branchandroot | Let me ramble about characters

Oh, that looks like fun! Let's start with

Tsuzuki Asato

*grins* Oh, he is a fun one.

How I feel: I want to shake him until his teeth rattle! He keeps so much of what he thinks and feels behind his teeth, and, honestly, I don't blame Hisoka in the least for being infuriated with him now and again. On the other hand, when he suddenly get serious, it /is/ awfully hot, in part just because of the contrast. His anime incarnation inspires me with a greater desire to whap him upside the head precisely because that brooding, cosmically powerful side is downplayed in the anime.

Who I ship him with: Um. Everyone? Seriously, nearly everyone we meet is fixated on Tsuzuki, and I could totally see most of them happening! Though I do think most of the Muraki possibilities are pretty squicky for my taste.

Non-romantic: ...this is a hard one for Tsuzuki. But I think the one he's most best-buddies with is Watari.

Unpopular Opinion: Not sure this is unpopular so much as rare, but... he's not actually all that sub, with most people. With Tatsumi, yes. With Hisoka, yes, at least when he's not being all uber-protective. With Muraki, I think it's a little more plain being overwhelmed. (Again, manga versions, here. The anime presents him as a /lot/ more explicitly and classically uke to Muraki.)

What I wish would happen: I wish he would off the Golden Emperor, possibly coming to terms with his demon blood in the process, finally let Hisoka trip him into bed, and just possibly take up a part time job ruling the shiki's world since someone has to do it, now, and he's probably the only one everybody would agree on.

*g* Oh, I had fun reading that!

I definitely prefer his manga incarnation.

Um. Yeah. That reminds me that I still have to write "Everybody wants Tsuzuki - Shinigami & others". Because I agree. *cough* Well, I got the squicky Muraki one out of the way already, but still.

*huge grin* That's totally the reason why I named my Watari/Tsuzuki icon "best friends".

I think he switches depending on both partner and situation. *nods*

I wish he would off the Golden Emperor, possibly coming to terms with his demon blood in the process, finally let Hisoka trip him into bed, and just possibly take up a part time job ruling the shiki's world since someone has to do it, now, and he's probably the only one everybody would agree on.

Please, please tell me you're writing this fic some time!

tell me you're writing this fic some time

Well, it /is/ hanging around, yes. It's just really hard to haul the bunnies out of the underbrush.

Not that I've known you to do LMB-fic, but: Ivan Vorpatril.

*laughs* I actually have; they're my most popular fic on AO3.

How I feel: Oh /Ivan/. Half the time I want to throw him to Elli's untender mercies, and half the time I want to hire him a Betan therapist of his very own, because you gotta figure Barrayar has messed him up just as badly as Miles. Ivan's just quieter about it.

Who do I ship him with: Well, By actually. That's what the two fic are about. Because they're such a good match, really! And Ivan has certainly done his best to foreclose his other options. Unless, of course, he runs away to be an employee of the Orb.

Non-romantic: Well, really, Ivan + Miles 4evar. Ivan is too busy assiduously hiding his intelligence from everyone else.

Unpopular opinion: I'd be perfectly happy if Ivan never did get set up with anyone romantically.

What I wish would happen: At some point I want Ivan to do or say something serious and insightful in view of the older generation, and watch them all be croggled. And then Ivan get fidgety as he realizes he's just blown his cover.

I will add all of the above to the long list of things I love about you =)

Cloud Strife

How I feel: Is it very bad of me to say that I love Cloud to death, but only in fic? He spends too much time brooding in canon, and I don't blame Tifa a bit for wanting to smack him about it now and then.

Who I ship him with: Sephiroth, in lots of either a) somewhat unhealthy sorts of D/s ways or b) merely ill-advised sorts of D/s ways, depending on whether it's before or after Sephiroth goes off his nut. Zack and Tifa and Aerith, quite possibly all at the same time, because they'd actually be pretty stable. Okay, so two of them are technically dead, but that doesn't have to stop them!

Non-romantic: I think Cloud and Reeve could be really good Friday night drinking buddies, actually. Though the cognitive dissonance when (as I suspect happens if Reeve gets tipsy) he starts talking with Cait Sith's accent could be really funny.

Unpopular opinion: I'm not sure I have one, for Cloud. Besides that he might actually just be asexual?

What I wish would happen: At this point I'd kind of like to see Cloud deal with Sephiroth. I mean /deal/ with him, and all they've done, not just banish him again. If the climactic fight in-game could be in their head-space, surely this wouldn't be too very hard to arrange again.

I actually can identify with original game Cloud a bit, but I think I like Cloud the best in Crisis Core because he's cute, shy and adorable. I don't know why I think that, but when you first meet him, just comes across like that.

I also love the image of drunk!Reeve talking with Cait Sith's accent. XD

Because they're on my mind (GEE I WONDER WHY): any of the Turks, or Rufus. :)

*grins* Gee, I wonder.

Okay, you get a two-fer.

