#chapter 1 spoilers

[ablogofloveandtrash]

One of these days someone is going to call out Damon for being soft towards Diana. Technically he's already been caught in the act twice. Once with Eva during the investigation, then with Kai or Grace depending on whether you chose Pathos or Logos in chapter 1. I repeat this guy is not fooling *anyone*. Here's to hoping more students catch on in future chapters.

[foxkid-draws1323]

At least girlie got her steps in before she died 😔😔

[amberinn]

Ingrid/Grace killing game where Ingrid comes to Grace's room and Grace is like fuckshitprettyladyatmydoorstep and gets her best friend Wolfgang to come with her (she's blushing heavily, and she's so down bad for Ingrid and now her best friend is gonna also help Grace's wannabemygirlfriend with the laundry, except Wolfgang sucks at doing laundry, and she's all around his space trying to make sure he doesn't accidentally end up drinking cleaning supplies or something, she DOES NOT want to lose her roommate and best friend thank you very much, but she's going to kick his ass about it later, because INGRID IS HERE and she is humming tunes underneath her breath and Grace's stomach is doing flips, and she loves her loves her loves her, so much, and here is Wolfgang---- goddamn it stop ruining it for her!)

[another-dra-anew]

What do you think would've happened if Tsurugi died instead of Kurokawa in chapter 1?

was so hard to get my thoughts on this down coherently... but this is such a good question i had to power through and get an answer out !!

(written with like... i wanted to keep it in the same exact setting Just Changing that inori kills tsu instead of kurokawa. tried to get a bit into how this'd affect the rest of the game, but trying to avoid spoiling stuff before that!)

~*~

set up:

immediately, my brain goes to why? not that that's the question, but i wanted to think about it. you'll realize quickly that i thought about this a lot. we could say that inori accidentally killed tsurugi (too much force when hitting his head), but i feel like the route of an accidental murder doesn't really work with inoris character. she explicitly made the choice to kill, and planned out her murder well in advance, even though the mastermind did coerce her specifically.

i think she'd kill tsurugi because of how he kinda works against her fears, and her motive. inori killed because she was paranoid someone would kill her, and felt ostracized and alone. she'd have known from her motive video that tsurugi had multiple loved ones shown in his, and would be worried he was hiding how upset he was about the motive. additionally, similar to how she was upset over kurokawas blatant distress, i think tsurugi's goal of getting everyone to relax would make inori bitter.

case:

i think tsurugi would effectively keep his injuries, but more severe/multiple blows to the head? a stab in the spine to get him down, then blows to the head until he wasn't breathing anymore. or, honestly, i can see her going back to the sharp point of the drill, knowing she's very likely to get caught, and going after his brain stem. either way, inori knows this is her one shot, and she's Screwed if she messes up, so she's Getting him!! stab stab stab whack whack whack! (contrast with yamaguchi, who stabbed/cut mekaru multiple times as well, but did so out of uncertainty and struggle with committing to it.)

inori would still go for drugging tsurugi, i don't think she'd drug kurokawa? i think i'd have someone notice that inori was drinking coffee during the dining hall party, and she'd claim it was decaf. in trial, somebody (maybe kurokawa?) would casually remark on something that we can extrapolate to mean that the decaf hadn't been used that night- coffee grounds, what container was open, etc. maybe a specific coffee pot is decaf only, and didn't need to be washed? anyways, the reason i say that is because not drugging tsurugi means that kurokawa would discover his body pretty quickly, at least once she was done cleaning, if not earlier, should she get worried about his absence.

trial:

this leads us to a fun trial set-up where the kids had laid down for bed, and are getting more and more tired as the trial goes on. also, bit of a fun reveal, when maeda gets his door banged on, and opens it to kurokawa already moved on to whacking other doors, leaving him to see tsurugis body and Realize on his own. i also think it'd be really fun to have some of the kids gather together in the kitchen for a caffeine run... i feel a very distinct ambience there? like six or so kids just standing there.. one opens one of the cans of cold brew while another looks for creamer. two just look at their mugs. one idly nurses it, while the other focuses on how warm it is in their hands. someone remarks on the fact tsurugi died wearing bracelets that were made maybe an hour ago. eventually, they all go back to investigating. Yeah..

anyways. i can see kurokawa as being trial mvp, tbh? like canon, she's accused of murdering tsu, but rather than being cleared by her injuries (since she'd have none), she'd be cleared by the timeline- why kill him so Immediately? but she'd be suspected because of the pills, and the fact she was making food and drinks.

losing tsu:

we're losing our guy who argues for the blackeneds sympathy! i don't think inori is met with much kindness when she gets executed. only a few of the kids think killing her is an okay choice, but no one voices their dissent. its hard to say without knowing how the cases would go past this, eg, who would kill, and why- but i can't really see anyone arguing for the blackeneds too strongly, or too soon. maeda could start to make the case around chapters 4 or 5, or some of the others might, but it's not going to be as early or as prevalent.

similarly, the kids struggle to bounce back. a lot of people find a friend or two, and will spend time with them, but people spend a lot more time on solo hobbies in their rooms, and i don't know how many whole group events there'd be. tsu processes the events of the game in a different way because of his background with crisis response, so he's handling things differently than our remaining cast would- kurokawa is who's changing with tsu, and she wouldn't have that effect on the groups dynamic that he does. i think maeda feels a bit more Envolved in whats going on, because there isn't tsu to be significantly more of a driver and overshadow him- but i also don't think maeda likes hanging out with the others very much. its something he does to pass time and stay sane.

