#isat burned and forgotten

[vulpixisananimal]

[A:2 C:5]

[Small text = Essentialy unchanged dialog from normal ISAT]

---

“Heya, stardust! How can I help you on this wonderful new loop?”

(How CAN they help you? Questions questions. . .) “So, last loop.”

“Big rock trap again, huh?” (Loop closed their eyes and wagged a finger.) That's what happens when you don't look hard enough, stardust!”

(Urgh.) "Hard to see things with one eye."

“Yeah, I know. You'll miss things no matter what, especially with your sight reduced. You shouldn't feel bad. You can loop back and look everywhere again, after all!!!”

(That was... a surprisingly nice thing to say. They have a point, you can’t exactly smell out a key after all, you just need to look again.) 

“I'm always nice, stardust!” (They wink at you.) “. . . . .”

(. . . . ?)

“. . . Anything else, Stardust?” 

(Questions, questions. . .) “. . . Why Stardust?”

(Loops near permanent grin faded for a moment.) “. . . Because you're still here, alive, after everything.”

(Still here?) “After everything?”

(Loop instantly went back to their cheeky facade.) “After going splat under that giant rock of course! Plus it’s cute, My little Stardust~ Cutie patootie Stardust~”

(Ew, but. . .) “You can say you don’t want to answer, it’s fine.”

“But it's so much fun to annoy you instead! Distracting people with puns and jokes is the best way to evade stupid questions.”

(Yeah, you can relate.)

>>>

(Gardening room, second time around getting all the tonics. This time you’re sure to compliment the little dying plant to make Mirabelle happy, and, out of pure curiosity, check where you got the Garden Scissors last time. Just like last time, the world seemed to skip, and it disappeared.)

(As you squeeze through the room to get the last of the tonics, you realize, not for the first time, that everyone unconsciously makes sure to not touch you any more than necessary.)

(. . . It's not the best feeling, but there must be a reason they're not touching you, since everyone’s has, so you leave it alone.)

>>>

(. . . . . Aw stars.)

(There WAS a key hidden in there. It was taped to the underside, so you missed it before. . .You blinding idiot. . . You found the ROCK KEY, fitting. You put it in your pocket.)

(Stupid.)

>>>

(After a quick walk and a key in a lock, you made it to the House library. Stars, it looks like there’s a lot to look at here! Going to the first bookshelf, you gently touch the back of a Vaugardian tragedy you remember liking.)

(Isabeau saw.) “Aw, don't worry Sif, you'll be able to see some plays soon!”

“. . .” (Bonnie shuffled on the spot.) “So, there's. . . There's something I've always wondered.”

“What is it, Bonnie?”

“Well, um. . . You know that stage play Frin brought us to, before we got the last Orb to open the House? In it, The main characters. . . The two men kissed on the mouth, right?”

“Ah”

“Oh gems.”

“Shush, I want to hear this.”

“And so, um. . . When people kiss on the mouth. In plays. They don't REALLY kiss, right? They have some transparent paper in between so their lips don't touch, right???”

“. . .What?”

“What.”

“UH HUH, WHAT?”

(Haha!!) "Yeah, Bonnie. They definitely have paper in between."

“Huh!! Yeah, I knew it!! No one would ever kiss someone on the mouth in a play! Not in front of everyone!!!”

(Isabeau laughed.) “Not in front of everyone!!!!”

“Oh, that's really good.” (Odile chuckled.) “Boniface, this is why you're my favorite.”

“Woohoo!”

(Continuing on, there’s a few other bookcases, the librarian, and a very, very thick book on fishing. Odile takes it. One of the bookshelves is filled with notebooks of all shapes and sizes. They look all out of place; you point it out to Mirabelle.)

“Oh! They're diaries, Siffrin!”

(Odile raises an eyebrow.) “Diaries? in a library??”

“Oh right! you guys do that in Dormont too!” (Isabeau holds up a hand as he talks.) So you know how our belief encourages change, right? Sometimes, when people change, they might not feel any attachment to the people they were before, or want that person to disappear.”

“So some Houses let you donate items that remind you too much of who you were, Like diaries! It's about history! Being able to pick up a diary written by someone a very long time ago? It’s fun!” (He put his hands on his hips.) “I think a lot of people actually give their diaries away so it's like. ‘Look mom, I wrote a book that's in a library’.”

“Ha! I can understand that, then.” (Odile nods.) 

(The idea of anyone reading your deepest, darkest thoughts, even years in the future, completely removed from you. . . Gross!!! You didn’t want anyone reading your thoughts, stars you didn’t want to read your own thoughts!! They’re gross!!)

(Once again, Vaugarde is weird. But also you love drama, so you happily pick the gaudiest, sparkliest diary you see.)

“Oh, this one looks fairly recent!” (Mira takes the book.) We could read a little bit. . . Like, a tiny bit.” 

“Sure.” (You shrug.) “Why not?”

“We do not have time. . .” (Odile gives a half shrug.) “. . . Is what I would usually say, but I'd also love to think about boring, mundane, everyday problems for a bit.

“Belle, pick a page!!!”

“I-I'm reading again? Okay, hmmm. . .” (Mirabelle started flipping through the diary while all of you huddled close to listen.)

"Mom told me to clean my room today. I HATE CLEANING MY ROOM!!! MY ROOM ISN'T EVEN DIRTY!! WHY DOESN'T SHE UNDERSTAND!!!!!!! Urgh. Also, Dad said a big boat showed up with a lotta weird people on it? And then when mom and dad were talking about it they realized they couldn’t say the name of the island north of Vaugarde anymore? I tried to say it yesterday and I got like the WEIRDEST headache for HOURS. Might trick my friends into saying it tomorrow."

(The rest is just doodles of a little girl laughing uproariously.)

(Odile adjusts her glasses and thinks for a moment.) “Ah, the island north of Vaugarde, I remember when it happened. . . Well, remember isn’t the right word, is it? That sort of event wouldn’t exactly be easy to miss.”

“I think uhm, I think my village was really close to it. My sister said it got super busy with people showing up.” (Bonnie shrugs.) “I was really young though, so I don’t remember it.”

“Oh it’s just so frightening. . .” (Mirabelle hugged the diary close.) “All of those people showing up out of the blue, lost, confused, looking like they just came out of a terrible nightmare. . . I’m glad your sister didn’t get caught up in that, Bonnie!”

“. . . Yeah. . .” (Bonnie sulks down, looking away.)

“. . .”

“. . .”

“. . .”

“. . . Uhm That country's name. . . What was it's name again?” (Bonnie asks, looking up again.)

“Oh, I think it was something like--”

“DONT!”

“SAY IT!!!”

“CRAB!!!!!”

“NYEHEHEHEHEHE!!!!”

(. . . . . Huh! What an interesting diary entry! Anyways, on to the next bookshelf. Looking through this one, there was a book that caught your eye. “Effort: The Key To Meaningful Change.” You open the book, and yep! You take the PAPER KEY. Pretty on the nose hiding place.)

(You pause for a second as you’re leaving, looking at one of the walls. It’s fake. It’s a fake wall. You KNOW it’s a fake wall. You can feel a slight breeze coming from the wall, which means there’s a space behind it. You double check it, nothing. Triple check, nothing. Stars you KNEW it was a fake wall but. . . .)

(. . . You give up. It’s probably not important anyways.)

>>>

(Time to explore the right side!)

(Going through, you breezed through a classroom, but there wasn’t much of note. A few tonics, some books and papers from kids, nothing too interesting. But as you continued down the hall, you had to pause as you turned a corner. You smelled the air.)

(It was getting sweet again, sugary sweet, really, really sickly sugary sweet. You made a face.)

“I-is everything okay, Siffrin?”

(Uh,) “I think one of those strong sadness is coming up, like from before?”

“Oh!!”

“Will you be alright, Sif?”  (Isabeau asks.)