Reno:

How I feel: OMG, so cute! In, you know, an edgy and dangerous way. Actually, I thought AC made him too baby-faced; I /like/ the fact that, in the game, he comes across as older, and someone with some dark headspaces.

Ship with: I kind of figure Reno is an all-Turk kind of boy. He wouldn't spread it around outside the outfit, unless it was on the job, but I think he'd be cheerfully casual about sex within that bond.

Non-romantic: I could totally see him and Tifa getting into drinking contests. I'm not at all sure who'd win.

Unpopular opinion: ...well, actually, I see him and Rude as more Partners Forever than fuck-buddies. My general impression of Reno is that sex is not his greatest expression of intimacy at all, and that he /is/ very intimate with Rude but probably not that way.

What I'd like to see: I want to see AC quality animation of Reno being deadly and dangerous and serious and scary.

Now, Rufus!

How I feel: Oh baby. Rufus is seriously my drool-type. Ruthless and polished and passionate and yeah. *fans self*

Ship with: Tseng. I ship those two so hard, in the "Tseng is the only one Rufus trusts enough to let take care of him" sort of way. And the "Tseng also gets kind of hot over Rufus' passion and ruthlessness" kind of way. Actually, that last is why I also figure all the Turks are right there for Rufus any time, any place.

Non-romantic: In a weird way... also the Turks.

What I'd like to see: For Vincent to return to the Turks because he respects what Rufus is and will do. Because Rufus would accept everything Vincent is. See it as something to be employed, yes; but accept it.

*squeak* I love it!

I totally agree with you on Reno. (I could see him occasionally deciding he needed to get laid and going to a sex worker or something (not the Honeybee, though, too much risk of running into old man Shinra) because it's just so much less complicated, too.) I don't see him as necessarily asexual so much as ... like you said, sex isn't his intimacy thing at all, so he tends to treat it more as, like, taking the car in for a tuneup.

Tifa and Reno drinking contests would be hilarious. (IMO, Reno would win at the time, but Tifa would win in the morning when she wasn't hung over in the least.)

And oh, Rufus. Rufus. IT IS NOT A SECRET THAT I LOVE RUFUS FUCKING SHINRA. I've sort of been writing him in other guises for at least a decade and a half. And yeah, I've always thought that's why the Turks are so loyal to Rufus: they are loyal to Tseng, and Rufus owns Tseng and always will. I think Tseng tried very hard not to want Rufus, but how can you not?

And oh my god, Vincent going back to the Turks. That would be epic. Because: yeah. Rufus would see everything Vincent was, and he wouldn't judge. And Vincent is a tool that is begging to be used, and Rufus would be able to use him in such a way that he would not break from it.

Rufus would be able to use him in such a way that he would not break from it

This, this, this. I mean, Vincent /was/ a Turk, he knows about expedience, he knows about ruthlessness, and I'm pretty sure no one enters that outfit without having a taste for danger. But the thing with Lucrecia and Hojo so clearly broke him. The promise of a leader who wouldn't /do/ that would have to be pretty darn tempting to him.

Because goodness knows, Cloud's no kind of leader. A hero, yes, but not a leader.

I've actually always really loved that about Cloud -- the fact that he isn't a leader, I mean. I have maintained for a really long time that FF7, taken as a whole, is actually a very strong (...and slightly vicious) skewering of the RPG tropes that were standard up until that point, and that it goes to great effort to point out all the ways in which those tropes are unrealistic and frankly unhealthy, and the moment where you-the-player realize that the "hero" character you've been self-identifying/self-inserting as is actually pretty screwed up and no hero at all and is doing the same self-insert thing you-the-player is doing really was a challenge thrown into the jaws of an entire industry.

(I, uh, have very strong thoughts about this. Obviously.)

But yeah, I love that Cloud isn't a leader, and I think there's a part of Vincent that likes that, in a way, because the last leader Vincent decided to follow (in the sense of, deciding to follow Shinra itself, I mean, not necessarily an individual person) betrayed him utterly and at least in deciding to join up with Cloud's merry band Vincent can be relatively assured that it won't happen again. (Or not in the same way, at least.) But yeah, I think he'd reach the point where EVEN HE will acknowledge that he has had too much moping and it is time to get up and do something about it.

(Get up, Jonah; it's your time to be born.)

And since Rufus is working to redeem the sins of the fathers at that point, well, it'd be pretty natural for Vincent to hitch his wagon to Rufus's star. Especially since, well, if Tseng and the other Turks are following this man, there must be a reason for it. It would take a lot of very, very, very tentative baby steps, but I can see it. I can really see it.

*snickering* That's another favorite moment of mine in AC. I mean, when /Vincent/ tells you you're being an anti-social twerp, it's definitely time to stop brooding.

Oh, God, say it twice!

Because I've been thinking about him a lot lately: Atobe Keigo.

*laughs* Oh, lovely!

