face anytime I wrITE ABT ANY OF THIS??? Just wait til I finally finally FINALLY get around to drawing specific beats from that Thanatos court scene like I’ve been meaning to all the past year dfgkfk I s2g I’ll get there and we’re all going to die about it AHH

2. OH BOY IM SO GLAD YOU ASKED ME THIS! I’m about to make everything worse!

For a very long time Nyx for some goddamn reason considered Thanatos one of her favorite golden children, so perfect and respectful 🥺 and she without fail all the time believed all of his sweet little lies and - even when time and time and time again he was caught bullying Hypnos/his siblings, surely it wasn’t ALL THE WAY his fault and she. was able to make excuses for him which of course Thanatos manipulated the hell of. Also I think she was mildly afraid of him subconsciously?? Nyx, like Seph, is absolutely delusional and just wishes all her kids would get along, nevermind the fact that some of them are trying to maul the others

Nyx isn’t malicious she’s just REALLY that dumb :(

She grew out of this eventually but like only within modern canon aaughgh..,,, like many years after Maci, Thanatos would pray on Eury, who was horrified to discover (via Epi) that Nyx knew full well what Thanatos was capable of and was turning a blind eye to it all in the hopes that maybe he’d just stop or maybe it wasn’t as bad as Maci had made it seem after all or.,, hhhhh well

Anyway though in ye olde ancient canon as detailed abridged (LOL) within that post, there’s a couple things I cut out to keep it all concise (LOOOOOOOL). One of which was that during that trial conference, after Maci pissed off her cruelly petty father enough for him to decide to utterly abandon her, and when he called everyone back into the throne room - Seph, Thanatos, Nyx, and Hypnos -

before he could even start to speak, Nyx had actually interrupted him first and. had the absolute audacity to address them and plead for mercy for her son - just the one, ignoring the other who had suffered at his hand who was RIGHT. FUCKING. THERE. His own twin brother. and you know what for that matter AND Maci, who’d essentially spent half her childhood and teenage years seeking refuge in Nyx’s house and THIS is how Nyx stands up for her??? By saying fuck the both of you I choose my piece of shit son?!?!?! after listening to HOURS of Maci and Hypnos painstakingly describe everything Thanatos had done AND WHILE THEY WERE BOTH ACTIVELY BLEEDING ON THE FLOOR THIS ENTIRE TIME FROM WHEN THANATOS HAD TRIED TO MAUL THEM AND GOTTEN CAUGHT EARLIER IN THE DAY??????

soooo fun for Hypnos to know that out of all the kids his mother couldn’t care less about the one she’d decide to stick up for would be Thanatos, once again very cool and fun

This is truly indefensible but I’m obligated to say in Nyx’s defense that yes Thanatos was manipulating her too, the second Hades and Maci had left them alone he’d turned to her like 🥺Mama help this all got so out of hand🥺; and that Nyx for the longest time thought this was being fair to ALL her children, how could she turn her back on any of them even if he’d done bad things?? It took a long time for her to realize that making excuses for Thanatos was the equivalent to turning her back on ALL of them. Once again she’s not malicious she’s just dumb and trusting (DOESNT MAKE IT MUCH BETTER)

Many years later she was finally the one who ratted out Thanatos to Maci and Tory when Thanatos gloated to her that he was toting around new secret weapon Chal, and that’s literaly how everyone found out about her but I digress….

[crisiscutie]

since I'm a huge freak for Disney songs (and their movies of course), what do you think of the following? Frozen - Show Yourself for Sephiroth, if he would actually meet his real mother Lucrecia in the Crystal Cave Tarzan - Son of a man for Sephiroth as well in his youth BUT it could also fit for Zack during the whole Crisis Core timeline. It was actually pretty much a random thought, but, do you think these songs could fit ?

I haven't seen Tarzan since I was a kid but that was a good movie! I don't watch much Disney stuff nowadays but I loved them when I was younger.

 ༻❁༺ One verse in particular really stands out to me.

“And all the things you dreamed of. The visions that you saw. Well, the time is drawing near now. It’s yours to claim it all!” I know it’s a happy and optimistic song, but I think it can also be interpreted in a dark light as well. Son of a Man could not only fit a youthful Sephiroth but also Adult Seph as well.

For Adult Sephiroth, I’d imagine that would relate to his Nibelheim breakdown and his antics afterwards. After spending so long under Shinra’s control, he is liberated. The song would be him coming to a realization. His desire - reuniting with his “mother” Jenova has been recognized and now, He’ll claim the planet for him AND her. It’s in his power. He’s known as the strongest man ever and now, he will do more than that title. He will become a GOD. You can also look at the song from Jenova’s point of view as she spent thousands of years in suspended animation waiting for something to release her. And then there finally came the birth of Sephiroth. So she spent time from his childhood to adulthood, waiting for her chosen one to finally realize his purpose.

 ༻❁༺ What about Zack?

It fits him well too! KH Zack came to my mind for some reason when I listened to that song again. Poor KH Zack, he has no better chance of achieving his dreams in the KH verse than in the FF7 verse... Zack is very idealistic and full of positive ambition compared to Post-Nibelheim Sephiroth. I see the song as more than a deconstruction for FF7 Zack... At first. As he wanted to be a hero so badly, he played by the rules. He did what he could to help his loved ones, especially Angeal and Sephiroth, and look at what he was paid with in return. He stayed loyal to Shinra, only to be met with the bitter taste of betrayal when he discovered their dark secrets, especially their inhumane experimentations, which they did on him AND his friend. But at least he passed on his legacy to Cloud. So, in a nice twist of fate, he achieved his dreams. So this song applies to Cloud through Zack.

 ༻❁༺ A mother’s icy embrace.

So despite being a Disney buff as a kid, I have to confess: I never saw Frozen or its sequel. Yeah, I know...  But I checked out the song you’ve mentioned. I like it! It could function as a foil to Son of a Man, which fuels Sephiroth’s dark ambition and path of destruction, while this song acts as a soothing balm to his trauma. What he has been craving for, deep inside, is finally in front of him. I also think most of the song can apply to Lucrecia herself about Sephiroth, also similar to how I said Son of Man can be taken from Jenova’s point of view.

With Jenova, it's instant gratification for his darkness. He just takes her face value after reading false information about her origins. His fragile mind was broken, and he needed something to comfort him. Jenova was the perfect outlet. Whereas, finally meeting Lucrecia would be akin to delayed gratification. With the reunion and the truth he so desperately sought, he’d feel a sense of contentment and hope for the future will swell within him. He would be initially angry about what Shinra (and Lucrecia, to a lesser extent) did to him, but Lucrecia’s presence before him would temper that rage.

What do you guys think of a scenario/mini-fic where Sephiroth and his darling (pregnant with the triplets) meets Lucrecia?

[agent-cupcake]

just curious, what’s your favorite and least favorite character design? my least fav for sure has got to be female byleth for reasons i don’t want to get in to yep ok have a good day 😁

IOops this accidentally became a rant, sorry

Okay so, to preface this all, I’m not a character designer and I’m actually pretty bad at it, but my rule of thumb with really unappealing or fan-service outfits is whether or not it makes sense character-wise and how much it tells the player about the character. For example, I think we can all agree that there’s quite a bit of fan-service elements in Hilda’s design. Boob window. However, it’s not unrealistic to imagine Hilda picking out those clothes for herself. Her costume tells you almost everything you need to know about her character on a visual level. She’s confident, pretty, attention-grabbing, and high maintenance while the gloves and laced girdle give a nod to her Viking-maiden roots.

Taking it to female Byleth, I don’t think that her outfit works on either front. Her design is definitely my least favorite and it’s not helped by the fact that you have to look at her at all times. Whatever. The huge, solid mass of boobs, the buttoned bib, the big eyes, the feather hair, the bellybutton, the ripped tights, the booty shorts. She’s a merc out in life and death situations with an accessible, pale, tacky 2000′s “stab me” stomach cut out and a wedgie. Which could be excusable if, like Hilda, there was reason to believe that that her costume was character choice. But she doesn’t really have much character, and what there is gives the impression of a very stoic, dry, blunt person. I have no idea why they’d have gone that route when the sexual appeal of more “utilitarian” costuming (aka, form fitting armor that at least pretends to be functional) for characters like her is scientifically proven AND would say more about the singular personality trait she possesses. Okay, well, I know why they didn’t do that and I think it’s lame. This dysfunction of “character designer wanted a sexy girl but it’s kinda random and just shoved in the game without any thought” actually reminds me a lot of Xenoblade 2′s leading ladies, Hikari and Pyra. Although considering that their bad designs led to a lot of people hating the game for superficial reasons while accepting female Byleth’s design, I guess I’m just bitter. Jumping to a different comparison, then, look at 2B from Nier Automata. Her design is fine as hell which is kinda hypocritical of me considering that it's explicitly fan-service, but I think it also shows the most damning thing for female Byleth. Her whole look, despite having a dozen different element thrown in, is boring. Maybe it’s the colors (dressing her in all black and white would have been really interesting considering the colors of the three lords are so heavily emphasized as a part of their characters) or maybe it’s just the way the desperate elements come together. But, like I said, I'm not even slightly knowledgeable about character design and I know that despite Three Houses being mostly separate, they had to appeal to a larger aesthetic brand to which I have little experience with. And, ultimately, a lot of people find her cute or sexy which...To each their own, I suppose. I don’t pretend that fan-service doesn’t work on me (2B... Cloud’s arms in the remake... Seph's shirtless Smash skin...) but when it’s this obviously inserted in by the character designers rather than feeling organic in any way AND looks bad I'm just not super interested.

The other worst designs for me would be all four of the Ashen Wolves post timeskip. I don't think it's controversial to say that they didn't try with the clothes, even if I love their designs from the neck up (Yes, even Balthus. He looks like the type of guy that would let you sit on his shoulders at a rock concert so you could see the stage). While there are other designs I think are unappealing, those are for purely aesthetic reasons and so I can't maintain the opinion that they're actively bad or that I even truly dislike them.

As for favorite looks... I actually have a few so sorry you're getting all of them because despite the shit I'm talking, I actually really really love the character designs in Three Houses. 

Ferdinand's post timeskip is one of my favorite designs, if not my favorite. The hair, the coat, the armor, the spurs, the colors. You know exactly who Ferdinand von Aegir is just by looking at him. He’s wealthy, handsome, confident in his appearance, a hero, a princely type character, his battle form is mounted combat which is traditionally aesthetically reserved for nobility and leaders... I love it. The only reason I cannot say he IS my favorite is because of the three Lords. But before them, my honorable mentions include post timeskip Hilda, Dorothea, Lorenz, Felix, and Hubert. Granted, I could make a case for why I like almost all of the student’s post timeskip looks.

