#to keep with the FFXV references

[lesbianbishounen]

you know its fucking bad when you consider buying a game ultimania that was never translated into english

[sakuranightmarez]

FFXV Websites

General FFXV Final Fantasy XV Wiki

FFXV Fan Kit - Official media including game videos/trailers, recorded interviews and information on various campaigns they've launched for the game (JP)

Brotherhood: FINAL FANTASY XV Official Anime Prologue ft backstories of the Noctis and the boys (JP, Subtitled Eng)

Parting Ways - A script of FFXV's immediate prologue ft. stories of Clarus, Cor, Captain Drautos, Iris & the Kingsglaive as well as Noctis & Co saying goodbye

Parting Ways & Dawn of the Future - Internet Archive's copy of both the prologue script and book

Lore, Translations & Analysis Full Lines FFXV - All lines and document files from within the game.

Spelldaggers - Eng & Jpn Scripts and Translations

The Lifestream FFXV - Lore, Translations and archived Fantheories

Calling4Glaives Deep Dives - Analysis, Lore and general Deep Dives

Artist Resources FFXV Official Art - Official artwork, screenshots and character references (JP)

Fansites LOKTON - A FFXV/Prompto Argentum Fanblog

THAT'S IT! THE UNOFFICIAL FFXV COMMUNITY COOKBOOK - 111 Recipes fans worked together to compile into a google site

Honey & Toast FFXV Cookbook - A cookbook compiled by fan 'Honey&Toast' (pdf form here)

Discords FFXV Book Club - A Server dedicated to hanging out, sharing and geeking out over FFXV fanworks https://discord.gg/95VQB6fgPb

For Hearth & Home - A Kingsglaive Server https://discord.gg/VZkhXV2

FFXV Official Discord - The Official Unofficial FFXV Server

Promptis - A Discord for Prompto & Noctis Shippers

Other Dreamwidth Communities ffxv - Previous FFXV Fan-Community (Possibly Inactive, If given CPR ff15 will become a resources journal that anyone can post to)

ffxv_kinkmeme - A community for anonymously suggesting FFXV writing prompts that others may find appealing to write (Despite the name these prompts can be gen and not ship related at all)

Can anybody think of any missing fansites or lore resource websites which may be missing from this list? The full constantly updated list is located here and if you don't want to comment on tumblr feel free to leave a logged in or anonymous comment on that post

[pockymun]

Maps of Tenebrae by Pockymun

Tenebrae was such a beast. I thought Galahd was difficult; Tenebrae is so much bigger and has continental climates to deal with. Like last time, I nearly lost my mind trying to make sense of the climates, so I kind of gave up.

Most of the writing I've done for FFXV has skirted around Tenebrae, focusing moreso on its politics than the landmass itself. It's been in the background for the most part, largely because I didn't have a proper map to explore with! I copied it the best I could from reference images.

Tenebrae is not as cold as I initially assumed it was. It has a warm ocean current on its western side that brings much rain and warm winds that keep the northern reaches largely temperate. The eastern side of Tenebrae is hit with a cold ocean current, getting far less rain and winds. The fishing is better on the east coast. The southern half of Ulwaat was given a temperate rainforest climate based on what we saw of Tenebrae in Kingsglaive; it had that dark green flora of a rainforest.

I base a lot of my headcanons for Tenebrae off of Western Europe primarily, with a little bit from Northern Europe. The way I figured the latitude lines of Eos, Tenebrae is still well below the subartic circle (assuming Eos has one). It's climate is based upon Ireland, the UK, and Scotland, but those three have only two climates: oceanic and subpolar oceanic. I chose climate terms that best described the forests found in Tenebrae. Because Tenebrae is nothing but forests, mountains, and hills.

Tenebrae is the land of high altitudes and trees. What reference images we have of Tenebrae seemed to have a lot of peaks on it. In the glimpse of Tenebrae that we saw in the movie, there are large rock islands that just float above the rest of the land. While Galahdians have a knack for using magic, Tenebrae itself is a land of magic. These floating islands are unique to its mountains mostly, although a few clusters can exist separately.

Water also seems to be a theme for Tenebrae, with its northern cape, the southern sounds, and a few small bays all around. Where there are mountains, there are rivers running down to the ocean. I imagine there are natural springs all around the country, used as a natural remedy for several ailments.

I will dump my headcanons about Tenebrae below:

I've been talking with @groovytimetravelflower, who has the theory that Niflheim's airships are powered by stones or ores mined from the floating islands. It just makes perfect sense. Niflheim had several reasons to invade Tenebrae: to dominate the whole continent, to establish complete control over trade, and to get their hands on whatever magic exists in the land.

Much of the magic is not well-known nor understood beyond the floating islands. The forests of Tenebrae are old, especially in the north.

The only other country close enough for Tenebrae to trade with is Niflheim. Though Tenebrae has a couple ports of its own, these are not large enough for massive shipyards and international trade. Trading with Niflheim allows Tenebraen trade goods to go farther in the world. The downside is that Niflheim can control all trade that Tenebrae does, taking things for the Empire and blocking imports.

The country is very difficult to navigate because of the terrain. Roads are often winding and go around obstacles; this was done moreso out of the belief that the land could not be damaged by man-made endeavors. Trains have only been established in Ulwaat. There may be a few antique cars, but the most common mode of transportation on main roads are chocobo-drawn carriages, or riding chocobos.

Tenebrae is behind on technology overall: this is a result of Niflheim conquering them so long ago. Niflheim doesn't often invest in the lands they conquer. You can see this in how mainland Lucis has such outdated technology, which was left to languish once the Imperials seized control. Most high-technology Tenebrae is exposed to comes from the Imperial Army and is only used in their operations. Ulwaat is the most developed province. The railroad in Ulwaat was developed by the Empire to more easily transport the stone and ore they mined in the mountains.

The further away one gets from Fenestala, the less modern technology there is. In Morrith, Krahage, and Bruiral, indoor plumbing is a recent technological advancement. Not all places have it; it requires electricity, which is difficult to establish in Northern Tenebrae. Because Tenebrae is such a mystical place and the population is probably very religious because of the Oracle, not a lot of people mind being behind in technology.

Cellphones are unheard of, and you wouldn't get reception in most of Tenebrae anyway. Fenestala Manor probably has a couple TVs, but similarly, reception is terrible. Radio signals come through a little more clearer, mostly because the Imperial Army needs them to.

The architecture of the capital and towns of Tenebrae is Victorian and Edwardian, with art noveau used in Fenestala Manor. Villages typically are full of cottages of wood or stone and roofed with thatch. The typical fashion is also Victorian and Edwardian, although more of the youth have recently begun to wear the modern Western clothing imported from Niflheim. People further north of the Breksos Mountains dress in traditional Celtic and Norse garb.

The Breksos Mountain Range naturally divides Tenebrae into a North and a South. These regions do not strictly adhere to the cardinal directions; it is just what people have referred to it as. Travel through these mountains is especially difficult. There is one passage near Woudoord, but it becomes blocked by snow in the winter, completely isolating the north.

Queen Sylva frequently sent aid in the form of doctors, vaccines, and schoolteachers to Northern Tenebrae. She did a lot to improve the relations across the mountains, although the past few Oracles have never gone north of the mountains. All aid stopped with her death. The Northerners became even more apprehensive of Southerners as they appeared to submit to the Empire.

Northern Tenebrae is even further behind in technological advancements than Southern Tenebrae (ie the indoor plumbing). Northern Tenebrae is very isolated from the rest of the world, especially in the winter. It's rare for a Northerner to travel south, and vice versa. The South views the North as barbarous, and the North view the South as weak. Southerners are prim and proper; Northerners... are not. Both greatly revere the Oracle.

