Reunited: Gabriel Reyes (Reaper) X Fem!Reader (NSFW)

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A little self indulgent piece of my OC phantom and cayde.

Angst with eventual fluff.

This has not been proof read

Enjoy xoxo

Home.

He's home.

Sprawled out on the sofa of my...our flat, snoring softly. One leg over the back of the sofa, head tilted back, resting on his hands like he never left.

His Cloak slung over the coat hook it used to call home until 5 years ago, boots beneth it, still caked in mud and on the coffee table, his holster and ace...ace 2? I glance back to my bedside dresser, caydes ace of spades resting there, the tool of retribution that carried swift justice to uldren sov. My gaze returns back to the other wespon, cracked with an un-earthly glow sitting on the coffee table.

Why can't I be happy about this,Like every one else?

Why can't I welcome him back into my...our bed like I used to, curling up into his side, listening to his inner mechanisms softly working as we simply bask in one another's presence?

I should be elated. I am. Its like every wish I ever asked for rolled together in one. An impossible ask made real, laying on my sofa...our sofa. Back where he belongs. He's safe.

But what about me?

Selfish thought I know but,What about the tears I cried every day for 5 years? The nightmares? The hallucinations? The sleep terrors? The anxiety attacks?

What about my pain!?

I grieved. I grieved for him. The life we could have had. The death of seemingly everything I held dear and now I'm supposed to just...forget that? Forget how much i suffered while everyone else managed to move on.

Envy it an ugly emotion but I feel it nontheless strongly as I do my grief.

Does he even know?

I'm sure he must have some idea. I'm sure zavala and ikora filled him in. I'm sure sundance and midnight spoke.

Spoke about the night I screamed so raw my throat bled. The night zavala found me curled up behind the bust of cayde in the tower, wrapped in his cloak as the snow settled around me, slowly burrying me as i stared off into nothingness. The missions I returned from, battered and bloody only to pick up the next bounty and leave. No food. No rest. No time to remember.

Maybe thats why his eyes followed me with that uneasy concern when I bid him good night. The look of understanding that sent an uneasy shiver down me when I asked him if we could sleep separately for a while as I got used to my dead partner being alive and well back in my...our apartment.

A shiver of frosty air shoots up my spine and sets my teeth on edge.

He's here again.

Not the real cayde.

But the cayde thats been with me since he died.

The cayde that lingers in the shadows, that stalks me in the light of day, that lingers over my shoulder. A waking nightmare.

He first started to apear a few days after caydes death. Only at night. He would hover beside my bedside, bending down beside my ear to whisper.

"I was waiting for you. Waiting for you to run in and put a bullet between that bastards eyes. But you didn't. You were too late. Too late. TOO LATE!"

"Youre sick. Sick in the head. You welcomed my killer into our home with open arms. Crow? Crow?! That's what the sick fucks calling himself now? Are you that desperate to betray me? That desperate to desicrate MY HOME with that murders precence?!"

Then it would vanish as the dawn arrived leaving me sleepless and guilt ridden.

Until it didn't.

Until guardians would give my looks of sympathy and fear when a smokey apparition of the ex hunter vanguard would be glanced over my shoulder. Lips uttering words only I could hear.

I tried everything. Pills, alcohol, therapy, eris's hive magic, maras paracausal influence but nothing stopped the ghastly characature of my dead lovers visage from taunting me.

Ikora began to avoid me. I dont blame her. Being forced to see her fallen friend every instance we spoke must have been hard but...at least she could escape it.

Zavala simply gives me this look. The kind of look you give an animal you know needs putting out of its Misery as it lays dying at the side of the road. The type of look you give sickly dying people when you know they're on their last legs. I know he means well.

But I avoid him to now. I am not dying nor sickly...not outwardly and I don't wish to be treated as such.

With a sigh I turn, heading back into my...our room.

I'll get it right eventually.

I shrug off my clothes leaving them heaped on the floor, tugging on one of caydes hoodie that no longer smells like him before sliding into bed.

"Broken" it hisses.

"You think that's what i want. You think after these years, after what you've become, I'll want you?"

"Deluded"

"Shut up" I whisper holding my hands over my ears but it does nothing to silence the vile vitriol that slips from its mouth.

"Broken little phantom. How many time did you think of crushing midnight and ending it all huh? Monster. Selfish monster even considering that. I deserve better."

I curl into a ball as if caydes hoodie and the blankets will save me from the ghastly manifestations of my biggest failure. But it dosent.

My heart rate begins picking up as further hateful bile is spews from the lips of the creature using my lovers face to torment me. My fingers tremble against my face as my body convulses with each sob that wracks my frame.

"Worthless, selfish, untrustworthy, lying, unfait-"

"Hey"

The voice seemingly interupts itself

A hand on my shoulder jolts me to the present as i turn expecting the face of a nightmare...

