Hello! My name is AL! Welcome to Manor Tea Time, an ask blog for a couple of my idv ocs.
°˖❀General Blog CW/TWs❀˖°
As this is a blog surrounding fan characters for a horror game, there’s a fair amount of darker topics used/discussed here for backstories, plots, and general information sometimes. Some Examples of these are (but not limited to) the following:
-Talk/Mention of Death and Illness
-Slight Body Horror (pretty much reserved for the hunters)
-Talks of suicidal thoughts
-Gaslighting/Abusive nature in background characters
-Existentialism
-And characters generally not having a good time :(
While most of these are censored/get cut off, I do sometimes miss a few. Please be careful when proceeding through the blog and read through any CWs/TWs given before posts before reading!
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
°˖❀Character list❀˖°
The Costume Maker - Ivy Nettle ξ(❁) ⊕) ξ
The Lampsmith - Wayne Strickland (-⊕ ζ ⊕-) <
"Key-Master" - LeRoy Smith 🗝️>(⊖▼⊗´)•ζ
The Glass Artist - Delilah Fowler Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
The "Hero" - "Pip" Newby (◼⊗_⊗’)/*
The Living Mannequin - Miss Manni (,◡ _ ◡,)
The Automaton - Eleanor May (´⬬_⬬`) <
The Shadowed Man /++ ◡ ++\
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
°˖❀Rules❀˖°
Canon and Ocs are allowed!
Magic/Interactive Anons are allowed. They’re fun!
Nothing xenophobic, racist, homophobic, transphobic, etc.
No strong NSFW.
Suggestiveness/flirtatious behavior is OK if a character is of age. Just try to manage yourself semi-accordingly/keep it classy. (Mun is 22, I just get uncomfortable sometimes)
Shipping is also OK given the character is of age. I find shipping hcs and experimenting with different dynamics really fun! However, for the sake/general safety of the minors in the community, I'd prefer not to rp any romanic scenarios if ooc a mun is underage.
Mun chats are welcome if kept semi-on topic of the blog. If not, I'll most likely just redirect you to my main here.
°˖❀Other Important Things to Note❀˖°:
I am a full-time student, so responses may take a bit longer/only consist of shorter replies at times.
At the end of the day, I am also a person with my own limits. Thus, if an ask, anon, or RP response makes me uncomfortable, I won’t respond to it.
Melodic humming echoed through the halls of the manor. Drifting from tune to tune before it was quickly interrupted by a few prompt knocks on The Scientist’s door.
“Hello? My name is Delilah Fowler. I’m scheduled to have a match with you tomorrow.” A woman’s voice came from the other side of the door. “I don’t believe we’ve gotten the opportunity to play together before and was hoping we could exchange strategies before the match itself. I can stay here in the hallway if that’s more convenient for you.”
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
((@manor-tea-time Hiatus be dammed I need to know what happened to Glenn 🫵
“S-strategy? Um… I’m afraid I’m not the most useful in matches. I’m good with decoding, by myself of with others. But once the hunter finds me, they catch me rather fast and I’m too weak to struggle fire… So I just end up jumping into hiding at the slightest hint of danger.”
A small laugh could be heard at the joke, the artist clearly not expecting it in the silence as she worked. While she didn’t necessarily have an antiquate joke to respond with, it was clear enough she enjoyed the idle noise the conversation brought.
In fact, having a casual conversation with tea sounded like a welcome change of pace. A small slice of normality in comparison to just about everything else her life had snowballed into. Now that she actually thought about it, she didn’t know the last time she’d properly sat down and tried any teas. Perhaps she’d have to let Glenn take the reins on that one - it seemed to be something he’d be more knowledgeable in.
“I have to agree. But the key elements are here.” She took a moment to think, trying to piece together the best way to elaborate in a way that would make some form of sense. “It’s like an electrical circuit? Your scar is like a battery while our hands act as wires for the spirits to move through. And, if all goes well, they should be able to communicate to us through the pen and paper as a result.”
Her eyes flicked to the stagnant pen in question. A tad disappointed nothing had particularly happened to prove her point yet. Maybe she had set something up wrong? It was a bit hard for her to tell on first glance. She looked up at Glenn, sitting so patiently for what was slowly seeming to be her making a fool of herself.
Just as she was about to apologize to the man, tell him their tea time chat might be sooner than they thought, something prickled in the background of her mind. It was faint, but just enough to make their presence known. She let her hand go limp, allowing the force to slowly move her hand and the pen until the message was properly written out.
A sound of surprise escaped her, her grip on the scientists hand tightening as her voice slowly trickling into a quiet laugh of relief as she leaned forward to read the paper.
“How we can help? Are you stuck somewhere?” Delilah asked, her gaze rising to Glenn in case he wanted to ask anything else.
TW for (more explicit) body horror from here on
The hand waited, muscles relaxed as if the signal had gone cold. A moment, then another. Finally, the quill scratched the paper again:
It moves. Caution discarded. Stronger now. Faster.
Glenn's eyes were glued to the paper, just like Delilah's. Behind his yellow eyes, the gears turned and turned, analysing the words, the phrasing, the writing itself. Whoever this was, they were in a hurry, unable to write more than a few words at a time. Were they weak? Dying? Struggling with the 'it' they had mentioned? Or simply having difficulty navigating a hand that was not theirs? The way the letters looked like what you'd expect from a child, suggesting the latter. However, there was something familiar about it, too. The way the C curved, the quick strokes of the R...
“Can you ask who is writing?”