How I feel: Atobe is totally my favorite. I love the smirking bastard, and all the more because I'm convinced that the diva act is an act; something he adopted to hold a team as flamboyant as Hyoutei. And it /worked/. But some days I imagine he gets kind of tired of it.

Ship with: Which is why I totally ship him with Tezuka; I think they complement each other, and give each other a break from their respective Captain acts. Though, really, I ship Atobe with /everyone/. With Sanada, with Yukimura, with Fuji, with Kirihara, with Shishido, with Momo, with everyone!

Non-romantic: I think Atobe and Sanada use each other to sharpen their claws on in a backhanded friends kind of way.

Unpopular opinion: Atobe is on top. He just is. If he actually respects his partner I'm sure he's perfectly cheerful about switching around the mechanics, but Atobe is on top. I think this amuses Tezuka kind of a lot, once they're settled with each other.

What I want to see happen: I want to see a real freaking Nationals! What we got was a travesty! I want to see Atobe being freaking awesome at training camp with his peers. Konomi, you're fired, we need a better writer.

Yes! Someone else who thinks the diva act is an act! I'm convinced that Atobe is a consummate actor and that he does what he has to do. Oh, I'm sure that he enjoys it, but I think that sometimes he wishes he could be just himself. *squishes Atobe*

I want to see a real freaking Nationals! What we got was a travesty!

This is why we must write our own.

Uhh multiple promps welcome thats what i always like to hear ;)

Tsunayoshi (khr)
Heero (gw)
Son goku (saiyuki)
Ryoma (pot)
Takato (digimon s3)
Atem / yami yuugi (ygo)

Ill obviously understand if you dont so them all but id bei pleased aisec punch info you do XD

*grins* Well, we'll start with Tsuna, then.

How I feel: I really love Tsuna's character development over the Kokuyo, Ring battle, and Future arcs, and I am deeply annoyed with Amano for rolling that back. I love watching Tsuna get to grips with his life and gain maturity a bit at a time. And I love boss!Tsuna to death.

Ship with: Everyone! Almost. Totally with Gokudera and Yamamoto, definitely with Mukuro though that's a much more fraught thing, hugely with Xanxus because goodness knows someone has to fix Xanxus and only Tsuna seems enough to do the job. I'd ship him with Kyouko more if he'd just get his head out of his ass and treat her with decent respect. Well, I suppose that's what fic is for.

Non-romantic: Ten-years Lambo. I think Twenty-years Lambo is made of sex and totally deserves to get laid with his boss. And, when you get right down to it, I think Reborn and Tsuna will be adorable forever, especially after Tsuna grows up a little and puts his foot down about Reborn's twisted sense of humor.

Unpopular opinion: I can't /stand/ uke Tsuna. In any way, ever. *shudders*

What I want to see happen: I want to see Tsuna keep growing up! Without having to re-do it every damn arc! I want to see him progress and get somewhere!

I think its hilarious that tsuna is such a ship bicycle but I totally see where you are coming from because he is just that lovely with all his family^^

I actually couldn't really see him with kyouko till I read yours and

lysapadin's "And they also serve"-verse and now I really like them together if I ignore amanos tendency to wipe all female characters under the rug and let them do the dishes (maybe, if they are nice)

I really hope we will get some discussion about the whole iemitsu thing in the end of the current arc *hopes*

Yeah, Amano has to tell us what's up with Iemitsu /some/ time, surely.

...surely.

hope springs eternal i guess

my fear is that its going to go like the whole damn shimon arc in the sense that there was all *oh my god my father is a murderer of children how will I relate to this/what does this mean for me etc*-related angst and then

HAHA JUST KIDDING it was all a misunderstanding, please proceed!

*sigh*

I mean KHR is my sparkly place where I go for the hot and ridicilous but I do despair sometimes because she hints at such interesting things that make me sit up and start to take it seriously and then she always chickens out

Now here's an interesting one.

How I feel: I really like Takato; I actually like him better than most of the goggle-boys, exactly because he's a bit different. Softer, and that makes his flares of temper or determination all the sharper.

Ship with: Lee. All the way, oh yeah. He gets Lee to be less serious, and Lee can maybe calm him down when he's on the edge.

Non-romantic: OT3, him and Lee and Ruki. Because they really do fit together, they /work/ together, in a much tighter way than most of the Digi-ensembles. Takato and Lee need Ruki's edge to see that it's all right to have one, and Ruki needs Takato's silliness to see the same thing, and they both need Lee to ground them.

Unpopular opinion: That this was my favorite season? That I really, really liked it when Takato totally lost control of his temper? That worked out in much higher relief than it usually does.

What I'd like to see: I'd love to see the three of them still together ten years on. See where they wound up. Whether they've become a famous programming team.

I like him the most as well! But I haven't ever read fic in that fandom because digimon fic seems to me such a big black hole of really badly written stuff (so any recs you can think of would, of course, be really appreciated XD)

I think the dynamic between the trio is really interesting, which is why even though the secondary characters were actually nicely developed for this franchise, I liked the stuff that centered around the three of them the most. It just seemed very self contained, because lots of the other teams you had a few characters that at one time or the other seemed to just ...be there without a real purpose.