gaining kurokawa:

not saying this definitively, but i wonder if maeda would've wound up dead if kurokawa had done that exorcism. anyways, kurokawa has shitty luck, so there'd be at least an attempt on her life, if not a successful murder, in chapter 2. if maeda does die, i can see it being in ch2? and kurokawa taking over as protagonist. but im just spitballing. if that happened, hm... i think kurokawa would be able to get maeda back to functioning in the ch1 investigation- but we'd be investigating from her pov, and would keep it that way through the entire investigation, even though maeda would be back. i think he'd be her support, tbh. she'd investigate with him- why would she investigate with uehara and tomori? this got really tangential, so tldr, maeda or kurokawa are dying in ch2, and whoever lives gets to be protag!

something i wanna show in rewrites is that kurokawas a bit unsubtle. she's fairly overt in showing her hand, and what she intends to do with it. in a friendly environment, she has nothing to worry about, so she's friendly!! but in more stressful environments, moments where the weight of the game is felt strongly, i think she's quick to identify potential issues, call them out then just go "...okay." after whatever student she poked at comes up w their defense. it's clear to see when she's having Thoughts, but can be harder to tell what she's thinking. after a murder, and with the group not being too connected, i think she runs the risk of getting avoided by some of the kids. in fact, i can see her getting targeted Because she's so clearly dissecting the going ons of the game/what the others are thinking.

mtoxna=:

similar to how completing this event would've gotten us a good amount of kisaragi lore, kurokawas theories on why he wasnt there/what was up with the game in general, and some thoughts on maeda, i think we'd learn a lot about tsurugis thoughts on the cast, and theories on the outside world. kurokawa, maeda, uehara, and tomori would pop up a lot, and he'd remark that even getting to see one more floor would've helped him so much. still, he'd have a lot to say for the workings of the game- why they weren't getting rescued, and how the mastermind was keeping the school functional. i think tsu would be Very upset about the way he died, and the people he left behind, but we'd end on him deciding to make the afterlife welcoming for when inori shows up.

characters:

just to recap, kurokawa is fairly likely to die in ch2, but if she survives, she'd probably take protag rights from maeda, who'd die in ch3 at the latest- if kurokawa is still alive. if she dies, maeda lives, and if maeda dies, kurokawa survives to the end. kurokawa wonders a lot how different things would've been if tsurugi were still alive, but i don't think her survivors guilt is esp bad. maeda, meanwhile, gets upset over tsurugis death in particular even in like. ch5, assuming he survives until then.

uehara gets really close to kurokawa. tomori tries to get him to spend time with her. she's largely unsuccessful. uehara cannot be fted with in ch2, he refuses to spend time with anyone other than kuromori. might bounce back a little later, but like.. while he isnt cold or hostile, it's clear he's not really.. trying to become Close with anyone. he doesn't feel like joking around. the great gig in the sky just started playing. .... anyways. if you go to get a last look at the body more than once after the trial is called, kurokawa sees uehara sitting by tsu, and says she doesn't think she should go interrupt. he takes tsurugi's class band, and places something of his own on tsurugi (makes sure its in a pocket or smthn, so it'll hopefully be kept on him). dies in the later half of the game, low to mid chance of survival

tomori steps into tsus role in the group a bit, but does things very differently. asks maeda to sit by her and uehara (kicking higa out of his seat), and you get a small group event where she invites a few people over for tea. also, i think tomori misses him more than she can make sense of. she knew him so temporarily, but he really feels like he was someone Supposed to be present who she can feel isn't. she thinks she sees him standing around the school (at the end of hallways, corner of the dining hall, the closed off stairs at a new floor, etc) a Lot. he's never facing her. high chance of survival, if not, dies towards the middle of the game

speaking of higa, he uses tsurugis death as a chance to argue... i don't even know, to argue something or other thats evil and bigoted. this is what u get for being naive + wouldnt have happened if tsurugi wasnt a wuss! this is why tomori has maeda sit in higas seat specifically. people get mad at him for being the way he is, but there's no note of hope that he'll change, just people wishing he'd piss off. dies between middle and end of game, maybe ch4? middle of the road survival odds.

whenever i think of higa being a dick, i think of maki. i can see her maybe getting a bit closer to tomori? tomoris time is less taken up by kurokawa than it is by tsu... she doesn't strike me for a particular fate, but i can see her dying in ch3, specifically as a victim. she could die at any point after that, or could survive- i think it depends on how many survivor spots there ends up being.

yamaguchi might keep his spot in death line up. i can see him killing kurokawa, but it'd be different reasoning than killing mekaru- midori would have told him to target kurokawa. he's a good reserve, but i could easily throw a different student in if i have a more interesting concept. yamaguchis kinda hard to give friends because of how he processes the.. world around him. so it's a bit hard to work out what'd happen to him. low odds of survival just because i can't see myself working out what to do with him.

on the other hand, if i ever actually used this, it could be a fun time to mess more with mekaru. i can see her as a victim who's implied to be Up to some stuff, so her death hits the group a bit harder because theres info that dies with her. i think seeing kurokawa/potentially tomori being such strong figures in the trial would help her a lot with her personal struggles, and she'd at least feel confident trying her hand at poking some stuff. dies ch3 or 4 because if she makes it further, she'd do too much to help, and im Making this be a full killing game

hatano might end up as victim to me wanting to explore new ideas. while she falls a bit short at it, she tries to help uplift the group- so if ch2 isnt maekawas death roulette, it could see hatano getting offed to keep the group down. i also dont think she or iranami would be too impacted by the death changes, because i don't see either getting especially close to kurokawa. maybe iranami would if hatano died. mid-low odds of survival.

