I've kept the simplistic look for long enough so now I'm going to put something here.

I'm still going to keep it tame though, so I'll just list the things that appeal to my current interests.

The Evil Within:

Hands down, my favorite game of all time.

It finally upended the long running Resident Evil Remake as my favorite game. Which is kind of funny, to go from one Shinji Mikami game to another- to go from a slow pace game to a high-tension game. It really caught me off-guard how much I loved this game and it's a little salty to think about how underappreciated it is, although I can also understand how not everyone could like it.

I prefer the first The Evil Within over the second one, which doesn't mean I like the second one any less; I just think the first one had better enemies and bosses- although the sequel definitely had better environments. [Krimson City is still my favorite level though.] I also prefer Sebastian's design in TEW over TEW2. He feels more unique in TEW and I really loved his original voice; TEW2 just made him look like every other survival horror protagonist. TEW2 did make him low-key thicc though and I can appreciate that.

TEW2 gets points docked for making me cry at the end of it though.

[I can no longer listen to Ordinary World without getting choked up.]

From a fandom standpoint, I really owe The Evil Within for getting me back into writing. I think my profile was dead for a year or two before TEW came out- and then it was like a spark of life came back to me.

Which is unfortunate, because right now I'm a little dead in this fandom [I'm so sorry]. I'm slowly pushing myself to get back into it, because I still really enjoy TEW and the ideas I get for it- I just need to get back to actually writing the stuff down.

Pairings:

1. Sebastian Castellanos/ Myra Hanson.

I was ALL about this pairing even before TEW2 came out. They're a depressing couple in present-times, but when you get to read through the journals in the first game and get that insight to them, you can feel the love that was there.

I mean, they're also married with a kid, so how could you not support the pairing.

I have a lot of feelings about them- especially after that final boss fight of TEW2 and how it paired up with the ending. I just really wished they could've gotten a happy ending; they both sacrificed way too much to not get closure.

Also I LOVED Myra's design, it was so homely and gentle- and I'm really glad that they showed her as an aged woman, which sounds ridiculous to say but it's true.

[I'm also about that Sebastian/Matriarch, please but don't @ me on that.]

2. Joseph Oda/ Juli Kidman.

Did I ship them initially based on a off-the-cuff sentence in one of the in-game journals? Absolutely.

Have I since then build up more in-regards to their relationship based on other in-game events? Absolutely.

I think the DLC really helped to push the narrative between them- and not just because of that one boss fight, although that did add fuel to the fire for me. But the scene where Joseph gets pushed over the railing during the water trap cutscene, and after he gets shot on the bus both showed that Kidman worried about him. And you will have to pry that impression off of me.

I'm still upset that we didn't get anything about them in TEW2- other than yet another off-the-cuff remark.

3. Sebastian/ Joseph/ Juli.

Look, I have to address this one because I have a story that revolves around this- and I can't not acknowledge it.

The best parts of The Evil Within were when you had all three of them together in one scene- and I really wish there had been more group sections like that. The bus section of the game is hands down my favorite part of the entire game. Also I have a really bad weakness for people getting close during traumatic situations, and quite frankly, that was the entire game in a nutshell. And that's all I'm gonna say on that.

[This is also a factor of why I picked TEW over TEW2.]

Vague posting.

I haven't played TEW2 in awhile but I vaguely recall liking O'Neil/Hoffman. I'm not going to officially list them because it's been awhile and I didn't get an immediate attachment to the characters- although they both certainly deserved better.

Here's the big one:

Mortal Kombat:

I could write a novel about this game but I won't.

The only basics you need to know is that, while Deception is still my all-time favorite of the series, in terms of the rebooted era, Mortal Kombat X is still very top tier to me. While Mortal Kombat11 is very beautiful in terms of graphics and animations, and some of the character designs, it really did not hit the mark for me. Again, that's not to say that I hate MK11, but in terms of writing, I will not be touching on it much.

I'm very active in this fandom right now, due to MK11's release, and also because of my reactivated love for all the characters.

Most of my work, however, will be dealing with AU's or simply remaining in the MKX timeline.

Pairings:

1. Sonya Blade/ Takahashi Kenshi.

I will die on the hill that is this pairing.

My first game was Deadly Alliance, which was also the first game to introduce Kenshi- and was also the first game where I decided that Sonya and Kenshi would be my mains. And of course, Sonya's ending at that time involved Kenshi, which just sealed the deal. I really think they have better chemistry and interactions than Sonya's dreaded canon pairing. I feel like MKX really showed that they had a shot with one another- and yet, it was robbed.