2 icey blue optics stare into my own eyes from the darkness. Not the misty red smoke I expected.

"Zavala...zavala told me about...well...me" he says softly. The feeling of his hand on my shoulder, thumb rubbing gentle circles feels...Alien but...also like home.

Cayde glances at the misty apparition of himself with a hard glare. His eyes soften as he looks back to you "this guys a real buzzkill huh?" He says softly in a weak attempt to lighten the mood. He readjusts himself on my...our bed. Placing himself between me and the nightmare.

"Just ignore...him? Me? No not me. Ignore it" he murmurs as he slips under the covers. I cant help my body tense as he moves up beside me. As if sensing my unease he also freezes.

"I can leave, if you want. Go back to the sofa" his voice softly speaks as if I'm a cornered animal, soothing. Safe.

I pause. No. No thats the last thing I want now. I spent 5 years apart from him, I don't want to spend a single moment away from his side.

"No please stay" I mumble, voice horse from the tears that a familiar hand was wiping away. My hand finds the material of his tshirt and I move myself trying to get iven closer despite us already being flush together.

"Always"

His body fits against mine like a puzzle piece, arms snaking round my waist, anchoring me to him. "It wasn't your fault doll. I promise"

My body gradually untenses for what feels like the first time in 5 years as I sink back into he familiar embrace of caydes body. My body trembles with the adrenaline finally leaving my system.

His chest still rises and falls, his exo body's mimic of a heart beat still reaches my ears. Home. For the first time in 5 years, We are both home.

A blue light on my bedside catches my eye. A ghosts eye, 2 of them, watch us. Midnight and sundance. The pillow I keep on the bedside cabinet once for both midnight and sundance may seem unnecessary to some but our ghosts deserve a little love to. Midnight had always looked swammed by the pillow after sundance was blown to shards but now, seeing them both huddled up to one another as they to settle down, it feels like everything is finnaly settling into place.

Cayde-6 the once dead hunter vanguard, friend and lover was finally back where he rightfully belonged.

Home.

Our home.

Hi! So I'd like to request (if you want too) headcanons of Hazard and reader having a hard-core flirting thing going on. But neither is making a move and everyone's like bro KISS ALREADY-

You can decide who makes the first move!

(Also I love ur writing I need more of this man)

What it would be like to hardcore flirt with Hazard (JUST MAKE OUT ALREADY)

General Dynamic

- Hazard and you are constantly locking eyes in conversations, but instead of looking away, they hold the gaze with a subtle smirk or eyebrow raise. It leaves everyone in the room feeling like a third wheel.

- Their banter is razor-sharp but never truly mean—it's like a game of verbal chicken where both are testing how far they can push before it gets real.

- Leaning too close while explaining something, brushing fingers when handing over items, or Hazard casually putting your hair behind your ear because “it bothered him”.

- Hazard calls Reader things like “sweetheart” and “hotshot” while Reader shoots back with “tough guy” and “Spiked for brains”. The nicknames become progressively flirtier over time.

Group Reactions

- Mutual friends and even the Phreaks are so done with it. Constant comments like, *“Will you two just kiss already?”* or blatant matchmaking attempts at group events.

- Hazard will throw a “don't wait up" as Reader leaves the room just to rile everyone up. Reader, unfazed, winks and says, "You wish."

- The group starts theorizing that the prolonged flirting is some kind of elaborate prank or game they're playing with each other.

Hazard’s Style

- Hazard loves to lean in close when talking, with that trademark smirk, and then back away *just* as it seems like he might actually say something meaningful.

- Occasionally, Hazard lets the guard down—just for a second—saying something like, *“You’re not as bad as I thought you were,”* before immediately covering it up with a laugh.

- Hazard steps in when needed, whether it’s someone hitting on Reader or a dangerous situation, but plays it cool after, with a casual, *“Can’t let anything happen to my favorite rival, can I?”*

Your Moves

- You play the game just as well, but occasionally stumbles over a quip when Hazard’s intensity catches them off guard.

- After you found out that Hazard likes to be praise, you tend to sneak in small praises like “You’re annoyingly good at this, y’know?” which Hazard always catches and turns into a smug grin or if you catch him guard…you’ll just see a freshly made tomato :].

- You LOVE to outdo Hazard just to see that spark of competitive fire in his eyes—whether it’s in training, arguments, casual bets or just to see how much flustered can you get him before he breaks.