“Yes, we don’t want you to have another coughing fit now, do we?”

“‘Frin Should put a clothes pin on their nose, then they’ll be UNSTOPPABLE!!!”

“HAHA!! TOO TRUE!!”

(You smile softly at the banter, you had yet to go through the first weird sadness fight without a coughing fit. It was just too sweet.) “I’ll be fine, promise.”

(Although, something to clog your nose wasn’t a bad idea. You filed the idea away for later and continued on, stopping at a door where the smell was strongest. You put a hand on the handle, and another on your dagger. Looking back, everyone else was ready, too. You open the door.)

(Aha! Just as you thought! Mirabelle stands side-by-side with you as you tug your cloak over your nose.) “A sadness!”

“Another weird-smelly one!!”

“Like the one that gave us a crest?”

“Wait, Siffrin, how were you able to-”

(Odile is interrupted by Nostalgie turning to the party.)

“N-no time, madame! Let’s get ready!!”

(You snap your fingers, [MAKE UP THE TIME], your wispy tendrils of craft energy boosting your allies just like last time. Mirabelle followed up by holding her hands up, and discs of light burst from them, and passed through you and your allies. Strength AND speed! Nice!)

“The last one was paper type.” (Odile thinks.) “Let’s see if there’s a pattern.” (She holds up her paper sign, and geometric shapes form around her palm before flying at the Sadness, but glances off, leaving only small scratches.)

(The Nostalgie didn’t like that, it seems, so it charged right back at Odile and slashed at her, making her stumble back to a knee. Isabeau didn’t miss a beat, and ran in with a rock sign! A ghostly hand covered Isa’s own and he used it to pound the Nostalgie.)

(It didn’t take long after that, you tagged back to Isabeau for a follow up, Mira healed Odile, who then used another rock skill. All it took was a couple extra hits and it was good as gone. As soon as it collapsed to the ground, you did, too, gasping for air.)

“Woah Sif, careful, the air isn’t going anywhere.” (Isabeau kneels down next to you.) “Need a minute?”

(You nod, and keep breathing, eventually standing up again. Mira hands you a tissue, you blow your nose.) “. . . Thanks, sorry.”

“No need to be sorry, Siffrin.” (Odile reassures,) “Although, I am still curious about how you’re able to tell the scent of a specific sadness.”

(You shrug.) “It was, just really strong?”

“. . . . . . . . . I see.” (She's looking at you.) “I did not smell a thing. Are you sure there is no other reason?”

(You smile with your eyes tilted in a confused way.) “Not, that I know of???”

“Hmm.” (She looks away, thinking.) 

“. . . . Ssssmellology?” (Isabeau tries.)

“It's called Aromachology, and no.” (She shakes her head.) “Now may we please continue?”

(Yes please. You lead the party out.)

[electrozeistyking]

Hey hey hey i love your LTN ISaT AU I just need you to know it's *chef's kiss* DELECTABLE ANGST

and because I adore delectable angst, in the hypothetical situation of the loops finally breaking, how would Siffrin's friends react to the state he's in now?

Can’t say anything about the loops breaking (at least not yet because I haven’t thought about it), but I definitely think everyone else would notice and be concerned about Siffrin!

His brain feels like mush, his head hurts and feels heavy, his eye constantly burns... all things considered, it’s hard to pretend he’s fine sometimes (and he’s forgotten to other times), so I can’t say the rest of the party hasn’t NOT noticed. If it’s especially bad, they’ll bring it up in some way or form.

At the same time, though, this Siffrin doesn’t panic or freak out at the first sign of the script breaking, changing or differing in some way. They’re been at this for so long that they’ll actually perk right up if something new happens now, whether it be “dialogue” or otherwise.

And yes! The party can see the red. It just seems like a weird shade right now and isn’t worth worrying about; it doesn’t seem to be hurting Siffrin, so it’s fine... if a little strange and confusing.

Siffrin’s memory is definitely a lot worse than it ever was, but Loop helped him figure something out when it came remembering to everyone. It goes all the way down to his own name, on the off chance he forgets it!

(B for Bonbon, I for Isa. L for Loo, M for Mira. O for Odile, and S for Siffrin — that’s me, that’s me, that’s me.)

[livesworthlivingau]

Behind the Vale Chapter 7-10

ISAT/Two Hats Spoilers, CW: Implied Suicidal Thoughts

[You walk… You've been walking for days… Your feet are sore, you legs feel like they're on fire. Your stomach aches… You thought you might be looping at first, until you remembered what hunger was… You haven't had the need for food, or water, or sleep for so long… You'd forgotten what all of that felt like, and now you're painfully aware of all of it again. What would happen if you died anyways?... Would you both loop back?... Would you just be dead until he loops? You summon your dagger into your hand, stopping in your tracks and staring at it... Would you?... Could you, even?... You stare at the curved blade for longer than you realize.]

"CRAB!" [You hear a shout that snaps you out of it. You rush towards the sound of heavy thuds, leaves rustling, a shriek... a sadness?! You break through the tree line to see it, standing over a figure on the ground. Their hammer tossed to the side, holding a hand up defensively as it's just about to strike! NO!]

[The sadness freezes, stuck just before landing a blow on the figure... then fades away, revealing you behind it. Your eyes wide, panting heavily, dagger held at the end of a flourish... You look down at the figure. You start to lean forward to offer a hand up, before exhaustion takes over. Everything goes dark as you collapse.]

-----------------------------------------------------

[Your vision slowly returns... You're on the ground, it's night time. The crackling of a fire fills your ears. The scent of wood burning, and broth boiling fill your lack of a nose. You feel a blanket covering your body, slipping down as you try to sit up.]

"Woah woah! Easy now, buddy!" [You hear to your side, noticing the dark skinned figure that had been sitting beside you. She gently pushes your weak form back to laying down. Her long hair in a braid that reaches the middle of her back. She's dressed in loose, breezy, coastal style clothing. Something about her feels oddly familiar...]

"You gotta get your strength back before you'll be up and at 'em again." [She instructs, taking a bowl and ladle to scoop some of the soup and bring it over to you. She hesitates...]

"Uhhh... How do you... eat?" [She asks, gesturing to her mouth, and clearly noting your lack of one. You just give a light roll of your eyes, sitting up slow enough that she'd allow it. You take the bowl and bring it to your face. It presses against your hidden lips and you pour it down your throat. The still steaming fluid burns your insides, but nowhere near as bad as a star once had. What does cause a sudden choke though is the taste. You'd forgotten what food tasted like... and if this was it you think you'd be better off not being reminded...]

"Heh... I know, I'm sorry, my sibling's the real chef. I can barely make cereal without screwing it up, but it's all I got right now and you're about to starve to death." [She remarks in a demanding tone. She's right, and you're so hungry it makes ignoring the taste easier, just pouring the rest of it directly down your throat and letting out a relieved, steaming sigh.]

"... Thank you..."

"Ah! So you can talk! Well thank you uhhh... Glowey person? If you hadn't come along when you did I don't know what would have happened." [You sit there in silence for a while until suddenly the sibling comment clicks.]

"Sibling?"

"Oh! Yeah! I'm looking for my little sibling. Their name's Bonnie, real little, looks a bit like me, wears a big poofy hat. They managed to get away when I got frozen, and apparently I heard they're travelling with the saviors themselves?! I've been trying to find them ever since I got unfrozen." [… This really is some sick, cosmic joke, isn't it?...]

"... You're... Nille. Petronille."

"Y-Yeah! How'd you... Wait, do you know them too?!"

"I... I travelled with them for a little while, they talked about you all the time." [Her face lights up with joy and awe, so happy to finally meet someone who actually knows about Bonnie instead of just rumors and tales.]

