#and exactly 1 (one) Kris

[centipedetea]

its killing me that spamton is going thru that situation where people hate woobifying fanon so much that they lean too far in the opposite direction and create fanon 2 where he's cartoonishly evil for no reason

[rotund-spheal]

when The Character™️ takes over your brain and gets you to start doodling again

[acaciapines]

rotating noelle around in my brain. i need the dess raises kris au to be real RIGHT NOW.

please talk to me about the dess raises kris au i think im gonna explode. also start writing it this summer maybe :3333

[twilightofthesandwiches]

It’s funny, when the first Deltarune Chapter came out, people were quick to notice how, while the illustration of the Human and Monster Hero in the Prophecy pretty much matched Susie and Kris exactly

Ralsei only matched the “Prince from the Dark” while wearing that hooded cloak he discarded very shortly after.

So that led people to speculate that maybe Ralsei is not the Prince from the Prophecy. That Ralsei - as the one who actually knows the Prophecy - deliberately dressed himself like ‘the Prince from the Dark’ so he could pretend to be one of the Prophesied Heroes. Maybe deliberately for sinister purposes, maybe subconsciously out of wishful thinking, because he wanted friends.

But now, that we know more of the 'True Prophecy'…

Well, the question of Ralsei matching or not matching the Prophesied Prince still remains as it was, since Chapter 4's illustration of the Prince also pretty much matches the first one we saw…

But now, the Prophecy Status of all three of our Heroes have been called into question! If anything Ralsei is now the most likely one to ‘belong’ to the Prophecy, with his unique Darkener-who-can-exist-in-all-Worlds status and being created with the Burden of Knowledge of the Prophecy.

Because unlike the illustration shown in Chapter 1, the ‘True’ Illustration for Kris is… quite abstract.

There’s nothing here that specify it must be Kris Dreemurr. It doesn’t contradict the idea that it can be Kris, but… It’s just a cage for us made from ‘human parts’, it could just as well be one of the Undertale Humans, or the Vessel from the start of the game, or something we don’t know about it yet.

Meanwhile the illustration of ‘the Girl’ subtly contradicts Susie's actual design, by having the figure carry, not Susie’s trademark Axe, but a Sword.

One has to wonder if the Prophecy has already gone ‘off the rails’ a long time ago. I’ve been thinking, if not Susie, who else could’ve been filling this role of a sword-wielding Monster Girl…

And the only one I can come up with is Dess.

[mintiestcrystal]

ok side tangent!!!!! i love how much visible personality toby managed to put into a character that, TO US, is pretty blank at first glance. and thats obviously by design! kris very very obviously doesn't exactly care for us, and are pretty closed off! they shouldn't!

but the guzzling fruit juice, the three-way "kris will sing swears", "bangin' sermon my man", certain aspects of their internal monologue...it paints a really interesting picture, one that's grown wonderfully over the years. remember chapter 1, when everyone was wondering what their deal was?

we know now!

its chaos. their deal is chaos.

[lynxgriffin]

Eldritchrune - Kris's Birthday

Story Setup Eldritchrune Masterpost

Close to the end of their journey, Kris has a small celebration with the beasts, and reflects some on both their past with their brother, and the light world ahead.

(Reminder that I draw these scenes out of chronological order!)

YAY managed to get another part done! This one won the poll, so had to go with it first! At least Kris finally gets a nice, happy moment with all the beasts they've recruited!

Alt text under the read more:

Page 1

Panel 1 - Wide opening shot. Kris sits facing Ralsei, with the rest of the Fun Gang surrounding them. The Gang now consists of Susie, Noelle, Lancer, Berdly, Catti and Jockington, and Monster Kid. The Fun Gang have set up camp in a hollow crater, the landscape around them rocky and barren. Everyone is lit solely by the glow of a campfire in the center of the crater. Ralsei addresses Kris: “Get plenty of rest, Kris.”

Panel 2 - Medium shot of Kris and Ralsei, still across from each other with the fire between them. Ralsei continues, “Tomorrow we face the last bound god before the Dark Fountain…it’ll be our toughest fight yet!” Kris responds, “Yes. I understand.” They stare into the fire.

Panel 3 - Closeup on a happy Ralsei as he holds up one claw. “And since we’re so close to the end…”

Panel 4 - “...I thought I’d conjure up a special surprise for you!” Ralsei moves his claws, and magically congeals a plate, food and frosting all together in a swirling center.

Panel 5 - Ralsei holds up the finished object in front of the fire: a small frosted cake, topped with strawberries. “SURPRISE! Happy birthday, Kris!” he declares with a broad smile.

Page 2

Panel 1 - Ralsei holds the cake up in the foreground. Kris looks at it in surprise. Behind them, Susie and Noelle look on with interest. “Wow! Is today really your birthday, Kris?” Noelle asks.

Panel 2 - Closeup on Kris. They scratch at their head in confusion, and respond, “I… Is it? I’ve lost track of the days since arriving here…”

Panel 3 - Medium shot as Ralsei happily hands the cake to Kris, who takes it. He says, “Well, I’m not sure if it’s exactly today. But by my estimates you should have had one by now! So now is as good a time as any!”

Panel 4 - A wider upshot as Kris takes the cake, and the beasts watch. Berdly leans in closer, curious, and asks, “What do you humans do on these ‘birth-days,’ as you call them?”

Kris replies, “Well, typically…you eat cake, or some other sweet treat, and you spend time with your friends and family.”

Panel 5 - Kris stares into the fire again, and continues, “And usually, they also give you gifts.” Behind them, as if in abstract shadow, is an image of a younger Kris surrounded by the other Dreemurrs, all smiling. It seems to be a memory of a past birthday.

Page 3

Panel 1 - Closeup of Kris still looking into the fire, their eyes hidden by their hair. A shadow seems to fall over them. The memories of happier times still hurt.

Panel 2 - Lancer pipes up: “Ya got the cake and friends part right here!” Kris turns to see Lancer and Susie smiling at them, and gives a small smile back.

Panel 3 - Noelle leans in over Kris as well, her head taking up most of the panel. She says, “Sorry, we don’t have any gifts for you…but two out of three isn’t bad, right?”

Kris’s smile broadens a little, and they reply, “No, it is not.”

Panel 4 - Kris pulls out a smaller knife…

Panel 5 - And in a shot focused on the cake, begins to slice the cake into equal pieces with the knife.

Panel 6 - Kris offers a piece to Catti, who happily licks it up. “Tasty.”

Panel 7 - Kris tosses a piece across the fire to Berdly, who catches it in his mouth. “Thanks, Kris!”

Panel 8 - Kris turns around and tosses another piece into Susie’s open jaws. “Hell yeah, cake!” she says, excited.

Page 4

Panel 1 - A wide shot as the whole Fun Gang sit around the fire, enjoying their cake slices, small as they are. Kris works on eating their own slice. Noelle says, “That was good! …Do you think there’ll be lots more cake in the light world?”

Panel 2 - Medium shot of Kris, who turns to look up at Noelle. “Yes, there are. But I would have thought you’d be interested in the humans more,” they say around a mouthful of cake.

Panel 3 - Noelle looks off to the right, and responds, “Sure, I’ll have some, if they’re soft… I don’t like the hard bits, like armor and bones.”

Panel 4 - Wider shot as Noelle leans back against Susie, snuggling into her side. “I mostly want to get to the Light World and quiet this feeling in my mind…once I do that, I’ll be happy,” She says.

Susie grins, and says, “More for me, then! I can’t wait to get to the Light World and all that food…”

Page 5

Panel 1 - Susie rests her head on the ground, and continues, “I’m gonna eat up all those humans and finally feel full!” She smiles and licks her lips at the thought. Lancer sits just nearby.

Panel 2 - Wider shot of all the beasts around the fire. Across from Susie, sitting in a loaf, Catti says “Greedy.”

“Oh come on, like you aren’t excited for the food!” Susie responds with an annoyed look.

Panel 3 - Medium shot as Catti looks up towards the dark clouds above them, grinning broadly. Behind her, Jockington also looks Skyward, his body wiggly. Catti says, “Not just that. Open skies. Sun. Fresh smells. New magic.” Jockington adds, “It’s been, way too long since we, learned a new technique!”

Catti reiterates: “Lots of things. Looking forward to them.”

Panel 4 - Wider shot as Kris turns to Monster Kid, who’s been quiet this whole time. They’re mostly buried underground, but their tail is currently out of their mouth. Kris asks them, “You’re looking forward to leaving the Dark World, too?” They reply, “Y-yeah, Kris! I wanna eat some humans too, but…also wanna be someplace niver, y’know?”

Panel 5 - Closeup on Monster Kid’s face as they continue: “Here it’s really hard to find food. And it’s so dark and cold, and e-everyone’s trying to fight each other… I hate it, yo.”

Page 6 

Panel 1 - Wide downshot of the whole Fun Gang huddled together in the empty crater. The barred landscape stretches out around them. Berdly looks to the skies, and says, “Yes, it’s true. The terrain here is so bleak and devoid of sidequests.”

Panel 2 - Closeup on Berdly as he smiles, looking excited and proud. “But if the Light World has as many humans as you say, I’ll be able to max out my volume in no time!”

Panel 3 - Susie looks away and sticks out her tongue, clearly annoyed at the prospect. “Oh goody, we’re aaaall excited for that…”

Berdly, not picking up on her sarcasm, just continues to beam proudly. “And rightfully so!”

Panel 4 - Noelle nudges her enormous nose against Kris’s back, and says, “We’re all really excited to see the Light World with you, Kris.”

Kris turns back towards her slightly, and smiles. “Me too.”

Panel 5 - Kris reaches around the fire to hand the now empty plate back to Ralsei, who takes it.

Panel 6 - Ralsei makes the plate vanish into shards of nothing with a wave of his claws. “Then let’s get some rest!” he says, satisfied.

Panel 7 - The small campfire is now extinguished. Only a thin wisp of leftover smoke rises from the blackened wood and coals.

Page 7

Panel 1 - A wide shot of the crater, still at night. With the campfire out, all of the eldritch beasts are now asleep. Monster Kid is buried underground. Catti is sleeping as a loaf, with Jockington resting on her back. Berdly sleeps with his head tucked under one wing. Susie and Noelle sleep snuggled up together, with Susie’s long tail curled around them. Kris lays nestled between them, long hair and shaggy fur serving as a makeshift bed. Ralsei stands off to the side.

Panel 2 - Medium shot of Kris. They lay awake between the two beasts, staring up at the sky. They look pensive.

Panel 3 - Slightly closer, Kris looks down and to their right. Ralsei asks from offscreen: “Kris! Are you feeling all right?”

Panel 4 - Downshot of Ralsei as he looks up towards Kris. He spreads his arms out in a hopeful gesture. “I know perhaps this isn’t the sort of birthday you would have had back home, but I was hoping I did okay on such short notice…”

Panel 5 - Closeup on Kris as they close their eyes. “I just…” They take a deep sigh.

Panel 6 - Kris looks up from the makeshift bed, looking sad. “I can’t remember the first birthday I had with mom and dad and Azzy anymore.”

Page 8 

Panel 1 - Shot of the dark skies above. Thick clouds silently roll across a starless expanse. “The whole day feels like it’s completely gone.”

Panel 2 - Wider shot, with Ralsei in the foreground. He still watches Kris carefully. “Oh, I see. I suppose Seam has asked for quite a few payments from you during your time here…perhaps you sold the memory?”

Panel 3 - Closeup on Kris as they squeeze their eyes shut, trying to block out budding tears.

Panel 4 - “Yes. Likely,” they say. Kris sadly holds up their left hand above their head. Their hand is missing the pinkie finger…another payment to Seam.

Panel 5 - Closeup on Ralsei as he looks downward. “I’m sorry, Kris.”

Panel 6 - Medium shot as Kris hugs themself, still nestled in the hair and fur. “Asriel would usually get me a book he thought I’d like, and I’d complain about it, but then read it cover to cover in one night. Once I learned how to read, anyway,” they say with a small smile.