With those three it just always seemed to come together and they never was a moment one of them was an outsider (also we get one of the only really kick-ass females in the franchise!)

Is that an unpopular opinion? I thought the fans were kind of evenly split in the middle of the love it- hate it divide?

I think him actually being hot-headed always intrigued me about him, cause he is presented as such a gentle person, so my pet-theory has always been that he is just more...sensitive to others than the other leaders so he normally keeps that energy contained, but the intensity is always underlying everything he does

I think you have something, there, about Takato being more sensitive. goodness knows, most of the other leaders tend to the bull-headed. I almost have to wonder whether Takato freaked people out, when he was tiny, and learned to hide that so well that he kind of forgot it himself. Until the Digital World.

Also. *hearts all over Ruki and her total kicking of ass*

I think that is exactly it, he learned that intensity is not the way to go in japan and kind of buried it till he needed to access that part of himself to get through the digital world

would be interesting to see an exploration of him suddenly not fitting anymore in that person he molded himself into and not really understanding why that feels so familiar

Jumping in to say that you and I pretty much have the same thoughts on Takato! I really loved Tamers as a kid, despite it being less popular, for the reasons you've mentioned. It's really nice to find someone else who appreciated this season.

*hearts* Yes! Tamers is /definitely/ my favorite of them all.

How I feel: He's such a snarky little bastard, and he's so /cute/ about it. I feel about him a lot the same way I feel about Karupin, really.

Ship with: Momo. And Tezuka. I'll include him in a moresome with Tezuka and others, too, but that's rarer. Ryouma really doesn't show that kind of trust very often.

Non-romantic: Also frequently Momo! I think he's tolerant of most of Seigaku in that "senpai, can't live with 'em, can't shoot 'em" sort of way, and probably takes shameless advantage of Fuji's possessive/protective streak.

Unpopular opinion: Well, unpopular in some quarters. I think it will be a solid handful of years before Ryouma is ready for any sexual relationship and his canon relationship with Tezuka has /zero/ sexuality to it. It's close and intimate in some ways, but it's not sexual or romantic.

What I'd like to see: Ryouma continuing on at Seigaku, /not/ going professional this early! He should stay with his team long enough to become at least mildly socialized and, like, maybe even finish middle school.

I totally share your unpopular opinion!
Its a bit like ciel for me....I mean come on people he is twelve!!

I know he doesn't really look like it, but still think about that! I'm sure his hotness will keep until he is at least of consenting age XD

*clings to you* Seriously! Let him get up to puberty, at least, people!

hahaha aaahhh fandom its such a love - "seriously, guys?" relationship for me

my newest, sparkly fandom (the tv series supernatural) is actually the most extreme of that i've seen, where half the time I'm hitting the back button so hard i'm mashing my keyboard

because what trumps underage, kinky sex with an ageless demon? underage incest with your codepedent older brother

The number 1 reason I adored Momo and Ryouma together was because Momo was able to draw Ryouma away from tennis and into teenage boy things. Like going out for hamburgers. Sure, they also played tennis in their spare time too, but Momo understood that no really, you can have interests in things that are not tennis and it's okay.

Chang Wufei.

Oh man, it's been a while.

How I feel: I think he has the potential to be one of the most interesting characters, and I want to /smack/ him half the time. Really, I'm amazed that Noin and Sally don't just strangle him after it's all over purely for the frustration and annoyance he put them through.

Ship with: Treize. I admit it, I'm a sucker for sword duels, and I think they both have extremely similar notions of honor and rightness. It would most likely be very mentor-student until Wufei grew up a bit, but I could really see them arguing the merits of this philosophy or that for years and years. And the world would /quail/.

Non-romantic: Heero, by the end. Because Heero did grow up enough to understand a little that Wufei's black and white honor isn't all there is to life, and smack a little sense into him. Everyone needs a friend like that.

Unpopular opinion: That relationship with Treize? Would be totally platonic for /years/.

What I'd like to see happen: I'd like to see Noin kick his butt, actually. He deserves it and it would be good for him. Put her in a gundam of her own and let's see just how unequal the match is then.

Yukimura Seiichi from PoT
And Kogaiji from Saiyuki

Let's start with Yukimura, then.

How I feel: Love, love, love! And also a bit of smugness, because, on the basis of about three pages worth of manga, I /totally/ called his eventual asskicking-ness. I love Rikkai best of all the teams, and I love that Yukimura can lead them, and I love speculating about what all that means in terms of team dynamics.

Ship with: All of Rikkai, but Sanada and Yanagi especially. OT3 all the way. Though I'll cheerfully throw Yukimura into bed with anyone to cross his path, because Yukimura > Everyone.