"That's wonderful! I can't believe my luck today! So what's your name anyways? I gotta know how to properly address my knight in shining face!" [She snickers to herself, holding out a hand to shake as a more formal introduction. You stare at it for a moment, your own approaches it almost in slow motion. You need a name... a real name... you can't just be 'wonderful little loop' anymore after all...]

"... I'm... Vale [They/Them]… It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Nille."

"Likewise, Vale!... Now if you don't mind me asking, what are you doing out here? You look like you've been running for a while..." [Her tone suddenly shifts. She recognizes something in you in this moment... and you start to recall some of the stories Bonnie had told you.]

[No-NO! You're getting too vulnerable, your mask is slipping... Get a hold of yourself Lo-... *ahem* Vale. You shake the pathetic look off your face, your strength starting to return with the soup in your system now. You give those bright cheery eyes you're so practiced in.]

"Oh you know~! Just went out for a stroll and got rather carried away~."

"... Riiiiight... Well, where 'ya headed? You know I'm looking for Bonnie but I don't exactly have the best idea where they're at. I got lucky with you twice already, maybe a third time'll happen if you'll let me join yah!" [You scream internally as you do your best to keep up your poker face.]

"O-Of course! I don't have a destination in mind yet, but how could I say no to the famous Nille!" [What are YOU DOING?! We are heading in the OPPOSITE direction!]

"Great! And don't worry, I'll pick up some food in the next town so you're not stuck at my cooking pot's mercy the whole time" [She laughed to herself, chipping in a slight chuckle of your own... Okay... Okay we can do this... Even if we do help her, who knows how long until we run into them all again? We'll feel Stardust nearby, we can just leave before they reunite! We get to be lovely helpful L-Vale and we don't need to see them all again... We can make this work...]

[biblicallyaccuratecrow]

rambling about songs my brain associates with isat (pt. 1)

[woe, spoilers be upon ye!]

i have a 250+ song isat playlist. I am unhealthily obsessed with finding new songs to put in it. Here's a few that make me go absolutely batshit insane.

I've already rambled about this one on my art account a while back, but this song is so insanely loop-coded....

I'm standing on a stage Of fear and self-doubt It's a hollow play, But they'll clap anyway

You could give me any song that has some kind of reference to plays or theatre and I could probably find a way to make it about isat. but specifically this makes me think about twohats and how loop views their place in the world as a performance, a pawn, not even a character but a plot device... yeah

I'm living in an age That calls darkness light Though my language is dead Still the shapes fill my head I'm living in an age Whose name I don't know Though the fear keeps me moving, Still my heart beats so slow

I probably don't have to break this one down for you, but yeah, Island North of Vaugarde, the forgotten language... "still the shapes fill my head" has always in my mind referenced the stars and constellations, and how they're familiar but foreign...

-

thanks to @/ricecaqes and their trust ceremony animatic, this song lives in my head rent free. Even just as a whole this song is SO isat for me. literally from the first fucking lines:

Will I know when I’ve gone too far? Or frozen myself in time? An impossible brain with impossible wants Lost and astray, with impossible thoughts

like. it really can't get much more nail on the head than that?

then you got this:

So cold, I’m freezing Every piece of praise and sign that I’m believed in Solid in a crystal ball It bends the waves of the light to mend the rest of my life

and literally the first time I heard this song i paused it and said, out loud, "OH FUCK." Because. it's act 5 siffrin. Like, the slow descent into despair followed by the determination that the only way to perserve the life and the family they love is to keep them with him, to do the exact same thing the king did...

Do you also see your future starting with the farthest part? Live your life to close the space between the end and start And when it’s hard, do you hang onto any chance That you might be in control? That you’re the one who owns

For one, once you reach the end of act 2, you're constantly aware of the head housemaiden being as far as you can go, and then you're planning around it the entire time.

And then, you have. siffrin grasping for any kind of control they can have over the situation, desperately. and failing repeatedly because they simultaneously think that they are undeserving of getting what they ultimately want... yeah...

i won't go into the rest of the lyrics because honestly it's pretty well covered by the animatic but. yeah trust ceremony my sweet beloved.

-

rest in peace siffrin no middle no last name, you would have loved the mountain goats.

yeah uh. this one is also pretty high up on songs that make me go "damn that's siffrin alright".

I am this great, unstable mass of blood and foam And no one in her right mind would make my home her home My heart's an autoclave

i think for me it's the idea of siffrin feeling like they're nothing, and even if they are something or someone, they are bad, worse than bad, worthless. also referencing homesickness.... yeah...

When I try to open up to you I get completely lost Houses swallowed by the earth, windows thick with frost And I reach deep down within, but the pathways twist and turn And there's no light anywhere, and nothing left to burn

I mean, this one is also pretty self-evident. siffrin losing hope while being stuck in the house... wanting to connect with the party but being completely uncapable of doing so out of the sheer terror of being left behind... act 5, with the house literally warping...

I dreamt that I was perched atop a throne of human skulls On a cliff above the ocean, howling wind and shrieking seagulls And the dream went on forever, one single static frame Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name

siffrin feels responsible for the loops, every aspect of them. their deaths, their party-member's deaths, their failures, everything. and in the end, all they really wanted was for someone to truly see them? to have a family, to not be left behind and forgotten by the world.... the importance of names and siffrin's name in particular in the story also makes this hit home for me.

-

for brevity's sake i'll just start with these three- if people are interested in hearing me justify my insane music choices i'll probably do more.... for now, see ya!

[iwontusethis255]

ISAT CRAFT STUDY

(disclaimer most of this is headcanon/hypothesis, and all of it is spoilers)

MAGIC CIRCLE

i like it

bUT theres logic to every little thing for it

lets take it from the top

wish craft (top) and time craft (bottom) have symbols

wish craft is crossing fingers, it just makes sense

time craft is a grasping hand

look familiar?

meanwhile, the main 3 crafts have an additional sub-craft system

Rock has body craft, which focuses on changing a body, like the king getting bigger, because "the body is a temple" and "blood from a stone" etc

Paper has forming craft, which focuses on changing an object, like making the statues move), because paper is commonly used for art

Scissors has heal craft, which focuses on reforming things, like a heal skill, because the two party members who can heal (not counting bonnie bc they just use food) is scissors type, also smth smth surgery

and Stat change skills are a sort of non craft specific ability, hence the symbols being near the wish and time symbols, as theyre "neutral" in the triangle

CRAFT SCENTS

we all know wish craft smells like sugar, but what of the others?

well rock smells like rocks, paper smells like wood, and scissors smells like metal, which is mentioned offhandedly in one convo in game.

but what about time craft?

it smells like ash/burning

thats why siffrins intense usage of both time and wish craft makes the smell of BURNT sugar specifically, theres been plenty mentions of just the sugar smell, but only when time is also involved is the burning smell there

theoretically time/rock would smell like lava, time/paper would smell like a forest fire, and time/scissors would smell like burning metal

BUT WAIT

rocks, wood, metal, fire

where has that been heard before?

ELEMENTAL TIE INS

(ignore the arrows, they arent relevent for this)

Rock is associated with earth

Paper is associated with wood

Scissors is associated with metal

these are all common elements that are used in civilization as materials

Time is associated with fire

the burning smell, and the fact it theoretically kills the user

by that logic

Wish is associated with water

which makes sense, as cane sugar, the described smell, grows in/near water, not to mention the 2/3 people who properly know how to use it are from the forgotten TROPICAL ISLAND

Water and Fire are not commonly harnessed in fantasy olden times or even real olden times, moreso just moved/affected, just like time and wish craft, unlike wood and metal and earth which are commanly used for tools and archetechture, much like the main 3 craft types

ok thats all the thoughts i have but this is a pretty damn good headcanon thing

[metropolitankei]

Time to ramble a bit about ICAT bc the tag from @the-nintendo-dsi is making me think HARD on this. (Tag below)

Now for the ramble part. Big wall of text incoming!

