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kooki914 · 2 years

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Could you make a video about ralsei and his fuck up idea of friendship and social interaction

Sadly, I can't make a video as the topic is relatively specific and i prefer broader, more involved theories and the like for videos, but I CAN discuss the topic on this post!

Ralsei as a character is rooted the idea of loneliness, he's a prince with no subjects, a kid with no friends, a prophesied hero with no-one to save, until Susie and Kris show up. I don't doubt for a second that he idolised Susie and Kris before he even met them, their mere silhouettes in the prophecy was probably enough to fill him with hope and longing, and entirely devoted himself to befriending them when they DO eventually show up, by any means necessary. It's probably why he was so unforgiving of Susie at first, she was mean and not at all how he'd imagined her to be, not to mention she wasn't taking the quest he's been looking forward to his whole life seriously at all. He wanted her to be better but by HIS standards, and his standards for making friends is "do everything they say and always be nice".

That specific idea of servitude as a means of making friends is probably rooted in the (what I believe to be a) myth that darkners need to serve lightners in order to be happy (I call it a myth because for some reason the game seems to be leaning into this as a true fact despite it's actively cult-y vibe in chapter 1). He sees no other way for him to feel fulfilled in his life than if he did everything and anything the lightners could want from him, and that's toxic as is, but it seems to be getting out of hand as he preaches that sort of mentality even to Lancer, and when fighting Queen. He marvels at Susie's integrity because he had no idea that someone can be loud, brash and mean, but still be a good person, and moreover a better friend, but I think he's still a long way from being able to see himself as worthwhile even when not servile.

He wonders what being Ralsei-like is, almost in contrast to Susie being Susie-like unapologetically, as he keeps making this distance between him and the lightners. He's the darkner, he's there to serve them, he's there to be fluffy and nice and approachable, as long as he holds on to that hard cut difference between lightners and darkners, he's never really gonna be able to flourish into the person he really could be at his best. This also leads into how he doesn't really care much for the darkners around him, which I find fascinating.

If you pay attention to his dialogue, Ralsei is actually sassy, and at times dismissive bordering on mean. If you skip talking to Lancer the first time he's an intractable part of the map, Lancer will stop you and ask if you want to talk to him, and RALSEI will answer on Kris' behalf, saying "um, no." Lancer is the bad guy, yeah, but he's also a kid, and you'd expect Prince "I'm the nice one" Ralsei to actually be kind to him because of that, but no. He seems inconvenienced, honestly. He grows to care for Lancer eventually, just as Kris and Susie do too, but he doesn't feel that way about other darkners. He has no issue with beating people up if that's what Kris commands, he doesn't bat an eye at what happened with Spamton, he hardly even notices anything is wrong during the Snowgrave route while Susie is blatantly aware shit is going down.

Dissecting all of this, and taking into account that Ralsei is less an empathetic person and more a typical "nice" person, I think Ralsei genuinely has it in him to be much meaner than we usually see him. His idea that he can only properly be friends with the lightners of the prophecy, and that in order to be a Good Darkner he has to be servile and nice, is holding him back more than he's aware. The core idea surrounding Ralsei now, I think, is the idea of having a persona you use to come off as someone you're not without even being aware of it, and his friendships all reflect that. His one-sided pining for Kris where he struggles to put himself on their level, his aggressive hesitance to get to know Susie slowly evolving into fascinated adoration of her integrity, and his straight up unwillingness to get to know anyone BUT those two, are all a reflection of him fully trying to live out the prophecy title of "prince from the dark", and nothing else.

If you would indulge me for a moment, I think Noelle would honestly be a great friend to Ralsei, and teach him a lot about the world. Noelle has a lot of "who I should be" baggage like Ralsei does, but she expresses it in a completely different way. Where Ralsei fully embraces his title and nothing more, Noelle is constantly striving for that great wide somewhere, aware that the expectations placed on her are weighing her down. She's a nerd like he is, but she learns quickly and socially, while Ralsei is slow and always did things on his own. Without even meaning to, Noelle would show Ralsei that it's okay to be "the smart one" and not know everything all the time, that it's normal to get fed up sometimes even when you're "the nice one", and most of all, she'd show him that there's always going to be more to someone than a simple title or objective. She's a lightner, yeah, but she's not part of the prophecy, she's just some random person that got roped into all this, and if Ralsei properly befriended her, he'd see you don't need a prophecy to be someone important and good, and with that, he'd realise HE doesn't need the prophecy to be himself, either. That, and also, Ralsei probably needs to start small and take inspiration from someone a little more tame before be can fully take in Susie and Kris' bad influence lmao

#ask #asks #deltarune #ralsei #character analysis #kooki off the shits once again #not art #i will literally fight people on the idea that noelle and ralsei would actually be great friends if toby wasnt a coward and chapter 2 wasnt #yknow the way it is now #i will never cease being salty about chapter 2 #also not putting a readmore on this bc tumblr has that new shitty feature where it auto-adds one on the dashboard right

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ask-dgs-221bbakerstreet · 2 years

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((since i’m still kind of busy, have some text interactions between trucy and athena during the course of their adventure.))

THEIR SEPARATION

trucy the goose-y : athena!! i know you just left, but how’s mr reaper doing? (^-^)

cyked out : Im gonna be like completely honest here truce. Hes SO awkward. Like chief prosecutor edgeworth level of emotionally constipated plus simons PLUS apollo kind of awkward. Im going to implode trucy

trucy the goose-y : have you tried not doing that? (*'ω'*) also, maybe YOU’RE the one pulling an apollo!

cyked out : Impossible. Im too cool and sexy for that!

trucy the goose-y : hehe, fair enough! i’m sure he’ll warm up to you, whether it be by fate or by force!!

cyked out : Pretty apt description actually

trucy the goose-y : athena, that is literally how you make most friendships... (ㆀ˘･з･˘)

cyked out : Thats why i agreed with you!!!

KLINT BREAKDOWN + SUSATO ARREST

cyked out : Been a while since any updates. You holding up over there truce?

trucy the goose-y : not that well, actually!

cyked out : Yeah. Not doing too hot over here either :/

cyked out : Mr van ziekss brother had a bit of a breakdown. I cant get to him in that state so were just hoping for the best at this point. On the plus side were playing mario kart!

trucy the goose-y : did he tell you about susie?

cyked out : Hold on

cyked out : Fuck. Yeah he did. Just now

trucy the goose-y : it’s total pile of bullshit!! as if susie could ever try to murder her brother!

cyked out : Oh definitely. Its making my skin crawl! Like you just know that this could be racially motivated as well. I dont think this era was particularly kind to people like us

trucy the goose-y : i’m going to be honest i’m trying really really hard not to just break out susie from jail right now. this whole situation is fucking awful!!!

cyked out : Not to be rude truce. But youre not usually That invested in the lives of our clients. I mean you care but you dont let it affect your emotional state. Whats up?

trucy the goose-y : i’m just… MAD! i hate seeing family get hurt, athena. i hate it i hate it i hate it I HATE IT!!!

trucy the goose-y : i miss daddy and apollo.

cyked out : Me too trucy

cyked out : If it helps im going to be on the prosecutors bench with mr van zieks! We’ll find out the truth and get the real culprit on that witness stand!

trucy the goose-y : hehehehe, pulling a papa?

cyked out : More like pulling a simon actually!

trucy the goose-y : hope you have better luck in finding stuff out!!! ☆彡

cyked out : God i hope so. Ciao!! <3

((that’s it!! hope you enjoyed the little snippets of their interactions!!))

- gramarye siblings anon

#the great ace attorney #dai gyakuten saiban #gramarye siblings anon #((hell yea!!!! these are so cute <3 trucy and athena friendship is my everything))

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chao-writes-stuff · 3 years

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DELTARUNE SPOILERS

Heyyy! I wrote a thing involving Jevil and the Chapter 2 Superboss! I'm going to put it under the cut, but at the end, there will also be an Ao3 link if you wanna support me there!

Thank you! Remember to Reblog if you wanna

The Lightner Trio walked down the stairs in the Queen's massive manor, their hurried footsteps echoing like a rough pitter-patter in the technological nightmare. The massive lair confused and bamboozled them, but they definitely wanted to figure out the mystery behind what the Fountains were about, what Queen's true intentions were… and what was in the basement?

"Uhh… Kris?" Ralsei asked, his soft voice echoing out. "Why are we even here? Aren't Queen, Noelle, and Berdly upstairs? And not here…?"

Susie quickly interrupted him, punching his arm lightly to get his attention. "Of COURSE they aren't here. But whatever is here is probably important. Right, Kris?"

"I guess!" The currently blue human replied. "I've been asked by some… guy, about doing these weird favors for him. He really wants me to be alone."

"We sure he ain't a p-" Before Susie could finish her thought, Ralsei muffled her mouth with his scarf. "Who is he? And why does he want you to be alone?"

"His name is Spamton, I think. I don't know much about him, but he gave me this Loaded Disk earlier, and--"

Suddenly, a strange, chaotic voice rang out. Everyone recognized it. The tail attached to Ralsei's cloak popped off, diamonds and hearts flying out with it. The tail spun and took form, and the chaotic Jester they quite literally put to rest yesterday was reawakened.

"Spamton? SPAMTON? The same Spamton who wished for me to go, to go, and be free, free?" Jevil laughed chaotically, with Ralsei caught quite off guard. "You know him?"

"That dorito chip was part of the reason why I was set free, he was! He used to rule this world, before the Queen I've been hearing oh so much about took over. Oh, I MUST know more of how you met that ridiculous lunatic! And that's coming from ME, ME! Spamton, oh Spamton, I'd like to have a word with him~!" Jevil looked quite pissed off, his normally jovial expression looking slightly stern.

"I didn't wanna go down there anyway. Just come back, okay? You're kind of carrying us with your defense boost." Kris, with a neutral expression, gave the clown the disk they were gifted by the malignant salesman, and watched as Jevil immediately sprinted off into the basement. They could hear an echoed "Buh bye~! I'll be back in a few hundred words!" As the jester descended into the decrepit basement below...

Jevil entered the musty, rotting cellar. Despite him rarely stepping on the ground, each step he did take left a haunting impact on his feet. It was silent, save for the occasional rustling of his clothes. He didn't have long to do this. His physical form only had a few hours to be out and about before he solidified, just like the young boy and the puzzle freak. Thankfully, that's all he needed. He was getting excited, almost giddy, to interact once more with his old acquaintance. Oh, what a wonderful conversation they'd have!

He didn't walk for too much longer before he found the train station that was buried deep below. Or was it a roller coaster? Whoever had this built clearly had some elaborate roundabout in mind… too bad they were still imprisoned, haha! Jevil walked and floated across the tracks, reaching a room with a decaying robot inside.

He knew this was a bad idea. But when did he ever have good ideas?

Without hesitating, the joker put the disk into the robot. At first, nothing happened, and he was getting impatient VERY quick. He gave the robot a swift kick in the lower area, before stepping back out of the room.

Step…

SLAM! The clown was admittedly caught off guard with how fast the silhouette from above came and pushed him onto his knees. With a small gasp for air, Jevil looked up slowly at the encroaching menace. The jagged movements, the glitchy, unsolidified form… this was him alright.

"KRIS… MY LOYAL [Sponge!] THANK… YOU. THE [Clown Around Town!] I REMEMBER YOUR [Disgusting] FACE. EVERYONE WAS SO [Thrilled] TO SEE YOUR [Calcified] FACE." The massive robotic behemoth loomed over Jevil, rage in his glasses. Spamton NEO.