Non-romantic: Niou. Because Niou is a sharp one, and I think Yukimura is probably both amused by that and perfectly willing to use it.

Unpopular opinion: I'm not sure I have one for Yukimura, though there are certainly sections of fandom that have disagreed vehemently with my general Yukimura > Everyone thing. I've never been sure that wasn't sour grapes, though, so.

What I'd like to see: I want to see Yukimura when he's recovered. All the way. When he's in High School or going pro, and what his game really turns into.

Re: Yukimura>everyone and OT3 especially: yes, yes, yes.

Re: Yukimura recovered - oh yes, I really wanted to see his game and was a bit disappointed by the finals with Ryoma (he clearly hadn't recovered). Even though I mostly don't approve of New Tenipuri and stopped reading it, the Yukimura-Sanada match, however, was sort of interesting.

Yes, I went and read that match, particularly, even though most of New just makes me wince.

How I feel: I actually kind of love Kougaiji best. I'm a sucker for the whole princely responsibility thing, and he's so clearly doing his best to be an honorable opponent despite being blackmailed into all this, and really kind of liking the people he's supposed to stop.

Ship with: I actually don't ship him with any of them! Well, maybe a little with Dokugakuji, but only as a passing thing? Loyalty-porn, you know.

Non-romantic: I think he could actually be good friends with Goku, not least because Goku has so much in common with Lirin. A little brother would be just the thing for him.

Unpopular opinion: Well, most likely that I don't ship him with anyone.

What I'd like to see happen: I'd really love it if he joined forces with Our Heros and they helped break his mother free.

He's difficult to ship! Because he's clearly mostly Not About That. (though I sometimes think in the threesome direction with Doku and Yaone). And I would really love to see the breaking free of his mother. And, actually - though it's fanfic matter - I'd like to see the interactions between him, his mother and his team. And what changes. And how.

Also, if I'm allowed another one: Gregor Vorbarra.

Totally!

How I feel: I love what Gregor has grown into. Especially since Mark is totally right, Gregor is what Cordelia might be if she'd been born to rule instead of on Beta Colony. I love the quiet, and the intensity, and the sardonicism, and I bet he's going to very quietly panic when he and Laisa have kids. So cute.

Ship with: Well, Laisa, obviously; they're just adorable. I also sometimes entertain moments of Gregor and Miles, but it's hard to fit into actual canon timelines without having it go all sorts of scary, sexually scarring places.

Non-romantic: Miles, mostly. Because they're such adorable foster brothers and Gregor so clearly can see right through Miles by the time they've grown up a bit, and still loves the little twerp.

Unpopular opinion: I have no idea if this is unpopular or not, but I think Gregor could just maybe be kinky if he ever felt safe doing so; but that doesn't seem at all likely.

Want to see happen: I'd really like to see Gregor and the Cetegandan Emperor meet. And bond over how /impossible/ Miles is. I really think they'd get along.

I love Gregor so much. (Especially since he's sort of the flip side of Rufus, really. And Gregor and Cordelia are sort of Rufus and Tseng. Yeah. I have a type. It's not a secret.) And yeah, I'm nodding along with all of this, especially that Gregor could probably be kinky if he ever felt safe, but given his family history ...

Here's a few more for fun!

Riza Hawkeye from FMA
Relena from Gundam Wing
Rei Hino/Sailor Mars from Sailor Moon
Juri from Utena

How I feel: I love her /so much/. She just rocks my world, in fact I wound up writing a whole arc of her rocking Roy's world just because she rocks that hard. She's amazing.

Ship with: Roy. And Lust. And sometimes Havoc, as comfort-sex for both of them.

Non-romantic: This, however, is where I usually put Havoc. As her best friend at the office, the one she can talk to about how Roy makes them worry, the one who can tease her about her crush on the boss and not have her take it badly.

Unpopular opinion: Not sure this is unpopular, but I haven't seen it very often. She's very self-aware and matter-of-fact about being in love with Roy, and doesn't brood or pine. She's just the very best at whatever she does, not because of him but because her own sense of self and self-respect demand it. And /that/ is what makes her the kind of person Roy really will fall for.

What I'd like to see happen: For them to retire into politics and Rule The World.

I <3 Riza too to be honest. XD Roy/Riza is my FMA OTP. XD

She seems like a person who's too practical to brood over being in love with Roy to be honest, so I actually agree with you on that in a way. Plus, there's probably more important things she needs to worry about than her relationship with Roy. She knows where she stands with him and that she totally has the right to slap him if he's being stupid about something. Which is probably why it's my OTP. XD

(I totally would be in a relationship with someone who would smack me if I was being stupid about something.)

How I feel: I think she got a raw deal from the writers. She was given too many hats, in the narrative, and it made her character really uneven. As any /one/ of them, I quite like her.

Ship with: Dorothy. Or no one, because Relena can stand on her own, by gum.

Non-romantic: I actually think her relationship with Heero is much more likely to go in this direction; they both start out really immature, emotionally, and they both grow a lot by the end of the series, and I think they could be really good for each other as long-term friends who experienced all that together.