[They are also my icon.]

2. Hanzo Hasashi/ Kitana.

I also started shipping them in Deadly Alliance [I'm sensing a theme]. I have no idea why, but I just carried the pairing with me. Again, MKX showed that aesthetically, they looked really good together. Also just like, the theme of an Outworld Princess with a Netherrealm Wraith was very appealing to me- and still is. And then MK11 introduced the short cinematic of them fighting and again, aesthetics are still good.

3. Kung Lao/ Ashrah.

Did I initially ship this pairing because they both wore hats in Deadly Alliance/Deception? Yes, I will openly admit that.

Basically the whole basis of this pairing has been built upon self-made stories and theories. There's literally nothing concrete about them in-game wise- and the only game they were in together was Armageddon and that doesn't count. But given the MKX storyline, it's very easy to play off the idea that they were both likely in the Netherrealm together serving Quan Chi- and that's what I'm going with.

I really need to explore more with this pairing.

4. Kung Lao/ Jade.

I didn't start seeing them as a pairing until MK11, which was probably the biggest thing the game gave me. No real reason why I delayed in seeing the pairing, even though they've been around for a long time, I just didn't see the appeal before.

And then MK11 makes Jade look super good- only to drag her down by giving her an awful romance choice (which was completely unnecessary and felt shoved in at the last minute). And now, I'm in full support of shipping Jade with Kung Lao instead.

5. Kitana/ Jade.

Absolutely onboard with this pairing as well. Would've preferred this over what storymode gave us, as well as my own KungLao/Jade pairing. Look, they've been together for 10,000 years, I highly doubt either Liu Kang or Kotal Kahn could give either Kitana or Jade what they want. And that's just that on that.

6. Mileena/ Tanya.

Probably one of the best things to come from MKX. While the game doesn't say anything explicitly, their taunts alone give way that something is going on between them. And regardless of how Tanya's character is (even though the reboot ignores her previous storyline and erases the traitor thing) I like to think that she was gonna stick it out with Mileena.

I mean, at the very least, Mileena finally got someone on her side that talked to her like she was an actual human being. The chemistry and the aesthetics are there, and they can't be denied.

7. Sindel/ Raiden.

Another Deception-era pairing that I still carry with me.

I mean, come on, the Edenian Queen with the Earthrealm Protector God? Why wouldn't you. The games don't give much in terms of backstory with them, but I believe there's the implication that Raiden obviously knew Sindel when she was Edenia's Queen- and well before Shao Kahn showed up. And in the original timeline (and the only timeline I will accept) she sacrificed her life to save Earthrealm from Shao Kahn. Can't find better loyalty than that.

Note: I am also down for the Dark!Raiden/Revenant!Sindel thing.

8. Jacqui/ Takeda.

While I didn't initially like the pairing, since their interactions in MKX were kind of cringy, I've grown to like them now. They sort of seem like the only canon pairing that's pretty stable. I like Jacqui as a character, and I think Takeda would probably need someone grounded like her to keep himself grounded as well.

9. Kung Jin/ Fujin.

If you're looking for an explanation for this couple, I can't give you one. The amount of hoops I jumped through to justify it for myself is enough. I'm still in trying to figure out this pairing for myself to be honest. I like where I'm going with it, but I think there needs to be more drive behind it.

10. Skarlet/ Rain.

There's like zero justification with this one other than they have similar/not similar powers and they both worked under Shao Kahn. Another hoop-jumping couple for me. They were both also DLC for MK9, which adds nothing but it's another coincidence.

11. Kuai Liang/ Frost.

Look, I will die for this toxic couple. Frost showed up in Deadly Alliance, basically like a female!SubZero (although she has grown beyond that and I love her for it), so I connected the dots. Loved how her design in MKX reflected SubZero's, almost as though to show them as equals. It's very much a give and take with the pairing, but not every couple has to blend, and I think there's a lot of fun that could be had with them.

There are a lot more MK couples but I'm not going to list them all.

But it's usually some form of arrangement keeping with the characters I have listed above.

Shameless Plug:

For anyone who might be interested, I also have an AO3 account under the same name where I post stories that cannot be posted here- so feel free to look me up if you want!

Story Progress:

I've been trying to keep this updated but it doesn't always work out, but I'm going to keep trying anyways.

Currently in Work:

Towers of Time

Eager Ashes [I promise I'm gonna come back to this, I swear.]