#timeloop but its just hunting with charles

[garashir]

Charles and Arthur in The Aftermath of Genesis

[wizisbored]

anyway. beetlejuice red lantern au. father-daughter bonding through the dogsled timeloop.

(for those who dont know the game, red lantern spoilers obviously but basically youre sledding to your new home in alaska and have to hunt for food and manage resources along the way. every time you die you wake up back at the start with the previous attempt being a dream, but you learn from the dream and start again better prepared because of it. not explicitly a timeloop but i like to see it that way)

so after emily's death, charles' need for a fresh start is a bit more intense than in canon. i dont think theyre moving to alaska permenantly, but its definately at least a temorary move rather than just a holiday. lydia isnt really enthusiastic about her dads urge to reconnect with nature but doesnt entirely hate the idea, once he has the thought to frame it as a chance for interesting photography shes a bit more into it. does constantly make deadpan jokes about how theyre going to die in the wilderness but doesnt actually think theyre going to die, though shes somewhat apathetic to the idea.

so they buy a team of seven dogs. theres five in the game, but i figured with the two of them theyd have a bigger team. might change it but currently theyre betelgeuse, adam, barbara, tina, sally, sandy, and jock (jockey). designs and personalities will be based off their namesakes but they are just dogs, nothing supernatural going on with them. charles did not want betel but lydia found his dumb face and neediness endearing and begged for him, and he gave in.

anyway, they die. its way harder than charles thought and he overestimated his ability to survive. so they both die and they wake up back in the van they were using to get to the start of the trail. neither mention the unsettling deam they just had, but lydia suggests that maybe they should pick up a bit more food before they set off, and charles agrees.

they try again, and this time they do a little better. they get a bit further. they start to talk a little more.

and then they die again. and so it goes on.