Beyblade Fan Character Creation Guide - Part 3

Relationships

Any relationship your FC has with characters that are not their family members will go here. After all, your FC will interact with others throughout the story - whether that story is told through role play, fanfiction, or a drawing. Just as in real life, how your FC  makes friends with others is widely varied - and it's possible they make a few enemies along the way, and not always with the antagonists of the series!

Undoubtedly, you want your FC to interact with your favorite characters as well, but as mentioned in the previous part of the guide, inserting them into pivotal events in the series is difficult to do. From personal experience, the most you could do is have your FC interact with the canon charas 'off-screen' - when the camera has shifted to a different team or a different location, your FC can come in. Setting the story after the series is another way to make sure you don't mess with the canon timeline while establishing friendships with the canon characters.

In general, figuring out your FC's relationship with other characters - whether they're other FCs or they're canon characters - will have you asking and answering the same questions, like:

1. How did the two meet, and how did they first interact?
2. What was your FC's reaction to the other?
3. Did this meeting and interaction change your FC in some way, and how?
4. After their first meeting, how does your FC see the other character, or what do they think of them?

From there, you can infer how subsequent interactions will go. Here's an example from my own notes, to show how keeping the above questions plus your FC's personality in mind can help keep canon-FC relationships believable.

"Kei Hiyomura: Affectionate, teasing, nurturing, protective. Has perfectionist tendencies, introverted but still amiable. Still harbors a desire to become a 'pro blader' after cutting her training short when younger.
Relationships:
Takao - first seen at the depot during his battle against Kai, with the match making her curious enough about the 'rookie' that she leaves the Blade Sharks. First actual interaction happens in between matches at the regional qualifier (episode 4). Eventually befriends him after learning he's a friend of Kyouju's, and also running into him several times at BBA training facilities. His attitude reminds her somewhat of Katou's, so she doesn't mind his chatter too much. Winds up treating him similar to how she treats Katou.
Kyouju - met through Katou, she sees him as a capable, dedicated Beyblade researcher and mechanic, and treats him as such; eventually comes to accept she doesn't have all the answers, so she turns to him when there's something she wants to learn that's related to the sport; in she return does her best to help him expand his database. What she likes best about him is his dedication to research, and how organized his research is."

There's no need to make your notes exactly like how I did mine, but having something similar will help you keep those relationships straight.

Besides friendship, your FC could find themselves in something like a rivalry, or really make an enemy of a canon character. This is still okay, and in fact makes your FC more interesting. If, when you answer the above questions, it makes more sense for your FC to have this canon chara as an enemy, don't try and change anything in either your FC's personality or the canon's to make a friendship 'work'. Your FC could even be ambivalent about someone - they couldn't care less about the canon character, until they do something to get a different reaction out of your FC.

The same goes for love relationships (aka shipping!). Your FC can have crushes - it happens in the real world, too, after all. But their crush doesn't automatically become their romantic and then life partner, no matter how much you want it to happen. Sometimes, the character you intend for your FC isn't the one they end up with, and that's fine! Compatibility is important in friendship, and even more so when you start taking that relationship further, heading into romantic territory.

Remember, though, that some canon characters are difficult to work with. Rei, for example, is already shown to harbor feelings for Mariah (they marry in the manga, too!), and he seems the type to be more open with someone the more he knows them. Ryuuga is another toughie to work with - your FC should have some abilities in the dish to catch his eye (same with Kyouya, come to think of it), but that doesn't give you license to make your FC overpowered! Doing so just to get a character's attention will make things difficult for you (overpowering an FC is generally frowned upon, in any case).

Back to the point of this part of the guide. Here's a breakdown of the different types of relationships (both good and bad) your FC may find themselves in:

1. Acquaintances. The first step to friendship, if it goes that far. The canon character knows your FC by face and by name and not much else. They greet each other if and when they meet, but they won't usually hang out by choice. Nile and Ginga from MFB would be an example of acquaintances. Team BBA and the Majestics, from BSB, are close acquaintances (a step up from acquaintances, but not close enough to be friends). This type is rather neutral; neither character knows enough about the other beyond their respective first impressions.
2. Friends. Both characters don't mind spending time together, usually with their other friends coming along for the ride. They could spend this time training, planning training schedules, or even doing something not Beyblade-related. That last one is rare in the series, but it's still possible (a camping trip, sightseeing before a tournament, etc.). In BSB and MFB, you see this mostly with the main team.
3. Close friends. If the larger group would break off to do different things, these characters are the ones who will usually go off together, whether to train or simply to talk. This level could also be called 'best friends'. You'll often have to infer who are best friends, but sometimes characters will be upfront about it (Rei and Lee, for instance).
4. Rivals. The most that would happen when you leave your FC and the other character in a room together is that they challenge each other to a Beybattle. This can be friendly rivalry (Kai vs Tyson, Ginga vs Kyouya) to full-out "I hate your guts" rivalry (Ginga vs Ryuuga in the first season of MFB). Both don't even have to be Beybladers to be rivals - just look at Hilary and Ming-ming.
5. Allies. The characters are rivals, but they unite against a common enemy. Michael, Lee, and Kai, for example, are all captains of their respective teams and therefore are rivals at some point in the first season. But they all put aside differences to help Tyson prepare for his upcoming math against Tala. Allies aren't limited to rivals, though - teammates count as allies, and you can have a team, for instance, made up of your FC and their friends (more on this in the next part of the guide).
6. Crushes. This can go either way, with your FC crushing on someone, or one of the characters crushing on your FC. This isn't 'love' - it's that selfish type of relationship where Person A constantly thinks about Person B because doing so makes them feel good. At this point, the character with the crush sees the recipient as 'perfect' - no flaws whatsoever, no matter how glaringly obvious they actually are. I have seen many fangirls carry their crushes over to their FCs and while I'm not saying don't do it, it can be difficult to work with to avoid creating a sue.
7. Lovers. The biggest differences between this type and the last one is that Person A loves not just one part about Person B - crushes usually happen based on a single feature like their voice, their looks, etc.; instead, Person A loves all of Person B. Second, they know that the object of affection is flawed and accepts that, no questions asked. This goes from becoming boyfriend and girlfriend, all the way to marriage. You have several elements from close friends, with both characters helping each other whenever needed. Think of it as both people being concerned for the other's well-being and willingly disregarding their own - because they know the other person is looking out for them. 

The levels your FC goes through with different canon characters and even FCs will vary depending on their personalities, and - again - it's perfectly fine if they don't start out positive.

For example, Person A and Person B are leaders of two different street blading gangs, and so are rivals by default (types 1 and 4). One of the Beybattles goes awry, and the warehouse they're in starts collapsing. Person B isn't one to leave anyone behind, even someone from a rival gang, and helps Person A out. Person A, now curious about Person B's reasons for their "leave no man behind" policy, soon forgets that they're rivals, leading to both becoming friends (type 2). Then suddenly a Token Bad Organization comes along, putting their mutual love of street blading at risk, leading both gangs to unite - A and B now find themselves in relationship type 5.

You get the idea. I found that it helps to not to have a pairing in mind when you start - though there are instances where the character you wanted to pair with your FC becomes their crush, but not their partner later on. Speaking from experience: I didn't think of pairing the twins with anyone, but Kei ended up with Kai, and Katou ended up with Hilary. In MFB, I had Kyouya in mind when working on Atsuki (hence her stint masquerading as a street Beyblader), but she surprised me by growing closer to Tsubasa as she found him easier to get along with.

Relationship Cliches

There are certain cliches I've seen in the Beyblade fandom, and I was guilty myself of one or more of them back in the day. I thought of including them in the first part of this guide (basic information), but given that the cliches mostly revolve around relationships, I've decided to discuss them here.

1. Childhood friends. The FC is childhood friends with one of the main characters, usually with the person they end up being shipped with. While this is cute, in a way, there's extra pressure on you, as the FC creator, to think of how the two could have met and how they became friends. This can cause problems for certain characters like the Blitzkrieg Boys, who are all implied to be orphans (save for Kai, in the manga), and Rei who is living in China until the start of the series. In MFB, a childhood friend of Ginga's or Ryoma's would have to be from Koma village, so the creator has to decide whether or not the FC left like Ginga did, and why.

Once again speaking from experience, I write the Hiyomura twins as having been short-term trainees at the Abbey, thanks to an agreement Souichiro had with the twins' grandfather. This meant they met Yuriy and the others and while they did befriend the future Blitzkrieg Boys, what they had is more of a childhood acquaintanceship rather than friendship. 

Now, Beyblade Burst is the one series where the "childhood friend" type of relationship can be safely worked into your FC's story, because of the character-driven nature of the series itself. It's best, though, for the FC to be childhood friends with any other character except for Valt, Shu, and Xhaka. These three already have an established childhood friendship that's still going strong, and which started in kindergarten. Having a fourth childhood friend enter the picture can fall flat if the creator isn't careful with how they write the FC. whether male or female. I'm not saying it can't be done, but it has to be done right.

Hoji and Wakiya, having been friends and playmates for a long time as well, pose a similar problem, but it can be easier to pull off. An FC who's a childhood friend of Daina's would also have to be familiar with Wakiya, even just as acquaintances, seeing how Wakiya and Daina know each other. In episode 27, Daina hints at knowing Hoji as well since he says "It's been a while since I battled against Horusood," - which means he may have befriended Wakiya a year or so after Hoji. 

2. Canon character protects FC from some form of harm. Whether the canon stopped your FC from being bullied, being hurt, or rescued them from danger, this is overused to some extent in many series, not just in Beyblade. It's all right if this rescuing takes place while the pair are slightly older. If it takes place in childhood, this can be a turning point in which the FC gains a personal goal. They could resolve to become stronger so no one has to rescue or protect them, for example, or else they decide to find their rescuer so they can thank the latter properly; this second option is more likely if the FC doesn't know the canon character's name. A third option is that the FC starts to crush on their rescuer, but this is a tricky convention to use and has to be written well. As mentioned earlier, crushes don't necessarily become life partners. 
 
I know there are more cliches, but these two are the ones that come to mind. If anyone has anything to add, just let me know and I'll add it in.

What to do:

• Mix it up. Not all relationships are positive or happy. Your FC might find the main canon characters annoying, so don't despair if they refuse to get along! This is especially true  if your FC's personality is at odds with that of a canon character's - sometimes, they're better off acquaintances, or friendly rivals rather than true rivals.
• Interact with side characters. In general, relationships with canon characters who aren't on the main team are easier to write. You have more freedom writing a scene with, say, the All Stars, since the camera isn't on them most of the time. Therefore, your FC has 'wiggle room' to interact with Michael, Emily, Rick, and so on. Just remember to keep your FC's history in mind - they can't interact more with the Blitzkrieg Boys if they don't go to Russia (although it's not as simple as that, either).
• Start with your character's 'relationships' section of the profile as empty as possible. You can put in the names of canon characters they're likely to interact with, but let the friendship/rivalry/whatever develop on its own. Forcing your FC - or the canon - to react a certain way may end up undermining their personality, making readers question your FC.  

What not to do:

• Change a canon character's personality just so your pairing works. I mentioned this earlier, but I'm still saying it again. I'm sure many of us are all for character development, but development that still follows the canon's personality. For example, a stoic character who secretly worries about their friends isn't going to outright tell a companion that they're worried about your FC.
• Make a majority of the canon characters fall for your FC. Again, it's understandable that you want your FC to be likeable, and it's tempting to try and show how likeable they are by having multiple people fall for them - but that's another thing that's frowned upon.
• Create an FC solely to pair them up with a canon character. This mindset is very difficult to work with (it's what gave me and Atsuki a hard time), and you can end up with an FC whose story is flimsy and whose personality depends entirely on the canon character - meaning they could have no substance at all. Worse, that FC can take their obsession with the character to stalker-ish levels in roleplays and the like, and that's no fun. At all. 
• Compare your pairing to another's that involves the same canon character. There's no competition to make your pairing 'better' than someone else's (besides, that's just poor taste). What matters is how well you write your pairing, and how doing so helps you develop your FC further.
  
• Think that someone copied your pairing. Or somehow believe you're the only one with the right to pair your OC with that particular canon. I've noticed that this and pairing comparison (the point just above) are more likely to happen to newcomers to the fandom, or those who are younger than fans who've been in the fandom since the original series. If they happen to post about their pairing after you did, that's still not a sign they copied you. After all, you don't know what they were thinking. However, if you've never seen their OC before, and it looks suspiciously like yours, then copying is more likely. The point is, you may love the character to bits and your pairing may be cute, but the only one who has full rights to the character is the creator/manga-ka of the series (Aoki Takao for BSB, Takafumi Adachi for MFB, and Morita Hiro for BeyBurst). Besides, it's more fun to geek out over a character together than to argue about whose pairing has more right to exist. 

Relationship Check: Shipping

Remember what Beyblade is about? It involves teens (sometimes younger characters aged 8 to 10) using them Beyblades that have one gimmick or another, and how they battle each other to prove who's the best. Often there's a Token Bad Organization involved, so that the later tournament arc is dialed up to eleven in some way, compared to the local/smaller tournaments. So where's the romance here? 

Answer: it's not there. Crushes, yes, but not full-on romance - you'll have to wait until the characters are older. In the meantime, you'll want to know if your FC can survive as a character without their love interest. 

The best way to do this is to take your character's story, and rewrite the parts where they start crushing on one canon or another, or else remove hints of confession scenes. Take all the romance out, and leave the rest (friendship, rivalry, neutral feelings, etc.). Then read their story again and ask yourself the following:

1. Does your FC have a goal besides getting their love interest to notice them? 
2. Can your FC still hang out with their crush if they were just friends?
3. Do they grow and improve as a character (and a Beyblader) despite the lack of romantic feelings? 

If, you answered 'no' to any of those questions, then your FC needs work, as far as their relationships are concerned. Remember that Beyblade isn't about love, and shift your focus to your FC's abilities, goals, and so on as a Beyblader, instead of potential romantic partner. If, however, you answered 'yes' to all three questions, then your FC can stand on their own - that is, they're not defined by their love interest, and that's part of what makes any FC a good one.