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aliceslantern · 4 years

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Grow, a Kingdom Hearts fanfic, chapter 3

Suddenly human and abandoned in the Keyblade Graveyard, Demyx struggles to survive and come to terms with what his life is. Only by chance is he saved from exposure, and brought to Radiant Garden to recover. Unsure of who he is and where to even begin, Demyx finds a kindred spirit in Ienzo, and before long finds perhaps he isn't the only one lost in this new life. But how can they move forward with so much holding them back?

Roughly canonverse, Zemyx, hurt/comfort. Started for Zemyx day (9/6). Updates Wednesdays until it's done.

Chapter summary: Newly recovered, Demyx tries to figure out what he wants from this life.

Read it on FF.net/on AO3

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Demyx was getting used to being prodded by Even. He checked on him at least once a day. The more time passed, the more often Demyx looked forward to it, because at least he was someone to talk to. As long as he was tethered, he couldn’t really go anywhere by himself.

“Admittedly I know little about ophthalmology,” Even said, staring deep into his eyes with the same penlight. “These should help. I had Ansem print them for me.” He handed Demyx a pair of glasses.

“...Ansem?”

“Oh--right. I don’t believe you’ve had the pleasure of meeting.” His lip curled. “The former king of Radiant Garden. This is his castle.” His tone was bitter.

Demyx only knew a little about the story of the apprentices from his time in the Organization, and that he suspected was embellished. “So is he, like, your boss?”

“No,” Even said shortly. “He was our mentor--in the past, anyway. Now we work together.”

“With Kairi.”

“Yes. Try those, will you? I have to get back down there soon.”

Demyx put them on. After days of blurriness, to have clarity back was odd. “Whoa. HD.”

“I had to hazard a guess at the strength.”

“No, they’re fine.” He blinked.

“Well, that just means the poor vision has nothing to do with what you went through.” He shook his head. “One less thing to worry about.”

“You must be busy.”

“Idle hands make the devil’s work,” Even said absently. Then, “well… I suppose busy hands do too.”

“What do you guys do down there?” He swung his legs back and forth a little.

“You know of the princesses of heart, yes? Kairi’s one of them. We’re hoping given her connection to Sora, and the special properties of a heart of light, we might be able to find answers as to where that boy is. If he is.” A pause, then, “I don’t know why I’m telling you this, it’s not like you understand.”

Demyx shrugged, trying to hide how he was stung.

“Regardless, it is a concrete goal to work towards… and for that I’m thankful.”

He turned away. With his newly sharpened vision, Demyx could see more acutely the lines around his eyes, the gray mixed into his blond hair. He looked exhausted. “Thanks, Ev,” he said. “Do you know how much longer I’m gonna need this?” Gesturing to the port in his hand.

“Even,” he corrected, then sighed. “I suppose you have a point… your last labs were the best yet. If you’re up and about you can take care of yourself.”

“Yeah. Plus I’m kind of going insane sitting here for so long.” He offered a hesitant smile.

Even considered. He went over to the sink, washed his hands, put on gloves, and grabbed some gauze. “I’m afraid this may hurt,” he said.

Demyx had thought it was just a needle, but it was more of a thin tube inside of his vein due to how long they’d thought he’d have it. Removing it did hurt a lot, and he swore out loud. But once it was gone… despite his throbbing hand… he felt so much lighter. “Can I walk around?” he asked. “Can I do stuff?”

“So long as you are careful. ”

“Thank you!” He leapt to his feet and pulled Even into a hug; he jerked as though he’d been shocked.

“Please do not touch me,” he hissed in a completely different tone. There was something dark and closed off in his eyes, more than his typical sharpness.

“I’m sorry--I’m just so glad.”

“Yes. Quite. Well.” He left without so much of a backwards glance.

Demyx bit his lip. He hadn’t meant anything by it. It was just a hug, right? He’d apologize again later when Even checked on him.

It was time to get out of this room. Apparently this place served as a sort of infirmary for the castle, though nobody else had had to come down here. It had its own bathroom, so Demyx hadn’t even needed to cross its threshold. Leaving felt odd, but it wasn’t like he was in prison.

The hallways down here were dark, without windows, sconces providing the only light. The carpeting was thick, heavy, and needed a good clean; it squished uncomfortably under his slippers. He wandered for a while, mentally taking stock every now and again so he would be able to find his way back. The layout was weird, putting it lightly, and he could see places where the castle had been renovated, or added on-to, architecture and design clashing oddly. Apparently the apprentices had all lived here in the heyday--they must live here now. It wasn’t like Demyx was a stranger to living in castles, but this one felt so much more real and old than the one in the World that Never Was. He ran his fingers along the crown moulding, touched the lamps when he saw them. This place must’ve once been nice, but it was dirty, and in a state of relative disrepair.

Would this be his home now?

The thought was jarring, and he stopped in his tracks. Pushed the glasses up his nose. The better he physically got, the more apparent it was that he had nowhere to go and nobody. No friends, no family. Hadn’t Lea and Isa just extended that invitation to be nice? Did they really mean what they said?

A weepiness came over him, and he bit it back. He felt like he’d been buffering for so long, going here nor there in his life? What did he want? Who was he really? The more he thought about it, the less Demyx felt like the self he’d been as little as two weeks ago. Was he changing? Becoming “different”?

All these thoughts were giving him anxiety.

He wandered for a little while longer, coming across a section that seemed a bit cleaner than the others. There was wood flooring here, not carpeting, and Demyx could see some old windows in the walls. A few swatches of paint were here and there. He saw a few doors here and there and tried one on impulse; it was open. He could just barely see bedroom furniture, a small rose bush in a pot by a window--

“What are you doing snooping around?”

The voice startled him; he yelped and clutched at his chest, the new glasses falling to the floor. Demyx scrambled to pick them up. Slowly, he turned and saw Dilan, Xaldin’s Somebody, in a blue uniform. Frowning. “I’m sorry,” he stuttered. “I didn’t know… I’m guessing this is your room, then?”

“...Quite,” he said gruffly. “And I’d appreciate it if you didn’t go barging into spaces you haven’t been invited to.”

“Of course. Yeah.”

There was a pause. His hair was neater than Xaldin’s, Demyx realized, and was his skin a bit darker.

“I didn’t know you guys lived here,” Demyx continued. “I was just… taking a look around.”

“You’re up on your feet, then?”

“Well. Obviously.” He cleared his throat a little. “I haven’t been able to leave that room for like a week.” A wry laugh.

“Ienzo told me what happened.” Dilan shook his head. “What a cruel thing to do.”

Demyx shrugged. He and Xaldin hadn’t had the best rapport in the Organization days, and he didn’t know what to say.

“You’re well, though?” he asked.

“...Getting there. I think.” He rubbed at his sore arm.

“Do you… know what you’re to do next?”

“No,” he admitted slowly. “It’s been… hard.”

“Of that I am well aware.” He touched his chest.

“So… I’m gonna go,” Demyx said. “I won’t, uh, mess with your stuff.”

“Much appreciated.”

Demyx set off in the opposite direction. He was getting hungry now, his appetite only growing in the passing days. Usually someone brought along a meal to him, so he headed back. He found a sandwich and an apple on a plate on his bedside, and once this lunch was done with, he just… sat. Waiting. After a few minutes of this, he decided to take out Arpeggio to try and get his mind off of things. His fingers were a bit shaky, but within about fifteen minutes he was able to play with the same fluidity as before.

But it was… harder. Not physically. But as he picked through old compositions he felt the emptiness composed by his Nobody self, the sadness, the loneliness. At the same time, they felt like they’d been created by a stranger, despite the fact that he remembered writing them. A strange dissonance. Wasn’t this what he’d wanted, a heart to truly feel music with?

What did Demyx feel?

He tried to parse it out. Empty, again? Tired, sad? Overwhelmed?

Having a heart was supposed to be easy.

He let Arpeggio fade and curled up. A cool breeze came in through the cracked window. He stared out at the little bit of town he could see, feeling on the verge, the breath of remembering--

“I thought I heard you playing. How do you feel?”

Demyx’s head snapped up. He saw not Even, but Ienzo, in that white-coat getup. He was carrying a small bundle. “Um, alright,” he said, blinking yet more tears out of his eyes. “Where’s Even?”

“He and Ansem are trying to solve a problem with one of our simulations.” He cocked his head a little. “I do know enough about medicine.”

“I know, I just…” He swallowed, and considered telling Ienzo. “Nothing. Never mind.”

“I brought you some more clothes, too. And this.” He held up a gummiphone. “You might find a use for it--if you don’t break this one.”

Demyx took it from him. “Thanks,” he said. “You didn’t have to--”

“The castle is large. It makes it easier to keep in touch if we all have one--heaven forbid something happen to you.” His tone was dismissive.

Ienzo came over to him, went through the familiar motions of taking his vitals. He listened to Demyx’s heart. It was strange to be so close to him, and a little uncomfortable in a way Demyx couldn’t define. His eyes were a bit greener than Demyx remembered, and his eyebrows furrowed together just slightly. Demyx could hear him breathe. “Your heart rate’s a little high,” he said. “Are you nervous?”

He cleared his throat. “No. Ah. Just a little anxious, I guess.” He felt the blood rush to his face, trying to place that feeling.

“Why?”

“I just don’t know what to do now,” Demyx admitted.

Ienzo took the stethoscope out of his ears. “That is the question, isn’t it,” he said slowly. “After so long of having little to no choice, suddenly the world is open in front of us. Like having the rug yanked from under you.”

“Yeah,” he said. “It really is. But don’t you… have your work, and stuff?”

Ienzo set the object aside. “I do,” he said. His eyes flicked up in thought. “But at the same time… I was with the Organization for considerably longer than you. Work… well, it’s something concrete to work towards.”

“Even said the same thing.”

His expression darkened a little. “We all seek to be better people. To… make up for the hell we’ve wrought. Working with the guardians of light… providing them with whatever they need to the best of our abilities... is the least we can do.”

Demyx picked at the lint on his pants. “I… thought about it, in the desert,” he admitted. In his newly-sharpened peripheral he saw Ienzo’s head snap up, his eyes widening. “If this wasn’t karma.”

Slowly, he nodded.

“But… you know…” He forced a laugh. “I’m here , right? If whatever forces exist in this world wanted me gone… I would be toast. Same for you. And Even and them. We literally came back from the dead.”

“A second chance,” Ienzo murmured. “Quite.”

He pressed a hand to his chest. “But that doesn’t help tell me what to do. Or how to feel about any of it.” The blood rushed to his face. “And I’m sure you’re too busy to listen to this.”

“No,” Ienzo said. He sat down next to Demyx on the bed. He was shorter than Demyx remembered. More weird reformation? “This is the first bearable conversation I’ve had in a while.”

He snorted. “Really?”

Ienzo sighed heavily. “A lot happened that I don’t particularly care to get into at the moment. But things between us are… a bit tense.”

“...Oh.” Ienzo’s smile was small and sad. Demyx couldn’t actually remember if he’d ever seen him do it, and before he could stop himself he said, “you have a nice smile. I’ve never seen it.”

The blood rushed to Ienzo’s face.

“I’m sorry, was that weird to say?”

“No, ah.” He pulled at his collar a little. “No.” He knotted his hands in his lap. “I know in the past our rapport has been… rocky.”

Demyx bit his lip and thought back. For a long while, he and Zexion had both been part of the reconnaissance team, but whenever they’d been paired together, it hadn’t exactly ended well. Their personalities clashed like oil and water; Demyx’s carefree attitude and low ambition combined with Zexion’s perfectionism always ended in fights. “You could say that again.”

He chuckled a little; strangely, it had no sound. “Perhaps it would do to start over,” he said. He offered his hand. “I’m Ienzo.”

“Demyx. Nice to meet you.”

He pretended not to notice the tingle he felt when they shook.