- Speaking of breaking first, one night, when the teasing’s gone too far, Hazard corners you, smirks, and plants one hand against the wall beside your head. "Ye’ve been dancin’ ‘round this for long enough” he says, his voice low, laced with that distinct Scottish lilt. You raise an eyebrow, trying to hold your ground despite the way his words send a shiver down your spine. “Oh, do you? Go on, Hazard, enlighten me." His smirk deepens, and he leans in, his breath warm against your ear. "Ye want me tae make the first move. Admit it, lass." You let out a scoff, though your voice wavers slightly. "Big words for someone who’s been as scared to do it as me." Hazard pulls back just enough to meet your eyes, his teasing smirk softening into something sharper, more determined. "If ye think I’m scared, ye dinnae ken me at all." Before you can fire back, he closes the gap, catching your lips in a kiss that's rough and unrestrained, like he’s been holding back for far too long. When he finally pulls away, his breath mingling with yours, he grins, his accent thick and dripping with smugness, "Told ye I’d be the one tae break first." You grab the front of his jacket, pulling him closer, a smirk of their own spreading across their face, "Don’t get cocky, Hazard. This isn’t over yet." And just like that, the tension snaps, the teasing taking on a fiery, new intensity.

What do you think Hazard would do if he ever gets a nightmare? Do you think he's the type who goes to his partner for comfort? I'm just interested in his more... vunerable/emotional side. ... aww imagine a scene where he gets a nightmare about his partner (reader) getting hurt or perhaps even killed and tries to look for them for comfort when he wakes up. ;-;

Although I like to think that he has discovered a way to actually keep his composure from having episodes (I blame axe for the headcannon, I can’t get it out of my head). But I do think he has night terrors, not as frequent as his war days. If he has a nightmare about his partner being hurt or killed, I think he'd wake up in a cold sweat, breathing hard, the vividness of the dream clinging to him like a heavy fog. At first, he might try to shake it off, convincing himself it was just a dream. But the thought of losing his partner—his anchor—would gnaw at him.

Eventually, he wouldn’t be able to resist seeking them out. Maybe he’s not the type to outright say, “I had a nightmare and need comfort,” but his body language would give him away. He’d find his partner, sit close, and quietly ask, “You okay?” or “Were you asleep?” His voice might have a rare vulnerability, and he might not meet their eyes at first.

If his partner notices and gently pulls him into a hug, Hazard wouldn’t resist. He’d let himself melt into their embrace, burying his face in their neck as he mutters something like, “Just needed to see you’re okay.” It’s a small, tender moment where he allows himself to be human, reminding himself that they’re safe and real.

And the next day? He’d probably act like nothing happened—but his touches and glances would linger just a bit longer, as if he’s silently promising himself to never let that nightmare become reality.

─── Hazard Relationship Headcanons ˙ ♡ ̟

✰ Summary ; A few headcanons of being in a relationship with Hazard from Overwatch.

✰ Pairing ; Findlay “Hazard” Docherty x GN Reader.

✰ Content Warnings ; N/A.

✰ Word Count ; N/A.

✰ Author’s Notes ; As a disabled person, I WILL project, because it’s SO refreshing seeing disability representation.

✦ Even with a demeanor like his, he’s actually a big sweetheart, and he gets flustered quite easy, especially when it comes to you.

✦ His love languages are quality time and gift giving. He loves spending time with you, and seeing your face light up when he gives you something he picked out specifically for you.

✦ Definitely protective as hell—like good lord this man has been through so much already, he’s gonna fight for you.

✦ Touchy. Even though most of his limbs are prosthetic, he’ll often use his left hand to hold yours, just to know you’re there, and it comforts him.

✦ He likes nights in, while he adores going out and causing chaos, he also enjoys slow nights and maybe a few movies—he’ll let you pick them out, just as long as he gets time with you.

✦ Insecure about his prosthetics—he’ll ask you for reassurance a lot.

✦ I’m here to spread the chronic pain agenda, this boy hurts a lot. Most of his body is metallic material, he’s constantly in pain, so when he gets home after a long day of being out, he’ll be happy to collapse on his bed and hold you while he tells you about his day and you talk about whatever; he just loves to listen to you.

✦ On the topic of chronic pain and Hazard, there’ll be days he shuts down, and will be outta commission for a while, during those days he’d rather stay in and rest, and he absolutely adores if you stay with him.

✦ Sentimental, cherishes anything he receives from you, loves every moment he has with you, adores you and admires you, loves you so preciously.

Love is Green Part 4 (Reader x Genji Shimada)

A/N: I’m thinking this is the final part, my dudes! It’s been wild, I didn’t expect anyone to like this short series. This one isn’t as long as the last two parts, but I didn’t want to force it to break 2k. Also *cough* that moment when you accidentally reply to a comment under your main blog and people are like ??? who you be? *cough*

Thank you, guys, and if you have any HC or fic requests send ‘em in!

Warnings: not much. Uh. fever dream? Potential smoochies? Pretty SFW here.

