#gloria van gouton

[wickedsick]

Psychonauts Secret Santa 2023

@wonderlaneyart I'm your secret Santa this year! Sorry if it's a little short.

“This is going to be horrendous.”

Gloria sat behind a large black curtain, the only thing protecting her from what would surely be the worst flop of her entire acting career.

Nearby, Fred hovered nervously, wanting to help but unable to find the right words.

“...No?”

Out of the corner of his eye, Fred saw Napoleon looking at him with disdain.

“Non? You did this for a living and you say non?”

“Shut up,” Fred muttered under his breath. Turning back to Gloria, he tried again. “Look- e-even if it doesn't go to plan, it- it's going to be alright. There's no critics out there, nobody's going to- to do whatever mean people who don't like plays do. I don't know.”

Sitting down next to Gloria and adjusting his cape, he continued. “But, if you really don't want to do this, you don't have to. We can just show off Edgar’s props,” he said, gesturing to the backdrop and props of cardboard and black velvet Edgar had prepared.

“No-no, I can do this. I want to do this,” Gloria said, standing up.

“Gotcha. Well, I'll go raise the curtain then,” Fred said, running off to do just that.

Turning to face the thick curtain, Gloria felt the nerves that Fred had help calm get jumpy again.

I haven't been onstage in ages-

What if I've lost my talent-

Am I forcing everyone into this-

But then the curtain started to rise and she didn't have the time to think of those things.

It was time to act.

“The year is 1815,” Edgar narrated from behind the stage, flicking switches on his light board. “The month is May. The location is Blois, France. The weather is sunny. Our heroine sits in her study.”

The spotlight landed on Gloria.

“Ah, woe is me,” she said, “my husband, Napoleon, has been dethroned- and I know not yet what will happen to me, nor my son.” She gestured to a cardboard cutout of a small boy. “We were sent to this small village to escape the Sixth Coalition, but what are we to do now?”

As the light spread across the rest of the stage, Boyd entered, holding a prop letter. “Uh- madam, this arrived for you. It comes from Paris.”

As Gloria took the letter, she spared a quick glance to stage left, where Fred waited in the darkness.

“My dear Marie Louise,” Gloria read. As Fred’s spotlight flicked on, he began speaking with Gloria, writing the letter as she read it.

“I am writing you this letter to inform you that I have returned from exile. I have, with the support of my army and those fools who claimed to betray me to Louis XVIII, retaken my throne as Emperor, and removed the usurper who dared sit in my home.” Gloria stopped speaking, letting Fred lead. “Various countries- Britain, Russia, Austria, Prussia- have pledged large armies to destroy me, and yet it shall be I who destroy them.” Fred’s French accent was comically over-the-top; he said he did it to annoy his ancestor. “Soon, ai shall march to meet zese armees, ét drive between zem a wedge. Ai mak fair bélgium een déux month's time. Béfaire zén, ai invité you to rejoin me een paris. Yur 'usband and empairair…” Fred’s light shut off-

“Napoleon,” Gloria read. “Oh, what am I to do? It is three days’ travel to Paris, so I have almost sixty days to decide. Ally myself once again with Napoleon, or remain here in Blois?”

She turned to the cardboard cutout boy. “Ah, my son. The Treaty of Fontaine prevents you from inheriting your father’s lands, his titles- You, who were once the heir to the French Empire, the King of Rome- what would you wish? To remain the prince of Parma? Or to reunite with your father, for a chance to reclaim the titles you were bestowed at birth? Be it better to stand upon the cliff, safe, or to leap for the heavens, at risk of falling like did Icarus to far lower than you have ever been?” Gloria was proud of that monologue- she had written that part herself. Most of the script was Fred’s invention.

“What troubles you, milady?” Edgar came in from offstage, as Boyd took over the lights.

“A-ah! Count Niepperg! What brings you here?”

“Checking in on you. And your son,” Edgar said. “No doubt that madman did horrible things to you both back in Paris- but worry not! The Seventh Coalition shall deal with him.”

Gloria’s face and tone turned icy. “The first five Coalitions did not ‘deal with him’. Even the sixth only deterred him for a time. Why should this one be the one to succeed?”