For the Lords, I obviously have to start with colors because, weirdly enough, Persona didn’t invent primary colors but are actually used as shorthand. Blue is the color of honor, loyalty, sincerity, sadness, and depression. Something I’ve always found very interesting is that blue is very rarely found in nature. To me, that’s always made it seem more lonely which, at least in this case, is thematically relevant. People call Dimitri boring pre timeskip and while I won’t defend his hairstyle (okay, actually, I probably would because he tucks it behind his ears and idk why but that’s one of the cutest things ever) I really like how unassuming he is. Bland. He’s supposed to be the plain shortbread cookie to caramel deLite Claude and strawberry meringue Edelgard. It is not in his character to draw attention to himself or stand out. To me, he kinda looks like an old Barbie prince, like he should have been named Dominic. Also I love the blue eyes/blonde hair thing and his more angular features. It really helps to sell him as the fakeout chivalrous prince type. Post timeskip, Dimitri's black armor is amazing. I love the fact that it’s a lot more intricate up-close with the different little shell-like pieces and the fact that his boots are furry. I love the big cape and the black and white fur around his shoulders. It’s really cool how they used his costume to change the shape of his in-game model to match the bodily proportions of the character art. It’s easier to see when you change his costume into the DLC ones, but the fur and cape build up his shoulders and chest look more broad while keeping that tiny little waist. The choice to give Dimitri an eyepatch is probably my favorite thing about this design. It’s genuinely inspired. Such a simple detail yet it tells the player everything they need to know about adult Dimitri when they see him post timeskip, in one frame the player can begin to understand the extent of his loss over the past five years. The subtle shadow under his eye in the first few Azure Moon chapters and the messy long-ish hair really help to sell the feral prince aesthetic as well, as it’s from those small cues the player gets that he’s exhausted (in more ways than one) and doesn’t maintain himself. None of these things are intentional choices by Dimtiri, they’re the result of what his character has been through.

Yellow is an intense, energetic color. Mostly, people think of it as being warm and inviting, the color of the sun and positivity. That intensity can be overwhelming, though, too visually demanding when compared to its primary counterparts. Don’t stare at the sun too long. Buuuut, it’s okay to stare at Claude. Claude not wanting to wear tight pants in either of his costumes is not only a mood, it is iconic. Pre timeskip, the softer lines of his silhouette makes him look kinda slouchy, kinda lazy. Like he’s not too concerned with appearances. But those adorably messy curls, the little braid, the clearly tended eyebrows, and earring make it clear that he DOES care about appearances and is very aware of his allure. And that’s before he even starts winking. It is honestly so in character that as many people picked him first on the basis of being thirsty, that feels like an intentionally Claude thing even if it was inserted by the designers. The contrast of his complexion with his seagreen eyes is gorgeous and instantly adds a kind of mystery and intrigue to him considering the setting... but it’s sf funny that nobody looked at bronze god Claude among a sea of white faces and thought something was up. Post timeskip, they used the same trick like they did with Dimitri to change Claude’s in-game model to match his canon appearance. The way they designed his uniform makes him not look as twink-ish, like he’s actually muscular and imposing and has the strength he’d need to shoot a war bow with a 120lbs draw weight. Also like Dimitri, you can instantly tell what Claude’s been up to. Like, he was very pretty pre timeskip but when he shows up in the Goddess Tower after those five years in all that gold, he demands your attention. Like a gentleman general with the excessive aesthetic ideals of the Alliance and details to imply his heritage. The quilted pants are amazing from both an aesthetic and practical standpoint. He’s a mounted unit riding a creature with scales, of course he’d want something on his legs for protection. And the chinstrap. I love that so much, it definitely makes him look more adult. He’s got such a cute soft baby face, it’s fun imagining him experimenting with different styles during the five years to get the most desired physical reaction to him as a leader. 

Frenchfries, meet forehead. No, actually, Edelgard’s design is really fantastic. Claude and Dimitri both have realistically colored eyes and hair and then there’s Edelgard. Dimitri shrugs off attention physically and Claude shirks it with a wink but Edelgard commands the players attention from the very start. Although I’m sure there’s a lot of things to associate with white hair and purple eyes, my first thought was Daenerys from Game of Thrones. Otherworldly beautiful by with an edge. Red, of course, is The power color. Strong emotions, love and hate. Red is also associated strongly with blood, which is very important to Edelgard’s plot. Granted, I think the red and black association is even more powerful than JUST red and red is the cheapest play to make in regards to displaying villainy (I mean, there are some pretty universally recognized associations with red and black and it led to people making some unfair comparisons between Edelgard and a famous dictator) but I think it was effective and well used and I genuinely enjoy its use in her case. Anyway, if I had a major complaint about her design it would be the weird ashy color of her hair whereas Lysithea’s hair is pure white. Which doesn’t even matter with the AMAZING hair horns. Ram horns can actually symbolize quite a few things, but their association with power and strength is pretty universal I think. They’re also used in demonic imagery. I love that THIS was her alternative to a crown. Edelgard views herself as a force of war and power before she thinks of herself as royalty. She also mentions that she isn’t super vain, but she loves to do her hair, so the hair being the most elaborate part of her look is entirely in-character. Edelgard’s ensemble is, like Claude, very militaristic. I love that they kept her in a dress that embraces femininity without showing skin as that wouldn’t really suit her Also, again, Edelgard demands your attention. She’s dressed all in bright bright red waving around a giant axe. She is a symbol as much as she is a combatant, someone to follow. I didn’t really mention their secondary lord costumes, but a girl in sexy armor is literally everything and I love that they had the balls to put their main sexy waifu girl in full body armor.

Okay I’m sorry I realize this was excessive and probably didn’t need explaining and I’m not sure I even articulated my thoughts properly but anyway I love their designs so here is the positivity I’ll put into the world.

[tales-of-two]

Serenade...

Aiko looking down below at the activity on the street, she stretches out her wings and begins to levitate resting her elbows on the rail of the balcony positioned like she's laying on her belly her knees bent and her ankles crossed, softly swaying her feet. She exhales through her mouth making her lips gently flap "pbbbbllt.." she closed her eyes to listen to the night air.

A bright moonlit sky overhead, the stars sparkled one at a time almost to say there own greeting, and down below, standing on a balcony, leaning on the rail was the maiden looking somewhat satisfied, having just fed off her master's energy, leaving him in the room behind her to sleep it off.

Below her was a figure in the shadow who held a lute in his hands, from where he stood he could see Aiko swaying, as thought moving to an unheard melody, he smiled and began to strum and projected his serenade at the maiden on the balcony. Aiko opens her eyes out of curiosity at the Sound she hears, it's music, and a figure, that looks like a skeleton in the shadows singing to her.. To her!! *giggles* "what a fool! She thinks. He has no idea.." She looks down to him giving him her attention, and listens to his song. He plays passionately pouring his heart out through his song.. Blegggck.. Really? *Aiko thinks* lucky for him I'm bored. *She smiles flirtatiously and motion for him to come closer if he can* "let's finish this."

From the shadows a fluid slinking movement as the lute welding skeleton rises out of shadows, locking eyes with the succubus finishing his song. Aiko's jaw drops at who he is, and before she can react any further, the Lamia Shephiroth pours on the charm. "Good evening Aiko my love, your beauty outshines the stars above. Come away with me, let us rekindle our love." Aiko is clearly stuned and for the first time, in centuries, her heart is moved toward him

... Internal Conflict... No!! Don't you remember!?

Betrayal.. ABANDONEDMENT! ! until finally through streaming tears The words "Not again! " Cut through to his ear canals. "Aiko.. please." He says concerned. Through broken sobs "you bastard...How could you make me feel again,?! Leave me alone..." *pink flame surrounding her and in a fire moment she is gone. Leaving Sephiorth to anguish with his broken heart.

( Ok this is just how I think these two would Interact, this is not cannon in anyway but I would really like your Input, opinions, critisisim )

End.

Aiko, and Sephiorth belong to @yourdorkyskelly have to post this if you don't want to

// Holy shit! I've never gotten fanfiction before! Aaaa I love it thank you so much Nala-chan! You got down their personalities down so well!

I'm actually really happy about this, I just had to draw fanart for the title before posting it.

Maaaan, for those of you who don't know Aiko and Seph were supposed to be married 300 years ago.

And you know what, imma make this little encounter cannon, I love drama lol. //

[keyofshadows]

This was ages ago, but I still love it. Part of the fight between the Refugees (well, some of them) and Maleficent in her dragon form on Destiny Islands. Ray ends up punting Jalen through a Light Corridor and into a Christmas tree because he was lacking common sense. (His wife was extremely grateful, gave Ray a framed twig as a thank you, lol.) Sora, Riku, and Kairi end up crashing the party.

A familiar light appeared from above, growing from a small orb to the more typical size of a portal within seconds. Without any warning, beams shot out from it, lighting up the night sky and lancing straight for the dragon - the tail, maw, wings, eyes, whatever it could reach was a fair target. She landed on her feet, the sound muffled by the noise of battle.

"Sorry to crash the party," she said, eyes scanning their surroundings, "but it kind of hurts, not being invited. Right here." A fist touched her chest, above her heart. Ray grinned. "You'd know all about that, eh, Maleficent?"

Seph dove around her jaws, occasionally only barely dodging(lost some feathers at one point) and striking out whenever he had a chance. He was uncertain about trying to go for a kill. She could very well be toying with them after all. It was a silly thought but, he hoped one of his feathers got in her eye.

He had to back off some when the beams shot out but, as soon as they were gone he was back on the attack.

Aria was considering how she wanted to approach. Carefully obviously. She didn't want Seph to get distracted by getting in trouble.

"Not gonna curse a baby, are you?" Not that there were any babies around to curse at the moment.

Watching the tail she got a bit closer and started casting. Nothing seemed to happen at first then a handful of bubbles started drifting towards the dragon. They grew a bit as they went and sparked a bit. They moved slow but, if Maleficent touched one it should give her a nasty shock. If Aria had put enough power into them anyway. Hopefully no one else would run into them. They were high enough that those that stuck to the ground wouldn't have a problem. At least Seph would know how best to avoid them since he was there when she was working on the spell.

Ray's sudden appearance made Jalen grin. He supposed Amy had something to do with it. Definitely good to have another experienced fighter on their side.

Things were happening faster now, which he was somewhat grateful for. He'd gotten to his feet and drawn his sword, ignoring the dull ache in his side. He'd worry about whether he'd cracked a rib or just bruised himself later. Watching out for Brendan, and Aria's little surprise, he headed for one of the dragon's front legs, intending to get a good stab in.

Her gaze landed on Jalen, grin instantly turning into a glare of fury the likes of which only Ray could muster. When he charged, so did she, but there was one vital difference.

Ray wasn't going after the dragon. No, she was going after Jalen.

With a single Thunder Step, she was ahead of him, looking back over her shoulder. Once he was close enough, she dropped, sweeping a leg at his feet to trip him up before he could go any further.

Song had scurried behind cover during Ray's dramatic entrance, and started casting. The first try was a failure before she even invoked the spell aloud. There simply no build up of power. The magic refused to listen.

She took a deep breath and tried again, focusing. This time the magic stirred. She had been experimenting with the feel of wild magic in the air and how to catch and tame it. It took longer than relying on a set spell to do all the work for you, and in most cases it didn't add enough of a power boost to make it worth while, but for her purposes it was useful, even necessary. This was anything but a set spell. it had to be cast from scratch, and that took precision.