if iranami dies before hatano, hatano will die at least one chapter later (so if iranami dies. coughs. chapter 3, hatano can die in chapter 4 or 5, or can survive). regarding iranamis odds herself, i see her dying later in the game, if she doesn't outright survive. iranami is kinda hard to play odds for? mid to high survival odds.

not much to say here, but ōtori dies anywhere between chapters 2 and 4, has a fairly low odds of survival. similar to hatanami, he wouldn't be strongly impacted by tsurugi dying and kurokawa living.

kobashikawa can die in any chapter, has mid to low odds of survival. maybe if he pulls off surviving, he'll get to avoid seeing/being involved in the deaths! fingers crossed for you, kobashikawa. he does interact with tsurugi a bit off camera, but i think he'd be more strongly impacted by how tsurugis death affects maeda, than by tsurugis direct effect on him.

and finally, who really knows what taira is up to. hard to say...- ? ?? what do you mean there's a sixteenth character to be thinking about? i don't know what you mean...

synopsis: could die early: maeda, kurokawa, yamaguchi, hatano could die in the middle: tomori, higa could die late: uehara, mekaru, higa could die any point: ōtori, kobashikawa, maki likely to survive: tomori, iranami, kobashikawa, kurokawa, maeda

conclusion:

kurokawa would definitely be a student with a big presence on the games going ons! but tsurugis absence would be sorely felt, and it'd change the vibe of the overall group a lot. maeda isn't going to be doing so hot without tsu there to live in maedas brain (and sneak into his room while he sleeps. tbt to that happening in ch1). without tsurugi there to keep the group a Group, the kids will find friends to hang out with, but there'll be less connection, and more isolation.

kurokawa will be keeping a target on her back, so it's uncertain if she'll survive the game just because she makes it out of chapter 1. hard to get into things for chapter 6/etc late game things, but i don't think the cast is doomed, i'll point out. there'd definitely be changes to death order, and who survives- but i think the roster of students we'd end up with would be capable of escaping. if i were to make this an alternate killing game, i could absolutely keep the deaths going through to chapter 6- or, if i had this be unbound by killing game structure, maybe they'd be able to escape sooner! who's to say...

hoping i remember this ask when we finish ch6 so i can revisit and talk about how some plot points might change! btbbs death order is pretty set- meaning that who dies when is very important. even making it one chapter further would have a lot of impact on things, because a lot of consideration is put into who's been spending time with who. really fun to think about how the game would change if some fates changed!

~*~

BONUS: an excerpt from a ch1 investigation rewrite. just a random narration segment, im planning to put it in the kitchen investigations. just a special treat <3

Tsurugi, narrating - I’m really happy that Uehara is here…I like it when we spend time together-

Tsurugi - I really enjoy getting closer with everyone, but, I think I could put up with absolutely anything that happens-

Tsurugi - Like, if everyone else was evil and mean, or if the mastermind decides they just wanna hunt us for sport, or if we’re stuck here for forever, and everyone goes stir-crazy.

Tsurugi - No matter what, I think it'd be okay as long as I got to keep Uehara by my side.

Tsurugi - Whenever I see him, I get all happy, and I think it’ll always be like that.

Tsurugi - …Sometimes though, it does make me feel a little bit sick? Like, y’know when you’re nauseous, and your stomach feels all weird, and you’re all clammy, and your face feels warm,

Tsurugi - And you’re super-hot and super-cold, all at the same time?

Tsurugi - Sometimes things feel a little bit like that, but not because of any negative vibe I have with Uehara…

Tsurugi - I think everything is just super intense for me, though. A lot of things are, at least!

Tsurugi - So, I think it’s just because I like him a lot… I like most people here a lot, and I care about everyone, but Uehara is extra-super-special to me. 

[ithinkdogshouldvote2]

Eva did nothing wrong! EVER! My princess.

[fatummortem]

Is it just me or is it super weird in Chapter 1 where Cloud is literally Zack. I played CC & CCR & I'm just. alsjfalsd it takes me off guard every single time. I just end up eye balling Cloud the whole time waiting for him to grow black hair and get an X scar.

I knew it was coming, I was prepared for it happening. It just is so weird & bizarre to me.

I mean both versions of Cloud are in that chapter but the trooper Cloud is mixed with Zack? He looks like Cloud in a trooper uniform, has Cloud's same height & everything. At some moments he says what Zack said to Cloud (If you walk up & click on him at random.). He'll even swap between sounding exactly like Zack to sounding like Cloud it's trippy. Or inception if you will. (Specifically around moments when interacting with Tifa.)

By the time I get to the point where you're running through the burning town, I'm not really sure if the trooper Cloud on the ground is entirely an Easter Egg. But I'm kinda shocked Cloud only has headaches when encountering his mother in some way.

But I got sidetracked. I'm mulling over Clouds mental or memory state. The fact Zack's appearance doesn't stay stable makes me wonder just how much of the true him is fighting to the surface. Yet at the same time Jenova had to get creative with the memories just to keep the SOLDIER persona stabilized within the madness of that memory.