Glenn's infected arm still hung at his side, completely unmoving. No, not quite...
With a quiet, dull thud a tentacle slipped from his flesh and hit the ground, melting as soon as it was disconnected from its host. Glenn himself barely seemed to register it - too focused on the letters on the paper.
Delilah quietly read along the words as they appeared, trying to make sense of them. Taking an extra moment to reread them a few times for extra measure. For some reason it seemed more - frantic than the earlier scribing. Not something one would write when left to their own leisure like she’d normally expect. Much less so with what she could only assume was a warning.
“I wonder what it is.” She thought out loud, tapping the end of the pen on the table. She could only assume it was something in a similar plane as a spirit, but the implication made her believe it was more powerful. At least more so to frighten whomever was communicating with them.
But then that brought the issue of it getting faster and stronger. Were they in danger opening a channel of communication? Should she try to take more precautions? Were there any precautions they could take? Her mind felt like it was drowning in a sea of endless horrific possibilities. All of which ending in a horrific unknown.
“Oh! Yes that’s a lovely question.” Delilah perked up slightly at the request, straightening her posture to look somewhat more composed as she spoke “Who is speaking to us?”
Just as she was going to add an additional “Who is it?” her eyes couldn’t help but snag onto the faint ripple coming from nearby Glenn. Or more accurately from Glenn. Her eyes widening in horror as the tentacle fell to the ground.
She jerked backwards instinctively, a scream escaping her as her boot kicked at the air the lone tentacle had once been. She looked at the scientist wide eyed, slowly turning to take a moment to look around the floor. Her face frowning as she’d realized that not only had the tentacle disappeared, but she’d thrown the pen in her shock. The small pieces having shattered themselves across the room, bleeding a light blue onto the floor.
“Don’t worry, I have another.” She announced, awkwardly pulling out another less extravagant calligraphy pen from her pocket. Placing the tip back onto the paper, she repositioned herself into her original place.
Melodic humming echoed through the halls of the manor. Drifting from tune to tune before it was quickly interrupted by a few prompt knocks on The Scientist’s door.
“Hello? My name is Delilah Fowler. I’m scheduled to have a match with you tomorrow.” A woman’s voice came from the other side of the door. “I don’t believe we’ve gotten the opportunity to play together before and was hoping we could exchange strategies before the match itself. I can stay here in the hallway if that’s more convenient for you.”
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
((@manor-tea-time Hiatus be dammed I need to know what happened to Glenn 🫵
“S-strategy? Um… I’m afraid I’m not the most useful in matches. I’m good with decoding, by myself of with others. But once the hunter finds me, they catch me rather fast and I’m too weak to struggle fire… So I just end up jumping into hiding at the slightest hint of danger.”
Delilah beamed at the compliment, a wave of pride surging within her as she watched Glenn take some time to properly explore the room. She hadn’t expected the man to be so drawn to everything. Much less be so engrossed with the way everything reflected.
“If you’d like, you can pick something out while I set up.” She offered, giving the man a small pat on the back. Her smile only falling as her eyes lingered on the reflections’ behaviour. Saying it unnerved her was an understatement. Much more so considering it seemed Glenn was none the wiser to it. Despite her better judgment, she jabbed the glass on a particularly distorted reflection. A small part of her hoping it would shoo it away.
When it remained, she stepped back, slowly turning it away. The colors of the floral design trickling elsewhere into the room like leaking water.
“There’s no need to apologize- You can explore and ask as many questions as you’d like. Besides- I’d quite like to pick your brain about some science related things as well if that’s alright.“ The glass artist said, bussing herself with collecting a few materials for the ritual.
“The seance should be fairly open and shut id imagine,” She paused to look into a small cupboard of pieces that shined eerily similar to the way the haunted ones on her belt did. She closed it slowly, seemingly content with keeping it semi accessible as they worked. “I can only see it going wrong if one of us does something to disrupt it majorly.”
As she placed the final pieces onto the table, it ironically looked fairly plain for something to speak to spirits. A white cloth with a few candles decorated the table. The only thing really standing out was a small glass pen she’d set on top of a piece of parchment.
As soon as Glenn had taken his seat, Delilah dimmed the lights, the slight flickering of the candles being the only thing illuminating her she sat down.
“Let’s begin.” She gently placed one of Glenn’s hands into her own her other taking the pen and placing onto the paper. “If any spirits are here who wish to make their presence known, please use my hand as a medium to write to us.”
Glenn chuckled: “Picking the brain of a scientist who researches the mind, huh?”
It was a stupid joke, an almost childish one, sure, but it helped melt his anxiety further nonetheless. He took his seat, hands folded in his lap as he waited patiently for Delilah to gather and prepare whatever was needed, making small talk on the side: “... Anyway, yes, let's have a nice talk when this is over. Perhaps over a warm cup of tea.”
Once she was done and took his hand in hers, Glenn raised an eyebrow, mumbling: “That's such a simple set up...”
There was no mockery in his words, just doubt and curiosity, marking his inexperience in the field. Then again, not all complicated problems needed complicated solutions. Simplicity was often the key - and equally often overlooked. Why couldn't this be such a case? And so he simply shut up and waited, quiting his racing mind and focusing it on the pen in the hopes that would help.