The clown got up, a smug, shitfaced expression on his mug. He knew damn well that the dorito in front of him was pissed off, so he leaned back in the air to retort. "At least I drink plenty of milk, uee hee hee! As for you, you haven't changed one bit since we last spoke~! Or would it be a byte, a byte? Regardless, I do hope you've given up on the illusion of freedom, freedom~! The only one who can be free is MEEE!"

The robotic menace swung around to the other side of Jevil, making it very clear who was in charge of the conversation. A small concentrated blast of Pipis was fired at the jester, pushing him back with a surprising amount of force. "YOU ACT SMUG, BUT YOU [Crashed our stocks!] AND THEN YOU [Spoiled relations with our Esteemed Partners!] I DON'T KNOW HOW YOU… GOT IN HERE, YOU… [Tuna Fish,] BUT I'M NOT FALLING FOR YOUR [Roundabout!] AGAIN!"

Jevil laughed maniacally at this thought. This guy was mad! Over something that happened how long ago? Why even bother holding a grudge still? Petty, petty! He knew why, and it's why he came back too. "You influenced him. That pretty little kitty. You gave him enough funds to release me into that carousel of bliss and innocence! But I wasn't done, not one bit! And all those years, spent being free… they made me realize something, my dearest Spamton."

The oddly calm tone coming from the jester put Spamton NEO at an incredible amount of unease. "WHAT? WHAT COULD YOUR [Calcified Lump] THINK OF THAT WOULD MEAN ANY GODDAMN THING TO ME?"

"I CAN DO ANYTHING!"

The joker used his latent power to pelt the giant mecha with small white hearts. Spamton was caught off-guard, stumbling back a fair amount. Of course, you have to fight fire with fire, so the robot used his abilities to send out a Big Shot of blue Spamton Head Pipis.

"YOU [Saturated Marketshare!] YOU CAN'T SIMPLY ATTACK ME AND EXPECT IT TO WORK [As seen on TV!] I'M A [BIG SHOT!] [BIG SHOT!!!]"

Jevil hopped up onto the ceiling, clearing the first few Pipis on the lower row heading his way. Unfortunately, the higher row caught him clean in the face as he bounced between the two, making a small Jack-in-the-box melody as he pinged around.

"SPAMTON, MY BELOATHED! I DON'T THINK YOU UNDERSTAND, UNDERSTAND, WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU'RE TRAPPED IN A CAGE WITH A SHARK, A SHARK! YOU GET BITTEN AND CHEWED UP!"

The fool retaliated by running circles around Spamton, turning into a carousel of horse bullets! The robot, in a surprising feat of puppeteering, dodged the attack almost perfectly… until a stray horsie cut a string, sending the mech's right arm into the horse race. One thing about arms with cannons on them? They fire.

As soon as it happened, Jevil was face to face with a swarm of Pipis all around him. He was stuck. All of them exploded brilliantly, sending the clown flying clean across the rotting tracks and into the wall. Tauntingly, mockingly even, Spamton NEO retorted.

"I'M THE SHARK NOW, JEVIL! I'VE CHEWED UP SO MANY [Failed Buisness Partners] THAT I COULD MAKE A WHOLE [Presentation] OUT OF THEM! STAY OUT OF MY GODDAMN WAY, OR [Sparkle like new!] YOU BRAT."

The buisnessman charged at Jevil, his hands becoming phones. "IT'S FOR YOU." Suddenly, before either of them could react, loud blasts of garbage noise manifest expelled from the phones, attacking the court jester with white blasts of energy. There was nothing he could do to stop this robot's onslaught, it looked like.

"OH SPAMTON, IS THAT WHAT YOU THINK? THAT YOU'RE THE ONE WHO'S SO POWERFUL RIGHT NOW, NOW? I'D SUGGEST YOU LOOK UP, UP! YOU'RE NOTHING WITHOUT THOSE STRINGS IMPRISONING YOU, UEE HEE HEE! YOU'RE NOT A BIG SHOT, YOU'RE JUST A LAZY FRAUD WHO CAN'T STOP HANGING ON TO HIM! I GUESS SLEEPING FOR 100 YEARS DOESN'T MAKE LITTLE OLD ME MISS MUCH, RIGHT?"

Without warning, Jevil was myseriously gone from his corner. The spamware looked frantically for his target, before being struck in the arm, the leg, and the chest by scythes. Devilsknives. The last knive cut a few strings clean off the puppet, who briefly hit the ground before rising back up.

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP! [Hyperlink Blocked.] I'M STILL HIS LOYAL ASSOCIATE! HE MAY NOT HAVE TALKED TO ME IN [Employee of The Month for 144 months!] BUT HE'S STILL THERE…"

Jevil interrupted him cleanly and concisely. "FACE IT. YOU'RE NO BIG SHOT ANYMORE, SPAMTON G. SPAMTON. ALL YOU ARE IS A FAILED INVESTMENT, UEE HEE HEE!"

With those words, a purple blast came from behind the clown, striking the robot right in the noggin. He flew back a bit, giving the joker enough time to turn around to meet his esteemed guests.

"Ah, my imprisoners~! Didn't you guys have a Queen to rock-em sock-em?"

Susie immediately cut him off, as she punched him in the arm (causing his head to spring up, naturally.) "Well, Kris over here couldn't shake the feeling things were off. So they forced us down here, and now they're right. Somehow?"

"I know I'm right.. Jevil, who the hell is Spamton?" Kris replied, their worry about the situation starting to rise.

"It's of no concern to you~! His screws were almost as loose as mine, and I don't think it's my job to tighten them~! Uee hee hee! Thank you for the help, but I can do anything~! Even tell you guys that 3 coasters are about to come down and force you guys along for the ride~!"

Ralsei immediately stuttered something out. "Three… what?"

And just like that, with a loud rumbling, the heroes were swept up into 3 old, rusty carts, barrelling down the track. Jevil laughed to himself, proud of what he got to do. "Ah well, it's a shame I can't finish him personally…"

"But oh well! Are you proud, proud? They took care of him…"

"Doctor."

Ao3 Link!

#Deltarune #Deltarune Spoilers #Deltarune Chapter 2 #Jevil #spamton #kris #ralsei #susie #undertale #okay cool thank you byyyyeeeee

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tisorridalamor · 3 years

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Since my brain is still on Deltarune lockdown here are some thoughts regarding Susie’s home life, what the ending of CH2 may mean for CH3, and how Toriel may fit into those things

Omg Susie from this post I love

Spoilers for CH2 naturally, please don’t read more until you’ve finished the game at least once!

I LOVE Susie sooo much and seeing how she acts with Kris and Ralsie in CH2 was so much fun. She’s opened up immensely over what is basically the course of 2 days and I’m super proud of her :’D

First up on Susie thoughts, I don’t think Susie has a very happy home life*:

Most obviously, she doesn’t call anyone when Toriel asks her to let her family know she’s staying over at the end of CH2

Kids/teens with less stable homes are far more likely to act out in the way Susie did in CH1. She’s actually a pretty kind and loyal friend, but before being forced into a situation where she needed to make friends she didn’t seem to want to interact with anyone

Susie is the character with the most amount of screen time over CH1 and 2 (besides Kris of course), yet she has never talked about her family or home life. Also unlike Noelle, we also don’t have any content outside of Deltarune providing any sort of lore to her past or family**

Those who are food insecure sometimes turn to eating inedible things. I’m 99.9% sure the chalk and moss is a joke but figured I’d put it on here anyway

*I’ve seen the theory that Susie might be specifically homeless, but I also saw folks talking about her saying she doesn’t want to go home when interacting with one of the apartment buildings in the epilogue of CH2. Also, Toriel seems to think Susie has parents, and as a teacher I feel like she would know. However, Susie could also have family and not actually live with them, yet again making her homeless an option

**The one exception to this is maybe that Undertale character that mentions us meeting their friend Suzy but idk, just thought I’d mention it

Second, I’d like to talk about the ending of CH2, specifically Kris fountaining in their living room and how that might effect the Dark World they travel into in CH3:

It’s likely the CH3 Dark World may be based on Kris’s home since the last two chapters’ Dark Worlds have been location based*

Both Susie and Toriel (and presumably Ralsei) will feature heavily in CH3 since they’re both in the living room, and since Kris fountained at night there’s likely little chance of any other Lightner characters joining them**

Kris clearly comes from a very loving family, and based on the things above, I’m not sure Susie does - this could potentially lead to some conflict between the two if Susie becomes jealous of Kris’s “perfect life” and loving mom

Basically even if Kris’s life isn’t perfect (their parents are divorced and not on great terms, they miss their big bro, etc.) it may still seem pretty great to Susie and that could drive some of the drama of CH3′s plot

Another option is if Susie has a difficult situation at home this can come out in the Dark World and Toriel can adopt Susie and she starts living with them :)

*Personally I really hope that the new world is actually based on the giant monster movie Kris and Susie were watching on the TV! I think it’d be a lot of fun, but maybe it’d be too similar to CH2 since that also took place in a city and featured a fight between giants

**I think Undyne has a chance to show up as well since Toriel did call her asking for her to come over when she saw the tires were slashed. However, maybe Undyne got distracted or held up by something else since Toriel seems to fall asleep before anyone comes over

Third, this is just a point I don’t think I’ve seen anyone make before: Toriel will be the first Undertale character to be seen in the Dark World! Idk if that means anything but so far all of the Darkners and Lightners we’ve seen go to the Dark World have been Deltarune specific. It makes me wonder if Toriel will be treated any different by the rules of the Light/Dark world or by the narrative of the game

#wooooo theorizing and pointing out a few things I noticed!#deltarune #deltarune spoilers #fun talk tag

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radramblog · 3 years

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Some thoughts on Deltarune Chapter 2

I’m going to try to avoid being effusively praising of this game…demo…chapter. I’m sure there’s plenty of people doing that already, and I am more than cognizant of the platform I am presenting this post on. That’s going to be tough, yeah, but I’ll make it work.

I’m also going to try to avoid spoiling the thing too hard, even though there are spoilers everywhere and certain supposed-to-be obscure things are widespread at this point. But, someone could still end up reading this before they play it, so I’m going to hold my tongue a fair bit as a result.

With that in mind: new chapter is obviously out, so how does it stack up?

…I think it might be better than the first one. In my opinion.

Undertale 22 over here is a continuation of the first chapter, released about 3 years ago, taking place literally the next day in-universe. Chapter 1 coming out was a Huge Deal, not in the least a result of how it was announced. Despite the distance since the release, the Undertale fandom was still simmering along, and with an announcement that appears tied to one of that game’s biggest mysteries, it was no wonder that it was going to make some waves.

Chapter 2’s release was a surprise for different reasons. I believe at the time of the first demo, Toby stated that the remaining chapters would release as one, but that it would take a long time on account of the game being so much more complex than Undertale and not playing as much to his strengths. Of course, a lot happens in 3 years, especially with the last couple being as they have been, so Chapter 2 got its own release about a week ago.

I suppose I should stop beating around the bush and explain why I think Ch.2 is better than Ch.1, huh? I think there’s three main factors that swayed me.

Prologues and introductions always have to do one thing, and that is to familiarise the audience with the setting and characters. Despite sharing many side characters with its pseudo-prequel, Deltarune Chapter 1’s main cast are all completely fresh, and those side characters are in an unfamiliar form, and so much of the game is spent establishing cast dynamics. We have to learn who Susie, Kris, and Lancer are, and how the dynamics between them will be working for the stories to come.

However, there is the slight difference that Deltarune Chapter 1 is kind of a complete story. It’s like the pilot to a tv series- you have to establish characters, yeah, but you still have to get the plot spinning, and those characters still need to have small arcs over the course of the story. Susie and Lancer are kind of the only ones to go through actual arcs across the first chapter, given Ralsei’s currently kind of static character and Kris being a blank slate entirely.