It feels as if I'm also missing a lot of context. there's a lot different with how the different games play out (at least I know there are a lot more codex's in the original with lore i want so bad.)

[tamanegi-san]

the first thing I thought about after reading 118

[egophiliac]

A guy who just wake up from a coma -> what did i miss?

Pomefiore was the last plot i follow before real life made me forget about our silly boys. How bad has the plot become now for our gang? Also who is that Gojo looking guy?

anon, I am so sorry and I mean this in the best way, but I do think episode 5 is the absolute funniest place to have stopped following Twst because shit starts escalating SO fast after that. episode 6 literally starts with a secret government shadow agency breaking down our doors and kidnapping students. zero to a million instantly.

and like...that's not even the zaniest thing so far? Ortho's hacked into the collective human unconscious. there's time travel (sort of). "Crowley might be Malleus' long-lost father" is a serious theory. if you'd told me any of this back pre-episode 6, I would have asked for the link to this unbelievable but highly intriguing fanfic.

also, episode 7 gave us (and then immediately took away 😔) the best character in the whole story:

[crv-uzumaki]

...i mean. i kinda got one!

Last-second predictions

ALRIGHT, happy day before chapter 1 everyone! Just so something is out there, I'm just gonna get my thoughts out on the general roles everyone has before some of them are wrong. This isn't gonna be a death order prediction, just their general roles and what vibes they give off. Feel free to add your own so you can dunk on me when I'm wrong (or so I can dunk YOU when YOURE wrong)

Damon Maitsu and Eva Tsunaka: Both of them give me the vibes of people who die in chapter one (Damon more as a killer and Eva more as a victim), mostly because they're estranged from the group. If one of them does die this chapter, I'm leaning towards Damon but could go either way

Wolfgang Akire: I see Wolfgang living for a while at least, it'd be pretty sad to see the killing game wear his optimism down when combined with how passionate he usually gets during the trials could lead to a huge breakdown of his ideals

Toshiko Kayura: honestly no idea lmao. Her not getting any lines during the trailer is a HUGE red flag, but we've never had a literal child in the games before, so she really is just a wildcard to me

Jett Dawson and Mike Berskii: they're really cute together but I just KNOW one of them is gonna die and motivate the other at some point. Praying it's Mark (nothing against him, I just like Jett too much to let him go)

Wenona: I will be VERY surprised if she gets through the whole game, given how cynical she is. She comes off as too influenced by Celeste to not be part of a murder trial right?

Grace Madison: She gives me survivor vibes, weirdly enough. Her just refusing to play along in the opening is a big part of that, and I can see her not giving in easily if a motive gets dropped

Cassidy Amber and Kai Monteago: Both give off the random side character who lives through the whe game just because they don't really do anything. If one of them does die I'm gonna say it's Kai (sorry but he's too much of a boyfailure)

Desmond Hall, Diana Venicia, and Eloise Taulner: all are really nice and unfortunately that's kind of a death knell in this series. They'll probably live for a little while at least though, maybe even get through the whole thing if they're not too confrontational!

Ulysses Wilhelm: eeeehhhhhhh hes boring. chapter 2 victim

Jean DeLamer and Ingrid Grimwall: they probably won't die in chapter four if I had to guess, but they probably won't get through the whole thing still. Though Ingrid has more of a role in the group, so she might have more of a presence

And that's all of them! As I said you can add your own predictions to the tags if you want to be wrong with me, together, but just have fun P:EGGING out there!!

[mrs-gauche]

The Dread Wolf Take You (Part 1)

~~Link to the complete 31 page comic here~~

"Imagine that, overlooking the god in your mids!"

May I present, my attempt at illustrating the last four pages of Tevinter Nights. 😁 (Also, the first time I'm posting art on here!)

As the whole thing was quite literally too long to post on tumblr, I uploaded the full version on a customized site made for reading webcomics (via ComicFury). Feel free to check out the link above if you like to read the rest! Also, if you're on mobile, there's a "Scroll View" option for easier navigation. :)

And, obviously, HUGE spoilers for those who haven't read Tevinter Nights!!

On a personal note though, I can't believe I actually finished it... As it had been a *very* long time since I drew (and finished) anything, let alone a 31 page comic and reading Tevinter Nights again finally sparked my motivation (and the courage to post it lol). So I want to thank Patrick Weekes for helping me overcome this massive art block and over two decades of Case Closed mangas for inspiring me how to draw an overly dramatic "exposing the imposter" moment. 😂 I tried my best to be as faithful to the book as possible and it took me forever, so... hope you like it! :D

[dirt-and-scrivles]

Celebratory kaimon bc Damon got through round one

No text ⬇️

[evilphrog]

This book should be required reading for the primary caregivers of people with developmental disabilities. They give her the space to make as many choices as they can, but are very clear when she can’t. They let her do things independently first, even if they know they might have to help later, or fix the mess. They don’t let her play helpless, and keep empowering her to direct her own life in the ways she can reasonably handle. They don’t censor themselves when talking about adult topics, because she IS an adult regardless of her mental status. They explain things in ways she can understand, without talking down to her. This is special, and all too rare.

[catsr-reallycool]

context: i did a mathematics mastery test yesterday and today the teacher came to my table during class to ask if i had referenced any material doing the test and it inspired me to make this

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

 book 7 chapter 12 part 2 thoughts!

***THIS POST CONTAINS MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR BOOK 7 PART 12 OF THE MAIN STORY!!*** This spans part 245 to part 268, focusing on Trey and Ace.