Panel 7 - Low angle shot as Kris continues to reminisce, watching the dark clouds above. “Mom and dad also always got me a square of chocolate. I don’t know how they afforded it.”

Page 9

Panel 1 - In a flashback panel, Asriel and Kris sit across from each other outdoors, each leaning against trees. Simple woods surrounded them, and a lazy river rolls by just past them. Beyond the river are a few small homes and farms from the town. Kris holds an apple, while Asriel has a book and feather pen. Both are talking, looking happy. 

Kris speaks over the flashback: “Azzy and I would go and sit by the river in the summer, and he’d point out plants and animals and tell me to give them science names. Even when I said crass or foolish ones, he wrote them down and said he would petition to get the names changed.”

Panel 2 - Closeup on Kris as they look away, the memory still feeling a bit sad to them.

Panel 3 - Closeup on Ralsei, interested and responding to the stories. “Your brother sounds like a generous soul.”

Panel 4 - Kris looks down, still sad and reminiscing. “He didn’t have to be so nice to me. Everyone said he’d leave town and go do great things.”

Panel 5 - Another flashback panel, this time in Azzy and Kris’s shared room. It looks similar to their room in canon, but much older and more bare-bones, with simple wood walls. Kris sits on the edge of their bed, listening. Asriel sits on the edge of the bed, looking pensive, his cheek resting against his hand. 

Kris continues over the flashback: “But he…he told me that he didn’t like that pressure. That I was more fun to hang around than whatever great thing the town expected him to do.”

Page 10

Panel 1 - Closeup on Ralsei. He looks on, his tattered scarf flowing behind him. A curious smile crosses his face. “The way you have spoken about him, all this time…I am so curious to meet him.”

Panel 2 - Kris nestles down into the bed of fur and hair, and shuts their eyes, drifting off to sleep at last. They mumble, “Maybe…maybe soon.”

Panel 3 - Wide shot of all the beasts, asleep in the crater. Kris finally sleeps as well, tucked between Susie and Noelle. It’s dark, and quiet. In the foreground, Ralsei remains awake and watching, his back to the camera. It’s unknown what he’s thinking.  

[ofekma]

Susie and Ralsei: learning that you matter (part 2)

By playing the first chapter of deltarune only, one might think that Susie is the one who has more to learn. After all, she starts off threatening to kill Kris, while Ralsei starts off trying to make friends and save the world.

But as the story progresses, we see that Ralsei has more things that hinder his growth as a person.

Like, the fact that he doesn't feel like he deserves to even be a person.

Ralsei doesn't only think that he doesn't deserve to have belongings, but that he doesn't even deserve to have feelings.

He wants to be friends, but his definition of friendship is to be used up

Then be discarded.

Of course, in both cases Susie in her typical defiant fashion (though now infused with kindness), rejects his world view.

And this metaphorical slap of logic is exactly what Ralsei needs to hear. The no hesitation "of course you matter, dumbass!" only Susie can give him.

And this ended up making Ralsei wish for more than just regarding person-hood, but regarding friendship as well.

Both times he calls it 'selfish', despite only wishing for he could be there for Susie more, and if not that, make sure that there's someone else who can do it for him.

Because Ralsei sees himself as no more than a chair, and for a chair to wish it could be more than a chair, even for the sake of helping its owners in ways other than its initial purpose, is unthinkable.

The mere act of wanting something that isn't related to his purpose is selfish in his eyes.

But Susie is so kind and so passionately caring, that she encourages Ralsei to be more 'selfish'. She even lets him have the entire cake he baked for Kris and her when she found out that he never had cake before.

And one of the things we know about Susie, is that she WILL eat anything vaguely edible she can get her hands of (sometimes even if it's not edible).

This isn't even the first time she did something like this. She let Lancer have the dark candy in chapter 1 when she heard that he never had one before, right after she complained about how hungry she was.

It's a popular theory along the fandom that Susie doesn't get enough food at her home, and yet when she sees someone she feels like needs it more than her, she's willing to give up food for them.

Ralsei thinks of himself as an object, but Susie looks at her and sees a person, just like her.

Because she herself knows what is it like to not get treated like a person.

Before going to the dark world, Susie felt like she didn't matter.

So now that she sees Ralsei feeling the same thing, she can tell him what he and the other people she met helped her understand.

"Hey, you matter. For real. And screw anyone who says otherwise."

[t104b]

Taking the bait. Tenna x reader

A/N: Nothing explicit, just a oneshot of the reader being used as a distraction to Tenna cuz he likes them the most. Mentions of the reader being a big collector/fan of vintage and old items, reader is G/N, Reader is also the oldest of them all by like quite a bit (18+ reader basically). Can be seen as platonic and romantic because I suck at writing romantical oneshots without any build up. Chapter 3 spoilers this is set 2/3rd into the chapter. Haven’t written in 2 years so sorry if it is mediocre.

Tenna had gone rampant with the lightners missing. However, ralsei made a small suggestion to the Fun Gang as a way to distract Tenna, as well as get information on why exactly he was trying to stop them from closing the dark fountain. However, you were nominated as their bait to go find the TV host and get info because they believe the CRT has a favourite amongst them.

Words: 2.8k, Reverse comfort/fluff

You internally groaned, following the fluorescent red-carpeted maze of this dark world with the blinking lights of the surrounding TV that portrayed certain imageries besides you. A buzzing noise filled the air from the CRT screens whining, as well as the bright light blinding your vision slightly. Why did you have to be the one to distract him? Sure, it seemed as if he gave you slightly more lenience and ease throughout the challenges, and his mannerism towards you was way less brash as he did with the rest, but surely that’s not all the reasons to send you over to that heaping statue of a show host? I mean- you don’t even know if he’ll listen to you, or even bother indulging in your presence and instead seize the desperate chance to at least catch one of the lightners to use as a gambling pawn. Even with your retaliation, it was decided 3 to 1, the rest agreeing that if you wouldn’t come back in time they’d come after you. I mean, come on! You’re an adult, you should be the one protecting them- but instead those kids are saying they’re going to protect your back! You gulped, placing all of your hopes into their capabilities of backing you up.

Growing up, you’ve always enjoyed older, more vintage appliances and items that gave you that warm, buzzy feeling in your heart. You were never really sure why you had such an appreciation for older things, the things that any regular person would toss away in place for a newer version. Maybe it was because the thought of those items seeing through life more than you, maybe it was the charm that they all had and the little bits and bobs that had defined them (rather than the current minimalistic design choice that most people with a good salary choose), or maybe it’s just because of your background you had always had to rely on things that were either hand-me-downs from family or already used and pre-loved. Either way, it gave you the keen eye of appreciating the little things in older appliances. It also gave you a weird sense of anemoia, imagining how much better life was when it was ‘simpler’.

When you first saw Mr. (Ant) Tenna, you immediately recognised him to be Toriel’s old CRT TV. Well, not recognise- more like notice the details that resembled the TV greatly. You had spent a good deal of your time helping Toriel fix that old artifact, occasionally joining her family for special runs during the holidays as well as accompanying Kris and sometimes even Susie when you offered to babysat Kris for the goat mom. Later into the Dark world, it wasn’t hard to piece the clues together for you to realise that he was, in fact, her TV. Additionally, during your whole adventure you had hoped internally as well that he did not remember the times that you had praised his internal wirings and his model, realising now how embarrassing it’d be if he DID remember. Besides all of that, you quite liked the show host! I mean, who can’t resist his charms? Clearly not you. All of the others found him obnoxious, as well as in many instances desperate and insecure. But who doesn’t get insecure, and hell – sometimes desperate! You were always a sucker for watching reruns of old game shows with TV hosts long retired, further supporting your belief that you have an older soul. Additionally, his usage of neon flashing garments as an outfit was surely a questionable choice! One could mistake it as a satire prop costume that was made as a poke to the people out there who try to become big shots. Finally, the thing that stood out to you the most is his expressiveness in not only his face, but his voice as well. His voice was… indeed obnoxious, you can agree with that. You can also agree that he is absolutely horrendous at reading the room, making you question how fast it’d take (if he was a real show host) until he’d get cancelled on the internet for his insensitivity at times. Despite his voice sounding irritating occasionally, it had heavily reminded you of the same way that old TV show hosts would speak, in that exaggerated over-expressive tone that would grip the attention of the viewers (you also quite liked the old speaker-like effect on his voice that he had, even if it did ring your ears sometimes.)

Your point is that you could appreciate the guy and his efforts. However, what you can’t appreciate is the way he had been acting the moment Susie had given him a piece of her mind. Not only by entrapping you temporarily in big gotchy ball containers that had your claustrophobia at an all times high, but also by basically sending his whole company of workers to find you guys. He even referred to you all as “cheaters”. How rude! Also, the thought of a big/tall, TV – headed, unpredictable and desperate man on the loose trying to catch you all does unnerve you to quite a scale. Anyways, you had a job to do, and you were going to do this job damn right well. As you were prepared to turn the corner, your ears catch onto the familiar noise of that obnoxious charming static voice, not close by but still close enough to be able to hear clearly. Crap, you found him, but the room’s a dead end – it’s either all or nothing.

“What do you MEAN you don’t want to capture the cheaters? Have you forgotten who you work for?”

His filtered voice commanded, the majority of the zappers, pippins and shadowguys below him frozen in fear. As he continued rambling, one of the shadowguys perked up mentioning how he didn’t really want to fight the lightners. The others chimed in, before briefly being shut down by the TV host.

“Hmm… well, from what I remember – you guys are all abided to work with me as per says on THESE contracts! So, unless you want to get fired, you better find those lovely little lightners before they get away- “However, as he continues to talk, his speaking slows down slightly, the rambling coming to a small halt with his hands shuffling documents together.

“…These aren’t your contracts.”

Before he could react, he lifts his head up from the paper and witnesses the massive group of employed enemies leave quickly, and Tenna couldn’t help but drop to his knees and reach out to them.

“W-wait! Come back, don’t go!” before then proceeding to stand up and fix his golden tie, an annoyed expression on his face with fake confidence shining. “Fine, FINE!! I don’t need you anyways! I still have others… like, like mike!! Yeah, he’d never leave!”

You could feel yourself starting to get nervous despite the pumping up you did just a few seconds ago. This is going to be the end of me, you thought. Well, it was now or never. His form slightly shrunk as the others left, staring off in space with his screen dimmer than usual as if he was thinking. You clear your throat, a nervous smile present along with your nervous tone evident in your voice.

“Uhm- Hey man, you alrigh-“ His CRT never whipped around so fast, staring in shock. That speechless shock washed away pretty quickly though, as he took a few steps towards you instantly and attempted to put on his regular TVsona in front of you, smiling with an evident faux-brightness. It was one of those fake smiles you saw on celebrities, who try to maintain their usual persona around fans even outside of cameras.

“[Y/N]!! It surely is a wonderful surprise to see you here. Oh, I knew my favourite contestant would come back and play more rounds! Listen, why not bring over your other slippery lightners and we can go back to how things usually ar-“

“You can cut the act, you know.” Your voice hits harder than it should to Tenna, his smile faltering a smidge with his (you think??) eyebrows furrowing to the response. He stays quiet for a moment as [Y/N] continues speaking, maintaining a defensive stance towards the CRT. The gut inside of you churns at the nervous energy of the room, knowing he could at any moment summon one of those fluorescent gotchy balls and just ruin your plan of interrogation. Nonetheless, persistence was high in you.

“I… I’m not here to play more games Tenna, or indulge in your show. I just-“ Your expression turns to a slightly more worried look, taking a small step forward with your head high up and your eyes landing directly onto his screen. “Tenna, why are you doing this?? There- ugh, there must be a reason. Nobody just does this just because. I’d like to believe that you aren’t being this uh, no offense – desperate, just for the laughs and giggles. Is there something wrong?” The clenching of your jaw did not help the feeling of unsureness in you, not knowing how he’d react to your words. Carefulness is key here. One bad word, one wrong move and this interaction could go majorly against you. You’ve already witnessed some of his mood swings, the way he can easily switch from moping and wallowing to energised and bright. One wrong move, and you’d have to get literal children to save you. Fuck no.