Words: 1,974

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Explaining Silver the Hedgehog's Backstory

One of the most confusing subjects in the Sonic fandom is Silver’s backstory, the chronology of Sonic 06 and how it affects the characters. So in this post I’ll go over what we know about Silver’s backstory, its effects on his character, his involvement with Blaze and how the ending of Sonic 06 affects them.

Silver was born 200 years into a devastated future ravaged by the Flames of Disaster Iblis. The sky was always dark and the world was filled with endless wastelands ravaged by constant disasters and hostile Iblis spawn. The people are exhausted and live without hope. Iblis rampages and burns everything in its path. Silver has fought against Iblis for most of his life and tried to find the source of the disaster for just as long but no one could tell him how the world came to ruin.

This backstory informs Silver's character in the following ways:

Silver is a warrior. He is proficient in and enjoys fighting, has very aggressive determined expressions with constant fists and is a noted fighter(Shadow describes him as a fighter in Team Sonic Racing) whose power is respected by Sonic and Shadow. Silver is extremely powerful and capable of defeating small armies of enemies and giant monsters by himself. This stems from his apocalyptic background in the hostile future filled with Iblis minions and disasters such as flame tornadoes that he had to battle constantly. When you surprise him in Generations he is instantly ready to fight and angrily looks around, he comes from a world where all manner of Iblis spawn could attack at any given moment. It is explained in Silver's introduction story on Sonic Channel that Silver fought and struggled for half his lifetime, indicating that Silver fought against Iblis and its forces from a very early age.

Silver is naive, he has a black and white perspective and tackles things bluntly. He expects people to believe and cooperate with him when he says he’s from the future or explains outlandish things about his mission. He is earnest, he has no filter and acts unrefined when talking to people(which in Japanese is signified by his use of the informal "Ore" and "Anta" to address himself and others when he speaks). He sometimes takes things literally, misinterprets things or doesn't get jokes. He can also be unfamiliar with things in Sonic's time period. We don't know how people lived in the apocalyptic future or what they did and didn't have access to but it seems to be very rudimentary, destitute and even militarized as one of the glimpses into Silver's future from Sonic Pict shows him eating calorie bar rations that are described as apple flavored. Related to the above, Silver likely spent the majority of his time fighting.

Silver is also very pragmatic. He has a straight to the point mindset and hates distractions, frivolous details or just things getting in his way. As a survivor there is no room for pointless things for him.

On the flip side of that however, Silver is also wide-eyed. He loves challenges and experiencing fun new things he never had access to and is said to engage in cheerful activities following the historical change of 06.

Silver is incredibly optimistic and hopeful. He was able to fight through the hopeless ruined future world because he had the hope for a blue sky and the determination to keep fighting when everyone else had given into despair.

Most importantly of all however is Silver's deep love and drive for peace and prosperity. Silver is a very empathetic person that cares deeply for the state of the world and people around him. Note the beginning of his story in 06 where he expresses outrage at the state of his future with dark skies, endless wastelands and people that live in despair then contrast that with his later dialogue throughout the series where he expresses love for blue skies, beautiful vistas or just places where people live happily. Something as simple as a desert is beautiful to him simply because there is no destruction and the people are happy. Silver particularly loves and desires to protect smiles and blue skies because he came from a world that is stated to be filled with darkness and despair according to Sonic Team's Sonic Channel stories. Silver fights for peace and prosperity for the world and its people because he has experienced quite literal hellish suffering and devastation.

I also want to emphasize that Blaze isn't part of Silver's backstory and he didn't have her in his life in the apocalyptic future. Sonic Team head Takashi Iizuka confirmed that Silver and Eggman Nega originate from the future while Blaze originates from her dimension and writer Ian Flynn has confirmed that Sonic Rush takes place before Sonic 06 with these answers on his podcast.

"I can't get too much into it because this is kind of internal stuff that has not been clarified publicly but Sonic Rush comes first, the Blaze of 06 is the Blaze of Rush and she doesn't die, she turns into Burning Blaze and warps back to her own dimension and forgets the events of 06."

"I don't know how much I can get into it without being given the official go-ahead, but Blaze is not from Silver's post-apocalyptic future. She is from her own dimension and it's extremely nuancey, but she doesn't really see or interact with Sonic until like the very very end of Silver's campaign. It's...an incredibly narrow loophole but she doesn't necessarily know that it's Sonic they're after. Again I'm sure someone can tear that apart very easily but suffice to say, I believe the intention is that she doesn't know that Silver is targeting Sonic specifically and she has no interaction with him or really anybody else in the main cast for that reason."

Meaning that Silver and Blaze only met shortly before the events of 06 and Silver faced the ruined future on his own before that point.