As I said before, Tenebraens are religious, largely in part to the Oracle's presence. Tenebrae has become known as a land of healers, with many practicing natural remedies. The people are generally modest and proper. Victorian and Edwardian social customs still run strong.

Tenebraens are seen as mysterious and exotic to the rest of the world. Niflheim hasn't allow Tenebraens to leave their country since they attacked Fenestala Manor, so it's very rare to see one in Lucis. The rest of the world doesn't really understand the difference between North and South Tenebraens. The differences become clear when putting one of each side by side and listening to the bickering.

-

Feel free to use these maps when writing your own fics or headcanons! I would greatly appreciate being credited. These maps are just my interpretation, and don't stand in for canon material. They are flawed, but I worked with what I had. I made these using Inkarnate.

[primamchorus]

Holidays of Eos :: Fabula Finis et Nova

Another year has come and gone, and it is a time of reflection of the year's story one has walked for themselves. Usually, at any rate. Instead of looking behind, the Crown Prince takes it upon himself to ask those in line to be his royal council once the 114th ascends their aspirations for the new year.

Word Count: 5,354

FFXV: Reimagined Table of Contents

Next ->

M.E. 754, December 31st

Live music from a small orchestra filled the ballroom with largely upbeat strings that allowed for those who wanted to dance to do so. This was a rather fancy event, after all. Lingering decorations from Frostbearer's Blessing not even a week prior had been repurposed into decorations to help bring in the new year. A trifling task, it seemed, for the crew in charge of setting up or changing the festive decor.

"Stuffy…" Noctis quietly groaned, tugging at the tie at his neck to loosen it. His hair was still his signature bedhead of a mess, only slightly put together in the front.

"And yet you refuse to take time to head outside for some fresh air," Ignis said, his hands at rest behind his back. He glanced in the prince’s direction. "Surely you would at least care to watch the fireworks happening here in the next hour?"

"Too cold outside," Noctis replied with a huff.

Ignis resisted the urge to bring his index finger and thumb to pinch the bridge of his nose in exasperation for the response. Instead, he exhaled slowly through his nose and counted to three in his mind. "Perhaps there is some compromise, then?"

"Prim around?"

"You will not abuse her control over magic to keep you warm," Ignis scolded. He pointed his gaze forward, looking out toward those in attendance to the Fabula Nova gala. He then added, "Nor shall you abuse mine."

Noctis tutted, folding his arms over his chest semi-indignantly.

"You could always lose the jacket," came the voice of Gladiolus. The Shield had been standing close by, sipping away at a flute of champagne.

"And then what?" The indignation was clear in Noctis' tone. "Nowhere to put it."

"Then stay uncomfortable." Gladio shrugged, rolling the flute in his hand before downing the rest of the champagne within.

"Anyone see Prompto?" Noctis ignored Gladio's 'suggestion'.

"With the twins, last I recalled seeing him." Ignis adjusted his posture.

"And where are they?"

Ignis swept an arm to the side, looking in that direction. He had motioned toward the exit that led to the rest of the rooftop belonging to the Caelum Via. Beyond the windows, the white hair of both Primam and Tandem was unmistakable. Not far from them was Prompto's golden hair, nearly just as striking as the twins' own. Especially in comparison to the rest of the noble families.

"Traitor…" Noctis spat, half joking. Was he referring to the twins? Maybe he was referring to Prompto? Perhaps he was referring to all of them. After all, all three of them had been at his side at school, the four of them nigh inseparable.

"Still got us," Gladiolus chuckled, throwing an arm around Noctis' shoulders. He had placed the emptied flute down on a nearby table, and he used his now free hand to ruffle Noctis' hair.

"Cut it out!" Noctis ducked down and brought a hand up to shove away Gladio's arms. He then brought his hands up to straighten out his bangs. Another huff left him once he tided himself, and he then returned his arms to their folded position over his chest. Looking back out the windows, he watched as it looked like Primam brought a hand up to cover her mouth as she laughed — even Tandem looked like he was enjoying himself while Prompto talked with a big smile on his face.

"They look like they're having fun at least…" Noctis commented.

"You could go out there with them if you weren't being such a wuss about how cold it'll be when you go outside," Gladio teased. A smirk had settled upon his lips, and his hands were placed upon his hips. "Unless you're more worried about interrupting."

"As if…" Noctis scoffed. He adjusted his suit, a slight furrow forming between his brow. Still, part of him was a little annoyed — perhaps with himself, perhaps with the other three — that they were not all together as the events pressed on. Shrugging at himself after a moment, Noctis let out a sigh, doing his best to make sure it was not too obvious there was some annoyance there. "There's still plenty of time tonight to catch up with everyone else, I guess."

"A sound idea. The other nobles of the 114th should be glad to have their prince and future king approach them," Ignis concurred, bringing a hand up to adjust his glasses briefly. He had also said this to make somewhat of a point to Noctis. As it stood, Noctis had spent much of his youth and years going to public school in the company of his two future Arms, and the commoner friend they had made. Many of the other nobles sometimes wondered if their prince would ever spare such time for them on many occasions… Mollis most of all, if Ignis remembered correctly.

By the time Ignis thought to tell Noctis, the prince had already started in the direction of a woman. The woman in question was a member of House Vox — the current Head of House and Ears of the King: Vera Vox. She was, as ever, well put together; not a hair was out of place as her obsidian locks were pinned back into an elegant bun that was nestled low at the base of her head. Her dress was fetching; blue that faded into white, its skirt gradually flaring into ruffles. A giant smile was spread upon her face as she interacted with guests to the gala, though her bright green eyes flashed in the prince's direction before he fully approached.

"Noctis!" Vera placed a hand upon one of the women's own and excused herself before she grabbed her dress and hiked it up slightly to hurry toward Noctis. The display left the other women giggling among themselves as they watched Vera meet with the prince.

The more casual greeting was appreciated than anyone calling Noctis 'Highness' or 'Prince Noctis', however. Not that he had a mind to speak up on this fact. Not tonight, at any rate.

"I didn't mean to pull you away from your company…" Noctis remarked. His eyes flicked in the direction of the women, now whispering among themselves — gossiping, no doubt. He returned his attention to his father's Ears. "Just wanted to see how you were doing for the night, and…I suppose ask about if you have anything in mind you wanted to wish for when Fabula Nova strikes?"

Vera brought a gloved hand to her chin, thinking about the question. "My wish for Fabula Nova?" Her expression became somewhat sheepish as she cast her gaze to the side. "I mean…it would be nice if Aestus could come back home. But wishing for someone else's Fabula Nova isn't really in the spirit, is it…? So I suppose my Fabula Nova this next year would be to simply maintain everything as he would — to really grow into my role as Ears of the King with the groundwork he's laid out before me."

There was a moment where Noctis considered anything his father might have said about Vera. If nothing was said, usually that was good news for the most part. It, at the very least, meant that the king had no qualms with the staff and nobles that served him. Plus, from Noctis' own experiences with Vera, she was always good about her duties — smart, even if she sometimes seemed to be in a different world altogether at times. Living up to Aestus' more serious and driven composure that allowed him to meet his tasks with unflagging composure might have been a tall order.

"I'm sure Aestus would at least be proud of everything you've accomplished so far," Noctis replied, doing his best to have been reassuring. "I know I appreciate everything you've done for my dad and me. You and Ignis really make a good team."

"Aw, thanks, Noct!" Vera cooed, coming over and in for a hug. The gesture made Noctis bite back a noise of surprise that got lost in his throat, though he awkwardly hugged her back in turn. "Just know that if you ever need anything from House Vox, I will always be available. After all, my Ears for the king."

