#river's asks

OKAY september one first.. this is gonna be a long post isn't it

[Renee would] just kind of hold it awkwardly and be glad, potentially, that you like her and think she's important, but it would just be a little bit weird for her. -- she's so incredibly awkward and i love her. whats wrong with her. theres so many existing words and yet awkward is the only one i'd say describes her perfectly

But as they get older, Tamarack does become a good baker and Qiu does become pretty good at cooking, and they do cook a lot of Chinese meals with their mom. -- oh my gosh my "qiu is bad at cooking" hc was wrong.. am i ... a fake fan

You do see Ren less in Step Two than you did in Step One. -- if you heard something that's my heart shattering into a million pieces

Yes, [Vianca and Ren] do have scenes together. -- nevermind my heart is back to normal again!!! viancaren my favourite duo (maybe even more..). Like Qiu and Tam, they're different sides of the same coin.. and they clash, which makes it a lot interesting!!

If we had been able to give [Renee] a DLC, that would have been a scene in her DLC. But because she's only a side character. -- FUCK. okay. its okay. im a fanfic writer and an artist. i forgot about that part

They've got a slightly different design, but they definitely do look like opal stone earrings, so that is interesting. -- OpalYusuf is.. interesting to me. If they ever become partners, I'd definitely be happy!! but I'd be even happier with opal staying on her own. i like that she's a single mom, because there's so much stigma and weird interpretations about them (glances at the fandom. guys opal is an established character, making her abusive, even for story reasons, has its own implications about how you choose to see single moms).

Those are little Feathers. [Qiu is] not really a leaf type of person. That's Tamarack's thing. -- qiutam .. somehow

Once Step Two starts, the game will reference your experiences from Step One and use that to generate a personalized dynamic between you and the leads. -- ... i did not know that?? the system isn't implemented yet but also OLNF's coding never fails to amaze me

Yes, you will be able to have a poly relationship, but only in the Step Four Epilogue, which will not be available when the game initially launches. -- i will wait forever for them, but also, i might die. but also they're worth it. but also i'll die

No, I don't like choosing heights, and I don't have set heights for anybody in OLNF. -- OKAY now everyone drop their height headcanons. in step 3,, i'd say tamarack is 5'3 qiu is 5'7, and ren is 5'8. heheheh height differences

Tamarack might have joined the board game club, or the movie club, or the volunteer club even. -- tamarack wanting a bit of everything is sooo. her. unbelievably her. she's barbie.

But potentially if [Qiu] had to choose one and the MC was in it and certain things happened, maybe they’d joined the Astrology club -- i KNEW IT I KNEW IT

I know they're not main characters, but do you think we'll ever see Serenity address how Vianca treats non-binary people? It just seems pretty dismissive of their identity that Vianca sees her as enough of a girl to treat them with politeness, but she treats other people who use they/them pronouns poorly, like she's grouping Serenity together with the girls as opposed to the non-binary kids. (This is a question, not a statement from GB). -- i did want to talk about this question because it feels very. weird? serenity is someone who can speak for themself, and they'd tell vianca if they didn't like her treatment. it just feels like the wrong interpretation of vianca's values and why she leans towards befriending women, and how she treats genderqueer people.

 And so, Vianca and Ren are definitely more of the combo that needs to have serious scenes together, rather than Vianca and Serenity. -- PLEASE PLEAEPASSESEPLAPLAFLDJAFLPAP

 And yes, Yusuf has taken testosterone and he did have top surgery, but there's almost certainly not going to be a scene where he is taking his shirt off in the game itself, at least. -- aww man :(. joke joke im gay but yusuf is a very loveable character to me. its also very nice to see a trans male who's brown and an adult and is portrayed to be gentle and kind. i need more of that

 Qiu wants to be strong while still being able to be seen as graceful. -- something something gender

She would find that fun as a child. She'd find it very embarrassing in Step Two, and would not want it to happen. She'd be more open to it in Steps Three and Four, but it's still not something she's super eager to do. Like, if it happens, it's fine, but she's not going to be going around intentionally asking for it. -- i'll take it... im turning this into a "tamarack prefers to carry people than to be carried" hc

It would be very cute, and if Ren one did get a DLC, you would be able to spend more time with her. And I'm sure she'd like to go on a hike with the MC. -- taking my crumbs ty gb

Tamarack is definitely more in denial. She knows that she has a crush, but she does find it hard to believe that the MC likes her. And you can do things to show that you like her, and she might respond positively, but she isn't going around convinced the MC totally into her and wants to date her. -- tammyyy :( the girl who was once so confident and loud is now more quiet and doubtful.