#grow #demyx #ienzo #zemyx #even (kingdom hearts)#dilan (kingdom hearts)

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ephrampettaline · 5 years

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chatzy au log with @alessafalling, @bumblingbrujo, @cassiegermaine, @ephrampettaline, @isadelavega, and @joeyvoeman

The car was parked a little ways down the block and across the street from the designated halfway house as to not be obvious, but still close enough to keep an eye on everything. Everything about this exchange was planned down to the last moment. Admittedly, with Joey at her side Cassie was a bit out of her element. She had wanted to make the Clair de Lune transfer a bit more face to face. Legitimate, if one were to stretch the definition. But Ephram clearly had other ideas. She sighed heavily, resting her cheek against the car window, eyes still trained on the building, "We aren't supposed to go till a light flickers in the upper right room."

Joey sat in the driver's seat of the car leaning against the wheel, and he took the opportunity to steal a few glances at Cassie's profile as she gazed on at the house in the distance. "I know," he muttered. Not condescending in any way. He knew repeating the plan was a valid way to pass the time. "And once we see it we pull in back to unload." He sighed, snatching his flat cap off his head and scratching his short hair for a moment. "How have you been, Cassie? It's been a while since we've been..." he didn't finish the sentence, letting it hang in the air like humidity weighing down on them.

"Right." Cassie murmured. It was an akward close space for the two of them, but she was happy to stew in the strained silence for the good of business. Of course, Joey couldn't resist, and it's not like Cassie could right out ignore him. She glanced to the tall man slouched in the drivers seat and gave half a grin. "Yeah. Don't think for a moment that is unintentional. Though I feel like Ephram is punishing me, more than you." Her gaze dropped to Joey's discarded hat, "Not a punishment. It's..." Cassie quickly corrected, sneering slightly, "Not business. Come on Joey, spare me till the guns are moved."

Joey nodded slowly, gripping his hat in his hand a bit tighter than he'd meant to, wrinkling the fabric under the pressure. "'Course," he muttered, completely ignoring her correction in his mind. She saw him as a punishment. That made sense. Seeing her felt like punishment to him. Ephram sure knew how to get under the skin of those around him. Turn the thumbscrews tighter as his victims just bit back their screams, smiled, and said 'yes sir'. "Till the guns are moved. Right. Until you move the finish line again." His tone was a bit more biting. They had nothing to do but stew as they waited, and Joey couldn't help his feelings boiling over a bit.

His frustration was possibly the most palpable thing in the car, and while Cassie was well aware it could quickly turn into rage, she wasn't the least bit concerned. Growing up in the Kingfisher household had well dessensitized her to tempers of almost every degree. Still, it didn't mean she wanted the job to prolong any more than necessary, and she caught the bite of Joey's comment as quickly as he threw it. "Someone has to draw the line in everything." Cassie's jaw clenched, and she sat up squinting more intensely at the designated window, "What's taking so damn long?"

She glanced at her pocket watch again. Her other hand lingered on the car door, she was moments away from doing things her way.

Joey pursed his lips, shoving his hat back on his head. "You're real good at it too," he grumbled to himself. He tried to let the feeling go, but it lingered. It always lingered. To have had her and lost her would always weigh on his mind. But she was partially right, they needed to focus. "What are you thinking?" he asked, eye on her hand on the car door, his tone clear his mind was on the job again.

"I don't...know." Cassie whispered. It's not like she expected Clair de Lune to go south on them. Ruby had always been a solid contact. Unless something else had gone wrong inside, which was always plausible with a halfway house. "Take the car to the back." Cassie instructed him, opening the car door and stepping out. "We're doing this now before the window closes. Be careful. Maybe the cops are sniffing around but, I'm going through the front for better coverage." She shut the door before Joey had a chance to interject, and waved him off. She stuck her hands in her coat and started down the sidewalk.

She took her time, eyes scanning the area with acute observation. For the most part, the streets were empty, and Cassie gripped the hand rail next to the porch steps to enter Clair de Lune when she felt the cold metal of a gun press into the small of her back. "Let's go Ms. Kingfisher. And no one gets hurt." Cassie shook her head, glancing at her dark blue heels. "I'm meeting a friend."

The raspy voice chuckled, "We just wanna talk business."

Essie had made the call. She knew the consequences. Hand pressed to her shoulder around the area of where her collarbone ended she stumbles down the street. Passing by a parked car, but she didn't register the inhabitants, too focused on getting to where she was going. She knew the half way house was safe, would be safe with the right kind of cash anyway. Trying to act as casual as possible she pulls her coat around herself, hand still pressed to the wound in her shoulder she tried to walk a little straighter into the establishment. She bought a room for three times it's price to ensure discretion and waited by the front desk for a few requested items she might need to get fixed up.

Miguel had an understanding with the woman who owned the half-way house - he would sometimes check the girls who worked there without a fee, which helped keep her in business - with more of a profit, and healthier gals. And that meant that she would look the other way when other people used the house to meet up with the doctor on a more secretive basis. Miguel wondered, a lot, how his life had gotten so complex. He walked through the house, said hello to some of the residents and regulars. And went looking for whoever was bleeding. Eventually he found his way into a little room with a woman he recognized as the arms dealer, another not quite affiliated troublemaker, like his brother. "What seems to be the problem?" he asked as he set his black bag down and opened it up.

Essie sat on the bed with her spine hunched double. Not quite the posture of a lady, this being the image she usually tried her best to portray when not conducting business. The hint of tears in her eyes were covered by the intense look of anger in them. "Seven point five millimetre shot in my left shoulder." she tells the doctor. "No exit wound." she adds with a cringe as she shifts her shoulder looking up at him.

No exit, that made things interesting at least. Miguel sighed. "Well... Faye isn't going to be thrilled about this. Lay down on your back, on the floor." He got out his scalpel and his forceps and threw them in a disinfecting bath. Then he got out a strip of leather and handed it to Essie. "You're going to want to bit down on that when the time comes."

Ephram tapped his cigarette into the cut-glass ashtray he'd set next to him on the narrow bed, not overly mindful of keeping the sheets un-ashed as he waited for Isa. His head was still ticking, calculating the way that the weapons handover had gone down -- dwelling on Freddie Watts' involvement and what was in it for the other gangster boss. The past few days had rekindled their friendship, something that Ephram wasn't (for all his hardened heart) entirely immune to, but at the same time ... something he could ill-afford, at this precarious juncture in the Kingfisher family's establishment as the head of the Slap Jacks.

He raised his eyes as the door to the room opened, silent, waiting for Isa to speak first. A cruel greeting, to be sure -- it would plummet her immediately into wondering if she'd fallen into disfavour -- but an impulse Ephram indulged himself in, for the moment.

Isa headed for her room with tea in her hands. She didn't expect anyone for several hours so her plan was to get a bit of rest before one of her regulars showed up at the usual time. When she walked into her room, however, it wasn't empty as she'd expected it to be, instead Ephram was sitting on her bed, smoking and Isa stopped in the doorway for a second in surprise. He wasn't saying anything and it only took Isa a couple of seconds to start worrying that something happened, something that came back to haunt her now. She shut the door behind her swiftly and without a sound, walking over to the desk to place her mug down, trying to mask her discomfort. "Didn't expect you here tonight, Ephram."

Ephram hummed, a low thrum in his throat as he watched Isa attempt to act as if his presence wasn't a concern. "That's the thing about us bad pennies," he murmured, "--we always turn up." He took a drag, saying tightly through the smoke filtering into his lungs, "Don't let me keep you from enjoying your tea. I want an update on where you're at with Councilor Brindle, is all, Isa. Did he tell you if there have been any competing bids for the government charter for brandy shipping, or is Kingfisher still the leading tender?"

It was a huge prospective deal, and one that the old man had never shown interest in; it was Ephram and Cassie who wanted to mix legitimate business in with the jobs under the counter. Brindle was a lech, but he was also canny, and Ephram wasn't about to assume that merely throwing a beautiful prostitute at the man would eke information out of him. No, he'd chosen somebody clever, too; somebody who could act, somebody who could think on her feet.

Isa hesitated for a moment, not wanting to pick the tea back up just to not seem like she was doing what Ephram said, but at the same time, at least it gave her something to do with her hands, so she ended up picking it back up as she leaned against the table. "He's not easy to get anything out of, Ephram. Most of the time he just complains about his wife and barely talks about anything relating to his work." She felt like she needed to explain why she hasn't gotten all the information needed yet. She needed the money she got from the Slap Jacks, she needed to make sure Ephram didn't think she wasn't capable of getting the information he needed. "I did find out that there are other bids, I think at least one of them is better than yours, but I couldn't get it out of him yet who the bid was from."

Ephram grunted thoughtfully. "Not bad," he said, a verbal pat on the head to let Isa know she wasn't in the doghouse. "I can follow that for the time being." Kingfisher wouldn't revise their bid unasked -- it would do them no good to seem overeager -- but Cassie could start putting out feelers from an accounting side of things. There weren't so many shipping companies in Soapham with the vessels and manpower to handle this sort of big contract.

Screwing his cigarette into the corner of his mouth, Ephram took a folded wad of bills from his vest pocket, removing the silver money clip and beginning to strap off dollarpound notes with sharp, quick motions. "How's that mother of yours in the country, eh? The one with the sick cow and the ailing hip?" The mother and the cow and the bloody hip could be a complete fiction, for all Ephram knew; but he didn't much care about that. He appreciated people who put some creativity into trying to ootch a little more out of their boss's billfold into their own, especially when they did it with such flair as Isa did.

Holding out a slightly thicker crease of bills than was strictly warranted, Ephram waited for Isa to approach to take the money and took her hand when she did, pressing the folded paper into her palm. "Take your dress off," he said. "Only the dress."

Essie grimaces as she stands up and shifts painfully onto the ground, first sitting and gathering her dress around her knees before putting one arm back to ease herself down. Not an easy task with the other hand still holding her shoulder, her back hitting the ground with a little force. She stares right back at the man, taking the leather and holding it simply in her hand for the time being. "Thank you for agreeing to see me."

Miguel looked down at her, a sympathetic sadness in his eyes. How had she gotten into this business? And how many people could he convince to change their ways? "Of course. It's my calling. I come when people need me." He shook his head. If only he had ever learned to say no. Oh well, he needed the cash, who didn't? Was that the only thing that lead people astray like this? He held Essie's good hand with one of his, held it tight. And then he doused her wound in the disinfectant. It burned less than previous iterations, but there was still a bite to it.

Essie recognised what she thought was sympathy in his eyes and she couldn't help but speak. "I got shot but I'm not delicate." she snaps. Steeling her face she moves to stare blandly at the ceiling, however her eyes show her true emotion, pain mixed with the same anger than she'd retained from before. That facade broke when she felt the sting of the disinfectant. "Fuck." she snaps, her fingers closing tightly around his hand, with almost too much force. "Warn a person."

Miguel cleared his throat. "That was just the start, and it's nothing compared to what's next. I'd put the strap in now if I were you." Miguel had been on the front, that was where he was good, field medicine. Doing what he could when he could, and cutting his losses when he had to.

Essie stews for a moment just staring back at the man before closing her eyes and shifting to put the leather in her mouth. "Warnings, at least let me know when you're going to do something so I can be ready." she requests. Teeth clamping down on the leather she opens her eyes again. This time watching his hands.

Miguel nodded once Essie's eyes were open. Then he took his scalpel and his forceps and dug into her shoulder. He tried to do as little damage as possible, but it was hard when the flesh was already inflamed. Not getting the bullet out would be worse. The chance of infection would be high. So he kept going, until his hands came back bloody, a big piece of shrapnel in his grasp. He poured more disinfectant in the wound and let it soak before he got out the needle, driver, and thread. "Alright. Just a couple stitches to keep it closed." There would be a puckered scar, but she would live. She would need water and rest, but the halfway house could provide those.