"Not king yet."

Vera reached over with both her gloved hands and pressed them against Noctis' cheeks. "'Yet'. Even still, my service is ever yours when it's needed."

Unlike with Gladio, Noctis tolerated Vera's hands upon his cheeks, even if his brow furrowed ever slightly once more. When she let go of him, he watched as she took a step back.

"I assume you're making the rounds." Vera's eyes flicked in Ignis' direction momentarily. The future Hand and Shield were still standing close to one another a good several yards away.

So she had heard their brief discussion — even from all the way over here. Why would that have been surprising? She was probably listening to more than she let on right now with the help of some magic.

Clearing her throat, Vera smiled pleasantly at Noctis and gave a low, elegant curtsy to him. "I shall take your time no longer, Highness. May your Fabula Nova be accomplished this upcoming year."

"… Yeah," Noctis replied. "You, too."

Turning, Noctis scanned the dance hall, a silent sigh falling from his nostrils. He was caught off guard when he felt his hand taken up. Someone had taken advantage of his blind spot and was gently pulling him to join them on the dance floor. Noctis had half a mind to pull away, though when his eyes met Mollis', he hesitated.

Mollis had always been one of the sweetest members of the 114th whenever they had the opportunity to spend time together. Even now, her expression was bright — damn near bright as Prompto's usually was. Disappointing that face would have made Noctis feel bad…if only because he knew the brunt of disappointment would come from the other members of the 114th generation if they found out Mollis had been made any modicum of sad.

"Dance with me, Noct!" Mollis urged, shaking his hand gently to emphasize her request.

"I���don't dance—" Noctis hesitated on his response.

Mollis was a little more casual about how she dressed. She was still dressed nice, certainly…but she definitely had something much more her speed. A long-sleeve white dress with a collar that went up to her neck, its skirt falling just slightly below her knees. There was a sash at her midsection to give more texture and interest to the dress, but overall, it was rather plain.

"Mm, you are looking a little flush…" Mollis observed, letting go of Noctis' hand to scrutinize him. "You didn't show up sick, did you? Should have seen Ros if you are."

"Save me the lecture; I'm not sick…" Again, Noctis found hesitation in wanting to pursue the conversation fully. Not because there was discomfort in speaking to Mollis, nor was there anything he had against her. Speaking was just hard sometimes.

Clearing his throat, he finally asked nearly the same thing he asked Vera: "Do you know what you're wishing for when Fabula Nova hits?"

Mollis' expression brightened again. "Of course! My Fabula Nova is to keep the beauty of everything and everyone I love shining!"

Noctis' brow quirked, and the curl of his lip could not be helped. Amusement had found its way onto his face. What did Mollis even mean by that?

He supposed it mattered little if he understood it, ultimately… What mattered was that Mollis understood what she was wishing for and striving toward. That really was all that mattered when it came to one's wish for Fabula Nova.

Mollis took up Noctis' hand again, shaking him a little more insistently — just a little. She made no comment, just looked at him with a smile. He supposed the Crown Prince should have taken the dance floor…but he really did not want to do so. He always felt like dance lessons went poorly. Mollis surely would have been a better fit for someone like Ignis or Ros than Noctis himself.

Noctis expelled a sigh of defeat and followed Mollis out onto the dance floor. He could feel the jubilation in Mollis as she very nearly skipped out, pulling him along with her. He humored her, if anything, following more her lead rather than leading in the dance himself.

She was a good sport about everything at least… Moments where Noctis seemed to have stumbled or at least missed a dance beat were gently laughed off as Mollis improvised steps to keep their dance going as smoothly as possible. At the very least it seemed like some of Noctis' dance lessons paid off…

Something, however, caught Noctis' eye in the middle of their dance that he halted both he and Mollis for.

"Sorry…" Noctis uttered, letting go of Mollis. Before he turned to leave, he quickly said, "I hope your Fabula Nova wish comes true."

"And to you, too!" Mollis chirped. She waved at him before she turned around and quickly went to find someone else to come and dance with her.

Noctis quickly maneuvered his way through some of the other guests and visitors that were taking up the floor. He made meager attempts at soft apologies to some of the people he ended up disturbing. However, he finally made it to Cor, who looked as if he was ready to leave alongside a woman — his sister, Cera — and a girl who looked to have been in her tweens and ready to have fallen asleep. That must have been Cor's niece, Aura.

"Cor!" Noctis called out, halting all who were of the Leonis family. Cor and Cera turned to face him, whereas the sleepy-looking Aura stuck close to her mother, eyes somewhat pointed downward at the floor. Noctis slowed his gait to a stop before them and glanced between them all. "Leaving already?"

"Just Aura and I," Cera replied, bringing a hand around Aura's shoulders to keep her upright and from wobbling too much from being tired.

"I was going to walk them to the chaperoned vehicle," Cor added. He seemed ever mindful and protective over his family — what of it he had left. However, the Valor addressed Noctis fully: "Is there anything I might do for you, Highness?"

"N-Nah…" Noctis started, bringing a hand up in a half-shrug motion. "I just wanted to see you off before you headed out, that's all. That, and wish you all a good Fabula Nova, or whatever."

"You'll be able to see more of me over the course of the night…" Cor replied. He looked back toward his sister before looking back at Noctis. With a slight bow, Cor then went on to say, "If that will be all for now, Highness, I'd like to see Cera and Aura both safely down to the valet."

"Yeah, of course. Have a good night," Noctis said in response, waving toward Cera and Aura. "Get home safe."

"Thank you, Your Highness," Cera replied. She gently shook Aura and got both of them turned around. Before they started walking to leave, Cera wished Noctis a good rest of the evening. Noctis waved them off, watching after them for a time before he sighed and then looked back around the event.

Really, anyone who was someone was at the event. There were plenty of CEOs and even other celebrities at the event, not that Noctis has a mind to interact with some of them. CEOs were often attempting to make deals or talk business with Regis. Only sometimes, Noctis would get approached — something about having a younger, 'fresher' take on marketing or advertising. Sometimes it would be to run ideas past him; would someone his age be interested in such things. Glowing reviews and endorsement from the prince, of all people, would have been a good look, or something…

Who had time for such things, honestly?

"Peeled yourself off the wall?" The voice was almost unmistakable. Almost. Had it not carried a blasé kind of deadpan tone to it, Noctis could have easily mistook the voice for Vera's. Of course, the tone and inflection made it clearer that it was the voice of Lyra, the third born to House Vox.

Looking to the side, Noctis was only expecting Lyra, though the presence of Ros had nearly surprised him. Both of them were dressed nicely — which was more of a surprise when it came to Lyra than Ros. At least Ros, as far as Noctis knew of his cousin, was always generally well put together. Lyra's green and white dress that fell nearly down to the floor did well to complement Ros' own white suit with red accents. If anything, it at least made it look like they coordinated their attire.

… Did they?

Clearing his throat slightly, Noctis replied in kind: "I see you've done the same. Both of you."

"Ros wouldn't let me stay a pretty little vine against the wall," Lyra said, rolling her eyes. "But perhaps my Fabula Nova wish of being able to stay a wallflower this upcoming year will come true. It's not a particularly hard task to achieve."

Lyra paused, tapping the tip of a folded fan against her chin. "Well… It wouldn't be hard if I didn't have someone annoying me to…'branch' out…"

Noctis was vaguely aware of the bond that Lyra and Ros had. As far as he knew, the two were perhaps some of the closest of the 114th besides himself with the Arms, Hand, and Shield. So while it may have seemed like there was some animosity there, Noctis understood that most of that just maybe stemmed from his perception of Lyra's (and even Ros') delivery when speaking.