By contrast, Chapter 2 has these dynamics in play from the get-go, and we get to more deeply explore them as a result, making the character work overall stronger. And while there are new characters at play, two of the three (arguably four) new players are already established in Chapter 1, and so we don’t need to spend as much time getting to know them. Character interactions are at the core of many styles of storytelling, and with the quirky characters we have to work with, getting more time seeing them do that is great!

The second of why I like Chapter Two better is just the gameplay. A fair few little tweaks have been made to make the whole thing cleaner- enemies now have a parallel meter to their HP bar to show how close to sparable they are, so pacifistic players have a better idea of their progress in longer fights. For those players, actually having Susie and Ralsei get ACT options is great, seeing as it makes them substantially more useful (especially Susie). When I replayed Chapter 1 in preparation for playing Chapter 2, I found myself just Guarding with them over and over while Kris did most of the work.

And the creativity with the fights is ramped up a whole bunch. This is another Not Being The First Part thing, but now that the player is used to how fights in this game are going to go, the complexity gets to increase to match, and the characterisation of the bosses and even generic enemies can better be expressed in the gameplay. I remember being genuinely shocked at how much was going on with the Ambyu-Lance enemy’s highway bullet pattern, especially when combined with other enemies in the fray.

I very much enjoyed the secret boss. Oh come on, that’s not a spoiler, everyone knows about Jevil at this point, and you get hinted at it super early on! And it’s way easier to find than Jevil was!

Anyway. My final point is just that I do like the characters in Chapter 2 better- particularly the antagonists. As fun as Lancer is, the sort of annoying whacky child characters are never something I’m particularly fond is. Even though he’s written really well, it took a lot to sell me on him. As well, as sicknasty as the King’s boss fight was, as well as the scenes surrounding it being an excellent summation of the point of the game as a whole, he’s not an especially interesting character.

And while I suppose Queen isn’t particularly deep either, everything about her is so unbelievably fun. I was pretty much sold on her immediately, with that regal “ohohoho” laugh followed by just absolutely shitposting for the entire length of the game. Her presence makes so much of this game an utter blast. Her presence reminds me a lot of the characters in Undertale who were mostly just there for one area, Alphys in Hotland and the skeletons in Snowdin, constantly popping in to keep things moving, giving each area its own little arc, and generally be fun and amusing along the way. And since each chapter of Deltarune is a lot longer than one arc of Undertale, it’s for the best that Queen manages to make this much of a good impression about the whole thing.

As I’ve stated, I think most of the reasons why Deltarune Chapter 2 are a simple result of being a Chapter 2 rather than a Chapter 1, rather than being any fault of Chapter 1’s (and the last point is basically personal preference). Both are obviously still excellent, and I’m happy to wait patiently for the series to continue if it keeps up this level of quality. At the end of the day, like, this game is currently free. And it provides a better and longer experience than a lot of actually paid games I’ve played. Toby Fox has managed to be a big shot after literally releasing one and two sevenths of a game, and it doesn’t seem like he’s going to be slowing down anytime soon. Here’s hoping that the assistance he’s apparently getting for future chapters works out such that it doesn’t end up sacrificing quality, but I don’t see this happening quite yet. I suppose only time will tell, but I’m optimistic. Filled with determination, as some would say.

no that’s cringy cut that one sheesh okay let me out of here im done

#ramble #deltarune #deltarune chapter 2

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cloudsnbones · 3 years

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Ok so quick note, thanks to @wonderofasunrise whose blog I found these prompts on and thus which proceeded to steal. this is no. 11. :)

Excuse for being lazy: also yes this is only meant to be short so like sorry for not expanding on things at all. Perhaps I shall make up for that next time ;)

This is set in s8 around wintery times.

Please enjoy :3

“I thought I would be okay with just being friends but… All I can think of when I’m around you is how badly I want to kiss you and how I can’t do that anymore.”

Kerry lay quietly, her cheek resting on Susan’s chest, her eyes shut in a warm, pensive bliss – two souls in harmony.

Their illicit affair had begun as a matter of surprise to them both; after a night of heavy drinking and deep confessions they awoke the next morning sharing a bed, and what had started as a one-night stand became a regular thing after replicating the original night twice over.

Not only had their sexual relationship grown in a way that neither could have imagined, but an understanding, a friendship had also developed which had allowed themselves to trust wholeheartedly and without the fear of judgment for the first time in a very long time.

Kerry had indeed gotten accustomed to arriving home and finding Susan outside waiting for her, she had started to prepare dinners big enough for two in anticipation of an inevitable phone call asking to spend the night. Everything was falling into place. Therefore, it could never have lasted.

“I think we should end it.”

Whatever ‘it’ was. The nebulous nature of their relationship was growing all too much for Kerry, because, to tell the truth, she had fallen.

She didn’t think that there had ever been a time when she wasn’t in love with Susan Lewis, but to have been finally exposed in full to that euphoria, to live out her long-term dream, one she’d barely registered before now, was bittersweet…when she knew that Susan would never, could never requite what she felt inside.

Susan was surprised at the statement. She had never really thought about ending it, actually ending it. To be honest, since this whole thing started, she hadn’t really thought about anything at all. She knew that they were never going to be a “they”, Kerry Weaver and Susan Lewis: ER Power Couple, but she couldn’t help feel a little, disappointed at the idea of losing her? Although, she wasn’t really going to be lost, just not there in the same way. It just seemed really random, why now? Had she been planning this for a while? It was going well, she had thought, but knowing Kerry perhaps to her this wasn’t right. Anyway, best to end things whilst they’re good right? She clung to that thought in the hope that it might fill the suspicious hole she felt deep down in her chest.

The two promised to stay friends, it’s always nice to have an ally. And Susan was just fine with that, one-hundred-percent completely fine.

“23-year-old male, multiple head lacs, altered, LOC, vitals stable, BP 120/80,” announced the new EMT Danielle as she tried to shake her overgrown fringe out of her eyes.

It was just then as Susan and Kerry approached to take the trauma that the man in question lent over and wretched blood all over Danielle’s jacket causing Kerry and Susan to jump back a little before grabbing the sides of the gurney so that she could sort herself out. The man started to lose consciousness again as they raced to get him inside.

Danielle shed her jacket leaving it on the tarmac of the ambulance bay revealing a white vest and tattoo sleeves before she continued her debrief whilst following the pair to the trauma room, “Received 50 of Lidocaine at the scene, complains of dizziness and neck pain,” she continued.

As they entered the trauma room Susan finally took a look at the woman speaking and what said woman was wearing, “Nice top,” she said her eyes lingering a little bit too long.

“Thanks,” replied Danielle looking down at herself briefly before smiling to show her gratitude.

“LIFT ON 1, 2, 3!” Kerry ordered loudly cutting their little interaction short.

And as Susan lent over to start working on the man she felt Danielle put something small into her pocket whispering, “I’ll see you later.”

She stared as the woman left the trauma room only to look back around to see Kerry watching her icily.

After the man was stabilised, Kerry and Susan left the trauma room ripping their gloves and their aprons off as they did so before tossing them into the trash.

They both started in the same direction, practically colliding, Kerry extending an arm to institute a satisfactory, colleague-appropriate space between them.

“Tough trauma.”

“Yeah, I s’pose…Hey, did I tell you that Susie went to see that film they’ve all been talking about, Shrek(?) the other day, oh my god I have not heard her be so excited about something in months, and the way she talked about the donkey in it you would think that the two were going out, but alas no. Apparently, he is indeed taken by a dragon as is so often the case with actually desirable men,” she ranted enthusiastically putting on a heightened English accent to emphasise the slander.

Kerry listened quietly as she felt Susan’s words dig into her further and further, she should be happier for her, she knew that, but everything was closing in on her and she didn’t like it.

They entered the Doctor’s Lounge and as soon as the door shut behind them and it was clear to Kerry that no one else was in there, she started, “Listen, I don’t wanna make a big deal outta it but I just wanted to let you know that it’s considered a little inappropriate to get distracted by pretty EMTs when working a trauma at least from a management perspective, now as it’s never happened before obviously it’s not a problem but just so you know for any future interactions that they should be left till after you’ve finished working on the patient.”

Susan’s smile failed immediately at the mini reprimand. “Kerry it was nothing I promise.”

“Uhuh – well even if that is the case it’s still inappropriate,” Kerry said pointing her nose in the air.

Kerry’s stiffness on the subject angered Susan who huffed before retorting, “And even if it WAS something I don’t think that’s any of your business, you know Kerry Weaver, not everything is about you I realise, ok, that you’re the only person in YOUR world but that’s not the same for the rest of us,” as she raised her voice, she stepped closer and closer to Kerry refusing to break eye contact for a second.

Kerry was frozen in place, her lip quivering slightly and her eyes conveying only a hint of pain and fear behind their broken shields.

They were practically toe-to-toe, and their proximity almost immediately caused Susan to calm down as if her body was anticipating Kerry’s touch, Kerry’s smell, Kerry’s warmth.

The electricity burning Kerry’s skin as her beloved towered over her, not knowing, never knowing, what those words meant to her. Why although dealing with hurtful comments was part of the job, was always part of the job, they felt different coming from her.

But as cupid’s taunting strings gradually lured them together, the door burst open loudly causing the women to practically jump out of their skin in order to create distance between them.

It was Chuny; “Doctor Weaver there’s a guy wandering around the admit desk I think he’s your patient, Mr. Reid?”

“Yeah, I’ll be there in a minute Chuny,” Kerry replied a little too shrilly, her eyes still fixed on Susan. She stayed there for a few more seconds before finally awakening in herself the willpower to sort out the wanderer.

As the last sounds of her crutch hitting the floor faded away into the dissonant noise of the ER Chuny joked, “Did you just have it from Weaver, I bet you didn’t miss those in Phoenix!” before closing the door and leaving.

But ‘missing Weaver’ was really the only thing Susan was able to do at that moment, she turned towards the window to wipe away a tear. Then, she shook herself from head to toe, set her face back to neutrality and spun around so she could go back to work.

Kerry stood alone, her arms restless as if they were missing something, or someone, her kitchen echoing with emptiness. As she stared half-heartedly at the risotto she was making she heard a buzz followed by three rapid knocks. Kerry pulled herself out of her reverie, grabbed her crutch and headed over to the front door.

Upon opening, she saw Susan shivering in a short tan trench coat, her arms wrapped around herself, her right foot tapping the ground beneath her. When she heard the click of the latch she lifted her head and the expression Kerry saw sent a shiver through her, Susan’s eyes were wide and deep inside them there seemed to be some sort of lingering discomfort.

“Hey,” she said shyly before pulling the door to and stepping out into the cold winter’s night also, “What are you doing here?”

“Um…I’m not sure to be honest,” was the esteemed reply.

“Aren’t you cold? Do you want t-”

“Kerry there’s something I have to say and if I don’t say it now, I don’t think I ever will so.”

“Uh…ok, um, go right ahead.”

“I’m so tired, of all this of going to back to the old normal, whatever the hell that was, you know I-” she broke off, her voice cracking slightly as her emotions started to get the better of her, “I thought I would be okay with just being friends but…All I can think of when I’m around you is how badly I want to kiss you and how I can’t do that anymore. And even when you’re mad and being a bitch, I just want to hold you because then I know everything’ll be all right.” And on those final words she broke down, it could have been the cold, it could have been the pressures of moving back to a town where no one really remembered her, but in that moment, it didn’t matter what the exact cause was because her Susan was upset and it yanked at her heartstrings.

