#xenoblade mumblings

[troofless]

update on how i wasted 5h on the new xbc3 dlc story, new grips come to light:

feels a whole lot of the story was hinging on nostalgia bait rather than solving the plot holes in the main story, which is just peachy

matthew is not an interesting protagonist and is only there to represent the family feud in n’s long bloodline of fuckery. i thought matthew and a would have more synergy since they are literally the two faces of the game but they are just surface level friends with banter. a continues holding herself at arms length like alvis does for obvious reasons but this means matthew feels so isolated

nice loredump on xbc1 and xbc2 tho, i like the throwbacks to past places like colony 9 and uraya and prison island

i almost laughed when i saw the joran-looking guy die the first 10 minutes in lmao

the sharla and pandora reincarnations/children were pretty neat ig

shulk’s design in particular looks ugly af come at me bro

was it ever stated what happened to pyra/mythra? did they just die or revert back to the core crystal form? idk i didn’t watch the community stuff. also ig there are multiple green core crystals on glimmer and the fists of the end which is not confusing at all :/

i liked the detail that malos/logos is now the sword of the end and mythra/pneuma is fists of the end which is later noah’s gauntlet thing

confirmed that ghondor is n’s son and no wonder ghondor (main game) was pissed at her name lmaooo

i also liked the throwback to the gem crafting lmao

no explanation for lucky seven because of course

no explanation for riku either

no explanation for how shulk and rex and the others are still unassimilated but some of the other people get sucked into the cycle of reincarnation (i guess z is clumsy ha ha)

some explanation for how the city people don’t get fucked over by the two world merging at the end of main story ig

i literally said ‘what the fuck’ out loud when a said n wasn’t matthew’s enemy. like what the fuck. no.

oh wow imagine trying to justify n’s biggest crime of massacring an entire city of people ha ha wouldn’t it be funny if he didn’t actually murder them, absolving him of all crimes (bruh)

the dlc tried to hard to make n look sympathetic but i ended up hating him more. same for z man. like who invited you to the dlc party gtfo you didn’t even do anything

idk man i think na’el/alpha made a lot of sense in going for the new world esp with what happened in the end of the main story

a: yo but you saw what happened to klaus’s world! they decided to split it up and destroy it like dumbasses! that’s why your plan is bad! she says, literally ignoring that a world of peace is much better than whatever the fuck was the stagnant world of xbc3

also can i question why did alvis. just not leave without matthew. he had to fuck it up by showing himself in his physical form so that everyone could beat him up ten times over. cmon alvis

i feel like nikol and discount mythra could have been taken out of the story and nothing would have changed. what did they do other than be fanservice bait for the xbc1 and xbc2 ppl and have some bullshit ‘i promise to rebuild the city and carry on your legacy, dads :(’ like lmaooo

literally the ending of the main story was them deciding the future for themselves and them not wanting to stay in a stagnant world, something that contradicts the ending of the dlc like wtf

they went all the way, fought the god, just for a conclusion that didn’t matter because the two worlds merged anyway at the end of the game :)

i went into the dlc in the hopes of being able to complain that they locked the best part and best lore of the game behind a paywall but now i’m just disappointed. torna dlc was better. it had better pacing, better protagonist duo with lora and jin, started off stronger, didn’t have stupid flashbacks every three seconds same problem with xbc3 main story, better characters and character-synergy and humour. 

tldr it’s a waste of time not worth it, just play fire emblem engage instead goty fr

[thefatedmeeting]

i'm completely normal

Previous / Next

[IMAGE DESCRIPTION – MIDNIGHT TRUTH TIME.

At the top is the strip’s title: “normal feelings about rgu”.

RGU refers to Revolutionary Girl Utena, an anime.

This comic’s art style is simple, scribbled, doodle-like, without realistic details. It’s black and white, with few colors painted in watercolor style.

Hyamara (caricature of the author; they have short and black hair, piercings in their ears and are using a white shirt with a colored strawberry and blue pants), at the center of the panel, has their eyes wide open and mouth open wide, holding their face with their hands. To their left, a person with short, brown hair and round glasses smiles with their mouth wide open, forming a “3” shape (like a cat’s mouth) facing Hyamara, and asks: “So, did you like Revolutionary Girl Utena?”. To the right of Hyamara, the background is black, and Hyamara mumbles without stopping (the font is in Hyamara’s own handwriting, which looks very sketchy and scribbled; it is also in capslock): “the inherent violence of gender and the fake “masculine” notion that power is abuse and should be pointed at others and especially hierarchic towards kids and poc and how society as a whole is structured around that and an silence is complicit to violence and-”. The rant ends here.

In the panel below, unlike the comic’s usual art style, Hyamara, with realistic proportions, has their eyes closed and mouth open, levitating from the ground, with their arms and hands stretching out away from themselves, towards the ground. From their chest a great shine bursts forth. In the background, there’s the universe – and stars and shining lines that burst from Hyamara. Around Hyamara, there are various texts: “down the depths of the ocean I can be my true self”, “I am just an actor” in caps lock, “characters play their parts on a fantasy”, “do they know it’s all a dream?”, “it is empty motion” in caps lock, “born once again to rehearse it once more”, “it’s an act that never ends”, “and a clock that never moves”. The person from the previous panel, Hyamara’s friend, observes the scene with their back to the viewer, and says: “I guess you did lol”.

Hyamara’s pose and the background are references to a meme called “galactic/expanding brain”, where a person (with Hyamara’s pose), increasingly “expands” their brain through ideas that are getting better (according to who makes the meme). The texts around Hyamara reference the duel songs from Revolutionary Girl Utena.

Below, there is the introduction of another strip, with the title: “hobbies”.

Hyamara sits on the ground, with their back to the viewer, but turning back their head to the viewer anyway, to smile at them. Around Hyamara, there is a mess of nerdy items (a print with Marcille and Falin from the anime Dungeon Meshi; an Yshtola figurine from the game Final Fantasy XIV; a print with Utena and Anthy from the anime Revolutionary Girl Utena; a Link plush doll, from the game The Legend of Zelda; and a print with Shulk, from the game Xenoblade Chronicles). Hyamara says to the viewer: “Whenever I like something I watch, read or play, my response is one out of three levels of enjoyment…”

On the next panel, there is a text above it, in a black square, that says: “1 – ‘this is cool haha’”. Inside the panel, Hyamara sits, laying on the back of their chair with their legs crossed in the seat, looking at a monitor in front of them. They have a bowl of popcorn in one hand, and another one with the thumbs up gesture (closed fist, all fingers closed except the thumb, which rises upwards; the gesture symbolizes approval – that everything’s good). They eat the popcorn, smiling. To their left, there is a text with an arrow pointing towards Hyamara, which says: “normal person”.