He stands there for a moment, the faltering smile evident on his face. It was clear his circuitry was buzzing with thought. Suddenly, he turns his back towards you, shaking just a little bit before standing still once again. Finally, he speaks, and you swear he shrunk slightly just now??

“… I.. I really don’t want to hurt anybody… I just- I just want to be watched you know…” He pauses before continuing, with his hands going behind his back and fidgeting together as a comfort. “I…I’ve been lonely for a very long time [Y/N]. Nobody wants to watch TV anymore – it’s all about streaming services and apps and social media. No matter if I have an audience or not, it seems as if it’s growing… smaller and smaller by the day. I mean-“ He turns around to face you, scaring you slightly yet your footing returns back to where it was again. He wasn’t planning to attack, or do anything. His body language was enough to get your guard down slightly.

“Look at me [Y/N]!! I’m a CRT! My purpose is to entertain, and if I can’t do that… well, I’ll just be thrown away...” His shoulder slumps, his stature shrinking as he looks down with his dimmer screen. “…forgotten, washed up… I don’t want to be thrown out…” You hesitantly approach him, wanting to comfort him but the lingering reminder that he was kind of the guy you were supposed to be running away from stayed on your mind. Seeing as he doesn’t move from his wallowing, you approach him a bit more before getting close enough to nervously pat his back as a way to comfort him. Thoughts were buzzing in the mind, and you swallowed your nervous energy as you softly spoke to him.

“W-well… um, listen dude. I know how it feels to want to be noticed, and not abandoned. But, let me tell you… you’re a CRT! I mean- there will always be people out there who appreciate you. Even if we have new things like email, or apps, or streaming services, nostalgia is a huge driving force. Even if… if your audience isn’t as big as it used to be, you’ll always have an audience no matter what. And those fans are the real fans who, you know, stick around for you.” A small chuckle escapes your lips, smiling at him a little despite him facing away from you as you continued. “I mean- look at me! I’m a great example. I love old things, they’ve all got this… charm, especially technology. In the reflection of those screens - all I see is a piece of history that was at the time well loved and appreciated for the little knicks and knacks that came with it. And well, I think you’re a great TV host, a great entertainer. You sure have made me laugh and smile a lot whilst I’ve been in this dark world, despite all of the… um, other stuff that happened.”

“…You really think so?” he muttered, looking up at you from his shrunken frame. Your head nodded, patting his shoulder additionally. “TV’s not dead, nobody’s STOPPED loving TV, it’s just… not as popular anymore. And that’s okay!! Not everything lasts forever. Doesn’t mean you’ll get forgotten and thrown out though.”

After a moment of speaking, you were worried that you said something wrong… before your gut flipping from the sudden hug he gives you, his stature having grown slightly larger but still only just a bit bigger than you. Your body visibly flinched, before staying at your position and returning the hug hesitantly. The insides in your body were yelling at you to just get out of there, and that he was just going to guilt-trip you into walking yourself into a trap. However, with the way that he hadn’t made anymore hasty movements, and the small buzz of his screen next to your ear was calming in an odd, nostalgic way. You just patted his back awkwardly, surprised at how heavy he felt despite being much smaller than he usually is. Well, it’s not that surprising considering he’s made primarily out of metal. A couple awkward minutes go by as you just provide him silent comfort to prevent him from losing it, before his droopy antenna’s suddenly perked up, a gasp leaving his mouth and he places his hands on your shoulder in order to bring himself up again. In an instance he grew much bigger, the weight throwing you off slightly but you kept your balance.

“HAHA [Y/N] I GOT IT!!” He barked out happily, looking at you with a big bright smile. Well, that was a switch in mood alright. You looked at him confused and surprised, eyebrows raised and a nervous smile on your agape lips. “…Huh???”

“[Y/N]… My lovely lovely [Y/N]!! You’re a real charmer you know that? A real smooth talker! You and your attention and your charms are the main reason why you’re my STAR contestant!” His antenna’s twitched slightly as his famous smile was on brand. “How about we make a deal together?” You look at him slightly suspicious, raising one of your eyebrows as you replied hesitantly. “Uh, what exac-“

“Alright alright, I won’t take this opportunity to capture you, but in return I need you to at least convince your lightner friends into going back to the game show! Does that sound good? I trust you and your skills to turn their minds around.” He pats my shoulder confidently, fixing his tie with a small smile and patting his suit to flatten out the creases. With fidgety hands and your eyes avoiding his screen, you think for a moment, the CRT’s playful humming filtering out of my mind as he waits for your response. It couldn’t hurt for you right? You could just give a feeble attempt or tell your friends about what the deal is and ask them to pretend as if you DID try to convince them… Well, you never liked lying. It wouldn’t be good if you lied, especially if it meant hurting his feelings. A sigh left your mouth, your hands going to the pockets of your outfit as you gazed on him again with a small smile. “Yeah, alright. I’ll try.”

The TV host lifted his arms up into the air, beaming happily. He was finally back to his usual self, the bright and charismatic Mr. (Ant) Tenna that you knew. “Splendid! Oh I knew I could agree with somebody like you [Y/N]!” Suddenly, you felt his gloved hand usher you, pushing you lightly against your back towards where you first came from, hurryingly urging you to go. “Now hurry! We mustn’t waste anymore time, the watch is ticking!”

“Okay! Okay! I’m going!” You claim, chuckling at his attituded before speed walking quickly to the point of the hallway that made a turn. Before you disappear out of his sight, you look back at him, seeing the TV man looking at you and ushering you to go by waving his hands, before waving back at him and simply telling him : “Take care Tenna.” Your figure disappears from Tenna’s vision, and his figure stands there on the spot for a moment with his hands behind his back. His expression turns to a worry, as one of his gloved hands come up to fidget with his antennae with the lingering thought in his mind being “… Did I make a mistake?”

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

Credit to strangergraphics for the super cool divider!

Another A/N: hope that wasn't too bad for my first oneshot in ages. I need him in a jar

[sailor-crusader]

In the jackenstein fight, one of the many mazes is this. A board depicting an assortment of symbols. Symbols that will tell us every final boss from chapters 1-6. Plus some stuff about the weird route.

So, look at this pic I stole from a redditor. You start at a crown. Clearly representing the king chess piece. Then you go to the queen, then the knight, then the bishop. The bishop is drawn as a tall figure with a star in the middle.

Similar, no? So the first 4 places all line up perfectly with the final fights of each chapter. So let's see what we can learn about the future. The next place is actually not a chess piece, it's a flower. So chapter 5 will end with you fighting someone associated with flowers.

Hmmm.... well, at last, the sixth place. Represented with a sword. We cant exactly assume anything off of just that, maybe its the knight again! Or Kris! Or Jockingtons dark world form has a giant flame sword! No way to know for now. But what's really interesting here, is the weird route. This maze has an alternate path, you start at the king, then you SKIP the queen. You still do the knight, the bishop, and the flower... but you skip the sword as well.

Food for thought.

[4rthstandbreak]

Roots, the egg, and the tail

In every chapter there is a Man behind the tree who gives you eggs.

To get the egg in chapter 4 you have to find the inverted egg in the hallway filled w stained glass, it's specifically the 100th window. In chapter 3 the Man says this:

When you enter the inverted egg window you'll see a small library and a path leading to this:

If you're not extremely tapped into Deltarune you wouldn't realize that the Spamton Sweepstakes, which happened in 2022, had updated with new links May this year, one of them being a game called "Rarecats" where you click on green dancing cats (similar to the Mike fight/Pluey). Playing Rarecats (which is now defunct and leads to "room_dogcheck" here's some gifs from the game). Clicking on the angel cat has a small chance to take you to the same stained glass window hallway from ch 4, and clicking on the inverted egg window takes you to https://deltarune.com/lostwheretheforestwouldgrow/ which leads to an image of a single tree from ROOTS and the title being "ROOTS" as well (documented here by a reddit user)

Back to ch 4, walking further past ROOTS is a Philosopher who says this:

Unscrambling the sentence gives us "Lost where the forest would grow, the children followed the pointed tail" (or at least that's what I assume it says) we'll come back to this later.

Back to the Deltarune website, there's a page called "the poor children" (https://deltarune.com/thepoorchildren/) and the page heading is "Therapy"

The page itself is a black screen where you can draw using ur mouse. If u draw for long enough a tree will pop up, the tree that the Man is behind

Clicking on the tree takes you to https://deltarune.com/egg/ which is Noelle's blogpost abt the egg "pet" in Cat Petters

The actual egg room in ch 4 is set in a hospital lobby with a layout different from the one in Hometown. The last Flying Ace is acting as the secretary and comments on how "knockoffs don't have the right to complain," implying this entire moment is based off of something from Kris's past. To get the egg you have to walk into the room with a tree on it

Walking into the room and finding the correct thing to interact w while in complete darkness plays a scene where Kris draws "what they saw behind the tree" but they mess up so they draw again over the previous drawing. They keep trying to draw until they don't even lift their hand off the canvas and just draw in a "single, wild line." Their drawing is then described as "nothing more than a monochrome smear." Then the box says : "Next, a tree was painted over it... ... painted over everything... ...leaving nothing but a simple still life... ... After all, there wasn't anything to look at in the room besides a single tree." This mirrors exactly what you can do on /thepoorchildren/ to get the tree to appear then to get to /egg/.

Back to the Philosopher and tails, Organikk (the enemy that looks exactly like Philosophers) has a couple battle lines mentioning tales/tails: "the tale that must be followed" (referring to the prophecy) and "the tail that must not be followed" (potentially referring to "the pointed tail")

In ch 4 in the third sanctuary if you go out of your way to get the Princess Ribbon this will appear right before you get to the chest

This is a piece of the prophecy intentionally hidden from the gang and the player

So. What does all of this mean?

I don't know! I don't have enough of the pieces to fully say. What I can say for sure is that:

1) We should be keeping an eye on the Deltarune website

2) The children (one of them being Kris) were in the forest and followed/encountered something. Whatever it was traumatized Kris enough to have their parents put them in art therapy, potentially not even located in Hometown. It's something that's permanently etched into Kris's mind. And it seems to be connected to the Man

Isn't it interesting that the Man only ever appears behind trees?

[spookysanta]

Chapter 4: Real Ones Only

Ongoing tags: [Modern Romance] [Slow Burn] to [Fireworks [Black!Reader] [Younger!Reader] [Reader is That Girl] [Obsessed Michael™] [So Much Eye Contact] [Vacation Fling] turns into [Something Real]

Potential TW/CW: [Swearing] [Light Sexual Tension] to [Eventual Smut]

Read Part 1. Part 2. Part 3.

IMPORTANT NOTE: SOOOOO you may or may not have noticed (probably not bc no one's said anything lmao) that i fucked up by having the faceclaim names in this post and the character names in the actual fics be different... yeah i'm writing multiple things at once.

SO HERE'S THE UPDATE: NYAH is now NAS, JAE is now LEX.

sorry for any confusion. hopefully this clears things up! and now i have to retire nyah and jae so i don't keep confusing myself. :)

also!! i'm trying something new with the text message layout. this took WAY longer than i intended for it to.. so pls lmk what you think!

The morning came in quiet waves. Sunlight stretched across the carpet. A half-full glass of champagne still sat on the dresser. The air smelled like heat-styling tools, edge control, and leftover perfume.

Your phone buzzed beside your pillow. You rolled over, eyes barely open, and smiled when you saw his message.

Just outside your room, the suite was buzzing with energy. When you entered the common area, Tati was in the kitchenette making mimosas with way too much champagne. Kris was curled on the couch in your robe like it belonged to her. Lex was sorting through her camera roll, muttering “why did y’all let me post this.”

But Nas — Nas was watching you. The quiet kind of watching. The kind that clocked your second smile at your phone and tilted her head gently.

“You good?” she asked, reaching across the breakfast bar for a croissant.

You looked up from your seat, soft. “I am.”

She smiled. “You sure?”

You nodded. She held your gaze, making sure that the smile you gave her actually reflected in your eyes. Then, she raised her glass. “To knowing the difference between good sex and being seen.”

You laughed out loud. And the whole suite followed.