Meanwhile, Qiu can have moments of doubt where they're insecure on how much the MC likes them, and it's more about they don't feel very lovable, so they might doubt that the MC likes them. However, on better days they will feel very confident that the MC likes them and are fully aware of their crush.  -- I AM SO GLAD THAT THEY'RE OKAY AT LEAST. but the days where they feel unoovable killed me

something so interesting about the fact that qiutam will always be aware of their crush on you. your crushes on them however?? thats very different. especially when you consider their low self-esteems and their perceptions of themself

And so, [Omi is] glad that the MC is a very polite young adult, if they are. - hehe she called me an angel guys

It's kind of the opposite of Step One, where you're never really Qiu’s best friend, even if you consider them your best friend. While in this Step, even if Tamarack is your official best friend, Qiu would still consider you their best friend, as long as you were friends. -- you really want me dead don't you

qiu is so. alone in step 2. they really only have you and thats still not guaranteed.

i like how their places with tamarack switches. in step 1, tamarack only has you while qiu has everyone on their side. in step 2, tamarack always has someone (serenity .. and vianca) even if you're just neighbors, meanwhile qiu only has someone if you choose to be friends with them

They wish that Ren would be a better friend and would talk to them more, and put in more effort to reach out. -- OUCH OUCH OWIEE OWWW ??? qiuren step 2 is my roman empire. they are for every childhood friend you drifted apart from because you both happened to change. happened to become too busy.

So maybe Ren wants to improve her sick skateboarding skills. -- i love this girl

Qiu would use those terms for their partner if that's what they wanted to be called, but they would still ask that their partner call them “SO”, for significant other, but just a shorter, more friendly, casual sounding version than “significant other” sounds to them. -- nothing to say abt this i just thought qiu romancers should know !!

 And then [Ren and Qiu] just kept struggling on their own, with neither really being able to be fully a support for the other. -- MAAAAN MAN WHATEEVERRR man

And so even though they're going through a more distant time, she can't stop seeing them as one of her closest friends. -- she's such a sap.

the way ren sees her friendship with qiu and the way qiu sees their friendship with ren is making me think that ren didn't even realize they were drifting apart before it was too late.

But they're not that impressed if people they don't really know try to call them “Autumn”. It's more of like a personal, closeness only type of deal. You can't just use it because you might find it easier, but they do still like that. -- cough cough

if you are playing the game, please please learn how to say qiu's actual name and avoid only using the name autumn!

okay that was 33 pages of content i almost died (guy who loved every second of it). okay. 22 MORE!!!

Vianca and Qiu are average; Tamarack and Serenity are short; Ren is tall. -- TAMAREN HEIGHT DIFFERENCE

It's just she is very intense with her emotions, and if they're not intensely positive, they do come across as kind of harsh. -- this is the perfect explanation of viancas character. she's not malicious !!!

As for Ren, she would be very embarrassed if the MC talked to her about Vianca, and she wouldn't have wanted MC to do that. And then she would feel even more awkward around Vianca knowing that this conversation has happened. - she's so funny. anyways viancaren crumbs!!

But I'm sure Tamarack’s favorite setting would be somewhere outdoors. -- MY FAVOURITE GIRL. she'd have the prettiest wedding ever

Obviously the answer is no, there isn't going to be a Ren DLC, unfortunately. Ren is somebody that I in my mind wanted to be a love interest and had ideas for what her scenes could be. - gb you keep kicking me when im already down /silly

She does enjoy having the MC around and likes hanging out with them, but she's always a little bit reserved, a little bit closed off. But she does genuinely see MC as a friend at that point rather than Step One, where no matter how much time you spend with her, she still sees you as more like a friend-of-a-friend than a friend in her own right to you. -- i'LL TAKE IT!!!!

Unfortunately, she would not be competitive with you even if you rebuffed her friendship, she would still be cheering you on and would be happy for you if you got a starring role, even if that meant she didn't. -- i'm so glad we have a character like vianca.

she's a girl who exists in a time where misogyny is incredibly rampant. girls were always pitted against each other, and it was usually for a MAN. so seeing a female character who actively chooses to be kind to women no matter what? it's incredibly refreshing.