Vanilla Bean (Siffrin) and Pitaya Panna Cotta (the King) being from the Vanilla Kingdom makes a whole lot of sense.

If you've not watched the story cutscenes for episodes 9 and 10 of Crispia in Cookie Run Kingdom, I'll explain what happens for you. The story takes place in the Vanilla Kingdom, which had been abandoned due to the war between the Ancients and Dark Enchantress Cookie and overrun by cake creatures that follow under her rule.

Because of the kingdom being destroyed in the process, pretty much most of the cookies that lived there had evacuated the place to go to other locations for safety, and those who weren't able to make it out in time had perished. We especially notice this with a lot of the cookies in the upper region of the Creme Republic, especially with one of the elders being from the Vanilla Kingdom (plus it's mentioned that those who evacuated had found home in the Republic thanks to the sea cookies).

Now, onto Vanilla Bean and Pitaya Panna Cotta. Vanilla Bean is the most obvious (due to the name/flavor and the vanilla bean pods being their safety pins on their cloak), but Pitaya Panna Cotta is not as obvious. Before becoming who he is today, he used to just be Panna Cotta. When he arrived in Dragon's Valley after recovering from the evacuation, he went to Pitaya Dragon Cookie to strike a deal: at the cost of gaining the power to freeze time, they infused some Pitaya flavoring into his dough, causing him to go from a regular-sized cookie to a cookie the size of a Dragon without the ability to transform.

Wish Craft does, however, still exist in this AU, as Panna Cotta used Wish Craft to keep control of his time freeze powers, and Vanilla Bean unknowingly uses the same Craft to loop between the same 2 days. It also causes that burning sugar smell that can be noted when Siffrin in the base game is about to loop back when talking to Euphrasie.

Plus, with the whole thing with the Vanilla Kingdom being in the sky, it makes it easier for the Vanillian denizens to do so many things related to the stars, planets, and even the galaxy. This makes it easier for them to position the stars on a star map since they're closer, but transporting the goods are difficult, since they're have to rely on different transportation methods than the Kingdoms on ground level to get the goods around.

Now, for the part relating to the Wish that made color disappear. Instead of making colors disappear, the Wish was for all cookies to forget what the Vanilla Kingdom was like. Was this a trauma response from one of the cookies that evacuated due to the war? Maybe, but that's how nobody remembers the Vanilla Kingdom, just like how nobody in the ISAT world remembers the Forgotten Island.

There's so much more that I could potentially go on about, but this wall of text is already enough.

[pixxyofice]

6 and 10 for the ISAT ask game

oh nice small fry icon

Anyway

6- do you have a battle strategy you’d like to share?

Been a bit since I properly played but I think my strategy was spamming jackpots and buffs before siffrin eventually got to the high levels and I just spammed attacks with them. Yeah.

10- any headcanons about the in-game world? (about the forgotten island, craft types, just like. world building hcs, etc)

UH... I do have some, but it's just folded into how I interpret it. Let's see... Favor trees were imported from the Island, where over in Forgotten Island they're normal size trees, but in Vaugarde they're fucking gigantic, so when the island got cut off from everything the only thing that remained was "favor trees Big Trees".

Wish craft is sugar, and time craft Does Something rather than smells. Time craft is a reactionary craft. Time is volatile, especially to those of us with a lack of time sense. King's wish craft allowed him to wield time craft, but I think if you could smell the craft in the air as he does so, it would also have a bit of burnt earth smell to it.

Siffrin doesn't wield it so much as he gets to pull on the strings. If they were able to wield time craft as a weapon like the king does, it would smell like burning steel.

And, last one: the island's wish that broke them off from everything was a coordinated effort from a group of people with a lot of rituals that had unexpected drawbacks like. Erasing it from memory and keeping everyone on there trapped. But I dont think they'd admit to making a mistake. It must be the universe's will that they are to be forgotten...

[stellafrin]

It's New Year's Eve and I'm now a year older.

Right, now's the time to talk about future plans? Resolutions? Boastings? Whatever you wanna call it.

I guess I'll start with a retrospective sorta thing tho.

This past year for me feels like nothing and everything has happened.

I didn't end up getting any real progress done on my personal projects past March.

I also ended up starting another extended hiatus after finishing ISaT. I did end up popping back in for October to stream Mouthwashing and Slay the Princess but have since gone back on hiatus for the time being.

Related to why that first hiatus started, I finally got myself a therapist and am also now properly medicated for my ADHD again so I'm able to focus for the first time in ages. But I've been far too focused on IRL stuff to work on any of my projects.

I have atleast been trying to be better at relaxing and not over working myself, neither with my projects nor from DD. (The reason I stopped working on anything in March may or may not be related to the fact that I accidentally burned myself out again... oops.)

Speaking of IRL(ish), back in March I caught myself calling myself by something and a few weeks later decided to start testing it out with friends, about a month ago I decided I'm gonna stick with it for real and started the process to get my name changed!

Unrelated to any of that, for a while I've been watching some shows with friends in a server. We'd have some long running show going once a week (we finished Adventure Time towards the beginning of the year, started DragonBall, around Sep/Oct finished it up and moved onto Z) and people were open to watch some shorter shows whenever.

Back in May, the show that my friend Mizzy decided to share was Madoka Magica, and over those 4 weeks of slowly watching threw this show, I unlocked an ancient love for this series including 2 OCs I had completely and utterly forgotten about. (I need to write down these girls' story at some point, would be a good excuse to try and start drawing again too.)

In the midst of finishing Madoka, my family came back to town for a Con and while here my older sister decided to watch Dungeon Meshi with me and our 2 younger siblings.

After finishing both shows, I needed to watch more...

I decided to go looking to see what anime I had been putting off that could be accessed easily and found that Bocchi the Rock was completely free on Crunchyroll and ended up bingeing the whole show.

Next was Frieren... which I caved and subbed to CR when I realized only the first 3 EN episodes were free (which I had already watched) and I needed more.

I remembered a show that an anime YouTuber I watch recommended earlier in the year so I went to check it out. It was interesting, wouldn't recommended it to anyone without a million caveats tho. (No I won't share it's name, if you already know then you know.)

Around this point was the beginning of the new anime season and I ended up getting into Mayonaka Punch and VTuber Legend at around episode 3, keeping up with them as they aired. (I think the last time I was keeping up with anime live was early pandemic when I was still watching MHA before I dropped it because I was bored.)

I desperately needed to find people who were talking about these shows because the conversation was essentially dead back on twitter, and thus, I got dragged back into using this godforsaken site consistently again for the first time in ages. (The tag system is just so good at keeping track of things and doesn't actively take up space in a post like on twitter, it's perfect for fandom)

It is now too late, I've gotten back into anime/manga. There is no going back.

...

Uh

This was supposed to be a retrospective wasn't it?

Like 2/3 of it is anime talk

Fuck

There's gonna be so much shit I need to cut for the bluesky version, fuck

......

Anyway

Future Plans! Resolutions!!! BOASTING!!!!!!

I WILL FINISH MY LOWPOLY 3D MODEL!!!!!!

I have so many cool VTubing mutuals I want to get to know more and possibly be friends with. I will attempt to reach out to people more (crippling social anxiety be damned)

By July I want to be back to streaming atleast once a week and keep it up for atleast 3 months.

I want to stop just being an observer on the sidelines like I have been for ages. I will make something! Wether it be,

Editing down my voice work from the ISaT streams or doing some more voice work for some other characters I think might be fun,

Writing out either my VTubing lore, my pmmm OCs info and story, the Frieren OC I ended up creating after finishing the show, or something related to ancient AU ideas for random fandoms I used to be active on the sidelines of eons ago,

Attempt to start drawing again,

Or even write, script, and edit at least one single video!

...I can't think of anything else... welp time to schedule this and pass the fuck out. I'll figure out how I'll chop this up for bluesky after I'm done working.