"There are better places to be or sleep than my office in the Viridis Medical Center," Ros mentioned.

"And here I was thinking you enjoyed my company." Lyra let out an exaggerated sigh. She then looked at Noctis and reached over, placing a hand on his shoulder briefly. "Fabula Finis, Noct. Was the year everything you hoped it'd be?"

"Can't complain… You?"

"I have plenty of petty complaints," Lyra revealed with a slight shrug to her shoulders.

"Do you remember them all?" Noctis scoffed with some level of amusement at the idea of remembering a myriad of tiny things that built up over time.

"Oh, sure… Like how I didn't get to sleep in for a good number of days. How Vera took my mascara and then didn't get me a new one. Can't forget how Ros took it upon himself to lock me out of his office every few weeks." Lyra extended the folding fan and waved it at herself intermittently. It seemed she was getting a little toasty herself. "Did you also know I went down into the Vox estate kitchen yesterday, and there was a rotting orange in the fruit bowl? No one thought to replace it or at least toss it out?"

She was right. They were petty complaints. But Noctis was sure, at this point, that Lyra made a habit of making mountains out of mole hills. Whether or not they were genuine complaints was something else altogether.

At least he could relate with not being allowed to sleep in.

"Well…any of those inconveniences you wanna address for Fabula Nova, then?" Noctis asked. He noticed the strained sigh that fell from Ros when his name was mentioned.

"Oh, I solved one of them already. I'm not going to say which…" Lyra smirked to herself. "But, I do suppose one of the things I could do is keep my makeup in my room versus the shared bathroom."

"I already noticed when one of my keys went missing and then miraculously came back by the end of the day when I wasn't working in the medical center…" Ros sighed. He ran a hand through his brown locks. "If having an extra key to my office is something that brings you some modicum of comfort, fine, whatever… It's not like anything truly important is kept in there at any rate…"

"You two are unbearable together," Noctis said with a groan to his voice. A part of him was a tiny bit jealous that both Ros and Lyra seemed to have a pretty amicable relationship that allowed them to bicker and tease each other relentlessly. It was hard to imagine that either of them would have tolerated each other's company otherwise. Both of them were prickly and unpleasant in their own ways from time to time — Ros less so than Lyra.

Shaking his head, Noctis then asked the question: "So, do you guys at least have your wish for Fabula Nova figured out? Besides wanting to stay a wallflower for Lyra, that is…"

Lyra looked at Ros, who only seemed to shrug in response to her somewhat expectant look. She then huffed and went on to say, "I have no prospects… I'm simply content to just go with the flow. Seems to me that's what life wants me to do anyway…so why fight it?"

Reaching over, Lyra then pat Ros on the shoulder. "Your turn."

Flicking his eyes toward her, Ros bit back another sigh. Bringing his hands to rest within his pockets, he shrugged slightly with the momentary bob of his head as he considered his overall response. "I don't necessarily have anything planned out myself. Ideally, I'd like to devote more time into making sure my healing magic is in top form for the year. Granted, wishing for that means, in a way, hoping more people to use such abilities on come through the medical center's doors. Double-edged sword, unfortunately."

"Could always see about expanding your efforts toward injured animals if you come across any…" Noctis replied. He had a soft spot for animals ever since he had come back from Tenebrae and getting to hang out with Umbra and Pryna. More now that they were his means of communication with Lunafreya.

"That is an idea, I suppose. Hm…" Ros hummed in thought to the suggestion. "We'll see what happens, then."

"Hope it works out." Noctis adjusted his jacket and looked back toward the exit of the rooftop hall. It was hard to tell who was outside at this point with all the other bodies still in the room. He wondered if the trio of the Chorus twins and Prompto were still out there, goofing off — having fun without him.

Noctis forced himself to look back at Ros and Lyra. He lifted a hand in preparation to excuse himself. "You two take care."

Were any of the 114th other people, Noctis may have found it within himself to leave without saying a word. Of course…he had done just that with Ignis and Gladiolus. Though it felt different with those two. It felt safer to ask forgiveness than permission in a lot of ways. Besides, he knew he could return to them and chat like no time had passed for the most part. The other members of the 114th? Well…sometimes they just felt like distant cousins — and that was nothing to say of Ros who actually was his cousin.

Briskly making his way through the hall, Noctis mentally prepared himself for exiting out onto the rest of the roof. Cold greeted him with that icy embrace, and it was enough to make Noctis scrunch his face briefly as he pulled his suit jacket a little more snugly against himself to savor the lingering warmth of it.

Thankfully for Noctis, it seemed Primam, Prompto, and Tandem were all still in the same place he saw them prior.

Prompto was the first to notice from his peripheral vision. He turned his head away from speaking with the twins and lifted a hand in greeting. "Noct! Hey! Finally decided to come on out and see us, huh?"

"What can I say? Couldn't have you three having too much fun without me." A smirk found its way onto Noctis' lips. He gave a halfhearted wave in greeting to his school troupe the moment all of them had their eyes on him. They really looked a far cry from how they normally did, dressed all fancy for the gala.

It would have been hard to believe that Primam was comfortable — her blue and silver dress left her collar and shoulders bare — though Noctis had been aware that Primam's unusual manifestation of magic dulled her senses to the shifts in temperature. It was a troublesome circumstance, especially since she was not immune to extreme temperatures, merely resistant to the influence. However, Noctis did not dare comment on it. He was sure her brother or even Prompto expressed some form of worry already. And an event like this? She probably heard enough from those she interacted with.

Tandem and Prompto looked to have been dressed sharp themselves, and unlike Primam, looked warmer at a distance. Though with the way Prompto's ears had that rosy hue to them, perhaps he was a little colder than he was willing to admit. Regardless, Tandem's dark green suit with black accents contrasted against the black suit Prompto had that had red accents. The one other thing that Noctis noticed was the small coeurl pin that adorned one of Tandem's lapels.

"A few more minutes before Fabula Finis becomes Fabula Nova," Tandem commented. When Noctis looked at him, he noticed that Tandem's gaze had gone out toward one of the taller buildings in the distance. It had the time on it, and like every year before this one, it started the countdown to Fabula Nova when ten seconds were left.

"That time already?" Noctis held back his surprise. From the time Ignis said that there was an hour left til now…it just felt like time had gone by so fast.

"I'm just glad you're not sleeping through it again this year," Primam said with a gentle giggle. Her laughter clouded into steam in the chilled air.

"Sleep through it once and you never hear the end of it…" Noctis shook his head, waving his hand dismissively. He supposed he had gotten his hopes up after no one else seemed to have brought it up. Really, it had just been a matter of time.

"Oh, it'll come up again. For a different event. Like when you took a nap and nearly slept through our birthday celebration," Tandem teased with a grin.

"Or how about the time he slept through Founder's Day? We were all supposed to go out and check out all the stalls together!" Prompto chimed in.

Tutting sharply, Noctis looked between the three of them in minor disbelief. All three of them? Really?

"Keep it up, and I'll schedule a nap for every important date to you guys," Noctis replied in half-jest.

"You won't need a schedule knowing you," Prompto replied with a chuckle.

"Tch, whatever…" Noctis folded his arms over his chest and pointed his gaze away from them. He had no witty retort to shoot back with. Though, the question may as well have been asked; Noctis had already asked everyone else: "You guys figure out what your Fabula Nova wish is already? And don't tell me it's to help 'keep me awake'."

Primam brought a hand to her mouth, hiding her giggling. Prompto shrugged with that amused grin of his, while Tandem shook his head in equal amusement.