We will get Riddle's dream in a future update (scheduled for Feb 7th)!

Please note: this is NOT meant to be a summary or a translation; these are only my initial thoughts on the events that roughly unfold. There may be details overlooked or misunderstood in this post, so PLEASE do not use this as a translation.

The group lands on a tropical island! These are reused assets from the Lost in the Book with Stitch event.

Cater indicates that he's fine from the bumpy ride; he likes the thrill! It reminds him of sky diving. He also shares that he once lived by the sea in Pyroxene/the Shaftlands and that he enjoys board-related activities (snowboarding, surfing, skateboarding, etc.)

IHBASOUFA8TVVAD8FA RIGHT AS THEY'RE TALKINGA BOUT THIS, LEONA INTERRUPTS AND TELLS THE KIDS TO STOP WASTING TIME, THEY GOTTA FIND THE DREAMER 💀 (Can't believe I'm saying this, but I want to shake his hand for reminding everyone to get the fuck back on track instead of standing around talking for several parts in a row...)

They find some footprints in the sand and decide to follow them. Due to the size and shape of the footprints being similar to Deuce's, they think the footprints must be Ace's and will lead them to him.

We bump into Ace (who is wearing his beachwear clothes from the Stitch event), along with dream!Riddle (also in his beachwear) and dream!Trey (who is in his Yasmina silk from the fireworks event). Trey was cooking up BBQ for everyone! afhlbllbaiad THE TWST DEVS ARE REALLY GETTING MILEAGE OUT OF THOSE OLD ASSETS, HUH...

Ace speaks to Deuce, Cater, Grim, and Yuu in a familiar tone, but is shocked to see everyone else. He also mentions dream!Cater leaving to change into swimwear and to take pics by the sparkling sea; it looks like he was dreaming of all of Heartslabyul and Grim + Yuu hanging out here. Apparently, dream!Cater rented a place for them by the beach from Kalim's family.

Ace and dream!Trey explain they're celebrating because Yuu can now freely pass between Twisted Wonderland and their original world. asdbihasiodasqevyf IS THIS SLIGHT SHADE AT THE THEORISTS THAT PROPOSED SOMETHING SIMILAR TO KEEP YUU AS THE MC IN TWST... (Turns out, Ace must have been really wishing for Yuu to not leave their friend group forever www) This seems to be their summer vacation after the first school year.

Cater volunteers himself, Silver, Leona, and Idia to help Trey with making BBQ. This is so they can monitor the darkness while giving the first years a chance to wake Ace. Congrats to Cater for being a little useful in these dreams 🤡

The first years directly confront Ace as he is showing them options for beachwear to change into. However, to everyone’s shock, Ace is in complete denial and brushes it off when his head starts to hurt. He tells they are all being overly negative and it's harshing his vibes! It's vacation time, so why are they trying to ruin things with jokes that are in poor taste? This marks the first major instance of the dreamer resisting the feeling of “waking”.

Sebek intervenes and tries to take charge of the argument. Even with Sebek shouting about all the havoc Malleus's magic is causing... even when Sebek says Malleus's magic will eventually swallow the world, Ace has no problem with it. He claims it's not his problem. Besides, everyone's going to be living happily in dreams, right? And this is the path that Malleus chose for himself, so he should accept the consequences of his actions. What's the issue there? Besides, he doesn't want to cooperate with a person like Sebek who constantly looks down on others and paints all the dreamers as victims in need of saving.

Ace storms out in a fit of anger. Grim starts blaming Sebek for things emotionally escalating. Then Ortho confronts Sebek with this question: if it was not Malleus Draconia behind the current situation, would Sebek really be trying as hard as he is to rectify things? This question shocks Sebek into silence.

Cater and the others show up to check in on us. From our crestfallen expressions, he can tell we failed to wake Ace.

HUHHHHHHHH 😟 Silver suddenly gets super strict with Sebek and scolds him for the trouble his rudeness has caused everyone + their seniors. He says that the people around Sebek have been too lenient with him and thus spoiled him; he needs to reflect on his actions!! Sebek uses a really quiet voice and apologizes to us (but he still uses kisama which is a pompous and rude way to speak to others 😭).

LEONA 💀 He suggests they are wasting too much time trying to wake a small fry like Ace and it may be more efficient to skip him and move onto the next dreams. THE DAD THAT LEFT FOR MILK, FOLKS

… What the fuck. I did not expect Ace’s dream to better my opinion of CATER of all people but lo and behold, it is. Cater agrees with Leona that it may be more efficient to skip Ace’s dream. He and Idia do not need to worry about Ace anymore. This first year is Heartslabyul’s so it’s not their responsibility. Cater walks off and Yuu, Grim, and Deuce chase him. The others follow in a separate group due to the radius for Ace’s dream world not being very large.

Deuce begs Cater to let him try talking to Ace one more time before they give up on him. AND THEN CATER ACTS LIKE THE DAD THAT STEPPED UP because he tells Deuce he never had any intention of abandoning Ace 😭 Deuce, Grim, and Yuu decide to team up with Cater to wake Ace, especially considering they may have to combat darkness this time.