-

Later, over brunch, you told them about the phone call.

The walk. The kiss. The way he didn’t try to push inside. The way he just stood there in front of four girls and said “hey ladies” like it was nothing.

“You don’t understand,” Tati said, leaning across the table. “The calmness. The confidence. That was not a man fumbling.”

“I think he’s just…” you hesitated.

“What.”

You looked down at your drink. “I think he’s serious.”

Nobody laughed ... Nobody teased.

Lex reached across the table and touched your hand. “Then we’re serious about protecting you.”

Kris nodded. “And cheering you on when he keeps showing up right.”

“Exactly,” Nas added. “We’re here to hype and hold. Real ones only.”

And that night, while you were getting dressed for the club in the way only you could — lashes curled, gloss slick, heels set by the mirror — your phone buzzed again.

Michael calling…

You picked up, smile already forming. “Hi.”

It's almost like you could see him smiling back at you. His voice, full of depth and rasp, sounded exhausted despite clearly being happy to talk to you. "Hey. What's goin' on?"

"Nothin' much," Setting your lip liner on the vanity, you put your phone on speaker so you could find the blotting powder in your makeup bag. "We're about to go to the club in a bit so I'm getting ready."

“You look good.” he said with finality, clearly imagining you in his mind.

You laughed. “You don't even know what I’m wearing!”

“I don’t,” he said, “but I know everyone at the club's about to hate how good you look.”

You sat on the bed to pack your clutch, suddenly shy. “You going out tonight too?”

“Late dinner, maybe. You gonna be safe?”

“Always.”

“Text me when y’all get back.”

You nodded. “Okay.”

“I mean it,” he said gently. “I wanna know when you’re home.”

-

When you did get back to your hotel after a night of tequila sunrises, dancing to T-Pain, and not-so-great truffle fries, it wasn't until 2:14 AM.

And, to no one's surprise, your phone buzzed as soon as your heels crossed the suite's threshold.

With a chuckle and a smile, your fingers danced across your screen to reply. And, as expected, he texted right back before you could blink.

You hesitated, thumbs hovering. Though yes, you wanted to tell him everything about your day – the ins and outs, the jokes with the girls, that one random guy you saw on the street dressed as a rat – you didn’t want to inundate him with everything. This is new, you reminded yourself, don’t bug him.

There. That seems reasonable. Answered the question but kept it short.

Oh. Okay, then.. “Hm.” You hummed to no one in particular, “That’s not what I was expecting him to say. Not quite sure where to go from here.”

You responded. Lighthearted but serious.

And again, he replied. It seemed as if he replied before you could even hit ‘send’. As if he responded to your thoughts.

You laid back against the pillow, lips parted, blinking slow. Biting back a shit-eating grin, you found yourself describing your day – still short and to the point, but with just enough detail to satisfy his craving to know more.

--

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[twilightofthesandwiches]

Alrighty, so I’ve been rewatching a lot of Tenna’s scenes in Chapter 3, so I’ve noticed some stuff about the timeline of the whole Toriel-Kidnapping scheme…

When Susie first goes to have a chat with him between Boards 1 and 2, Tenna’s goons have only just located Toriel in the Couch Cliffs.

The whole first Board existed to preoccupy the Fun Gang while Tenna and his people found and captured Toriel for the Knight (also of course to fulfill Tenna’s desire to entertain Kris and their loved ones again but I wanna focus on its part in the Plan here). Since they found her right before Board 2 started, the whole ‘Second Board’ business was made up to draw more time to locate Toriel… but also to wait for the Knight.

Because the Knight was not in TV World at the time, as is pretty clear from the next conversation we get to overhear about the Toriel situation.

The reason why Tenna was so insistent on there being two rounds and had to come up with an excuse for the Bonus Round later…

…is because he honestly thought he’d be able to hand over Toriel to the Knight during Round 2 and everything would go absolutely smoothly.

(Also the moment where he suddenly has to leave during Board 2 is definitely probably also about Toriel, right?

Maybe just inspecting her Prizeball and putting it by the Cold Place Tree real quick)

… but that’s the thing I’ve been thinking about, the Knight wasn’t in TV World up until, well, probably this very moment

But Tenna already has a deal with them.

Did they pop into TV World, offered Tenna the deal and then…. Went off to do something else while Tenna kept on waiting for them? What other business they had to attend to?

Were they waiting for Undyne to enter TV World in so they could capture two birds with one stone?

Were they waiting for Tenna to betray them to fulfill the Prophecy?

Or…. How literally should we take Tenna’s words that the Knight ‘appeared’?

Because King also used this choice of words and now it’s pretty obvious that he never really met the Knight themself before?

Queen also uses that same expression, that the Knight "appeared". In her case we at least know the Knight was the one who created her Dark World and she even caught it on film, so it's not an inaccurate descriptor... but it does seem to be the go-to expression to use when talking about the Knight in a variety of contexts...

If “the Knight appeared” is simply a more poetic way for Darkners to talk about the fabled prophesized Knight making their presence known in general… well, Tenna’s wording very much avoids saying who promised him that eternal audience and who exactly he made a deal with.

And… there is actually a (probable) associate of the Knight operating in TV World that Tenna has struck a deal with.

Could Kris have been the one who told Tenna to capture Toriel and keep the Fun Gang distracted until the Knight arrived? Holding both the carrot of an eternal audience and the stick of turning him off again?

Well, it does seem to fit in with Ramb's Sword Route dialogue. As someone who was there to see Kris’ creating TV World the one apparently responsible for keeping an eye on Toriel through the Second Round and beyond, and someone who is always trying to do what’s best for Kris.

Would he have played along with Tenna's scheme if he didn't think capturing Toriel is what Kris truly wanted?

It might also explain why Tenna seems so certain that the Knight has a genuine desire to help him and it won’t be that bad if he went back on their deal. Like it would just leave them mildly disappointed.

If he struck the deal through Kris, a beloved family member, he would be more inclined to assume that deal is for his sake and that both Kris and the Knight might have his best interests at heart.

But for that to be true… then Tenna sure can keep a secret! I mean, he did slip up about there being a ‘deal’ once, and there’s a few moments where he indicates that he probably knows that Kris is the one who made the Dark Fountain….

(And "a little bit why you [made the Fountain]" implies that Tenna knows there is another reason why the Fountain was made, unlike Ramb that assumed it was purely for fun at first)

But the only way that Kris being the ‘liaison’ for Tenna's deal with the Knight to work is if Tenna knows about us, if he knows that he’s got to keep his mouth shut even when it’s just him and Kris because there is something else pulling the strings. That Kris is gonna act against the Deal they themself offered because that's not really Kris in control. That when he's talking about distracting and stalling "you three", that's referring to Ralsei, Susie and the Player.

And that… isn’t totally nonsensical or anything, Tenna does seem to imply he’s ‘hosting’ Susie and Ralsei, but not Kris.

Maybe part of the reason why he’s so insecure about entertaining Kris in particular is because on some level he knows that in their eyes it’s just a way to distract and slow down their friends (and the Amoral Time Demon that's possessing them)… and yet he constantly hopes that it’s something more. He wants to prove to Kris that they want to have fun with him and that his show is worth more to them than just ‘part of the plan’.

And, well, if Tenna can really remember seeing everything that happened in front of his Light World screen, he probably knows that something’s up with their SOUL, right?

But… hmmm… well, most of the times Tenna addresses Kris it can be interpreted as “Hey Buddy I know you’re possessed now but it was also very mean how you were ignoring me while you still had your free will it really hurt my feelings ):”

Or maybe “C’mon, Unknowable Body-Snatching Time Demon, I know you’re not really Kris, but work with me here, okay?”

But there are also a few times where Tenna expresses bafflement and frustrations with the actions of ‘Kris’ in a way that makes it seem like he thinks they do have control over their actions.

Most notably, he’s very distraught over Kris’ lack of emotional engagement with his Show. He feels like his inability to make Kris ‘laugh and cry’ like they used is indicative of failure on his part…

And I mean, we can’t be sure how much of Kris’ withdrawn and stoic demeanor is genuine and how much is a side-effect of our possession… so how would Tenna know? Why would Tenna be so certain that Kris’ reactions are a genuine indication of their (lack of) enjoyment if he had even an inkling of knowledge about the possession situation?

Also, Ramb also apparently saw Kris create the Dark Fountain and he’s Tenna’s main accomplice in the Toriel-Kidnapping plot, but he certainly doesn’t behave like he knows about the Player. His offer of a game that gives Kris more ‘freedom’ only makes sense if he assumes Kris can actually play it of their own will, after all.

It would make sense for Kris to try and minimize the amount of people who know about the SOUL as much as possible… but…

That also probably means Kris had some sort of a plan to shut Tenna up when the adventure was done. I mean, Tenna’s possible endings are either ‘fucking dead’, ‘moves out of Castle Town ASAP and thus goes back to being an inanimate (but content) television’, or ‘fixed but still thrown out by Toriel and presumably still dies’...

… and these are all very convenient if he knows about Kris’ secrets. There’s no possible timeline where he could accidentally spill anything about us. But… Kris couldn’t have possibly planned for all of this, right? They must’ve had their own plan to make sure the emotionally fragile showboat in love with the sound of his own voice who is extremely found of talking about intimate details of their personal life doesn’t reveal what’s really going on to anyone else.

…Well, depending how much Kris and the Knight knew of the Prophecy before Chapter 4, they might’ve assumed Tenna was doomed to die in one way or another.

In their eyes he was just a dead man walking, and dead men tell no tales. That would be pretty grim, especially considering the implications Kris themself has a desire to change the Prophecy…

…While also being willing to use it’s inevitability against Tenna. Promising him his heart’s desires while making a plan that hinges on him being doomed.

But… hmmm… I just don’t know. Just like with anything that has to do with Kris, I’m just not sure yet… And the possibility that the Knight did make the deal in person but then had to leave to do... something also still exists, but... Well, I'm not quite sure yet...

[freeluigihesbae]

𝓹𝓸𝓹𝓹𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓫𝓾𝓫𝓫𝓵𝓮𝓼 - 𝓹𝓪𝓻𝓽 1

(3,081) words

summary: you're mean. you're bad. but your smart enough to get grades and attention and yet, breaking luigi mangione to be the kind of person you are doesn't seem to work.

little do ya know, he's about to break you instead.

ᴛᴡ: ɴᴏɴᴇ, ꜱᴇxᴜᴀʟ ᴛᴇɴꜱɪᴏɴ, ɴᴏᴛ ꜰᴜʟʟʏ ᴘʀᴏᴏꜰʀᴇᴀᴅ

~

Computer Science.

Now, hear me out would be the best phrase. Yeah, that's right. You're a woman in computer science at one of the snarkiest, headstrong universities in the country. Penn wasn't all that bad excluding the thousands of students that made it up. Normally, situations would push you be the bigger person and reserve some sense of decency. But in such a competitive market where you were paying to get paid, you had to be nasty.

It just so happened that what started out to be a guide now turned into you. You were and still are a snarky, irritating person that somehow turns heads every time you walk into the room. You've got the typical high-school style clique of girls fawning over you and everyone elevates your position because they are no better.

It does you good, this attitude, because it took you all but two whole semester to kick your grades up so high and absolute shatter the expectations of the degree that people didn't mind ignoring your arrogance to admire how smart you must've been.

Don't get it wrong, because you were and are smart. You're a student but better, you're the Kris Jenner of your year. You were good at marketing shallowness that somehow, was keeping you afloat with profit coming in the form of grades, internships, and attention.

In process, it became frustrating to see others who happened to be in a similar place. You wanted all the eyes on you so you went low with your actions and words to make sure it stayed that way but then, Intermediate Systems - COMPSCI 1570, rolls around and you're paired with Luigi Mangione.

Not paired with, actually, but put in a class with him. But paired in the sense of competition - who could get the most attention. You hate eo admit it, but the guy has got these ridiculously well-defined curls that are so tame yet alluring, it makes you want to rip his head off. You hate the way his smile is effortlessly charming and warms you heart. You hate the kindness that it makes bubble up inside of you.