"I want to take more pictures this year. I feel like I spent so much time training with Mollie and Cor this year that I just didn't have enough time to snap some photos…" Prompto replied first and in earnest. His expression mellowed out into something a little more pensive. He took a moment to then dig into his jacket pocket and pulled out the familiar red digital camera. Turning it on with a smile, he held it up. "Speaking of — let's commemorate tonight! C'mon, everyone say 'Fabula Finis!'"

Prompto turned the camera so the lens was facing them. Leaning back, his posture was an open invitation, and Primam was the first to near and lean over, pointing a smile in the camera's direction. Tandem grabbed Noctis and dragged him in, grinning as Noctis protested. Once free from Tandem's grasp, Noctis also pointed his attention toward the camera, a closed-lipped smile.

Prompto held up his free hand, counting down with his fingers along with his words: "Three. Two. One—"

"Fabula Finis!" The chorus came more from Prompto, Primam, and Tandem more than it did Noctis, who remained having his close-lipped smile throughout the process.

Standing back up properly, Prompto took a look at the photo along with everyone else. Everyone at least looked good in the photo.

"Oh, a good first shot, eh?" Tandem commented. "Usually need to take two or three before all of us seem to cooperate with one another."

"A decent — if small — omen for the new year, I'd say." Primam gently nudged Prompto's shoulder with her own.

"Yeah!" Prompto chirped happily. He turned off the camera for now, though kept it out. Just in case. With the picture out of the way, he went on to bring Noctis' question back: "With that distraction done with, what did you guys have in mind for your Fabula Nova wishes?"

"Not off the hook, eh?" Primam hummed in thought.

"While she thinks of that, I actually just want to get some decent things made this year at the forge," Tandem said. It had been no secret that Tandem had been an apprentice with the royal smiths — a good alternative for him to help turn any frustration he had from whatever the Chorus training regimen had him do into something more productive.

"I suppose I was hoping that I could get accepted into LCU once this school year is well and truly over." Primam drew her hands together, looking off to the side.

Noctis noticed the slight shiver. As he had already observed prior: resilient, not immune.

Nearing Prompto, Noctis nudged the back of his knee, making him buckle with a slight yelp.

"Hey man! What the hell!?" Prompto hissed, holding his camera close.

Hooking his arm around Prompto's neck and shoulders and bringing him in close, Noctis lowered his voice. "Give your jacket to Prim, dumb ass…"

"I-I don't know, man…I feel like she'd get mad at me. She's already been shushing me and Tandem up about it…" Prompto replied, equally quiet. "Besides…does she even get cold? She keeps saying she can't feel it…"

"Just give her your jacket," Noctis said, tutting as he did so. Getting into it was too taxing to think about right now.

"Hi, hello. I'm right here. I can hear you," Primam said, leaning down to be eye level with both of them. Tandem could be heard snickering behind her. She then straightened her posture and then reluctantly held out her hand. "If it will make everyone quiet down about it, I'll take your jacket. Either of yours."

Removing his arm from Prompto, Noctis shoved him forward gently, a smirk returning to his face. Meanwhile, Prompto sputtered over himself before he shrugged the garment off and handed it over to Primam.

"Thank you, Prompto…" Primam said, getting the garment fitted on.

"Yeah, of course. Any time." Prompto rubbed at the back of his neck with his free hand and then looked at Noctis. "Well, now that that's out of the way. You're not quite off the hook yourself, now are you? What are you hoping to achieve for Fabula Nova, Noct?"

"Me?" Noctis furrowed his brow slightly. No one else had asked him. He had a thought in mind, but it really was not something of a big, nor important feeling thing. "Well, I guess I ha—"

"Ten!"

Noctis had been interrupted by the excited chant from the people around as everyone's attention had gone to the countdown.

With each change in numbers, another chant. All the way til it reached 'one'.

As soon as the timer hit 00:00, cheering erupted before the whistle and cracks of fireworks popping into the night sky filled the air.

"Fabula Nova!"

[lunarlegend]

okay i'm back with more controversial fandom opinions, lol

kind of continuing off of that thing i said the other night, about how i refuse to sugarcoat facts on this blog, another issue i've noticed in the western FFXV fandom is that a lot of diehard dub enjoyers seem almost. afraid of acknowledging anything Japanese in the game.

like once they find out about all the changes the localization made to the characters and script, instead of accepting it for what it is they cling to it harder. they effectively ignore anything where the audio is in Japanese (including complaining about how the Brotherhood anime was never dubbed...which, thank goodness btw), they ignore the original seiyuu, etc. basically omitting a whole entire chunk of canon that's actually unavoidable if you want to really understand the game, and all because they can't stand the idea of Ignis actually not being british. lol.

it's infuriating.

FFXV was made in Japan by Japanese people. it is absolutely full of references to Japanese culture. Insomnia is Shinjuku, the currency there is yen. the Citadel is the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. the Chocobros all wear clothes that exist in real life and were designed by the Japanese fashion brand Roen.

you cannot take Japan out of FFXV. it doesn't matter how much you enjoy the dub (a phenomenon i will never understand, but regardless), or how much you wish it were canon. to not accept the Japanese cultural aspects of FFXV is to not accept FFXV.

but still you end up with these dub enjoyers who start avoiding canon lore like the plague, distancing themselves from any part of the game that wasn't localized. like they're afraid to touch it because it doesn't align with the bullshit the localization plastered over everything.

and when you consider all of that, is it really any wonder fanon has overtaken so much of the fandom and their opinions? think about it. if you're afraid to look deeper, there's noplace else to go but up. you have to keep building on the lie. don't learn, don't clarify anything--just keep warping the characters even more. warp them until it doesn't even matter. then you never have to admit what the localization did to them. or that you fell for it.

[mrsmneme]

My Art Summary 2023

2023 will end soon. I faced a huge change throughout the year such as promotion, relocation, tougher schedule, etc. I was too busy to make arts, but I'm so glad that I made enough to create an art summary. Because my arts weren't finished in monthly basis, so I don't add names of months again. Thank you for all impressions and participations for my work. I'll keep practicing. 🥰❤️

The first one was the 2023 celebrating piece. I made the chocobros playing multiplayer game, the same composition as Comrade's advertisement, but they are older, in alternate ending appearances.

The second one was a happy birthday Ignis piece. I drew his much older self, as we had seen him greeting King Noctis in alternate ending end credit. Thanks @gakusa2 in x for the gorgeous reference.

The third one was a happy birthday Ardyn piece. I drew his chancellor outfit with his famous grin.

The fourth one was a comic I made in an Ignoct gift exchange 2023 campaign. I drew more realistic brotherhood Ignis for the first time.

See full work here.

The fifth one was a finished sketch, but I will color it later. The piece was a Gladio/Ignis romantic moment. I got my inspiration from my Gladnis mutuals and made such ship related piece for the first time.

The sixth one was one of [chocobros in Hellsing TV series outfit] series, I drew Noctis in Integral Hellsing's outfit first.

The seventh one was a part of [chocobros in Hellsing TV series outfit] too. I drew Gladiolus in Alucard's outfit.

The eighth one was still part of [chocobros in Hellsing TV series outfit]. I drew Ignis in Walter C. Dornez's outfit.

The ninth one was made for Ignis fashionweek 2023 campaign. It was first created in 2022 but I couldn't finish it, so I retried in 2023. The outfit was [shirtless under a suit].

The tenth piece was a happy 7th anniversary of FFXV piece. I drew 7 characters in top 100 Final Fantasy Big Vote.

The eleventh piece was made for Christmas-themed FFcolorwheel in x.

And the twelfth piece was the last one in [chocobros in Hellsing TV series outfit] when I drew Prompto in Seras Victoria's outfit.

[lyssala]

The Sun & The Moon: On the FFXVI Ending

Throwing my thoughts on the ending into the void.

