Hello there, oh wonderful mellflower! Get it? Like bellflower, but it’s… uh… yeah, you get it.
Anywho! I like sending you asks (and just interacting with you in general!!), even though I haven’t done so in a hot minute. I know you don’t mind, but, I wanted to reiterate our mutual-related friendiness!
As such, I shall ask a question that will (potentially?) have a long and sprawling answer that I will soak every word of! Do you think that there are any ship dynamics in the St Lanier’s AU that are interesting in a way that potentially deviates from canon? (Like, for example, any of the Caine-related ships, taking into account his newfound emotional intelligence? I do love me some St. Lanier’s Caine lore…) This can include OCs made for the AU, too, if you have any that stick in your brain ship-wise!
This is mostly just a vehicle to hear you rant about ships, which is sort of odd as I’m not too versed in the ships of TADC (in the sense that I don’t actually have any couples I would say I “ship” as opposed to “passively support” or “not personally my cup of tea but I see it slash respect it anyway”). I think you’re sort of in a similar boat, which makes it all the more interesting to me to hear your thoughts about things!!
And of course, don’t rush this answer out! Take your time! Go to bed if you’re tired! (And have, shall we say, wonderful dreams? Puns related to your name in the beginning AND end of this post; that’s what we call book ends!) I think I’ve said this before, but you’re the most important part of your art and what makes it special! Everyone has their own unique style and it’s not narcissistic to be proud of yours! These are things that would help me so hopefully they help you too! Later!!!
OHOHO THIS WILL HAVE A LONG SPIRALING ANSWER! You’re kinda right about my attitude towards ships—despite being a multishipper I can’t say I’m so invested in any particular ship so much that I really fight for them or am disappointed it won’t be canon. And as I’ve said before no ships will be canon to the au. HOWEVER! I do think it’s very fun to imagine different scenarios and dynamics, and I quite like drawing characters cuddling. I actually think that a LOT of the ships from canon have a lot more justification? Merit? In the au.
I feel like Choking Hazard (Zooble x Caine) especially makes more sense in this au because they get along more, and honestly I like to joke that they’re like a fighting divorced couple. 😭 Zooble is constantly rolling their eyes at Caine, and Caine thinks they’re a bit of a Debbie Downer, but ultimately they’re working together to achieve the same goals, and look out for each other, especially when they’re in pain. It’s like a…Bert and Ernie and Honeybee and Wolf from the Great North type deal…(if Honeybee was a lot less silly herself lol.) (wait, will anyone get that reference? Am I the only person who watches that show? Oh well you should watch it, it’s good.)
I also like Jesterdoll/Buttonblossom (Pomni x Ragatha) just a tad more in this au. The like level is honestly about the same as it is in canon really, but I feel like it’s a little more likely in the au because, since Ragatha’s breakdown, Pomni feels a little protective of her, and the two have become sort of inseparable. Pomni also, when abandoning Ragatha for the exit in ep.1, genuinely thought there was no possible way Ragatha could’ve made it out of that situation without some help, so she feels even guiltier for it and kind of feels the need to make up for it. Maybe I should explore the idea that their friendship kind of relies on Pomni seeing Ragatha as someone who needs to be protected/taken care of…oooh I bet Ragatha has some complex feelings about that…Of course Ragatha also sees Pomni as someone who needs help & guidance, so it kind of goes both ways, at least in the beginning. Plus, it’s yuri, and I like yuri.
And Funnybunny makes a lot more sense in the au imo! A lot more time passes between episodes in the hospital than in the circus, and after her arrival Jax basically took the initiative to “show Pomni the ropes”. (I.e.: He got excited there was finally another person who might go explore the abandoned area with him and dragged her along to go do so.) The two basically developed the playful banter relationship that they had in the first half of canon ep. 6 like, before episode 2. I mean, Jax was still pretty much a bully to Pomni (until ep 6 where they start really getting along and he freaks out and ruins everything), but it was in such a way that she was mostly able to brush him off or snap back. He had no opportunity to throw her out of a moving truck.
