Thinking about how Youngblood's affection for Noise will only ever draw him towards the bard college, towards suffering and cruelty and everything he was running from, and his affection for Roman draws him away from the bard college, into freedom and joy. Thinking about Noise being so grateful to Roman, for being the freedom they could never offer Youngblood
Childhood friends when surviving a childhood where friends are likely to be scorned, but one hurt the other, and couldn't bear to speak of it, and avoiding the other's attempt to settle things only caused more hurt. Guys please communicate. Fiery Melody managed it after a year, *nudges qijiu* can you please communicate after 20 years. In this one Youngblood is Yue QingYuan coded, Noise is Shen QingQiu/Jiu coded.
Apex Eclipse - LiuShen
Meeting in a shocking situation, but eventually learning to be friends. I say eventually despite it taking very little time for them to get close, to which I say "what". A mythic tsundere whose basically god-adjacent, a kinda oblivious guy who has his own snark but very much has appreciation for the other's strength and beauty. Youngblood is Liu QingGe coded, Roman is Shen QingQiu/Yuan coded.
Crimson Music - TianYuan
I was also not expecting this one. Guy who is super powerful has problems, but after they're resolved is totally chill and flirty. Guy who does not know what he's gotten himself into, but yknow, the flirty guy is tolerable. Noise is TianLang-jun coded, Roman is Shen QingQiu/Yuan coded.
Blood Red Song - QiJiuShang
The three members are "guy who the other two love but please please please stop hating yourself", "guy whose super cool and powerful that the other two adore (but one is really complicated about it)", and "guy who is really fucking weird but he's THEIR really fucking weird guy". Really complicated best friends to enemies and become lovers somewhere on that timeline plus some other guy. Youngblood is Yue QingYuan coded, Noise is Shen QingQiu/Jiu Coded, Roman is Shang QingHua coded.
Fiery melody is about how growing up in an abusive environment can cause you to hurt the people you love and how you can grow and reconcile with them as part of healing from that abuse
Apex eclipse is about two people who are lonely in different ways and for different reasons, coming from very different lives and perspectives, finding that this is exactly what each of them needed even if they didn't know it at first
Crimson music is about having gay sex with your voice
And that's why blood red song is the best polycule out there
Never gonna be normal about Youngblood saying "heres to new friends and old ones" like.. the acknowledgement that he and Roman are friends, in front of someone who could very easily use it against him. The acknowledgement that he and Noise are still friends despite everything, even when during the bard duel he was trying so hard to pretend he hated Noise. I love him so much look at how far he's come <33