Aka I keep seeing posts about the ending so I need to type out my thoughts to validate myself.

For reference, we played on release and did two full play throughs.

First of all, I am a happy ending person. I want desperately to find the happiness because there was so much suffering so much loss. Saving the world or not, the thought of Clive having come so close to his own happy ending, of having the family and the love he never got to have, so damn close and then still ending up dying alone on a beach leaving the people waiting for him wondering if he would ever come back to them seems so cruel.

But, Lyssa, you played XV too, and Noctis legitimately sacrificed himself in the end to save the world. You’re right, he did, and that ending still makes me ugly cry because I also didn’t think it was fair that he had to do that. The thing were XV and XVI differ is, we see Noctis in the after with Luna, in their wedding attire, finally together. It’s immensely bittersweet, but we see them at peace. We do not get that in XVI SO point by point let’s GO.

(Warning for spoilers, including character death, in other Final Fantasy games as well)

Why I Don’t Think We Can Assume Any of the Three are Dead

1. The Ancient Rule of Storytelling: No body, you say? THEY AIN’T DEAD.

Usually used when a villain “is defeated” but then they can never find a body - guess what, Luffy is going to have to beat their ass YET again. Final Fantasy has never shied away from character death. From Minwu (FFII) to Tellah (FFIV) to Aerith (FFVII) to Zack (FFVII:CC) to Haurchefant (FFXIV) to Noctis (FFXV), heck even other character death in XVI.

Dion to me is the iffiest one, and I say it with a heavy heart because I loved Dion. He fell early and he had death flags on him BUT we didn’t even see him hit the ground so I still standby that if Clive could survive falling from Origin, Dion could too.

Joshua we actually did see die, and it was terrible - both when it happened and when Clive went back to mourn his brother (again for that matter and thanks I’m crying again). The thing is, we also explicitly watch Clive use Phoenix’s power to heal Joshua. Yeah we don’t see him wake up, but literally what was the point of that action if Joshua was just gonna…you know still be dead. They could have just left him as he was. The whole purpose of showing that action, imo, was to finally give Clive the chance to save his brother, which was all he wanted for so much of his life. I don’t believe that was done as just “well you tried but he really dead, bro.” To me it was to show, no, Joshua has a chance to live the life he always wanted too.

Clive, despite all his dang death flags, is still the most secure to me because the last time we see him, he’s still alive. We know he survived the fall, we know he was conscious on the beach, we only saw the curse spread to his hand. If they really wanted to hint he would die there, we easily could have seen the curse spreading to his face. We didn’t though. He was tired, and weak but he was alive. They made an effort to show him alive. If they truly wanted an ambiguous ending they didn’t even need to show him on the beach, just showing Origin fall would be enough. They didn’t though. They showed the man alive, calling out to Jill, not as apology for breaking his promise but a “I can see the moon same as you, I’m still here.”

2. The Ding Dang Themes of the Game

We spend the whole game determined to fight fate, and while yes, fate was defeated when Ultima was defeated, because the human will won…then didn’t because the man who was determined to fight and escape those binds still ended up lost those everyone who loves him…which was part of the fate he was trying to escape? Final Fantasy games have had dark elements before, and they’ve been heartbreakingly sad. They’ve shown loss of all sorts some self sacrifice, and some because the world can be just so cruel. However, once thing Final Fantasy isn’t is loss without hope.

Noctis got to say goodbye to his best friends (yes I am crying again don’t you dare mention Stand by Me in my presence) because he knew what was coming and they knew what was coming. It gutted me, but they all knew and had come to terms with it. It was Noctis’ choice to walk in there knowing he was not coming back. Clive was not the same. He didn’t say goodbye, he said, I’m coming back. While everyone knew there was a risk which is why it was so emotional to say goodbye, he had a life he wanted to return to, one he spoke of returning to. It was never, “You’re coming back right?” And then they skirt around giving a firm answer because they just don’t know. Clive was firm about it, he was coming back, it was his will to come back and guess what won against Ultimia? You guessed it, human will.

Having Clive die alone on a beach after all of that? After all he went through and after all he still wanted? That to me is just cruel, and Final Fantasy has never been cruel. Ren also made the good point that if Clive was to die, Joshua would have fallen with him, so it ended in a reversal of beginning with Joshua watching Clive die instead of the other way around. That didn’t happen either though. He was on the beach, again, still alive (see point 1 as a reminder), additionally, if he thought he was dying, I’d imagine he’d be apologizing to Jill for breaking his promise. In fact that’s what I SWORE he was going to do, but he didn’t. His will to survive was still intact when we left him which to me fits far more with the theme of this game then dying alone on a beach.

3. The Sun and the Moon (It’s Clive and Jill, It’s Just Literally Them)

So yeah I know that the sun and moon imagery is usually used to describe star crossed lovers, never meant to be as the sun and moon rotate. The game already proved that was untrue, they were always meant to be. By all odds they survived and somehow found one another again.

Jill, the moon of course, always said it was because of her prayer to Metia, that every time she prayed for him to return to her, Metia granted her prayer. I say this as someone who grew up religious but now am not, Jill believed it I’m sure but I think it was Jill. Love has also been a huge theme in Final Fantasy, and Jill’s heart filled prayers to keep Clive safe, always had. Not necessarily because a god deemed it so (again, defying gods a huge Final Fantasy theme lol) but her complete and sincere love for Clive, that always kept him safe to come home to her. She prayed for him as he was leaving for origin, just as heart felt as she always had. Why would that fail now the time she probably desired it more than any other time? That also seems so cruel. For him to be torn from her when they were so close to finally being able to have the life they dreamed of together. What purpose does that serve? It wouldn’t except for Jill to have yet another thing in her life to break her heart and leave her to pick up the pieces. I think she would, for Clive’s memory, but again, it feels like loss for no reason but loss. Jill deserves her happy ending too.

You find out later on even more so why Jill cherished the moon, because it brought the sunrise (or you know Clive in the metaphor here) and with the sun the promise the Clive would always come for her. One he never broke. They literally went out of their way to say “the sunrise meant you’d always come for me, I know this.” It was a direct setup for the ending. It was her seeing the star she always prayed on for Clive flicker out, and in that moment I think she did lose all hope because that was the one thing she could always count on to bring him home (to which again, not a god, but her love that brought him home). She is distraught (and so was I so we have that in common LOL) but then, the sun rises, and she smiles. It’s hope. It’s her hope because Clive has never broken a promise to her, and the sunrise has always brought him to her. I have no reason to believe the sunrise didn’t bring him home to her like it always has. Not a single point in this game has given me reason to believe it so why would I?

4. They Did the Thing! The Name of the Game!

A smaller point but one none the less. I sure hope you all played every single side-quest. One particular one, leaves you with a quill to add to Clive’s wall of treasures; one with the sole purpose of when (not if) Clive puts his sword down, that he writes his story. What do we see in the after credits? Literally, a book that is telling his story. Idk how more clear they gotta be that Clive is gonna be okay (tbf I WISH they would have just told me he was gonna be okay too LOL)

Granted, Joshua Rosfield is the author to which, it really could have been him writing Clive’s story in his absence or it could have been Clive and using the name to memorialize his brother’s name. Or it could have been the both of them and they used Joshua’s name because Clive is content living his life behind the scenes. He’s never wanted attention or praise. I don’t think he ever would have used his own name.

Additionally, the ending lines that equates to as my journey ends another one begins to me never meant journey = life. His journey was over, he did what he set out to do. The new journey? Traveling the realms with his wife in a world without the burdens of magic and doing what they do best, help the people who need it.