Essie keeps her jaw tense so as not to make any noise. It's difficult. The entire process excruciating but she keeps her eyes locked on the process taking place on her shoulder. She focuses on hand movements and after the bullet is out she lets her eyes follow it as something to hold onto. Tears leak out the corners of her eyes unable to stop them, unable to wipe them away either as they trail down the sides of her face. "Just do it fast." she says muffled around the leather in her mouth.

The stitches took no time at all. One, two, and knot. Miguel wiped at her wound and squeezed her arm. "All done. Drink a lot of liquids and rest. You need it. I'll clean up."

Essie sits up slowly. A hand moving up to hover over the stitches in her arm changing direction last second to instead tug on her blood soaked clothing. The hole in her dress causing her to grimace, but able to ignore the pain now that she wasn't so worried about blood loss. "How much?" she asks the doctor. "For your services and your silence?"

Miguel sighed. He hated this part. "This covers my time and supplies." He wrote a number on his pad and left it on the nightstand. "You don't have to pay extra for silence." He started rolling up the carpet, it was thoroughly ruined. But it was easier to replace the rug than get the stains out of the wood floor.

Essie eyes the doctor and glances at the price. "Who are you loyal to?" she asks him. Making to stand up and out of his way. Pleased that she would not have to do the cleanup and that this certain job he would do without being asked. Shrugging her coat back on with slowed movements she watched him move around the room. "I won't be staying here though."

"The Hippocratic Oath," Miguel grumbled. "I help everyone. I don't have loyalty to any one family." He hefted the rug over his shoulder and started out of the room. "Wherever you do it, Essie. Be safe."

Joey opened his mouth to protest but Cassie was already gone before he could stop her. He knew not to argue with her in most cases, and she'd do what she wanted even if he had, but he also knew it was his job to protect her during this hand off. Still, he did as he was told, pulling off and heading around the block to the alley at the back of he large house. He parked and got out, lighting a cigarette and leaning against the car to wait for Cassie to come out the back so he could start unloading. But minutes ticked by and the tobacco burned down to the filter on two different cigarettes before he started to sweat a bit. But he trusted her, so he waited.

Isa felt the relief wash over her that she was still in, only nodded though. Playing it cool and all of that. “I’m going to get the names,” she said firmly. She needed the money, yes, but there was a small part of her that enjoyed the challenge. It was definitely better, made it a lot more bearable to have something to pay attention while somebody she did not feel any kind of desire for was in her bed.

There was a new glint in her eyes when Ephram pulled out the dollarpounds, placing the mug back onto the table. “The hip is still ailing, the cow died about a week ago,” she gave the reply to his question that was mostly fiction. Her mother did live on the country, but her hip was just fine and they never had cows. She walked over to Ephram slowly and took the bills. “Thank you,” she said and before she did anything else, she took the money and put it into the drawer of her table. She’d hide it later with the rest, but for now, it made her feel better to not have it out in the open.

And then she undid her dress and let it drop around her legs, stepping out of it and walking back to Ephram as she turned her brain over to work mode. “Where do you want me?” she asked, her fingers toying with his clothing, looking up at him with a question in her eyes whether he wanted her to undress him or not.

"I want you," Ephram said, letting his fingers trail along her silken slip with his callouses catching and pulling, "exactly where you are." He stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, the paper coming apart in a twirl of tobacco, and put the side of his face against Isa's stomach, breathing in deep. "Brindle needs to think that you're loyal to him," Ephram told her, wrapping his arm around Isa's thighs, just under the lush curve of her backside. "He's not foolish, but he's arrogant. Be impressed by everything he tells you, even if it's a particularly prodigious piss he took that morning." Ephram breathed a damp circle against the silk, tugging it up until his lips were brushing skin.

Skull Boys tended to be ex-fighters, ex-military, ex-whatever sort of man had plenty of brawn and nowhere to expend it anymore. The one who marched Cassie down the alley beside Clair de Lune and into a damp, deep alcove between two buildings was clearly of the first sort, from his missing teeth and cauliflower ear. "Thinking up taking work as a whore now that daddy's kicked the bucket, Miss Kingfisher?" he leered, using the gun to wave Cassie over to a few wooden crates where he indicated she should sit. He kept himself angled to see if anybody should pass by the alcove, continuing, "Skull Boys hears that you've been seen taking meetings with your brother. Now we know that Kingfisher's not about to hand business matters over to some broad with two brats, but that don't mean you're not important, does it."

Cassie walked lightly down the alleyway, stealing a few quick glances to the Skull Boy crook that guided her until she was met with the boxes and signaled to take a seat. The mention of whoring only had her chuckling for a moment and she smoothed her coat as she followed directions and sat patciently. "I told you. I was meeting a friend. You've seen me with my brother? Than why the hell would I waste my time on prostitiion." She clicked her tongue in disapproval at the stupidity of the idea and crossed her ankles. "What do you want? The longer you keep me, the harder Slap Jacks will come down on your sorry ass."

The boxer sneered, "Oh yeah? What kind of friend does a fancy lady like you have at a place like this wot shits out reprobates of all types day and night? Run that mouth all you want, Miss, it won't change your situation any. Skull Boys could use Slap Jacks as toothpicks if we had a mind to. This right here? Is a courtesy." He moved to the edge of the alcove, keeping an eye on Cassie as he took a quick glance around. "Right, look sharp and reconsider answering our questions, if you want to keep all your pretty teeth." The boxer flattened himself against the wall to allow a woman into the alcove, as small as Cassie herself but with a fluffy cloud of bleached-blonde hair under a wide-brimmed dark hat.

"That's my business." Cassie told the boxer calmly only just barely starting to sweat when the man threatened her directly. The fact of the matter was, she wasn't armed. If she had been, she was sloppily trained at best. So she didn't really understand the Skull Boys angle here, unless they were lower than dirt and simply didn't care. "Ask your questions, the important ones, instead of playing around." Cassie practically commanded of the boxer, but then it all became clear as another set of heels clicked on the cobblestones.

The blonde woman walked up to Cassie and tapped the box Cassie was sitting on with her skull-topped cane. "Be straight with me, bitch," the woman said in a tone as sweet as if she was inviting Cassie to tea. "You know as well as I do that it's the female of the species that's deadlier, hmm? And I've always wanted a little girl and boy of my very own. Bang bang, you're dead." The woman smiled, fingers held like cap guns.

Isa wanted to point out that Ephram wasn't saying anything she didn't know already. That was what her job entailed, whether she was trying to get information out of somebody or just making them believe they were the best fuck of her life despite being a paying customer. It's what kept them coming back. Feeling like they were amazing, feeling like they were listened to, when their wives, their girlfriends, their sidepieces, sometimes their mothers weren't doing the same. She ran her fingers through his hair, playing with a lock of his, letting him guide what would happen for now.

"Yeah, I can do that," Isa said, sounding completely genuine, as if she's never thought about this before, as if Ephram himself came up with the most brilliant idea ever. Whether he realized she was doing the same thing with him he was suggesting her to do on Brindle, she didn't care. "He talks a lot, you know. Complains mostly, but it goes on and on for a long time. But I can definitely act like it's the most interesting thing I've ever heard."

Ephram, truthfully, wasn't considering that at all, taking at face value that Isa had found his somewhat redundant orders as completely fresh and new. It was the scent that wafted from her silken underthings that he was more focused on, the shift of her belly as she breathed and spoke, the feel of her fingers in his hair. "That's enough about Brindle," he said abruptly, looking up at her with his hands tightening on her custard-smooth thighs. That was enough about government contracts, and extorting information, and Slap Jacks, and even fucking Kingfisher.

Ephram reached up to pull Isa down, rising slightly from the bed so that he could kiss her hot and hard with his hand tangling in the dark hair that spilled over the nape of her neck. "Undo my trousers. I want you riding me, Isa, you got your fucking money -- give me something better than you give that bastard Brindle." A corner of his lip twitched up in a grimace, hand in her hair clenching.

This boxer wasn't the man in charge. He couldn't possibly be. Cassie stared at the woman in the widebrimmed hat, taking in her words and only flinching when she raised her fingers like...pop guns. Cassie got the message loud and clear. That was a crossed line. "Let's play straight then. What business do the Skull Boys want with Kingfisher? I was overseeing firearm delivery for my brother. That's all I have."

The woman practically purred, opening the dark mink coat she wore and letting it hang open over her gown, dripping with jet beads. "See, Bosco? I knew if we just snatched up a lady, we'd get some answers instead of the runaround. Eminently more reasonable than you barrels of testosterone and ..." She reached over to drag one manicured fingernail down Bosco's chest, "...other things."

Turning her attention back to Cassie, she said, "We haven't been introduced, how ditzy of me. My name's Petal Popovitch. Nice to do business with you, Cassie Kingfisher." She sat on one of the other wooden crates, crossing her legs and lighting a cigarillo. "Now, about this firearm delivery. I'm not really interested in your firearm delivery -- I'm more concerned about the other party involved." Petal directed a level stare at Cassie. "You know who I'm talking about, don't you."

Cassie watched Petal carefully as she took the seat next to her, lifting a thumb to chew the nail down to the nub with anxiety. "Freddie Watts?" She spoke, mostly to clarify that this was who The Skull Boys were after. The thing was, Freddie wasn't family. She'd rat on a potential business partner with the drop of a hat, especially if her kids were put at risk. Ephram would forgive her. "You have to tell me if he has a golden dick, or something." Cassie laughed bitterly. "Aside from the frocks, I simply don't see the appeal. Anyways." She shrugged that curiosity about Freddie away, "What do you want to do with Watts? I'm not his keeper."

Petal threw back her head in a laugh, saying, "It doesn't matter to me, darling, if he has a gold dick or three dicks or no dick at all. It's Watts' sparkly fingers and the promise of access to more jewels that entices me." Puffing on her slim cigar, Petal said, "--he hasn't offered to share that side of the business with Slap Jacks? Huh."

She shook her head. "Greedy boy. But this does change the relationship between you and me, I'm afraid." Petal gave a regretful sigh. "If you've got nothing on Watts and nothing interesting to do with Jacks, then your only value is as a hostage. You've been one before, I assume? Growing up the extra, and all. The spare imitation Kingfisher."

Essie crosses her arms as the doctor leaves. She'll find a way to slip a little extra his way, he's good at his job and she appreciates his discretion. Essie tucks her coat further around herself and heads for the door. She heads down the halls and out the back door. Pausing in the threshold looking at a stationary car with a figure in it. In the wake of a discussion gone bad she's weary, her fingers tucks into her coat and over the handle of a gun. One of many she's always got on her person. Squinting into the windshield of the car she recognises the face.

Joey saw a somewhat familiar face exiting the house and sighed with relief, almost kicking off the car as he flicked his fifth cigarette in a row away. “Ms Caird,” he began as he jogged up to her. “Did you see Ms Kingfisher in there?”

Essie moves her hands away from her firearms and pulls her coat over her blood soaked dress. "Ms Kingfisher? No I haven't. Did you drop her off?" Essie wonders still holding the door open and looking back down the hall. "I walked the place just now, no sight of her."

Joey grimaces at Essie's answer. "Shit," he grumbles, panic setting in. This was bad on so many angles. If anything bad happened to Cassie, he'd kill whoever was responsible. But also he lost Ephram's sister, and that could result in him being dead before he had a chance to even kill a house fly. And on top of it all, he had this shipment he couldn't leave alone. "Look, I think we've got a situation on our hands. Cassie was supposed to go in front and arrange for the shipment drop off, but if she never made it in..." God, his stomach hurt. "I've gotta look for her, but I can't leave the car alone."

Isa kissed him back hard and strong, her fingers in his hair slipping down to his neck and pulling him close as if all she wanted to do was kiss him, as if she's been waiting for this, needing this to happen since the first moment she walked into her room and saw him on her bed. Her fingers worked his trousers, opening it quickly just enough for his cock to be out on the open, her fingers working it to get it ready before she quickly slipped out of her undergarment and straddled Ephram, sinking down onto him. "You feel so good, so filling in me," she breathed against his ears, husky and sulky, like she's never had better before, while she started to move on him.