... A moment passed. Then another. And another. Accumulating to a minute. And beyond. Silence stretching between until focus became awkwardness. Still, Glenn tried his best to be open and supportive - even if he wasn't quite sure how to do that in such a context. Whatever he did, it eventually seemed to work: There was a touch at the back of Delilah's mind, like a gentle knock to announce one's presence. No words exchanged, no form taken, just... A feeling, a tickle travelling down her spine, through the neurons in her arm, reaching her hand. A finger twitched, then another. Their movement guided by someone who had forgotten how to move a body. The first letters came out unpracticed and wobbly:
A small laugh could be heard at the joke, the artist clearly not expecting it in the silence as she worked. While she didn’t necessarily have an antiquate joke to respond with, it was clear enough she enjoyed the idle noise the conversation brought.
In fact, having a casual conversation with tea sounded like a welcome change of pace. A small slice of normality in comparison to just about everything else her life had snowballed into. Now that she actually thought about it, she didn’t know the last time she’d properly sat down and tried any teas. Perhaps she’d have to let Glenn take the reins on that one - it seemed to be something he’d be more knowledgeable in.
“I have to agree. But the key elements are here.” She took a moment to think, trying to piece together the best way to elaborate in a way that would make some form of sense. “It’s like an electrical circuit? Your scar is like a battery while our hands act as wires for the spirits to move through. And, if all goes well, they should be able to communicate to us through the pen and paper as a result.”
Her eyes flicked to the stagnant pen in question. A tad disappointed nothing had particularly happened to prove her point yet. Maybe she had set something up wrong? It was a bit hard for her to tell on first glance. She looked up at Glenn, sitting so patiently for what was slowly seeming to be her making a fool of herself.
Just as she was about to apologize to the man, tell him their tea time chat might be sooner than they thought, something prickled in the background of her mind. It was faint, but just enough to make their presence known. She let her hand go limp, allowing the force to slowly move her hand and the pen until the message was properly written out.
A sound of surprise escaped her, her grip on the scientists hand tightening as her voice slowly trickling into a quiet laugh of relief as she leaned forward to read the paper.
“How we can help? Are you stuck somewhere?” Delilah asked, her gaze rising to Glenn in case he wanted to ask anything else.
Melodic humming echoed through the halls of the manor. Drifting from tune to tune before it was quickly interrupted by a few prompt knocks on The Scientist’s door.
“Hello? My name is Delilah Fowler. I’m scheduled to have a match with you tomorrow.” A woman’s voice came from the other side of the door. “I don’t believe we’ve gotten the opportunity to play together before and was hoping we could exchange strategies before the match itself. I can stay here in the hallway if that’s more convenient for you.”
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
((@manor-tea-time Hiatus be dammed I need to know what happened to Glenn 🫵
“S-strategy? Um… I’m afraid I’m not the most useful in matches. I’m good with decoding, by myself of with others. But once the hunter finds me, they catch me rather fast and I’m too weak to struggle fire… So I just end up jumping into hiding at the slightest hint of danger.”
Delilah nodded, her hand absentmindedly tapping on one of the glass pieces dangling from her belt. While she couldn’t see anything, she felt certain something was lingering.. far too keen to watch everything for her liking. Her eyes flicked around warily, only landing back onto the scientist when she felt certain enough that she could chalk it up to paranoia.
“Oh- Are you alright?” Now that she was able to fully register the man’s appearance, his mannerisms were a bit concerning. He was much more spacey than before. Quiet too, but she supposed that could simply be due to the man being more of an introvert than anything else.
She decided to take a mental note of it for now and keep an eye on the man just in case.
“Then our home base is set! It should be just a short walk from here,” She gently grabbed the scientist’s hand to lead him down the hall. Making an effort to keep her grip loose enough for the man to let go if he so wished.
As they walked, she did her best to fill the silence, trying to describe the room the best she could before they got there. Mentioning small things like the chairs or small window that let light in.
Eventually, she interrupted herself as she stopped in front of a basic wooden door, opening it with a small metal key. Before holding it open for Glenn to enter.
While it was apparent that it was originally a basic storeroom, the small beams of light trickling in made the half-finished pieces littering the room glitter with warping colors. It all had a bit of an organized chaos of items. Various mobiles hanging from the ceiling and spinning lazily, vases full of materials, and panes of designs resting on the walls like drying canvas. In fact, the most organized area seemed to be the workspace itself, the tools all having a distinct home within a large workbench nuzzled in the corner.
The chairs she'd mentioned were there as well, sitting by a small table with a glass mosaic top. Although their placement within the room seemed a bit comedic, as it was apparent the artist had tried to keep the area around them somewhat tidy in comparison. Leaving quite the barren space around it.
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
Glenn flinched ever so slightly when the glass artist took hold of his hand. The feeling of skin on skin had become a foreign one, and while it's return surprised him, he found himself greeting it with open arms. It made him feel safe, known and cared for - like he did not have to go through this alone. A nice feeling.
With this newfound courage lifting the corners of his lips, he followed Delilah to the plain door, gasping at the treasure that lay behind it. Glass was a wondrous thing, reflecting and refracting the light onto the surfaces in all kinds of shiny shapes and colours. For a moment, Glenn was a little child again, with only wonder in his eyes and curiosity in his heart - entirely oblivious to the mess surrounding them. Gently tugging his hand free, he wandered through the room, head turning in awe.
“It's beautiful”, he whispered, checking on how the glass warped his own reflection with fascination. His eyes were shining brightly - maybe too brightly - and, if one looked carefully, not all of his reflections moved with him, instead craning their necks to watch him with their yellow eyes whenever he had his back turned.
After a moment, Glenn remembered their reason for coming here: “Ah... apologies! This is all just so very interesting. And also my first time in a workshop like this. If we have the time after... this, I'd love to ask you a few questions. Or maybe watch you work. But unpleasant things first!”