[higher-noon]

I'm taking this out of the tags because I have a lot to say.

The universe is a dog.

Isat and sasasaap spoilers below the cut, but pls follow me on this!

(Very slight tw for animal death, mentioned once towards the bottom)

I have had pets all my life, and up until very recently I was a dog trainer. While I would certainly not call myself an animal behavioralist, I do know quite a bit about how pups behave and why.

Something a lot of people forget when they get a dog is that no matter how much you love them and they love you back, no matter how well they are trained, at the end of the day they are still going to be a dog. An animal. Something with thoughts and feelings and instincts built to navigate the world in a very specific way. Even a service dog can bite if they feel threatened enough.

And it is not maliciousness that leads a dog to behave the way it does. A dog does not chew your shoes up because they want to take revenge on you for not taking a walk with them, they do it because they are understimulated and overenergetic and you happen to leave your shoes somewhere they can easily access. They like that it smells like you and the fabric is soft on their gums.

But being animal does not bar them from caring. My childhood pup is on video chasing down a black bear because I was playing in the yard and I got a bit too close. The affection you get from your pets is not transactional. They do not snuggle with you and follow you through the house and innitiate play with you and do everything else they do just so you feed them. They still care about you and love you fully and intensely and honestly.

So what does this have to do with the universe?

I ask you this: why would an uncaring universe bend to the will of a wish? Sure, craft exists as a form of pseudo-magic, but wish craft feels very different than the other forms. With most craft, it is a very straightforward transaction. You make a certain gesture and fuel it with a certain amount of energy and you get a standard effect.

This is treated very much as a science, something so fundamental that even children brush over the idea of it as a given. Every person from every country we are made aware of at least has working knowledge of how it functions.

Wish craft is not treated the same way. Only the forgotten island has been shown to understand the workings of it to the degree of getting results. Yet, the wishes of the citizens of Vougarde are still so powerful that the moment the universe is given an outlet through siffrin, his wish is basically hijacked to fulfill that need. Sure, if the king isn't defeated, it would be pretty hard to keep traveling together, but I feel like a much easier solution would be to just... move the party away from Dormont so they have to travel back. It is something we do see happen in the game (after receiving the keyknife), and it would presumably use a lot less energy than timecraft, especially to that extent.

But the universe wants to save the country and the people begging it for help. The exact same way it wants to help Siffrin.

And this is made especially clear when you look at Loop's wish.

They all but beg the universe to take their wish back. They're hurting and tired and panicked and at the end of SASASAAP they're ready to watch the world burn if they didn't have to deal with it anymore.

But the universe still has to help Vougarde. It still wants time to flow in the way it's supposed to work and it still wants to help Loop and it can still do something that isn't laying down to die!

So it will not give Loop an out, but it will give them help. It cannot take the load of their shoulders but it can lighten it by half. It cannot guide here but it can give you someone to follow your guidance instead.

The universe loves Loop so much that it gives them hope...

...even if hope is something they never wanted again.

The universe doesn't let Loop suffer, doesn't let Siffrin suffer, because it is uncaring, because the universe is nothing but care.

But it is a wild, animal care.

The kind of care that a wolf holds as she eats her pups when they won't survive the winter. The care that will survive first and coddle second.

The care that understands when the king lashes out against it, desperate and alone. A care that will not allow itself to be killed under his fists, but will still bend and give him a vision of home while he is being put to rest.

The universe leads in a way that ensures that it will survive, and when we follow it should be with the understanding that it will lead us where we need to be, but that need might not always be ours, the same way it will understand when we fight back.

The universe loves in mercies and bent rules and allowances that should not be made whenever it can get away with them. The universe loves in letting us ask for mercy in the first place, even if it does not always listen.

This is a In Stars and Time headcanon poll, but am curious about choices outside of the fandom

[jamieclawhorn]

2 stocks I plan to avoid in March

Wednesday’s results from satellite broadband group Inmarsat (LSE: ISAT) showed that despite sales rising ahead of expectations, the group’s profits fell sharply last year.

Its shares rose by 6.5% following the publication of these figures. But I remain concerned about the outlook for shareholders. In this piece I’ll explain why I’m worried. I’ll also highlight another stock where I think turnaround celebrations are premature.

This high flyer has bottom line problems

Inmarsat’s revenue rose by 4.3% to $1,329m last year, beating forecasts of $1,307m. The group’s after-tax profits fell by 13.7% to $243.3m, slightly ahead of forecasts of $236.3m.

This company is a market leader in the satellite broadband sector, serving airlines, governments and the global shipping industry. The quality of these operations doesn’t concern me.

What does worry me is Inmarsat’s balance sheet, spending plans and valuation. Profits fell last year because financing costs rose from $90.2m to $123.4m. To put that in context, the company paid its lenders almost $1 from every $10 of sales in 2016.

Although net debt actually fell by $91m last year, the firm still has net borrowings of $1,894.8m. That’s equivalent to 2.4 times earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA). That seems high to me, especially as capital expenditure is expected to rise from $412m in 2016 to $500m-$600m in 2017 and 2018.

Free cash flow over the last two years has averaged about $300m. So unless sales and profits rise sharply this year, I estimate that perhaps $400m of additional borrowing may be required to bridge the gap between operating cash flow and expenditure.

In my view, the forecast dividend yield of 6.1% is vulnerable to a cut. I’d also argue that the forecast P/E of 18 offers very little downside protection for shareholders.

Inmarsat is a quality business. But I don’t think the equity is attractive at the moment.

These shares look overcooked to me

Frankie & Benny’s owner Restaurant Group (LSE: RTN) gained 8.5% on Wednesday morning, after new chief executive Andy McCue laid out his turnaround plans for the firm. Investors were not deterred by news that adjusted pre-tax profit fell 11.2% to £77.1m last year. Nor were they concerned by a £116.7m restructuring charge that pushed the group to a full-year loss of £39.5m.

Since taking charge last year, Mr McCue has found that most of the firm’s main brands are suffering thanks to pricing hikes and unpopular menu changes. Reversing these mistakes has helped, but won’t be enough to return the group to growth.

Plans are in place to rejuvenate its main brands. The good news is that the firm’s balance sheet and cash flow remain strong. Both capital expenditure and the group’s dividend were fully covered by free cash flow last year, leaving net debt unchanged at just £28m.

The group’s pubs and concessions business — such as airport eateries — are also trading well.

Restaurant Group’s financial strength makes me more likely to invest here than in Inmarsat.

I certainly plan to keep an eye on this stock as a potential turnaround buy. But with the shares now trading on a forecast P/E of 16 and the ongoing risk of a dividend cut, I’m going to hold back for a little longer.

This FTSE 250 firm could beat the market

Rather than focusing on battered turnaround stocks, it can be more profitable to invest in companies that are already trading well. One potential example is the FTSE 250 company featured in our exclusive new report, A Top Growth Share From The Motley Fool.

The business concerned operates a popular consumer brand. Our analysis suggests that the value of this company could increase by up to 200% over the next few years.

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More reading

Is there still time to buy this super growth stock?

2 ‘forgotten’ dividend stocks with FTSE 100-beating potential

Is it time to start buying these burned-out FTSE 250 stocks?

2 ‘secret’ income stocks with monster dividends

3 big FTSE 250 dividends I’d definitely avoid right now

Roland Head has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

[vulpixisananimal]

Carrion!Sif: What's the weirdest hunt you've ever gone on?

"I dunno, I don't remember. But the party doesn't let me go hunting for food now."

[vulpixisananimal]

[A:2 C:4]

(Key time!)

(You open the door leading to the next floor. There were some stairs leading up, the smell of sugar growing a little stronger. Once you could see over the top of the stairs, you saw a large sadness blocking the way!)

“A sadness!!” (Mirabelle exclaims, you all run up to a few feet in front of it.)