Unpopular opinion: Relena could really do with not being shipped with anyone.

What I'd like to see: I want to see her as a pilot! I think she'd be a kickass pilot! She has that kind of passion and determination, and surely Zechs didn't get all the "good pilot genes" in that family. And she could really do with Noin as a mentor, rather than body-guard.

Only a few, really!

Shuurei (SaiMono)
Rukia (Bleach)
Jareth (Labyrinth)
Aerith (FF7)

*tries again* And that would be me forgetting to login.

*grins* Let's see, then.

How I feel: Rukia /rocks/. Rukia is /amazing/. She takes everything life throws at her and still stands up. I less-than-three her forever.

Ship with: Renji. Orihime. Ichigo, if it's a foursome with the previous two.

Non-romantic: Ichigo. Because they really do /understand/ each other, and they kind of need each other to stay on an even keel, and they will still be fighting with each other a thousand years from now. And, in a way, Byakuya. Because, once they're actually communicating a little, they're the most adorable big-brother-little-sister imaginable. Especially when Byakuya is in psychotically protective mode.

Unpopular opinion: There are no plot inconsistencies, Rukia has always been awesome.

What I'd like to see: I would give /money/ to see her become Captain General eventually. I won't happen, but I would squee forever. Failing that, I'd love to see her retire into politics and boss Ichigo around when /he/ becomes Captain General.

Rukia /rocks/.
Word. Times a million.

Non-romantic: Ichigo. Because they really do /understand/ each other,
And this, this is why I stuck with Bleach as long as I did. (Essentially, what got me through to the Soul Society arc.) I love how she lived in his closet and was clearly the most important relationship in his life, and it didn't need to be sexual, even when others were implying it, and they still worked together and depended on each other, and it was marvelous.

There are no plot inconsistencies, Rukia has always been awesome.
Plot ~~inconsistencies~~, what plot ~~inconsistencies~~?

I would give /money/ to see her become Captain General eventually.
Me, too. I actually kind of want to see Ichigo in politics and Rukia as Captain General, because Rukia can snap orders and make Shinigami ask how high, while Ichigo can shake things up. But the other way 'round is acceptable, too. :)

How I feel: Oh, wow, here's a blast from the past all right. I, um, kind of /still/ have a massive crush on Jareth. ^_^;

Ship with: Oh come /on/, the whole movie was made to be a self-insert. At the same time, I'm quite partial to fic that features him and Sarah hammering their Issues out eventually, and that features her as a three dimensional character.

Non-romantic: Actually, the Labyrinth itself. It's so clearly in a /relationship/ with him.

Unpopular opinion: Not sure I have one.

Like to see: A demi-sequel in which a slightly older Sarah comes back to the Labyrinth to finish things properly and confronts all the things Jareth represents that she couldn't deal with before. (I do subscribe to the notion that turning away from him was turning away from sexuality.)

Ship with: Oh come /on/, the whole movie was made to be a self-insert. At the same time, I'm quite partial to fic that features him and Sarah hammering their Issues out eventually, and that features her as a three dimensional character.

And this is why I fell in love with the movie after I read the fic, even though I watched the movie before I read the fic. I'll just...read the fic into the movie, lalalala.

Non-romantic: Actually, the Labyrinth itself. It's so clearly in a /relationship/ with him.
Living surroundings are awesome. And kind of insane.

How I feel: I love her sense of humor. I will never forget watching her leggo-avatar really obviously /laughing/ over Cloud in a dress.

Ship with: Zack. Tifa. Cloud. All of the above! Sephiroth if Coyo is writing it. I don't really see her as the One True Love type.

Nonromantic: ...Zack, Tifa, Cloud, Sephiroth...

Unpopular Opinion: Oh god, this sounds so callous, but... killing Aerith? /Brilliant/. Just freaking brilliant, especially since it was pretty much the first time anyone did something like that.

What I'd like to see: Her tracking down Sephiroth in the Lifestream and smacking some sense into his silver head. Possibly with a bunch of flowers.

Alexiel (Angel Sanctuary)

How I feel: She's exceedingly cool and I'd have liked to see more of her, or more of her showing through. So much of the focus was on Setsuna's struggle not to be her that we didn't get as much of a sense of who she is as I'd have liked.

Ship with: Lucifer, forever, omg his Thing for her even as a sword is epic. And hot.

Non-romantic: *grins* Kurai. Who has the world's greatest crush and it's just so adorable I can't help squeaking.

Unpopular opinion: The genderbending wasn't as transgressive as that.

What I'd like to see: Therefore, I'd really love to have seen Setsuna dealing with going to bed with Kira/Lucifer while in Alexiel's body, and all the mad identity issues that would bring up, and the somatic issues of dealing with a different sex body. Because I'm evil that way.