He sat down at the table where Delilah was already waiting. “Let us start! The sooner we got over with this, the better!”
---
Alternative version:
The scientist flinched ever so slightly when the other took hold of his hand. The feeling of skin on skin had become a foreign one, causing all kinds of emotions within him: most prominently safety and trust, like he needed no defences in the fight to come, for he was not alone.
With this newfound courage tugging at the corners of his lips, he followed the woman to the plain door, gasping at the treasure that lay behind it. For a moment, the scientist became a little child again, vulnerable and defenseless - entirely oblivious to the reflections craning their necks, lying in wait and watching him with their yellow eyes.
After a moment, he remembered the reason for coming here and apologised quickly. Wonder had swept him off his feet, but he was ready to return to more important matters. He sat down at the table where the woman was already waiting:
“Let us start! The sooner we got over with this, the better!”
Delilah beamed at the compliment, a wave of pride surging within her as she watched Glenn take some time to properly explore the room. She hadn’t expected the man to be so drawn to everything. Much less be so engrossed with the way everything reflected.
“If you’d like, you can pick something out while I set up.” She offered, giving the man a small pat on the back. Her smile only falling as her eyes lingered on the reflections’ behaviour. Saying it unnerved her was an understatement. Much more so considering it seemed Glenn was none the wiser to it. Despite her better judgment, she jabbed the glass on a particularly distorted reflection. A small part of her hoping it would shoo it away.
When it remained, she stepped back, slowly turning it away. The colors of the floral design trickling elsewhere into the room like leaking water.
“There’s no need to apologize- You can explore and ask as many questions as you’d like. Besides- I’d quite like to pick your brain about some science related things as well if that’s alright.“ The glass artist said, bussing herself with collecting a few materials for the ritual.
“The seance should be fairly open and shut id imagine,” She paused to look into a small cupboard of pieces that shined eerily similar to the way the haunted ones on her belt did. She closed it slowly, seemingly content with keeping it semi accessible as they worked. “I can only see it going wrong if one of us does something to disrupt it majorly.”
As she placed the final pieces onto the table, it ironically looked fairly plain for something to speak to spirits. A white cloth with a few candles decorated the table. The only thing really standing out was a small glass pen she’d set on top of a piece of parchment.
As soon as Glenn had taken his seat, Delilah dimmed the lights, the slight flickering of the candles being the only thing illuminating her she sat down.
“Let’s begin.” She gently placed one of Glenn’s hands into her own her other taking the pen and placing onto the paper. “If any spirits are here who wish to make their presence known, please use my hand as a medium to write to us.”
Melodic humming echoed through the halls of the manor. Drifting from tune to tune before it was quickly interrupted by a few prompt knocks on The Scientist’s door.
“Hello? My name is Delilah Fowler. I’m scheduled to have a match with you tomorrow.” A woman’s voice came from the other side of the door. “I don’t believe we’ve gotten the opportunity to play together before and was hoping we could exchange strategies before the match itself. I can stay here in the hallway if that’s more convenient for you.”
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
((@manor-tea-time Hiatus be dammed I need to know what happened to Glenn 🫵
“S-strategy? Um… I’m afraid I’m not the most useful in matches. I’m good with decoding, by myself of with others. But once the hunter finds me, they catch me rather fast and I’m too weak to struggle fire… So I just end up jumping into hiding at the slightest hint of danger.”
"That's alright. Don't work yourself into a tizzy. I asked more out of curiosity." Delilah clarified, her tone gentle despite the bluntness of her words. "It was a silly question on my end. But it is good to have our bases covered, you know?"
She gave the man a small pat on the shoulder, giving him a small smile in an attempt to help calm the scientist's nerves a bit. It was a small gesture, but Delilah wanted Glenn to know that he could trust her to help.
Although the silence from the specters rang in the glass artist's ears, it was a dreadful, eerie silence. It was somehow almost louder than when they had been active. She glanced around the room, noticing that the spirits that had been whisping around her seemed to have also vanished.
"Odd.." She muttered more so to herself than the scientist. It was a small moment of the artist seemingly looking at nothing before she blinked free of her self-induced trance.
"Ah- sorry. I seemed to have spaced off again. Yes, we can change locations if you'd like." Delilah hesitated, seemingly narrowing down any locations she might know off of the top of her head. "We could use my workroom. Its located in one of the old storerooms and most of the materials I have in there should be stored securely enough it shouldn't cause us too much grief."
Plus, she was quite curious if the spirits would feel more enticed to return if there was other calmer activity floating around.
"If not that, I do believe there's another storeroom nearby that could work just as well. We just might have to clear some space for ourselves."
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
“Um... Yeah...”
Glenn feared the curtness of her words, yet in all her gestures there was a warmth that reassured him. Was he thinking too much again? Gosh, maybe he was! He did tend to do that a lot... right? No, it had not been this bad lately... Or generally? No, no, he had always been like this, just less anxious. And then there was something - no someone! - who had helped him feel more secure... then something else happened, and ever since it had been almost gone all together. But what was it that had happened? And who had helped him before? Thinking about it made his head hurt. But it was there, right there, in the back of his mind, terribly wobbly but taking more shape with each passing second. If he just focused enough, maybe...
Delilah's list of possible work sites called him from his thoughts, shattering the glassiness in his eyes and made his head jerk up.
“W-what? Oh, yeah, um... Your workshop seems like a fine option? Giving you the home advantage and all?”
Something in that blurry part in the back of his mind told him, she was going to need it.