The women stood there silently, Susan looking at the floor and Kerry looking at Susan, frozen in light of the revelation, trying to calculate what best to do. When Kerry still didn’t say anything, Susan raised her head once more to look at her and being met only with an unreadable, blank expression, she felt she could take a hint.

Not wanting to stand in the scene of her rejection any longer Susan said, “Goodnight,” in a dejected, barely audible voice before turning around and heading down the steps leading up to the house. And it was this that triggered Kerry’s ability to move once more.

“Wait!” she called out, as she reached her hand out for the banister and tried to rush down the stairs, but her hurriedness and the light frost worked against her and as Susan turned around Kerry practically tumbled into her arms.

And at this intimacy, there was only one thing left for them really, because love doesn’t require logical thinking, sometimes all it needs is an impulse.

Kerry pulled herself up muttering a word of thanks before running her hand through Susan’s hair and slowly, softly bringing her down for a kiss.

And as a thousand fireworks went off in their minds, they simultaneously knew that “they” would last forever.

#kerry weaver #kerry x susan #susan lewis #er #nbc er #ficlet #drabble #kerry weaver x susan lewis #angst #fluff #aghhhh sorry again #better than nothing though right #also sorry if the medical stuff is wrong #that's not why i'm here #i don't think it's sooooo inaccurate???#also ive scheduled this for like the middle of the night where i am so yeah whatever you say i will be waking up to and will define my day #remember that #i don't want to proof read this again any mistakes that are there now remain there #my writing

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inkdemonapologist · 4 years

Note

Okay but I do actually want to know both the things you love and the things you could rant about from DCTL?

OH BOY UHHHHHH okay lets see, I'm gonna see if I can do the "add a readmore after you post it" thing and see if that'll keep it stable.......

But also, much like Sammy, I am incapable of shutting up unless you strike me in the head with a blunt object, so uh, forgive my wordiness:

THINGS I ENJOY:

- DCTL gave us Sammy's ink addiction and like, if you had asked me before all this "what would you most like to see in a franchise?" I would not have answered "one of the characters drinks ink accidentally and then discovers that he can't stop" but boy that sure is my favourite concept that I LOVE to see handled literally any other way than how the book handled it!!!

- I like what it added to Tom and Allison and Norman!! Like, it's not big twists on their characters or anything -- we already knew Tom felt he was doing the wrong thing, so getting to see his CRUSHING GUILT over creating the machine isn't New Information, but it's nice to see and understand more of him; for all of them I feel a lot more attached to them after getting to see more of them as people.

- Like 90% of the "I LOVE IT" category for me is how the book handled Joey, and Buddy's relationship with Joey. The way Joey isn't a Sinister Mastermind Who’s Just Screwing With Everyone but just manipulative in a more mundane way -- someone who thinks of himself as just the guy with the vision to call the shots; he wants what he wants and this is how he's learned to get it; he exploits people not through devious schemes, but just by offering them something that they want or need and asking too much in return, expecting their loyalty for his favours. And the way he interacts with Buddy, making Buddy complicit with him and keeping Buddy off-balance and insecure while making him a favourite and treating him as Special is just PERFECT -- gives a lot of content to kind of extrapolate off of when pondering what must've drawn the others in and convinced them to ignore the red flags. I was initially frustrated with the idea of Buddy not being an artist and jUST DECIDING TO LEARN TO ANIMATE ON THE SPOT ("I've never done this before but I'm sure I can just do an artist's job" is a weirdly common throwaway thing in media and as an artist iTS A PET PEEVE) but actually the way they use his plagiarism to make him trapped in a lie in ways Joey doesn't even realise ends up being a neat echo of other employees (coughTOMcough), who were involved in much graver sins but suddenly felt they couldn't object or they'd lose their one chance, just like Buddy. There's a lot here that I think is really great.

OKAY THATS THE GOOD STUFF, LET'S COMPLAIN ABOUT SAMMY:

- Uncomfortable Bigotry Vagueness that we all knew was gonna be in this list -- I dunno man, a guy committing a microaggression and getting startled and defensive when he's called out for it doesn't necessarily completely ruin his character I GUESS, but the way this was handled is just SO WEIRD AND VAGUE that it's uncomfortable and it doesn't seem to serve any real purpose. "Is Tom black?" is a question I actually have to ask because the text sort of implies he is while also dancing around it and apparently Word of God said he's not??? which makes Buddy's comment nonsensical???? And I mean, you could go that route, since Buddy wonders to himself if Sammy talks to everyone like this -- HE ACTUALLY DOES!! Even within the text of the novel, he uses "Joey" instead of Mr. Drew, which is consistent with his audiologs in the game -- but that makes the writing suggest "this character THINKS this guy might be racist but actually they're reading too much into it and it wasn't racially motivated at all, he's just a jerk!!" wHICH IS SOMEHOW EVEN MORE ICKY??? Anyway like yeah I guess it's not inconsistent with his character that while Sammy Lawrence may not have any specific grudge against minorities he has probably not checked his privilege or done the work to challenge his own internal biases, but “Your Fav Probably Contributes To Systemic Racism In Ways He Hasn’t Considered, As Do We All When Our Assumptions Go Unchecked” is still a wild thing to wade through in a fun story about demonic cartoons

- but yknow so is T H E H O L O C A U S T

- Sammy's voice is wrong. I'm actually okay with him being a weird awkward asshole, I already kind of assumed he was and that's part of why I like him!! but there's so many places he doesn't quite... talk like himself? And not just in terms of word choice, like -- so in his monologue at the end, he's described as talking so quickly that his words are "tumbling out faster than he can speak them," which initially seems fine; like yeah, that's a Standard Scene we're familiar with, the person who's been Driven Mad With Insight becoming more and more manic as they try to convey it -- until I tried to imagine it and realised that Sammy doesn't talk like this. That's a really consistent quality I always notice about his voice; whether he's almost giddily excited in prophet mode, or he’s his irritated and overworked human self, or he's violently angry and his voice has that echo effect -- he always speaks very deliberately. He enunciates carefully. There's some circumstances where I'd buy this as showing that he's Not Himself, but I feel like those would kind of need to be in the middle of his transformation, not at the end of it.

- In fact a lot of the scenes with Sammy kind of have this feeling -- that it's not necessarily an exploration of Sammy as a character, but that he is filling a trope or archetype role here. Once he's fully transformed he excitedly describes the process as more of a mental compulsion, which is in contrast to his weird yeerk-infected behaviour when trying to get ink from Miss Lambert. Both of those scenes don't seem wrong on their own because they fit tropes we know -- but they feel weird when you try to fit them together.

- I also just in general am not a fan of the ink acting like a weird yeerk. It can be a parasite I guess but when it starts overwriting and puppeting people and crawling around to enter their body that's just a completely DIFFERENT kind of supernatural story and it’s not what im here for!!!

- THE FREAKIN!!! HE WILL SET US FREE!!!! WHY????????? SAMUEL LAWRENCE WHAT IS HE SETTING YOU FREE FROM??????? Sammy has No Motive for any of what he's doing, other than just Ink Made Me Do It. The whole thing that was INTERESTING about Sammy as a character is the contrast between this frustrated, ornery musician with no specific love for the cartoons he works on, and the manically devoted cultist he becomes. What happened in the middle there? What made him desperate enough to shift his mindset so much? "Something supernatural made him do things that don't benefit him in any way" is a very boring answer to this question!!! Susie was a victim who implies that her transformation has forced her to do things she didn't want to do, but we can still see her motive -- she wanted to be Alice, so she took a sketchy offer to try to get what she wanted. Even now, her violence echoes that goal -- to be a more perfect Alice. What did Sammy want? WHO KNOWS. Even in his ink-addled state at the end, we don't understand what he hopes the Ink Demon will even do for him, and in fact he seems to be responsible for creating the very scenario he's begging Bendy to reverse in the game.

- [sighs loudly into my hands]

- Overall I'm left wondering if the author just..... didn't like Sammy Lawrence? And I don't mean that in the sense of him being a rude jerk -- like, Joey is not a good person, but the author seems to be interested in him and in what makes him tick. There doesn't seem to be that same interest in Sammy. Sammy's role in the story is that of a monster, transformed into something murderous, unable to prevent or choose it. He's not a victim of anyone but the ink, no one had to manipulate him or figure out how his brain worked or what he wanted or what he feared or give him any reason to do the things he does -- ink got in his mouth and overwrote his personality. And we don't even get to see that change, not really. He starts out angry and defensive and continues being angry and defensive up until his very last scene, denying his ink-stealing but not really much else. We see all his prophetic sketches but we never see hints of this in him, we never see him start to act more excited and hopeful, we never see him seek out the demon he desires to please. Why do we never see Sammy struggling between his dismissive angry front and a building religious fervour he can't quite suppress? We don't get to see any of the in-between. There's no interest at all in why or even what it looked like as Sammy became what he became, when, to be honest, I suspect interest in precisely that is one reason he's such a big fav.

- It's funny, in a "cries into my hands" kind of way, when Sammy is just knocked in the head while monologuing and immediately removed from the story without further mention, like...... that sure is the pattern with him, isn't it, he just tries very very hard and never actually gets to matter, but it also fits right in here, too, in this book that doesn't want to think about his motives -- he rambles nonsensically, explaining nothing, gets one trademark phrase, and then is hastily removed so the story doesn't have to think about him anymore.

...................I think that's most of it.

...

Y'all............ I'm not ready for Sent From Above.......... I'm just not.... I'm not emotionally ready...... like..... Sammy has to be in that right..... he’s Susie’s boss and she has that big crush on him..................................... I’m not ready

#i know you have questions you always do #we all write on the walls #hopefully I have not gotten completely confused on any of these points but LMAO ITS POSSIBLE

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inkabelledesigns · 4 years

Text

BATDS Theory: When were Milla’s tapes recorded?

I know Boris and the Dark Survival has been out for half a year now, but I’m still gonna tag spoilers for those of you who haven’t seen it (something I wish more of the Crack Up Comics readers would do. Seriously, guys, tag your spoilers, not cool! It’s only been out for a week!). Today I’m gonna be discussing some questions I have about Milla’s identity and the significance of her tapes’ existence.

To recap what we already know, Boris finds five tapes and one key that supposedly led him to rescue “Milla,” but all he finds beyond the door is Twisted Alice, ready to steal his organs. It’s never outright stated, but it feels implied that Milla is just a character that Alice made up to lure unsuspecting souls to her domain. It makes enough sense, after all, her last name, Legna, is just Angel spelled backwards, and several pieces of her anecdotes line up with themes we see explored in Susie’s story. Given we suspect Susie is the one who was sacrificed to become Twisted Alice, this makes a lot of sense.

While recording audio of my own and attempting to voice Twisted Alice for fun, I was referencing clips from Lauren Synger to see if I could imitate the effects work done on Alice. While most of what I looked at were sequences from the game itself, I’d like to draw your attention to this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfGzG0nIU0c

This is an interview Lauren did back in 2018 with The Voice Over Show, and it’s just so fun to watch. Near the end, she takes a seat at the desk and talks as though she’s Alice, with all the proper effects on, and that makes it much more obvious to me just how distorted this character’s voice is. Some things you can just chock up to the reverb that everyone has in the studio setting, but Twisted Alice has actual vocal distortion in there.

