#like genuinely the only way i can see goro being happy and behaving himself is if he has ryuji there too

[samarecharm]

Would love to explore some more shu/ake dynamics bc theyre both so interesting to me. Interesting as in they would not be in a traditional relationship; theyd be so incredibly dysfunctional it would genuinely get either of them killed if they were to attempt something prior to the end of base game. Goro is angry and volatile and full of self righteousness, but he is incredibly depressed and miserable and full of self loathing. Hes someone who has been alone for most of his life, and has an incredibly complex relationship with his public facing persona and his goals; he is not ready for someone who will make him challenge his worldview at every chance they can. He refuses to be patronized but he needs someone who will be gentle and understanding. And hell never get that in a normal way bc he views someone being gentle with him as patronizing 😭

So he needs someone who will actively call him out on his bullshit, on his self loathing, and his attitude. But he also needs someone who will be patient with him and remind him that he IS worth something, that hes NOT a failure (hello??? ‘Im…special?’’youre more than special dude’ it was so easy for the thieves to get to him by just validating the work he did, and the trouble hes caused them lol). Akira CAN do this, but i think, w the way ive characterized him, he is just as angry and volatile as Goro, and he wouldnt know how to diffuse their arguments in a productive way. It would be catastrophic as Akira tries to show that he fucking CARES, and goes blind w rage as Goro consistently taunts and defies him and ignores his logic. And Goro would spiral trying to rationalize Akiras behavior as anything other than Good; the assumption that he must be lying and trying to manipulate him would eat at him until hes forced to storm out.

Anyway. All of this to say that shu/ake TO ME is “akira and ryuji are dating, and sometimes goro is there in the background looking like this 👇🏾”

#chattin #that last addition is a joke but also its not #like genuinely the only way i can see goro being happy and behaving himself is if he has ryuji there too #and like. ryuji cares. alot. he cares sm about everyone . hes got a BIGASS HEART #<- blatant ryugoro apologist here #so its not exactly a polycule; but it is a friends w benefits adjacent thing #like a qpr with him. do u feel me? #the timeline for all my au stuff is a little bit later than whats presented in the game (by only a year) #so like. by the end of the game. and akiras palace shenanigans #and the whole thang w strikers #goro would be way more adjusted and less explosive and unstable about things #but in order to get there; it takes alot of work #the moral of this is that ryuji is struggling w akira and his issues too. and he is the grounding force for him #and it makes sense that that would work on goro too lol #ann is also like this; which is why i think she would be the person goro relaxes around the most before the others #she and ryuji are blunt and not afraid to tell it like it is. but they are also incredibly nice and lovely #and they do not hold back on compliments either. #its them being so honest; and that honesty also containing a wealth of positivity that makes it difficult for goro to keep the mask on #weugh #anyway #shuake #<- tagging this for blacklisting and not bc i enjoy sending out a call to all shuakes in the area. i am afraid of them #and hoping that keeping the tag at the end prevents it from going in the main tag #even though i know tumblr tagging is horrendous and it will appear there anyway ☠️