Delilah nodded, her hand absentmindedly tapping on one of the glass pieces dangling from her belt. While she couldn’t see anything, she felt certain something was lingering.. far too keen to watch everything for her liking. Her eyes flicked around warily, only landing back onto the scientist when she felt certain enough that she could chalk it up to paranoia.
“Oh- Are you alright?” Now that she was able to fully register the man’s appearance, his mannerisms were a bit concerning. He was much more spacey than before. Quiet too, but she supposed that could simply be due to the man being more of an introvert than anything else.
She decided to take a mental note of it for now and keep an eye on the man just in case.
“Then our home base is set! It should be just a short walk from here,” She gently grabbed the scientist’s hand to lead him down the hall. Making an effort to keep her grip loose enough for the man to let go if he so wished.
As they walked, she did her best to fill the silence, trying to describe the room the best she could before they got there. Mentioning small things like the chairs or small window that let light in.
Eventually, she interrupted herself as she stopped in front of a basic wooden door, opening it with a small metal key. Before holding it open for Glenn to enter.
While it was apparent that it was originally a basic storeroom, the small beams of light trickling in made the half-finished pieces littering the room glitter with warping colors. It all had a bit of an organized chaos of items. Various mobiles hanging from the ceiling and spinning lazily, vases full of materials, and panes of designs resting on the walls like drying canvas. In fact, the most organized area seemed to be the workspace itself, the tools all having a distinct home within a large workbench nuzzled in the corner.
The chairs she'd mentioned were there as well, sitting by a small table with a glass mosaic top. Although their placement within the room seemed a bit comedic, as it was apparent the artist had tried to keep the area around them somewhat tidy in comparison. Leaving quite the barren space around it.
ooohhh, warm up requests!! I’d love to see your lads in their different essence costumes! Or maybe your favorite fan made essence costumes in general? I think that’d be a fun exercise! - cal 💐
OOOO what a good prompt! Thank you, Cal! Although I may simplify it to simply S teirs for now,, once I get into the nitty gritty of A and B tiers I fear I'll be on my way to another essence project. (Which, trust me, I'm not opposed to! I just have a lot. And a lot of ideas I'd want to do for them to properly pull them off in a meaningful way! Some of which are hard to do as one person lol)
As a treat, though, I'll tell you some more in-depth plot stuff/silly hc stuff to go with my doodles Mwahahah!
Wayne Strickland's S Tier - Prince of Light
I don't have an official name for this essence yet. I've more or less dubbed it "Kingdoms of Light and Dark" for now. Its simple, but it works! The plot is as follows:
The Kingdom of Light has existed for as long as the Sun has been in the sky. Just as its rivalry with its sister Kingdom of the Dark. While both kingdoms have been largely at peace, with the rise of new monarchs, unrest builds once more. Causing the Prince of Light to be kidnapped from a banquet (as he was mistaken for his sister, the princess).
The rest of the plot follows a group of knights who were tasked with rescuing the kidnapped prince - each attempting to aid in the rescue in varrious differing ways (ex. one tries to go undercover, one battles head on, etc).
However, I can't say I've decided how sucessful they should be. :b
As someone who likes the whole "costumes change a survivor's personality" hc, I've always pictured this Wayne being very ethereal and almost intentionally quiet (in an observant way). Its not a huge change to him, but he most certainly would have an air of royalty that would be fairly distinctive, I'd imagine.
I also think this skin probally makes poor Wayne stick out of the darker maps like a sore thumb :,]
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
Ivy Nettle's S Tier: "Christine"
Got kinda insane for Phantom of the Opera for a good while.. and this essence project was a result! It was my first big art collab, and honestly, it was really fun! (Although, I do wish I did more with it). The Plot more or less follows the Phantom of the Opera, but has a ghostly twist as the actor for the Phantom has been possessed!
The stage has been set! The lights are lit and the curtain is rising! Welcome to The Empire Opera House's final dress rehearsal of the timeless classic, The Phantom of the Opera! Let's hope these new ghastly hiccups won't throw this show off of the rails. After all, the show must go on!
As you can see, I didn't go into a ton of detail on that aspect in the og description. However, I do think it explains the plot well enough to include it here.
Now hrmm lets see... I think this Ivy is very similar to herself, but perhaps more self-actualized. She doesn't need to rely on pretending to be Miss Manni, or anyone really to get the roles shes cast in. However, much as Christine is still learning in the original story, I like to think Ivy also has some things she needs to learn as well. Just prefrebly without a ghost tutor.
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
LeRoy Smith's S Tier : Dragonfly
Miss Manni's S Tier: Lunar Moth
This is a bit of a "2 for 1" kinda deal as Miss Manni and LeRoy share a S Tier essence. A lot of it is very much inspired by some of my old childhood storybooks and my flower fairy obsession. Which made drawing these two a real treat!
The plot of the essance itself is both simple and not.. due to me adding way too much worldbuilding on the side. In short its:
A knight traverses a haunted forest in order to save a long-lost duchess sealed away within a tower in the middle of the woods. However, little does he know that those who come into the forest rarely escape the spider's webs.
And each of the other characters in the essence are past people who'd ventured into the woods. The light implication being they turn into fairies of different bugs, fluttering around under the Spider (Miss Manni's) whim like puppets.
Anyways- I like to this this version of LeRoy is similar to himself, just more knight focused than ranger focused. His devotion for his lady only being the most drastic change I can think of. BUT he can sword fight now, which I think evens it out.