This leads me to a question about Alice’s abilities and the timeline of these tapes: is it possible for Alice to not sound distorted? If the answer is yes, there are some consequences that we could run into later. If the answer is no, there’s some timeline stuff we need to sort out, and here’s why.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUgcT9ZVOWg

Milla lacks the distortion that Alice has. It’s very obvious once you know the secret and hear them side by side that Milla has Lauren as her VA, but in terms of effects, Milla only has a small bit of reverb and a slight overlay of the tape recorder noises, not much else. The reverb leads me to believe that this audio was recorded in the studio itself in the state it’s in now, very echoy with not many people around.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUByAA3vuPw

Compare it to the last audio log we got from Susie, the one leading up to the introduction of the Unknown Voice. In this tape, there’s still reverb, but a lot more static. This could be because there was just more audio work done on this clip, but it could also be to denote that this tape has gotten a bit worn out from being old and played so many times, or it could say something about where it was recorded and at what volume the speaker was at. My bets are that it’s old and worn from being played by the unknown voice, for research. Milla’s tapes are a lot cleaner to hear in comparison, leading me to believe that they’re a more recent recording.

If that’s the case, then it would mean they’re recorded by Twisted Alice, as in, after the point at which Susie was turned into an angel. Does this mean that Alice can change the sound of her voice? Obviously she’s a voice actress, voicing different characters is her thing, and even moment to moment, she switches between the sweet little angel and the bitter one on a whim. But if she can remove the distortion from her voice, and sound convincing as a regular person on tape, imagine what she could do with that ability! She has the same voice as Allison, save for their tone, it’s totally plausible that she could go and deceive someone into thinking that she’s Allison and lure them right into her trap. This could add a whole new layer to how these two interacted back in the first game. She could lure several people to their doom with a whole plethora of voices! Susie, Milla, any character made up on the spot, she’s got so many options to trick someone. And by that logic, imagine the potential for BATDR. Imagine Twisted Alice coming back and deceiving Audrey. Right now we’re under the impression the Audrey and Allison have potential to be allies, so Malice getting in the middle of that and messing with them? Oh my god, that deception is delicious!

I know, it’s not anything groundbreaking, but I’d love to see the explored. Hell, you know why I was thinking about this to begin with? I was working on stuff for my AU, and one of the things I’m working with is Joey potentially stealing the skills of his employees and giving them to a new set of staff members. Like taking Sammy’s composing ability away and thrusting it onto someone else suddenly, as an example. It made me think about how Alice’s voice worked, and it lead to some interesting thoughts. I hope you’ve enjoyed my ramblings, and I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. Just make sure to tag properly if you do!

...Dear god, I didn’t think me being a voice actress would ever land me here. This is kind of awesome.

#bendy and the ink machine #batim #batds #boris and the dark survival #boris and the dark survival spoilers #batds spoilers #milla legna #twisted alice #alice angel #allison angel #batdr audrey #bendy theory #bendy theories #bendy theorizing #bendy musings

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fandomrewrites · 4 years

Text

Season 1, Episode 5: The Tell

Hi everyone! I’m a day late for my update, sorry about that! I was really busy these past few days and lost track of the days. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter and as always constructive criticism is appreciated.

Season 1, Episode 5: The Tell

Pairings: Scott McCall x Twin Sister, Lydia Martin x Best Friend, Nate Wilson (OC) x Reader

Warnings: nothing in this one

Word Count: 1,888

Season 1 Masterlist

I was sitting on Nate’s bed with my history book open in front of me. Nate was downstairs grabbing snacks, “Nate sweetie...” I looked up to see his mom in his doorway, “Hi Mrs. Wilson. Nate’s downstairs.”

“Thanks, doing homework?”

“Yeah, history.”

“I’m sure I’ll see your mother at the parent-teacher conference tomorrow night.”

“Yeah, she’ll be there for Scott and me.”

Nate then came up the stairs with a bowl of popcorn and two water bottles. “Hey mom, did you need something?”

“I just wanted to let you know that I’m working the night shift today, I had to fill in for Debby.” Nate nods as he places the water bottles and popcorn beside me, “Behave you two.” She smiles at the two of us then heads off to work.

Nate sighs then sits next to me and closes my history book. “Hey! I need that.”

“Take a break, we’ve been doing homework all night.”

“Well sorry that I actually want to do well in school.” I roll my eyes playfully.

“Ha ha. You can take a break babe. Let’s watch a movie. We’re almost done with the homework anyway.” I sucked in a breath but nodded and put my school things on the floor. I sat back against his headboard and waited for him to pick out the movie.

As Nate came to sit beside me, The Other Guys popped up on TV. By the time the movie was done, I was half asleep and decided to head home.

*_*_*_*_*_*

I’m sitting beside Danny in Chemistry, Jackson who is sitting across from us doesn’t look so good. I’m assuming he’s freaked out from last night. He won’t tell s anything but Lydia stayed home today too. I was planning on heading over after school to check on her.

As soon as class starts I notice that Scott isn’t here. I look towards Stiles and he seems to be wondering where my brother is too. I quickly pull out my phone and send him a quick text asking where he is.

Mr. Harris speaks up, “Just a friendly reminder: parent-teacher conferences are tonight. Students below a C average are required to attend. I won’t name you since the shame and self-disgust should be more than enough punishment. And has anyone seen Scott McCall?”

Mr. Harris looks in my direction, “He left the house with me but I don’t know where he is now.” Mr. Harris nodded then continued, “Everyone start reading chapter 9. And Mr. Stilinski try putting the highlighter down between paragraphs. It’s chemistry. Not a coloring book.”

Stiles slowly caps his highlighter then leans towards Danny, I glance up listening to their whispered conversation.

“Danny? Can I ask you a question?”

“No.”

“I’m going to anyway. Did Lydia show up in your homeroom today?” Of course, he would ask about Lydia.

Danny sighs, “No.”

“Can I ask you another question?”

“The answer is still no.”

“Do people know what happened to her and Jackson last night.”

Danny looks upset now, “He wouldn’t tell me.”

“But you’re his best friend.” Danny just shrugs, trying to get back to the reading. “One more question.”

“What?”

“Do you find me attractive?”

Before Danny could answer Stiles leans too far off his chair and falls to the floor. Everyone in class turning to look at him. Danny and I glance at each other and shake our heads, finally going back to our reading.

*_*_*_*_*_*

I have my free period, usually, I spend this time with Lydia but since she isn’t here I decided to head to the library. Before I headed that way I stopped by my locker, putting some books away. As I shut the door and turned to walk away, I paused.

The hallway was empty but I thought I heard someone. I slowly turned around and frowned when I didn’t see anything. When I turned back around Derek Hale was in front of me.

I jumped in surprise and put my hand against my racing heart, “God, don’t do that!” I took a deep breath, “What are you doing here?” I glance around as I ask, afraid that someone will see us.

“You’re friends with Jackson and Lydia, right?”

“Um, yeah.”

“Do you know what happened to them last night? Did they see anything?”

“They didn’t tell me anything. Why? Was it the Alpha?”

Derek sighed, “Yes, I’m trying to figure out if they know anything that could help.”

“Well Jackson probably won’t say anything. But I’m going to Lydia’s after school. I can let you know if she tells me anything.”

Derek nods in acknowledgement.

In the blink of an eye, Derek was gone and once again I was alone in the school hallway.

I continue on my way to the library without noticing a figure standing at the corner of the hall, watching the interaction between Derek and myself.

*_*_*_*_*_*

At the end of the school day, Stiles and I headed to Lydia’s together. When we got to her house her mom led us in. “You know where her room is darling, you can head up.”

“Thanks, Mrs. Martin.” I smiled then started leading Stiles towards Lydia’s room.

As we walked in Lydia was in bed with her eyes fixed on the ceiling.

“Hey, Lyds,” I announced our presence as we made our way over to her bed. “We wanted to make sure you were okay.” I kneeled beside her bed as Stiles sat on the edge.

I smiled at her as she looked between Stiles and me, “I feel faaantaastiiic” She slurred, the medicine clearly getting to her.

I bite my lip trying to hide a smile as I brush her hair out of her face. Stiles glances at the prescription bottle on the nightstand then says, “Bet you can’t say I saw Susie sitting in a shoeshine shop five times really fast.”

Lydia rises to the challenge as she begins to speak, “I saw Shusie... I shaw... I saw...”

She begins to trail off, her mood changing instantly. I immediately become worried and lean up to get a better look at her, “What did you see?”

“I saw something.”

“What was it?” Stiles asks, also leaning closer.

“Something.” Is the only word that comes out of Lydia’s mouth.

“Was it a mountain lion?” Stiles prompts.

“Yeah. A mountain lion.” She confirms.

“That’s what you definitely saw. Or did the cops tell you it was a mountain lion?”

Lydia nods, “A mountain lion.”

I glance at Stiles, both of us knowing that it wasn’t a mountain lion.

Stiles reaches over and grabs Mr. Cuddles, a teddy bear I gave Lydia for her 8th birthday, “What’s this?”

“A mountain lion.”

Stiles and I both sigh in defeat as he places Mr. Cuddles back down.

I stand up from my spot on the floor, “I’ll be right back.” Stiles nods as I head downstairs to get a glass of water and refill Lydia’s

When I walk back in, two glasses of water in hand, Stiles is standing with Lydia’s phone. He glances back at me then gulps, “You need to see this.”

I place the glasses down then look at the screen. Staring back at me is a perfectly captured image of a dark and monstrous silhouette on two feet with glowing red eyes.

I quickly grab the phone from his hand to get a better look. Before I can stop myself, I text myself the video and then quickly delete it from her phone.

I put her phone back on the nightstand and get my phone out, “I’ll text it to you. Show Scott when you get the chance. I’m going to stay with her.”

Stiles nods then heads out the door, leaving me with a sleeping Lydia.

*_*_*_*_*_*

I sit in Lydia’s room working on homework as Mrs. Martin pops her head in, “Is she still sleeping?”

“She woke up once to go to the bathroom but fell right back to sleep.”

Mrs. Martin nods, worried about her daughter, “I’m heading to the parent-teacher conference, did you want to come with me? You could meet your mother there?”

I bite my lip and look over towards Lydia, “If it’s alright with you, could I stay the night?”

“Sure, but you don’t need to stay by her side. She’s going to be alright, (Y/N).”

I gently smile at her, “I know. But she’s my sister. I don’t want her to be alone.”

Mrs. Martin smiles back, “She’s lucky to have you as a friend.”

“I’m lucky to have her too.” Mrs. Martin walks out of the room. I quickly pull out my phone to let my mom know that I’m staying with Lydia for the night.

A few moments later a breeze blows my paper, I quickly place my hand over it to stop it from moving and look up to see Derek.

I stand up and grab Derek’s wrist dragging him out of the room, “How did you know I was here?”

“You weren’t at your house. Did you find anything?”

I sigh, “She’s been out of it all day. She keeps saying it was a mountain lion, but Stiles and I found this on her phone.” I pulled out my phone and showed him the video, pausing on the Alpha.

He grabs the phone from my hand to study it more closely, he groans in frustration handing it back to me, “Was that it?”

“Yeah, judging by your reaction it doesn’t help.”

“Not even a little bit.”

“I wish there was more I could do.”

“Talk to her when she gets up. Maybe when she’s not drugged up she’ll be able to answer.”

“Sorry Derek, but I’m not going to ask her a bunch of questions when it’s clear she doesn’t want to remember. She’s terrified. If she wants to believe it was a mountain lion, then I’m going to let her believe that. You should leave before she wakes up.”

Derek clenches his jaw but doesn’t say anything else as he leaves her house, just as quickly as he arrived.

*_*_*_*_*_*

About ten minutes later Lydia wakes up. She slowly blinks her eyes open then turns to look at me, “What are you doing here?”

“Your mom is letting me stay the night. I wanted to make sure you were alright.”