On the next panel, there is more text above it: “2 – it’s so good, but so bad.” Inside the panel, Hyamara sits in front of a table with three dolls of The Legend of Zelda (Zelda, Link and Ganondorf respectively; Zelda holds a nonbinary pride flag, and holds Link’s hand, which has a lesbian pride flag; Ganondorf has a trans pride flag). Hyamara has their eyes wide open and dark circles under their eyes, one hand holding their chin and the other pointing towards the dolls. Around Hyamara, there are the texts: “It needs more of that and less than this…”, “*steals it and makes headcanons*”; “*characters are mine now*”.

On the next panel, there is the last text above it, in caps lock: “3 - *rotates it in my head so much it’s transcended lightspeed*”. Inside the panel, the focus is very close to Hyamara’s face, who has their eyes wide open and red, their hands holding their head. In their forehead, there is a brain silhouette, and inside this is an image of space and of planet Earth, which is spinning rapidly in its own axis. There is a zoom effect in the Picture, with blurred borders and lines which point towards the center of the panel – this indicates movement.

Below, the footer of the comic starts, with the logo of Midnight Truth Time, and the list of logos with Hyamara’s social media:

Twitter/X logo: @hyacspen

Instagram logo: @hyacspen

Tumblr logo: @thefatedmeeting

Patreon logo: patreon.com/hyamara

Itch.io logo: hyamara.itch.io

Gumroad logo: hyamara.gumroad.com

Between star emojis: hyamara.com

Below, it’s written: CARRIED OUT BY, and the logos of Secretaria de Cultura de Novo Hamburgo, of Lei Paulo Gustavo, and of Federal Govermnent of Brazil’s Ministério da Cultura – União.

END OF IMAGE DESCRIPTION.]

[worstvideogamesong-poll]

Worst Video Game Song Tournament Masterpost

The tournament has begun! We are currently in round 4, and each poll will be open for a week. I will also be reblogging each poll 12 hours after it is posted so that people in different time zones are able to see them more easily. If you don't want to see these reblogs, block the tag #12th hour reblog. There will be a total of 8 polls in this round. 4 polls will be posted a day for a total of 2 days.

When you vote, I would recommend listening to as much as you can of each song before voting, but how you choose is up to you. Remember to be civil in the tags and replies! Some posts will have propaganda included with the songs, but feel free to add more propaganda in the tags and replies, or send it to me in the ask box and I'll try to share it as soon as I can!

View the bracket, make predictions and more on Challonge here

View the spreadsheet of submissions here

View the original introduction post here

Read the FAQ here

Listen to the full playlist on YouTube here

Full list of polls under the cut:

Round 1

Match 1 - Lavender Town (Pokémon Red/Blue) vs. Vs. Odd Yo-Kai (Yo-Kai Watch)

Match 2 - K.K. Synth (Animal Crossing New Leaf) vs. Bad Feeling (Mad Rat Dead)

Match 3 - This is Where You Are Caucasian Destination Boy (Project Sekai: Colorful Stage! feat. Hatsune Miku) vs. Morpho Knight (Kirby and the Forgotten Land)

Match 4 - Track 6 (The Ring: Terror's Realm) vs. Fallen Down (Undertale)

Match 5 - Rodeo Time! (Yo-Kai Watch 3) vs. The Fade (Dragon Age Origins)

Match 6 - Rivers in the Desert (mito Remix) (Persona 5 Dancing in Starlight) vs. Birthday Cake (Jet Set Radio Future)

Match 7 - Let's Start the Killing Game (Danganronpa v3: Killing Harmony) vs. You've Got to Eat Your Vegetables! (Commander Keen 4)

Match 8 - Venus (Doom Troopers Sega Genesis) vs. GB Hunter Theme (GB Hunter)

Match 9 - Know What I Mean? (Mario Party 2) vs. Boss Theme 1 (Sonic Superstars)

Match 10 - Area 4, 8, & 13 (Santa Claus Saves the Earth GBA) vs. The Yoshi Clan (Yoshi's New Island)

Match 11 - Bomb Rush Blush (Remix) - Splatoon 2 vs. Mansion Basement (Resident Evil Director's Cut)

Match 12 - Monkeys (Nancy Drew: Ransom of the Seven Ships) vs. Vacation Music 1 (The Sims 1)

Match 13 - Hazy Lane (Yo-Kai Watch 3) vs. Central City (Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood)

Match 14 - Mumble Blues (Armed and Delirious (Dementia)) vs. Crazy Bus Title Screen (Crazy Bus)

Match 15 - Striptease (Persona 4) vs. Professor Birch's Laboratory (Pokémon Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire)

Match 16 - Oppression (Cave Story) vs. Spookwave (Undertale)

Match 17 - Nocturne (Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood) vs. Ancient Chozo Ruins (Metroid II: Return of Samus)

Match 18 - Diggity Dog (WWF No Mercy N64) vs. YZAP (Yo-Kai Watch 3)

Match 19 - Versus (Sonic Eraser) vs. Neo-Opportunist (Mad Rat Dead)

Match 20 - 50m (Donkey Kong '94) vs. Black Tar (Xenoblade Chronicles X)

Match 21 - Shadow World (DE DE MOUSE Remix) (Persona 4 Dancing All Night) vs. Mushroom Road (Tales of the Abyss)

Match 22 - Fest Zest (Splatoon 2) vs. Survival Instincts Kicking In (Bravely Default II)

Match 23 - Drawbridge Dilemma (WarioWare: Get it Together!) vs. Fight Theme 1 (Omikron: The Nomad Soul)

Match 24 - Thrifty Megamart (Pokémon Sun/Moon) vs. Metal Gear MS DOS Soundtrack (Metal Gear MS DOS)

Match 25 - NLA (Night) (Xenoblade Chronicles X) vs. Spooktune (Undertale)

Match 26 - Namco Arcade 80's Retro Medley (Super Smash Bros. for Wii U) vs. I Love Beijing Tiananmen (Hong Kong 97)

Match 27 - Stage Theme (1942) vs Red-Green-Yellow-Yellow (Mother 3)

Match 28 - Din's Power (Harp) (The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword) vs. Wildfire (Honkai: Star Rail)

Match 29 - Midna's Lament (Remix) (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate) vs. Tired of Life (Lady of Beestmeel Bro)

Match 30 - Holy Orders? (Guilty Gear XX) vs. Burning Men's Soul (Persona Trinity Soul)

Match 31 - Built to Scale (Rhythm Heaven Fever) vs. Main Theme (Beverly Hills Cop)

Match 32 - Just Leave Me Alone (OMORI) vs. Denegul (Lagoon)

Match 33 - Now or Never! (Remix) (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate) vs. Crown Dungeon (The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages)

Match 34 - Heart and Soul (Cutscene) (Sonic Frontiers) vs. Dungeon Man (EarthBound)

Match 35 - Resetti's Theme (Animal Crossing: Wild World) vs. Rise & Shine, Ursine! (Danganronpa v3: Killing Harmony)

Match 36 - Belly Flop (Splatoon 3) vs. Lemon Jelly (The Sims 2)