Edgar stepped back. He was quite a good actor- managing to make himself look small, as the shadows made Gloria seem more regal. “Milady, I- if it will assuage your fears-”

“I do not fear Napoleon. I bear no ill will towards him, as I hope he bears none to me. However, while there are no fears to be assuaged, you have indeed helped me- by helping me make up my mind.”

“What do you mean?”

“Napoleon has invited me to return to Paris. And now, I shall. I know not what will happen, with Napoleon or the Seventh Coalition, but I know the path I must walk.”

“Then I shall walk that path with you,” Edgar said. “May we both live to see the path’s end.”

As the curtain fell, the lighting changed to basic, warm light. With a deep exhale, Gloria stopped being Marie Louise and went back to just plain old Gloria. “How was that, everyone?” She asked, as Boyd and Edgar came out from behind the painted backdrop.

“I- I think that went pretty well,” Boyd said. “I mean, I only had one line, but I think I said the line well!”

“It’s your play, Gloria,” Fred said. “Do you think it went well?”

“Yes, I enjoyed it,” Gloria said, “But I don’t think I wanted it to be my play. I wanted to do it with you- so I do hope you all enjoyed it.”

“I liked painting the backdrop,” Edgar said. “I may have preferred to be the mailman, though.”

“I’d be good with being the- the Neeper guy,” Boyd offered.

“Niepperg,” Fred corrected. “Napoleon’s still muttering in my ear about that accent, but he says you made a great Marie Louise.”

“Oh, good,” Gloria said. “In that case, I say we take our bow.”

As the former inmates came out from behind the curtain, they looked out at the crowd- particularly, at row three, seat seven, where a kid in goggles sat, clapping louder than anyone.

As everyone worked together to take down the makeshift stage, Razputin came up to them.

“Hey, so- there’s no second act, so I was wondering what happened. Is this before or after the board game?”

“Before,” Fred said, chuckling. “Count Niepperg and Marie Louise went back to Paris, after which Napoleon left for the battle of Waterloo- which he lost. Ow!” Flinching, Fred turned back to Raz. “Yeah, he wanted me to say the game’s inaccurate. He actually lost because of the French Psychoseparatist Movement.”

“The huh?”

“A bunch of psychics who wanted to secede from the country and make their own little psycho-nation. A few of them attacked during the battle of Waterloo and messed up Napoleon’s back lines with a horde of bunnies.”

“Wait, bunnies?” Raz said.

“Yeah, some guy named Marcel Oleander controlled, like, three thousand bunnies to attack the French forces. Combined with a whole bunch of other stuff, they actually tilted the scales against Napoleon, and he ended up losing the battle.”

Raz looked deep in thought. “Huh.”

“They added some of that stuff in one of the expansions, but I always felt it messed with the game’s balance too much.”

[hieronymus-botch]

My personal headcanons for what happens to the Thorney Towers crew after blowing up the asylum:

-Boyd is still into conspiracy theories, but on a healthier, less psychotic level. He gets another job as a security guard and in his spare time produces a podcast where he does a deep dive on a different conspiracy theory each episode and gives them a rating on how likely they are to be true, Mythbusters-style.

-Gloria is able to mourn and get closure over her mother, and becomes an acting teacher at a college somewhere. (yes i took this idea from bojack horseman what of it)

-Fred never wants to be anywhere near an institution ever again after what he went through, and luckily since he’s an Actual Noble he doesn’t have to. (The House of Bonaparte is still around and still rich in the real world, so one might infer that fred got the job at Thorney Towers out of a desire for self-fulfillment and helping people rather than to put food on the table.) He starts a Youtube channel where he makes videos about history and tabletop gaming.

-Edgar goes to Mexico to get back in touch with his ancestral roots, and after a period of cultural adjustment, learning the language, and realizing that bullfighting is actually a Spanish thing, he integrates and becomes somewhat famous both in his real identity as a painter and as his luchador persona El Odio.

-The four are all still friends and visit each other and hang out regularly, as well as keep in touch with Raz, who enjoys listening to Boyd’s podcast and Fred’s videos and has one of Edgar’s paintings up in his room next to Gloria’s old trophy.