On the third try, she almost put herself under the spell's predecessor, and only just managed to recognize the downward tug of a dream dive and abort it before she fell asleep.

The fourth try was exactly like the second try, and her frustration was getting the better of her. This was not working.

A rumble of a laugh spread from the dragon's throat. "I do apologize for the lack of an invitation. I had hoped the general invitation would reach all interested parties, but it appears I was mistaken. You seem to have made a wise choice."

Then her attention turned back in the direction of Seph, and she began to draw in a deep breath.

Seph was still somewhat aware of what was going on on the ground. When Maleficent started to draw in breath he was left with the choice to doge what he expected was coming or try to attack. As it was he didn't have many long range attacks that he thought would be effective (darkness or fire based attacks didn't seem like the best idea) and he wasn't about to get close enough to try to stab her in the mouth.

Well, there was a sort of energy beam he could do with his sword but, it wasn't an actual ability Sephiroth had outside of a non-Kingdom Hearts related video game and Seph was still working out some bugs. May as well give it a shot though. Half a moment of concentration followed by half a dozen quick slashes sent out five crescent moon shaped beams of energy. A couple were not as strong as he was aiming for and the last slash failed to produce one at all but, if the ones that appeared to come out right seemed to do damage he may try them again.

It might have been a good idea to move himself out of reach after that if there wasn't the chance she'd turn her attention to the people on the ground. He'd have to try to dodge at the last moment if his attack didn't interrupt hers.

Aria made her way closer to Song. Whether to try to help with whatever she seemed to be trying to do or to pull her out of harm's way if something happened while she was concentrating Aria wasn't sure.

Clearly not expecting Ray to trip him up, Jalen went down hard on his back, staring up at her in absolute disbelief. What did she think she was doing?

"Are you insane?"

Because that was a good question to be asking right now. He was lucky to have avoided falling on his sword.

"Amy sent me here! It's not like last time!"

He felt a little like a child, having to defend his presence at this fight. He scrambled to his feet, grabbing his sword. He wasn't going to use it on Ray, but he had a dragon to help deal with, and she wasn't going to stop him.

In the middle of the fight and the chaos and the flashes of magic, there comes another light, more pure than anything else anyone could have conjured. It lights up the horizon in a brief flash of white, silver, and blue, and is followed by a strange silence - the calm before the storm.

And then wind and fire explodes in the center of the island, sending sand and water blasting outwards from the epicenter. The dust hasn't even settled and the light has barely begun to die away when a voice, familiar but different somehow, cries out from the middle of the burning star and a wordless spell lashes out at the dragon, brilliant white vines of light entangling around its form. The darkness retreats away from the immediate area of the shore, coiling away into the sea and sand and sky.

Eventually, the light fades away and the tendrils of pale magic can be traced back to two spinning keyblades - Oblivion and Oathkeeper - floating next to a surprisingly familiar figure. It wouldn't do to call him a boy anymore - he has long since become a young man in the years since the battle against Xemnas and even Calum. It has been several years since he's been a part of this fight, and bringing it crashing back to where it all began clearly doesn't sit well with him.

Or it could be that the fight interrupted college finals.

"Hey guys!" Sora remarks cheerfully, immediately dropping into a fighting crouch. "Could you have picked a time that wasn't so close to Christmas to bring back the darkness? Or you know, when I finished my math final?"

Once the light and the dust begin to clear, the battlefield is shaken by the arrival of a new Darkness...and a new Light, each working in perfect harmony. Those who can sense it will sense that this is as far from another threat as Darkness could get - in fact, it's very familiar to most.

At first, there's only a brief flash of a bright purple aura, rushing once towards the dragon before vanishing. Then, a few seconds later, it repeats. Then it comes again, in a blinding, impossible rush of attacks, before a bright flash erupts in the center of the flurry.

And at the end of it is Riku, recovering from the impressive display almost casually, smirking belatedly in response to Sora's comment.

"It would figure, though. You guys never were great at timing things." he said, moving into a fighting stance and holding Way to Dawn at ready almost as an afterthought.

Following shortly after is the most brilliant of pure Light, warm and comforting and all too familiar as the other two had been. It forms in the distance, like a brightly shining star before shooting straight towards the dragons other side, ice forming where the attack hits.

Kairi drops daintily behind both her boys, Destiny's Embrace dropping into a defensive position before quirking a brow at their backs. "Weren't you two just complaining about being stuck inside studying though?" She teases, never once taking her eyes off the scene. "Maybe if we time it right, we can still make it back."

A few of Seph's attacks hit their mark, but Maleficent hardly seemed to notice them. Her attention was on the new arrivals. She did not seem surprised by there arrival, though one could not strictly say that she was pleased. It was simply more power upon the field in a battle that had been coming for a very long time.

She was more than she had been when last she faced the young Keybearer. The Darkness of the Cornerstone that had become her own and the fallen hearts of world's that had strengthened it . . . they had only been the beginning, and when the greatest Darkness of all had come into the stone, it had cracked. All that had been left as a vessel for that power was her. Her allies may have been gone, but the need for them had passed.

She turned towards her three greatest adversaries and breathed out death.

Seph opened a corridor before Maleficent released her attack at the new arrivals. His mostly darkness based attacks would not likely be much use here but, he didn't go far. He wanted to see how well the Key bearers handled the situation and of course he would resume his own attack if he felt they wouldn't end up tripping each other up.

Song was nearly ready to give up her plan and hope the new arrivals could handle it. She was certainly glad they'd got the message, even if they were a little late. And dear Light, the three of them were even more impressive than she'd remembered.

She tensed, preparing to rise and join the fight more directly, but something tugged at her mind. It wasn't right to just give up on her plan, was it? After all, it was her strongest point. What else could she offer that would come close to matching this, provided she could make it work?

With a fresh sense of determination that seemed to come from somewhere else, she settled herself again and tried one more time to cast the spell.

This time, she felt something even before she'd consciously called to the magic. There was a soft touch on the back of her hands, like fingertips, guiding, and she thought it was a cool breath that ruffled the hair around her ear.

'Like so.'

The voice came from inside her head as much as it did from behind her, and she wasn't startled to hear it, though she very well should have been. The tone was gentle and patient, like a good teacher, and through her, the presence summoned and shaped the magic. All Song could do was be dragged along as the spell itself was pulled from her memory and cast with her hands.

"Awakening," she heard herself whisper, and slowly... very slowly.... a blanket of foggy white began to spread from where she knelt.

"She may have sent you here," Ray said, "but you really should have thought this through a little better."

Grabbing Jalen's wrist an instant before he could charge again, she yanked him back as hard she could. Before he could even think of getting back up, he was pinned to the ground. She looked down at him, shaking her head in dismay.

"Honestly, Jalen. Your wife is pregnant, and you leave her home, alone, with three little kids, just so you can traipse off and fight a stupid dragon in the most idiotic way possible? Is it just me, or is there something slightly wrong with this picture?"

Without giving him a chance to answer, she sighed and dragged Jalen back to his feet by the front of his shirt. A portal opened behind him and Ray shoved him in none too gently. Pausing, she turned back with a smirk at the young Keybearers.

"About time you guys got here," she said teasingly. "You've got this one in the bag, right?"

Apparently, she didn't need or want an answer. She stepped through the Corridor without another word, heading straight back to Rainbow's End.

Amy was sitting on the couch in the living room, cuddling Larkin in her lap (what there was of it), with Eli and Ashlyn snuggled up on either side of her while she read them a story. The kids had started picking up on her nerves shortly after everyone had left, and she'd decided a nice, quiet distraction was a good idea. So, out came the books, and she'd let the kids pick. They'd already gone through Eli's choice, and she was just a few pages into the new book when her son tugged on her sleeve.

"Daddy's home soon?"

Amy bit her lip and turned the page before answering.

"I-"

She stopped abruptly as there was a bright flash of light, followed by a crash as something fell into the Christmas tree. She grabbed Larkin, and both Eli and Ashlyn cried out in surprise, clinging to her. A second later she realized the 'something' was actually a someone, as Jalen staggered away from where he'd fallen out of the Light Corridor into the tree. He was glaring at the still-open portal, no doubt waiting for Ray to step through. Amy simply stared in disbelief. She'd only asked Ray if she wanted to come help her babysit, but this was good too. Really good.

"...Daddy's home."

[joyfulsongbird]

Forgetting

It’s a slow process, for awhile, Eurydice thinks everything’s going to be okay. not good, not great. but she thinks it’s going to be okay. she has the memory of Orpheus’ embrace, she has the memory of his kisses, his lips on hers, and that’s all she needs. to get through every day, she just needs the memory of her fingertips brushing along his jaw and that keeps her going from morning to night. she thought that she’d have that fuel forever, she thought that she’d never lose that part of her.

it takes years, it takes many, many years but there comes a day where she doesn’t know what she remembers anymore. she wakes up and there’s something missing, and she can’t place it. there’s a gap, but she thinks it must be a dream she had had that has slipped her memory. in a way, it was. maybe just one of those half lidded, awake but not dreams where she goes the whole day trying to remember what she dreamt.

and maybe, this had been slowly happening for months before, but she didn’t notice until the largest gap was lost. she lost the bridge between down and up, between here and there.

she lost him.

when the train pulls in, she smiles. she knows this, knows the smell of the train, and the sound of the whistle. she probably knows that best. dropping her tools, she starts her way to the train station. she won’t get in trouble for this, Hades always leaves the fields the meet his wife at the train station. many of the workers take a break, talk amongst themselves. years ago, this would never happen and then one day, it changed. like a flip of a switch, she could suddenly breath down below. the sky felt just a little bit more open and the fields felt less dense. they could actually speak and look. a beautiful day it was, when she began work on the wall but was told to start taking it down. now, the wall is almost all gone and sunlight lazily drifts in. but they are still not able to cross it. they can’t.

Eurydice stands off to the side, watching Lady Persephone kiss her husband and waiting for her turn to greet the goddess. and finally, finally, finally, the woman turns to her and opens her arms. Eurydice flies into them, the goddess is strong, lifting her slightly off the ground in the tightness of the hug.

“it’s so good to see you, hon!” she says, muffled into Eurydice’s shoulder.

“you too.” Eurydice replies, her arms still tight around her. when she pulls back, Persephone holds her at an arm's length, inspecting her thoroughly.

“you’ve lost weight, have you been eating enough?” Eurydice laughs and nods. “are you sure? I’ll make sure to talk to Hades about-”

“I’m fine!” Eurydice says, her laugh bubbling through into her words. “it’s so good to see you, these last six months have been so dark. darker than usual, with you gone.”

“well, I’m here to make things bright again.” she brushes a piece of hair behind Eurydice’s ear. “let’s get you a drink.”

they begin their descent down from the train station before Persephone stops in her tracks. “wait, before I forget...”

she searches in her bag for a minute or two before pulling out an envelope with clean cursive written on the front.

“what’s this?” Eurydice asks, carefully taking it from her.