Match 37 - mmm yess put the tree on my pizza (Pizza Tower) vs. The Moving Gigantic Ship (Tales of Xillia)

Match 38 - Comin' at ya, My girl (Yakuza 5) vs. Track 7 (Frozen Fruits)

Match 39 - Battle (Field) (The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild) vs. Title Theme (The Adventures of Rad Gravity)

Match 40 - Emphasis on Scat (BattleBlock Theater) vs. Shipwreckin' (Splatoon 2)

Match 41 - Tem Shop (Undertale) vs. Character Select (Marvel vs. Capcom 2)

Match 42 - Title Screen (Tagin' Dragon) vs. Path of Pain (Hollow Knight)

Match 43 - What's Your Name? (San Fransisco Rush) vs. Pathetic House (Undertale)

Match 44 - Mine: Zew (The Void/Tension) vs. Chocobo Theme (Final Fantasy 2)

Match 45 - Versus Giegue (EarthBound Beginnings) vs. Dragon's Den (Pokémon Gold/Silver)

Match 46 - Great Bay Temple (The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask) vs. Sagat's Theme (Street Fighter 1)

Match 47 - Chocobo Theme (Final Fantasy X-2) vs. Honeylune Ridge (Super Mario Odyssey)

Match 48 - Close in the Distance (Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker) vs. Shrimp Shuffle (Rhythm Heaven Fever)

Match 49 - Desert (Super Mario Bros.) (Super Mario Maker 2) vs. National Anthem (Double Dribble Arcade)

Match 50 - Dubble Bath (DIY Remix) (Splatoon 2) vs. Fun House (Spider-Man the Animated Series)

Match 51 - Options (Sonic Spinball) vs. Welcome to Mario Cars 2 (Mario Cars 2)

Match 52 - Twilit Battle (The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess) vs. Confusion (Digimon World 3)

Match 53 - 25m (Donkey Kong) vs. Buying Goods at Palmira (Evergrace)

Match 54 - Crazy Shuffle Theme (Action 52) vs. Joke's End (Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga)

Match 55 - Treasure Caves (Wild Woody) vs. Long Elevator (Undertale)

Match 56 - Conspiracy (わるだくみ) (Muv Luv) vs. Opening (Sonic Blast 3D 5)

Match 57 - Digital Roots (Deltarune Chapter 2) vs. Lying in the Darkness (Tales of Graces)

Match 58 - Victory Road (Pokémon HeartGold/SoulSilver) vs. Title Music (Manic Miner)

Match 59 - Donut Plains (Super Mario Kart) vs. Nightclub (Sabotaged) (Payday 3)

Match 60 - Credtrap (Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill) vs. Cole Train Rap (Gears of War)

Match 61 - Tragic Prince (Castlevania: Symphony of the Night) vs. Theme of Stardust (Yakuza 2)

Match 62 - Vital (Fornite) vs. Title Screen (Ballz 3D)

Match 63 - Emblem Engage! (Fire Emblem: Engage) vs. Sub-Tree Area (Kirby Super Star)

Match 64 - Maximum Power (After Burner (Amiga)) vs. Imp's Song (DOOM)

Round 2

Match 1 - Lavender Town (Pokémon Red/Blue) vs. K.K. Synth (Animal Crossing: New Leaf)

Match 2 - This is Where You Are Caucasian Destination Boy (Project Sekai: Colorful Stage! feat. Hatsune Miku) vs. Track 6 (The Ring: Terror's Realm)

Match 3 - The Fade (Dragon Age: Origins) vs. Birthday Cake (Jet Set Radio Future)

Match 4 - You've Got to Eat Your Vegetables! (Commander Keen 4) vs. GB Hunter Theme (GB Hunter)

Match 5 - Know What I Mean? (Mario Party 2) vs. The Yoshi Clan (Yoshi's New Island)

Match 6 - Mansion Basement (Resident Evil Director's Cut) vs. Vacation Music 1 (The Sims 1)

Match 7 - Central City (Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood) vs. Title Screen (Crazy Bus)

Match 8 - Striptease (Persona 4) vs. Spookwave (Undertale)

Match 9 - Nocturne (Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood) vs. Diggity Dog (WWF No Mercy (N64))

Match 10 - Versus (Sonic Eraser) vs. 50m (Donkey Kong)

Match 11 - Shadow World (DE DE MOUSE Remix) (Persona 4 Dancing All Night) vs. Survival Instincts Kicking In (Bravely Default II)

Match 12 - Fight Theme 1 (Omikron: The Nomad Soul) vs. Metal Gear MS DOS Soundtrack (Metal Gear MS DOS)

Match 13 - NLA (Night) (Xenoblade Chronicles X) vs. I Love Beijing Tiananmen (Hong Kong 97)

Match 14 - Stage Theme (1942) vs. Din's Power (Harp) (The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword)

Match 15 - Tired of Life (Lady of Beestmeel Bro) vs. Holy Orders? (Guilty Gear XX)

Match 16 - Main Theme (Beverly Hills Cop (PC)) vs. Denegul (Lagoon(SNES))

Match 17 - Crown Dungeon (The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages) vs. Dungeon Man (EarthBound)

Match 18 - Resetti's Theme (Animal Crossing: Wild World) vs. Belly Flop (Splatoon 3)

Match 19 - The Moving Gigantic Ship (Tales of Xillia) vs. Track 7 (Frozen Fruits)

Match 20 - Title Theme (The Adventures of Rad Gravity) vs. Emphasis on Scat (BattleBlock Theater)

Match 21 - Character Select (Marvel vs. Capcom 2) vs. Title Screen (Tagin' Dragon (NES))

Match 22 - What's Your Name? (San Fransisco Rush) vs. Mine: Zew (The Void/Tension)

Match 23 - Versus Giegue (EarthBound Beginnings) vs. Sagat's Theme (Street Fighter 1)

Match 24 - Chocobo Theme (Final Fantasy X-2) vs. Shrimp Shuffle (Rhythm Heaven Fever)

Match 25 - National Anthem (Double Dribble Arcade) vs. Fun House (Spider-Man: The Animated Series)

Match 26 - Welcome to Mario Cars 2 (Mario Cars 2) vs. Confusion (Digimon World 3)

Match 27 - Buying Goods at Palmira (Evergrace) vs. Crazy Shuffle Theme (Action 52)

Match 28 - Treasure Caves (Wild Woody) vs. Opening (Sonic 3D Blast 5)

Match 29 - Lying in the Darkness (Tales of Graces) vs. Title Music (Manic Miner)

Match 30 - Nightclub (Sabotaged) (Payday 3) vs. Credtrap (Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill)

Match 31 - Theme of Stardust (Yakuza 2) vs. Title Screen (Ballz 3D(SNES))

Match 32 - Emblem Engage! (Fire Emblem: Engage) vs. Imp's Song (DOOM)

