#don't let me do this it'll become another doc collecting dust

[winter-spark]

I'm so funny because I don't really view Itaru and Tonooka as romantic exes but like I now have two break-up songs I could see being them to some extent. (the second one might be better, please look at the second one.)

On one hand, we have plot line by Emlyn. This song I would do a mini animatic/animation meme if I had the skill, with these four lines from the chorus:

You're not my happy ever after But you came close to it I don't need another chapter I read most of it.

where the first two lines here would be them in high school, the second two lines after the showing of KniRoun. This would have to be his mindset after that anyway lol, this is very much the "to an extent" I mentioned, I suppose. I think like the concepts/themes used fit Itaru like mentions of being the main character, references to to like prince/knight fairytales. Here's the song if you want to hear it.

On the other, we have I'm Trying (Not Friends) by Masie Peters.

And I know that currently, Itaru's not trying, not really as they are not in the same vicinity much and everything's out on the table but imagine if they frequented the same circles and listen to this song thinking about the singer being Itaru. Because I think this would sorta be him. Some lyrics I like/think in particular

Here's the lowkey obligatory chorus mention, 'tis only half the chorus btw:

And I swore that I'd swallow my pride And you swore you would do better this time Well, I might be bitter and twisted and broken and petty and lying But at least I'm trying

(& because I can't go without mentioning it because it's so them-core in my head:)

Got friends, got at least a healthy five Yeah, some people think I'm funny, baby, don't look so surprised

AU where Tonooka for whatever reason joins Mankai or befriends some members and starts hanging out around Mankai before they get the whole backstory on what happened in high school lol I think I might actually read that or watch that animatic ngl. [Update: I'd age them down to college to make it make slightly more sense because it'd be fresher but also no I am not gonna do that sorry.] It was hard to pick so few lyrics lol, listen to the song and tell me you see what I mean, please:

[number1salesman1997]

Spachiel is finally allowed back in, and upon getting inside, he'll see Alphys stepping back to admire her handiwork, the entire work area dark, save for an old tv that was playing an episode of Neon Genesis Evangelion, of course in the middle of a fight.

Surely the entire scene here was a little...evil looking.

But, her word is good, apparently. A mess of discarded metal and wiring littering the floor, along with chip bags and ramen cups. There seemed to also be stains of oil? Coolant? Spattering the area, a little too similar to blood, but maybe that's just the lighting?

But the machine itself seemed cleaner, that busted right arm was fixed and even upgraded some with newer plating.

*So your battery only needs to be charged for like, two hours but it'll last a month, even if you get in a fight. Because fuck running out of power in the middle of a fight, shit's lame. Even if you overclock the systems, I just need another day to mess around with temperature balance, so like maybe avoid any intense fights if you can?"

She turns, and her lab coat is stained in spots too, glasses smudged a little as she takes them off to wipe. To little success, it just makes it worse. She spits on the lens, squinting at Spamton.

"Your uh, your arm, I added a few new features, fixed up the wiring, replaced the plating with something nicer, more durable. You paint it yourself though, I don't have time for that. Test it out, go kill some suckers, record that if you do though. Installed a switch inside your control panel for that pain setting, you can even adjust how much pain you want with a dial, just in case you want to be a freak." She teases with a gross grin, setting her glasses back on her face, and wiping her claws on her coat.

"Your total in my currency is like, give or take 3000, go negotiate with the skeleton if that's too much." She says, bending down to pick up a half empty ramen cup, pouring the contents down her mouth.

"Any questions? Also let me see your bird thing."

So she's been in his snack stash and his old VHS collection too...something which does not escape Spamton's notice as he re-enters his home. That's fine, he supposes, whatever helps her work faster. He is at her complete mercy if he wants these repairs to actually get done after all, so he just keeps his mouth shut and puts up with it, even if he was saving those chips for later and might scream if she left chip dust fingerprints on his precious vintage tapes.

The errant puddles are only given notice once he puts a foot down into one with an unsettling squish. His face practically implodes in on itself in discomfort. This is fine, this is fine, he reminds himself; do not flip out on Alphys. You cannot flip out on Alphys, you need her.

His forced grin quickly becomes quite genuine once she actually starts detailing the work she's done however. "TWO HOURS [[battery charge]] LASTS FOR A [[monthly subscription]]? YOU SURE HO0KED ME UP WITH A SWEET DEAL DOC!!1"

Spachiel flits over to the robot where it lays lifeless without its pilot, eagerly looking over the changes Alphys has made. The right arm looks a little bare for now, but painting it himself is an exciting prospect. Finally he gets to paint something that isn't just a model car or the inside of a dumpster. And new features too?? Knowing Alphys' willingness to enable the Spamtons' sense of immorality, the small puppet grins ecstatically and vibrates wildly in anticipation of those surprise features.

He gets in the robot. Immediately. In fact, he doesn't even wait for Alphys to finish speaking. The second the words 'pain settings' are uttered he crawls inside the hatch, flips that switch, closes his eyes, and plugs his consciousness into NEO.

The difference is immediately noticeable. His plates are not constantly rattling like a shitty old jalopy with the effort to sustain their systems on the feeble darkner energy he had to offer. His hands, which would often shake and loose their sense of touch at inconvenient moments are steady and as lifts the arm and gives his fingers an experimental flex, are far more dextrous than they used to be. Nothing sparks when he disengages the electromagnetic connectors holding the metal plates of his hand together and reforms them into the shape of the phone and blaster formations built into the arm. But most importantly, nothing hurts.

A sense of relief washes over his frayed nerves. "OHHhH...FIIiIIINALLY...." His entire frame relaxes. "YOU CAN'T IMAGINE HOW MUCH [[hilarious penises]] IT SUCKS TO FEEL E V E R Y THAT DAMAG'ES THIS THING..,." He glances over toward the anime playing on the TV set and then adds, "ACTULY, MAYBE YOU DO! [[Nevermind]]!!"

He paces about for a bit, picking up and rearranging various things just to test how much more smoothly he can walk around and maneuver things with his hands. He feels so energetic, so light. Flying ought to be easier than ever now. Everything will be, now that he has another power source for this demanding robot body.

Once the reality of the changes have started to settle in his mind, he starts in with his questions, "sO,, DUE TO... PAST SHANANAGANS, YUO NO I GOTTA [[Inquiry]], HOW DID YOU GET THE BATTRY TO [[extend your warranty]] THAT LONG WITH MY SOUL BEING... NOT A THING? DO I STILL NEED: TH3, uH,,.[[get vaccinated]] OR...? [[NEO]] WILL WORK WIHOUT IT NOW? WHAT ARE THE [[new features!]], YOU RELY DIDEN'T HAVE TO GO TO SUCH [[above and beyond]] FOR [[My]],, OR ARE YUO JUST [[extortion]]?? AHAHAHEHAHEHEHHAHEE!!!1!!" He cackles. In another time, he might have done the same, so if that's the case he almost doesn't care. He respects the con artist hustle too much, for his own reasons.

When Alphys asks about Lazarus though, Spachiel freezes. He was hoping she wouldn't ask, but he knows there's no helping it. He sighs, "[[Please hold]]" and heads into his living room to retrieve the extremely grouchy spamling from his Java tree.

Lazarus perches on Spachiel's arm like a falcon, uttering a hiss and chattering his sharp teeth with his shiny black feathers puffed up threateningly at Alphys. He does not intend to cooperate, at all.

"[[Spamton "Spachiel" G Spamton is not liable for any damages that may occur as a result of handling Baby Boy.]][[FRAGILE handle with care]]" He grins, knowing he could not possibly hold the spamling in check even if he wanted to.