On the more technical side, you hated how well-rounded the competition between you two was. He knew exactly who you were and you knew him, which meant he always played to get at you. You heard from everyone about how his nose was deep in the books and computer, trying his best to ace the exam only to quietly pass his grade to you. Sometimes, you did better. It made you feel like you're walking on Cloud 9, knowing this irritatingly handsome asshole could be squashed beneath your foot for this one moment, but other times? Oh, he decimated you. The professor would let his name escape from their lips, rather than yours.

It was an ultimate motivation, as you sit there, digging your nails into your palm and wondering why Luigi deserved it. How dare he step above you? How dare he pursue ambition rather than letting you have it all for yourself?

It was such a selfish notion and pursuit that had managed to seduce you with such blindness you never thought to question how you could be such a cruel, tasteless indivdual.

Yet he did. And he did so in all fairness. He, unlike you, was friends with everyone. With the bright-hair colored wimps in the corners and the sluttiest-for-him girls that applied themselves onto him with utter desire which he only combated with smiles and ultimate respect.

How frustrating, really, because even when you did beat him in an exam score, you could never beat him character wise. He would always stand above you and in truth, you were the bug. You were the dust beneath his feet so apart from your degree, you had another thing to acheive.

Him.

Not sleeping with him, no. Not fucking or kissing him throat deep. No.

Rather, being able to break his goody-two shoes act, you called. In reality, it was just him. Luigi Mangione just was a good person and that truth was so sour you only looked at him to arrogantly call him such a good boy and you hated it

You had to make him mean and nasty just like you.

That's exactly what you were going to do.

Or try to.

~

Luigi is sitting at his computer, working away on a new project the professor had assigned a few days ago. No matter where he was, he caught your eyes and this time was no different.

You walk over, swaying your hips a bit too seductively, biting your lip and wearing a stupidly sardonic smile. Your top is a low v-cut, exposing the rounds of your breasts that you were sure to apply body glitter on so everyone's eyes would stare like they were the prize. Your skirt was hiked up just enough to stir wonder and want, and as always, these were only ingredients for your experiment named Luigi Mangione.

"Hey Luigi." You wink before pulling a chair and sitting down next to him, tilting you head to the site with a pout while staring at the screen, scanning his code. It was habit, so your mind was translating the numbers and symbols into understandable language, hiding how impressed you are at all costs.

You're also relieved because you have the same answers, but we don't speak of that, now do we?

"You again." Luigi turns his head and you feel like clawing your heart out of your chest just to stop the butterflies you feel in your stomach. His lips are parted and puffy, the gap speaking a quiet invitation as if they're meant to be kissed. His nose bridge is screaming an intelligent form of dominance over the situation, as his facial curves the remainder of his gentle vice towering over you, soft yet present in all its overwhelming glory.

"Don't like me Lu? Am I too smart for you to admit?" You giggle, high pitched and bend forward, letting your biceps squeeze your breasts more as you bite your lip and look up at him with poisonously doe-y eyes, trying to make him fall. He takes a cursory glance, though, at your body before chuckling and typing away at his code.

"Are you too poor to figure that out for yourself?" His words cut at your ego and your expression instantly falls, sitting back in the chair and your loud, shocked exhales doesn't go un-missed by either of your. You curse at yourself quietly for letting it make a sound while Luigi only types away, as if he heard nothing.

He heard. Oh, yes, he did.

"Mangione is being an ass today? Code giving you a tough time Lu?" Your voice shakes at first, tears coming to your eyes in reaction to his demeaning question and he doesn't make that much better, ignoring you but smirking as if you're in desperate need of pity and attention.

Because you are and without saying it, he loves showing it to you time and time again.

The lack of answer enrages as you as you feel your heart rate shoot through your chest, prompting you to slam a few keys on his keyboard to which he only pauses, staring at your fingers. He watches how they shake, your acrylics getting stuck in the gaps between the board and keys. The way they wince from the tug of those pauses yet, there is an innocent and pitiable need that he sees and recognizes but staying silent.

Luigi turns his head toward you, cocking his neck down and to the side.

"You done? 'Cause I'm almost finished my code and seeing your excursions on Instagram makes me think your situation is otherwise." He smiles at you and you pant, removing your hands from his keyboard.

"You infuriate me Mangione." You dig your hands into your palm before continuing. "I'm finished dimwit. It's a one-part project and I submitted it yesterday because as always, I would never submit it the day its due, which is today and which is fairly typical for you." You twirl your hair between your fingers, uncaring if he admires you body as your get drunk in the expectance of hearing him sarcastically compliment you.

It's still something, even if he won't mean it.

But instead, his mouth parts and his eyes widen before contorting into a concerningly amused smile and before you know it, he's bending over the table and laughing into the table before looking back up at you.

Your expression is unchanged, but your body goes rigid with expectation.

He pulls his body away from the computer, shutting it down and putting it in his back before he places a hand on your knee.

A shiver makes its way from his fingers to your neck.

"Sweetheart," He starts talking, drawing out the pet name before his other hand slams a packet on the table.

You stare at the papers and back at Luigi.

"Is this a lecture for how I'm supposed to be a good girl?" You bite at him, words unforgiving. He raises his eyebrows before shaking his head and standing up. Your eyes follow, taking in the beauty of his height.

Heat seizes your comfort in the moment as he bends down and speaks into your ear, letting both arms cage you in the chair.

"It's a 3-part assignment. You forgot to scroll all the way down, sweetheart." You eyes widen and you turn your head up to look at him, nearly whimpering when you realize his lips are less than an inch away from yours. Suddenly, all your egotistic ideas and bubbles burst and melt away, leaving you naked as you fight the obligation to cross your eyes from how close he is. He stays in place, pushing himself back while staring into your eyes.

Your lips are parted, vulnerable in arousal and shock as a hand comes to push some loose threads behind your ear. You blink slowly, lips quivering as your realize your royally fucked because one part took four days and now, you had to complete two more in less than eight hours.

Luigi coos, watching how you break slowly in front of him, before his face is back the stoic yet kind approach he utilizes.

"See you at the submission deadline. Or not." He leaves after lifting a hand of yours and placing it on the flipped over directions packet, one that held a dirty, ugly, and devastating truth that you were lef tto fend with until 11:59pm.

~

"You look like you need a beer." Your roommate, Kate, pats your head as you're hunched over, posture despicable as you somehow manage to finish the second and half of the third part using some of your own ideas and resources.

Those resources... which aren't supposed to.

But you could care less.

"Right." You give a curt reply, ignoring the sound of a Coke popping open in Kate's hands, which you don't even need to see to realize.

"Why don't you just let loose for the evening?" Kate casually asks and you half slam your hands on the table.

"I've got this stupid project for my Systems class which I need to finish. Didn't read all the directions and now I'm cramming, so no thank you Kate." Kate raises her eyebrows before laughing.

"Hey, isn't that the class that Mangione guy is in?" She asks curiously and you freeze up.

Not him.

You rolls your eyes, ignoring how your breaths falter as you turn around and nod. "Yeah, what about 'm?" You furrow your eyebrows, licking your lips as they suddenly dry up. Kate gives you a suspicious look.

"I've heard he's one of the smartest guys. Maybe you should ask him at his frat party later." Kate supplies and before you can scream and shout in retaliation, she gets up and opens her closet.

"You can unshackle yourself and get that assignment done. Win-in to me." She rummages through her bling and glitter bodycon dresses, unbeknownst to your fuming.

You had to let her know that was out of question.

"Over my dead body." You spit the words out and Kate turns around, a dress in her hand but she barely reacts.

"And a shit GPA. Suit yourself hardass." She nudges your sitting figure with her hips before before leaving the room, leaving your to your thoughts.

This was, like any other, a crucial project and this was one of the most important classes because a stellar grade in this class meant a higher chance at a scholarship you were applying for. They liked you, but they wanted to see the grade you get in this class as a deal-breaker. If you aced, you got the scholarship.

It was everything, then, this class. You already were utilizing ChatGPT, your textbook, GitHub, and every source on the planet.

Just a half-part more.

But somehow, the last half was the hardest and it ate away two hours of your time already. Every late submission was docked 30% which would drop your grade into a B+ range, something you did not want to admit. Something that would happen because those few times Luigi beat you, he crushed you by over 20-30%.

You were not doing as well as you wanted to in the class.

You check the time, letting the 9:30pm flash into your eyes before the screen quietly goes black.

Maybe an hour wouldn't hurt.

But whatever you did, you were going to walk out finishing this project yourself and not asking Luigi.

~

"You came?" Kate is yelling over the music, dragging you by the arm as you stumbled through the people dancing over the music.

"The fuck? I didn't know Psi Kappa was this disgusting!" You nearly scream, letting Kate guide you through the place. You scan the crowd, trying to find familiar faces and friends so you can gain some footing in the place. The music is too loud, making your head pound.

The smell of alcohol, something you refused to drink, kicked around the nausea and for a second, you regret even stepping foot into this place.

Of course, that all melts away when your eyes land on Luigi Mangione.

He's wearing a white polo shirt, unbuttoned 3/4 of the way down as his pecs and defined abs scream for everyone's attention, detailed in their allure. His arms are deliciously toned and even, despite the flashy lights and revolving colors of the place. His head is craned to the side as you watch him talking up another girl, letting her feel him up.

You don't realize you're staring until his eyes suddenly swerve, directly piercing into yours. You physically feel yourself stutter, freezing as you let him hold the eye-contact. An ever-so teasing smile grace his lips before he's bending down and whispering something into the girl's ear.

You watch her pout, a face she quickly replaces with a flirty smile before letting her sight linger on Luigi and choosing to walk away. He chugs the rest of his drink down before, to your horror, he's walking in your direction.

Funny enough, the crows shifts to the start of a new song and the new gap in front of your confirms he's walking only towards you.

You instinctively take a step back against the soft strain of your own bodycon dress, feeling your legs shake as you hit the bar counter and reluctantly, you face a now towering Luigi smirking down at you.

"What happened to that attitude?" His question should sound a lot meaner, but instead, it comes out soft with a warning and hint of shame intertwined. Your head pounds as you force yourself to come up with some jumble of words to respond.

"It's there." You breath the statement out, but it's not too convincing. Luigi uses that to take a step closer and now, you're forced to stare up and into his eyes.

"Doesn't seem like it. How's that project comin' along?" He cages you in again, both arm circling around your already very limited space and you turn your head to the side, steeling yourself against his presence.

Something about the effect he has on you is so humiliating. This wasn't matching your brand - bitchy, arrogant, and perfect. Rather, this was a complete juxtaposition. You always keep control of the situation with your machinations or outright insults but now, that was not happening.

"Fine." You answers through your teeth, facing away from him still and suddenly you feel his mouth too close to your ear.

"Liar." He whispers it and you nearly moan, gulping down the sounds. He watches you shiver lightly, soaking in the helplessness that is starting to take over your figure.

"You need help baby?" He pushes the boundary, enjoying how you squirm more with every second he forces himself into your space. You're at a loss for words now, unable to distinguish between arousal, frustration, and utter confusion at your behavior right now.

So, you simply shake your head no.

It's an insufficient answers because Luigi's fingers are suddenly gripping either side of your face, making you gasp, before he forces you to look at him.

"Tell me the truth baby." Fuck, that name was really getting to you and his fuckable lips and hands were not helping right now.

Relinquishing the control you never had didn't seem like too bad of an option right now.

"I don't answer to you." You steel yourself, contorting your face and looking up at him with siren eyes which doesn't stand for long before his other hand is making it's way up your thigh and between your legs.

"I don't have a problem," He talks low and seductively in your ear, making your listen to the gravel in his voice, teasing his fingers upwards and watching you heave you chest up and down with increasing nervousness. You let your guard down, whimpering for a second before he retracts both hands.

"I'll get it out of you baby. We all need help sometimes and you..." he trails off, staring at your face that is lolling, lips parted and undoubtedly watery.

"You deserve to get the attitude fucked out of you." And with that, he pushes himself back and through the crowd, not even caring to give a glance back before leaving you alone and shaking, ready to cry.

You were such a weak, pathetic little girl and now, Luigi knew it.