Ephram knew, logically, that this was as much a pretence as the performance at the old man's gravesite. And strangely, that made the encounter eminently more satisfying. A lie agreed upon was more honest in its own way than actual feelings that required cold, constant vivisection to make sure nothing was being missed. He groaned as Isa pushed herself onto his cock with the skill required of her profession, his hands spanning her waist and rucking up her slip as her voice, just as silken as the heat inside her, started to drip honeyed words. Not new ones, but dammit -- gangland boss Ephram might be, but he was a man as well. And he liked to hear how good he fucked just as much as the next.

Growling, he turned them and shoved Isa down on the bed, gripping her thigh to tug her leg up higher as he drove into her. The glass ashtray spilled its contents onto the sheets and smeared their clothes, the parts of their skin that were exposed, as Ephram thrust over and over. "Say it again," he demanded, his dark-blown eyes meeting hers in the command. "How much you want this. How good it feels." He rolled his hips forward, then held still, panting. "No," Ephram said, changing his mind as he looked down at Isa. "Tell me something new. Tell me something true. Do that for me, Isa."

Cassie raised her brows at the mention of Freddie having hand in jewels. No, that wasn't information she knew. Ephram? Maybe. "Well, I can't say I'm surprised. He's almost as slick as they come." Cassie tried not to look concerned at the mention of changed relationship. What did that mean? This Petal Popovitch clearly enjoyed teasing and rousing. "You want Watts? You can have him. He's dirty. But I'm honestly a little offended Petal." Cassie placed a hand over her heart, "You take me, jerk me around, and assume I'm a throw away nobody?" She shrugged her shoulders. "Why waste the energy? This is the kind of business model my father couldn't stand. The games. From one woman to another," Cassie stared at her. "You might wanna look a little deeper."

"Oooooh!" Petal wriggled on her crate seat, leaving her cigarillo in her mouth for a moment to clap in delight. "That's a relief, I tell you, Cassie, a real honest relief. Not about Watts, that can be filed under Other Business for now. But you!" Petal held out her hands, gesturing at Cassie, before taking her little cigar from her lips. "For a moment there I was prepared to be disappointed. I know what it's like, after all, being--" she made a face, rolling her eyes, "the girl in the gang. Nobody takes you seriously!"

Petal made a moue of commiseration, until something occurred to her and she cocked her head. "Your brother does, though, doesn't he? That's the little deeper part of it, hmmm?" She gave a sly grin, twirling her cigarillo in Cassie's direction. "You two scamps are trying to pull something over on us all. Go on, tell me! You've all but admitted it already."

Essie purses her lips at the man. "A shipment of what?" she asks seriously. "I'll stay here if you tell me. Depending on the cargo. You should inform your...organisation as quickly as you can before you go looking." she suggests. "Backup on the way is always a good thing. And let them know who's with the shipment."

"Your guns," Joey hissed quietly. The cargo wasn't high on his priority list any more. But knowing someone that cared about it would watch over it was comforting, at least to save his ass. "Get in," he said, gesturing she round the car. "I don't have time to let anyone know. Every second counts." Once she was inside, he drove a little way down the alley, going slow and glancing down each adjoining alleyway down the block. That's when he saw a car blocking one of them, and a group of people further down. "Shit, shit, shit...."

Bosco made a hupping sound from the mouth of the alcove. "Company on the way, boss," he said, raising the gun he was holding. Petal looked put out, but rallied quickly. "Looks like you and me are going for a ride, toots," she said, standing and doing up her mink again, taking Cassie by the elbow in a startlingly strong grip. "Shift it, and quick."

Cassie shook her head with a sigh, "Aw Petal, the camaraderie. It's sweet." But a part of Cassie wanted to bash the woman's face in, or at least have one of the Slap Jacks do it. For threatening her kids. She wouldn't forget that. "Unfortunately the Kingfisher's have very little interest in you and your bucks. I'm sorry to inform you." Cassie tilted her chin up slightly, "So unless you have something to offer-" But Cassie's digs and cuts at the other mob boss was cut short when the boxer came back, and Petal was pulling her towards a car for escape. "And here come the revelry. What was that Petal? Five minutes tops?"

Essie glanced at the car and nods once. Her own guns, well. Not hers any longer as they'd been signed over. Getting into the car with a man heavily integrated with a gang like the slap jacks wasn't high on her list of things to do. But at that moment she wanted to affiliate with them, she might have just been stitched up but perhaps this would aid her business in the long run. Or at least if this guy got himself killed she could drive the shipment back to Watts. Pulling one of her guns as they drive she spots what Joey does. "Your call, but I warn you, I'm not looking for as much trouble as you are."

Joey jumped out of the car like a jackrabbit, digging into his waistband for his revolver. “Stay here,” he says to Essie. No need to get her too involved in this, as she made clear. Moving into the alley, he saw a glimpse of Cassie being pushed into a car by a woman, before that car sped away too quick for Joey to even aim his gun at the tires. There were two men heading toward him though, trying to get to the car close to the opening of the alley. Without hesitation, Joey aimed and shot one of them in the head, the body slumping to the cobblestone in a heap.

Joey grabbed the other man by the neck, shoving him up against the brick as he aimed his revolver at his head. He quickly reached down to unarm the man before returning a hand to his neck and squeezing slightly. “Where are they taking her?” he hissed. “WHERE ARE THEY TAKING HER?!” he then yelled before the man even had a chance to respond.

Skull Boys were loyal to a fault, and Skull Boys didn't hesitate when it came to dealing death -- either for others, or their own. The heavy who Joey grabbed didn't show any fear, even less care about the sudden violent demise of his companion, and he gave a gold-toothed smile even as he struggled for breath. "Where the boss lady takes things that she wants alterations done on em," he said, tongue lashing against his cheek with lurid suggestion.

Essie had no qualms about staying where she was, she was in absolutely no hurry to be shot at again that day. Maybe she wanted credit for helping out, but she wasn't willing to go far into danger herself for it. She recognised one of the skull boys, but the next moment his head was blown and his body had hit the pavement. Standing half out of the car she watches Joeys attempt at interrogation. "Break all his fingers." she suggests unhelpfully.

Isa was rocking on Ephram, putting her best performance forward like she did with everyone else - this was a kind of acting, just the one most people looked down on, even though it probably brought the most pleasure to the people who came to her bed, and she could tell Ephram was enjoying it. No surprise to Isa, what man didn't like to hear just how good he was, that he was fucking so good even a prostitute liked what he was doing.

He swiftly turned them around, shoving Isa onto the bed and she opened her legs just a little wider, more inviting, while her mind momentarily wandered just how her sheets and her slip would need extra washing because of the cigarette's ash. He then asked her to tell him something true, and she pulled him down and kissed him hard instead of answering him right away, buckling her hips up against him.

"Your lips, they are soft and inviting, but when you kiss, it's hard and demanding. I like that," she said, something that sounded like the truth, maybe because half of it was, and maybe because it wasn't something she usually said. Wasn't the kind of compliment most people wanted to hear.

Ephram gave a growl as his movements against and into Isa grew shorter and deeper, the iron bedhead clanging against the wall. He cupped her cheek with his free hand, thumb stroking her cheekbone, and said in a strangled, low voice, "--good enough," before ducking his face against her throat and coming with a cracked, stifled cry. He stayed there for a few heartbeats, catching his breath, and then raised his head to plant a firm kiss on the corner of her mouth.

Pulling out, Ephram sat up on the side of the bed again and lit a fresh cigarette, puffing hard on it as he tucked himself away and did up his trousers. "Here," he said shortly, tugging off the amethyst cabochon he wore on his pinkie finger and tossing it onto Isa's body. "For your trouble. And the fine performance."

Isa's movements became ragged, her thurst upward getting more and more erratic, her panting getting harder as Ephram was clearly getting close to the climax, and when he dropped his face against her throat, she cried out, pretending to have come. She hasn't actually come from a client in... well, probably never, but they didn't come to her to know that. She once against ran her fingers through Ephram's hair, stroking his head while he caught her breath, still heaving as if she was trying to catch her breath too, and after he pulled away and sat up, she pushed herself up against in a sitting position and leaned against the bed frame.

"You've got one for me too?" Isa asked nodding towards the cigarette danging from his mouth. When he threw something at her, she picked it up quickly, her heart starting to beat faster now when she realized what it was. She looked up at Ephram and then back down onto the ring. "Happy to be of service, please do come back whenever you're in need." She looked at him for a long moment in silence before she turned the conversation back onto her task. "How time sensitive is Brindle thing, Ephram? How long do I have until I need to get it all out of him?"

Ephram shut his eyes when Isa sat up, securing the ring he'd given her and turning immediately back to the topic of Brindle. Kingfisher business a tap-tap-tapping at his skull without a moment's respite, even with the taste of her eroding under the cigarette smoke at the back of his throat. He stood up, long fingers flicking a cigarette from his case; he swapped it for the one he'd just begun, using the lit cigarette to light the new one and then handing it over to Isa. "Till the end of October," he said, raking his fingers through his damp hair and one-handedly doing up the top button of his shirt. "Conservatively. If anything new arises--"

Gunshots rang through the air outside, and Ephram reached over to Isa, hand on her shoulder urging her down lower on the bed." Stay there," he snapped, and went over to the window to peer out, his own handgun unholstered from his shoulder harness in the two steps between bed and curtains.

Joey bashed the enforcer's head against the brick behind him at the mere suggestion of the Skull Boys doing something to Cassie, pressing the barrel of the gun right between his eyes. "Don't yank my chain, asshole. Tell me the truth or you die like your friend." At Essie's suggestion, Joey smiled a bit. "Now that's an idea." Gun still square on him, superior body weight holding him in place, Joey took his free hand and snapped two of the man's finger's in one swift motion. "TALK!"

Essie steps out of the car. Joey was trying to do an awful lot at once. Feeling at no personal danger she moves forward and puts her own gun to his head. "Focus please. Fingers. Information. Holding him to the wall." she requests of Joey, trying to lighten his load for a moment. She looks at skull boy and hums. "You can't be talking about a tailors now, speak up."

Skull Boys might be tough, but their bones broke like anybody else's. The man howled, spittle flying from his mouth at the force of the sound. "There's a dress shop!" he yowled. "That's all I know, a shop south of the river, it's all I know, the boss lady don't tell us rank and file where exactly she does her business, you know she wouldn't!" He yanked, trying to pull his hand away, and then leaned forward and sank his snaggle teeth into what meat of Joey's shoulder he could manage, eyeing Essie as if he'd lunge for her next.

Essie squinted at the man when he spoke. However the sudden movement was not lost on the young woman. She steps back as teeth dig into Joeys shoulder. Her gun shifting from the skull boys face to his crotch and she fired off a shot quickly, the look didn't sit well with her.

Joey was appreciative of Essie coming to lighten his load. He'd felt like he'd been juggling chainsaws trying to keep the man in place and be menacing at the same time. Finally, the man talked, and Joey believed him. He knew what it was like only be told the bare minimum to get the job done. Not trusted or rewarded with the details. He was ready to let the man go, honestly, until the man straight up BIT him. He stifled a cry of pain and used the hand of his gun to hammer into the side of his head. Essie's gunshot made him jump back, but even as he bled he quickly smiled as the man cried, cradling his bloody trousers on the pavement.

"I think we're good and done with you," Joey growled, reaching down and snapping the man's neck with his own grunt at the effort. "Good shot, Ms Caird," he said as she stood again, wiping some sweat from his brow as he tried to catch his breath.

The Skull Boys heavy dropped like a sack of soaked cement -- albeit one that screamed and bled profusely -- and once Joey broke his neck, a flat, unnatural silence fell over the alleyway.