-P.S. re: the parts of this involving the internet, I know Tim Schafer has said the game takes place in the 1980s but even in-universe sources don’t even present a consistent timeline of the game’s own story let alone when in history it happens so it taking place in the 21st century is effectively an equally valid interpretation

[goobusart]

Psychonauts doodle dump! :D

This is @gooberinos art account btw uwu just so you know, I post my commissions here. Expect a LOT of psychonauts stuff.

[helis97]

I was inspired (once again) by @sindrakart recent ask posts and decided to make a little post-Psychonauts scene with the patients of Thorny Towers moving on towards new adventures (in a big car apparently).

I was trying to imagine what they would end up doing in a potential new life. So here are some concept for each character:

Gloria Von Gouton: while very unsure of herself, she starts working at a daycare  and ends up being totally fit for the job. Since she was left at a boarding school when she was younger, she knows how it feels to be abandoned by the people who are supposed to take care of you. While the kids at the daycare are left there for a short period of time, Gloria puts all herself to be sure that they are loved and well taken care of, until their parents come pick them up. Everyone loves Gloria, the children, the other workers at the daycare and even the children’s parents.

Edgar Teglee: the man’s incredible art skills quickly find him a job in the city where he and his friends are stationed. The town chief commissions Edgar to paint a beautiful mural on the side of the local school, but upon reaching the location of the job, Edgar discovers that the wall is already painted with beautiful works, made by the local “problematic” teenagers. Edgar works hard to incorporate the pre-existing drawing with his own art and the final result is brilliant. Everyone is impressed, especially when they discover that Edgar only took a small percentage of the payment, choosing to donate the rest to the school art department. The principal’s office is flooded with letters by the students, all demanding for Edgar to be taken by the school as the new art teacher. Edgar is hired by the school and becomes a very respected figure among the students.

Boyd Cooper: after driving his palls to the town without a driving licence, Boyd decides that it’s better to make a new one. After taking his driving test, he realises that he very much enjoys driving and that he’s very good at it, having a steady but gentle driving, and still remembering all the rules of the road (despite not driving for years). Boyd starts looking for jobs available and learns that the local school is looking for a driver for the school bus. He applies and is hired. Boyd enjoys listening at the stories the kids tell each other while he drives, especially the ones that talk about criptids spotted in the field. Sometimes Boyd engages with stories he himself had heard or witnessed, captivating the attention of the nerdy kids.

Fred Bonaparte: between all his friends, Fred is the one with the plan already figured out. His charm and charisma combined with a basic knowledge of medicine, find him a place at one of the small pharmacy of the town. Despite being behind with the news of the medical world, Fred has a very strong will to learn and is simply very good at problem solving (working at a mental institute with dropping fundings and spread ignorance, made him very resourceful at finding the best solution available for the patients). This job also gives him access to any needed medications for his friend (antidepressant medications for Gloria and Edgar, and anxiolytics for Boyd). His confident and kind personality is well loved by both colleagues and customers.

Crispin Whytehead: his plans of becoming a hermit crab on what was left of the asylum are foiled when he is dragged across the lake and into a van by both Fred and Boyd. He lazily lays on the passenger seat casually being mean, but having to stop once in a while whenever Fred reminds him that he can loose arms privileges if he doesn’t behave. Upon arriving at the city, Crispin quickly gets away from the others and promptly gets lost in a mini market. The crabby old lady, owner of the shop, finds him and a match of “who can be the crabbiest” begins. Somehow, in the middle of that argument, Crispin is hired by the crabby lady and now they just work together. Despite being always at odds, Crispin abilities complement the one of the shop owner, who has impeccable sight, very good practical sense, but is a disaster at keeping track of the sale items. Crispin, on the other hand, has a very strong mind and an ok business sense, but can’t see batshit and struggles to tie his own shoelaces. It is hard to tell if Crispin likes his new life or if he just rolls with whatever circumstances he finds himself into.

[dogencool]

@mrkanman I saw that you were feeling really stressed and tired, so I wanted to do something nice for you and drew Gloria

[scrapnick]

I love my children

[hieronymus-botch]

So is it ever explained how the Thorney Towers inmates are all there if the asylum closed 55 years before the events of Psychonauts and they’re all apparently way too young to have been inmates when that happened?