On the other end of things, Miss Manni is a bit more Benevolent? She helps when it serves her well, she doesn't if it doesn't. And she isn't afraid to use manipulation if it makes her goal come to fruition. Bit of a villian arc in comparison to how most of you guys have seen her.
I additionally like to think this is the main reason these two are a bit more aware of each other (As LeRoy showed up to the manor a bit later than Manni and Ivy did).
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
Eleanor May's S Tier - Forgotten Dancer
I really enjoyed this one! I was super close to drawing one of the matching A tiers in it,,, but alas I wanted to be fair lmao. Eleanor's had to be a ballet of some sort, and I figured why not create one so I can use inspiration from all my favorite shows? The plot is pretty straightforward:
An Heiress gets a hand-me-down music box and is trapped within the world of a gruesome ballet. To escape, they must survive the show and bring it to its finale. If they fail, they will be doomed to join the cast and repeat it again and again till the curtains close.
I was going to imply a bit in this one that Eleanor's soul could/would "pass on" at the end of her manor game. If I could animate man... it would be over for you guys...
Anyways, this Eleanor is basically mute. She's locked in on dancing her role. Giving her a bit of a "doesn't notice the threats around her" kind of terrifying vibe. However, if the show progresses as it should, I do think the more "human" she'd become as she slowly snaps out of it. So basically the same Ella....
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
Other Concepts/Misc Stuff:
You might notice a few characters havent been featured on here! This is because they more or less are stuck in "Costume Concept Hell" as I call it. I have brief ideas for them, but something isn't quite fully baked... be it the athestic, story, etc. So I figured I'd at least shout them out here:
Shadowed Man Vampire Essence:
This one is the closest to freeing itself. As I have a story and theme, its just every concept for it currently is UGLY AS HELL. So I refuse to post it till its done to my liking. The general plot is as follows:
Gemstones twinkle in a mischievous delight as a new holder of an ancient amulet is passed down from generation to generation. What madness would its curse create? The rule of a vampiric countess? A recluse who vented their frustrations into artistic enigmas? Its all so unclear as this time, a lone Lord closes the auction’s bid for the piece. After all, his late wife would have loved such a piece.
Very much meant to reflect the opposite of his background (he takes the place of the medium who summoned him lol).
Delilah T&I Essence:
As implied, I was gonna make a T&I inspired skin for her. It would be based around a haunted art exhibit/all the skins would be different exhibits or eras of art (ex. still life). The only issue is more or less finding an aesthetic to make it look cohesive fashion-wise. So far, I have a few ideas, but nothing has stuck.
Perhaps I'll make it a mini crossover event on my Lady Truth Blog.
DnD Pip Essence:
I would use my dnd designs but give them a lil bit of a "horrors beyond comprehension" Twist. My only hiccup has been finding a balance for something he'd wear, but also that looks intimidating. Adittionally, I can't decide if I'd want to make a oneshot type thing based around it.
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
Other Fan made ones:
I enjoy all of the essances I've gotten to be a part of honestly! Everyone is so creative and finds ways to do interesting things with my characters I hadn't even considered.
If I had to highlight some,
Nez made a really cool one for Wayne (I'm not sure if they posted it, hence me not putting a image) but it was him taking commissions from spirit guides/being caught in between a bit of a battle between said guardians and hunters trying to steal peoples souls. It was a really cool story,,,, plus it was how Nez and I started talking a bit more/became friends so I'm obiously a bit biased towards it lol.
They also made this BANGER Circus one:
And of course LeRoy in Cal's Essance, Rite of Farewells is most certainly going to be one of my favorites. Not only as its one of LeRoy's first Essance skins that I didn't make, but also because look at him??? He's GORGEOUS- Everything is so detailed and well thought out!! I couldn't of trusted someone more with one of my ocs.
I'm sure there's more, but I can't fully remember at the time of me typing this.... Grrrrrr....
Melodic humming echoed through the halls of the manor. Drifting from tune to tune before it was quickly interrupted by a few prompt knocks on The Scientist’s door.
“Hello? My name is Delilah Fowler. I’m scheduled to have a match with you tomorrow.” A woman’s voice came from the other side of the door. “I don’t believe we’ve gotten the opportunity to play together before and was hoping we could exchange strategies before the match itself. I can stay here in the hallway if that’s more convenient for you.”
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
((@manor-tea-time Hiatus be dammed I need to know what happened to Glenn 🫵
“S-strategy? Um… I’m afraid I’m not the most useful in matches. I’m good with decoding, by myself of with others. But once the hunter finds me, they catch me rather fast and I’m too weak to struggle fire… So I just end up jumping into hiding at the slightest hint of danger.”
Delilah jumped as the shadow flew by. A pang of dread flooded her mind as it desperately tried to catch up with the scene at hand.
However, just as quickly as it had started, the room returned to normal. She blinked, shocked at the suddenness of it all. Was something larger than the spirits themselves trying to protest? Or were the flickering souls truly this powerful on their own? She honestly hoped she hadn’t gotten too in over her head with this.
"A reaction? That does sound promising.” Much more so as they seemed to be getting reactions simply by standing in the hallway. She could only imagine what could have occurred in the library itself. “Out of curiosity, what occurred exactly? If there’s any items involved we might be able to recreate the scenario slightly.”
That was of course, also assuming this entity functioned like the spirits she’d felt with before. For all she knew, this could have been something completely unrelated to the setting, but something the two were discussing or physically doing that triggered the event. While it was their best bet though considering what was known, it did leave her mentally preparing for any pivoting she might have to do.