Isa slipped the ring onto her fingers for now and nodded at the deadline Ephram gave her. It would be tight, getting anything useful out of Brindle was like trying to find a sober one in a pub aside from the barkeep - practically impossible. But she'd already gotten him to talk, all she needed was to get him to that point again. Ask questions as if she was nothing but a dumb body. She took the cigarette and took a drag of it when the gunshots pierces the relative silence around them, and Isa jumped in shock and fear, but when Ephram told her to stay where she was, she didn't listen, crawling down onto the floor instead, her heart beating in her throat now. "What the hell is happening?" she hissed at Ephram.

Ephram swore viciously when he scanned the street further down from Clair de Lune and saw no outlines of any cars. There was no way that Ruby had already opened her hiding-holes for the storage of the Slap Jacks weapons shipment, which could only mean that something had gone wrong before the boarding house had seen even one of Essie Caird's guns. "Nothing good," he said roughly, and looked over at the bed, about to say something when he realized that Isa was no longer there.

Going over to where she was half-tucked under her bed, Ephram bent down, holding the sheets up. "That's a good place to stay," he said, any traces of a person other than a cold-blooded gangster evaporating with each word. "If you hear shooting downstairs, get under the floorboards. Don't come up until an hour after everything falls silent." He looked over the bed at the door, then back down at Isa.

For a moment it seemed like he might say something -- maybe ask her something -- but then Ephram let the sheet drop, the thump of his booted feet circling the bed and fading as he left.

Essie lowers her gun as Joey snaps the mans neck. "I'm always a good shot." she says in return. "Location. You have a location. The locals might have already called the cops about the shots this is not the place to stay any longer, not with a shipment of munitions this big. No time to load them into wherever they were going in this place and no time to waste not going to this unknown tailors." she speaks quickly. On high alert she raises her gun when she hears steps coming down the alleyway.

Joey knew she was right. He started going over the scene to make sure they hadn't left any evidence behind. "I've got to take the shipment back to the compound first. Ephram should be roped in on this." He grimaced at the thought. "You don't gotta stick with me. But thanks for the help."

Ephram came down the alleyway at a dead run, taking in the two corpses and the Slap Jacks shipment car before he reached the other two and gesturing at the deceased men with his gun. "What the fuck is this?" he demanded, aghast. "Is that our shipment? Why are you in this alley and where--" Ephram almost raised his gun in Joey's direction.

"Where's my sister, Voeman?"

#au:gangster #alternate ephram #cassiegermaine #joeyvoeman #isadelavega #alessafalling #bumblingbrujo #//fc for petal popovitch is lady gaga

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lilyginnyblackv2 · 5 years

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Kingdom Hearts 3 - Thought Post/Review

When it comes to this game, I have a lot of really positive things to say about it - my experience was overall very enjoyable - but I also have some really major negatives to say about it as well. It was a mixed bag for me, personally. If I were to give this game an a point score, I would probably give it a 7/10.

This post is going to contain SPOILERS to the rest of my more detailed thoughts will be under this Read More. WARNING: SUPER LONG POST!

Opening - I’m a fan of Face My Fears and I do like the visuals of the opening - they are beautiful, but I felt that while the music and visuals line up for the first half of the opening, once it gets to the part where the visuals start spiraling downward through chess pieces, the music and visuals stop lining up and it makes the rest of the opening feel disconnected. I also feel like the opening was kind of shouting, “Hey! Remember Kairi! Remember her and Sora’s relationship! Remember this character and that relationship is a thing even though we’ve ignored and neglected it for nearly 13 years!” So, yeah...

If I had to rank all the CGI openings, I would still place DDD and KH2 at about equal placement at the top, followed 0.2 ~A Fragmentary Passage~, then KH3, KH1, and Birth By Sleep last. This opening was good, but the series has done better. I did really like and enjoy the video recap that plays before the game starts (with the orchestra version of Don’t Think Twice/Chikai playing in the background) it’s really well done.

Music - Outside of the Toy Story world using the instrumental version of You’ve Got a Friend in Me too much, to the point where I’ve had it stuck in my head for nearly a whole week now, I found the music to be excellent. As I already stated, I’m a fan of Face My Fears and I love Chikai/Don’t Think Twice. All of the familiar background music was there, helping me to instantly get back into the world of KH, while the new background instrumentals for many of the worlds and such were lovely. A lot of the time I found the music really helped to invoke the proper emotions in me, even if the writing was of a scene or moment was poor. So, basically, the music in the game did its part and hit its mark.

Voice Acting - I currently live and work in Japan, so I got the Japanese version because I was too impatient to wait for the delivery of the English version. I do miss the HJO and David Gallagher for the voices of Sora and Riku, it doesn’t quite feel the same (David adds a softness to Riku, especially when he is talking about Sora, that Miyano Mamoru just doesn’t), but the VA work itself was all really good! It also made me realize that a lot of my issues with characters like Xigbar (who I’ve straight up just found annoying) or Aqua (who I was always just largely indifferent to) are mostly due to their English VAs. Xigbar character was far more bearable for me and actually a bit interesting in Japanese, while Aqua’s Japanese VA actually had me invested in her character.

Character Designs - LEA/AXEL GOT NEW CLOTHES!!! T-T Of course, it doesn’t happen to the very end of the game and his new outfit honestly doesn’t look that much different from his black coat, but I’ll take it. Xion and Isa’s new outfits were nice too. Honestly, the only character design that I outright dislike is Goofy’s Monster’s Inc one, outside of that, I’ve gotten used to Riku’s new redesign, though I feel like his look has changed the most between the past games and KH3. Though, the Destiney Trio in general all actually look younger in this game as opposed to their KH2 selves, so it is slightly weird/odd in that sense. Overall though, I think all of the character look really great here (and I liked the updated looks for Hayner, Pence, and Olette too!) As for the heartless, nobodies, and unversed enemy designs - they were all really awesome! A lot of the heartless were also just very cute, which I appreciate, and I loved the idea of heartless possessing the toys like we saw in Toy Story. That mid-boss fight with the doll heartless - oh gosh! I LOVED that design so much. I want to cosplay it so bad!! >, Finally, Chirithy was just SO ADORABLE! This is crossing over a bit into story/character stuff, but that scene when Chirithy reunites with Ven - I honestly couldn’t handle that level of cute and heartwarming! Graphics - The graphics are really the standout for me. This game is absolutely gorgeous! The amount of times I just stared in awe at the breathtaking landscapes is innumerable. The characters all look fantastic too - especially Lea/Axel. He is just soooo pretty! They really outdid themselves with making his hair look so nice and soft, lol. The only times the graphics went a bit wonky with me were when Herc would do his stone throw move (the movement and graphics for the stone got weird) and during the heartless horde attacks at the Keyblade Graveyard (the shadow heartless in particular had an appearance and movement that was very clunky and not smooth/natural looking like the rest of the graphics). That was all likely due to the fact that I was playing on a PS4 through, rather than a PS4 Pro. Everything else looked absolutely fine though, so I am ultimately not bothered by those brief moments. Exploration and Interaction - These two aspects were a highlight of mine. Even though finding all of the Hidden Mickeys and Chests could be vexing sometimes (especially the last one of either category), I utterly enjoyed exploring the areas and going around taking pictures. All of the little snippets of conversation that you could hear and get from the NPCs in the cities and towns, as well as things like Sora doing tricks with the barrels were fantastic and helped you feel immersed in the world. I also liked how there was always at least one chest that was hidden in a large object that you had to smash in order to get - that was fun. All of these small things helped make the worlds feel more alive and lived in. The use of the Gummiphone and taking selfies and stuff was also such a silly touch (as was Sora’s complete and utter bafflement at using technology, omg, I loved that - it was perfectly consistent with KH2 Sora and his inability to type on a computer - lol). Worlds - I think it is both a bit of a good thing and a bit of a bad thing that I don’t necessarily have a favorite world in KH3. Pretty much every world had some upsides to them and some downsides to them, so none of them really stood out in the same way that, say, Halloweentown did in KH1 or Fantasia did in DDD, but by that same token, that also means there were no worlds that I absolutely hated like Monstro in KH1...though the BH6 world gets a bit close to it...Going through the list:

1. Olympus - I loved traveling through this world - running through the ruined city and helping the towns people, and climbing up the gorgeous Mount Olympus to the even more breathtaking realm of the gods. But, at the same time, I found the constant interruptions of the tutorials to be a bit tedious and they often took me out of the experience a bit. Exploration wise though I really enjoyed this world.

2. Twilight Town - This is probably the closest to the best world for me in KH3. Exploring the center of town and the woods was nice. The theme for Twilight Town is so relaxing and running into characters like Scrooge, Remy, and Merlin there was a delight. I also enjoyed how lively Twilight Town felt and the original story content here was very interesting. It was great to see Sora interacting more with Pence, Hayner, and Olette, too. The only real downside to this world was the fact that it was so small in comparison to the Disney Worlds.

3. Toy Story - I was really excited for this world because I love Toy Story. Seeing Sora interact with the Toy Story gang was awesome. I loved it! This was also one of the worlds that an original story that was built more around the original story content of the game, rather than the other way around with the original content of the game being fit around already established Disney stories. That is something that I liked and wish we saw more of in this game as a whole.

I also really loved the design of the “girl’s section” of the toy store and the boss fight there. However, I found the first floor of the toy store to feel so empty and I absolutely hated all of the mecha stuff. I don’t care about mecha stuff like that for the most part (there are a few anime exceptions, but they are rare). And fighting them every time I had to return to that world for a missed chest or Hidden Mickey was just...ugh. Yeah.

4. Tangled - The city of Corona is so immensely beautiful and charming, and the wooded areas were amazing to travel through...I just personally hate Tangled so literally all of the cutscenes that involved the Tangled storyline were unbearable for me. I couldn’t wait for that world to be over. Seeing Marluxia again though was nice. I missed his fabulous pink haired self.

5. Monsters Inc. - Seeing Sora interact with Boo was precious, omg!

6. Frozen - One of the themes of Frozen is loneliness, so the fact that Sora, Donald, and Goofy are largely isolated from the Disney characters in this one makes sense. It was a bit annoying to have to go up the mountain three different times and finding Olaf’s body parts pissed me off because I couldn’t find the last body part for a ridiculously long time and I was just like, “I don’t like Olaf enough to even care about this~!” But I always enjoy seeing Larxene and her labyrinth had such a ethereal atmosphere about it. I also genuinely like Anna and Kristoff as a pairing and found their scenes/moments together to be very cute. Sora thinking about Riku in connection to Elsa was also very nice and something that I felt was largely missing from this game. There were a lot of moments like that in previous games, but in this one Sora wasn’t really making any connections like that and it was weird. Finally, even though this world was largely empty as well the comments from Donald and Goofy as well as the interactive aspect of Sora riding the giant snowballs still made the world seem alive, or, at least more so than Toy Story and Monsters Inc.

7. PotC - I found the underwater segments to actually be very relaxing, the underwater landscapes and the beaches were beautiful, I liked the feel of Port Royal, and Sora’s outfit in this world is my favorite in this game. That being said, I’ve kinda lost interest in PotC over the years and the pirate ship battles made initial travel to and from each island a really pain in the butt for me. It sorta ruined the experience. That being said, I did like the idea of Sora being the captain of a pirate ship and using it navigate the world - it made sense and Sora was so happy to be able to do it - but I just personally didn’t enjoy it as much as him, lol.

8. BH6 - I’ve never watched BH6 and I have no desire to. This world is probably my least favorite of the bunch. There were only two parts of this world that I truly enjoyed and those were 1. when Sora, Donald, and Goofy initially arrived and Sora was blown away by the size of the city and was typing a text or something to tell Riku about it and 2. when Baymax taught Sora how to fist pump. That was some golden, wholesome stuff right there. I loved it.