Persephone smile flickers off her face for a brief moment, like the glitching of a television, so quick, there then gone. “it’s from Orpheus.”

Eurydice turns the letter over in her hands once, observing the pale yellow of the envelope. and without even looking up, without any sort of dramatics or even an inkling of tone, she says:

“who?”

Persephone is right in her face before Eurydice can even register what’s going, her face between Persephone’s two hands. “Eurydice, baby, what did you just say?”

“um,” she leans back, unsure of what to make of the goddess’ desperate features and clinging hands. “I just- I don’t- this letter-”

“is from Orpheus, your poet, your boy, your husband.”

“I’m sorry... husband?” Eurydice tries to backtrack when she sees the devastation ripple across Persephone’s face. “no, no, I really am sorry if I upset you, I’m sorry.”

“no, no, it’s okay.” Persephone pulls the younger girl close, placing a hand on the back of her head and holding it there so that she doesn’t see the few tears slipping down her face. “don’t apologize, dear, it’s not your fault... isn’t your fault.”

she wipes away the few tears after she pulls back, ignoring Eurydice’s prying eyes. “I’ll take this.” she takes the letter from her. “and I think I promised my favorite girl a drink, didn’t I?”

“Seph-”

“c’mon,” she prompts with a wobbly smile. “I’ll make it worth your while.”

***

Persephone’s upset, Eurydice isn’t sure about what, but she can tell when the older woman is mad or upset or at an emotional edge because she’s distracting herself with drink. Eurydice, slowly drawing herself away from the woman, has her curiosity growing slowly in her chest.

what was in that letter?

she has to know. it was just sitting in the back of her mind when they first got to the bar, but after the first drink, the buzz turned into a roar. she has to know. and Orpheus, who the hell is Orpheus? that buzz is there, behind the roar of want, the curiosity and the... familiarity but not. she can’t decide if it’s actually there or it’s just her mind tricking her into thinking there are memories there. and better yet, where did Persephone get the letter? from Up Top?

all Eurydice has ever known is Hadestown.

and when Persephone is growing lazier and lazier, more and more lethargic, she carefully pulls the letter from her straw bag and slips away to sit in the hallway outside the bathroom at the bar. she sits with her legs crossed, carefully tearing open the worn envelope and pulling the letter out from inside.

dearest Eurydice,

I write this letter same letter once a year, the tenth letter that I have written since I last saw you. Persephone says she can’t take anything up from Hadestown and I know that... I wish I could see your face. I would I could hold you and it’d make me feel like I wasn’t so alone. my love, I send this letter with the intent and the hope that it reaches you and brings you some semblance of happy. Seph says you’re doing well, but she lies, sometimes, for my own good. I write this letter not for me, but so that you know that there is someone out there who will wait and love you until the sun dies out. this is not a love letter, well, I suppose it is, but it isn’t meant to tell you what you are supposed to feel, I just want you to know that I love you and I’ll continue to love you forever. It’s the last day of spring, so I know my gift will probably be ruined by the time she makes it down there but I enclosed a present for you in the envelope, press it, keep it, as a reminder of me. Eurydice, I’ll see you again one day and on that happy day, I’ll be able to tell you all this in person.

your love,

Orpheus

Eurydice fumbles for the envelope just barely after she’d finished the letter, and read the last word. her vision is blurred by... tears. she’s crying. when was the last time she did that? according to this letter, ten years. ten damn years since she felt anything and this is finally what brings her back from the dead. she still can’t remember anything but she feels the absence now, something- someone- was there and now he isn’t.

and inside the envelope, wilted and crumbling, is one single carnation, faded from red to this grayish maroon color. but it’s there, it’s petals falling and chipping, it’s there. the red, the bleak, the cold. it’s all there, but there’s missing pieces in between each glimpse of a memory and she can’t. connect. them.

damn this place.

“Eurydice-” Persephone’s voice, filled to the brim with worry, comes round the corner. “oh, love.”

she looks up, with the cold tears staining her cheeks.

“I don’t remember- I don’t remember him, I can’t remember him.” she holds out the letter for her to read. “he calls me his love, I can’t- I loved him, I did, I can feel it. But I don’t remember what he looked like or how he looked at me or what his voice sounded like or what color his eyes were or-”

“hon, calm yourself.” she kneels down in front of Eurydice, cupping her wet cheeks with both of her hands. “just breath for me, okay? just breath.”

she can barely do that. she does, though, and the world still feels shifted and off. “Seph, what can I do? he’s just... gone. he’s already fading again, his words, they’re fading.”

“take it,” Persephone takes her hands and puts the letter into them. “read it, look at it, every day and hold onto that.”

she holds the withered carnation between her thumb and forefinger, and right in front of her eyes, it blooms again. a rebirth. Eurydice’s eyes widen as Persephone takes the flower, tucking it behind one of Eurydice’s ears. she wipes away the girl’s tears with her fingers, doing more harm than good, but in those same spots places two small kisses on her cheeks.

“try to remember how he made you feel,” she murmurs. “it’s down there, and once you find that, everything else will come. he’s waiting for you, and I’m going to come back next year with another letter, but until then, you read this one until you have it memorized. you never forget, okay?”

she takes a deep breath, holding it tight and squeezing her eyes closed. he’s fading, but this time she grasps tight to the small recollection she has of him.

“okay.”

“he’s waiting for you,” Persephone says. “just hold on until then.”

he’s fading, nearly gone, but wherever he goes, she’s going to follow.

[missingmywing]

Let Us Embrace Whatever It May Bring

@boomchickfanfiction this was inspired largely because I randomly remembered your 30-day challenge, went back to reread them, and rediscover your D&D au. And then got seriously inspired by the remake because I’ve got this colossal D&D universe that I’ve never written or posted anything for. Which is a shame.

So, thanks for reinspiring me!

(Potential spoilers for FFVIIR)

(Link to headcanon post on this; here!)

. . . . .

“They’re going to be so confused.”

“Of course they are, that’s what makes it fun!”

“Cloud is going to hate us.”

“Oh, he is not. Admit it, he’s going to be so excited to bring back the goofy try-hard jackass from the original story. He’s been irritated at what Strife’s slowly turned into across the multiverse, all because he actually payed attention in Intro to Psychology and accidentally took the “play to reality” character type a bit too literally. A hard reset is exactly what he needs, bonus points when he realizes where we’re going with this.”

“Which, hopefully, won’t be until the end of the first part of the campaign.” Sephiroth sent Aerith a pointed look. “We’ll have to be careful not to give them too much to work with too soon.”

“Tell that to the DMs,” she shot back, nudging her cousin with a grin. “Who’s heading it this time? Angeal was the main one last time, even with your parents helping him out, but are we going back to that?”

“Time travel isn’t Angeal’s usual forte,” Sephiroth conceded, “but that adventure was very much his. I’m not willing to take that from him unless he’s an actual player this time. Which, considering where we’re starting the timeline, he can’t be. Not with his own character, at least.”

“That is true,” she sighed, leaning back in her chair to stretch. “I definitely agree; it was his and he really owned it. I know Auntie was super impressed.”

“Yes, yes, mother is very supportive of dragging people into nerdom. It’s why she and Gen get along so well.”

“And that they share a nickname?” she grinned.

He rolled his eyes with a sigh. “That too. So, how are we going to pitch this without arousing suspicion?”

“‘Hey, why don’t we see if we can keep Aerith alive this time?’”

He sent her a deeply unimpressed look.

“I know it may come as a shock, but the world doesn’t actually revolve around you, y’know.”

“This one does!” she shot back with a brilliant grin. “Now help me figure out how to set this up so no one realises that we’re literally resetting the timeline.”

. . .

“Hot damn we actually got everyone here,” Barret looked around, impressed, at the barely-contained chaos of people reuniting, getting food and drinks, and discussing storylines.

“I didn’t actually expect everyone to show up when I sent out that message,” Aerith admitted. “I mean, I did send out the call for Avalanche specifically, even if everyone was invited.”

“What, ya’ thought we wouldn’t show up to a new campaign for this story?” Reno asked with a grin, slinging an arm over her shoulders. “Everyone shows up for the first and final sessions, even if they don’t participate. C’mon Aer, this is our baby. We all wanna know what new adventure awaits us on the distant land of Gaia.”

“Yeah, who’s getting possessed this time?!” Zack called across the room with a grin. “Do I finally get to come back to life for good? Does Cloud finally die for good? Do he and Seph finally bone in-game?!”

“No, that was Dissidia,” Cloud corrected with a grin, and laughter rang through the rooms.

“Oh boy, that campaign,” Genesis grinned, elbowing Sephiroth.

“You weren’t even there,” Sephiroth protested, elbowing him back with a smile.

Angeal shook his head from where he and Jenova were setting up the table. “That’s what you get for live-streaming it.”

“It was a fantastic campaign,” Jenova assured them. “Full kudos to your DMs, they did a fantastic job juggling everything and showing how young their gods were last time, especially in comparison to Cosmos and Chaos from the first two campaigns. And all from behind the anonymity of a computer and avatar.”

Sephiroth narrowed his eyes at her, and she winked at him. She preferred to stay anonymous in the wider campaigns like that; it preserved her character’s image.

“It was fun,” Cloud admitted, “even if it was chaotic. And speaking of fun and chaotic, is everyone here?”

“Role call!” Jenova shouted through the house. “DM’s to the floor prompto! Avalanche and evil people, to the table! Everyone else, spread out and stay out from underfoot!”

There were chuckles and laughter as people called out jibes and protests toward their treatment, but everyone gathered just the same. With some subtle prompting from the DMs and two schemers, the people from the Midgar section of the Meteor campaign were settled closest to the DMs, Shinra (Rufus, the Turks, and Reeve) on one side and Avalanche on the other, and Aerith managed to snag Zack into sitting next to her. At his raised eyebrow she winked.

Angeal cleared his throat, and it fell quiet.

“You all have your intro Meteor sheets, right?” He glanced around, and everyone nodded. “Right, get those out and let's get some stat comparing for this campaign.”

That raised a few brows and murmurs, but the rustling of bags and binders and papers soon filled the room.

Sephiroth was careful to hide his endgame Advent Children campaign sheet behind his intro Meteor one. No reason to give anyone ideas at this stage. The anticipation and confusion would be so much more fun if they were all kept in the dark.

His eyes met Aerith’s, and she looked just as excited as he felt.

They took a few minutes to minorly rework the sheets to better suit their play style now, but the changes wouldn’t be major enough to impede the story. Good.

Jenova clapped twice, Lucrecia and Vincent finished tidying up the papers, Hojo spread out the stat sheets, and Angeal once again cleared his throat.

“Imagine, if you will, a sky. Filled with clouds, oversetting a dusty plain with rocky hills. A bird flies overhead, feathers dark and scraggly. It soars through the sky, over the plains, toward a large mass of metal plunging into the sky.”

Angeal had the perfect voice for narration, everyone was hooked from the first sentence, and there were shifts of excitement at the mention of the ruins of Midgar.

“Carried up by the wind, if flies into a cloudbank, navigating through large metal beams and poles. With a burst of sunlight, it emerges on the other side- overtop of a thriving metropolis.”