Cater finds Ace by himself and asdbhlabsyod8ysaas8fb uses Split Card to make a bunch of clones to gang up and pummel his junior... "I'll show you this is a dream :))" *PROCEEDS TO BEAT THE CRUD OUT OF ACE* Unfortunately for Cater, dream!Riddle, Trey, Cater, and Deuce show up to put a stop to things. (I want to add it's hilarious that Cater is also in Yasmina silk but Deuce is stuck in his P.E. Uniform asdhbasoyafae)

Ace is tempted by the darkness and mumbles a bunch of stuff about how he doesn't want to do difficult things like fighting Malleus. He says he’s just an ordinary mage and doesn’t even have his UM yet. We're shocked by Ace's cowardly side but Silver points out that darkness being present feeds and amplifies your most negative emotions.

Anyway, Sebek and co. want to barge in to save Ace, but Leona holds them back; they should leave it to Cater.

fuasboyfg8fdasibTHER'S THIS ON e FUNnY MOMENT. Leona says that those that it's easy for the darkness to indulge in the dreamer when they're at their lowest/acting cowardly. Idia voice) Eeeeh, aren't you talking about yourself, Leona-shi... abhlfbioasfoasobifadib LEONA NYOOMS OVER TO IDIA'S TABLET AND COMES CLOSE TO BREAKING IT... Watch yourself, Idia...

WOW CATER 🤯 He blew my mind… Cater reminds us and Ace that when Riddle OB’d, Ace was the one that stepped up to fight even when the battle seemed unwinnable—and it was Cater who wanted to run. He tells Ace he looked so cool back then, but he hasn’t had the chance to thank him for it until now.

ACE LAUGHS AND CRiES

Cater pulls Ace out of the darkness!! He calls to Leona and co. for backup~ (One neat touch here is Ace says one of his battle opener lines: “Okay~ I’ll get this over with fast.”)

Deuce and Grim bonk Ace on the head for giving them a hard time. augwjsjs Ace starts to given’m lip again but Leona tells him to watch how he speaks to upperclassmen OTL

do skwguwuwn AcE CALLS oUT SILVER AnD LILIA foR SPOILING SEBEK… Cater interrupts to remind them to get along + respect their seniors or the red demon Riddle will come for them!

Adeuce are embarrassed about having to shout Dream Form Change. Idia enjoys it. Cater does too; he thinks it’s cute and wants Adeuce to do it again so he can take a video (they refuse to).

Deuce makes a passing comment about how maybe they don’t know Cater as well as they think they do?? The Cater they think they know is obsessed with taking pictures… but maybe he can be reliable too!

Sebek and Ace bicker again as they prepare to dream hop. Once again, Leona comes in clutch by telling them to stfu and for Silver to hurry it along.

They land in front of Heartslabyul dorm in Trey’s dream.

Ace didn’t have an issue with their travel; in fact, he posed when Cater pointed his phone at him!

We tell Ace we’ve basically gotten about 20ish people recruited to our cause already, plus the support of S.T.Y.X.! However, their group is 10 people now (Grim, Yuu, Ace, Deuce, Cater, Silver, Sebek, Idia, Ortho, and Leona), which will make it dangerous to dream hop.

Grim mentions that if he is without Yuu, he won’t count as a student. That’s weird, because earlier in book 7 he mentions moving to the second year even once Yuu has returned home… Maybe this will be formally discussed later??? It sounds slightly contradictory.

They smell butter and follow it to the Heartslabyul kitchen. Cater stops everyone suddenly?? He doesn't think it's wise if all 10 of them cram into the kitchen at once; he will go since it's not odd for a Heartslabyul student to be present in the area. Plus, if things get dicey, he can always use his UM as an excuse or in a combative pinch!

asdhasbyofasd Leona and Idia get dragged along with Cater since they're the oldest. This conveniently allows the others to listen in on the conversation in the kitchen by using the mic built into Idia's tablet. (Idia however is not happy that he gets stuck with the sunny Cater and the grumpy Leona.)

WHOA check out the cakes and other baked goods here???? I don't even like sweets, but this looks tasty.

Cater tells the other two with him that Trey handmakes goodies for unbirthday parties. He has advised in the past that Trey take shortcuts (using commercial goods/already made cakes or box mixes, I presume), but Trey doesn't listen. Cater suspects it's because Trey thinks it's way too fun to bake to give it up, even if it would be faster to use another way.

They overhear people talking and... WHAT THE HECK, CHENYA'S THE HEARTSLABYUL DORM LEADER NOW????? ? ? ?? ??? ? ? ? ?? ? ? He's complimenting Trey's meat pies...

P.S. That chef's outfit looks so good OTL

Ortho casually hacks into the RSA student database to report on who Chenya is (since Silver and Sebek have no clue who he is).

We sort of get an explanation for Cater’s dream??? He says he wished to live comfortably and happily, as if every day was like his birthday. Somehow that got twisted to him being dorm leader…

xhsvhwiwkw The first years are bickering outside… Ace and Grim are fighting to see what’s happening, Sebek is being too loud so Ortho chastises him.

Trey is able to tell the original Cater from the clones??? Bro is Haruhi Fujioka OHSHC… He comments that Cater looks different than usual, so he knew right away.

Riddle seems to be a regular card solider. He tried to challenge Chenya for his dorm leader seat.

Chenya explains Riddle lost to him because his UM doesn’t work on Chenya. He then demonstrates his UM…! (Note: some creative liberties taken while transcribing in order to slap in an Alice in Wonderland quote :3c)

“Most everyone’s mad here. You might’ve already noticed I’m not all there. Not All My Head!”

(More direct translation of the incantation would be, “Everybody's weird here. You've noticed that already, haven't you?”)