Round 3

[frickingnerd]

proposing to malos

pairing: malos / logos x gn!reader

a/n: until another xenoblade game drops with malos in it, this is the only way i imagine you get this man to agree to marry you!

malos and you were never even dating to begin with, but you knew that if you wanted him, you had to go all out!

if you had just asked him out on a date, malos wouldn't have taken you seriously. he would've just teased you about it and probably mocked you for the next few weeks

but proposing to him would make him realize that you were serious about him! and if he still wanted to turn you down, then you at least knew what you were at

the ring you prepared for your proposal was a simple one. malos was never the type to like anything cutesy, so you got a simple silver ring!

of course, you proposed to him on the monoceros! while everyone was out, you found a quiet moment to confront malos and pop the question!

at first, he was taken aback when you pulled out the ring and proposed. you had to be joking, right? it was quite the surprise and so sudden too…

but when you doubled down on your proposal and set malos an ultimatum, he realized it wasn't just a joke

that must've been the first time you actually saw him flustered! he wasn't blushing or stuttering, but he was clearly nervous!

after a bit of silence, malos quietly mumbled out a “yes”. yes, he wanted to marry you!

while most couples would've wrapped their arms around each other and passionately kissed, malos only leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss on your forehead

“but don't tell the others yet… i just want to have you for myself for a bit longer…”

[lustfulidols]

The new manager (cont.)

continued from here; for @keyblades-xenoblades-and-more

The younger woman moaned as she felt the other rub against her panties. Her body only pushed her closer to the new manager. Hana panted slightly as they pulled away to breathe. Her chest rose and fell. "I am sorry Ms. Maria~" She whispered, needy desperation in her voice. "I do not know what came over me..." She mumbled her hips still slightly rubbing along the other's member, wanting more. "Please...do not let Kiku know...I would feel so bad." She mumbled mentioning her manager's daughter.

[beyond-dreams]

20 for the selfship kiss ask meme with whatever f/o you want ^^

STARING SO HARD... i have NO idea who i might want to do this with but i think I'm gonna go with Bolearis?? bc I don't talk abt him nearly enough-- more under the cut!

note: this was actually so much fun to write i keep forgetting how much i love writing HDSFJFD

Bolearis/Estil (Xenoblade OC) + First Kiss

It was a day like any other day, really. The hot desert sands of where Colony 4 was located brought about dust and dirt, as well as limited supplies - water being the most important. Estil, ever vigilant in his duties, continued checking the supplies that they did manage to have; sweat covering his brow from the long hours outside.

"Mm..." Estil mumbled to himself, frowning. "Of course we're out of that... and that... where is that damn supply drop..."

"Hey, Estil."

Estil turned around at the sound of Bolearis' voice - his boss and... whatever else they had going on. It was a little tense in Estil's eyes - were they friends? Maybe? But then if they were friends, then why would Bolearis throw his arms around him all the time and -

"Hello? Estil, you in there?"

"Hm-? Oh, sorry, sir. Just a little lost in thought."

"Yeah, I could tell..." Bolearis glanced at the paperwork in Estil's hands. "Still doing supply checks? The drop is supposed to be tomorrow, you know."

"Ah, is it...?"

Bolearis frowned and took a step closer to notice the bags under Estil's eyes and the sweat around their forehead - he also seemed a little faint.

"Hey, are you- woah!" Bolearis began, before catching Estil as he started swaying on his feet. His wings that crowned his head were drooped in exhaustion, and Estil felt incredibly weak.

"S-Sorry, Bolearis... Guess it caught up with me..."

Bolearis looked at the collapsed soldier in his arms with sudden panic in his eyes. Estil's face was pale, his eyes were clenched tight in pain. Pushed himself too hard again... Bolearis thought, electing to carry him back to the shared quarters.

A few hours later, Estil had woken up in his cot, a cool towel pressed against his forehead. The room still spun, but not nearly as bad. He tried to sit up, but another hand gently pushed him back down.

"Sir...?" Estil mumbled, Bolearis' face coming into focus.

"Ah, none of that. Are you okay? The heat really did a number on ya..."

"I'm-"

"And don't say you're fine!" Bolearis retorted, frowning. "You keep workin' yourself too hard..."

He sighed and sat back down on the floor next to Estil's bed. Estil looked away, unsure of how to react. Bolearis was silent for a moment, then he continued: "It isn't just you in the colony, you know. You can pass off jobs if it's too much."

"It's not too much, Bolearis, just..." Estil's wings fluttered as he thought. "The weather isn't the best for me right now, and with the stress of the supplies being scarce..."

Bolearis' expression looked slightly pained - he knew how hard it had been on everyone whenever they were free from the Clock, but pushing forward and trying to survive was their only option.

"I'm sorry, sir, things just got away from me. It won't happen again." Estil said, regaining his sense of surroundings. His head pounded, but at least he didn't feel faint again.

"I told you to quit it with that, Estil..." Bolearis replied, sighing. "You know we're not... that it's... well, it's different. With you, I mean."

"Bolearis..." Estil couldn't look at him. Not in the eye, at least. He had spent countless hours thinking of him, unsure of what was really happening, and for Bolearis to come out and say it...

"Just... take care of yourself better, alright? I don't wanna catch you falling again." Bolearis then stood up, placing his hand on the towel that lay on Estil's forehead. "Oh, it's warm. Are you... sure you're feeling okay?"

Bolearis moved the towel and placed his hand on Estil's forehead. Estil's wings fluttered almost in protest, but he didn't say anything. "Y-Yeah, I'm fine."

"Okay, if you're sure." Bolearis leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to Estil's forehead. Estil's eyes widened - the moment lasted for only a split second, but it felt like a lifetime. Bolearis pulled away from him and began to walk out of the sleeping quarters.

All Estil could do was watch him leave, still trying to process everything and - wait.

Were they friends or not!?

[dealiainstitute]

protection from night terrors

closed roleplay for @keyblades-xenoblades-and-more; Emma x Maria

Emma was having night terrors again. This was something that she started to have often. Teachers wished to help but the only one that she trusted was her adoptive mother Maria. She walked to the other's staff room and knocked on the door. The young purple-haired girl was in nothing but a nightgown. Her dark locks are a mess around her face. "Mama Maria..." She mumbled in a soft voice that was filled with fear. wet lines of tears that ran down her face. "I am sorry to disturb you..." She mumbled softly.

[matt-lifesage]

been walking around in circles for like almost an hour mumbling and theory-crafting to myself about the Xenoblade 3 DLC i'm losing it, gang

[rozyduskion]

It feels so good to hear the L1 trigger work again.

NOW I CAN PLAY XENOBLADE CHRONICLES 2 WITH CHUGGAACONROY!!!!

I had no idea that other people thought the tutorials were confusing as well, never played the game past.... The Green Gem thing in the town you find the wanted posters in... I didn't even find out who was the final boss of that town.

I never looked up spoilers though, I had a feeling Emile would do a playthrough and explain things better, so I waited.

I think it's been 2 or 3 years since I received the Definitive Edition.