Things are gonna get a bit complicated here but Blaze only temporarily appearing in the future before being ripped away from Silver actually ties into their Tanabata parallel. In the story of Tanabata, Orihime(the princess) only descends to the world of Hikoboshi(the cow herder) for a short while before they are separated for neglecting their duties. At the end of Silver's story, Silver neglects his duty by refusing to seal Blaze away and so they are separated, only to ever meet again when crossing paths in Sonic's world.

When arriving in Wave Ocean, Blaze notes the world of the past. This is because Blaze seems to actually have amnesia.

According to Ian Flynn, the reason why Blaze was kept away from the cast besides Silver in 06 is as a narrow loophole to keep her from realizing it was Sonic they were after. In a 2012 Q&A for the Sonic Boom convention, Sonic Team Creative Officer Takashi Iizuka stated that the characters in 06 had amnesia and at the end of the Metal Virus arc in IDW we learn that rough inter-dimensional travel can cause amnesia which happens to Sonic when he crashes into Blaze's dimension. Blaze then reawakens Sonic's memories by reminding him of his super form, something that Blaze was kept from in 06.

What happens with Blaze in 06 as I understand it is that at some point prior to the events of the game Blaze was transported to the future where she developed amnesia upon arrival before joining Silver in his war against Iblis. They are deceived by Mephiles into trying to assassinate Sonic before Silver learns the truth and returns to the future to seal Iblis away, he is unable to do so however due to not being a compatible vessel and Blaze seals Iblis and herself away instead. Following the defeat of Solaris and the subsequent historical change, Blaze warps back to her Dimension and forgets the events of 06(according to Ian Flynn).

Silver also warps back to the future and forgets the events of 06 but not his apocalyptic life under the devastation of Iblis, only the events of 06 itself and his original partnership with Blaze which was clarified in his Fast Friends Forever profile that states he can't remember how his future was restored(as in the events of 06). 

So yes, the ending of Sonic 06 doesn't change Silver or Blaze's backstories. Silver is still the apocalyptic warrior from Sonic 06 and Blaze is still the imperial princess from Sonic Rush before and after the events of 06.

The endings of both Silver’s Story and the Last Story of 06 tie into the game’s themes of duty, sacrifice and exchange.

“Do we have to sacrifice something in order to gain something?”

To gain something you have to lose something, to become a hero you must be willing to make sacrifices. Blaze sacrifices herself to save the future and in exchange for the peaceful happy future he always wanted, Silver, alongside everyone else, loses their memories of the events of 06.

But Silver's duty doesn't end there. He continues to protect the peace of the future as new disasters and changes in the timeline occur, and just like with Iblis, Silver will continue fighting them for a peaceful world.

credit if you use, this blog or Fenoda_CDJ on insanejournal

Florence Castle's HEROES OF CYBERTRON - Ep. 03: DRIFT

NOTA: Alcune immagini non sono mie, ma vengono dal sito DeviantArt. Articolo scritto da me, con l'approvazione di @jazzluca.

***

PUNTATA 3: DRIFT, uno stoico samurai robot

I fan di primo pelo dei Transformers, quando sentono nominare un certo Autobot spadaccino dai tratti orientaleggianti e dal rigido codice d’onore, certamente si domanderanno: ma chi è ‘sto tizio? Ebbene, questo personaggio è stato creato dalla mente di Shane McCarthy e dalla matita dell’italiano Guido Guidi, mossi dall’idea di sapere cosa accadrebbe se un ex Decepticon diventasse un Autobot; nasce così DRIFT, uno spadaccino dall’apparente aspetto angelico per via della prevalenza del bianco nella livrea.

Dal punto di vista etimologico, il suo nome è basato sul “drifting” (cioè “derapare”),tecnica di guida giapponese che molti automobilisti professionisti usano spesso per superare le curve più strette del circuito senza perdere velocità: questo è il motivo per cui il personaggio in esame ha assunto l’altmode terrestre di un’auto sportiva, figlia di un bolide di Fast and Furious e una NASCAR. Nome e altmode a parte, sono le origini da Decepticon a renderlo unico e “stoico”. Infatti, prima di essere il Bot che noi tutti conosciamo e amiamo, Drift si chiamava Deadlock; dapprima uno sfortunato senzatetto che viveva in strada a rubacchiare Energon per sopravvivere, poi fedele guerriero al soldo di Megatron che “combatte contro gli Autobot con una coppia di potenti fucili”, prima di “raggiungere l’illuminazione” grazie ad un pugno di Cybertroniani neutrali del cosiddetto “Circolo della Luce”.