9. Edit: I forgot to include Pooh’s world!

So, Winnie the Pooh - I actually liked this world, even though the three different versions of the same mini game aspect left a lot to be desired. I’m not a fan of Winnie the Pooh, generally speaking, but it has always really worked for me within the KH game. There is a calming aspect to Pooh’s world. This time around the world was very small...and I think they did that to show how Sora is growing up. While Pooh and the other’s will always be in his heart, he will always have a lingering connection to them, I think this is probably the last time we will see Pooh’s world in a KH game. I say this because I really felt like this was Sora saying good-bye to his childhood/childhood innocence in a way. And I really liked and appreciated this aspect of the story, since I want to see more of growth and change coming out of Sora in the upcoming games. I liked the stuff with Repliku/Dark Riku, but I really didn’t like the rushed feeling of this world. It was sort of like Monsters Inc. in that way. It felt like everything was a mission that you had to complete very quickly and then right when you finished, you were rushed off to the next segment. The vastness of the city was a bit overwhelming at first, but I got used it and I did slightly enjoy seeing Sora, Donald, and Goofy running around a modern day looking city. But by and large I was happy to be done with this world.

FF Stuff and Side Content - I am a fan of FF games in general and of the FF characters appearing in KH. But I’m okay with the fact that we didn’t get any FF characters in KH3. The story had too many characters to deal with anyway, so bringing in some more would not have done the game any favors. Some fans think that some FF content may end up being DLC. I don’t know if it will or not, but I was okay with the small references and easter eggs that we got. So, if they do add some more FF content stuff, then that is fine by me, but if they don’t then that is fine by me as well. As for side content like secret bosses or Coliseum fights and such - none of those things ever appealed to me to begin with and there was so much to do anyway that I’m fine with the game lacking these elements. I know many people aren’t though, and I can understand how that could be a bit upsetting. This is another aspect of the game though that I feel there could actually be some DLC for.

Game Play and Gummi Ship - Look, this part is totally bias of me - I know - but I suck at the Gummi Ship stuff so I honestly just hate it. For me, personally, I would have been completely fine if they had gotten rid of the Gummi Ship stuff and just had you go from one world to the next without having to do anything. I would have preferred if the space and time that content had taken up had been used toward story and character + relationship development instead - since this game desperately needed more of that. The game play I enjoyed for the most part, the only bit that I really disliked was the awful pirate ship battles. Ugh. Outside of that, I really liked how KH3 combined/brought in a lot of the game play dynamics from previous games. I don’t really play the games for the battles or game play itself, so I’m not too picky with this. It was fun and enjoyable and it was easy, but hard enough for me. I know for some people it was a bit too easy, but for me it was fine. I know that there have also been some complaints about the lack of Critical Mode and too few Keyblades, but once again, I feel like those are things that could be improved upon with DLC.

Characters - While playing this game there were so many scenes and moments that I loved. I laughed and cried plenty of times. The scene in the Realm of Darkness when Riku calls out Sora’s name and he appears and then Sora and Riku Reality Shift in order to create the Gayblade and fight Dark Aqua together - my goodness! That scene was amazing as was the fight with Aqua. Another excellent scene was Riku’s moment when he was motivating Sora and protecting him from the heartless. Sora and Riku both get moments when they protect the other and all of this is A++ stuff right there. Getting to see a softer, humbler side of Axel/Lea was great (and the Kairi and Lea/Axel interactions were wonderful!) and Ienzo has shot up on my fav characters list like whoa. In fact, every single interaction between Organization members was wonderful and wish we got more of them! I wish we also got more interactions among all of the characters in general.

Edit: I also forgot to mention that I loved seeing Yen Sid actually doing something/being useful outside of being the old mentor/info dump guy. His moment was great!

But...there were issues. I didn’t like how the series handled Master Xehanort. I loved how Young Xehanort didn’t really get any sort of redemption. It was refreshing after all of the other characters were kind of “saved” by Sora. It made sense for them, since most of them were Nobodies, but the same sort of philosophy applying to Master Xehanort just left a bad taste in my mouth. The 180 switch in Master Xehanort’s motivation/plans was also....not good, imo.

I wish Sora got more of an actual character arc. It was there, in bits and pieces, but Sora still largely feels like Sora and that’s just...It reminds me of how Kairi told Sora to never change at the beginning of KH1 and he has largely stuck to that and that is just...not healthy. I really do feel that Sora tends to suppress a lot of his emotions. We saw some of that suppression in this game, I feel, but not enough.

Next up we have the romance...look, I don’t ship it. I ship Sora and Riku together. That being said, I enjoy polyam Sora, Riku, and Kairi fanart and fanfiction and like 95% of my OTPs are het pairings. One of my OTPs of OTPs is, in fact, a pairing from Square (Tidus x Yuna from FFX - their love story is so amazing - I cry and laugh with them every single time I play that game and I’ve played it more times than I can count, in both English and Japanese). I feel like Sora and Kairi’s relationship has potential, I remember when I first played KH1 back in 2002 and I shipped them together so bad - I cried so much during the ending - but the writing has, ultimately, seriously failed to utilize that. The vast majority of KH3 was focused on friendship. Sora barely even thinks about any sort of romance and he hasn’t thought about romance or even Kairi that much at all in the past couple of games either. Then we get the paopu scene and suddenly there is a shit ton of focus on Sora and Kairi and their relationship.

This goes back to the issue of showing vs. telling. We get told about Sora and Kairi’s feelings, but the game does a really poor job of showing it. This issue also ties back to poor pacing. Kairi, as a character, should have gotten more individual development and then we should have gotten far more heart-to-heart conversational moments between Sora and Kairi. I feel those are aspects about their relationship that the game really needed to establish first, but just plain didn’t. So the relationship stuff falls apart for me.

All of Sora’s heavy, emotional moments tend to be with Riku and I honestly can’t even tell you why Sora likes Kairi. I know they are friends...but...what else? Why is Sora so precious to Kairi? Why is Kairi so precious to Sora? We don’t really know. With Sora and Riku I can easily talk to you about their competitive sides, about the jealousy and admiration, and about the journeys they’ve been on and why each cares about the other. With Sora and Kairi...it just feels like they are a thing because they are a boy and girl. That’s it. Their moments together held no emotional impact for me, except for my utmost anger when the series temporarily fucking fridged Kairi for Sora’s stupid, dumbass manpain.

Sorry, but I fucking hate that trope. It’s sexist and shit and needs to go away. The Sora and Kairi relationship is such a damaging ship, not in and of itself, but due to the execution, poor, underdeveloped writing, and inherent sexism. The scene with Kairi and Sora sharing the paopu fruit was awkward with Riku in the background, it made the moment feel like they were third wheeling Riku (even if that wasn’t the intention of Sora, Kairi, or the writers - it sorta felt that way) and was largely just awkward because of his presence there and because Sora didn’t really feel all that into it. It felt more like he kinda just went along with it. Kairi becomes a damsel in distress again even though she is a keyblade wielder this time and she has talked about fighting and protecting and such. But we don’t really get to see Kairi protecting Sora.

Instead, Kairi continues to play an emotional support role - a largely sexist role that women and girl characters get stuck in, she gets reduced to nothing more than the love interest and plot device to motivate Sora, and that plot device/motivation also ends up being a literal fucking trophy (No Matter What - Reunite with Kairi) that you earn in the game. I know it’s Japan, and I know that gender inequality and sexism issues run deep here (I live here - I see and experience it quite often), but it is also 2019 and with the creation of female characters like Xion and Aqua, I thought that the series would start actually making some strides with fixing its issues with sexist writing, but sadly, I feel it has only gotten worse. Practically every world in this game had some form of “girl/woman character failing and needing to be saved/protected by a boy/man character.” We also got the fake video game commerical before the Toy Story world that included a damsel in distress and a man trying to save her and Olympus started the whole “manpain to get back strength” idea (Herc and his situation with Meg).

The sexism in the writing extends to all of the original girl and women characters of KH. Namine is virtually non-existent in the game, Xion shows up towards the very end (in a way that isn’t properly explained and isn’t given the proper time, execution, and emotional strength behind it), Kairi - all of the issues I mentioned above, Larxene - we learn that she was just following “that guy” (aitsu あいつ) so that has the blame shift off of Larxene a bit and onto “that guy,” which denies the series of an original woman/girl character that is unapologetic in their badness and also gives this idea/impression of a woman chasing after/doing something because of a guy, Olette’s character is actually treated pretty well but her personality is lacking - nothing about it really stands out, and finally, Aqua is a master but we still see her getting defeated all the time, doing nothing against Terranort, and then Terra gets told to protect her along with Ven. Ugh.

I also noticed in the Secret Ending that we saw Sora and Riku, but absolutely no Kairi. uou All of the girl/women characters deserved better writing than this! ( I also seriously hope they don’t try and go down a Riku and Namine route because both Riku and Namine deserve better).

The treatment of women and girl characters in this game really brought down my impression of it. The representation in that area was truly awful. Even with all of those problems though, I did feel that the ending moments were very heartwarming - with everyone on Destiny Islands - and slightly bittersweet when Sora disappears. Riku’s character growth in this game was great, as was his trust and belief in Sora, but I felt many of the other characters didn’t really get much of a character arc or character growth. They all just kinda felt there. Can DLC fix some of these issues...I don’t know, but the fact that I feel so much needs to be fixed by download content is a problem...

Story - As with many KH games the same story issues seem to be present here. First, the issue of telling vs. showing. KH tells so much. The story has gotten so intricate and they have to make the games as “new user” friendly as possible that we often get large chunks of info. dumps which take away from time that could be spent on character interactions (which were severely lacking in this game, but an improvement over pretty much all of the others).

Next is the issue of integration of original content with Disney content. KH3 did improve on this a bit over KH2 and other past titles, but I still feel like KH1 did this best. Here in KH3 we have worlds that have themes that are much more closely linked to the original story content of KH and to specific characters, but at the same time, I still felt that some of the Disney content was nothing but filler. Filler isn’t necessarily a problem, but in a game such as this with the huge amount of characters and stories that needed some form of wrapping up/sense of conclusion this was not good. Every cutscene really needed to count, but I don’t feel like every one of them did.

The last story issue that isn’t character based, but just general storytelling based, is the pacing. This goes along with the issue above of integration. There needed to be a bit more integration of original story content and it needed to be spaced out a bit more. We got a lot of good story/plot beats at the beginning and a ton at the end, but the middle of the game was severely lacking. I feel we should have gotten some major story act after completing Frozen.

If all of these issues had been properly handled, then I think plot moments like the return of Roxas and Xion could have been better presented (or even explained at all - honestly how did Xion come back? I know a replica was likely used, but that’s it) and the ending could have felt less like completing a checklist. This also could have, possibly, fixed the issue of the series not really fully explaining/showing how exactly Sora returned Kairi and why that caused him to disappear. Though I feel that that likely would have still remained ambiguous because this game set up so many sequel hooks.

That being said, even though there was a lot of sequel hooks, which I think were ultimately to the determent of the game’s story as a whole, I did find myself intrigued by things like the girl that Isa and Lea were/are looking for, Xigbar being Luxu, and so on. The scene with the horde of heartless that you need to defeat with the past keyblade wielders was also really cool - not only visually either. Those keyblade wielder names were real names of real players of the mobile game! Honestly - how awesome is that! That was an awesome and touching moment for Union X fans. The issue though, is that I found myself becoming more intrigued by the sequel hook stuff than the actual resolution to the current arc and that isn’t really a good thing...