There was a burst of noise at that. Gasps and shouts of surprise at the realization that these weren’t ruins, and it probably wasn’t Edge.

Jenova called for quiet, and all the DMs looked amused.

“So what, we doin’ a time-skip?” Cid raised a brow.

“No, that doesn’t make sense.” Elena dug through her notes. “In the AC campaign it opened with a five hundred year time-skip and Midgar was a jungle, remember?”

“Yep, Nanaki and his cubs were overlooking it,” Kunsel confirmed, pulling out the concept sheet he’d sketched out at the time, as well as the character sheet he hadn’t yet gotten to use. Apparently he wouldn’t get to use it this campaign either. Darn. He had tons of cool stuff Nanaki had learned over those five hundred years.

“That doesn’t necessarily mean that we didn’t time skip,” Rufus pointed out. “It just means that we’re before it was reclaimed by the Planet. It could be a two or three hundred year time skip, and we’re descendents. A city could easily be totally reclaimed in a hundred years or less.

“Or,” Cloud cut in, “we could just wait and see what nefarious plot our DMs have in store.”

“I just got done with the Number 3 campaign with the KH crew, so I know what my theory is,” Reno drawled, drawing snickers from everyone who followed that particular convolution.

Aerith giggled, and tried not to do it too hard. Reno would be the first to figure it out, solely due to the central part he played as Axel in that particular campaign with that group. He’d keep quiet though, just to see how long it took everyone else.

Angeal smiled at them, but continued. “It flies over the train tracks, the cars on freeways, and down between buildings in what appears to be an entertainment district. Children on bikes ride down the street, past construction crews and people loading fuel cells into cars, shoppers entering and exiting shops along the street, and cars making their way along the road. The children ride down a hill, across a road, and reach a playground with a few toys… and a strangely shaped slide.”

Cloud stilled, suspicion arising in his eyes, and Aerith and Sephiroth bit back smiles.

“Day fades to evening, to night, and as the young girl slides down, something catches her eye in the distance. She turns to looks, and watches as a large burst of green erupts from a distant building along the giant outer wall.”

More and more people were beginning to realize, and Reeve looked breathless at the description of something he’d labored at for weeks alongside Jenova, Lucrecia, Hojo, and Vincent to make somewhat realistically believable for his first campaign with them. He was blindly groping in his bag for the sketches and blueprints he’d rendered out on his own.

“Imagine, the sparks of green float up and up, into the cloudy sky, until they resemble stars- and now imagine drifting through them, through the emptiness of space-”

Oh, Cloud knew this. He remembered this from their first Meteor session. Their introduction to the fully realized Midgar, at the introduction of Reeve to their group. And, judging by other people’s reactions, he wasn’t the only one.

“Holy shit,” Barret breathed from beside him, and an incredulous grin was slowly spreading across Zack’s face, while Tifa looked torn between excitement and horror.

“Imagine floating down, down, until buildings take shape. An alleyway, and in the alleyway is a girl. Long, flowing brown hair, with a pink dress, red jacket, and pink ribbon in her braid. Her green eyes are focused on an opening from which the sparks are floating out of; as though she is receiving answers to questions only she would know to ask.”

There was silence for a moment, and Aerith counted down the moments in her head. Three, two, one-

The room exploded into chaos. People were shouting, throwing out questions and theories, laughter and horror in equal bounds on people’s faces.

“Yes!!! Oh yeah, Wedge is back baby!” Zack’s gleeful shout was the most obvious, drawing laughter and groans of protest in equal measure at the reminder of Barret’s Avalanche cell.

“Are we reworking Meteor?!” Elena looked ecstatic. “Because there is so much I want to rework with my fighting style! I have some nifty new spells that I want to try against a bigger level gap!”

“Oh noooo,” Reno groaned, dropping his head back. “I’m gonna go back to bein’ the guy who dropped the plate. Not cool, yo! I finally made everyone forget about that by bein’ a quirky idiot in AC!”

“Ha!” Yuffie grinned. “We’re never gonna let it die!”

Sephiroth focused on Cloud. “You seem conflicted.”

Cloud started, then grinned ruefully at him. “I am, a bit. I’m ecstatic to come back of course, to get Strife back before I put too much realism into his reactions, to completely rework him from the ground up. I mean, this was my first campaign as a major player the whole way through. I’m thrilled. I just also happen to remember all the horrible things that happened to turn Strife into sir angst-fest that he was.”

“Perhaps,” Sephiroth acknowledged, “but if we’re reworking it… then doesn’t that mean that you can change things this time around?”

Cloud sent him a flat look, though his eyes were warm. “I’m not naive enough to think it’s that simple. Between you and the DMs, this won’t go smoothly at all.”

Sephiroth smirked at him, that damn smirk that got to him every time. “Perhaps,” he repeated in a purr, “but isn’t that the fun of it all?”

“Alright children, settle down!” Jenova shouted, but her wild grin showed her true feelings on the matter. “Yes, to answer the question… we are, in fact, reworking Meteor. For a couple of reasons, but mostly… yeah, character development was a large part of it. A couple of people backed themselves into a corner with their characterizations, and needed a sort of… reset.”

Cloud winced, his own feelings being the most well known on the matter. “Oops,” he said weakly.

“It’s not just you,” Lucrecia assured him. “Vincent and I need to rework ours too, because Dirge wasn’t… hmm.”

“I need a character alteration,” Vincent said flatly. “I didn’t like how I played some of that, and would like to have come to some of those conclusions earlier, because some of my lack of action felt a bit too forced and I would like to see if I can smooth it out.”

Yuffie frowned. “What was wrong with it?”

“Essentially the same problem as Cloud, I took the after effects too seriously and made my character more depressed and stagnant than necessary. I’ll see if I can tone it down a bit, or at least form it into a slightly more active shape earlier.”

“And my entire character needs to just be completely reworked,” Lucrecia sighed. “Granted I use character very loosely, because she’s basically just an NPC, and since we based this whole thing on one of our high school campaigns, I am very annoyed with what I turned her into.”

“You turned her into that because she annoyed you and you didn’t like her anymore,” Hojo pointed out dryly.

“I know, but I’m hoping I might be able to fix it.”

“Hashtag-doubt,” Jenova murmured. “I, for one, am perfectly happy with my character.”

“You would be,” Sephiroth said dryly.

“And you aren’t, darling?”

“No, I am,” he assured her. “Just reminding you of your own nature.”

Murmured conversations broke out as people reevaluated their character sheets, considering possible changes. Cloud noticed Rufus, digging out a familiar pet-sheet and quickly scratching out the name up top, and snorted. A glance around revealed Zack gleefully revising Wedge’s sheet, While Jenova and Angeal already had Jessie and Bigg’s revised sheets out in front of them.

Reeve was considering his own three sheets, clearly calculating stats, as was Kunsel. He caught sight of Reno’s sheet just as Angeal called- “This isn’t Kingdom Hearts, Reno, you cannot pull Axel’s stats over to your Turk, he isn’t Lea.”

“Lameee,” Reno groaned, but put the sheet up well naturedly.

“They don’t even use the same element,” Tifa pointed out with amusement, her own sheet done with few revisions.

“Meh,” he shrugged, glancing over. “Not gonna revise stats, Tseng, Rude?”

“A few a bit later, perhaps,” Tseng responded distractedly as he flipped through his later sheets. “As of right now, however, no. I’m content until I can unlock a few higher-tier spell combinations.”

Rude nodded. “Same here. I know what I want to change, but I need higher levels first.”

Barret was grumbling along with Cid about potential mechanics later on, and Cloud turned his attention back to Genesis and Angeal bickering lightly about Scarlet’s potential and materia abilities. He shook his head with a smile, and waited for everyone to finish up.

Angeal cleared his throat once again, calling for silence, and continued.

“Long, flowing brown hair, with a pink dress, red jacket, and pink ribbon in her braid. Her green eyes are focused on an opening from which the sparks are floating out of; as though she is receiving answers to questions only she would know to ask. She starts, suddenly, as though breaking out of a daze, and straightens with a nervous glance around, as though looking for something. Nothing appears, but she quickly stands and hurries out of the alley, glancing over her shoulder as she does. She stumbles into someone, and drops some of her flowers, in her distraction. Quickly kneeling to pick them up, she collects all but one before a man carrying a box and thus can’t see it, steps on it. She slowly picks it up, cradling it in her hands, before her gaze is inexplicably drawn to the sky.”

Angeal to a breath, and continued.

“Pulling away from her, up and into the very sky she’s observing, see the building, lit brightly against the dark, theaters and shops and restaurants; further up and see the city take shape, enormous metal plates with large gaps between them, and at the center… at the center is a tower. Looming over the entire city with an ominous presence, it oversees all that goes on in the city.

Now we go down, down past the other side of the tower, down to Sector 1. A train flies along the rail, a delivery for Mako Reactor Zero. And atop that train is a young man. Blond flyaway hair and a modified SOLDIER uniform, a large sword attached to his back. As the train slows, he looks up, glowing blue-green eyes steely with determination. The train pulls to a stop in the station, and two guards separate to do an inspection.”

Angeal smiled.

“Roll for initiative.”

. . . . .

[fhjskfgh]

❛ it takes grace to remain kind in cruel situations. ❜

COURTNEY EATON? No, that’s actually PERSEPHONE TOOTS-HOOKUM from the NEXT GENERATION ERA. You know, the child of TILDEN TOOTS and DAISY HOOKUM? Only 21 years old, this RAVENCLAW alumni works as a BARMAID and is sided with THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX. SHE identifies as CIS WOMAN and is a PUREBLOOD who is known to be TIMID, GUARDED, and SELFLESS but also FOCUSED, INSIGHTFUL, and LOYAL.

links: stats, pinterest character inspo: amy santiago (brooklyn nine-nine), chidi anagonye (the good place), lara-jean covey (tatbilb), clare (derry girls), leslie knope (parks and rec), topanga lawrence (boy meets world), triggers: miscarriage, missing parents, parental death (implied)

did you ever hear the story of tilden toots and daisy hookum? oh, a tragedy, to say the very least. 

married young, in love from the moment they laid eyes on each other, the world had high hopes for a couple untouched by war. they were peaceful mediators, calm and content in their little word of greenery and love, and they lived well off the back of daisy’s successful book, my year as a muggle, and tilden’s continuing radio show, toots, shoots ’n roots. they had everything they needed - except a little child. [ MISCARRIAGE TW: every month they tried and they tried, and while occasionally it appeared they had been successful, the pregnancy never got further than four months before their world was brought crashing back down around them. END TW ] by the time daisy was 43 and tilden 46, they had all but given up - and that is when they were blessed with their first successful pregnancy, bringing into the world a beautiful little girl whom they loved more than they had ever loved anyone else before.