It doesn’t just refract the light and make Chenya appear invisible; his body is literally NOT there. This explains why Riddle’s UM doesn’t work Chenya—there is literally nothing there to collar.

cHENYA bULLIES RiDDLE A LIRTKE BY HsRaiNH An EmBaarRsING StORY 😭

Anyway, Riddle has challenged Chenya many times but lost because Chenya is an expert at avoidance. Riddle uses up his magic and burns out easily.

Oooh? Chenya talks about a special language his grandpa taught him. It reminds me of Riddlish from Ever After High.

Trey’s ideal Heartslabyul… it’s one with loose rules, a huge ass kitchen that can be used freely, and a dorm leader that is easygoing. It’s pretty mild and grounded.

Trey asks the third years to sample a prototype lemon jelly and yogurt dessert for him. The only sweetener is honey so eve Cater should be okay with it—and Chenya won’t be mad if someone violates the “dorm leader gets the first bite rule”, even if desserts like jellies are excluded from that rule. Cater agrees but insists that Trey joins them.

dhisbwkwnw Leona has meat pie instead of the lemon dessert. Trey wants to make more to feed his guests and decides to make enough for all of the dorm.

The first years are drooling and jealous that the third years get to eat when they’re supposed to be investigating!

Cater is impressed that Silver had the fortitude to go through so many dreams. He thinks he may have given up a while ago if he were in Silver’s shoes???

Trey says he likes baking because it is satisfying to see the finished product—and others can enjoy it too, so it is killing two birds with one stone. Even Riddle is able to eat as much as he wants now. Apparently Riddle was the close to the same age as Trey’s younger brother at the time (Trey was 9 or 10; Riddle is one year older than the Clover brother). Trey describes Riddle as very mature for his age.

Hmm, interesting… The part of Riddle’s past where his mom caught him eating a strawberry tart remains unchanged.

LMAO the Clovers got scolded for 5 hours by Mrs. Rosehearts… Trey claims he and his family now laugh about the incident. Out group theorizes that this is result of trauma; it’s Trey’s way of coping.

Oh????? Trey says Riddle has changed a lot since he left his parents. Due to Chenya’s encouragement, Riddle now eats as much as he wants. Apparently both he and Chenya see Riddle like a little brother and they love seeing him be able to grow up.

ASGYUGYASNNYFOYADSSD Leona's theories keep being proven wrong in these dreams... He theorizes that Trey might have been angry when he became vice dorm leader, but Cater says that's not the case.

Trey was very excited when Riddle entered NRC; he told the other Heartslabyul students that his childhood acquaintance is joining the school. Although Riddle is quiet, he is talented at magic and Trey hopes they get along well. But then when Riddle enrolled, he was a completely different person than how Trey remembered him. He had developed a short fuse and become very controlling... cutting himself off from his feelings in order to rule. Riddle also acts detached from Trey.

In the flashback we see, Riddle has a heart mark. I guess this is what he had in reality too, not just the dream world.

Anyway, when time came to appoint a vice dorm leader (dorm members vote for them), Trey kind of got handed the job. Cater suggests it was probably tough on Trey to see that Riddle had changed so much; at one point, Riddle even beheaded Trey because the rules do not discriminate. He also suggests that maybe Chenya is in Trey's dream so that both friends can be present to support Riddle.

ajbuasiodyasida CATER CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT... He confesses that he's always a spectator and now, seeing this, he wonders if he should have done more or intervened sooner.

UUUUUUH, there's a big BOOM!!???!! heard over Idia's tablet. It sounds like the other group is in trouble! But what are they dealing with...?

... Oh. OH.

THIS IS LITERALLY THE TWST ORB MERCH 😭😭😭😭😭 Tweedledumb and Tweedledumber... and round Cater and Riddle...

uMMMMMMMM I feel like I learned about one of Trey’s secret special interests and I don’t like it one bit 🪦

Riddle is now the tallest second year... bigger than a horse... How is he gonna ride Vorpal?! Ace and the others are in distress, saying that he can't do basketball and Deuce can't do track and field with those round bodies!!

We attempt to fight the massive dream!Heartslabyul boys, but it's useless!! Silver tries to form a barrier, but the dream!boys just roll too fast and knock him over before he can complete the spell! Cater tells Leona to use his UM to help out, but Leona can't because there would be collateral damage if used in an enclosed space.

The dream!boys try to convince Trey to stay in the dream but they start to present information that doesn't make sense. For example, dream!Riddle does not care about nutritional content; he will eat anything if it's something Trey made! Dream!Cater starts to eat a bunch of sweets to demonstrate his willingness to consume what Trey makes for them; ah, but that's not right either because in the real world, Cater doesn't like sweets at all!

Trey is able to wake up on his own...!

Aaaand we got the context for his groovy...? AFBADAVADSPB SO THE CATER AND RIDDLE PICTURED HERE, LOOKING DOWN AT HIM... IT'S THE ROUND ASS ONES AKHLBAFSIYBAFIYVAFOV8YQEOVYPQRWBFUEFABIHFDIB THAT MAKES THIS ILLUSTRATION SO MUCH LESS SERIOUSSSSSSSS

There's a big BOOM!! BHLFBIAFSIYBAFSIBYADFBIADVBLDFS LEONA SANDED SOME OF THE BIG ORBS?? ? ?? ? ? ???? ? ? Bye-bye, round Adeuce...