Sequel Hooks - As I stated, I feel this game had a bit too many sequel hooks. I understand that KH3 is simply the end of the Dark Seeker/Xehanort Saga and not the series as a whole, but the ending that we got was just a bit too open ended and I feel it left too many loose ends. There were also a lot of time spent setting up the foundations for the next KH game than there was properly resolving the current arc and that...is a big problem. It may just be the end of a saga/part of the overarching story, but it should still have a resolution that feels like an ending of sorts. This game didn’t have anything like that. It seemed to, but then it did a fake out with Sora. It was really unnecessary to me, since I felt that the epilogue was enough of a teaser alone to hook a sequel. Now, I’m going to feel a need to check out the next game, not necessarily a want, because Sora’s story/character arc was left unresolved in the end, with only a secret ending teaser. It left me feeling intrigued but also largely unfulfilled story-wise.

Future DLC - Now, from what I understand, there are plans for download content in the future. I’m not really all that familiar with download content stuff. KH3 is the first game I’ve ever played on a PS4 and I’m used to older games where the game that you got on the disc(s) was it. Nothing more and nothing else (unless they released a new game like the KH remixes). Could future download content fix a lot of the issues that I have with the game? It’s possible. It will all depend on how the DLC gets handled and what it will contain/how much DLC we will get. It still probably wouldn’t fix the issue I have with the way Kairi’s character has been treated not only over the years, but in this game in particular, but I feel it could possibly fix a few things and enhance some others. We’ll just have to wait and see though!

#KH3 #Kingdom Hearts 3 #KH3 spoilers #Kingdom Hearts 3 spoilers #thought post #review #sorry for any typos #I just really wanted to get this up before I went to bed #it is now 2am and I have work in the morning #good night everyone~

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iradivinitatis · 5 years

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Saix Retcon

It’s offical, ya boi has played through all of KH III, learning all the little tidbits of information as well as new theories that I have. To start with, this blog is no longer spoiler free. I will tag it under #spoilers, but I will be updating how Saïx functions as well as Retcon a few things.

The game was really wonderful over all with a few surprises thrown in there. I have my own theories on what is going on and what is to come, but that is for another time. I will not be openly posting my opinions on KH III story unless prompted, so if you want to shoot me an ask about it, go for it! All and all, it tied up the Xehanort arc really really well and introduced an old antagonist as a new one, one we never expected. Also the game is super fucking pretty.

Now onto Saïx

[MAJOR SPOILERS UNDER CUT]

or should I say Isa because MY BEAUTIFUL BOY GOT HIS REDEMPTION

LOOK AT HOW BEAUTIFUL HE IS

I am so VERY in love with his new design and the fact that he and Lea reconciled! Isa is so fucking pretty I am just very very pleased with everything that has happened with his story so far.

Onto the more important topic of what will be changing for this blog. A few things will be Retconned as they have been either disproved or I have a new theory about what happened.

Isa and Lea were experiemented on before joining the Organization Isa and Lea willing became Ansem the Wise’s Apprentices to try and save a girl they had befriended when they used to sneak into the Castle. Their whole goal was to try and save her from being AtW’s lab rat. This makes Isa, Lea, and this mystery girl a new trio! Which is very exciting for my polyshipping heart. I do not believe the two of them were involved in the coup that was staged against AtW, as they were children just as Ienzo was. They did not know any better and were manipulated by Xehanort.

Saïx, after joining the true Organization, was the conspirator behind handing over the Replica to Ienzo. This one I am shaky on because I have two very strong theories on who it really was who inspired Vexen and Demyx to turn traitor. It was either Saïx or Xibgar. Saïx would do it in one last attempt to free himself while Xigbar would have done it to force the hand of the Master Xehanort into losing so he could begin his plan as Luxu once again. Since both are likely, I am going to go with the one that favors my muse.

Xemnas was the one who scarred Saïx this is a ‘yes’ and ‘no’ question. I believe it very well could have been Xehanort (terranort), but it also could have been Xemnas himself. Since he retains his scar after being recompleted, it may be that he got his scar prior to becoming a Nobody or during the process of it. Since Xehanort was the one who turned them all into Nobodies, it could technically be both cause by Xehanort and Xemnas. Yikes KH is confusing.

These are the three big ones that I am going with for now. Not much really changes with Saïx other than a bit of extra motivation for his Hatred of Xion and Roxas, due to his missing friend, as well as how he acts afterward.

One major thing is that I am ELIMINATING my verse that is the post nort verse. Isa has a clear way of leaving being a nort and I am going to stick with the canon way. I will be creating a new Post KH III verse that revolves around Isa readjusting to life as a human and severe PTSD from all the shit that he went through. He will no longer be selectively mute, but will have other things about him that are to come.

And that’s really all I have to say on Isa! Let me know if you have any questions!

#spoilers #ooc #outofclaymore #muse stuff #retcons

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anantradingpvtltd · 1 year

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jessaadventures-blog · 6 years

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Week Two: Lovin’ Life in Lobitos

A Lobitos boat out on the water. Spot the blue water tower in the background - a great place to watch sunsets!

This week was another good one! There were some fun adventures, I made some decent progress on my project, met more of the locals, and saw much more of Lobitos. Apart from a bit of an upset stomach, everything has only been getting better!

The EcoHouse

One of our homemade pizzas from our midnight pizza party, with a vegan portion :)

There have been some more shifts in the EcoTeam this week; Andres arrived on Saturday to replace Alejo leaving last week. Andres is the third of the four directors I’ve met, and he’s a fun addition to the house! He’s known as the most chill and spontaneous director, and it definitely shows. He loves to tell us stories of his life (he was born in Canada and moved to Lima when he was ten, where he met the other three directors in school, and then went to Toronto for university and ended up on the Wall Street of Canada for a few years before he moved to Lobitos to start EcoSwell) and throws in some Peruvian history too. He is also mostly vegan, so now I’ve got a friend in the food department!

Diego, the other director that was here, left Thursday to vacation with his girlfriend and speak at a big UK conference in Rio de Janeiro. He’ll be back in a few weeks with his girlfriend, who is the volunteer coordinator for EcoSwell, and I’m excited to meet her!

Michael, the only director I haven’t met, arrives Sunday to replace Diego while he’s gone. Michael’s spent most of his time in the UK and doesn’t come to Lobitos as much as the other three, so he’s known as the “city kid”. It’ll be interesting to see how he fits in at the house, and I’m excited to see the dynamic between Andres and Michael as directors.

There’s also a big volunteer change-over this weekend; we’re losing half of the crew and gaining two newbies! Kyler flew out on Saturday (after two months in the EcoHouse), Dion just left today (he’s been here three weeks), and Javi leaves tomorrow, Monday, after just two weeks. There’s a new volunteer arriving today and another arriving Monday, so we’ll have one empty bed in the house for a little while (Isa and I get a room to ourselves and I can move to the bottom bunk now that Javi will be gone)!

I’m excited to show the new guys around, but I’ll miss having people here who know more of the secrets of Lobitos than I do.

As for the general happenings in the house, we’ve had a few more fun meals (some yummy veggie pasta and garlic bread Monday night, taco Tuesday again, a midnight pizza-making and bonfire party initiated by Andres, and Andres found some soy milk for me so now I can have cereal!), watched the first season of Silicon Valley together, experienced two blackouts (one in the morning, one at night), and played Secret Hitler (a board game that I played a lot while studying abroad in Australia, which happens to be the go-to group game here as well). I’ve also gotten back into reading Lord of the Rings, which I started almost a year ago in Australia, and now I’m almost done with the trilogy!

The only downside of the week was the upset stomach that I’ve had for the past four days (pretty much everyone gets it during their second week of volunteering, so nothing out of the ordinary), but it’s feeling a lot better now!

Work

Javi and I “painting” silicone onto the distiller!

This week I actually got to start working on the solar distiller, and we got a lot done with it! The distiller had already been designed and the frame had been built by previous volunteers, so I mostly have the job of putting it all together, making sure the system works, and putting it to use in the community! Part of this is painting the basin (where the water goes) with black food-grade silicone caulk, so the wood is waterproof, the water isn’t contaminated with chemicals, and the leftover salt can be used for cooking. The previous volunteer that worked on the distiller had painted the silicone on and then realized, just before the whole basin was covered, that the silicone wasn’t food-grade. So he spent the rest of his time scraping it back off again (that had to suck). He didn’t quite finish before he left, though, so Javi and I spent the first two and a half days of the work week scraping the rest of the silicone off the distiller so we could repaint it with the food-grade silicone we now have. On Thursday, we painted the distiller with white primer, and Friday we were able to almost finish painting the silicone on the basin (I learned that silicone caulk is a really hard thing to “paint” and it doesn’t like to be smooth and it stinks). So, we’re already a couple steps closer to a complete solar distiller! With Javi leaving, however, I’m losing my project partner, though one of the new volunteers will likely be helping me out when they arrive.

Outside of my main project, I posted on Facebook and SteemIt a couple times about EcoSwell’s progress/events and we had our weekly planting day on Wednesday starting at 6:30am. The guys spent the four hours of planting day trimming branches, grasses, and other plants around the house, and Isa and I checked all of the drip irrigation holes to make sure they were working, added some more drip lines, and planted a bunch of seeds ready to germinate in the nursery.

Adventures

Sunset at La Punta - spot Gino surfing the crazy wave!

We did some fun things this week outside of the house and work! On Friday we went to check out a new restaurant in town called 420 Cafe, which has great pastas and pizzas (I had yummy pesto gnocchi), a chill surfer dude atmosphere, some fancy cocktails (and wine!), and fast wifi! On Saturday I hung out on the beach and read for a while (and got covered in sand, thanks to the wind), and that evening we all went up to the water tower, the highest point in town, to watch the sun set over Lobitos. It was a fun little walk with a great view and we saw some roaming horses and wild foxes on the way down.

Sunday was the main adventure day of the week; all the newer volunteers (Dion, Ale, Javi, and me) went on the Lobitos Ocean Adventure run by Tulio, a local fisherman friend. We met him at the end of the pier at 7am, where we all jumped onto his fishing boat in between the big rolling waves coming in, and settled in for a classic Peruvian fishing experience. Tulio, his two sons, and his brother Jorge were with us on the boat and they told us about the generations of fishermen that have fished in this area, and passed down their knowledge and techniques through their families that still fish here today.

Tulio (right) and his brother Jorge teaching us to fish!

We took a forty minute boat ride through the oil platforms out to a reef, and then we dropped anchor and learned how to fish like a Peruvian. Each of us was given a thick plastic fishing line (no rod) that split three ways at the end; two had hooks on them, and one had a metal weight. The fishermen baited the hooks, and we would toss the line over the edge of the boat, letting it sink until the weight reached the bottom. Then we would hold the line in our hands and wait to feel a pull or wiggle or other sign that we had hooked a fish (it was really hard to tell), and then we pulled the line up to see what we got! Ale was the first to catch something, which ended up being a sea serpent that Tulio stunned before he tossed it back in the water. He caught a couple more small fish, but none big enough to keep. Javi and Dion both got seasick pretty fast, so the boys did most of the fishing for them, but they only caught one fish big enough to keep. I ended up getting lucky and catching four keepers!

My first fish!

Once we were done fishing, we pulled up the anchor and started heading home while Tulio prepared super-fresh ceviche for us with the fish that we caught. We had a snack of ceviche (complete with the onions and lemon) and plantain chips for the ride home, which mostly Ale and I ate (vegan or not, I couldn’t pass up ceviche that fresh), because Dion and Javi were still feeling sick. We made it back to land and thanked Tulio and his family for the experience, and they gave us the fish we didn’t eat to bring back to the house for lunch the next day. It was a fun morning!

Yum, ceviche doesn't get any fresher than this!

That night we watched the sunset from La Punta, where there are a bunch of big rock formations that form a point (and great surf waves!) and watched Gino, one of the local surfers, surf one of the most dangerous waves in Lobitos, El Hueco. It was crazy to watch.

Other than that, I saw and held a stick bug that we saw while painting the distiller, there were two blackouts (one on Wednesday night and one Sunday morning), and we went back to Tranqui’s for dinner on Sunday and Thursday, where Henry, a local guy (and also an insanely good surfer) who works for Waves for Development (the other non-profit in town) and one of his volunteers met us to eat.