[ MISSING PARENTS; PARENTAL DEATH TW their beautiful baby girl, now named persephone, was four years old when they left her in the hands of tilden’s parents and went on their first trip together alone since persephone’s birth, never to return again. disappeared off the amalfi coast, a headline in the muggle papers and a small paragraph on the fifth page of the daily prophet. people cared, but not enough. they were famous, but not enough. and in a world once again being overtaken by purist ideals, what did it matter if two muggle sympathisers were gone? so be it. move on.

tilden’s parents were devastated and tried everything in their power to get a committee out to find the couple, but no one would listen to two old freaks with not enough money to their name. after a suspiciously quick investigation, daisy hookum and tilden toots were presumed dead and the world moved on. END TW ]

persephone toots-hookum, with a heart too big and eyes too wide for the cruel and unforgiving world she was about to be shoved into, moved in with her only grandparents (mr and mrs hookum having both died long ago). they quickly inherited the money from the toots-hookum household, enough to keep the new family of three comfortable in a small cottage not far from dublin, ireland. they raised little persephone with her parents up on a pedestal, unattainable kindness, intelligence, creativity and wit spilling from every new story seph heard. daisy hookum and tilden toots were heroes in the house that seph grew up in, and she treated them as no less.

with no ties to the pureblood society on the toots side and having practically been shunned on the hookum side for daisy’s decision to live as a muggle for a year, persephone and her grandparents lived in a limbo that separated them from the rest of magical society all throughout seph’s childhood. she grew up lonely, learnt how to entertain herself with a long book or a well-strategised game of chess with her grandfather, and oh did she learn how to hate blood purity. in all the stories of the fantastical daisy hookum and tilden toots one thing was always abundantly clear - they would never stand for blood purity and they were willing to die for that cause. and it was not just blood purity that seph’s grandparents hated either - no one at the ministry had been willing to stick their nose out to find their beloved son and daughter-in-law, and they couldn’t help but hold resentment towards everyone for not caring enough for two people who had brought nothing but love to the world.

these stories and this hatred bred paranoia in poor little persephone - she, herself, was a witch after all, and she would eventually have to attend hogwarts along with all the other wixen. what if one of them had ties to the people that hurt her parents, presuming they had been hurt? what if they hated her as much as they presumably hated them? what if she was destined to be alone forever because no one could love the daughter of muggle sympathisers?

of course, none of this was true, and though she was quiet and somewhat withdrawn, persephone would grow to find love within the walls of hogwarts. in fact, hogwarts was where persephone learned how to unlock her full potential - how to follow in the footsteps of her great mother and father. having been sorted into ravenclaw the moment the hat laid rest on her head (the same house as her mother), persephone embraced her innovation and creativity that had been cultivated in the quiet household of her childhood. she might not have been as book smart as her mother or as quick with a wand as her father, but she was clever and strategic and more than belonging in the house of the ravens. she would lace flowers together into a crown and smile at anyone that passed her in the halls and sit quietly in the back of the duelling club’s meetings, taking notes with the fury of someone who wanted to make a difference in this world.

persephone flew through her years at hogwarts with all the grace and determination that one had come to expect from her. she did well for her classes, she was respected on the quidditch team, and though she might not have been the most popular girl in school (in fact many people hardly noticed her) she was happy and content, proud to have those she called friend close to her. her grades were high enough and her skills polished enough to get her into any job she wished for once she graduated - the only problem was, she had no idea what she wanted to do.

persephone liked to draw, but not enough to become an artist. she liked to fly, but not enough to become a professional quidditch player. she liked to volunteer with the healers in the hospital wing, but not enough to become a healer. nothing felt like enough to her - all this talent and kindness and sweet smiles and she didn’t have the passion to fuel it anywhere.

feeling discontent with where she was in life and pressured to actually do something, persephone joined the daily prophet as a junior journalist, deciding that maybe she could take after her mother - maybe she could write. and for a while, she was quite good. she started out with small fluff pieces that simply filled the pages and moved quickly onto heavier pieces that made it closer and closer to the front page, displaying the skills she had inherited with her mother by moving ever so quickly into investigate journalism.

and as soon as it had started it seemed it was over. she was warned not to tell a soul of why she’d been let go, but she longed to scream about it. persephone had gotten too good, she’d gotten too nosy, and as soon as she had laid an article on the editors desk detailing the corrupt nature of the ministry in one of most bold investigative pieces yet, she was let go. she was threatened, albeit lightly, to keep her mouth shut. and if she were anyone else, this might’ve gone right over her head. but she was fired a year ago now and still everyone (including her closest friends and family) believe she left of her own will. she’s not scared, that would perhaps be the wrong word - she’s cautious. persephone is careful and methodical and knows that a revolution cannot start in chaos if you wish to win. she wanted a revolution so bad when she was working for the prophet and she went about it the wrong way - a part of her is guilty for what she did, and so she keeps her mouth shut. her findings were blown up in a quiet corner of the department of mysteries and now she’s the only one who really knows.

she’s been working as a barmaid for the last year and frankly she hates it, but persephone has never been one to complain. at least she has a job, she says, at least she has a roof over her head. once again she is discontent with where she is at in life, even if she refuses to admit it. she has no idea where to go, what to do, and she’ll continue serving the drinks she refuses to sip if it gives her an income. she hates it but she won’t complain - it’s not in her nature.

the timeclash came as a shock to dear old seph. in all her investigations into the ministry, this one had not come up - that they might fuck up so badly that people disappear and those from the past suddenly reappear. because of course it’s the ministry’s fault - she knows it in her gut. a part of her feels that itch that she felt working for the prophet again, that itch for the revolution, to speak up, to put the ministry under a microscope and expose them for what they are, for what they’ve done. but the other part of her couldn’t care less about investigation - what if her parents are here? her personal heroes, her knights in shining armour. what if they’re here, walking around, the same age as her with bright the smiles of someone who doesn’t know they’re going to die soon. she wants to find them before anything else - family comes first, after all.

[cboogie96]

MC character profile

This is my MC character profile of my YA fantasy novel!

I’ll be posting my other character profiles after this one.

Dominique Asha

Category #1:basic stats

Birthday: July 30th

Sex: woman

Gender: a bit masculine due to being a fighter but knows she's a woman thus being a bit more feminine when she wants to be

Age:17

Race: Laperians

Laperia

Laperia is a very regal and nice place, think babylon with flying rich passionate warriors

but disconnected from her origins she executes missions with j and his horsemen in avalon

Body type:6'3, is a bit muscular not bulky just has a six pack slightly broad shoulders and strong legs, darker toned skin think dark chocolate. Long wavy kinky silver hair.

Appearance: Has a pretty face not extremely beautiful but pretty. Slightly upturned angular eyes their kinda big, full lips, one silver eye and one green eye, has a baloon shaped face. Has A wide nose and Medium sized ears.

Where is she from: she's from the royal country Laperia, but was cast away due to her immense potentional and power she was deemed a demon and was meant to be killed but instead was thrown away as a baby. She was found and raised by Kaya who traveled with J and his horsemen Seph, Draya, and Sami they're all warriors so she grew up training and fighting.

Category #2: Relationships

Family: Due to being seperated from her family at a young age she has no connection besides blood to her family.

Adoptive family: Kaya loves Dominique like her own they have a special bond that was formed at first sight. Kaya who suffered from being ostracized sympathized with Dom and gave her all the love she could give.

J: Dom adores J because of his strength even though she knows him she fan girls over him sometimes(which is hilarious). But she respects him a great deal too as he's her master and taught her how to fight.

Seph: Dom find Seph to be mysterious because all he does is train her and go off somewhere until there's either food or a mission. She doesn't get no bad vibes from him tho.

Dreya: Dom proclaimed Dreya as her rival, even though it's one sided Dreya still entertains her because Dreya has a soft spot for Dom even though she's mean to Dom. They do speak ans have a fairly decent relationship

Rain: Dom always wants to speak to rain but whenever she has time can never find her. Rain is always away doing something and only talks to J and even tho they battled many times barely talks to Seph and Dreya either. But Dom just thinks it's cause she always reports with mission that she's always away.

Category #3: the sexy stuff

Sexual orientation: pansexual(she just likes good looking strong people with good values)

What is she attracted to?

Darker skinned people around her complexion but wouldn't push someone away if they were lighter. She likes a person to have a passion for something and be compassionate. She has a thing with hair and thus always pets people, but it's not her being obnoxious cause she's tall she just likes to rub a persons head/hair(especially if its long and soft). She'd rather someone be her height but since she's taller than most people she runs into, she decided someone shorter isn't so bad. And ultimately the person has to be smart.

Sexual experience: non-existent all she's done was train and fight she's liked people she's encountered over the years but none bore anything.

Romantic experience: none

Category 4 skills

She's adept at using great swords and due to her immense strength she wields it one handed

She's also enjoys sewing and healing though she's not good at either of the two.

Occupation: she's a raider along side j, seph, dreya and kaya they raid place for cash( castles, small sections of towns,villages, maybe even an entire town if the money is right)

Hobbies: sewing, learning from people and training her swordsmanship as well as learnint new ways to fight.

Category #5 personality & character

Introvert or extrovert:

More of an ambivert doesn't mind talking to strangers or leading if no one else will. Just wouldn't necessarily rush to be the center of attention. She just likes human interaction.

Rightbrain or left brained?

Definitely right brained. Will abandon a plan if her gut tells her to. Like to fight unconventially by thinking of weird ways to move around the battle field. Very emotional and has a bitof creativity in her due to her sewing.

Strengths: Can think fairly well on the fly. Her emotions, she's very empathetic to people and things that seem or appear to be innocent because she never got the chance to be innocent. Is actually a sweetheart, also calls everyone sis. Has strong unyielding loyalty to those important to her. Doesn't sway or falter on things she puts her mind to. Loves helping others and doing anything to be of use. Has a strong sense of right and wrong.

Weaknesses: entirely too honest, stubborn to destruction. Quick to fight, has no regard to life.

Doesn't think of ways to solves problems other than fighting. Rather than sit back and strategize would rather think of how to win as she goes. Rushes things has zero patience .

Goals/dreams/aspirations:

Happened to see the queens caravan ans thought it'd be cool to be able to be in the caravan and be able to shock people when she draws her sword.

Beliefs/affiliations:

The people of avalon worship Rai who is the deity of life and prosperity, needless to say the untouchables don't believe in Rai. And where as most warriors do believe in Rai The horsemen do not because they all were poor or subjected to harsh realities at some point I'm their lives.

Fears: Fears losing those around her, she already feels a sense of loneliness in the back of her mind but the only thing that's kept it down is the fact she surrounded by people she cares for. She's fears loneliness.

Insecurities: though being fairly strong she's feels weak about her skill as a fighter.

What would she die for? The people she cares for

[ff7central]

Creator Spotlight: Kizunatsudoishi

Miri here, with the next entry in our Creator Spotlight series. This time the random number generator has summoned artist Kizunatsudoishi (Kizu). ( http://Kizunatsudoishi.tumblr.com )

Want to be on a future spotlight? Sign up on the FF7Central directory to get in on the list: https://goo.gl/forms/u0h5rJXmgv40zX9m2

Miri: Which of your works is the most memorable to you? I don’t necessarily mean favourite or best work, it could be the work that taught you the most making it or that holds a special reason in its creation.