~

if you would like to be a part of my taglist, please comment on my pinned blog post, not here!

taglist: @madkohi @iinfinitelimits-blog-blog @poohkie90 @chariytz @alotofsomething @nosebeers

[akanemnon]

I was bored, so I decided to create Dark World versions of DR!Asriel and DR!Chara! (Even though they’ll never actually go to the Dark World in Twins Runes… but details).

Of course, since I love making my life more complicated, instead of just showing them to you, I’ve decided to write out my entire "creative process" as well.

Brace yourself, because this is gonna be loooong.

---

• Asriel

At first, I thought about making him look similar to Asriel from Deltarune Chapter Rewritten, adding a few details from an old Dark World design of Asriel you made a while back. It would have been simple, effective, and overall made perfect sense...

But obviously, NOPE.

Taking the easy way out? Couldn't be me.

So instead, I went for something a bit more "colorful", still taking inspiration from Asriel’s "God of Hyperdeath" version in Undertale.

For his class, I went with bard. Something like this:

[Bard for D&D]

I don’t know why, but the idea of a bard in Deltarune has always cracked me up. Plus, I think it fits his personality as a "fake tough guy with a heart of gold."

Now, onto his weapon. I took Asriel's Chaos Buster from his "God of Hyperdeath" form and turned it into… a lyre.

I know, not exactly a groundbreaking idea, but I can’t stop laughing at the thought of a lyre that, every time it hits someone, plays a dramatic music note… or maybe an electric guitar riff. I haven’t decided yet.

---

• Chara

If I had a lot of inspiration for Asriel, Chara was a whole different struggle. There aren’t many reference images (and no, UT!Chara doesn’t count, because from what you told me, they should have a completely different outfit).

The only real starting point was this drawing, which was super helpful:

[By @Unabashedconnoisseurtwitt / @UCNSFW (One of these should be fine...)]

Aside from that, I had to improvise, taking inspiration from Deltaswap Kris’ outfit:

[By @panpan]

For their class, I went with thief/assassin (kinda like UT!Chara). Something like this:

[D&D Assassin]

Now, let’s talk about their weapon.

This part was easy: a knife.

But not just any knife.

A knife shaped like the Delta Rune. (No clue why, but I thought it looked awesome.)

I picture them having a dynamic similar to Susie and Ralsei in Chapter 1: Asriel happily playing music to spare enemies, while Chara… just stabs them repeatedly.

---

And that’s it! After months of pure artistic nothingness, I finally managed to draw something Twins Runes-related!

I really hope you like the drawings and that my endless explanation didn’t bore you too much.

Now, after this sudden burst of creativity, it’s time for me to disappear for another 3-4 months, just for consistency.

BYEEEEEE!

(PS: Thank you again for creating Twins Runes! It’s been forever since I worked on something this detailed, but your art really inspired me!)

These are really nice! I like the thought process that went into these! Really like the idea of turning Asriel's blaster into a lyre!

Funnily enough, I HAVE already created Dark World designs for these two, but never showed them off. Maybe some other day and definitely not under this ask. Don't wanna take away from your lovely fanart!

[patchwork-crow-writes]

No, actually, you get the Kralsei "incest" rant now, I've decided.

The ship being considered incest or incest-adjacent is largely a result of several assumptions that are being made about Ralsei, and to a lesser extent about Kris as well. For this to work, you have to assume the following:

Ralsei is modeled primarily on Asriel

All Boss Monsters of a certain age look identical to one another and are related to one another

Kris had absolutely no hand in Ralsei's creation

Kris is heavily uncomfortable with Ralsei's existence

The entire implied romantic undertones of Ralsei's feelings towards Kris were designed to be incestuous from the start

In order, I shall deconstruct and debunk these. Very long post below the read more, you have been warned.

While it is true that Ralsei does share some superficial similarities with Asriel, he's actually much, MUCH more similar to Kris in many ways. All he shares with Asriel is an anagrammed name and a passing likeness. They're not similar in terms of personality, and that goes regardless of which Asriel we're even talking about. Many people associate Ralsei with Undertale's incarnation of Asriel, who doesn't even exist in the same universe. Any similarities between the two are inferred entirely by the player, aided and abetted by the game making these subtle hints that they're "connected" in some way. Yeah, about as connected as Undertale is to Deltarune. To take this a step further, consider Kris and Frisk. No-one is conflating these two, not in a million years. And yet look, they share an anagrammed name and a passing likeness, so they're basically the same person, aren't they? I mean, we both control them through the SOUL, and they're both protagonists of games made by Toby Fox, so if anything they're more similar to each other than Ralsei is to Asriel. But of course, that's utterly absurd, and we all know it. *

I refer you once again to the humans. And before you tell me "they all obviously look different to each other" - and of course I'm not saying they're not different when they obviously are - consider how a monster might look at these humans if you placed them side-by-side. Pale-ish skin, brown hair, no obvious gender markers, similar height profiles. Any monster who's not intimately familiar with any of the humans in question might perhaps confuse them. And so it is with us and Boss Monsters. Just because Ralsei and Asriel share certain characteristics common to ALL boss monsters does not make them the same, or even similar, to each other. You only have to look at the sprites for the two side-by-side to see that there are plenty of differences between them. And as for Deltarune's Asriel? We haven't even seen this guy, we have NO idea what he looks like. We're just making assumptions again based on incomplete information. And if we assume that all boss monsters are related in some way due to how similar they might appear, then what does that make Toriel and Asgore, two boss monsters who have canonically produced offspring in both continuities? I don't need to say it, do I? *

It should be clarified here that I don't just mean Kris consciously made Ralsei at any point, either as an imaginary friend or monster-sona or what-have-you, but that Ralsei's creation as a darkner is somehow linked to how Kris saw themself/wished to be seen in their childhood. The most obvious piece of evidence supporting this is the horned headband that Toriel mentions at the end of Chapter 1. It's heavily implied that Kris would wear it so that they could be the same as their adoptive family, before they supposedly lost it somewhere down the line. It's not too much of a leap in logic to infer from this that Ralsei was created from that headband, at least in part. That said, there are certain aspects of Ralsei that don't exactly fit this neat mold, and I am willing to concede this point if it turns out that the headband thing is a massive misdirect. Nonetheless, I would say that the evidence we currently have to hand points more resolutely towards Ralsei being an aspect of Kris than of him being an aspect of Asriel. *

So I'm just going to say it: WE DON'T KNOW. Because Kris is our protagonist and POV character, it's incredibly easy to forget that we know next-to-nothing about the inner workings of their mind. They have no dialogue except what we tell them to say, and anything we CAN say about them is inferred from how other characters respond to their tone of voice. Of course, we can infer that Kris doesn't fully consider Ralsei a good friend based on his tea healing 60HP, but that on its own doesn't really tell us anything of much substance because you can't exactly cross-reference those numbers against a handy chart or anything - it's all context-dependent. We do at least know that they are comfortable enough around Ralsei to play the odd prank on him, which we know is something they used to do a lot of with Noelle and Asriel, two people they were close to growing up. They will, of their own volition, interpret our instruction to "take a bite" of Ralsei's dummy's clothes to make it look like they're kissing it on the cheek. I don't think that's something you would do with somebody who freaked you out on an existential level, or somebody who reminded you of your brother. Again, I am willing to concede this point should it turn out my interpretation of these clues is incorrect. *

Ask yourself this: What would Kralsei being incest - or incest-adjacent, or pseudo-incest, or whatever - contribute to the characters of Kris and Ralsei, to our relationship to them as players, or to the narrative or wider themes of Deltarune as a whole? I'll tell you - nothing whatsoever. The most such an interpretation can EVER say is that we as players are so easily manipulated by window-dressing and flattery that we will, knowingly or otherwise, romantically pair two characters together who are related in some way, shape or form. And let's say that this IS the intent behind their dynamic - all it amounts to, all it can ever amount to, is a great bit gotcha from Toby Fox himself. Haha, I tricked you into shipping two characters who are secretly related, isn't that fucked up of you? Somehow, I don't think that was his intention with this, it seems such a petty and small-minded thing for somebody who we know is capable of creating moving, thought-provoking, horrifying and beautiful stories. He's better than that. It turns the entire thing into a glorified skill-check: are YOU smart enough to identify that you're being encouraged to engage in incest-shipping, or are you a dumbass who only sees what's presented to you and doesn't ask questions about it? Contrary to popular belief, we're not all 5-D chess grandmasters, and shockingly not everybody is going to interpret the clues in this way. All it does is make people who DO earnestly ship Kralsei feel bad for something the game WAS ENCOURAGING THEM TO DO. Which would be fine if we were playing, say, Spec Ops: The Line, which is very much built around that conceit. And hey, if you wanna feel shitty about shipping two characters together in an extremely unhealthy and harmful manner, Snowgrave is right there. The difference here is that the weird route is A) completely optional, B) difficult if not impossible to accidentally trigger, C) completely derails the game's story and emotional beats, and D) doesn't rely on the shock value of surprise incest to carry it. Snowgrave actually has something INTERESTING to say about the nature of former friends, forced romance, a player's control over a protagonist and how people can be manipulated to do horrendous things by proxy. All the incest interpretation of Kralsei has to offer is that... it's incest, and you're a bit yucky for partaking in it. I'll wrap up this point by saying: incest is a very emotive topic and produces visceral emotional reactions in a lot of people. It's very clever that people have looked critically at Kralsei and observed the possibility, the interpretation, that this could be what's happening, but if the aim in doing so was to promote debate and analysis on the topic, I'm afraid it's only succeeded in doing the exact opposite, causing people to disengage from it entirely. And I strongly believe that's going to severely harm the state of discourse going into Deltarune's future chapters, because how are you going to talk about the game and what it's trying to say if you keep dodging a major part of it for fear of being thought of as pro-incest? It sucks if you're invested in the ship because no-one wants to discuss it, it sucks if you're NOT invested in the ship because it's not likely going to just evaporate come chapter 3, it sucks for everybody.

Now, having said all of that, I am not here to convince you that Kralsei is the truth and the life and what-have-you - you can read any of my other essays on the topic if you want to be preached to in that manner. You're valid and based for not liking Kralsei for any reason, and I wholeheartedly respect your opinion. All I'm trying to say here is that, calling it incest because "Ralsei is/looks like Asriel" or "Kris hates Ralsei" or whatever doesn't do anything for anyone. There are plenty of valid reasons not to like the ship, I just don't think that this is one of them.

Rant over, have a lovely day :D

[kelsunnie]

What Isn't Said (Deltarune Kris X Reader)

FINALLY!! the speaker trio is here nd theyr ready to dance :3 as promised, here is chapter 6 in all its glory and i hope u guys enjoy :3 OH YEA IF THERE ARE ANY GRAMMATICAL ERRORS LEMME KNOW I DID NOT PROOFREAD THIS SO IM EXPECTING LIKE A LOT OF ERRORS

Chapter 6: Cyber Battle!

Three pathways extend before you, with one blocked off by some unknown force. You observe the space around you—two oval-headed figures stand beside the sealed path, brown boxes fixed in front of them like makeshift tables or booths. You guessed they were some kind of merchant or something. Across from them, you spot two of the pink figures you’ve grown familiar with: one dressed in a sharp suit and the other one sporting a neon green visor hat.

You approach the nearest one, wanting to initiate conversation, until—

“I want to go back to the city, but the way is blocked…” The one wearing a tuxedo spoke, shoulders slumped in dramatic disappointment, “I’m no country boy! Let me out of Cyber Field!”

“Okay, not you, then,” you mutter, slowly backing away and pretending you had absolutely no association with them.

Just nearby, the one donning the neon green visor hat adds, “I heard there’s a rebel team resisting Queen… so far all I found are overpriced bagels…”

Exactly how overpriced? You thought to yourself, glancing towards both the oval-headed figures. Surely they’re not that expensive, right? I don’t think the concept of inflation works around here.

“Yo,” the vendor, clad in what seemed to be a blue hat and beige gloves, snickered, eyes (or  speakers? You never knew.) travelling between the group, “it’s hard work being Queen’s minion, ain’t it? Why don’t you take a break and grab a snack? Ultra seedy CD Bagels, only $400 each!” 