“It seems to be guarding the rest of the house from us.” (Odile squinted at the sadness.)

“It feels strong, way stronger than any of the others!!” (Bonnie held their new wok in both hands, standing back.)

“Get ready, everyone!!!” (Isabeau took a stance.)

(Boss time!!)

(You snap your fingers and hold out your craft sign, [Make up the time]! Thin tendrils of craft energy radiate from your scissors sign and wash over you and your allies legs. You and your allies' speed increased!)

“Big ball head.”

“BIG BALL HEAD!!”

“Wait, something’s happening!” (Mirabelle paused her attack, a scissors sign flashed on the ball.) “Was that. . .”

“Scissors sign, huh?” (Isabeau squints.) “Does it mean something?”

“Well we can probably assume that’s its current craft type.” (Odile gives you a cheeky look.) “If you ever need a reminder which one it is, Siffrin, just ask.”

(Great, thanks Odile. Mirabelle holds out her signs and little discs of light encircled you and the others, boosting your strength!)

“Guess it’s my time to shine then!” (Isabeau dashed in, craft energy crackling around his fists as he [SMASH!!]ed the big boss sadness. Odile followed up with her own craft skill, [Rock III]).

(You smirk, this was gonna be easy.)

>>>

“Welcome back, Stardust! How can I help you on this wonderful new loop~”

(Well that was embarrassing, stars. . . You lost track of the craft type about halfway through the fight, and didn’t want to bother Odile for a reminder. You tried fighting it, got hit wrong, and it just snowballed into, well. . . Well, you were back again. So, questions. . . Questions. . .)

“How come I can see where the keys are?”

“Whaaaaaat? You caaaaaaan? How can that beeeeeeee~?” (Loop giggled behind their hand.)

(You squint.) “Is it, thanks to you?”

“Maybe~ I figured you already had so much to remember, you don’t need to worry about where a silly little key is.” (They lean in close, head resting on hands.) “No need to thank me~”

(You pinch the bridge of your nose and sigh.) “Are you getting on my nerves on purpose?”

“Yes, I actually manufactured this personality especially to get on your nerves, stardust!”

(Great. You shake your head. They were doing a really good job.)

“Anything else I can help you with, Stardust~?”

(Questions, questions. . .) “Do you think I could eat some of the frozen food in the house?”

“Oh I don’t know, how about you go and find out~!” (They giggle, then tilt their head.) “Why, getting hungry while saving the world?”

(Um. . .) “Maybe? I always wanted to try crab.”

“Crab?!?! Oh my STARDUST!! Don’t let your little housemaiden hear you saying things like that!!! Just WHAT will she say!!”

(Right. . .) “I’m just curious. . .”

“Don’t worry Stardust, I’m sure your little cook has quite the meal prepared for you!”

(Yeah, you bet.)

>>>

“Just a little more!!” (Mirabelle shouted as you dashed in and slashed with your dagger.) “I-I think we nearly beat it!!”

(Take two against the big ball head, and this time you didn’t get distracted. You weaved back jus in time to dodge its counterattack.)

“GO GO GO SIF GO!!!!!” ([YOUR TURN!!] You hear Isabeau shout, heh, you were about to end this, you held out your scissors sign and wispy slashes appeared across the sadness.)

(Jackpot!! You all take the moment and charge, and in one coordinated blow, the sadness is sliced into dozens of little pieces. You stumble back, panting, and then, you breathe in, and out.)

“CRAB YEAH!!!” (Bonnie cheered.) 

“We did it. . . !”

“Alright, let’s keep moving.”

(Adrenaline was rushing through your veins like white hot iron. Your heart buzzed, your legs twitched, ready to chase down whatever was next. No, calm down, stars Siffrin get ahold of yourself. You shake your head clear, and step forward. Leading the charge.)

>>>

“Okay, who wants snacks? I have SNACKS!!!!” (Bonnie ran over excitedly.) “Today, I have many snacks at your disposal. I have. . . Some PLANTAIN CHIPS!!!!”

(Bonnie presents a bundle of chips.)

“Oooh, did you use the last of those not-bananas to make them?” (Mirabelle asks.)

“Yes. Yes I did.” (Bonnie grinned.) “Crunchy. Delicious. And full of potassium. That's plantain chips!!!”

(You all clap. You never really like plantains, but they looked nice.)

“Second snack is. . . Some boring but delicious cookies!!!”

“Great sales pitch, Bonbon.” (Isabeau chuckles.) “Boring but delicious. Cookies, the taste of home.”

(Bonnie squinted at him.) “What kinda home is boring but delicious? Za, you're weird.”

(Isa just coughed into a hand. The cookies looked. . . Okay? You could smell the chocolate from here though, and it was tempting.)

“And for our third and final snack, we are proud to present. . . Some, uh. . . O-gi-ni-ri.”

“Onigiri.” (Odile corrects.)

“O-ri-ni-gi.”

“Onigiri.”

“Onion-geeree.”

“You messed that one up on purpose.”

“Yes!!!!!” (Bonnie cheekily laughed.) “I made a bunch, AND ‘Frin can have ‘em!!”

“Did you add some ‘Frin-compatible surprise then?” (Isabeau smiled.) “How thoughtful! You can eat rice, right, Sif?”

(You nod.) “Mhm, it’s not really filling, though. I think. “

“It’s not nutritious, but you can eat it without intestinal issues?” (Odile suggests. You nod.) “Fascinating. That opens up quite a few meal ideas, right, Boniface?”

(The kid cheered.) “YEAH!! Rice. I. Love. Rice.”

“You and every other kid on this planet, Boniface.”

(It’s nice that Bonnie looked out for you so much, even at what was maybe the end of the country. All the snacks looked delicious!)

“Now it’s time!!! To!!! Choose!!!” (Bonnie pumps their fists up excitedly.) 

“I’d love some Onigiri, Bonnie.” (You ask politely. Bonnie puts a few in your hand.)

“Here!! You!!! Go!!!”

(You open your mouth, about to take a bite, but pause. Sniff, sniff. . .) “. . . Beeeeef?”

“YEAH!!!” (Bonnie looks excited.) “I remember ‘Dile put a plum in there before but I wanted you to have some so I tried it with beef!!”

“How. . . Interesting.” (Odile looks suspiciously at the onigiri.)

(You take a bite. The rice dissolves in your mouth, and as soon as you hit the beef at the center you feel your shoulders relax. So, SO tasty!!)

“Is it good” (Bonnie looks at you all expectantly.)

(There’s a long pause. Odile is very good at hiding her expression.) “. . . . . . . .”

“. . . It’s okay ‘Dile, I know you’re old and not the biggest fan of change so! I made you a plum one!!”

“. . . Thank you.” (Odile takes the onigiri.)

(You gobble up the onigiri, savoring every last bite. You close your eye for a second, savoring it.)

“. . . S-so did you like it? Did I do good as snack leader?” (Bonnie has big shining eyes. You nod.)

“Yeah, this is good.”

“Mhm!”

“. . . . . . . .”

(. . . . . . . Oh no. DON’T MAKE BONNIE SAD!!!) “THANK YOU SNACK LEADER FOR THIS SUPER DELICIOUS MEAL!!!”

“SOOOO GOOOOD!!!!! Thank you Bonnie!!!!!!”

“I feel so ALIVE!!! THANK you Bonnie!!”

“. . . . . .” (Odile took a second.) “. . . Mm, good food, yum yum.”

“. . . Yesssss!!!”

(You take your time, finishing up your onigiri. It tasted so, so good but you were still hungry. Less hungry, now, but still hungry. But, that’s a later problem. You lay back for a moment, just take a second, then check in with everyone, then onwards and upwards.)

>>>

(Second floor!)

(You had just investigated the gardening room, and before that met a housemaiden frozen in time. Mirabelle had a bit of a moment, but, you had to continue. If you wanted to unfreeze them, you have to beat the King, after all. And each step through the halls brought you closer and closer to that goal.)