5. Doggy Knows Best

And finally, my last point is, Torgal knows what’s up. Technically, this is Ren’s point so I give him the credit here but animals, especially Torgal who is more than just a dog (literally an Eikon himself bonded to Jill and Clive, something acknowledged in the game), know when their master is hurt or worse. We’ve seen Torgal when one of them are hurt or in danger or not coming home. Yet at the end of the game, when Jill is absolutely breaking Torgal simply howls.

You know where else he did that? When he was trying to find Clive after Phoenix Gate and he would sit and howl. They were already bonded, he knew Clive (and Jill) were alive but he didn’t know where so he howled for his people until he could find them. It’s the same thing he does at the end of the game. He knows Clive is alive out there, and they are just separated but they’ll find another again because just like Jill, Torgal has no reason to believe otherwise.

And honestly I’m going to believe the dog.

Final Thoughts…For Now Cause I Always Have Thoughts its the ADHD

If you read all this, I hope it brought you some peace <3 I don’t believe a cop out everyone died ending is indicative to the wonderful storytelling this team has brought us in FFXIV. If anything, it reminds me of the ending of A Realm Reborn when you are convinced all the Scions are dead and then ope nope they’re fine just scattered and we’ll find them yeah SOUND FAMILIAR LOL I think they left it open to let people come to their own conclusions but in my heart of hearts I believe they had no intention to let Clive die on that beach because nothing in the story leads me to that conclusion.

If they try to tell me otherwise, well then I’ll go full denial LOL but unless Yoshi-P calls me up and says girl stop you’re wrong, I’ll continue to push my Clive finally gets his happy ending and travels the realms with Jill like he promised her <3 (ONE MORE THING: why the heck would they have Jill just be like mmmm think I wanna leave this realm when its over, lets see the world if they had no future content planned YOU CAN’T FOOL ME she could have easily said anything but she said something that would directly give us more content okay I’m done lol)

[lunarsilkscreen]

FFXIII and the Rest of the Owl

FFXIII has many reference to other entries in the series; of the key notes FF9's (and other FFs) red moon are reflected in Cocoon, but the roles are reversed. Where the Monsters inhabit "Earth" instead of the moon. (I like FF9 better, that's all )

The calm lands in FFX reflected in the Grass Lands of Gran Pulse (And the cities of the Nier series)

The same Calm Lands are featured in FFXV; which has a literal [Bank of Spira] inside the end zone. This game ALSO features the end of the world as it's covered in Shadow, and having to fight the Chaos bearer. (Rebranded in this game to Ardyn and Star scourge)

Star Scourge is similar FF7s Mako Poisoning and Jenova Cell influenced Geostigma. And; FFXV seems to also feature Cid's rocket as a minor sight seeing location in its parallel to the calm lands.

FFXV's Location of Insomnia (Noctis Kingdom) feature a location featured in FFXIII lightning returns. This is uncertain if it's because of the original connection between the two series as being a sort of parallel of each other; but that plot point was eventually driven to other Series like Kingdom Hearts 2 - the world that never was, and the original FFXIII-Verses game (FFXVs predecessor) being shunted into a new game featured in Kingdom Hearts 3.

It's not clear exactly how these pieces fit together; but it seems like FF7 featured heavy damages on the planet earth, which lead to the creation of Sin in FFX (as a safeguard) Sin went on a rampage, and had to be defeated by our protagonists in FFX, who were also Remnants of the pyre flies. Beings not quite dead or alive. (Except for Yuna the summoner who could summon them forth.) Essentially using Chaos to defeat Light, and starting the line of Seer that ended with Serah.

The chaos with nothing to keep it in check overwhelmed the planet (Now called Pulse, likely as a derogatory term.) and the remaining humans fled to Cocoon, and re-established Sin with beings they called "L'Cie". The L'Cie are essentially the Summons [Eidolons] Summoners would use to defeat Sin every so often (And Sin was the biggest baddest Eidolon that couldn't be killed, because it would take the form and strength of the precious eidolon used to kill it.)

Fal'cie are similar to Yuna's [Not quite dead companions] in that they're beings chosen by the L'Cie to protect the world. The problem is; humanity doesn't see them as [Chosen] just as those infected with [Chaos] like Ardyn was.

Which leads to FFXIII's main story; and why Humanity is hellbent in destroying Lightning and Co.

FFXV likely happens before humanity decides to flee to the moon. Noctis and his best friends save the world at their own detriment, and the Kingdom of Insomnia's downfall; but because of the constant war between light and dark. Are unable to stifle it completely.

Humanity flees to the Moon, and this is why the city of Insomnia, at least the clean bits seem preserved in [LR].

//In the interim; Because Cocoon's orbit diverges away from the planet for decades, even hundreds of years on end; Nier: Automata happens.

Thanks to Hope's machinations; an entire series of Androids based on a Freudian slip of Lightning continues the fight between light and dark, despite each being more or less the same thing.

In the end; the Machines defeat the Androids (Thanks to having shutdown their reproduction factories). This is explained that if the humans went to Cocoon, the records would say "Moon" and nobody would be the wiser.

Etro in FF13 could then be related to [The Red Girl], Etro is the feminine diety to Bhunivelze's patriarchy and works to undermine him. Who seems to be struggling with a sort of [Patriarchal] control module herself.

Thus the Intoners from the Drake guard series could be directly related to the Seer's from FFXIII. It should be noted that many of Hope's creations are featured prominently in Nier Automata.//

And when Cocoon manages to meet up again with Gran Pulse, we get the series finale, where Lighting takes the whole of humanity from the machine ridden, death trap to what seems like a replica of Earth. (Where she becomes a Lois Voitton handbag model.)

[marmolita]

I just want everyone to know that my kids keep referring to the Six in FFXV as "GFs" because FFVIII was their first final fantasy

[speargifted]

//home now but i thought about verstael again so now ill just ramble about fitting him into 16 because its weirdly difficult (verstael besithia/bestia being one of the main antagonistic forces in ffXV - he's the mad scientist trope and the driving force behind a lot of the shit that happens in XV even if you dont really interact with him in the main game)

Now for one you have to get rid of his big achievements because they don't work in 16. One being the wallbreaker which just doesn't translate at all but the others being that he killed Shiva and imprisoned Ifrit which... we can't let him do unfortunately. The easiest thing to translate is that he would be deeply obsessed with the Fallen, he is deeply obsessed with Solheim in XV which is your usual FF trope of the technologically advanced society that came before the current one and fell because of hubris or gods or some bullshit. Verstael is against the Astrals (The Gods in XV, which are the Eikon equivalents) and hates magic - he actively prioritises technology over magic and weirdly that would align him more with Cid than anyone else (he wouldn't work in the iron kingdom because he would very much hate the mothercrystals). But while some of his values align with Cid he is also a megalomaniacal bastard who is legitimately quite insane and an antagonist. Verstael is of the Niflheim Empire and while the Emperor of Niflheim does align somewhat with Sylvestre's characterisation I simply refuse to let Verstael have any positive associations with Bahamut so he cant be imperial. Verstael is heavily connected to Ardyn, he's the one who freed Ardyn and also convinced the Emperor to give him his position, and in turn Ardyn has helped Verstael immensely in his goals(my asshole husbands who will never admit that they care for each other in the way they need each other to admit it). Ardyn being the living embodiment of the Starscoruge, the disease that Verstael is endlessly fascinated by and does intentionally infect himself with. The Scourge is not analogous with the Crystal Curse but weirdly does kinda fit with the concept of the Akashic (anyone sick with Scourge eventually becomes a mindless daemon, though I am grossly simplifying it), and I have always written Verstael as keeping himself young with his experiments with the Scourge in a similar way Barnabas does with his Akashic-ness. If you squint the Scourge is referred to loosely as Darkness which is the closest I can get to a positive connection of Verstael to any of the Eikons (it helps that Odin isn't an Astral). He's also very heavily associated with clones and i guess sleipnir is the closest thing 16 has to that. So Waloed would be stuck with the bastard and he would be an absolute asset to their military forces but he wouldn't actually follow Ultima (he'd be quiet about it but he serves himself and himself only) and he is just awful to interact with so just give him a lab and complete authority over it and never speak to him while he works out how to inject himself with aether to the right point where he's semi akashic and pretty forever (until his body dies and he uploads his brain into a robot worm. awful man)

[itfitsitshipsart]

Confessions

Ignis × S/I

Here's the story of when the confessions of love were finally made between the two. For reference of when this happens (Spoilers for FFXV) this occurs after Noct is sucked into the crystal to sleep, and the boys return to Lucis

--

Evelyn tossed the phone aside on the bed, and fell back with a sigh. the ceiling fan spun slowly, and the soft hum blended with the noise from the radio in the other room.