You blinked. “Okay, they weren’t kidding with the price. For only 1 bagel? Hard pass,” you waved your hand, rejecting the offer. 

“I’d kill for one right now, though,” Susie muttered, practically drooling at the thought of gobbling said overpriced bagels. 

“Huh?!” You turned toward her with a raised brow. “You can’t be serious.”

“C’mon,” the vendor leaned forward on their box-stand, voice dipped in faux wisdom, “you can’t survive off the air she breathes! Believe me, I’ve tried!” 

“What?” Your eyes whiplashed at the vendor’s face, genuinely confused at their sentence.

“What?” Kris echoed flatly, furrowed their brows, disbelief apparent on their usually-stoic face.

“What?” Susie, in her bagel-stuffed mouth, was appalled at the vendor’s words.

“Excuse me?” Ralsei asked gently, ever the polite one, though his face said what everyone else was thinking.

“... what?” the vendor replied, looking just as confused as the rest of you, as if you had said something weird. 

“Wait, where did you get that?” Your eyes caught Susie’s stuffed mouth, the edges stained with small bits of shiny residue.

Susie quickly wipes her mouth, feigning innocence, “what do you mean?”

“… We’re short on 400, aren’t we?” You turned to Kris and Ralsei, the two of them quickly looking away from your gaze.

Susie could only give you a sheepish smile, a satisfied look plastered on her face as she pats her belly.

You stepped back slowly, “I think we’ve had enough bagel discourse for one day.”

The four of you approach the other vendor on your left, silently praying that their goods aren't as overpriced as the other.

“Want to buy a bagel? Only $80,” the other speaker-like vendor with green, metallic skin, and yellow irises offered, voice buzzing.

“K_K, no! It’s 400! 400!” the one who offered $400 for a bagel stammered, visibly panicking. “Got it,” the green-skinned one chirped, “Want to buy 400 bagels? Only $80.”

You blinked, “Guys, guys, guys,” you start, hands raised to get the attention of the group, “we could carry a hundred each.”

Susie thought for a second, and nodded her head, a smirk apparent on her face, “Fair enough for me.” 

“Can we even carry 100 of them?” Ralsei tilted his head, hesitant at the suggestion.

“Time to find out.” Susie stretches her arms, as if preparing for the 100 bagels she’s about to carry, “I’ve trained my whole life for this moment.”

You turned to the green one, dubbed as K_K according to the other vendor, with a confident grin, “We’d like 400 bagels, please!”

“Are you crazy?! You guys can’t carry that many,” the other vendor squawked.

“Awe…” You slouched dramatically, feigning sadness.

Susie shrugged, “Meh. Worth a shot.” 

As you dramatically dragged your feet, walking away from the sweet, sweet deal of 400 bagels, the four of you made your way down the path ahead. In front of you was yet another rhythm-based projectile-filled path that you knew all too well, with yet another path extending from your left. But instead of going straight in the danger zone, Instinctively, you moved closer to Kris, expecting them to head straight into the danger zone like always, ready to guide them if needed. But to your surprise, Kris veered left instead, their steps calm and deliberate. What unfolded before you was a welcome change: an open platform overlooking Cyber City in all its electrifying glory. The skyline was a maze of glowing towers and vibrant Ferris wheels, their lights spinning gently like lullabies in motion. Standing nearby was a peculiar figure with a computer mouse for a head, their silhouette framed by the soft hum of the city behind them.

Kris walked up to the mouse-headed figure, footsteps quiet against the cool metal beneath them. The moment they got close, the figure perked up and spoke without looking at them, “I’m the Hacker. I’m going after the blue checksmarks.”

You tilted your head, “The what now?”

The Hacker gestured vaguely toward the field ahead, still not facing you, “Find [3] in the Cyber Field ahead, and I’ll join your [City]. You just look like the kind of folks who have a [Cool City].” 

Susie blinked. “Okay, did that guy just talk in brackets?”

Kris gives Hacker a thumbs up, agreeing to their request.

“Um, okay, dude,” You shrugged, “let’s get those checkmarks, or something…”

With Kris bidding Hacker good-bye, you all finally walk towards the short danger-filled zone. Kris led with quiet determination, and after witnessing how recklessly they handled projectile areas before, you stayed alert, ready to dodge—or maybe even yank them back if needed.

Along the way, Susie spotted a chest. Stomping over, she popped it open with little ceremony, and pulled out yet another Glow Wrist, a blue checkmark blinked into existence above the chest with a soft chime.

“Ugh, another one of these?” she muttered, then tossed it over her shoulder without looking.

You caught it with ease, slipping it onto your free wrist, “Thanks, Susie,” you said with a grin, admiring your now glow-wrist-decorated arms. You raised them proudly for everyone to see. “A few more and I’ll be literally glowing.” 

Ralsei offered a patient smile, while Susie groaned audibly, “Please stop.” 

You smirked. “Aww, don’t be jealous. You’ll get your glow-up one day.”

“God damnit—”

Finally free from the parkour-esque path and from your puns and antics, Susie moves ahead, as Ralsei follows to ‘help stray Susie away from the innocent’, or whatever it was he said. You and Kris follow them from behind, walking in a more comfortable silence. Up ahead, yet another puzzle blocks the path. A familiar screen looms to your left, the bright letters on display spelling out the required solution: AGREE2ALL.

“Wait, is this another puzzle?” Susie groaned, already stepping back, “You do it.”

“I have faith in you, Kris!” Ralsei chimed in brightly.

“Don’t be stupid or something,” you added dryly, already preparing yourself to relax on the ground.

“... whatever,” Kris resentfully moved ahead toward the AGREE2ALL puzzle, eyeing the lettered panels.

In the midst of waiting for Kris to finish the puzzle, your eyes wandered—eventually landing on Ralsei. His little green hat sat slightly crooked on his fluffy head, the tip leaning a bit too far to the side.

“Can I?”  you asked softly, gesturing to the hat.

“Sure!” Ralsei beamed, in all his adorable glory, as he tilted his head toward you without hesitation. As he leaned closer, you carefully adjusted the hat, straightening the brim and gently patting it down. His wool brushed against your fingers, the warmth and softness of his fur oddly comforted you.

“There,” you said with a small smile, “back to maximum cuteness.” 

You found yourself adjusting—gently, but consciously, easing your way into differentiating Ralsei from Asriel. Their voices, their warmth, even the way they smiled held uncanny similarities, but you reminded yourself that Ralsei was not your brother. He was someone new. Someone gentle and kind in his own right, not just a shadow of the past. Even something as small as helping Ralsei adjust his hat helped, focusing on the little differences: the way Ralsei spoke with quiet certainty, the way he blushed so easily, the way he looked at your group like you were already home.

It grounded you. Reminded you that this was here, now, and that maybe, you could still let yourself care.

“Oh! Th.. Thank you…!” He smiled sweetly, shy but grateful. For a second, it was easy to forget how strange and tense everything had been. Just you, your friends, and a little green hat.

I’d go to war for that smile, you gushed internally, your heart doing a quiet little flip.

The sound of the puzzle solving echoed with a mechanical click, making all of you look up at the now-solved puzzle on the monitor. Kris turned around silently, waiting. 

“You Typed: Agree 2 All,” the screen’s speakers echo, startling you all, “Thank You For Agreeing 2 This Peon Release Form.”

Queen’s face was now displayed on the monitor, her usual smirk plastered across the screen, “Now You Are All Legally My Minions. And I Can Use Your Likeness For Funny Statues.”

“Honestly, I wouldn’t mind that,” you whistle, crossing your arms, “as long as I look cool.”

“What if we just… don’t do what you say?” Susie challenged, baring her teeth slightly.

“In That Case I Would Be Forced To Use Another Guy Probably,” Queen replied flatly.

Susie blinked, “Uh, better get started on that, then.”

“Okay But I’m Still Going To Use Your Likeness,” Queen added nonchalantly.

“I’m expecting 100% accuracy!” You shouted, pointing at the screen, “if I see even one uneven eyebrow, I’m suing.” 

Queen blinked. “Noted.” The screen flickered off with a dramatic power-down noise, the silence that followed almost comedic. 

“Nice,” Susie muttered, already stretching her arms. “Let’s get moving before she comes back with a copyright contract.”

Finding no new path to head to, the group headed back the way they came. The metallic floor hummed beneath your feet, pulsing with each step like a quiet warning. You naturally fell into step beside Kris, subtly shifting to guide them away from the same set of falling projectiles lining the path. 

“I can go by myself,” Kris grumbled under their breath, barely meeting your eyes.

You let out a dry chuckle. “Sure you can,” you replied, tone light but teasing, “because walking face-first into danger has worked out so well for you.” 

Kris scoffed but didn’t move away. Their silence said more than their words ever could. 

Behind you, Susie muttered something about how you two bicker like an old married couple. Ralsei, ever the peacekeeper, quietly tried to change the subject, but the warmth of the moment lingered—just enough to take the edge off the tension, if only for a little while.

The group arrived in the same room from before, though now the once-sealed path stood wide open, glowing faintly with digital light. With Kris taking the lead, the group stepped forward—only to find not one, but three of the same spinning teacup platforms waiting beyond.

You hummed, “So… which one?”

Before anyone could answer, a familiar, mischievous voice echoed from near the first teacup, “Heh, good luck figuring out which ride to take!” 

Your head turned sharply to the source of the voice. Standing there with a grin too wide for comfort was the same scamming vendor from earlier, arms crossed and clearly enjoying himself.

“... Let’s just try the first one,” you muttered, brushing past him with narrowed eyes. 

Ignoring whatever shady advice he might’ve offered, you walked up to the first teacup platform and settled in on one of the teacups, with the other three following through. 

“Ralsei! Over here!” you called out, waving your hand enthusiastically to catch his attention. The gentle thrum of the machinery beneath you only added to the rush of anticipation in your chest, “you can ride with me!” 

Ralsei perked up at your invitation, eyes lighting up behind his glasses. “O-Okay!” he responded, scurrying over with his scarf trailing behind him. He carefully climbed in beside you, his movements tentative but trusting. 

“Wow, you didn’t even hesitate,” Susie teased from her own teacup, already leaning back with her arms crossed behind her head. “Didn’t know you two were getting cozy.” 

“I-it’s not like that!” Ralsei flustered, adjusting his hat quickly as his cheeks warmed with a faint pink. 

You snorted softly, nudging him with your elbow. “Ignore her. We’ve got the best seat, anyway.” 

Kris, ever quiet, glanced at the group before stepping wordlessly into the last teacup. The vendor gave a final, smug wave from the edge of the platform just as the mechanism began to hum louder, the teacups trembling with kinetic energy. And then, with a sudden jolt, the ride began. 

The ride ended in less than a minute—just a short spin, barely enough time for Susie to even grumble about the lack of thrill. Beyond the landing platform was another puzzle. Letters scattered across the floor, glimmering with strange digital light.

“…GIASFELFEBREHBER?” you read aloud, blinking slowly. “Yeah, not doing that.” 

Kris stepped forward with the confidence of someone who had no idea what they were doing. They stepped on a few buttons, the lights blinking red every time Kris stepped on the wrong letter.

“Kris, it’s ok, we can just go back down or something,” 

Another attempt. Still wrong. A pause followed, long and silent. The group stood awkwardly, watching Kris stare at the board like it had personally insulted them. 

“Susie, go help Kris,”

“WHY ME?!”

Then—without warning—Kris suddenly moved with sharp precision. The letters lit up in rapid sequence: GIASFELFEBREHBER. A satisfying chime echoed, followed by another blue checkmark blinking from the monitor.

“Okay… how did you even—?” 

Before anyone could voice their theories, Kris silently turned on their heel and made their way back to the teacup platform. The rest of you exchanged glances, then followed without a word. You all boarded the elevator again, the teacup ride descending with a soft mechanical hum, returning you to the familiar metallic pathway below. Without hesitation, the group moved to the second teacup elevator. It rose steadily, the structure swaying just enough to make you grip the edge. At the top, you stepped onto a small, isolated platform where another chest waited.