[rikitravels]

Umm hi! I just wanted to ask if you take drawing requests or suggestions from other folks. And apologies if i'm bothering.

Hiya! Sorry for putting your request for Concept Art Pneuma off for so long ... Here is my attempt and take on it. I may continue with it later ... some year ... but for now I think it’s ok ... Thanks for suggesting something for me to draw.

[troofless]

Thoughts on Xenoblade Chronicles 3

So I recently completed Xenoblade Chronicles 3 and my overall review is that I enjoyed it less than 1 and 2, and even then those games had its problems. Maybe if I actually played the game I’d grow to like it a bit better (I watched my sister play the game) but I highly doubt it.

Gameplay:

I’m not a fan of realtime combat but from what I can see the combat is just Attack -> Use arts -> Chain Attack -> Rinse and repeat. Of course there’s other gimmicks like buffs and debuffs and the Break combo and Ouroboros and Soul Hacker... but Chain Attack is so ridiculously overpowered nothing else matters. Seriously. Also the Chain Attack music overriding every solemn boss battle fight - hell, even the final boss fight in some sections! - kinda sucks.

Story:

Oh boy! This sucks ass! Let’s get into it.

The first chapter already showed some major red flags right from the start. Unlike 1 and 2, where we had time to meet each new character and get acclimated to them before a new party member showed up, I feel this game shoots itself in the foot by introducing Mio, Taion, and Sena (and Manana, sure) all at one go. FOUR new characters. And all four of them immediately adapt and become buddies with the origin trio (and Riku) - with absolutely no conflict whatsoever. Barring the first scene where Lanz rightfully throws a fit over working with past enemies, there’s no other time where any of the members are put off by the other side, not even an inkling of prejudice or whatsoever. Like, I know I hated how racist Rinwell was in Arise, but you seriously couldn’t have given us a few moments of conflict? It all felt so unnatural.

They’re given their Magical Girl Gundam (Vandham) powers, and then we meet Moebius, who is just a knockoff Mumkhar. Moebius brings some levity into the situation by killing off a bunch of NPCs we were totally invested in and totally did not know were going to die (and apparently are going to come back as DLC so there’s that. I swear no one can stay dead in this game it’s such a turnoff). Moebius turns the main characters into the enemy of the world and Moebius and the casts run away from their Colonies. (By the way, at this point the Moebius we met? Was actually Joran and D. Fucking JORAN was there. We’ll come to this later.)

The game then starts to play a stupid ass game of Whose Turn Is It To Catch The Character Development Ball, as we cycle through Lanz, Taion, Sena, and Eunie’s arcs, most of which are just shoved in our face just to create small ‘filler’ arcs on their journey to Sword March. 

Lanz: I like Joran a lot, but ultimately Joran brings up more problems than he solves.

Taion: Isurd and the horned girl’s dying as a backstory was okay until the game decided that Isurd needed to play the bad guy for a while before revealing that Isurd was controlled and not bad all along! And also that Taion was a coward back when he was young.

Sena: She has literally ZERO character arc until halfway through the game. She is blander than fricking corn starch.

Eunie: It was so obvious that Eunie’s character arc was filler. We already know (or suspected) that dying and reincarnating was a thing because of the first part of the sequence where the Masked Melia regrows fully grown humans from a pod instead of birthing them. Her remembering her past lives is literally never explained, by the way. She just remembers D and freaks out for half of a pointless chapter before somehow overcoming it through the power of Eunie Personality and saving the day because she’s kickass, I guess. 

Noah and Mio get some romantic moments where they talk... but not really. It’s mainly Noah talking about his sword and Mio foreshadowing that she’s going to die really soon. The only romantic moment is when they exchange flutes, but other than that their romantic relationship feels shoehorned in, unlike Rex and Pyra/Mythra (Rex’s speech about Pyra not being a weapon during his second encounter with Morag and the arm bandaging sequence was cute and so defining) and Shulk and Fiora (That’s Dunban Over There and the kiss...).

Then we meet Ethel, arguably the most badass character in existence but has one of the worst character arcs in the game. I feel so sorry for her because she was done so dirty. Ethel serves as a great introduction to how powerful Moebius can be... but also how inexplicably DUMB and BORING Moebius as a villainous cast are. The moment we killed the Moebius I knew this game was going repeat the same formula over and over again like Jojo Part 3. Whose Moebius’s turn is it to die next? What special powers did they have? Oh look, they’re dead. We slash the Flame Clock. There was no tension to the villains at all that it’s honestly pathetic. 

Next up is Isurd, who is mid but introduces Joran as the best villain in the game. The TRUE Mumkhar and a truly satisfying morally grey villain, I loved it every time Joran came up and confronted Lanz, showing how Lanz changed because of Joran. (And then Noah gets all the good bits with Joran for some fucking reason like fuck off Lanz was the most emotionally impacted by Joran’s death he should have been the one to convince Joran to stop being evil-) 

We then storm the Keves Castle to smash the Annihilator, and most likely the Flame Clock and kill Melia while we’re at it. Because of course it’s not going to be just a sneak mission. (It was not a sneak mission.) Meanwhile Mio is marching closer to her end date and sparking a ton of death flags but we ignore it.  

We kill a bunch more Moebius in the process and find out that being in Ouroboros form past the limit results in an Annihilation event - which, by the way, in the end of the story, is never truly explained. Moebius form is supposedly a perfect form of Ouroboros, which is a mix of Keves and Agnus who are said to be imperfect forms but Nia says that Ouroboros exists outside the flow that Z controls so technically Ouroboros form should be a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT FORM from Moebius form. And that’s not even bringing in that ‘All of us have Moebius in us’ bit. 

Ethel and Cammu (who idgaf about) die in a horribly scripted death after having a stupid ass revelation that they want to die killing each other while the real enemy lay before them. They could have killed off the real enemy, who was threatening their Colony, but for some reason these two commanders who have been known to be be good commanders that treasure their Colony... decide to kill each other for kicks. Yes, and they don’t even justify it with anything like ‘if we die then they won’t be able to threaten our Colony’. No, the two of them just kill each other because ‘we’re free now :D :D’. Even Noah comments how stupid their deaths were. 

We destroy the Annihilator and of course we defeat Moebius DJ who retreat. Then in the middle of escaping we stumble into the Throne Room and meet Melia and fake Noah. We find out Melia was a fake! Hooray, the real Melia is good after all! HONESTLY THIS WAS SUCH A DISAPPOINTMENT. I would have much preferred that Melia and Nia be evil, but to find out that they were being controlled was kinda anticlimatic especially since the trailer hypes them up to be villains. Fake Gold Cheap Knockoff Edgy Noah busts out the Sword, but the Lost Numbers then bust into the Throne Room and save the day, leaving the main cast to scatter and continue on their way to Sword March. Hooray.