No doubt the news was poor. Demons slowly growing more and more common, people going missing, refugees fleeing into the country.

Evelyn didn't care anymore though. Alright, maybe that's a stretch. She did care. But it was hard to care when her heart was aching and worry ate away at her.

She drew her phone to herself once more, typing away a number and pressing it to her ear. It rang and rang. A click.

And an automated voice.

"Sorry. The number you are trying to reach-"

"Cannot be reached…" she muttered, tossing it aside once more. Where were the boys? Where was Ignis?

We're any of them even still alive?

***

"Evelyn! Come here!" Iris shouted, waking Evelyn from her restless nap. She sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Iris was laughing, and another voice spoke.

Evelyn's eyes widened, recognizing the male's voice.

"Gladio?" She murmured, and quickly jumped up from her bed. If Gladio was here and alright, then the others...

When she got down and out the door, she felt the heaviness of worry lift. Gladio picked up his laughing sister, swinging her around and hugging her tightly. And behind him stood Prompto and Ignis. Prompto lit up at the sight of her, and tugged on Ignis's sleeve.

"Ev!" He exclaimed.

"You guys are alright!" Evelyn cried out, running over. She hugged Prompto, then Gladio as he let go of his sister. And as she turned to face Ignis, she paused. "...what happened?..." She murmured, eyed running over his scarred face and darkened glasses.

The others looked away, quiet.

**

"Well, I guess that explains why I couldn't reach any of you." Evelyn murmured, sitting down next to Ignis. The two were now alone, the others with Iris. She leaned closer, looking at his face. His gaze did not change as she moved closer, his eyes once a brilliant green now clouded over.

"What exactly happened?" She asked softly, reaching out to touch the scars around his eyes. She paused and drew her hand away. "How did this happen to your face?"

Ignis closed his eyes, and shook his head for a moment. "It was nothing, just an accident."

"It's not nothing, Ignis. It's your face, your sight."

"And it was a small price to pay to keep Noct safe."

"Small? Ignis, are you listening to yourself?" She began to raise her voice. "What if it wasn't just your face? You promised you'd be safe. And you protected everyone else, but what about you?!" She inhaled sharply and slowly exhaled. Her voice went soft again. "I was so worried. For weeks, I was worried about everyone, I was worried about you. You getting hurt is no small matter, Ignis. I just wish you'd see that for yourself. Er, I mean,"

Ignis chuckled lightly, tilting his head towards her as she stumbled over finding a better word than 'see'. "Always the concerned one, aren't you." He murmured. Evelyn blushed, and looked down at the ground. "Right. I recall some time ago you wanted to tell me something. Back at the lighthouse. What was it?"

"Oh, that…" Evelyn tensed up once more, her chest feeling tight. "It's… well…" she fell silent, and the two sat in that manner for what felt like ages to her.

She regretted never saying it.

So why was it so hard?

Her eyes lingered about his face, and he waited patiently for her to continue. She let out a shaky breath, and slowly took one of his hands.

"I… I guess it's that I want you to be safe. To know how talented you are, that… I care about you. I've… always cared about you. I can't imagine what I'd do without you around. And I…" the words feel from her lips, barely a whisper. "I love you."

She slowly released his hand, closing her eyes. For years she held these feelings close to her heart, and feared telling him. Why would he feel the same, they were friends, but how could they be more than that?

A gloved hand gently touched her cheek before resting against it. Her eyes fluttered slightly, and she leaned into the caress.

"Forgive me. I should have noticed sooner." Ignis murmured. "I hope this is an appropriate, if not overdue, response." He slowly drew her face closer, and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips.

[hazelnutmon]

Food Preview

Here is a collage of most of the food that I’ve made. It’s a mix of family recipes, recipes taken off of the internet, and food from a store-bought mix. This is a preview of what I’ll be posting on this blog, and also a reminder for me to keep track of what I’ve cooked, as well as a brainstorm of whatever I want to post. I’ll also probably add more experimental notes for myself if I want - we’ll see.

I’m not sure how often I’ll be updating this because life gets in the way of my Tumblr frolicking, but it’ll be fun to post my yummy food and how to make them!

Pictured (up-down; left-right): Curry Rice, Beef & Broccoli, Pancit Canton & Bihon mix, Pancit Canton, Munggo, Ube Pancakes, Brownies, Blueberry Galaxy Muffins, Rainbow Chip Cookies, Maja Blanca, Shrimp Fried Rice, Chicken Cream Corn Soup, Chocolate Chip Cookies, Red Velvet Pancake Breakfast*

(*the red velvet pancakes were from a mix. lol)

[kurikorso]

last king, chosen king

click them for better quality i promise they wont bite you

[sylleblosscm]

Last one for the time being, friends. A fleeting but no less remarkable trip over the City on the Sea itself. (feat. a lil surprise at the end that made me giggle.) And before you ask, no, I absolutely will not apologise for the Luna simp mobile.

Obviously, I booked it for the Palace first. My entire kingdom to have this place properly playable for more than .3 seconds please and thanks. It really is breathtaking. 

Naturally I tracked down the Altar of the Tidemother, tucked away behind the Palace. Rest in peace, Luna. (These shots suck ass however I refuse to go back and retake them. It’s fine, we’ve all seen the darn altar before.)

Next up, some various surrounding areas. It’s interesting how the main city we see is so interconnected and, despite being kind of a mess to navigate, accessible thanks to the gondolas - meanwhile many of the other...islands? clusters? small towns? is this the entire protectorate of Accordo right here? are entrirely separate and would require proper air or sea travel to move between. I wonder how self-sufficient and/or isolated these small communities are, whether it’s common to travel between them, how day-to-day life works in a city like this. Maybe just the main city is all hustle and bustle and the rest of it is vibes.  

Another detail I absolutely Fell In Love with, are all these old structures built into the cliffsides. Was this the beginnings of Altissia? The remains of a former Solheim-era nation? Places of worship? More of Accordo? More Accordian history, please. 

Okay, this is a small detail. This is the closest thing to the middle of nowhere that Accordo has, small areas like this built definitively on land. The houses themselves look big and expensive and I wonder if it’s where wealthy politicians and the like go to retire; or where the likes of royalty and famous people holiday to be within the lap of luxury, but as far from the public eye as possible. Or maybe it really is just the boonies, idk.

Then again, there are also plenty of areas like this built onto land too, so. Who’s to say?

Okay okay. Last thing. This happened while I was flying - look at his hair and beard oh no:

[klaxustarah]

Okay, now they're in the Seyliff Grove dungeon

[destiny-islanders]

Aw, where's Sora in your most recent doodle? :(

Beating up Santa for holding something he said as a peer-pressured 7-year-old against him for most of his young life