New fanfic idea: Taylor reads Worm – well, more importantly, the interludes – so she’d know about stuff like the way Coil uses his power.
Hm, nice. There seem to be a few ways you could go about it… Does Taylor read in real time and adjust her actions to what she learns in the Interludes? Or does she liveblog her own story, Interludes included, after the fact?
Wildbow is a troll 😀
Hehe. Fortunately, I’m a Homestuck, so I’m used to dealing with troll authors. 😛
😮
Trigger warnings for murder, depression and suicide. It’s a bit odd to have an easter egg like this in a super cute and innocent game like Doki Doki Literature Club, but hidden in the game files and encrypted with Base64, you can find this really good, dark short story. I’m sharing it on this blog […]
That was quite the chapter! We got a super vivid and creative nightmare sequence, a tour of Skitter’s base (which I have chosen to call the Hive
– not to be confused with Arc 5 – unless Skitter comes up with a better name), and last but certainly not least, we finally got to see Danny again!
The theming of guilt throughout this chapter was really thorough, as was the buildup to Taylor running into the subject of some of it. The nightmare was prompted by guilt in several ways – over Danny, over Dinah, over Shadow Stalker… Taylor doesn’t like being alone in the Hive because it leaves her thinking about that guilt… and, as mentioned, she managed to run right into one of those three, the one we haven’t seen since 6.9.
And damn am I glad to see him again. If it’s not clear enough yet, I really like Danny as a character – I’d go so far as to say that he’s my favorite mundane. And even on a list that included the parahumans too, I don’t think he’d fall that much lower than Tattletale. He’s not really the kind of character I usually find myself enjoying, but he’s so damn sympathetic.
Interlude 1 did a really good job of showing us why we should feel for Danny, and with it, showed us how much he didn’t deserve any of what he had to deal with in later Arcs. I really don’t think 6.9 would’ve hit anywhere near as hard as it did without what Interlude 1 did for Danny’s character.
I suppose in a lot of ways I like Danny for the same reasons Joyce Byers made it to my favorite character spot in Stranger Things. Without getting into too many spoilers, Joyce is the mother of Will Byers, the latter being the kid who disappears in the first few minutes of the series. Over the course of the series, Joyce’s desperation and more importantly resolve to find out what happened to her son and get him back home if possible makes her an incredibly sympathetic character. I guess there’s something about parents who are desperate to help their children but don’t know how that really resonates with me.
Anyway, this was a chapter that’s been a long time coming. The reunion didn’t, ultimately, make me cry like I thought it might, largely because the two of them still remained sort of distant, but it was damn good nonetheless.
Next chapter… it’s time to claim some territory. Exactly how Skitter intends to do that, I’m not sure, but I don’t think the Merchants are going to like it. Judging by what was said about them in this chapter, I’ll think they’ll be the primary antagonists of the Arc, or at least the first ones. The Fellowship of the Meat can have their turn afterwards.
So yeah, see you next time!
I finished with enough time left over to grab and eat a breakfast bar. Coil’s people were punctual, rapping on the metal shutter at six forty-five.
Oh good, she got around to eating something.
Alright. This was it. I pulled on my mask.
Time to claim my territory.
Hell yes.
So then we’re not doing more decorating with these guys… Are we going out to put out signs or something, like the ones I joked about Bitch putting out to claim her territory and enforce good treatment of dogs?
If it was about fighting the Merchants, Skitter would’ve asked for gunmen, I think, not “anyone up for some exercise”. I don’t think that necessarily means she won’t run into them, though.
I checked the kitchen clock as I entered from the cellar. I had thirty minutes. I took the time to shower and don my costume – my sleeve was still crusty and stained yellow-white where it had come in contact with the foam, but at least it wasn’t sticky anymore.
Still not eating breakfast, huh?
I guess maybe that can wait until after the Coil guys’ visit.
My mask wasn’t wearable with the contacts. I’d taken lenses out of an old pair of glasses and set them into the construction of my mask.
I debated it for a few moments, then I decided to use the remaining time to fix it. With my knife’s point, I set about undoing that particular piece of work, prying the lenses out.
I guess that’s necessary, as long as the Fellowship is around. I suppose the mask lenses weren’t any safer than the regular glasses anyway.
This does leave Taylor’s eyes visible, if I’m not mistaken, but at least we don’t get someone manipulating glass into blinding her permanently (assuming no Panacenanigans).
“Thank you,” he said, squinting slightly at me. He raised a hand in an awkward half-wave, and I returned it with one of my own. As if by mutual agreement, we turned to leave at the same time, both of us going in separate directions.
Goodbye, Danny.
He hurried to where he was needed, and I turned to run back to my place. My lair. I hadn’t run nearly as far as I’d wanted, but I wasn’t up to continuing.
It was very good to see you.
I moved my hand to adjust my glasses, and wound up waving at my face. I was wearing my lenses.
Having tried lenses or not, this is relatable.
I wonder what Danny thought about the difference in Taylor’s appearance, not least of all the lenses instead of glasses.
Especially considering he would probably be the first to know about how much lenses didn’t work out for Taylor in the past.
Wait a minute, I don’t think we found out why Taylor was using the lenses earlier in the chapter.
“Dad!” I called out. He stopped. “Um. I’d heard the Slaughterhouse Nine were around. Be careful, warn others.” I pointed at my face.
…oh. Does one of their powers have to do with glass?
His eyes widened. I could see the thought process, the realization. He took off his glasses and hung them from his shirt’s front pocket. I wasn’t positive that was much better.
Evidently it’s dangerous to have them near, at least.
“I was going to stop by the house, see if it was in okay shape,” I lied again. Was this the extent of my interactions with my dad? Always lies? “Keeping up with my running.”
I was right, the moment Danny asked about Taylor’s life, the honesty went out the window.
“I see. Look, I have to go, but I do want to talk again, soon. Lunch, maybe?”
Yes, please.
It’d probably end up being another awkward lie-fest for Taylor, though.
“Maybe,” I offered. He offered me a sad smile, then turned to go.
I am so glad to see them reconnect a bit like this, even if Taylor can’t quite allow a full reconnection due to her secret.
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