We then meet the absoulte MILF Monica, who leads us to the City. We get a lore dump but in an okay engaging kind of way. This portion of the story was okay-interesting. We get a breather from Moebius bullshit and see a glimpse of how the ‘rightful flow’ of things are in the City, as well a confer a renewed goal until the main cast to defeat Moebius and set things to right like the City. 

Next is saving Ghondor, the absolute amazing GOAT. I love Ghondor, she’s amazing. But Shania decides to betray us for the motivation of wanting to reborn and have a better lot in the next life... except that’s kinda dumb, because once you die the core part that makes up you is... lost? So the person in your next life isn’t you anymore? This was literally the struggle of Blades in the second game? So what’s the point? Also, this part is kinda dampened with the knowledge later on that in Joran’s case a rebirth doesn’t exactly mean you’ll do better in life AND in fact shows no proof that Shania won’t be a loser when she’s reborn. (I didn’t do Sena’s Ascension quest because I didn’t want to see more of Shania btw. I think she did fine as a secondary villain that died.) 

N and M reveal themselves to be Noah and Mio past incarnations that exist somehow. Also M shows off her neat powers. Cool... I guess. And Taion brings up the Mondo and says something about the Mondo targeting people possessed by M, except this isn’t reflected in gameplay at all so you even wonder what’s the point of that except to show that the game had to somehow deus ex machina a way for M’s powers to be nerfed without invalidating the existence of it because it has to exist so Mio can swap consciousness with her later on in the fight, and.... ugh.

They get captured and sent to jail. Boohoo. Noah shows emotion for the first time in forever. Shania comes and gloats. Then execution day arrives and the big twist arrives - that M and Mio have swapped consciousness. N freaks out and we defeat him with the power of friendship and save the day once again.

Next is saving Nia. (Miyabi’s quest was a thing along the way but fuck Miyabi. How did we have her as a Hero but not Joran???? Fuck Miyabi.)

Moebius DJ appear and snipe Nia, and Mio’s only explanation for not foreseeing this was ‘I’m sorry guys I should have known Z was monitoring me’. So somehow Z knew Mio teleported to the City to warn Monica and Ghondor and didn’t tell anyone, but he told DJ about Nia. How very convenient plot powers. Nia comes back from her stupid fakeout death and loredumps all over us the true nature of this world, a revelation that the previous two games only did at the very end of the game, so that was a thing I guess. She tasks us with storming Origin, the final dungeon of the place, and saving Melia and killing Z. Cool.

Let’s just forget the stupid sideplot about building the ship to dive into the sea because by the end of the game apparently the City has built enough ships to send a fucking army down there so I guess they had a whole ass supply of Origin Metal they didn’t want to share with us and made us go on a long ass sidequest for it.

We do just that and free Melia, and note that throughout all this Z JUST LETS IT HAPPEN, DESPITE BEING LAUDED AS AN OMNIPOTENT GOD OF THIS WORLD. 

We also meet Crys but fuck Crys. Dude appears as Moebius for one fucking scene as foreshadowing and dies just as quickly. One major reason I hate this game is that dead people can never stay dead which massively takes away the emotional toll I felt looking back at the characters’ backstories and how their deaths were supposed to change them and spur on their growth. XBC1 did it once with Fiora, and 2 did it once at the end with Pyra/Mythra, but this game did it with Joran, Mio, Miyabi, Crys, Shania (apparently), Ethel(?) and Lanz and Sena (almost when they went past the limit once until X nerfed them). I get that this game is about life so themes of reincarnation is to be expected, but the game also heavily pushes that reincarnation and playing with lives is bad, so bringing back all these dead characters really confuses what the main message is supposed to be. 

We also meet X and Y who have an introduction cutscene but no death cutscene because the game knew we didn’t give a shit about them.

We then kill Z who has like five different forms and stupid stage gimmicks that don’t add to the epic gameplay experience and also it’s really fucking stupid how he teleports above the theatre every time just to spawn a barrier but the moment he teleports back we break it with a scripted chain attack anyway. We also get to kill X and Y again, as if to really hammer in the fact that they were really high up in the Moebius hierarchy, apparently. (Did I mention that Z has no scene where he shows that he has bonds with the other Moebius or that they respect or him as the ones who made them Moebius? Because Z is just a concept and not a human being but the rest of the Moebius are? Fuck Z. Seriously.)

We finally get Melia and Nia as heroes and we save the day, 

Yay! But wait, not really. M and N die but not before they spout a fucking long ass monologue where Noah cries and tells them they can live but M and N are like nah fuck that if Joran can’t live then we who have killed millions don’t deserve to either and fuck off into the void. And also the two worlds are splitting apart, meaning Noah and Mio are going to be separated. Okay. And also the scene where Taion gives Eunie a notebook about tea? Absolutely ruined by the fact that at the end of the game the world reverts back to before the collision happens and Noah, Eunie and Lanz have no memory of having fought together meaning they have essentially all died. Very good ending I see.

Fuck this game’s story, seriously...

Main Characters:

Noah as a main character is kinda flat... until you realise the whole point of his role in the story is to act as a foil for N. 

Noah is calm and rational, and the de facto leader of the trio. His relationships with Eunie and Lanz are really nice to see and these three honestly feel like comrades with how they look out for each other and care for each other when they look like they’re feeling down. But he doesn’t have any moment with Taion and Sena other than when discussing where to go next on a journey with Taion, the other de factor leader of his trio, and his relationship with them feels more like a coworkers kinda situation, which for the main protagonist is already raising some alarm bells. 

His motivations are vague at best. He’s shown to really hate killing people, at least moreso than the rest of his friends, which leads him to accept his role as Ouroboros quickly at the start of the game. We’re quickly shown that he’s meant to like Mio as the main het pairing of the game. And he wants to take down Moebius to bring back a choice to everyone, which is all nice and good but is incredibly impersonal and unrelatable to the player. 

And for some reason he wields the Sword of Origin, which is... different or the same? From Lucky Seven? Which was given to him by Riku, who takes the mentor role in the game but has no significance to the plot whatsoever other than to give Noah cryptic advice when he’s feeling lost and to give the players a reason why Noah got the Sword of Origin to begin with? Which can somehow slash Flame Clocks and cut through anything in existence? You know, it was really unclear. 

Past main protagonists get their motivation from obtaining the Xenoblade - Shulk gets the Monado and goes on a journey for revenge, Rex gets the Aegis and goes on a journey to Elysium to fulfill his promise with Pyra. And Noah... just has the Xenoblade from the start, given to him by Riku. In fact I’d go so much to say that the Ouroboros Egg is more of a Xenoblade than Lucky Seven or the Sword of Origin/End, but... eh. Also when Noah throws the Xenoblade away at the end of the game the effect is kinda lost when you realise that 1. He can just rematerialise it (assuming Blade powers aren’t lost because Z is dead) and 2. It would have been much more impactful if he’d just thrown away Lucky Seven instead.