L’esordio del personaggio risale al 2008 tra le pagine IDW, anche se in quel caso (All Hail Megatron #5) era solo una mera comparsa; per la prima vera apparizione in cartaceo dobbiamo aspettare l’anno seguente, per lo Spotlight: Drift, ma le aspettative sono state tutt’altro che rosee: ciò che leggiamo in queste tavole sembra la bozza di una sceneggiatura scritta troppo in fretta, con situazioni stereotipate scopiazzate a destra e manca e ributtate assieme alla rinfusa. L’effetto pathos e la voglia di leggerne ancora che l’autore, forse, si illude di creare non rivelando tutti gli elementi della storia di Drift non nasce nel lettore. Peccato, però, che non tutti la pensavano in questo modo, tanto che nel 2010 la IDW ha addirittura pubblicato una miniserie dedicata a Drift e sempre scritta da McCarthy. Il tiro è lievemente migliorato, perché questa volta leggiamo le origini del personaggio da rude Decepticon braccato da un feroce cacciatore di taglie, fino a ricevere finalmente l’aspetto che abbiamo imparato a conoscere. Negli anni Dieci del Duemila, nel frattempo, Drift diventa a tutti gli effetti l’Autobot preferito della IDW al punto da ritrovarlo come protagonista nella saga Empire of Stone e poi tra gli Autobot protagonisti di More than Meets the Eye prima e Lost Light poi. Da allora, sfortunatamente, Drift non è più comparso in altri media in quanto personaggio esclusivamente dei fumetti... fino al 2014.

Quell’anno, infatti, segna il suo ritorno in chiave moderna col debutto sul grande schermo negli ultimi capitoli della saga Transformers live action diretta da MichaelBay, ovvero L’Era dell’Estinzione e L’Ultimo Cavaliere! In questo caso, se l’originale omonimo “cartaceo” ricordava in parte un samurai, il Drift bayformer appesantisce il concetto tanto nel look quanto nella parlata: una caricatura di MTMTE ed è pure un Triple Changer, poiché oltre alla modalità di Bugatti Veyron sfoggia anche quella di elicottero. In effetti, Drift è il primo “Tripla Azione” del Movie-verso, considerando i due altmode completamente diversi e non uno ibrido dell’altro. E sebbene sia un’altra caratteristica fondamentale del Drift originale e che sia menzionata nelle Bio dei personaggi, il fatto di essere un ex-Decepticon non viene mai detto nel film. Magari gli sceneggiatori sono partiti da Springer (famoso Autobot nel brand armato di spada e con due altmode proprio di auto ed elicottero) per creare il personaggio che poi è divenuto Drift. Guerriero giapponese a tutti gli effetti, seppur stereotipato fino al midollo, e con una nuova livrea nera e blu con tocchi dorati... per poi diventare rosso e nero e con l’altmode di Mercedes AMG GT R nel successivo capitolo della saga di Bay.

Ovviamente non possiamo non menzionare delle brevi particine in altri universi TF. Ad esempio, per la serie Animated, c’è un Drift nel volume The Complete AllSpark Almanac del 2010, sebbene il suo design somigliante a Blurr/Cheetor non piacesse al padre della serie in persona, Derrick J.Wyatt. Due anni dopo, riappare nell’universo speculare Shattered Glass nei panni di un guerriero sempre pronto a “spazzare via quegli invasori che osano varcare la soglia del suo universo”. Quest’ultima versione, inoltre, nasconde una piccola, divertente curiosità: Drift è stato per la prima volta descritto dalla Fun Publications (cioè la casa proprietaria dell’officiale Club dei Collezionisti Transformers e della Convention ad essa dedicata) come “il Bot chiacchierone”. Infatti, se il G1Drift è un “oscuro ninja” cauto, silenzioso e prudente, lo Shattered Glass è letteralmente il suo esatto opposto; un folle mercenario, appunto, che è solito rompere la quarta parete spesso e volentieri esattamente come l’(anti)eroe più pazzo e degenerato della Marvel, Deadpool!

Nella primavera del 2015, in occasione dell’arrivo della nuova serie animata successiva a Prime, Drift esordisce anche in TV in Robots in Disguise, più precisamente nel dodicesimo episodio della Stagione 1, intitolato La Stagione di Caccia: qui la squadra di Bumblebee si ritrova ad affrontare il noto robot-samurai e la sua nemesi, il Decepticon Fracture, impegnati ad aggiudicarsi la taglia che l’Alto Consiglio ha posto sulla testa di Bee dopo la sua irruzione in un certo museo su Cybertron. Solo cinque episodi dopo, Si è Perso un Minicon!, si assiste al suo ingresso permanente nel Bee Team, diventando uno degli Autobot principali del cast. Curiosamente, in questa serie, Drift ha mantenuto sì il look da samurai, ma più edulcorato e con un’inedita combinazione di arancione/nero/rosso che ironicamente era il primo schema cromatico usato nei primi concept art della sua controparte cinematografica. In realtà, troviamo diverse parti in comune tra i due Drift: in primo luogo, usano lo stesso codice d’onore personale in combattimento, quindi condividono quella magica aura stoica che rende entrambi i personaggi “mistici”; in secondo luogo, l’altmode del RiD Drift ricorda una Bugatti Veyron, appunto lo stesso veicolo nel quale si trasformava la sua controparte filmica; infine, il rapporto tra lui e Bumblebee è simile sia nel cartone che nel film, in quanto hanno pareri contrastanti su leadership, strategia e combattimento tali da far nascere in loro una lieve rivalità. Ciononostante, si comportano come dei buoni compagni di squadra tanto sul campo di battaglia quanto fuori.