“I think it would be in our benefit.“ Delilah responded with a nod. “Many spirits have patterns to their hauntings. If the library happens to have something that could be one of them, it might be the best spot in the manor to do it.”
“Although, if you have anything from the trip where you revived your injury. I do think that could help entice the entity as well.”
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
“I-i am unsure? My memories of the incident are rather hazy... All I can remember is the place.”
That sounded stupid. Hopefully, she did not judge him for it... A scientist with poor memory - how incompetent! Maybe he should have just shut up to begin with!
Ugh, this was so hard! Usually, what he felt, did, thought came all so clearly to him. But right now it seemed like there were a thousand options and deciding on any of them felt like an equally bad idea. Had there always been so many choices available?
Delilah could notice that, since the flashing shadow, the ghosts had almost gone entirely quiet and Glenn had shrunk even more, shoulders slouching and yellow eyes darting around, like his head was filled with nothing but doubt and anxiety. In contrast, his arm had grown calmer and somehow... more concentrated. It did not bode well.
“On second thought, if I cannot think of anything, making the trip over there seems... unnecessary. Let's just... find an empty room here.”
"That's alright. Don't work yourself into a tizzy. I asked more out of curiosity." Delilah clarified, her tone gentle despite the bluntness of her words. "It was a silly question on my end. But it is good to have our bases covered, you know?"
She gave the man a small pat on the shoulder, giving him a small smile in an attempt to help calm the scientist's nerves a bit. It was a small gesture, but Delilah wanted Glenn to know that he could trust her to help.
Although the silence from the specters rang in the glass artist's ears, it was a dreadful, eerie silence. It was somehow almost louder than when they had been active. She glanced around the room, noticing that the spirits that had been whisping around her seemed to have also vanished.
"Odd.." She muttered more so to herself than the scientist. It was a small moment of the artist seemingly looking at nothing before she blinked free of her self-induced trance.
"Ah- sorry. I seemed to have spaced off again. Yes, we can change locations if you'd like." Delilah hesitated, seemingly narrowing down any locations she might know off of the top of her head. "We could use my workroom. Its located in one of the old storerooms and most of the materials I have in there should be stored securely enough it shouldn't cause us too much grief."
Plus, she was quite curious if the spirits would feel more enticed to return if there was other calmer activity floating around.
"If not that, I do believe there's another storeroom nearby that could work just as well. We just might have to clear some space for ourselves."
Melodic humming echoed through the halls of the manor. Drifting from tune to tune before it was quickly interrupted by a few prompt knocks on The Scientist’s door.
“Hello? My name is Delilah Fowler. I’m scheduled to have a match with you tomorrow.” A woman’s voice came from the other side of the door. “I don’t believe we’ve gotten the opportunity to play together before and was hoping we could exchange strategies before the match itself. I can stay here in the hallway if that’s more convenient for you.”
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
((@manor-tea-time Hiatus be dammed I need to know what happened to Glenn 🫵
“S-strategy? Um… I’m afraid I’m not the most useful in matches. I’m good with decoding, by myself of with others. But once the hunter finds me, they catch me rather fast and I’m too weak to struggle fire… So I just end up jumping into hiding at the slightest hint of danger.”
“Thank you for your trust. I’ll do my best to make sure that it’s properly earned.”
Delilah was doing her best to not stare too much at the fluttering spirits.. but it was hard when they seemed to be reacting to the conversation. Somewhat good news on one end, but bad in the instance of she wasn’t sure what exactly in the conversation upset them.
She decided to distract herself by mentally making a list of the supplies she’d need to move forward. Most things were readily available for her to grab from her room. Her only real concern was where they’d need to set up. While normally she’d assume Glenn would wish for them to conduct it in his room, she felt wary of the possibility of something finding a way to linger past its welcome.
The last thing the poor man needed was a cursed arm AND a haunted room.
“Did you have a preference on location for the séance? I’d understand if you wanted to keep more spirits away from your living space.”
“Oh! And the tools I’d need can be easily- so don’t worry about those logistics.” She quickly added, miming the action of carrying a small box.
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
If you are that set on trying your luck, I shall indulge you.
A shadow flew past the windows, so big it had swallowed up all the light momentarily. A shiver chased down scientist's spine and Delilah could see the spirits dim for but a moment. It all seemed terribly short, and it was hard to say what had just happened.
“O-oh, um... no preference here...”, Glenn muttered, trying to get back to the topic at hand. “But! I once went to the library with Mister Liam and there was... something of a reaction? Maybe that is a good place to start?”
For once, his head was somehow terribly quiet, and he was all alone with his thoughts and doubts: But was this really a good idea? It was no good, if they agitated whatever had a hold on him. Yet great risks usually meant greater rewards and, considering the current state of things, Glenn had less and less to lose.
He thought for a moment, then added: “Though... would that be helping or hindering, in your opinion?”
Delilah jumped as the shadow flew by. A pang of dread flooded her mind as it desperately tried to catch up with the scene at hand.
However, just as quickly as it had started, the room returned to normal. She blinked, shocked at the suddenness of it all. Was something larger than the spirits themselves trying to protest? Or were the flickering souls truly this powerful on their own? She honestly hoped she hadn’t gotten too in over her head with this.
"A reaction? That does sound promising.” Much more so as they seemed to be getting reactions simply by standing in the hallway. She could only imagine what could have occurred in the library itself. “Out of curiosity, what occurred exactly? If there’s any items involved we might be able to recreate the scenario slightly.”