Mio is bland and uninteresting. She has a sad backstory about Miyabi which is nice until you realise Miyabi isn’t fucking dead, and that’s about all she has going for her. She’s a combat genius that grew to realise the weight of life and the importance of her duty as an off-seer. Also, she loves Noah. And again, is just there to serve as the romantic interest and conflict for N later on and M dying. Very bland hope indeed.

Lanz is amazing. Tough beefcake guy, Reyn Number Two. Agonises over Joran’s death. His ideals of strength is so obviously compromised after Joran dies and it’s so evident how he changes and mellows out after Joran’s death. That alone is enough to make him a good character and his moments with J are the most of his part in the game. A shame that Noah gets to claim most of the talk no jutsu bit.

Sena is so. Bland. Why did it get so long to get to her character story? We find that she’s secretly hiding an inferiority complex and puts up a facade of being a cheerful go-getter chipper genki girl but is actually really depressed behind it. Except that she doesn’t even show the genki part very well. Every time she’s shown before her character arc explanation, she’s always paired up with Mio and calling her Mimi. That’s it that’s her character she’s just friends with Mio and calls her Mimi and looks up to her. Her being friends with Shania was nice and when she rejects Shania and says they’re nothing alike is amazing. But throughout the game, Sena leans too far into the nice unassuming girl most of the time that we don’t get a glimpse into her inner self at all. We could have had moments where she breaks character and relapses to her true self, but nope. She’s just plain old boring Sena whose only trait that stands out is ‘One more for the road’ and ‘Yippee!’ and doing training exercises with Lanz around the campfire everytime a cutscene happens at night.

Taion is one of the better fleshed out characters. Because he’s the de facto leader and tactician of the group he naturally has more important moments in the game, but it’s also charming to see his dorky side come out occasionally like with the baby or at the end of the game with Eunie and the ‘at least let me be second or third...’. He should snark back at Eunie more often honestly to make the friendly banter more natural, but most of the time it’s just Eunie taking potshots at him which makes the relationship less interesting.

Eunie, huh... I don’t like Eunie because she’s just a carbon copy of Nia but a thousand times worse. Everyone likes her though and her snarky bits lighten up the mood during scenes but the fact that no one comments on it makes the moments fall a bit flat on its tone. Where’s banter like Nia and Zeke, or Tora or Riku Nopon goofy moments? I get that this game is supposed to be more subdued but geez. Overall, the group dynamics are not fun at all to play around with.

Riku is the mentor character of the game and is a total tsundere. He gets a few moments at the start of the game and then none at all nearing the end of the game after telling Noah he could have drawn Lucky Seven all this time. 

Manana only exists for the Tirkins stealing their food plot and the food buffs mechanic, which is apparently a scam, so... lol? 

Main Villains:

Z: Fuck Z. Dude literally explained that his motivations were to grant the inner wishes of the world for the endless now and give people an equal chance of winning through rebirth... and then threw that all away to say that he made both sides kill each other because it amused him. Pick a side, bitch. Fuck you.

Fake Gold Ass Noah: Why he and Noah are separate beings are really unclear. Why was Noah reborn? When Noah became N technically he should have been cut from the flow (like I assume Joran and Dirk were) but Noah was reborn. The game never explains it, only saying vague things like Noah and Mio were born from hope while N and M were born from regret.

Joran: Amazing backstory. I love him. The moments we are shown of him as a kind soul with an inferiority complex, leading up to his heroic death as someone who had surpassed Lanz and the rest was amazing. The fact that he was  obviously twisted by Moebius and its power resulting in a god complex personality that struggles with his remnants of who he was before shown how he keeps visiting Lanz Noah and Eunie and talking to them is amazing. How he was given a chance to stop being evil and he hesitated, was amazing. What was not amazing was how he was shown that he could be more than this... and he chose to fucking die a heroic death. Again. Fuck you, game. We could have had Joran as a seventh party member and it would have been amazing. It would have made sense.

Shania: I love how Shania has an inferiority complex and grew up imitating strong people around her, and her misunderstanding Ghondor led to them growing apart and her eventually thinking that she was better off not existing and leaving her lot to the next life. The way she committed suicide was natural, but... did she like not stop to think for a moment that with the Agnus Castle taken over and the Queen being revealed to be a fake, there was no way for her to be reborn since the Queen is supposed to be the one rebirthing people, AND the Moebius all fled meaning she has no reason to trust that they would rebirth her herself, or am I missing something?

Worldbuilding:

Honestly it was unclear and multiple points feel like the game was trying too hard to mesh 1 and 2 colliding as a plot point and a whole new worldbuilding with Z’s reincarnation plot point that it came out like a mess of spaghetti. Nia can just create the Ouroboros Stones! The Sword of Origin just exists! Was probably built by a bunch of Nopon! Origin was hijacked by a concept! 

Sidequests:

I love Zeon’s Ascension Quest. I love Kite. I think Juniper is cute and her Colony makes sense and is literally the better version of whatever Ethel (and Cammu) had going on with their ‘we have a choice!’ thing. I love Ghondor and Monica. I hate Fiona’s quest and I just hate Miyabi period.

Overall:

I enjoyed this game less than I did its predecessors. Gameplay wise it looks great, the UI looks smooth, I hate how the Menu Theme cuts off the overworld music, no driver combos means Chain Attacks make the game too easy, Hero grinding is boring, story has many plotholes and I was honestly not engaged at all from the moment we killed the first Moebius and held no special attachment to any of the main characters. Also it’s canon that Rex fucks all three of them.

Peace out.

[snowbellecafe]

Pandoria needs to learn how to appreciate the amazing butch lesbian that is Mòrag

[frickingnerd]

getting injured while protecting jin

pairing: jin x gn!reader

tags: stealing, mentions of death/murder, you get stabbed, mentions of blood, mentions of injuries, you & jin are members of torna, spoiler for xenoblade chronicles 2

it wasn't supposed to be a big deal

you two would enter the ship, steal the core crystals and kill everyone on board

you were supposed to stay behind jin and let him do the dirty work, while you focus on getting the core crystals

but you just had to be so stupid and try to protect jin, while he was fighting the guards

he could've taken care of them himself, he knew it. but you wanted to help him and now look where that got you

you got stabbed below your collarbone, your top drenched in your own blood

when jin saw you collapse onto the floor and all the blood running down your torso, he was expecting the worst

suddenly, he felt just as helpless as he did when lora died in his arms

he had always been so calm and composed, but suddenly he was clinging onto you, tears flowing down his cheeks

and all he could think about was 'this is it. they're going to die too and i won't be able to save them…'

jin was gritting his teeth as he watched you squirm in pain

this wasn't supposed to happen! you should've just focused on your part of the plan! 

"you're an idiot! letting yourself get injured for nothing–!!" he huffed at you, as he pressed his hands onto your wound, causing you to yelp in pain

"it… wasn't for nothing" you mumble quietly. "it was for you…"

you smiled at him and jin only felt himself get more angry. how could you smile in a situation like this? weren't you terrified of dying?