Sunset over Lobitos from the water tower

There’s this week’s update! Sorry for the late post; I was really busy with work this week and forgot to start writing this post early enough on Friday, and I was gone most of the day yesterday (I’ll include that adventure in next week’s post!). I’m still having a ton of fun and learning a lot! Feel free to ask any questions :) Love and miss you all!

#EcoSwell #summer2018 #Peru #Lobitos

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blogvisa149 · 3 years

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nadziejastar · 5 years

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Well, first of all I loved his outfit. It’s similar enough to what he wore in BBS to make it feel like Isa, but still felt fresh. It looked like something a fashionable young person would wear. It’s based on a Roen-Gackt collaboration design. Nomura sure loves Gackt, lol. So Isa was considered important enough to get a lot of care put into his new outfit. This collaboration was probably done a long time in advance, like with FFVersus XIII. I’m sure Isa’s backstory was supposed to be WAY more fleshed out so that his character would make a MUCH stronger impression on the player by the end of KH3. So, the outfit was kinda wasted in a way. Isa’s whole character was just wasted potential, though.

In a room made of white marble, a large mirror reflected Demyx as he prepared to leave for the mission. He took particular care with his hairstyle, painstakingly manipulating the brown strands with a comb to make them stand straight up. Saïx observed him from behind with what appeared to be distaste. In stark contrast to Demyx, Saïx left his long blue hair unstyled. The X-shaped scar on his forehead was all the style he needed.

Having an outfit based on a J-pop star might tell us something about how Nomura originally viewed Isa’s personality. He actually seemed like a rather fashionable young man who took pride in his appearance. He even wore stud earrings. His style was different from other kids like Hayner, Pence, or Lea. Saïx didn’t have any interest in his appearance. But Isa certainly seemed like the type to style his hair and then some. For some reason, I picture him ironically spending even MORE time in front of the mirror than Demyx. Especially post-KH3. Isa was already shy. I think he would probably struggle with insecurity over having a scar covering most of his face. So, he would try even harder to compensate with nice clothes and accessories.

The KH3 ending outfit really doesn’t fit someone like Saïx, who had such a harsh and dreary personality. I can’t see Saïx choosing to wear anything like that outfit. Way too youthful and trendy. And definitely not the star and moon accessory, either. He’d throw up at the cute little moon on Isa’s BBS outfit. Isa obviously was supposed to have such a different personality than Saïx. I bet Isa is going to be SUCH an awkward character going forward, because they’ll feel obligated to keep his Saïx personality traits, which will clash so badly with the rest of his character. He’ll be this pseudo-villain/quasi-good guy that just will feel so out of place in a series like this. It breaks my heart.

A great number of Nobodies have lost human form, as have the Heartless. Yet the Nobody born of someone with a strong heart retains its shape, with but the faintest visible changes.

As far as the rest of his design goes, I thought it was pretty lazy. In my opinion, Isa’s character design needed much more of an update than what he got. Kairi looked more different after her haircut than Isa did in the ending. If anyone deserved to look different for KH3, it was him. But…he still looked almost exactly like Saïx to me. He has a bit more color to his hair and face, and his scar is faded. But that’s about it. Which I guess was intentional. Why bother changing his look? It seems like they gave up on whatever plan they originally had for Isa to be his own character who was totally distinct from Saïx. They’re gonna just pretend that he wasn’t Norted and treat him like he was the same as Axel. Which sucks.

Axel and Riku get along very well somehow. Since Riku has become a figure of Ansem, I don’t speak much with him, but he laughs like a different person when he eats Ice cream with Axel. Axel says he “Laughs to face bad feelings”, but it seems that Riku isn’t a bad person. At that Axel said ‘don’t laugh when you’ve got a gross face’, but Riku didn’t seem all that annoyed.

Also, Axel really liked sea-salt ice cream. You’ve eaten sea salt ice cream ever since you moved to that house. I wonder how you don’t break your stomach! It felt like he ate them to an unthinkable extent. Axel ate so much ice cream that the freezer in the computer room emptied every day.

Now as a villain, Saïx had a very cool design. He was handsome and had long hair, but...he looked mean and scary. He was supposed to. He WAS mean and scary. He was Xemnas’ right-hand man, after all. And if he was Norted, this makes sense. He was envisioned as a sociopathic guy who has bouts of uncontrollable bloodlust when exposed to moonlight. I like Saïx’s design. He was pale and almost vampire-looking? Or maybe Addam’s family. He was created as a bad guy. The whole idea was that he was a scary, unapproachable dude. He was sinister and creepy. Yet ironically his original self was the polar opposite. It made for a pretty cool twist, IMO.

“…Aw, is it good?” Axel teased. “Seriously, you’re like a little kid. Even though you look like a mean old man.” Riku made no response, keeping his gaze fixed on the computer screen. The comment did rub him the wrong way. But mentally, Axel was definitely older than him by at least a little. Not that you could tell from looking.

They were clearly going for a VERY different vibe with Isa. When I first played BBS, I thought that the visual difference between Isa and Saïx was extremely noticable. Isa looked a lot softer, sweeter and more friendly. The idea behind Saïx's design was: harsh and scary. The idea of a cute bunny rabbit representing his personality was supposed to be absurd. Saïx would be utterly disgusted if he was seen as “cute”. But the idea behind Isa's design was: cute and innocent. And Isa was indeed a little cutie. And he was innocent, too.

Saïx: We'll ensure he receives the maximum punishment.

Axel: Okay, since you worked really hard today, you get a reward.

Saïx’s Casual Gear is called “Dessert Time,” but the localization named it “Just Desserts", and I thought that was very clever. To get one’s just desserts means to receive the appropriate punishment for one's actions. But sea-salt ice cream is supposed to be a treat to reward someone who did a good job.

Saïx gave him a cruel grin. “You will lose everything!” And then the Claymore pierced Axel’s chest.

Saïx rarely smiles because he is cold and cruel. But he would smile when he’s giving Axel his just desserts.

“But sweet!” Lea added, and Isa smiled a bit. That was rare for him. Well, eating ice cream together, talking about silly stuff, laughing together—it was just what friends did.

Isa rarely smiles because he’s shy. But he would smile when he’s eating ice cream with Lea because he has a sweet tooth and loves dessert. It was such a cool idea. I loved it.

dichotomy

1. a division or contrast between two things that are or are represented as being opposed or entirely different.

2. the phase of the moon in which half its disk appears illuminated

Saïx’s Pandora Gear is called “Dichotomy” in the localization. Saïx had weapons called Lunatic, Berserker and Werewolf. The weapon representing his real personality is a bunny rabbit. The HUGE difference between Isa and Saïx was the whole point. My impression was that BBS wanted to emphasize as much as possible that Isa and Saïx were two very different people. And character design was one way they chose to do that. That dichotomy is what made Isa so interesting to me. If you want to make Isa his own character, you should go with a different character design, in my opinion.

“You’re in a pretty good mood,” Axel remarked. Riku glanced up.

“Seeing Sora just made you that happy, huh?”

“I don’t feel like telling you.” A little smile crossed Riku’s lips as he took another bite.

“Y’know, it’s creepy when you smile with that guy’s face,” Axel said dryly, following suit and nibbling on his own ice cream.

Silence fell over the room. He paused in his munching to stare hard at Riku, then finally asked, “What is Sora to you?”

The question caught Riku off guard. He groped for words. On the sofa opposite him, Naminé spoke up instead. “Sora and Riku are best friends.”

Like Terra, Isa was supposed to be cursed. Being Norted is no joke. That’s what a lot of the Beauty and the Beast parallels were about. Axel started teasing Riku for his ugly ass face the same time they were trying to figure out the organization’s next move. They were going to target those with strong hearts, and the Beast was one of those targets.

Belle nodded and silently walked out of the room. The trio went after her. The Beast was left alone with no company but the moonlight.

“You’re really just going to give up on everything now?” Sora said all at once. But the Beast only stared up at the moon.

Isa was supposed to be just as cursed as Riku was in KH2. And Riku changing his appearance fit perfectly with Lea and Isa’s story. Axel said Riku was creepy when he smiled with that face, and unfortunately that’s kind of how “Isa” made me feel in the KH3 ending. Since they took away the possession angle, I didn’t really see him as Isa. He still felt like Saïx to me. And seeing Saïx play and smile like that was kinda unsettling. And weird.

Axel’s eyes crinkled as he remembered his own best friend—the only friend he’d ever had, in fact.

“If your best friend goes away, you’re sad, and if you get to be with them, you’re happy,” Naminé added. “Isn’t that how it is, Axel?”

“…That’s about the size of it.” Axel nodded and sat down on the remaining empty sofa, staring at the sea-salt ice cream he held.

“So you are capable of sincerity,” said Riku.

Axel only shrugged at the jab and finished his ice cream pop.

Probably for this very reason, I could tell that Nomura wanted to take a different direction with Isa’s character design after he decided to make him a good guy and Lea’s best friend. You can see what Nomura had in mind for an adult Isa based on his illustrations of Saïx for 358/2 Days and KH2FM+. He looks different than he did in his vanilla KH2 concept art. His features lean a lot more heavily toward Isa in BBS. I really wished KH3 went in this direction with his updated character design. He looks much more youthful here, like Axel does. Also, I loved the fact that his scar was gigantic. It went all the way from the top of his forehead to the bottom of his nose. In KH3, they stuck with the old Saïx design, so his scar was a lot smaller. I like the bigger scar because it really shows that he was treated like a human lab rat (of course that idea was scrapped, anyways).

Beside the Beast, who had once been a handsome prince, stood a man in a black cloak. “It’s time you dealt with the girl. She’s scheming to take everything you have,” said Xaldin, his hood pulled low to hide his face. “Your castle, your treasures…and then your very life.” The Beast hung his head. His castle was a desolate place, ruled by a monster.

“Trust no one. Feed your anger. Only rage will keep you strong!”

“I’ve had enough of strength. There’s only one thing I want…” The Beast gazed, unmoving, at the glass bell jar around a single red rose.

What he wanted was—

“Hah,” Xaldin spat. “To love and be loved in return? Who could ever love a beast?” The Beast whirled again, his cape rippling. He glared and let out a roar of fury.

“Good. Let your anger rise!” With that, Xaldin vanished.

Axel didn’t really see his best friend when he looked at Saïx. He felt like Isa went away and Saïx took his place. His relationship with Saïx was based on his memories of the past. He self-medicated with ice cream to cope. It was heartbreaking. After the scene where Axel was sad about his best friend going away, the chapter about the Beast’s Castle begins, describing him as a formerly handsome prince. So on that basis, I wish there was more visual differentiation between Isa and Saïx. Most of the fandom is just going to see Isa as the same mean old Saïx since there was no attempt to differentiate Isa’s personality from Saïx’s personality and they look exactly the same, too.

“I don’t trust you,” Saïx replied flatly, the enormous Claymore in his hand.

“Traitors like you deserve to lose everything,” Saïx said.

Saïx gave him a cruel grin. “You will lose everything!”

They originally wanted Isa to have a distinct personality and appearance from Saïx—a lot more than just a new outfit. Isa was supposed to be a beautiful love interest cursed into being a beast. In the novel you can tell that Xigbar and Xaldin were pressuring Saïx to eliminate Axel. He was reluctant to do so on his own. Xigbar doubted whether he was even looking for Axel. Just like with the Beast, they were manipulating him to think Axel had been plotting to take everything from him. Deep down Saïx probably felt similar to the Beast. Like nobody could ever love him in his condition. I think that’s why he was so furious. Axel grew a heart, and then left him. But the only reason Axel grew a heart was because he remembered his feelings for Isa. It was a really cool idea. It's just a shame it never came to fruition.

#kh saix #kh isa #kingdom hearts #kh meta

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