Kizu: Hm, for some reason the sleeping elves!Sefikura popped up in my head. It was certainly one of those that took me weeks to finish. I learned so much about coloring doing that piece. Seph's thighs were thickened with layers of white and purplish white and blueish white and orangeish white because I couldn't get the pale tone right. I even beat myself over it for days. Thank god it turned out... not so bad...?

Miri: Comments on the reblog, or in the tags. Do you have a preference?

Kizu: Comments ANYWHERE. But anyway, from what I've seen, people are less likely to comment on the reblog because they feel like it's rude or something, but if you feel like that, please comment all the craziest thing and reactions in the tags. UwU I dare speak for all of the creators out there that WE LOVE COMMENTS. Especially the squeally over the top ones.

Miri: Who is your favourite character from the FFVII setting? What do you love about them?

Kizu: Aside from the obvious choices (the blond angry smol and the silver-haired mean assholery tol), in terms of characterization (and in-game stat), Cid Highwind is my lowkey favorite. Those moments featuring Cid Highwind is either hilarious or super inspirational. His speeches about his dream, the power of mankind and science, the planet Gaia, the goddamn tea... gosh. Cid Highwind gives the most powerful speeches and the most hilarious profanities.

Miri: Favourite media to work in?

Kizu: I actually have a love hate relationship with it but, pencil and paper.

Miri: Inquiring minds have asked if you have any tips for dealing with art block/slump.

Kizu: Hmmmm. Maybe... try to brainstorm exactly how you want to draw the thing. Come up with keywords that you can search by (aka finding references). Read/watch something visual and may inspire you to draw the thing since references can pop up in those visual media.

If nothing of the above works, force your stupid hand to at least draw *something* (Like, if you draw something that would involve a human, sketch their head first with a circle, and try to expand the face, where the face is facing towards, then expand pose from there with skeletal-ish pose.) If you don't know how poses work then feel free to look it up. At least, learn how to *sketch* poses with stick figures since that will save you from so much pain.

You can also listen to music that put you in certain moods.

Miri: Is there a character/idea you haven’t gotten to yet that you really want to do?

Kizu: I suppose most of the stuff I had always want to doodle *cough* frillysmexykinkydressesandflowyconcubineoutfitsandfancyhairdosforCloud *cough* I have done... to some extent. There's so much more Emperoth x Cloudcubine thing I want to do though... :Q_ I-I have this... constant need of putting Cloud in dresses. He just... looks too gorgeous in dresses. Mmm, Cloud in dresses...

Come to think of it, I kinda want to try doodling something fluffy or... school life-ish too...?

Miri: Any remake thoughts or hopes you’d like to talk about?

Kizu: 1. Have a section of land that looking towards Midgar that can trigger a flashback cutscene of Zack's final stand... and maybe his yellow flower...

2. Keep the W-Item glitch ;D

3. Explorable Midgar, maybe SOLDIER private quarters with snippets of the SOLDIER boys...?

4. Keep Cloud riding a dolphin. And the CPR part.

5. A dressing up montage of Miss Cloud with pink background and hearts flying while everyone ogles "her". (A thing that ACTUALLY HAPPENS in FFRK so I'm looking at you Squeenix you WILL give us a Miss Cloud dressing up montage).

6. We get to Omnislash """Executioner""" (a synonym for half naked) Sephiroth with Miss Cloud. In a purple dress. With a big bow. Wearing perfume. And diamond tiara. Yeap The Great Sephiroth was defeated by all of *that*.

7. Kinda overlap with the above but... maybe an attire option like we can change the party member's clothing (much like FF15). We can have a bunch of Shinra infantrymen and sailors running around in dirt.

8. Steve Burton and Takahiro Sakurai saying "Warrrk!!". If Lightning can say "Kweh" then of course Cloud has to be a chocobo whisperer.

9. After seeing the giant ass Diamond Weapon in Kingsglaives... I actually look forward to the Weapon boss fights.

Miri: Throw a headcanon at us that you’d like to see more of.

Kizu: I don't know... most of the headcanons I enjoy are all from you guys, like Sephiroth being a Scorpio, or he being the one breaking Ifalna and smol Aerith out of Shinra back then, or Cloud being a little shit... Usually I would think more about AUs. If it's an AU then I'd like to see more school life AUs. Listening to Bolbbalgan4 songs makes me think of a Cloud doodling stick figures on Seph's notebook in the library and they're playing footsies under the table ughf.

Miri: Favourite party idea when playing FFVII? They don’t have to actually work, so much as you like the idea of them together as a fighting party.

Kizu: I usually go for the OP team or the most practical so... Cloud Aerith Cid in disc 1 (I usually have Cloud as the healer/tank/everything else XD Aerith as main magic damage bc she is stronk with spells, and Cid). After that the team is Cloud Yuffie and Cid because of Yuffie's morph ability and her agility is stupid. Nothing can hit Yuffie... ever.

Miri: Do you have a favourite/easiest character to draw? Or a character you tend to draw when you need some comforting/relaxing art time?

Kizu: CLOUD.

Drawing Sephiroth, albeit very satisfying for the eyes, is a great burden. That ridiculous man has a too high standard for his face alone. And then there comes that stupid, geographically mountainous plane of a body, and his 84 miles of legs. Not to mention that unbelievable luscious hair. And don't make me rant on those *eyelashes* that stabs through the fabric of space and time itself.

Miri: Are you open for commissions right now? Drop your link.

Kizu: Well guess what, I AM. Poof: http://kizunatsudoishi.tumblr.com/post/161768170836/3-commission-open-%CE%B5

Miri: Anything you’d like to say to the community?

Kizu: I used to be in a too active fandom and it was a nightmare. I used to be in a dead fandom and it was so sad. But then... this FF7 fandom is by some magical blessings, is still an alive submarine after all these years. I know some may have been sour grapes to some other, but the people I found in my little trash can corner, I can say that you guys are one of the greatest creators and people I've ever met. You guys... are the best. UmU

Miri: Here’s a few pieces picked out with some help from friends) to share with everyone

Sefikura Ballet: http://kizunatsudoishi.tumblr.com/post/177615867741/ballet-dancerssefikura-performing-swan-lake

Sefikura: http://kizunatsudoishi.tumblr.com/post/172478852401/art-based-on-asreoninfusions-whiskey-kisses

Sefikura Week Art for a fic by RadiusZero: http://kizunatsudoishi.tumblr.com/post/170107270506/sefikura-week-day-1-showing-up-unexpectedly

NSFW Cloud for a fic by AsreonInfusion: http://kizunatsudoishi.tumblr.com/post/161495409636/oviposition-tentacles-au-this-is-based-on (NSFW)

NSFW Sephiroth Images: http://kizunatsudoishi.tumblr.com/post/165607580006/sephiroth-in-chain-lingerie-commission-for-anon  (NSFW)

http://kizunatsudoishi.tumblr.com/post/165966347761/another-kinky-ukeroth-in-chain-lingerie-for-anon-u  (NSFW)

http://kizunatsudoishi.tumblr.com/post/166560946871/ukeroth-commission-for-anon-xd-this-time-i-went  (NSFW)

http://kizunatsudoishi.tumblr.com/post/167444208926/ukeroth-commission-for-anon-this-time-with-lace  (NSFW)

And my personal pick, my Christmas card for my discord group (This one IS safe for work): http://kizunatsudoishi.tumblr.com/post/167932312851/a-merry-asgzc-christmas-for-asylos-and-the-folks

[nofomoartworld]

Hyperallergic: An Undocumented Artist Shares Her Experience of Alienation in the US

Arleene Correa “Estado Santuario (Sanctuary State)” (2017) 11 x 15 inches, pigs blood on mounted watercolor paper, (all images courtesy the artist)

At a recent talk at Postmaster’s Gallery, I happened to fall into conversation with a woman who identified herself as Arleene Correa, a student at California College of the Arts and an undocumented resident of the US. I met Correa because she is participating in an artist residency program that has brought her to NYC for a semester.

On finding out that Correa was here in the country outside of the official apparatus for immigration and residency I was immediately interested in talking with her about her experience — especially given the current administration’s hostility toward immigrants, in particular those from Mexico and Muslim-majority countries.

Correa’s family is originally from Mexico. She was born there to a father who worked intermittently in the US, and her parents brought her to California in 1997, when she was three. Correa has four siblings, and two of them are also undocumented. In the following conversation I find out what her experience has been in the arts community in California, and why she has decided to out herself.

The following has been edited for brevity.

*          *          *

Arleene Correa: Hello?

Seph Rodney: Hey, Arleene. [You are attending] California College of the Arts, right? You were about to get into what your experience has been like there as an undocumented person.

AC: I mean, what do you want me to talk about? Because there’s so much. I can start with the process of applying to art school and how that was?

SR: Great. Please do.

Arleene Correa “Te Perdono (I Forgive You)” (2017) 11 x 15 inches, pigs blood on mounted watercolor paper

AC: [It] was a huge mess, and I did it by myself with no help. Previous to CCA, I was at a community college in Napa Valley. There was always help for people to transfer to other schools; there were counselors, but nobody ever knew how to deal with an undocumented student. It was almost as if they didn’t even encourage me to move forward because there was just no knowledge of how that would even happen.

The process of me applying to CCA was my jumping into it full force and saying, “I want this; I have to make this happen.” The first time I applied to CCA I was accepted, but CCA is extremely expensive, and I couldn’t afford it. This was before the Dream Act was in place, so there was absolutely no financial aid given to undocumented students.

When I was at the community college, I was paying for that all out of pocket, which was an expense, but it was still possible … about $500 a semester. I believe the tuition for CCA per semester is somewhere around $23,000–$25,000.

SR: Wow.

AC: When I applied and I was accepted, they said, “Well, how do you want to pay for this?” I was just like, “Well, I can’t write you a check.” I explained to them my situation, and they said, “We don’t know what to do about that. You have to try to get a scholarship or something.”

I had to defer, and for a whole year I dedicated myself to figuring out how I could have tuition paid for at CCA. Then Obama enacted the Dream Act, which allowed undocumented students in California to receive the Cal Grant. I would call the Cal Grant office almost every day and ask for help. I’ve always kept a GPA of a 4.0, so having a higher GPA allows you for a higher scholarship through Cal Grant. Even then it was just extremely difficult because the office didn’t know how to deal with me either. They were like, “You know, do you have a Social Security number? Like, what is the deal with this and this and that?” It was always led from one person to another to another. It was just this almost never ending circle.

I also wasn’t fully embracing being undocumented, so it was something I rarely talked about. During that year I decided if I want to get anywhere, I have to be completely open about who I am and where I come from and what I want to do. The following year I reapplied to CCA, and I was very aggressive, I guess you can say, in my portfolio and in my written paper. I addressed all of my issues, and I said, “You know, I have no money. I don’t come from a wealthy family, but I have this passion. And I’m undocumented, and this is what fuels my passion to create art, because ideally there’s this dream of changing the world through art.”