(The hall turned to the right, with a door on the wall in front of the turn. Well, in you go!)

“O-oh! It’s the Head Housemaidens office!” (Mirabelle jumps in.) 

“Someone like her definitely has some good stuff, right? Like keys! Or snacks!!!”

“Or information. Let's look around.”

(You do just that, big desk first. You open the drawers and start rummaging around, listening to your party as you look.)

(The Head Housemaiden. In charge of, well, everything here. Makes sure everyone’s happy, everyone’s healthy, that the kids get educated, houses get repaired, organising events, all of it. All on her shoulders, and on top of that is great at crafts too! Stars, you could never imagine doing something that complicated. The Head Housemaiden was supposed to defeat the King, too, but. . .)

(There’s nothing in the drawer, annoying, keep looking, there’s a childs drawings of the Head Housemaiden, random notes, a closet, bookshelf, not much. There’s some notes posted to the wall about the King.)

(Odile glances at Mirabelle.) “Why do you even call the King "the King"? Vaugarde isn't a monarchy. Isn't "King" just a title he chose?

“Yes, but he chose it. . .” (Mira says a bit awkwardly.) “Calling him something else would just be rude?”

“Yeah, that's just basic manners.” (Isabeau adds, Odile just lets it go.)

(Continuing around the room, there’s a pile of neatly sorted papers. Looking through them, there seems to be a bit of everything in here. A petition to serve more bread at lunch, notes about some recurring dream, a cheesy, mushy love letter. . . No, nothing here.)

(Welp, that was pointless. You lead the rest of the party out.)

(As you go to continue down the hall, the hairs on your neck stand up on end. You turn just in time to see a giant boulder crash down in front of the Head Housemaidens office. Blocking it off.)

“. . .”

“. . .”

“. . . There was nothing important in there, right? So this is fine?”

(Yeah, it should be fine. You lead the party on. Just a few meters down the hall sat a heavy metal door. You try the handle; locked.)

“. . . Sucks.” (You look back.) “Any idea where the key could be, Mira?”

“I’m, not sure. . .” (Mirabelle thinks, tapping her chin.) “It. . . Could. . . O-oh no.”

“Uh oh?” (Bonnie says in a questioning tone.)

“I-I, I think, I-I think it was in the head housemaiden office.”

“Uh oh!!!”

“Urgh. . .”

“I'm sorry!!! I'm sorry!!! I should've remembered, why didn't I remember!!”

“Hey, don't worry about it, Mira.” (Isabeau pat her shoulder.)

“Yes, you're not to blame here. If anything, it's Siffrin's job to look out for things.” (Odile glances at you.) 

(Hey. . .)

(You step away from the door, the others were already spitballing on how to get passed the door or the rock, what to do. . .)

(You hear a chime in your ear. Wh-)

[Hey stardust! Sorry to interrupt, but I am here in your head to beam you some amazing advice~ Did you hear that chime just now? That’s there to inform you that you are stuck in time! No matter what, you won't be able to progress further in the House in this loop.]

[Only thing you can do is find a way to loop back. Woopsies! Say, didn't you see some tears on the way here? That could work~ (Also come say hi sometime! I'm so lonely. . . Sob sob. . . Do you feel sorry for me yet. . ?)]

(. . . Great! Thanks, Loop. You look around, the others are still discussing what to do, and you could explore the rest of the house, but. . . No, looping time. While they’re distracted, you walk over to the tear and reach out.)“. . . Siffrin? What’re you-” (Mirabelle reacts too late, you touch the tear.)

[vulpixisananimal]

[A:2 C:3]

"You okay, Sif?" (Isabeau was kneeling down in front of you. You were panting, sadness defeated, air clearing up from that sweet smell of sugar that was driving you mad. In, out. In, out. In. . .)

"I-I'm fine!" (You laugh, nervous. It had been hard to fight that sadness while struggling with your own sense of smell. Luckily, the others were able to pick up for your useless self.) "Juuuust needed a second."

"What's with your nose anyway." (Bonne asked.) "Like, mine's good but yours is weird."

"Haha, I dunno." (You get up, wiping your nose.) "Alright! I’m Good to go!"

(You lead the party out of the room, weird star thing in hand. You feel Odiles eyes on you.)

>>>

(Huh! A kitchen! You had used that star charm to pass through the wall of tears, and ended up in a kitchen! You don't question it. You do, however, smell something in the air. Something that wasn’t sweet sugar, finally.)

(You check the shelves, yep, there’s juice! You hand them to Bonnie. You look at the plates, everyone else talks about them, you're just impressed at how high it goes! Alright, enough of that, you swing past the counter to the rest of the kitchen-)

(OW!!!)

"Woah!!" (Isabeau sounds shocked.)

". . . Siffrin." (Odile looked at you.) "Did you hit your hip on the counter, and meow?"

(Uh-) "N-no-"

(Odile smirks.) "Okay, mrrow."

"MADAME?!?!?" (Mira says in shock. You all have a good laugh! Ow, that, hurt.)

(You open a closet, there's a key inside. You got the EGG KEY! You hand it to Bonnie, they chomp on it. There's a whole nice conversation about why eggs are such a THING in the Change Belief. Breaking and destroying to change. Something like that. Bonnie gives you the egg key back.)

(. . . You wonder if you can eat eggs, since they're just birds, really.)

(Looking over at the sink, there's a few things here but-)

"WOK!!!" (Bonnie exclaims.)

"W-what is it??" (Mira looks over, worried.)

"WOOOOOOK!!!!" (Bonnie grabs the Wok in the sink excitedly.)

(. . . Bonnie got a wok!! You're not exactly what a wok is, but, Bonnie has one now! You continue looking around. There's a pot of bubbling food on the stove, frozen in time.)

(You sniff at what's in the pot.) ". . . I think they were cooking, crab?"

“WHAT?!?” (Bonnie jumped up and looked in.)

“EEK!! CRAB?!?” (Mirabelle tugged on her coat.)

“W-what is happening?!?” (Odile looked between everyone, confused.)

(You were asking the same thing, the others were still shocked at the food choice! You LIKED crab! It tasted so, so, SO good!! The shells were the best part!)

>>>

(You pause on the way back, what WAS that door, anyway. The second door on the right side. You walk up to it and knock. It felt very sturdy.)

“I don’t think anyone’s home, Sif.” (Isa comments, the others chuckle.)

(You look for a lock. . . . Uh, there’s no lock?)

“Have you never seen a lock like this before, Sif? (Isabeau asks, leaning in.) “It's a special kind of Vaugardian lock! Instead of a key, it needs specific words to open!”

“Words. . ?” (Odile asks.)

“Yes, you just need to say the words aloud!” (Mira answered enthusiastically.) “I think they call it a, uh... An openphrase?”

(Openphrase? You turn to look at her.) “Do you know the openphrase for this one?”

“Uhm. . .” (She tugs on her coat.) “I don’t know, maybe, maybe the store owner in Dormont knows? I saw him walk in here a few times now.”

“Well that stinks.” (Bonnie pouted.)

“Too late to ask now!” (Isabeau smiles.) “Chin up, it’s just one room.”

(You look the door up and down. An openphrase, huh. . ?)

>>>

(Huh! An armory?)

(Looking around, yeah! It’s an armory, the row of spears proves it.)

“Why the need for an armory with weapons anyway? Does the house get attacked often?” (Odile asks, looking around.)

“Oh! Not at all! Well, apart from right now of course. But! This is just one of the many classes offered by the House of Change!” (Mirabelle happily explained.)

“The Jouvente house does this too! Most people put their weapons on a wall to look cool.” (Isabeau asks.)

“Like that?” (You ask, pointing to the sword on the wall.)

“Yeah!! Like that!!” (Isa chuckles.) “Actually, that sword does look very rapier-like. Wanna take it, Mira?”