But not that much happens between you and Ren herself because I don't want to lead people on and make them assume just by playing the game that, “Oh, will eventually this character be a romance option?” Because that is sadly not going to happen. -- it feels like i got shot /j... but the idea of qiu or tamarack finding out that you have a crush on her is really funny.

I feel like both of them probably would watch [My Little Pony], and both of them probably would really like it. Maybe not in Step Two, unless it was in secret, but definitely in Step One. -- qiu and tammy both watching it in secret during step 2 and finding out about it in step 3....

But if they're doting, then they're just gonna not mention it to anyone and just dote on the MC when they want it and probably still try to dote on the MC when they act like they don't want it. -- this is so cheesy and cute im screaming actually

I guess [the Lins] know that sometimes teenagers can be difficult, but they didn't think that their kid would end up like this unhappy or having this much attitude. -- i just died. imagine watching your child go from the happiest kid ever, with so much life, turn into someone whos pushing everyone away

Tamarack, she loves her parents and wants their approval, but she's also worried about what they're going to do, and worried about what's going to happen when they do visit and she has to spend time with them in person, because she's not really used to that at this point. -- tamarack is in a period of her life where she's learning to make her own choices, and learning to be her own person. what her parents are doing actively stops that from happening, because they take away the one thing that's important, which is the freedom to stay and decide that she belongs here.

tamarack is a character who has never felt like she belongs. but even then, she should get to decide where she wants to stay.

 If not, she'd probably want to go for something that's still subtle or simple, and that she perhaps could have put together with stuff she already has, and maybe just buying a few accessories rather than getting a whole brand-new costume. -- something something actively watering herself down to make herself more digestible. which is something girls have to do when they're deemed as too loud or too much

i also like the contrast of step 1 qiu announcing that he'll move on to more mature activities when he's older, while tam insists that she'll always dress up. but now tamaracks too shy to do anything grand (unless she's with someone she can trust), and qiu doesn't care about others opinions so they dress up even if people see it as "childish"

i wonder if qiu rushing to grow up is related to the fact that their peers are older. they want to act older too because they feel like they're getting left behind, and every moment of them drifting apart feels like proof of that

I was wondering, why does Qiu get so jealous? (Question, not a statement from gb)-- i kNEW IT IM NOT INSANE

As for why Qiu is getting so jealous and upset about it, part of it is MC feels like the one person they're still holding on to. Ren and Baxter have both drifted apart from them, and it's also especially hard with Tamarack because with Tamarack, there's sort of no excuse or sort of explaining it to yourself in a way that makes you feel better. Like Ren and Baxter, they're older, but with Tamarack, the two have known the MC for the same amount of time. They met the same day. They live in the same neighborhood. They're the same age. They go to the same school and both have classes together. So, it really just feels like it comes down to that, on a very personal level, you just prefer Tamarack or you just care about her more, and there's no other reasoning to it. And so that does hurt more than even Ren not being able to spend as much time with Qiu, because Ren is an older teenager and things have become a bigger difference than they were when they were both younger.

okay so this game wants me dead . tell me why i was laughing and poking fun at qiu being jealous only to get hit by this . IM SORRY QIU

i think qiu has -- OH MY GOSH i just glanced up and there's another person in the docs IM SORRYYY IM ABOUT TO LEAVE

anyways. as i was saying. i think qiu feels like it's very easy for them to get left behind. that's why they keep insisting. "it'd be easier if i just didn't come to school. the teachers are wasting their time on me. my parents are wasting their time on me, etc etc"

in their eyes, they are only wanted when they're being useful and people pleasing and overly accommodating.

so, when MC, who is one of the few people that they think breaks that mold, prefers someone else, it's just confirmation to them that they aren't anyones first choice. their true self isn't anyones first choice EUGH

okay i may be a bit dramatic but it took me like 1-2 hours to read all of that KLJFDAHFDDFJK

thank you again anon for reaching out <3 it means a lot that someone (even just one person) likes hearing my rambles! i wasn't able to give much meaningful commentary because i'm too busy screaming about the characters JLDHFJH but i really hope you liked this post, anon!!