How about

Zuko

How I feel: Oh /Zuko/. Oh, sweetie. Let the fans make it all better, baby. As previously mentioned, I love him as the shounen hero in this show, and I love his development and even his awkwardness. Though my favorite Zuko-related line is actually Mai's, when she says that she's saving the jerk who just dumped her.

Ship with: Sokka. Especially early on, my goodness, tasty rival-slash all over. None of the rest of the Gaang, really, they're too young for him. He's so much older emotionally than any of them, it would take years to even that out. (Though in Embers I ship him /hard/ with Toph.)

Non-romantic: Sokka! And Katara, eventually, once she's over wanting to kill him.

Unpopular opinion: Don't really see him with any of the official possibilities, including Katara.

Want to see: I want to see him as he grows up. I want to see them /all/ as they grow up. This is why I love Embers so much, because it offers the beginnings of this.

Hahaha, I love your answers, especially your unpopular opinion. Matched set, indeed.

That line of Mai's is aweseome! I do really really love that little dialogue with Zuko, too:

Mai: Orange is such an awful color.
Zuko: You're beautiful when you hate the world.
Mai: I don't hate you.
Zuko: I don't hate you, too.

*squee* I still see them more as BFFs, though.

Akira from HnG.

How I feel: I like Akira best, no question. I'm a sucker for that kind of intensity and earnest humorlessness that doesn't quite realize it's humorless. Hikaru is good for him; he needs someone to get into silly fights with.

Ship with: Hikaru! They are so adorable, and I love rival-slash. I sometimes entertain Ogata, but only in the later canon, once it's not skeevy.

Non-romantic: This is kind of a hard one, because the boy isolates himself so much. In some ways, I think Ogata comes closest, as the mentor Akira seems to trust the most.

Unpopular Opinion: Not sure if it's unpopular, but oh /god/ I can't stand Akira's sweaters. They're a /crime/.

Wish to see: I'd love to see the first time Akira and Hikaru went to bed together, because there would surely be /epic/ snark.

LOL. To follow up: Hikaru. And Ogata.

How I feel: I actually spend the first half wincing over the way Hikaru embarrasses himself. That's a squick of mine, and I can barely make it through all the times the poor kid shoves his foot in his mouth up to the knee. After that it gets a lot easier!

Ship with: Akira. *hearts* Sometimes Mitani, but honestly I ship the Kaiou captain with Mitani a lot harder.

Non-romantic: Sai. There's no question that Hikaru loves Sai, but I've never seen them as romantic. More like beloved teacher and second chance and opponents and friends and roomies all rolled into one.

Unpopular opinion: *points above* Really, not romantic.

Wish to see: I'd really like to see Hikaru working his way up the title matches. I'd like to see what the older generation makes of him, of his play and his philosophy.

How I feel: I actually heart Ogata a whole lot and don't find him at all creepy. He's clearly manipulating Akira and Hikaru, but it's just as clearly for their own good and because he knows they're both stubborn as mules and won't accept straightforward interference. God knows someone has to do it. And I love that he's clearly getting laid and just as clearly cares more about go.

Ship with: Well, I would ship him with Kuwabara, except, um, ew. *sighs* I think there could be some potential for a threesome with him and Akira and Hikaru, because it would probably go better if /someone/ knew what they were doing. Or else sex might never happen because they'd be arguing too much.

Non-romantic: In a mentor-and-rival thing with Touya-dad. /Clearly/ in an Eternal Rivals thing with Kuwabara. And starting down that path, on the other side of the table, with Akira, which I heart massively.

Unpopular opinion: ...seriously, not creepy, people.

What I'd like to see: To see Ogata take the Honinbou title from Kuwabara, and to see Akira going at it hammer and tongs with him over the title a handful of years on.

Huh, somehow I didn't see this last night! Clearly my brain was too blitzed.

Tell me about Hiruma! And Shin, while we're at it.

*ponders* And Xanxus, too. And Hatter.

How I feel: EEEEEEEEE! Okay, I'm a sucker for Hiruma, I have a type, I KNOW THIS. I love me some Magnificent Bastards. I also love that Hiruma /doesn't/ have any super abilities and /still/ owns absolutely everyone because he's just that determined and driven.

Ship with: Mamori. Shin. And Sena, if Sena twigs to Hiruma's secret soft side (very, very secret). Juumonji, especially if Hiruma is grooming him as the next captain. Kid, whenever Hiruma loses his patience. Takami all the time.

Non-romantic: ...any of the above he's not actually sleeping with? Hiruma, for all his prickles, really does seem to make Best Rivals with everyone he plays.

Unpopular opinion: KEEP AGON AWAY FROM HIM, OMG, DIE AGON, DIE RIGHT NOW, DIE IN A FIRE. *coughs* Yes, so.

What I'd like to see: A different ending with the Dad Issues! We know this; it was a total rip off. I want it to be something better! I liked our idea that his dad is some kind of politician who had an affair with his mother a lot better.

*grins* Hiruma just really is that awesome.