Again, it was all by myself. There were no counselors. There were no programs to help. I’ve looked back now, and I’m just like, how did I get through all that? It seems impossible to jump through all the hoops, especially when you don’t have a Social Security number and nobody can find you in the records and nobody has a record of you and you’re just this invisible person.

The process of getting to art school was extremely difficult, but once I pushed through that I was able to receive the highest scholarship that CCA offers. They call it [the] Diversity Scholarship. Essentially, I was accepted because I am different from everybody else.

Arleene Correa “Soy Humana, No Soy Illegal (I Am Not Illegal, I Am Human)” (2017) 11 x 15 inches, pigs blood on mounted watercolor paper

SR: Okay. You were saying to me last week that you didn’t feel very supported by your professors.

AC: Oh no, definitely not.

SR: Can you talk about that a bit?

AC: Yeah, of course. Since I do talk about the social-political weather that we are in in my work and it is extremely aggressive, I paint with blood, pigs’ blood, and I make these socially unaccepted paintings — I guess you could call them. In the process of this, especially at CCA, it felt like there was absolutely no support for what I was doing.

I created work, and asked if I could display it at the school. They allowed me to use a hall in our San Francisco campus. When the work was up, nobody talked about it. The faculty ignored it. They would walk by it every single day, and nobody would say anything. It was discouraging because anytime that any student puts up work in our name, the school and the faculty, the painting department, everybody, they’re documenting the artwork and sharing it with people and on social media. My work was actually up for an entire month, and while it was up none of my professors talked about it. Nobody acknowledged it. Everybody just pretended it wasn’t there.

It’s just always felt like I know that I have been pushing boundaries with my work because work like this is not created often. It feels like I’m alone most of the time. The response that I get even in critiques from professors and from other students is that I should be making work that is more beautiful. They don’t necessarily discourage political work, but once it’s there, they want a certain format so that it follows what’s accepted.

Arleene Correa “El Jefe De Deportaciones (The Chief of Deportations)” (2016) soft ground etching and pig’s blood on BFK Rives paper 22 x 30 inches

SR: You’re saying that because you’re making work that isn’t aesthetically pleasing that you’re being ignored. You’ve concluded that this is based on what? On your being undocumented or the kind of work that you make or a combination?

AC: I think it’s just based that there’s a lot of disconnect. People don’t know how to understand the work because they don’t understand my position. I think anytime that you’re dealing with culturally charged work there is a sense of almost not being able to criticize it or talk about it.

I mean, I hate to use this example, but the white man does not understand the struggles of a colored person. Therefore, when I present this work, they’re just like okay, it’s there and we see it, but they can’t talk about it. They can’t discuss it any further because it’s so culturally charged, and it’s something that they lack that it doesn’t allow for a connection to be established. [There is] a lot of critique on the technicalities of drawing and painting, the presentation, more so than the content and meaning. That usually never gets discussed.

SR: What brought your father and mother from Mexico to the States?

Arleene Correa “Es Tu Decision (It Is Your Choice)” (2016) pig’s blood, gold leaf, photo transfers and India ink on watercolor paper, 83 x 42 inches

AC: My father had come for work once, and he always talked about how it was easier to make money here. He never liked the idea of staying here permanently until 1997 [when] my parents decided financially and for security purposes it was the best thing to do for the family, which I don’t understand because the whole process of us getting here was extremely risky.

My mother actually handed my two siblings and I over to a woman she didn’t know. They’re called coyotes. She handed us over to her on the Mexican side, and she took us into a car and brought us over to the US as if we were her children. Then my mother and father crossed the desert and walked until they got to the US border and came over on this side. My mother said, “You know, I hoped to see you on the other side, but I never knew if I really would.”

SR: I want to get on to what you would you like to see accomplished through your education and your art practice.

AC: I’m [with] 17 other people that have absolutely no idea what my life is like. There is no way that I can explain to them the privilege that I feel for being undocumented and being poor, because this life has allowed me insight into humanity [that] you can’t buy.

My dream is for my work to take on some of that experience and share that with others and allow [people] to see that undocumented people are human and that we are not defined by our legal status. When I moved here to New York I met someone, and they asked me what I did. I said, “I’m an artist, and I talk about politics, and I talk a lot about immigration mostly.” They said, “Oh, well, how would you know?” I said, “Well, I’m undocumented.” They looked at me and they said, “Oh, you’re one of those illegals. I’ve never met one of those. I can’t believe I’m talking to an illegal,” as if I was not a real person. I have never felt so devalued. I have never felt like, I was an alien from a different world. It was devastating but also extremely motivating because those are the types of people that I hope to reach

Arleene Correa, “El Mangonero (The Mango Man )” (2017) 26 x 32 inches, Conte crayons on brown paper

SR: One more question: Why are you willing to sort of come out of the closet and declare publicly that you are undocumented?

AC: If I’m being a 100% honest, I have felt miserable my entire life. I have felt like I have never been seen for the person that I am, and I have nothing to lose. There is nothing to lose anymore because we are living in a time where my existence is not validated, so coming out and showing the world who I am is the least that I could do. It’s an honor to be able to say that I’ve made it this far and that there is a Mexican artist who is not afraid. I’m not afraid. There is nothing I’m afraid of because I’ve basically already lived the worst.

SR: When we first spoke that you told me that you were in the process of becoming documented because you are married to an American citizen.

AC: That’s correct, yes. A lot of people have the idea that undocumented people don’t try to get citizenship, and that is, I think, one of the biggest misconceptions. It’s not like there wasn’t any effort. It’s just the system is so messed up that there is no opportunity. There is almost no humanity behind this system of immigration.

SR: Thank you.

The post An Undocumented Artist Shares Her Experience of Alienation in the US appeared first on Hyperallergic.

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[ff7central]

Creator Spotlight: Waifujuju

Mod Miri here, with the first in our series of Creator Spotlights. This time the random number generator has summoned for us artist @waifujuju. I’ve gotten a few commissions from Juju, and have been following her for a while. (I even have some of her motivational art on my cubicle wall at work.)

Want to be on a future spotlight? Sign up on the FF7Central directory to get in on the list: https://goo.gl/forms/u0h5rJXmgv40zX9m2

Miri: Which of your works is the most memorable to you? I don’t necessarily mean favourite or best work, it could be the work that taught you the most making it or that holds a special reason in its creation.

Juju: Probably my comic of Cloud put to the lyrics of Halsey's "Control." It took a super long time throughout a period of struggling but it turned out really well despite everything! It's an idea I've had for a long while and it was great to finally put it into action. Plus, it was fantastic practice for composition and panelling! ( http://waifujuju.tumblr.com/post/149415194224/cloud-weekday-4-lyrics-control-by-halsey )

Miri: Comments on the reblog, or in the tags. Do you have a preference?

Juju: I love the comments I get either way, but the ones in tags tend to be more fun since people seem to like to scream in the tags! My favorite tags are ones where people who reblog my art just type in all caps or say something like "good job op."

Miri: Who is your favourite character from the FFVII setting? What do you love about them?

Juju: Cloud Strife for sure! I could write an essay on all the ways I love his character and all the intricacies of his character but I'll just leave it with I love his personality and character growth! He's a really outstanding protagonist who inspires a lot of strength and endurance.

Miri: Favourite media to work in?

Juju: I mostly work with traditional and digital art! Digital is a lot of fun to experiment with lighting and colors, though I've lately been trying out watercolor pencils!

Miri: Inquiring minds have asked if you have any tips for dealing with art block/slump.

Juju: When I hit an art block I mostly just try to draw through it, as asinine as that sounds. I take requests from friends and followers to see if I can pave my way through the slump and still try to make something that might not make me happy, but may make the receiver happy. Otherwise, I let myself doodle. It's very freeing and refreshing to just draw whatever and see where it goes, without worrying about if it's good or bad!

Miri: Is there a character/idea you haven’t gotten to yet that you really want to do?

Juju: I have tons of AUs that I really wanna draw out eventually! Mostly comics about Zack and Cloud on the run or another song-based comic! Otherwise, I want to try to draw the Turks or Avalanche as a big group family more! (Miri: yessss, more Turks!)

Miri: Any remake thoughts or hopes you’d like to talk about?

Juju: I'm extremely excited for the remake! I know there's a lot of uncertainties regarding the quality and how much it will stick to the original plot, but I'm super excited for new fans to come in with all their new ideas and experiences! I'm also hoping that the remake will carry some of the original game's cooky charms along for the ride!

Miri: Throw a headcannon at us that you’d like to see more of.

Juju: I personally think Yuffie and Cloud would get along fantastically after the events of the game. I would love to think they play pranks on Vincent or Cid together and go on materia expeditions!

Miri: Favourite party idea when playing FFVII? They don’t have to actually work, so much as you like the idea of them together as a fighting party.

Juju: My usual team is Cloud, Yuffie, and Vincent! I really enjoy their dynamic, especially when Vincent gets snarky. Plus, their skillsets really balance each other out! Otherwise, I really dig Cloud, Red XIII, and Barrett!

Miri: Do you have a favourite/easiest character to draw? Or a character you tend to draw when you need some comforting/relaxing art time?

Juju: Cloud is very obviously my favorite and I draw him all the time! Although, it definitely took me time to learn how to draw his hair. Cloud's a very good subject for both fluff and vent art! If he's not my favorite, than I probably enjoy drawing Aeris and Yuffie the most! They're both very expressive and fun to draw in sillier poses!

Miri: Are you open for commissions right now? Drop your link.

Juju: I am! My prices and regulations are right here: waifujuju.tumblr.com/tagged/daily-reblog

Miri: Anything you’d like to say to the community?

Juju: Thank you so much for being such a fantastic and welcoming community! I started my daily art blog around 3 years ago so that I can get involved with the community and provide some of my silly art and it's been such an enjoyable time! I've met some absolutely amazing people within this fandom and here's hoping to meeting even more when the remake comes out!

Miri: Here’s a few pieces I picked out (with some help from friends) to share with everyone

Sefikura Week (mini comic): http://waifujuju.tumblr.com/post/170139131820/sefikura-week-day-1-showing-up-unexpectedly

Cloud and Reno: http://waifujuju.tumblr.com/post/162534369760/my-part-of-an-art-trade-for-kayoli

Post AC Puppet Cloud (mini comic): http://waifujuju.tumblr.com/post/157924191625/ok-so-i-saw-your-sefikura-with-cloud-getting

Cloud and Jenova (fic art): http://waifujuju.tumblr.com/post/155347625170/the-failures-have-arrived-a-lil-something-for

Cloud and Jenova (phone wallpaper): http://waifujuju.tumblr.com/post/120313055050/phoneipod-background-for-ravenclawkohai-hope

Cloud and Vincent Immortal AU: http://waifujuju.tumblr.com/post/170928796070/immortal-cloud-and-puppet-cloud-have-taken-over-my

Motivational Seph: http://waifujuju.tumblr.com/post/161110269275/hey-juju-can-you-maybe-draw-a-small-motivational

Cloud “Copycat” Animation: http://waifujuju.tumblr.com/post/171708583560/i-cant-remember-who-i-am-everythings-a-blur