Susie pounced on it first. “Mine—!” 

She flipped it open. Empty. 

“Dude,” she scowled, hands on her hips, “are you kidding me?”

You tried not to laugh, but the chuckle slipped out anyway. “Hey,” you pointed at the glowing symbol above the chest, “checkmark.”

Susie glanced up, then groaned, “At least it’s the last checkmark,” 

With all three checkmarks secured, the group made your way back to Hacker. 

“Wow, I’m the Hacker and you found all 3 checkmarks!” the strange mouse-headed figure beamed, “maybe our cyber paths will cyber cross once more in Queen’s Mansion.”

“… Hopefully with fewer puzzles,” you muttered under your breath.

“In the meantime, let me show you the power of the blue checkmarks…” 

With a dramatic flourish, the three glowing symbols swirled into the air, gathering at a single point in the sky. A rising chime echoed as they ascended, then—

BOOM! The power of the checkmarks was… a digital fireworks display of each of your faces, one by one, pixelated and obnoxiously animated across the sky.

“I regret doing this,” Kris deadpanned, squinting at their own face exploding in glittery pixels.

“Now everyone knows we’re cool.” Susie grinned, arms crossed proudly.

“This is better than whatever Queen has planned,” you chuckled, admiring your overly-animated pixel firework with a hum.

Waving a hand to Hacker, you made your way back to the three teacup platform room, hopping onto the third teacup platform, bracing yourselves as it started to move again—creaking, rattling, and shaking just a little more violently than the others. Arriving at the top, the four you reach a dead end, but not before Kris walks to the edge, with all of you following behind them. The platform groaned and shuddered again—then slowly, it began to move forward, carrying you all deeper into the unknown. The platform rolled forward with a mechanical whirr, your group swaying slightly with the motion. Just then, a familiar floating DJ set zipped after you—its rider scrambling to keep balance. The moment the platform jerked to a stop, the figure tumbled out, landing face-first with a loud thud.

“D-dead end…!” he shouted, quickly picking himself up and dusting off his coat.

Susie stepped forward, arms crossed, “Alright, what’s the deal, twerp!”

You squinted, “I’ve seen you, like, thrice now. Are you our stalker?”

The figure pointed at Susie and you, seemingly offended by what you both said, “Who’s a twerp?! The name’s Sweet! And I’m nobody’s stalker!”

Ralsei blinked, “Oh, like ‘suite’?”

Susie pondered, “Oh, like… sweets?”

Sweet looked like he might actually explode from the group’s words, “Don’t tell me you haven’t heard of the Sweet Cap’ n Cakes?!”

“Nope.”

“Um, doesn’t ring a bell...” Ralsei added, scratching the back of his head.

“G.. guess our act’s still a bit underground…” Sweet rubbed the back of his head, “Sweet Cap’ n Cakes! Not only are we Cyber Field’s BEST musical trio…”

“We’re also the last resistance against the big bad Queen and all her crew!” Sweet huffed, “And that starts with resisting YOU!”

“Wha—We didn’t do anything!” you protest.

“What?! We’re fighting Queen, too!” Susie threw her hands up.

“Nuh-uh-uh! Cap’n saw you help her kidnap some girl!” Sweet points an accusing look at you, “Hey! Hey, Cap!”

A figure drops from above, “We won’t let anyone lay a finger on madamoizels…” The figure named Cap, who was just the same scamming vendor you spoke to before, struck a pose, “Except us!”

“That’s not the point, Cap’n!”

You leaned in, blinking, “Where did you come from?!”

Cap shrugged, “It’s like half the point. 60%? 55…”

“We’re rebels, not players!” Sweet declared.

“We’re rebels that play,” Cap’n added with jazz hands. “We don’t play!! We don’t play!!” Sweet shouted, visibly vibrating from frustration.

“That’s it! K_K, get over here!”

Out of literally nowhere, K_K dropped from above with a stylish spin.

“K_K, are we players?!”

K_K stood in silence. The air was tense. Then— 

“I’m a CD player.” K_K plays a fun, groovy beat while dancing, with their head moving side to side.

Everyone just… stared, the music echoing as you and the rest of the group quietly turned around, slowly walking away.

“Wait! They’re getting away!” Sweet’s voice cracked as he pointed a shaky finger at your retreating group.

“Sweet, chill,” Cap’n said, arms crossed, grooving a little in place, “there’ll be other bad guys!”

“No, this is our chance!” Sweet puffed out his chest, determination flaring in his pixelated eyes, “Are you ready!? Let’s fight!!”

“... K_K.” Cap’n said calmly.

“Yeah?” K_K was already half-swaying.

“Play some battle music!” 

“OK!” K_K hit a button on his forehead. A funky synth beat dropped instantly, heavy bass rattling the floor.

“Hey, this is a nice song!” you shout mid-bop. 

The tension in the air loosens ever so slightly as the beat drops harder. It was clear the fight wasn’t about violence—it was about style, movement, energy.

Kris points at Sweet, catching the group’s attention, “Dance.”

You raised an eyebrow at their words, “Okay, weird command, but the music fits so,” shrugging your shoulders, you quickly stretch your limbs, relaxing your muscles as you move your body, grooving to the beat of the music, feeling the thump in your heart echo in your ears out of excitement.

Susie followed through with no hesitation, moving her arms in an up and down motion and slamming her foot rhythmically. Ralsei nervously bobs his head, as he shuffles his feet to the beat. And Kris… 

“Why do you have to be like this?” You giggle. Kris was doing a dance you both knew all too well. They put their arms together, kicking both feet in sync with the sound—it was the kind of dance you and Kris would overuse when playing your favorite online game, using it solely to poke fun at other players. You shook your head in disbelief, feeling a sense of pride and relief at seeing your childhood friend honor a silly little memory that only the two of you shared.

Whilst dancing with Sweet, a music note floats around you all, making the experience seem magical and funky. But when one of these projectiles hit Kris in the stomach, they dropped and fell face flat on the smooth surface of the floor, a thunk sound echoing as soon as they made contact with the cold, metal ground. 

“Are these attacks?!” You quickly swerved away from an incoming music note attack, heart beating rapidly at the sudden danger incoming.

Susie followed through with your dodges, moving away from the music notes as much as she could. 

You run up to Kris, swiftly making your way to them as you yell out their name, “Kris,” you grab their arm, avoiding the incoming attack, “focus already.”

Kris looked at you as if saying I’m trying, crimson eyes boring into the back of your head out of frustration. They begrudgingly move side to side, clumsy in their steps as they attempt to avoid the projectiles, like they had no spatial awareness. Their clumsiness concerned you, opting to get close to them as you guide them to a safer path, “you drive me insane, dude.”

“It’s not working, they’re still attacking!” Susie, through her mid-dance, observed the Sweet Cap’n Cakes trio, with only Sweet dancing as Cap and K_K prepared their attacks. 

“Perhaps if we can get them all to dance, we can win?” Ralsei suggested.

“All of them dancing…” you thought for a second, an imaginary lightbulb appearing at the top of your head as soon as you connected the dots, “That’s it! Let’s dance with them one by one! Susie, you’re with K_K. Ralsei, you’re with Cap!”

“I was waiting for the option to do that!” Kris shouted, frustration ringing in their voice. 

You looked at Kris with a confused expression, furrowing your eyebrows in concern, “Option? What are you talking about?”

You watched as Kris stayed silent, eyes flicking to something behind you. You followed their gaze for a split second, confused when you saw nothing out of the ordinary. It was like they were reading something invisible. 

You let out a nervous laugh, waving your hand dismissively, “You’re talking about this like it’s in some game or something. Just use your brain, it’s not that hard!”

“What the fuck—” 

Quickly, you grab Kris’ hands, a smile plastered on your face as you bob your head to the beat, “Come oooon, casanova, let’s dance with Sweet!” 

Kris blinked, but didn’t resist.

You look to Kris, expression softening for a moment, “Hey, for the record, I’m keeping your comment from earlier to heart. I heard you,” you murmured, voice quieter now over the thumping rhythm, “... but it was kind of my fault for being pushy. Sorry, Kris.”

“... As long as you know,” they said simply. You smiled, “Yeah, yeah. Come on, let’s dance!”

With that, the battle shifted from dodging attacks to moving in sync. The music swelled. All of you danced—twirling, sliding, jumping. Even Ralsei got into it, timidly bopping side to side. Susie slammed the ground with her foot to the beat like it owed her money. And Kris? Well… Kris danced in that same oddly specific way you remembered. Somehow, it worked.

“Feel the beat!” 

“Watch my moves!” 

“Dance, dance!!”

“Hey, losers! Wrap it up! Battle’s over!” Susie barked with a sharp grin.

“Over?” Sweet blinked, “In other-type words… We lost!?”

“Does that mean we can be friends?” K_K tilted his head hopefully.

“K_K! No!” Cap’n protested, looking exasperated.

“Fighting’s not really my style anyways…” K_K mumbled.

“Yeah, because you’re a coward!” Cap snapped, though it lacked real bite.

Sweet let out a laugh, “I mean, it was fun dancing, but…” 

Cap reassured Sweet, patting him on the back, “Sweet. Don’t worry. I think our dancing beat them.”

“Beat them…?”

“Yeah, all mercy-like.”

“See, when we danced with them, it convinced them we’re cool.” 

“Now they’re on our side?”

“Yes.”

“Hey! You four!” Sweet suddenly pointed dramatically, “welcome to the good side!”

“WE ARE the good side!” Susie shot back, exasperated.

Ralsei sweatdropped, adjusting his scarf with a sheepish chuckle, “Just go with it, Susie…”

“Happy to be here!” You throw a thumbs up to the trio, earning the same thumbs up from Sweet.

“Let’s ronday-voo at our Junk Shop.” Sweet declared proudly, “We jammed the door shut, but we’ll kick it open!”

“Alright everyone, let’s go!” With that, Sweet and Cap jump off to their DJ-mobile that seemingly appeared from nowhere, landing perfectly, with K_K following through except landing on their heads as they hover away slowly.

“... Do you guys think we can do that?” you asked, mostly joking, but a small part of you curious.

“As long as I get to step on your head,” Susie put her hand on your head, a mischievous glint in her eye.

“No thanks,” you said flatly, ducking out of her grip with a side step. 

You all head down to the only path forward. A long descent waited ahead, the platform rattled as it rose up, silent and still, anticipating your return trip. Susie and Ralsei shared a glance before stepping forward together as you and Kris stayed behind for a beat.

“Hey, so,” you started casually, hands behind your back, “why didn’t you attack them?”

Kris didn’t look at you, but you felt the shift in their posture, “What’s it to you?” they muttered.

You shrugged, trying to keep your tone light, though your curiosity itched at the back of your throat, “Y’know, you attacked the cat-looking ones and the wire people earlier,” you pointed out, eyes keeping check on Kris to see any changes in behaviour or answer, “what changed your mind?”

A pause. Then—

“... need them alive,” their answer 

“That sounds so bad,” you stare at them in disbelief at their words, “you hear yourself, right, Krissy?”

“Don’t call me that,” Kris grumbled, the speaker-like echo in their voice seemingly disappearing.

"Haha, would you have preferred 'casanova'?" You jest.

Kris shot you a look, prompting you to tease them further.

“Okaaay,” you smiled, “.. Krispy.”

“You annoy me,” they said, but a small, reluctant smile tugged at their lips, barely within your eyesight but their voice having a hint of mirth reassured you that Kris didn’t really mean what they said, “... and where did that even come from?”

“A little payback for all of those pranks you did before,” you nudged their arm, “and I’m a little hungry. I bet you are, too.”

“... Whatever,” Kris muttered again, turning their head away—but not fast enough to hide the faint blush on their cheeks. You couldn’t help but smile to yourself, relieved. They looked okay. Sounded okay. That was enough.

Without another word, Kris held out their hand again, waiting—silently, expectantly—for yours to meet it. You let out a quiet chuckle at the gesture, your heart softening, before slipping your fingers into theirs. Together, hand in hand, the two of you slid down the rail, laughter and wind trailing behind you.