Amen on the Agon issue. A-frickin-men.

How I Feel: Oh, Shin, you were /so/ raised by wolves. Socially inept wolves. And it's so freaking cute.

Ship with: Sena! They are made for each other. They are Eternal Rivals! Shin was Sena's first, and they are Destined! Okay, but seriously, they really do stay focused on each other no matter who else comes along.

Non-romantic: Sakuraba. I think they really are best friends, despite Shin's total lack of comprehension about how to show this like a normal human being. *is still laughing over the Trident Tackle of Friendship*

Unpopular Opinion: ...I'm sorry, Panther is a great guy, but Sena belongs with Shin.

What I'd like to see: Shin and Sena next year. When Sakuraba has probably inherited the captain's seat and he and Juumonji can bond over the way their linebacker and running back, respectively, obsess over each other.

*snickering helplessly* Maybe they can invite Panther in on the weekends for hot threesomes.

How I feel: SO FREAKING BROKEN. I mean, he is so /clearly/ psycho when we meet him, and when we learn some of what went into making him like that it's just a little heartbreaking. He's also really damn cool once he's a little saner, like say ten years later. That whole section just /rocked/. Clearly he's still taking a certain satisfaction in being Difficult, but he also clearly knows when to be serious.

Ship with: Squalo, 4evR. And Tsuna, because he needs fixing.

Non-romantic: I could really see him getting along with Mukuro, if it were far enough on they'd both fallen under Tsuna's spell. They could snark about it and play "who's going to destroy the world first", with the unspoken understanding that they'll never actually do it, now.

Unpopular opinion:

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How I feel: SO FREAKING BROKEN. I mean, he is so /clearly/ psycho when we meet him, and when we learn some of what went into making him like that it's just a little heartbreaking. He's also really damn cool once he's a little saner, like say ten years later. That whole section just /rocked/. Clearly he's still taking a certain satisfaction in being Difficult, but he also clearly knows when to be serious.

Ship with: Squalo, 4evR. And Tsuna, because he needs fixing.

Non-romantic: I could really see him getting along with Mukuro, if it were far enough on they'd both fallen under Tsuna's spell. They could snark about it and play "who's going to destroy the world first", with the unspoken understanding that they'll never actually do it, now.

Unpopular opinion: <_< >_> Xanxus is on the bottom, when he's with Tsuna.

What I'd like to see: More Xanxus! Is this really too much to ask?! Xanxus is amazing, we should have more of him! Especially his reactions to the Ring battle and whether /he/ has also been a recipient of the future memories.

Oh, man, Tsuna seriously tops Xanxus, six ways from Sunday. Totally.

And I bet Xanxus doesn't even kick that much over, after they get in their groove.

How I feel: Oh god, I love Hatter so very much. Se is so broken and yet so /good/, even so. It's like hir broken-ness is part of /why/ se's so good. and that fascinates me.

Ship with: Lucifer! Arariel, in my own fic, to give the poor thing a better deal. Alexiel in teh future, when she returns.

Non-romantic: Kurai. They're SO CUTE. And Kurai takes Hatter at kind of face value, which I think someone needs to do. Also Setsuna, in an odd way, and for loosely similar reasons.

Unpopular opinion: Not. Female. I'm not sure how unpopular this actually is, but it seems to be an issue of some contention and I'm very firmly on the Not Female, Not Male, damn it, side.

What I'd like to see: Hatter owning everyone some more. Because there's never enough of that.

...didn't the manga make it pretty apparent that Hatter wasn't either? I mean, I know the issue of pronouns makes it tricky, but I thought that bit of hir backstory was pretty obvious.

Yes, the manga did, but does that stop people? No. *grumps*

*grumps* People are damn stupid.

Anthy from Utena
Lucifer from Angel Sanctuary
Relena from Gundam Wing

Already did Relena! So, let's do Anthy.

How I feel: Scary. Sexy. Mysterious. She's the one who's most opaque for most of the series, I think; with reason of course, once you see the end of it all. In an odd way, I think she's our viewpoint character, in the end.

Ship with: Utena, of course! they're totally, like, soulmates by the end and all they've been through together.

Non-romantic: ...I'm not sure Anthy knows how to do this, actually.

Unpopular opinion: /I/ actually kind of don't like this one, but... I think Anthy is a victim by her own will. In the end, control is in her hands, and that's just what she's doing her damndest to deny, right up to the end.

Want to see: I would not at all object to another round, another iteration of the whole thing. I'd love to see what it would become this time.

Let me ramble about characters

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Tsuzuki Asato

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Cloud Strife

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Reno and Rufus

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Atobe

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Sawada Tsunayoshi

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Takato

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Ryouma

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Wufei

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Yukimura

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Kougaiji

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Gregor

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Hawkeye!

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Relena

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Rukia

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Jareth

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Aerith

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Akira

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Hikaru

Ogata

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Hiruma

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Shin

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Xanxus

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Hatter

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