I also feel like abstrarabbit (Zooble x Jax) and abstradoll/toybox (Zooble x Ragatha), which are admittedly my favorite rare pairs, have significant standing in this au. Zooble & Jax have almost a begrudging understanding of each other; they both have similar symptoms that only the other can really get close to fully understanding, Zooble has seen & helped Jax in some of his worst moments due to their position as staff, and honestly Zooble is the only staff member that Jax really trusts on account of them being kind of outright mean to him—He never thinks they’re lying to him, and they don’t patronize him. Although they absolutely do argue like absolute hell and there have been multiple occasions on Zooble thinking Jax deserves however he’s being punished for something.
As for abstradoll/toybox, it’s a similar situation to jesterdoll, but like, a little more so, again on account of Zooble’s job. They worry about Ragatha a lot & feel pretty protective of her, and Ragatha sort of looks up to them & admires them, although she sometimes feels embarrassed or downright infantilized by the attention they give her after her breakdown. For the record, the After Everything fic where the two talk is meant to be platonic, but the ship still has merit in this au. The two of them could really care for each other, I think, but I’m not sure if Zooble would let Ragatha have the opportunity to care for them in turn.
And just rapid fire, I think Abstragedy still has all the same merit it has in the canon, and I even considered making it canon to the au for a second. Bluetooth (Caine x Moon) is pretty much the exact same but there’s also the added fact that the two of them can make a really good team when they have to focus on something medical & ignore any romantic tensions. Gangle x Ragatha (not sure what that one’s called? I have a feeling they could have the potential to have a really cute ship name but instead just have something lame like ribdoll) also has some better standing in canon because, in the au, the two of them have been put together in stuff like art & group therapy and are more friendly. I also am realllyyy considering the idea of some sort of Lilypatch (Ragatha x Ribbit) dynamic but I don’t wanna set anything in stone before we actually know anything about Ribbit’s personality. I do like the idea that Ribbit was the first patient to arrive after Ragatha, and Ragatha was extremely excited having been deprived of actual peers for so long and instantly tried really really hard to become their friend 😭🩷🩷🩷 but arrival order follows the same as canon and we’ll see if that holds up. Oh! And Funnygummy gets a boost bc Gummigoo actually remembers Pomni and they could realistically enter a real relationship together. I also think RibbitRabbit works, but no more and no less than in canon.
The only ships I think actively don’t work at all in the au are bunny teeth (Caine x Jax) and bow tie (Caine x Ragatha) or any ship involving Kinger with anyone but Caine or Queenie. I actually LOVE bunnyteeth ever since ep.7 (it started as a joke…it is…not a joke anymore…) but while in the canon circus, it’s the kind of toxic that’s really interesting to explore in a fictional story and just makes me gnaw at the bars of my enclosure in a really good way, in the au, especially after ep.7 when Jax abstracts, Caine is in such a position of power over him that it genuinely becomes “oh god that would be like inherently abusive and I don’t think Caine would do that nor do I want to think about it.” I mean, mayyybe someone could do something interesting with it that just somehow hasn’t occurred to me yet? I will say that Zooble has snarkily remarked that ever since Jax abstracted he’s become Caine’s “pet project”. I can’t control other ppl’s actions so do what you want but I just don’t really see it making sense in the hospital au. And while in canon bow tie is definitely a harmless, relatively cute ship, I have said on multiple occasions that Ragatha in the au views Caine kinda as a father figure, and I just don’t think either of them would think of their relationship as romantic.
Any ships I didn’t mention I just don’t really have a huge opinion on, I’d probably think they’re cute depending on the context!
AND THANK YOU!!! :,D Hopefully I didn’t ruffle any feathers with this answer and thank you for the ask! I’ve honestly been looking for an excuse to talk about this lmao…Also I do not intend to start a ship war pls stay civil guys! ;-;