I've been wanting to send this ask in ever since you posted those Abrams relationship headcanons. I love how in-depth you got, and was wondering if you'd mind giving your thoughts on Shiv in a relationship?
Shiv Relationship Headcanons
Content Warnings | None, I don't think
Synopsis | Headcanons for Shiv
Word Count | 1.4k
Notes | When Iām on a roll as Haze, honestly, this MF is like the only one who scares me because I do NOT play a very tanky Haze at ALL bro⦠Like can you stop reaping my very being with so much swag thanks </3
Also, I wanna add this here: I apologize for never acknowledging nice things you guys say when asking or commenting. I really do appreciate them, I swear! Iām just incredibly shy and very awkward with acknowledging compliments or praise and stuff so I end up acting like some cold, distant one night stand who busts then ghosts LMAO
š”Slow burn. S L O W. B U R N.
š”Shiv will NOT rush into anything, even if the chemistry is beyond obvious. This is for several reasons.
š”He has some trust issues. Not the worst out there, donāt get me wrong. The issues also donāt necessarily lie with his trust in his partner, rather, theyāre with how much he trusts himself.
š”These trust issues arenāt so bad to the point where heās become celibate or anything; I mean, heās (canonically) a really attractive dude; heās gotten around. His trust issues start becoming more of an issue when his relationship with someone starts becoming more than short term and casual, as the deeper the bond, the more emotions go into it, and the more the other person is naturally going to rely on him and let themselves become more vulnerable.
š”Shivās afraid that, with those things, the chance of him hurting someone becomes more likely. Heās okay with hurting people when itās necessary, but what heās not okay with is taking advantage of trust put in him to hurt people who havenāt done anything to deserve it.
š”Because of all of this, he goes from the suave, chill hot guy, to the cool dude you start hitting it off with, and then once you start hitting it off too well, he goes back to being kind of aloof. He doesnāt ghost entirely, or become resentful at all, but the shift in behaviour is evident. He thinks heās being lowkey about it, and stays just close enough for you to not notice, or that you wont care enough to mention it.
š”Honestly, this approach has worked in achieving what itās meant to; getting people to grow bored and give up. Very rarely are people invested in him enough beyond a superficial level for them to find it worth the trouble of working through this distant stage. Like I said; itās a slow burn, and when most people only got with him for the pretty face to start, well, itās not a very solid foundation letās just put it that way. Building trust and reliability will come before any true romance or intimacy.
š”When that bridge is finally crossed though, that slow burn sparks into a blazing inferno; he gets excited, and the enthusiasm he tries so hard to suppress starts seeping through the cracks of his ācool guyā persona.
š”One thing thatāll surprisingly make him fall kind of hard is if youāre able to pump the breaks a little, at least at the start. Not in a way that kills the vibe, but in a way that shows youāre conscious and concerned over his excitement possibly making him move things a little too fast, even for himself. You wonāt have to babysit him; heāll reel himself in eventually.
š”Shiv can definitely talk, but verbal affection isnāt his strong suit. He shows he cares through subtle actions; when youāre out he watches your blind spots or positions himself on the side of the sidewalk closest to the road. Heāll make sure your tools or weapons or other supplies are stocked, or that you have the stuff you need to maintain them. If he notices youāre in an uncomfortable situation, heāll step in; not in a loud or defensive way, but quietly, either just as a comforting presence, or to gently usher you away if itās particularly bad.
š”He has a habit of standing really close. Not even just in dangerous situations. Just in general. Heās clingy.
š”Heās protective and clingy, but not possessive. As much as he likes being as physically close to you as possible whenever even somewhat convenient, he also values autonomy too much to ever think of taking that away from you.
š”Once you get closer to him, youāll get to see a really dry sense of humour that he doesnāt share with a lot of people.
š”Shiv remembers small details about you, even if he never points them out. Youāll only notice when he does something that perfectly matches what you said three weeks ago, once in passing. Heās probably as observant as people like Haze or Abrams, which people donāt expect a lot of the time.