Ben più innovativa è la controparte Cyberverse del 2018/19, in cui il personaggio intraprende un vero e proprio percorso di transizione: questa, infatti, è indubbiamente la prima versione di Drift a essere sempre stata un Decepticon, rompendo la tradizione dei suoi predecessori permanentemente radicati alla fazione degli Autobot. Esteticamente Deadlock appare come una versione modificata del G1 Springer di Guido Guidi – seppur con alcune differenze quali la posizione del simbolo Decepticon e la cabina dell’altmode sul petto – mentre Drift è identico in tutto e per tutto all’omonimo G1 salvo per licenze stilistiche minori (i piedi che assomigliano alle calzature tradizionali giapponesi simili alle nostre infradito, per esempio).

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Come promesso dai rumor susseguitisi durante la sua creazione e apparizione nei fumetti, anche Drift è stato riprodotto come modellino: il primo di una lunga serie ha inaugurato la linea Generations del 2010, quest’ultima allo scopo di proseguire idealmente lo stile delle precedenti Classics ed Universe 2.0. In altmode questo Deluxe si presenta come un ibrido tra una Nissan Silvia S15 e una Mitsubishi FTO e, nel complesso, è fedelissimo al design di Guidi, ogni dettaglio è riprodotto superbamente! Altmode dalla colorazione tamarra come poche, un robot che strizza l’occhio a tutti i Gundam dal ‘91 in poi, per tacer dello spadone à la Final Fantasy con tanto di kanji... due dei quali sono presenti anche sulle portiere del veicolo, tra l’altro! Di questo bestione sono susseguite altre ristampe e recolor: due Takara United (un Drift e un Blurr simili ai rispettivi Generations ma con una colorazione più fedele alle controparti cartacee), lo Shattered Glass Timeline in esclusiva per il Club dei Collezionisti, il Blurr dell’Hasbro Platinum Edition... e infine Deadlock, uscito per la linea Takara Legends.

Per il Drift bayformer, dobbiamo aspettare il 2014 per l’inedita linea del quarto film di Bay – linea che, ripetiamo, non è mai arrivata in Italia. Il Deluxe è squisitamente pregevole e ben articolato, nonostante la colorazione prevalentemente sul blu che con la controparte CG quasi non centra nulla; tuttavia, il Takara Movie Advance e l’Hasbro Platinum Edition compensano con una show accuracy migliore, mentre il modellino per la successiva linea The Last Knight è solo leggermente riscolpito e ricolorato per assomigliare al “nuovo” Drift vestito da Mercedes. Per la successiva linea celebrativa Studio Series (2019/20), viene ripresentato il modellino di cui sopra ma con una livrea molto più somigliante alla controparte cinematografica. Inoltre, abbiamo già detto che Drift è il primo effettivo Triple Changer, ma purtroppo gli addetti ai lavori non sono riusciti a replicare la cosa tra i modellini, nonostante ne esista uno a parte per la modalità di elicottero... che però è il remold di Dark of the Moon Skyhammer. Stesso discorso per il Drift elicottero della Studio Series, anch’esso remold pesante di Bumblebee (2018) Dropkick.

Anche nella linea Robots in Disguise (2015) Drift ha ricevuto millemila trattamenti. Dall’One-Step al Legion, fino al 3-Step Changers, passando poi a un Warrior da applausi e un interessante ma mediocre Deployer... sì, perché questa versione di Drift è accompagnata da Minicon, anch’essi con un look tra il samurai e il ninja: Jetstorm è quello in nero e armato di nunchuck, omonimo tanto del Generale dei Vehicon jet di Beast Machines quanto del gemello blu di Animated Jetfire. Slipstream è invece quello in rosso e armato di naginata, un omonimo questa volta del clone femminile di Animated Starscream (che solo nelle reincarnazioni più recenti è diventato un personaggio autonomo). Inoltre, il solo Warrior Drift ha ben quattro versioni (escludendo la canonica Hasbro), tra cui un Origins Drift della Takarae un Alpine Strike della Hasbro che raffigurano il personaggio con un look reminiscente alla controparte IDW G1.

Di tutt’altro stampo, invece, sono i Warrior della linea Cyberverse, che rappresentano rispettivamente l’incarnazione Decepticon e Autobot del personaggio. Nonostante i due modelli si somiglino per colore e scultura dell’altmode, i robot hanno una diversa morfologia e gimmik d’attacco, oltre al fatto che Drift è dotato di articolazioni ai polsi. Non saranno i modellini più belli della linea, ma di sicuro rendono giustizia a un Bot pesantemente sottovalutato dalla maggior parte delle masse!

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CONCLUSIONE

Drift passerà sicuramente alla storia non solo per il fascino del suo look ispirato al paese del Sol Levante tanto amato da noi occidentali, ma anche per il carisma del personaggio raffigurato che sfocia fra l’anonimo e il conosciuto. Certo, le incarnazioni avute con gli anni sono diversissime ma tutte sono state coerenti e rispettose nei confronti del capostipite IDW. Un caso più unico che raro, detto francamente, e mi fa piacere vederlo in uno dei miei (ennesimi!) Bot preferiti. 😅

Arrivederci alla prossima puntata! 😘

a small Guardian x Crow ficlet, inspired by me having consecutive nightmares for way too long now 😩

Crow was... running. The reality was loose under his feet and kept changing directions. But he knew he had to keep going, forward and forward.

Until he ran into the Guardian, whose face, contorted with anger, scared him. And he didn't know how to keep that fear down, so he screamed and screamed and screamed and waited until his screaming made his voice nothing but a hoarse echo.

And then he woke up.

His fingers grip onto the blankets, feeling the warmth of the fabric, the tight folds. His heart is pounding in his chest, trying to run away. Trying to make him run away.

The Guardian sits up beside him, and Crow flinches. His throat still hurts from screaming, even if he didn't utter a sound.

They ask him if he is alright.

"I... You are not mad at me, are you?"

They smile at him and shake their head. A resolution so clear, it wipes away some of the fear.

"Another nightmare," Crow mutters, rubbing his sleepy eyes, trying to make the burning tears in the corners of his eyes go away, unbidden. He is so tired.

As the Guardian guides him into their arms, Crow counts the lights outside the window. He feels for the fabric, and then for the Guardian's body. He feels the smell of them both, of their home. His mouth tastes with anxious acid.

But his heart slows down and reality sets in with a kinder sensation around him.

He doesn't need to run. He doesn't need to scream.

The Guardian kisses his forehead as Crow nestles within their embrace. He is not sure he wants to sleep just yet, so he wraps himself in the comfort of being held and reassured.

Maybe tomorrow those dreams will not find him again.

Dance with me?

I did a post on my other blog about slow dancing, and I loved writing it, so I decided to write something like that here too. It turned more into a comfort thing though. It’s a holoform thing also, because I just felt like writing him as a human, so I’ll be tagging this as humanformers. I’m so glad I wrote something other than requests, it’s been a while since I did something like this. I’m gonna get back to the requests later this week though, so no worries

•You’d invited Optimus to your place for the night, because you just felt like you could both use some time together

•You ate dinner together, and had some wine, and he was pretty quiet the whole evening

•He doesn’t talk very much in the first place, but now even less for some reason

•When you had eaten, he collected all the dishes and piled them in the sink, but you noticed he sort of hovered next to the sink, like he didn’t know what to do

•You grabbed his hand and he turned to face you, he looked exhausted and so very stressed it made your heart ache

•You just ask him “Dance with me?” and he just nods

•You had had some melodic music playing very quietly in the background, so you pulled him closer and guided his hands to your waist

•Optimus is very tall, even in his holoform, so you’re about shoulder height to him

•You wrap your hand together behind his lower back  and just hold him close, while starting to sway lightly

•You can feel his body being really tense, before he finally relaxes and exhales very deeply

•Optimus is resting his chin on top of your head and he has his eyes closed

•You know how stressed he is and you’re honestly surprised he hasn’t broken down in a while

•Now he’s just holding you like his life depends on it, he’s so scared for you every day, he knows the decepticons know about you and he knows how vindictive Megatron is

•You start to feel him shuddering while you hold each other, and you can hear him crying very quietly

• You try to pull back a bit to see his face, but he embraces you tighter and asks you not to pull away

•You just hug him back and stay in his arms, you’re not swaying to the music anymore, you’re just standing there, holding each other

•After a while he apologizes if he ruined your evening by crying, but you just place your hands on his cheeks gently and tell him that he never needs to apologize to you for something like that

•Optimus embraces you again, this time lifting your feet off the floor and just whispers a teary “thank you” into your ear

•You’re so very dear to him, you’re his light in all the darkness that is his life in the middle of the war he’s fighting

•He treasures moments like this with you so much, he would love it if he could spend his life with you, no war, no fear of you getting hurt by someone who hates him so much they’d relish in the pain your death would bring him

•Just him, with you, forever