"i'm a flesheater. i can heal myself, but you can't! i'm the stronger one! i'm… i'm supposed to protect you–!!" he raised his voice and glared at you

without saying a word, you reached out to him, tapping your fingers against his mask – against the part that was hiding his red core crystal

"you're not as strong as you were with her around… let me help you, jin…"

you were right. he really wasn't as strong as he was with lora by his side. he was unstable and could collapse if he used his powers too much

but still… he couldn't accept your help! not if it meant you were getting hurt in his place…

[lustfulidols]

New manager

Closed starter for @keyblades-xenoblades-and-more

Hana sniffled and wiped her face when she noticed the new manager walking in. She kind of knew her so she did not hide the sad look on her face. It was her friend's mother after all. She felt safe around the other. "I am sorry miss...can I talk to you alone?" She asked and sat down on the couch in the break room. "I have....been having issues with certian fans..." she mumbled and looked down, ready to cry once more. "Am I pretty even if I am not as thin as the other girls?" She asked and glanced up at the motherly woman.

[kiryuclan]

i don’t mean to brag, but i think my wallpaper is pretty valid

[tickly-tufts]

Morning Activities

so i was tasked with writing more xenoblade by a fellow tk blogger, and from the potential ideas i was given, i went with meliora fluff

this takes place post-game so pretty big spoilers get brought up

hopefully i interpreted the prompt correctly and also kept them in character!

---

Melia was the first to wake, opening her eyes to find dawn peaking in. Sunbeams stretched across the bed, landing upon its two occupants. The High Entia smiled upon seeing her companion illuminated softly by the warm light. Fiora always looked radiant in the morning, and Melia never grew tired of seeing her.

“Good morning,” Melia greeted a few moments later when Fiora finally stirred from her slumber. Fiora yawned softly, blinking sleep from her eyes, making Melia’s heart flutter with fondness. Melia reached out to push her hair back from where it obscured part of her face. The gesture earned her a small giggle, the sound coming out sweet yet startled.

“Hehehey... Good morning to you, too,” Fiora greeted back once she’d composed herself. Though her reaction was clearly affectionate, Melia knew there was more to it. She couldn’t possibly have missed the way Fiora rubbed at the side of her neck. Specifically, the spot her own hair had brushed when Melia had moved it ever so gently.

“You’re so sensitive,” Melia couldn’t resist saying. “And to think you had the nerve to tease me.”

“You always had the cutest reactions,” Fiora countered, now fully awake.

“I did not.”

“You definitely did.”

Melia pouted as Fiora smirked. 

Deciding to take the exchange as a challenge, Melia huffed, then ducked under the sheets. Fiora jumped when she felt hands on her hips, followed by fingers dancing up her sides.

“Meheliahahaha!” she nearly squealed, jolting in shock at the unexpected attack. Melia pinched and poked at her torso, reveling in the response it evoked.

Compared to all the times Fiora had tickled her, Melia still hadn’t paid her back in full. However, it didn’t take long to notice that Fiora wasn’t putting up that much of a struggle. In fact, she might’ve even been trying to hold still, which only piqued Melia’s curiosity further. Deciding that it would be easiest to just ask, she emerged from the covers, expression curious.

“You don’t seem to be fighting me... Did you actually want me to tickle you?”

Blushing slightly, Fiora hesitated, then mumbled a confession into her pillow.

“Maybe... um... maybe a little... I think I missed the way it felt.” It hadn’t been long since she’d recovered her body. Melia instantly softened in sympathy.

For most of the time they’d known each other, Fiora had barely resembled a Homs. It had certainly surprised Melia at first, seeing a Homs face attached to a mechanized body. However, it didn’t take Melia long to reorient herself and grow accustomed to the form. When she really thought about it, though, it must have been far more jarring for Fiora.

What must it have been like to regain consciousness and find so much flesh replaced by metal? Melia couldn’t even imagine the shock, or how she could have begun to cope with it. What must it have felt like? How had Fiora adapted? Naturally, Melia knew she was strong, but the mental fortitude it must have taken...

“Fiora, all you had to do was ask.” Her tone was sincere without any hint of judgement. Fiora let out a sigh of relief, losing some of the tension in her muscles.

“Although,” Melia went on to say, allowing mischief to enter her voice, “I suppose that’s a rather dangerous request, especially when you’re as ticklish as you are.”

Fiora did squeal when Melia’s nails suddenly made contact with her bare stomach. Reflexively, she started scooting backwards, nearly pushing herself off the bed.

“Now, now, don’t tell me you’re running,” Melia teased as she followed the movement. Making sure Fiora wouldn’t fall off, Melia wrapped an arm around her waist. “Don’t worry, I’ll be nice,” she promised before she officially commenced. Fiora giggled but didn’t move again when Melia resumed her previous ministrations.

Spirals, hearts, nonsensical patterns... Melia traced them all against Fiora’s skin. Fiora trembled beneath every ticklish touch, almost pulling away again when Melia circled her navel.

“Ehehehe! Meliahahaha!” she called out aimlessly, earning another look of endearment.

“Yes, what is it?” Melia answered because she could. “While your laugh is simply adorable, I can barely understand you through it.”

“I dohohon’t- ahahahahahaha!” Fiora didn’t finish her sentence. Truth be told, even she didn’t know what she wanted to say in that moment.

Slowly, Melia made her way upwards, revisiting Fiora’s sides with the lightest graze of her fingertips. When she eventually reached her ribcage, she made sure to take her time, massaging each and every rib, bringing forth a new flood of giggles.

“Nohoho!” Fiora protested just as Melia reached the top.

“Are you going to let me continue, or have you finally had enough?” Though Melia maintained a tone of playfulness, Fiora could hear an undercurrent of sincerity. She hardly even entertained the question before relaxing both of her arms. 

Melia accepted the invitation.

“Mmmmehehehehehehe!” Fiora twitched and tittered as Melia tapped at her hollows. Despite her best efforts, her arms jerked a few times as her body urged her clamp them down. Still, she managed to persevere, allowing Melia continued access. Melia tickled right under her arms with the gentlest of touches she could offer.

Eventually, when they both seemed satisfied, Melia decided to switch spots again. Thinking back to how the morning had started, she leaned in to nuzzle at Fiora’s neck. Fiora immediately flinched in surprise, then felt a wing brush lightly against her cheek. She couldn’t tell if the latter action was intentional, though the combination of sensations was certainly effective.

Curling her fists into the bedsheet, Fiora managed to endure the tickling for about a minute more. Once that minute had passed, however, she called for mercy, having reached her limit.

“Are you alright?” Melia inquired, ceasing as soon she heard the request. She shifted back a bit to give Fiora space, though Fiora was quick to take hold of her hand.

“Yes... I’m fine,” Fiora reassured. “Just need a moment to catch my breath... Thank you, by the way, for... all of that...”

“My pleasure,” Melia murmured, placing a kiss on her cheek.