She lazily smiles at me, “I will be. Just a little spooked about last night.”

I smile back, “I don’t blame you, I would be too. I’m glad you weren’t hurt.”

“Yeah, me too. And thanks for staying, you didn’t have too.”

“No, but I wanted to,” I start standing as I continue to speak, “Let me grab us some food, we can watch chick-flicks and gossip.” I head out of the room to grab some popcorn and drinks.

When I get back upstairs Lydia has he movies laid out deciding on which one to watch. Finally, she reaches over and puts in Titanic, laying down beside me. By the end of the movie, the two of us are laying side by side under the blankets sound asleep. My arm carefully draped across Lydia’s stomach, nothing but the sound of TV static in the room.

#Sister McCall imagine #teen wolf imagine #lydia martin imagine #series rewrite

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croissans · 4 years

Note

Idk if you were reading 3rd book of CAOS but there is a hint that Theo’s dad has crush on Zelda. Can you write a ff where Faustus is jealous of him? :D Love your writing btw!! Ps. Sorry, English is not my first language.

Omg HAHAHAHHA thats a great prompt!!! I didnt read the book but i heard some people i follow talk about it and its so cute how mr. putnam has a crush on zelda but like half of greendale does so its not a surprise LMAO

The whole Spellman ancestral home was filled with the sound of Unchained Melody by The Righteous Brothers playing on a vinyl record player and Ambrose was lounging around the house in his silk robe having the time of his life, eating peanut butter out of the jar.

He was absolutely clueless about the pure shitstorm coming his way. Luckily, the sound of knocking was heard through his loud ruckus and the first wave has entered the grid.

Ambrose turned off the vinyl playing in the parlor and made his way to the front door. He knows it couldn't be Aunt Hilda for she is working in the mortal bookshop downtown, it also can't be Sabrina since she's at the Academy and it most certainly isn't Aunt Zelda since she's all the way in Moon Valley, picking up some trinkets for the mortuary.

Opening the door, he was surprised to find Mr. Putnam, Theo, one of Sabrina's mortal friend's, father. He was holding a bouquet of roses, but Ambrose didn’t ask.

"Mr. Putnam." Ambrose greeted. "Are you here for the mortuary? If you are, I am terribly sorry for your loss." He said in professional fashion.

"Oh, no. No." He declined, giving Ambrose a polite smile. "I'm uh- Here to see Miss Spellman."

Ambrose's brows furrowed. "I believe you have to be more specific than that, sir. I am living with three Miss Spellmans."

"Oh!" He gave a nervous chuckle. "I- uh- Miss Spellman- I mean, Zelda." As if a lightbulb has gone off over Ambrose's head. The nervous wreck, wrong type of flowers, dressed in nice clothes, asking for his Aunt Zelda. Ambrose practically wrote a manual for what he's supposed to do in this type of situation.

"Unfortunately, she’s in Moon Valley at the moment but she will be coming home soon,” he glanced at the clock on the wall. “But you could wait in the parlor or I would gladly deliver her your handwritten love letter.” Ambrose joked.

Mr. Putnam let out a small polite laugh. “I think I’ll just wait in the parlor then.” “This way.” Ambrose directed to the parlor, opening the door wider. Mr. Putnam muttered a small ‘thanks’.

“So, how many…?” The older man trailed off, and Ambrose immediately understood what he was trying to ask.

“This week, nine.” He paused, trying to recall. “The whole month, at least twenty.”

“Oh.” That was all the man could say.

“Sit.” Ambrose gestured to the armchair in the parlor. “Don’t worry,” He smiled in reassurance. “She turned down all of them.“

“Oh.” He leaved the parlor to get the visitor a tray of tea in the kitchen, when the doorbell rang. And the second shitstorm has entered the server.

He gave Mr. Putnam a polite look and made his way towards the front door. He opened the door and found the High Priest standing there and a lot of things went through his mind. • There’s a mortal in the living room • This is the reason Aunt Zelda has been declining her suitors • Holy shit • The High Priest of the Church of Night and a mortal in the same room • Aunt Zelda’s lover and her suitor in the same room • His Excellency is holding the correct type of flowers; blue forget-me-nots

“Your Excellency,” he greeted. “This way to the parlor, please.” He didn’t even mind asking the man on what he wants. He already knows.

“Oh, no.” Faustus said. “I’m here for Zelda.”

“She is in Moon Valley, please wait in the parlor, Your Excellency.” He said for the second time this day. The man gave a curt nod and followed Ambrose into the parlor. He was absolutely confused as to why a mortal is sitting there, flowers in hand.

“Brother Ambrose, why is-” He starts to ask but Ambrose beat him to it.

“He is the suitor of the day.” He said, clasping his hands together.

Oh. Ohhhhh. “Do not worry, Your Excellency, she turned down all of them this month.”

Faustus’ eyes widened. “This month?”

“Twenty? Twenty-one?” He said, his hands shaking in a gesture of estimating. All Faustus could do was nod, although he and Zelda were an item, they didn’t exactly have a label. And truth be told, since they started their little liaison, she was the only witch that he went home with every night.

He made his way towards the parlor and Ambrose went to get the tray of tea on the kitchen island. He sat on one of the armchairs, opposing the mortal man, not bothering to look at him. Although Mr. Putnam felt like he wanted to retreat, he stood his ground. Although the man wore fancy clothes, he held forget-me-nots. He guessed that’s a point for him, then. He noticed the man had looks but had a dark aura and devil-like nails.

Faustus tried not to interact with the man although the tension could be felt throughout the room. Not only was he mortal but he was holding roses for Satan’s sake. His disdain for the man was simply because he was mortal not because he was wooing Zelda. Nothing more.

Ambrose entered the room holding a tray with a pot of tea with two cups on saucers. You could see the young man’s momentarily horrified expression when there came a knock on the door. He gave the guests a polite smile and made his way towards the front door, chanting ‘please be Aunt Hilda’ under his breath, in a tune.

Instead, he was met with Aunt Zelda and he found himself thinking that this was much better. Zelda frowned at Ambrose’s giddy expression. "Why do you have that smile on? What did you do?"

"Nothing, Aunt Z." Ambrose said, smiling. "But I have to warn you, the suitor of the day came in with your prince charming."

"What?" Zelda asked, handing Ambrose the bag of supplies for the mortuary.

"Let's just say that the High Priest of the Church of Night is having tea with a certain mortal in the living room." Her eyes widened. "What?"

"Yes." Ambrose teased, already heading down the mortuary.

Zelda peeked in the parlor and saw what Ambrose meant. Satan, she felt like she was sixteen again.

Sighing, she walked into the parlor and the two men stood up immediately. She had been in this situation once and vaguely remembers a duel between the two warlocks.

"Gentlemen," she greeted. "I am terribly sorry but I am afraid I'm taken at the moment." The two men was shocked, especially Faustus. Since Zelda seemed like she just made their relationship official. "And I don't really think Sabrina would like me dating one of her father's friends."

In the kitchen, you could hear Ambrose snickering and Zelda rolled her eyes.

"Please see yourself out." She said with a small smile. Mr. Putnam gave an understanding yet sad smile while Faustus stayed behind.

"You're taken, huh?"

"Not really." She retorted.

"Really? I wouldn't be surprised since you had twenty suitors asking for your hand this month."

"Oh, don't be such a baby, Faustus." She said, pouring herself a glass of scotch on the nearby table. "I'd say you're just jealous." Now that was a slap on the face because it was true, he just had too much pride to admit it.

"No, I'm not." He said, with much scorn.

"What's with the flowers?" She asked, handing him a glass of brandy.

"It was supposed to be yours but then it seems half of Greendale probably gave you flowers this month."

She gave him a look. "Stop whining, it's not like I slept with any of them."

He opened his mouth to speak but Zelda beat him to it. "And don't mind Mr. Putnam, he's been like that since last year. It's not a surprise anymore."

"The men of Greendale has been like that towards you since you turned sixteen."

"Satan, Faustus, what do you want me to do?" She asked, now annoyed.

"I just," he stood up walking towards her, searching for the right words. "A warlock or even a mortal could walk in your parlor and just ask for you and you could say yes and-"

"So, you're jealous?" She asked once again.

He sighed. "Fine. I'm jealous." He said the word like it was poison.

She laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck, taking him by surprise. "Don't be." Her voice was muffled on his shoulder. This was unlike Zelda but he made no move to disentangle himself from her. He wonders if it was the scotch but she only had one glass. He rested his arms on her waist, his chin atop her head.

He had never done this with anyone before, not even with her in their Academy days. He found it quite pleasant. "Would you mind being my top lady, then?"

Before she could answer or even register the sound of someone snapping their fingers in the other room, Unchained Melody started to play from the vinyl in the corner.

Ambrose has never been so proud of himself before.

● ■ ● ■ ●

author: ok im so so so so sorry this sucks i had a hard time writing the ending but i just ughghg MY HAND SLIPPED WITH THE UNCHAINED MELODY THING AHHAHAAHAHAHAHAH rip mr putnam thoLMAO also, im so confused if i should call susie susie or theo?????? But i jist settled with theo for respect

Im an old soul thats why i love unchained melody so much atm and also i accidentally posted this here instead of my otha account, my apologies lmao but its still tagged spellwood ;))

N e ways, stay safe and i hope u loved it :)))))) ;))))

#spellwood #zelda spellman #faustus blackwood #chilling adventures of sabrina

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kooki914 · 2 years

Note

First of all,I'm in love with your art it's just so good.

Also,what do you think of kriselle? It was the only ship that I was into before ch2 (now I like kralsie too) and thoughts on queen x rouxls kaard. Also what are you looking forward to the most in future chapters?

Thank you for the compliment! It genuinely means a lot!

Kriselle is honestly something I never really thought about, and the more I try to make it make sense in my head as a ship the less I get it. Kris and Noelle were always childhood friends, and I know thats a popular trope with romance stories, but the way they act is a lot more casual and goofy (and sometimes tragic), than it is explorative and implicit (like how Kris acts towards both Ralsei and Susie). I guess their dynamic to me reads more like distant family than anything else, which is probably not good to hear when asking about someone's opinions on a ship so sorry for that haha

Queen x Rouxls is objectively a hilarious idea because of how quickly both Queen and Spade King dismissed Rouxls as a romantic option for Queen in the dungeon scene. Rouxls is the type of person to do anything for a power grab, so Queen probably wouldn't mind having him around cause it's just another person to worship her, but she wouldn't see him as an equal (like she arguably sees King and Lancer).

All in all, I try to keep my expectations low for future chapters... Seeing as I already have a lot of mixed feelings about chapter 2, I don't want to get my hopes up and then be somehow let down again, so as it stands, the least I expect from future chapters is funny character interactions between Susie, Kris and Ralsei, and a bit more light-shedding on Kris' past. Maybe more information about Dess Holiday, too, if Mr Fox is feeling so inclined. Basically, I look forward to tying up of loose ends but I won't be holdong my breath.

#ask #asks #i keep forgetting my own tags lord save me #not art #personally i think its really funny how everyone ships rouxls with so many people yet hes the most made fun of character in-game #i am not immune to this i ship him with cat vendor and insane clown man at the same time and its great #its just like. yeah this pathetic asshole gets as many romantic interests as he wants why not #i have the opposite problem for queen honestly #shes such a fun and specific character on her own that i find it difficult to give her someone who compliments and contrasts her traits-#-in an interesting and engaging way while still maintaining her base appeal #like i said in some other post i ship her with my headcanon for lancers bio mom so i basically made a character out of wholecloth for queen #even if that wasnt my intention when making ghe character #honestly i should share those card queen designs one day. i should just post more art in general huh #i really neglect this blog a lot whoops

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christinaroseandrews · 4 years

Photo

Certified "Sex Doctor," Kira Murphy has always been a free spirit. She's passionate about preventing STIs, making sure kids get all of their vaccines, and celibri-stalking her favorite politician - Barclay Lucas. Sure, he might be a Tory (for U.S. Peeps that's the equivalent of the Republican Party), but despite his party trying to dismantle social protections he's one of the good ones. He's out to save the world and look good in a Savile Row suit. But celebrity crushes aside, Kira's out to make sure her patients receive the best care possible. So when a depressed, young man with HIV enters her examination room she's going to do what she can however she can to make sure he's given the help he so clearly needs.

Barclay Lucas has always been the responsible one. The reliable one. Mr. Fix-it. But when his brother, Henry, is diagnosed with HIV and falls into a depressive spiral, Barclay doesn't know what to do. However he doesn't need to, the eccentric and quirky doctor at the NHS hospital has managed to get through to him. But she's not his actual doctor. So Barclay needs to change that.

And with that, staid and conservative Barclay meets weird and wonderful Kira and their lives will never be the same.

I'm torn about this book. I've loved Susie Tate's writing in the past and Kira's been a long time favorite of mine since I first read about her in Beg, Borrow, and Steal. So I was super excited to read this book. I like politics stuff.(Anyone who knows me in Real life can tell you that). Plus, Anything but Easy has two of my favorite tropes -- Fake Dating and Enemies-to-Lovers -- it's like this book was tailor made for me.

So why am I so torn?

Let’s start with the some of the good.

Kira is still her quirky fun self. She's unpredictable and has a very idiosyncratic way of speaking. I loved seeing her interact with her patients. She's like the definition of Manic Pixie Dreamgirl. She's tiny. Quirky. Out to save the world. And she possesses very little in the way of common sense or self preservation. But, just like the character herself says (which nice lampshade hang) she's a bit of an acquired taste. She reminds me in a lot of ways of Fandom!Darcy. You know the one who is able to draw Bruce out of his shell, keep up a prank war with Clint and/or Loki, and ride herd on all of the scientists while winning the heart of whatever avenger the author wants to pair her with. You know, that Darcy. I like that Darcy.

But like Fandom!Darcy, Kira does some things that people in real life would find questionable or in really bad taste.

So I liked Kira. She’s a nicknamer. An idiosyncratic talker. She’s a bit like me, but with less fashion sense.

So on to something I didn’t like.

The hero.

I don’t know if it’s me, but Barclay didn't grab me the way I wanted to. And I admit a lot of it is because of the current political climate. The Tory party is the one behind Brexit. The party of Boris Johnson, Theresa May, and Margaret Thatcher. I had a hard time rooting for him because for all that he was a nice guy, he's still on the political side of a party that has caused a great deal of harm to marginalized people. It’s like I said in a recent post, you may claim not to be a racist but if you support a racist institution and work to keep it in power then you are, in fact, a racist. That’s true here. The Tories are doing that in Britain just like the Republicans are doing that in the United States.

Barclay may care deeply about his brother. But he still felt his brother’s HIV diagnosis would hurt his political career. This is something that actually happened in the book!!!

He may like Kira’s quirkiness, but dear Gods is he embarrassed by it. He’s selfish. He does things that make it difficult for Kira to do her job effectively and doesn’t apologize for it. Because he doesn’t care about the people Kira is helping only himself.

So I didn't really like him.

Unfortunately, my dislike of the hero played into my "meh" feeling regarding the romance. It didn't land for me. The chemistry felt forced. It’s also the main reason I didn’t like The Duke, the Lady, and a Baby by Vanessa Riley.

I'm also leery of obsessed-fan hooks up with the object of their obsession and finds true love. As someone who has had to be the person to stand between the fan and the person they're obsessed with, I can tell you this isn't how it works. I’ve read a few other stories with this trope and it really bugs me. Probably because of the objectification but also because of my own experiences with being stalked.

Back to the good.

The writing is on point. Funny. Witty. Great banter. Seriously I really love Susie Tate's writing. The scenes with Henry and Kira's friends are some of the best. The creative nicknames and insults are faboo. I will need to add some of them to my repertoire.

Since Tate is a doctor herself in Britain the medical stuff is on point. I loved the scenes where Kira got to show just how awesome a doctor she was. Give me competence porn, I am so here for that.

The story toes the line on sexy. It's steamy and acknowledges that sex takes place but most of the scenes are closed door or hinted at. So people looking for super clean, this likely isn't for you. Nor is this for someone who wants spank bank material in their romance. I wasn’t in the mood for sex at the moment, so this worked. But I don’t like the moralizing that’s often in so-called “clean romances”... sometimes you don’t have to have explicit sex to have a good romance.

Back to the not so good. I wasn't the biggest fan of the ending. It was okay. Not bad, per se. Just not my cup of tea. I like to see more agency in my leads, and while Barclay had agency in his storyline, Kira did not.

Ask my editing clients and one of the things I tend to ding them on is characters, especially their female leads, having agency in their own stories. That they’re the ones driving the story arc and not the other characters -- particularly the male characters.

So while Kira’s story was resolved, she didn’t have a lot of agency in it. Which fed into Barclay tramping up and down all over her agency.

This book needs a whole heap of content warnings including: depression, suicidal ideation, frank discussion of STIs, frank discussion of HIV/AIDS, Medical truama, medical neglect (not by the heroses), sexual harassment, workplace sexual harassment, parental neglect/abandonment, mentions of past child neglect/abandonment, mentions of stillbirth/miscarriage, ableistic language in regards to mental illness, sexual assault, use of the g-slur in reference to clothing/appearance (This was not in reference to the Irish Travellers who do call themselves by the g-slur but in reference to clothing/appearance/lifestyle choices of two white characters.), use of food descriptors for POC skin (cappuchino instead of brown or Black), microaggressions in descriptions of natural hair (wild and unkempt). The last three are things that are easily correctable. But they are things that do exist and I hope the author educates herself as to why they are problems. (I provided links to some resources when I sent in my review so she can’t say that she wasn’t given sources. We’ll see where this goes.) In all, I liked and both disliked this book. I still love Kira. I loved Henry. Libby, Mark, and Millie are great as always. But because of the issues I've listed above I feel like I can only give this: Two Stars.

If this is your jam, you can get it here.

If you like these kind of honest reviews, please consider supporting us here!

I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley

#romance review #contemporary romance #medical romance #political romance #romantic comedy #this was a miss #I like the author's writing #but this didn't work #Susie Tate #Rose and Lark review books

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youllallriseintheink · 4 years

Text

To act in your stead

Sorry this chapter took so long. I hope you enjoy it. It is chapter 3 of the body swap to the death Au.

---

Susie looked up at the ink pipes she’d installed. A child would have been able to tell where the professionally-installed pipes ended and hers began. They were crooked, going up and down like a zigzag at every joint. As a result, a few of them leaking slightly. Hopefully, they were easily fixed and she was doing more than wasting a week or more of Tom’s work schedule. Hopefully, they’d stay together for another four days. She’d reduced the ink pressure to make that a little more likely, at least. “Hey, Tom! Get over here!” An irritable voice came from behind her.

It was Sammy. Tom hated Sammy, so she rolled her eyes and gave him a sharp look. “What?”

“Come with me to my office!”

Susie just nodded. Normally she would have been intimidated, but she was beginning to see why Tom wouldn’t have been. Sammy looked tiny compared to her now, and wasn’t scary in the least even as he was stomping and angry like this.

Once the two of them were in Sammy’s office and the door was closed, Sammy uncurled his fists and stopped looking so angry. “Sorry about that,” he said. “So... without giving too much away, I’m a person who knows a thing or two about mechanics, and it looked like you needed help. Can I help you?”

Susie tried not to look too happy. This was a godsend. “Yes, that would be nice.”

“Excellent. So, obviously I can’t just go on out there and start getting my hands dirty, but I could tell you what you’re doing wrong. First, are you cutting the pipes?”

“They need to be cut?”

Allison had no idea, but suspected they didn’t. “Of course. If they’re the wrong length, they’ll all be crooked, and they’ll wear out in a matter of weeks.”

“What do I cut them with?”

“An electric hand saw. Do you have one at home?”

“I don’t know. There’s a lot of tools in the garage. Some looked electric. One might be a handsaw.”

“Well, I’m sure that there’s something there that we can use to cut pipes. If you want me to come over, I could show you how to use it.”

“Sounds good, thank you. I’ll come find you at six,” Susie deadpanned. Once she left and immediately found a quiet place where she could let her happiness out. Thank goodness, now she’d be able to actually do this properly! Unfortunately, whoever “Sammy” was hadn’t dropped any hints, though. The kindness sheer lack of emotionality suggested Henry, but the mechanical knowledge suggested Thomas. It must have been Lacie. She seemed like she had the capacity for both.

That evening, “Thomas” took Allison back to her and Tom’s house. Allison knew where the handsaw was, but she pretended to search the shelves until “Thomas” fished it out of the drawer.

“Okay,” Allison said, setting a board up on the sawhorse, “Let’s practice with some wooden boards before moving on to pipes. So, you’ll want to have it on a solid surface when you turn it on, like this.” She pressed a button on it and it came to life. “Want me to demonstrate how to cut a board?”

“I’d love that,” “Thomas” said, still in his gravelly voice. He wasn’t giving away any hints. Well, reaction to fear might end up being a giveaway.

Allison transferred the saw to her left hand and held the board with her right. “Alright. Just like this.” She began cutting, spraying sawdust and making that horrible saw noise. She was so uncoordinated with her left hand that she wasn’t sure she could pull this off.

Susie watched, disturbed that Sammy was cutting towards his hand. But, he probably knew what he was doing. Once it got close enough, she couldn’t take it anymore. “Sammy, move your hand!”

“What? I always-“ and then it happened. The handsaw was spraying blood, and her hand was being cut between the thumb and index finger. It was no small feat of willpower to force the blade a little further before turning it off. Allison was screaming. Susie was screaming. She ran into the house.

“Sammy!” she called “Get the first aid kit!” Oh, this was too good. Allison had noticed how irritable “Allison” had been, and she’d suspected that a lot of people were switched in pairs, but now she had confirmation.

“Thomas” and “Allison” came back into the garage. The look on “Allison’s” face was priceless as he caught sight of the mess of his hand. “What have you done?!” he yelled. “How will you play instruments like that?!”

At this point, Allison realized that she hadn’t actually looked at the damages yet. They were bad. The blood running down it and squirting from some ruptured artery she’d been able to feel, but the sawdust trapped inside of it- well, that was a bonus. It would probably get infected. The cut was long and deep, too. He was lucky that all the fingers were still attached. She was lucky it was throbbing so hard, or she would have had trouble hiding her satisfaction.

Twenty minutes later, Allison’s wound had been washed and bandaged, and the look of terror still hadn’t fully left Sammy’s face. He couldn’t express anger at her without revealing himself, of course, but Allison could sense it in him. When he looked at her, she could just see him silently yelling out the question: “who are you? Why did you do this to me?!”

—-

Aside from Allison’s revenge, the only notable thing that had happened on Wednesday was that “Joey” had proposed to “Henry” that they gather the players at his house a few hours before seven, so that none of them would be doing anything dangerous when it happened. This served several purposes. For one, it would allow Henry to see his kids, maybe for the last time. For another, it would give him an opportunity to drop off evidence at his house. He’d bring it in champagne boxes and slip them into his room when no one was watching. Joey was happy with the arrangement as well: he had several hunches but was only certain of three identities at the moment, and packing everyone into a closed space where they’d be all but forced to interact seemed like a great way to figure some out. He was getting a little desperate, and he wasn’t the only one.

Come Thursday morning, Bertrum was running out of time and he knew it. Not survival-wise, of course: decades in the public eye had left him with some excellent people-reading skills, and he had fair guesses on at least three or four identities. He was also quite the actor, and, since he had no idea what Jack Fain was like, had been pretending to be a different person every day that week to throw anyone off his trail. Yes, survival-wise, he was doing great. But he still hadn’t caught a single glimpse of himself, and the meeting was tonight. And so, Bertrum was standing at the only entrance to Joey Drew Studios in wait.

Finally, “Bertrum” came in, and “Jack” didn’t hesitate to stop him. “Can I speak with you?”

“Oh, uh, sure. I’m in no particular rush.” Whoever this was, they were putting no effort at all into being the Great Bertrum Piedmont, aside from a poorly faked deep, British voice. But now wasn’t the time to be guessing identities.

“This will take all day.”

“Oh, okay. Well, first I need to go check on the Bendyland employees, and have an in-depth meeting with Lacie. Can I meet you back here later?”

Bertrum supposed he could use an opportunity to see what he had to work with. “I’ll come with you,” he insisted.

“Well, okay,” Jack replied, chirpy but a bit nervous. Jack was not a good actor, and he knew it. He definitely didn’t think that he could project Bertrum Piedmont-levels of bravado and confidence. His strategy had basically been been to avoid everyone except for Lacie, whose identity he hadn’t figured out yet, but that’s what the meeting was for. Well, now it seemed like he’d have to act the best he could for whoever was inhabiting his body.

The two arrived at Bendyland, where three Bendyland employees were slacking off, playing the target shooting game. Lacie was one of them. Jack cupped his hands together. “Hey!” he snapped, trying to get their attention. Was that a Bertrum-like way to get attention? He didn’t know, and with whoever was in his body breathing down his neck, he was getting really nervous. If they heard him, they didn’t listen, so he walked up to them. Even the way he walks is self-effacing, Bertrum thought to himself, almost offended at this... parody of himself. “Hey,” Jack said, quieter now that he was closer to them. The Bendyland workers finally looked up from their game to him.

“What?” One of them asked casually. All three of them were grinning, the two non-players wondering if Alzheimer’s had caught up to their boss and made him go soft.

“Are you, uh, fellows doing your quota of work?” There was no anger or accusation in his voice.

“Yeah.”

“Do you need me to do anything?” Jack truthfully had no idea what he was supposed to do. He’d designed some attractions and checked on the employees every day. That seemed like the right thing to do, or at least, the closest he could figure out.

“Nope, we’re good.” Bertrum could tell that they had barely done a thing. The crates of decor that they were supposed to put up this week were sitting next to the game, most not even opened.

“Okay, then. I’ll check in on you tomorrow.”

Jack turned around and stumbled over an ink pipe on the floor, which made the Bendyland workers laugh. Bertrum couldn’t take it any longer. “That’s it! You do not laugh at the great Bertrum Piedmont! Now get to work before he comes to his senses!”

The workers froze, then frantically went over to one of the crates and began decorating.

“Now you’re coming with me,” Bertrum said to Jack.

“Uh, sure. Hey, Lacie? I’ll come find you when I’m ready, okay?”

Lacie shrugged, not looking away from her work. “Sure.”

As soon as Jack and Bertrum were out of the studio, Bertrum spoke up. “Alright. No need for fancy introductions. I am the great Bertrum Piedmont, and I happen to have a very important meeting tonight. A meeting with the great Clifford Clines, CEO of Cedar Springs Entertainment. He’s considering me as the creator of his brand’s first theme park. Do you know how long it takes to create a theme park? If he wants an especially large park- and I assure you, he will- this could be the project that my son takes over for me once I retire or- or retire. This could be the first project in the next stage of the Colossal Wonders legacy! But that’s only if I can whip you into shape. Stand up straight. Puff your chest out. Stop holding yourself like you’re halfway apologizing for your existence. For the next four days, you’re pretending to be someone whose presence is a gift. Now, who are you?”

Jack had been obeying him, but he couldn’t answer that. “Sorry, I want to live. I can’t-“

“No. I mean, who are you?”

“Bertrum Piedmont.”

“Say it like you’ve been him all your life!”

“I am the great Bertrum Piedmont!”

“Good! Yes! Or at least, I’ll teach you to be him!”

That afternoon, as Bertrum taught Jack how to behave at his meeting, it finally came time for ink to be run through the ink pipes that “Thomas” had installed. Susie really wasn’t sure about this. She’d been too afraid to call and ask about cutting the pipes because of how obvious a question it probably was. Of course she shouldn’t cut the pipes- who would think of such a thing? And she had some serious doubts about the purity of “Sammy’s” intentions. But by deciding to ignore his advice, she was stuck with those crooked, zigzag pipes.

After she put the last pipe in, she looked back to see if “Henry” was still watching her. He was. Alright, no hesitation, then. She walked over, threw the switch all the way instead of inching up the pressure. Not fifteen seconds later, the resulting cacophony made her duck for cover on instinct. Pipes clattered to the ground, struck her, or shot at the walls. Ink was spraying everywhere. And “Henry” was still standing there with an expressionless look on his face. Not even Norman was this creepy! What would Thomas do in this situation? Don’t cry. Don’t freak out. Don’t cry. Do something you idiot! Turn off the ink pressure.That’s what Susie did, before making her way to the music department, where five of the players would be. As she passed it by, she also noticed that the ink machine was making some very concerning clunking and creaking noises.

Right in the middle of a recording, an ink-covered and very distressed-looking Thomas Connor burst into the the recording studio. “I need some backup,” he said, trying not to sound distressed “I can’t handle the ink machine anymore and I need someone who does to help me. “Jack” and “Alice” weren’t even there, so there wasn’t a great chance that anyone there would even be able to help. “Norman” quietly slipped out.

Lacie knew that she couldn’t help with this without narrowing down everyone’s quarry when it came to her, so she went off to find herself. There she was, decorating a Bendyland game booth. “Hey, Lacie. Come with me. Bring your tool kit.”

“Okay.”

As they made their way from the the Bendyland department, Lacie explained the plan. “Alright. Now, I have some hidden depths. My father was a mechanic. And right now, things need fixing. So I need you to pretend to be the one fixing them. I’ll quietly follow you at a distance and do the actual fixing, alright? First thing’s first, go to the recording studio and ask Thomas where the problem is.”

Shawn agreed to it, and Lacie fell behind him, walking softly as though she were stalking him.

When they got back to the music department, “Thomas” was on the phone with GENT. “What do you mean, ‘I’m the only one who knows how to maintenance the ink machine? That can’t be right.”

Shawn grabbed "Thomas” by the shoulder. “Hey. You show me where the problem is, I’ll fix it.”

As Lacie followed the two to the scene of the disaster, all she could think of was two things: first, “Lacie” must have known her pretty well, because he was doing one hell of an acting job. Secondly, his voice sounded off. Suppressing an accent, maybe? Both pointed to the same two identities: Shawn and Bertrum. She’d figured out who the other music department players were aside from Alice, but she could always use another layer of protection, and with how different Shawn and Bertrum were, chances were she was going to get one.

“Right here,” “Thomas” said once they arrived at the location. “And please, check on the ink machine, too. I don’t think I’m maintaining it properly. I can’t thank you enough.” Lacie had to hide around a corner from “Thomas” and “Lacie” until “Thomas” split from them.

As soon as Lacie saw the mess of the hallway, she knew that there wasn’t much to be done about it. For some pipes it would have just been a simple matter of adjusting, but others had been twisted from all that pressure, and almost half of them had fallen straight off the wall. It would take easily a day to fix, and the projectionist couldn’t just disappear for that long. “Yep. Let’s go to the ink machine,” Lacie declared.

After turning the ink machine off and opening it up, the problem became obvious: the gears were too clogged with thick ink to turn properly. As a result, the machine was overheating to the point where it almost burned to touch. “You’re gonna have to have to handle this one, Lacie. It would be awfully hard to explain why the projectionist has this kind of ink on their hands.”

“Lacie” made a face, but nonetheless got in there with his hands and started shoveling out the hot sludge.

“Oh yeah. One more thing,” Lacie said before stomping down on Shawn’s foot.

“Eejit! Mo fecken chos!” Shawn screamed before realizing that he’d outed himself and turning redder than a beet.

“Hi, Shawn. You do one hell of an impression.”

“Ah, well, I’ve figured you out, too, Lacie. I know you better than you know yerself.” he plucked, annoyed but playful and in full Irish accent. He threw a glob of ink at her, which she dodged.

She already knew three identities. Was the extra safety worth selling out Shawn?

Lacie laughed a little. “Well, I have to get back to my projector booth before someone gets suspicious. Meet me after work, alright?” —- “Another brandy, barkeep, if you please,” Bertrum called out across the way. If he was going to have a younger liver for the next little bit, he might as well use it. It was evening, and Bertrum had coached his little body snatcher on everything there was to know about being the Great Bertrum Piedmont. Through all that teaching, though, he’d seen enough of the man to figure out who he was.

It had been a hard week for Bertrum, not only because of the professional stress and mortal danger, but because everyone seemed to expect him to just go along with whatever they said. Like he had no desires of his own. It’s how non-players treated him. It’s how players tested and needled at him. And Bertrum had snapped at a few of them- hopefully not hard enough to give him away. But that kind of behaviour that they expected of him seemed to be exactly what came naturally to his student. It was Jack Fain. Self-effacing, kind-to-a-fault, laid-back, embarrassed-to-be-alive Jack Fain. And those upper crust business men were going to eat him alive.

“Barkeep! Another, please!” At least this body was good at handling liquor. He must have drank six of these things and he didn’t feel inebriated in the slightest. When would Jack get here?

Finally, Bertrum heard Jack’s voice, using a now much less fake-sounding accent. “Hey. Want some news?” Strange- he sounded fairly perky. Bertrum turned to him. He looked pretty pleased with himself and was holding an envelope. Bertrum allowed himself some hope.

“Go ahead.”

“You got it. He wants the biggest theme park the world’s ever seen!”

Bertrum nearly fell out of his seat. He snatched the letter out of Jack’s hands. It contained the date and location of what would be their first meeting to discuss the park. “I- well- thank you!” Bertrum stuttered. Maybe he wasn’t handling the liquor as well as he thought. “Can I buy you a drink?”

“Sure,” Jack replied, sitting down.

“How have you been handling the game?” Bertrum asked friendily.

Jack grimaced. “Yours is the only identity I’ve figured out.. But I don’t think anyone’s guessed me, so I think I’m alright. I just need to keep a low profile, and that shouldn’t be hard, aside from Henry’s party.”

Bertrum knew that if Jack played like that, he was surely dead. He put on his gentlest voice and said, “Actually, I think I’ve figured out who you are. Are you Jack Fain?”

There was fear in Jack’s eyes for a moment, but he quickly forced it out of them. “No. You’re wrong.” He got up and left, stopping a moment to look back. If he hadn’t said that, he could have asked how his family was. But it was too late for that. In that moment it sunk in that he needed to find another identity if he ever wanted to see them again.

Bertrum got up to chase after Jack, and tell him one of the identities he’d figured out so that he would be safe. After Jack had nailed the meeting, he deserved that much. But Bertrum fell over almost immediately- his legs were just too unsteady from booze.

#Bendy and the Ink Machine #my fanfiction #allison pendle #susie campbell #sammy lawrence #bertrum piedmont #Jack Fain #body swap to the death au

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