“Hmm. . . Taking things that aren’t yours is bad. . .” (Mirabelle said innocently.) “But yes. I will take it.”

“You got over that quickly.” (Odile comments as Isabeau grabs the sword for her.)

“Nille made a hammer and put it on our wall once.” (Bonne adds.)

“Oh? What happened?” 

“Hammer too heavy. Wall broke. We had to share a room for MONTHS!”

“Tragic.”

[You got the NEEDLE SWORD! You give it to Mirabelle.]

(It’ll be fine, the people who made the sword will understand. You continue on, going to the other half of the room, then freeze. You, don’t, remember what the big metal slab is but you DO remember the big forge. Forge, used for,  making weapons, and has, okay, o-okay-)

“Iiiit’s alright, Siffrin!” (Isabeau says encouragingly.) “It doesn’t look like it’s on, plus any fire would be frozen, right?”

“Just take your time!! W-we don’t need to check over there if it’s too much, alright?” (Mirabelle adds.)

“Phobias are no joke.” (Odile turns.) “We can check again on the way back, so you can mentally prepare. And if it’s too much, we just move on.”

(You nod, hiding your head in your cloak and hat, embarrassed. . .)

>>>

(The key works!)

(You all continue through the hallways, cutting through sadness as you go. The rooms of the house did feel a bit, weird? Out of place? Not how someone would design a house? And Mirabelle confirmed it, everything was shifted around.)

(Luckily that hadn’t been a problem, yet. Continuing forward, you made it to a few dorm rooms. You decided to skip the left room for now, you could smell a lot of stuff from there and it made you nauseous. You go to the right one and look around. There was a soft bed, some paper on a wall, and a notebook with scribbles on it.)

(Looking through one of the closets, there’s a lot of arts and crafts supplies, and. . . Oh! There’s a pile of hand-drawn cards. You pick one up.)

(The card’s upside down. Turning it over, there’s a lady in a field of grapes, surrounded by nine stars. Weird.)

“Why does that pillow look so comfy…” (You look over, Isabeau was leaning over the other bed.)

“It has a strange shape, though, doesn't it?” (Odile leans down and picks the pillow up.)

“That’s. . .” (Bonnie jumps up and grabs it from Odiles hands) “That's not a pillow! THAT'S A HAT!!! JUST LIKE MINE!!!”

(Mirabelle giggled.) “First a wok now a hat! You’re really lucky today Bonbon!”

“Yeah!!” (Bonnie looks chuffed.)

(You keep looking around, next is a dresser with art books on top of it. Digging through, you find a key! You got the BROKEN EGG KEY!! You toss it up and catch it, before showing it to the others.)

(Odile put a hand on her hip.) “In someone's drawer? What a weird place for a key. . .”

(Bonnie leans up and makes grabby hands at the key. You give it.) “Definitely not a very king-like place, huh!!! That's pretty stupid of him!!!”

(Isa crosses his arms.) “I'm not sure... Hiding keys in places like drawers isn't very King-like, yeah, but it means they're harder to find since it's not a very expected place. . .” (He gestures to you dramatically.) But thankfully we have our good ol' Sif to help us find them!

“Thank you, Siffrin! Good job, Siffrin!”

“Yaay, good jooooob.”

(Odile claps her hands sarcastically, and everyone joins in. You take an overly dramatic bow.)

(You’re doing a good job!)

(You got a [Memory of Keys!] With this equipped, you’ll be able to remember exactly where keys are kept!)

>>>

(O-okay, okay, take two. You breathe in. . . And out. . . You walk into the armory.)

“We got your back Siffrin!” (Mirabelle cheers. You hide your head in your cloak, blushing.)

(Okay, it’s not even lit, just go. You walk to the other side of the room, and to the metal slab. Uh, it’s, goes with the forge. . . Uh. . .)

“An anvil, Siffrin.” (Odile offers.) “To go with the forge.”

“And the little stone is a sharpening stone!” (Isabeau adds.)

(O-oh yeah! You smile sheepishly.)

(You skip over the forge and turn around, checking the table. There’s more juices here, good. You hand them to Bonnie then quickly leave.)

“Well done Siffrin.” (Odile sounded, genuine?)

“Y-yes!! Very well done Siffrin!!” 

“We’re all really proud, Sif!” 

“I don’t get why it’s such a big deal.” (Bonnie pouts.) “It’s just a stupid forge.”

“Phobias are strange like that.” (Odile comments.) “Something that you’d expect to trigger it might not, and simple things that look innocent might make you shake. Right, Siffrin?”

(You keep your eyes down.) “Y-yeah. . Like, the torches.”

“Oh yeah!” (Isabeau looks up at the touches on the walls.) “I’ve never seen you get super skittish around candles and lamps.”

“Well it’s a small flame, high up, and is used to give light!” (Mirabelle thinks aloud as you walk.) “I guess it’s not as scary?”

“I guess that makes sense.” (Bonnie huffs.)

“And you don’t remember what caused it?” (You nod.) “That’s alright. Perhaps if we know what started your pyrophobia, we’d be able to help you get over it.”

(You glance up at Odile, smiling sheepishly. That would be nice.)

[jamieclawhorn]

2 ‘forgotten’ dividend stocks with FTSE 100-beating potential

While there are a number of high-yield stocks which are popular among income investors, others are less so. However, this does not mean they should be avoided. In fact, it is possible to obtain relatively high and fast-rising dividends from shares which are somewhat unloved or forgotten among income-seeking investors. Here are two examples of such stocks, both of which offer high yields and the potential to beat the FTSE 100 in 2017.

A solid financial services stock

Wealth manager Brewin Dolphin (LSE: BRW) currently yields 4.6%. That is almost 1% higher than the FTSE 100’s yield. Furthermore, the company’s shareholder payouts seem to be well-covered by profit, with it having a dividend coverage ratio of over 1.3. This indicates that even if profit growth should be somewhat lacklustre, Brewin Dolphin could still increase dividends at a relatively brisk pace so as to maintain real-terms dividend growth over the medium term.

The company is forecast to record a rise in its bottom line of 14% next year. This may be somewhat surprising, since Brexit may be viewed as a major threat to its business. But since the performance of the FTSE 100 is driven largely by the international economic outlook and the strength of sterling, it may offer high capital gains in 2017 and beyond. Since Brewin Dolphin’s financial performance is linked to the level of the wider index, it could enjoy a prosperous period in future.

With the company’s shares trading on a price-to-earnings growth (PEG) ratio of just 1, they appear to offer excellent value for money. While it may not be an obvious income choice for many investors, it nevertheless appears to be a worthwhile purchase which is capable of beating the FTSE 100 in 2017.

High-risk dividend opportunity?

Global mobile satellite communications services specialist Inmarsat (LSE: ISAT) may not be the most stable of stocks, but its yield indicates that it is worth buying for the long term. It currently yields 7.2%, which is almost twice the FTSE 100’s yield. As such, it is set to offer an almost unrivalled income return in the next few years, which could cause investor demand for its shares to rise rapidly.

However, recent results have been somewhat mixed. Inmarsat’s profit has fallen in each of the last two years, and it is forecast to record a decline in its earnings of 9% this year. While disappointing, growth of 18% in 2018 should help to boost its dividend coverage ratio of around one and provide a potential catalyst for its share price.

Trading on a PEG ratio of 0.7, Inmarsat appears to be cheap. It may not offer the stability or consistency of other FTSE 350 income shares, but its high yield appears to make up for this. Alongside its stunning growth potential and low valuation, this means that it could outperform the FTSE 100, not just in 2017, but in future years too.

Millionaire potential

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That's why the analysts at The Motley Fool have written a free and without obligation guide called 10 Steps To Making A Million In The Market.

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More reading

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2 ‘secret’ income stocks with monster dividends

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Peter Stephens has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.