We rally with Trey and he has an admittedly cool line... "Don't talk with your mouth full. It's poor manners under the law of the Queen of Hearts!"

After the darkness is dispelled, Trey is caught up to speed and expresses he's not sure if a normal mage like him can be of much use against Malleus; why didn't they go for Riddle, who is way more powerful, first? asfhbasyuvfgfyoaodasi Ace has a cute moment where he reminds Trey that it was HIS unique magic that overrode Riddle's and saved his ass. Besides, we need Trey to help out with Riddle. He's Riddle's bestie, right?

HAHAHAHAHAHAFHAFH Sebek quietly says he is indebted to Trey... I just think about how Sebek has said Trey reminds him of his father OTL Ace whines about how Sebek treats him and Trey so differently and Sebek shouts that a third year will actually be HELPFUL, unlike Ace. afbaiuliafiefa GIRLIEPOPS YOUR BICKERING PLEASES ME... continue--

Cater takes a picture of Trey in his chef clothes before he swaps over to his dorm uniform; he wants to show Riddle later! I think Trey also brings along a strawberry tart...? Not sure if it transfers from dream to dream or if I'm misunderstanding the wording there.

Then they all gather around Silver and move on to Riddle's dream! (Leona closes off this section with a banger line about how it's time to get back on the small crowded bus. LMAO)

Alright, so what were my overall thoughts on this update? I definitely feel as though the writers got better at writing the dreams as they continued. The first few felt awkward and stilted, but the more recently ones (Savanaclaw and Heartslabyul) are noticeably smoother, even when kept in the confines of already established patterns.

I really appreciated how often Leona was kept telling everyone to shut up and move on with the story. He sounds so tired, annoyed, and wanting to get to the end of book 7 already. It feels like the devs are speaking to us through Leona bilfiaylasdpasod

I'm a little surprised that Ace didn't get his UM in his dream, but I guess maybe they're saving it for the very end battle? I find it suspicious that he brings up and laments his lack of UM while talking about how he's a "normal" mage that doesn't stand a chance against a big boss like Malleus. This sounds like intentional foreshadowing for that confrontation.

As I expected, Ace had a special interaction with Sebek, much like most of the other first years have. (I've updated my "Sebek and the first years in book 7" analysis post based on this.) Ace capping things off by openly calling out Sebek's flaws helps to bring everything full circle. I was also pretty spot-on about Ace's dream covering Yuu being able to stay in Twisted Wonderland. I'm surprised that they did the "Yuu can go between the two worlds as they like" thing; it's a very convenient idea proposed by many theorists in the fandom in order to maintain having Yuu as the POV character in Twst while also allowing Yuu (the in-universe character) to be able to return to their friends/family back home. More and more... the dreams feel like vague fanfiction addressing some fun fandom theories and ideas.

I found it really fascinating that Trey's dream didn't erase the moment in his life that tore Riddle away from him. I wonder if the trauma is just so deep-rooted that even Malleus's magic couldn't get rid of it...? Or if the event was framed by the magic as something sad that had to happen so he could spoil Riddle and give him a happy life now??? I can also understand an interpretation in which Trey feeds others or does his best to help them out even if he finds it bothersome because some part of him still holds onto that immense guilt he feels for his role in the Tart Incident. And in that sense, it's the dream allowing Trey to indulge others without stop, without moderation--a weakness of his that he was warned about in Vil's Labwear vignettes.

asdlhbasnyurnoabafsi NOT GONNA LIE, TREY'S DREAM IS GOING TO GIVE ME NIGHTMARES. Don't get me wrong, I love how whimsical it is, and how he can just enjoy baking to his heart's content. I also love that we get Chenya's UM name and incantation, as well as more about how it actually works. HOWEVER. The massive spheres that Trey made of his dorm members freak me out 💀 THERE'S SOMETHING SO GROTESQUE ABOUT MASSIVE BODIES WITH SMUSHED TINY FACES ROLLING AROUND TO CRUSH PEOPLE...

The MVP this update was most definitely Cater. I was shocked to see how proactive he was. He took the lead in both Ace and Trey's dreams and we got to see him put his craftiness to some good use. Stepping up for the first years, roping the other third years into helping him, even not hesitating to kick Ace's stubborn ass... I hate to say it, but I could really see Cater's dashing big brother side coming out here 🤡 YES I AM UNFORTUNATELY PREDICTABLE I had to pause reading so many times to go, "Waaaah, Cay-kun is so cool!!" which is not a thought I typically have. I'm also such a big fan of him regretting his past actions (or rather, inaction) and finally FINALLY being able to verbalize some of his deepest and most concealed feelings to other characters. When Cater thanked Ace for what he said back when Riddle overblotted... man, it hit me right in the heart.

Sebek was also pretty bashful this update. I don’t think I’ve heard him being quite so… humbled??? His quiet voice is cute 🥰 Was not expecting Silver to speak sternly to him though. The shouting came put of nowhere??? And it’s not as though you aren’t part of the problem for spoiling him, Silver…

Those are my thoughts for this update! I'll see you in the next one. Riddle's dream, on the 7th...!!

[lesbiansonadow]

PROJECT: EDEN’S GARDEN SPOILERS BELOW.

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no matter how profane, sacred or insane

painfully preoccupied, It's always still the same

the killer is inside me, don’t try to take my life

i’ve buried all my hatchets - but i’ve sharpened my knives!

[superstarzolar]

implied spoilers for p:eg ch1!!!!!

you’re just jealous of me