š”If anything goes wrong, whether you get hurt, or the two of you encounter any conflict, itās always handled the same way. Thereās no yelling, he takes long pauses to think things through, and he chooses his words carefully. But, even when everything is said and done, you can notice that his hands were shaking and his shoulders held tension that only settles when he knows things are okay.
š”Sometimes he needs space, not cause heās pulling away, but because he processes things internally and needs the time to think things through when they start getting to him.
š”As mentioned earlier, heās clingy. Heās like, always touching you; a hand on your shoulder, fingers brushing yours or leaning close without a word. He doesnāt say āI love youā often, instead, it comes out as ābe carefulā or āI got you -insert favorite flowers you mentioned once-ā. Heāll claim that he saw them ājust along the wayā but you damn well know he had to go a block out of his way to get them. As time goes on, āI love youā becomes a bit more common though. When he says things that are emotionally direct it hits hard because he means every single word. Not to say he doesnāt mean what heās trying to convey otherwise, itās just that the extra layer of vulnerability is⦠different.
š”He softens when alone with you; his voice is lower, posture less rigid. Not in a way where heās censoring himself, but more so handling himself in a way that lets him be more eye-to-eye with you; everyone always has to perform when in public, some more than others. Here, he wants to shed that performance entirely.
š”He hates raunchy PDA, but LOVES innocent, sweet PDA.
š”Shiv, once heās committed, is unshakably loyal.
š”When it comes to the kind of person heād be into, I feel like heās much more versatile than, say, Abrams. What matters with Shiv is having someone who is empathetic, patient, some level of kind, and trustworthy. Reliability is also a big one, and he dislikes people who are shallow. I feel like he also wouldnāt be super attracted to very naive or innocent people. Nothing against them, theyāre just typically not his speed. He also likes a hint of mischief, IMO.
š”He tries to rely on himself, but there are times where all of these traits prove their importance. He will be incredibly slow to speak about his past in depth, but when he does itāll be at a pace thatās deliberate and sincere.
š”As much as he tries to hide it or convince himself otherwise, his insecurities about whether he truly is some dangerous person, or even a monster bubble up. Thatās when the trust issues set in bad; heās worried about hurting the people he cares about. Itās why he tries so hard to make up for the bad heās done, but on these days it feels like nothing he can ever do will be enough. Being able to reassure him without discrediting his concerns is really important.
š”Shivāll put a lot of effort into helping you with your troubles as a way to redirect his own, too. He genuinely enjoys being a very giving partner, emotionally and physically, donāt get me wrong, but youād need to make sure that you remind him that that support goes both ways. Donāt push him, let him take space as he needs it, but also be there when heās ready to lean on you as he lets you do to him.
I remember a long time ago, I was asked, "How do the boys handle their hangovers?" I wish I could find it just because I was so tickled by the question, but they'll pick their sluggish bodies up to gorge on comfort foods.
Iām not saying the Story of Seasons remakes are going in perfect chronological order because they clearly arenāt all Iām saying is Grand Bazaar was originally released in 2008 and so was Animal Parade, my absolute all time favorite Harvest Moon game, so please please please please please Story of Seasons Animal Parade switch remake 2026 please please PLEASE
i'm convinced he has/had family drama and to avoid having a paper trail to follow he just left without anything wandering till he found Sandrock
when Unsuur locks in he's locked the fuck in romance? civil corp work? fighting during the high noon showdown? baby your ass is grass and he's the mower
I swear the next chapter will have Daryl or I'll riot myself. He was planned for this one buuuuut I hit page four and a word count around 1500 and thought I should pause.
Art Credit: A clump of space matter made me pretty art.
I realized that I have seen Rocky cooking and cleaning at home with Pebbles but I never put together that it's on days when Krystal is running the salvage shop:
Bonus close-up of the painting hanging in their shop: