#(i don't think ''actively deceiving'' was the best way to describe it. she wasn't lying. she just wasn't telling the truth.

[rustedleopard]

Okay, I'm awake enough now that I can properly elaborate on what I meant by this.

Martlet doesn't have the highest opinion of humans. It's not something you'd really notice during a typical Pacifist/Neutral Route because she treats Clover like they're an adorable child, but play a No Mercy Run and during her fight she's belting out insults directed specifically at Clover's humanity. Play a high LOVE Neutral Run and when she gets impaled by Flowey at the end, she dies assuming that Clover is the one who killed her and states "I should've known..." before disintegrating into dust. Even though Clover has given up and agreed to go with her to Snowdin, she reprimands herself for not knowing better. OF COURSE a human would take advantage of her kindness and attack her when she dropped her guard, she should've known better than to trust them. Despite how she acts throughout most of her time with Clover, her conversation with Chujin (+ everything she was taught throughout her life about how humans are the enemy) did get to her, enough that she commits treason by breaking into the Royal Laboratory and stealing an experimental serum/medication specifically so she could use it to defeat a human.

There's also how Martlet agrees to accompany Clover through the Underground. I do think she was being honest with wanting to get Clover home in time for "a dinner," but she also states that she's risking her job/livelihood by choosing to accompany them. That's a lot to risk for someone you just met, especially since she doesn't really need to accompany them. Clover was capable enough to get through the Ruins and Snowdin by themself, why would they need her to tag along for the rest of their journey (especially when all humans end up at Asgore's eventually)? Well, I headcanon that in addition to trying to ensure Clover's safety throughout the Underground, she's also using this opportunity to monitor them, drive away other monsters (she states in the game that monsters don't fight other monsters/you can't get encounters when traveling with her), and gauge whether or not she should use her serum and defeat them. She only stops accompanying Clover through the Underground when she's unable to (because she's locked up in the Wild East) or when their next destination is an abandoned part of the Underground where she doesn't have to worry about any other monsters being attacked.

Martlet is also aware of Clover's violent tendencies and can even tell how violent they've been; a skill that's shared only with Ceroba. Just look at how her judgements varies based on their LOVE. In every judgement that isn't Pacifist or aborted No Mercy/No Mercy, she apologizes for her lack of honesty which I feel adds weight to my headcanon that she was using her time with Clover to monitor them and gauge whether or not she should kill them.

Don't get me wrong, I don't think she's some secret genius mastermind nor do I think that her deception was done with malicious intent. She just wasn't entirely forthcoming about her thoughts on/plans for Clover. Her "ditzy bluebird Royal Guard" deal is still her, but beneath all that is a very intelligent and socially aware person.

(Minor edit: I said it in the tags but I'll elaborate here so it doesn't get lost in reblogs. I want to rephrase my first post a bit: I wouldn't call what Martlet did "actively deceiving" but rather "not being entirely forthcoming." Actively deceiving implies that she was intentionally lying; in the game, she just wasn't telling the whole truth. I also made that first post very late at night/early in the morning, so that explains the sloppy word choice.)

I love Martlet. One of my favorite Martlet traits is how she spends most of her time actively deceiving Clover