That was of course, also assuming this entity functioned like the spirits she’d felt with before. For all she knew, this could have been something completely unrelated to the setting, but something the two were discussing or physically doing that triggered the event. While it was their best bet though considering what was known, it did leave her mentally preparing for any pivoting she might have to do.
“I think it would be in our benefit.“ Delilah responded with a nod. “Many spirits have patterns to their hauntings. If the library happens to have something that could be one of them, it might be the best spot in the manor to do it.”
“Although, if you have anything from the trip where you revived your injury. I do think that could help entice the entity as well.”
Essence Skin Reveal ♡ The Rite of Farewells .. Within Grief's Hands
‘ THE RITE OF FAREWELLS ’
Nobody grieves the wicked. History only remembers you as a bird found dead outside its birdcage. But, don't you wonder what those birds looked like when they were still alive?
╒═════════════════════════════════════════╕
Hello, and welcome to "The Rite of Farewells" essence skin reveal! I'd like to thank everyone who participated! I had particular fun with this one, since it's been such a long time since I've gotten to do one of these...
And I will admit, I did spoil all participants a bit more than I usually do. You'll see what I mean in a few moments, but first... what everyone came for, right? The skins, the skins! What does each muse look like now, following Lyrith down into the Rite?
( Please note: Not all the original slots were filled. What you see below is what slots I did manage to fill! Should some of the previous slots get filled, I'll update this post. )
──────────────── ESSENCE SKINS ────────────────
S-Tier: Thorn Briar (Leviathan and Lyrith played by: "The Deliverer", Phainon Elysiae, and "The Finality", Mathéo Blanchet // @m1ss-detective )
"I can make you better. I can make you right." - Lyrith
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Thorn Briar" is an essence s-tier costume depicting the main antagonist of the Rite of Farewells event, featured in his corrupted divine vessel (1st form; Leviathan) and his true form (2nd form; Lyrith). He is played by Taegan's Mathéo Blanchet (more commonly known as "Finality") and Phainon of Aedes Elysiae, the latter of which is canonically related to the true identity of the original universe Lyrith. In addition to the forms switching every time a special skill in the kit is used, Thorn Briar's Lyrith form comes with a special interactive emote that can be used by both survivors and hunters called "Flower Crown".
Lyrith is the original god of the Rite of Farewells universe, as well as the creator of the white lily flower. However, as he fell from grace and was corrupted by human sin and mortal death, all his white lilies were turned into dead drop roses and dead drop spider lilies. Lyrith's divine vessel would eventually corrupt into Leviathan, with Lyrith's divine consciousness separating from the vessel. (Leviathan is essentially the corrupted empty doll Lyrith left behind.)
With Lyrith's (and Leviathan's) design, I wanted to expand upon his duality as an antagonist, both in physical character design and in character motif. Leviathan's color scheme is mainly black and red, as the outwardly corrupted and stereotypically "evil" counterpart. His motif features a lot of the dead-drop rose plant, as well as the motif of the spider and skeletal remains. He is the outwardly villainous one, detailed with two sets of devil horns and a spade tail. Meanwhile, Lyrith's color scheme is noticeably lighter and more innocence-invoking with mainly white, gold, and blues. Paired with the several types of flowers found in his flower crown and decorating his hair, Lyrith's long hair, long dress, and butterfly accent pieces give off a very young, childlike innocence to his character. The thorn briar wings by Lyrith's sides act as his "tail", capable of moving on Lyrith's command.
Lyrith's outfit is actually based upon his original concept art, which I'll show off down below if you're interested in it! But Lyrith's essence design is actually completely lore-accurate. To make a long story short, Lyrith's dress and flower crown were given to him by a young child named Aeilene over 200,000 years ago. Meanwhile, his staff and the butterfly lining and pearls were all gifts from land dwellers 200,000 years prior to his corruption. Many of these items were corrupted alongside Lyrith and were effectively ruined/changed in the physical plane, but in Lyrith's alternative form on the alternative plan, they are part of Lyrith's consciousness and effectively preserved as a result.
However, despite Lyrith's physical appearance and motifs, Lyrith is very calculating and cold. He is responsible for the many events of the RoF storyline, including the death of the Frostmoon Goddess, the death of the Deliverer (Coronation), and the spiritual fracture of Lunaes (Nocturne Night), just to name a few. He is also responsible for the physical distortion of "Guest" (Without Tomorrow), and is overall a very petty and vengeful creator after his corruption. In fact, Lyrith is SO powerful and deeply connected to the land he had created that his corruption quite literally tore the Isle of the Rite apart and caused the land around it to decay beyond repair.
Leviathan, on the other hand, is the corrupted divine vessel Lyrith's consciousness used to reside in. After Lyrith's consciousness shattered and separated from his physical form, Leviathan formed from the human corruption, inhabiting the empty vessel. It carries out the will of Lyrith's vengeful spirit subconsciously, observing the Isle of the Rite and punishing the humans in his name. Despite this, Lyrith retains no loyalty to his old vessel, even going as far as using the thorny briar to tear it into pieces, effectively killing it.
Exclusive S-Tier Accessory: The Last Lily
The white lily slowly faded out, replaced by the more well-known "dead drop rose". Now, only one white lily remains, preserved within timeless glass.
Lyrith and Leviathan's exclusive s-tier accessory is The Last (Spider/White) Lily, which takes the form of either a red spider lily or a white lily, depending on which form is active. This accessory is also the only accessory that is technically non-canon to the character it is associated with. Technically speaking, it is a representation of their influence through the Isle of the Rite through their respective flowers.
S-Tier: To Where Grief Flies ( Dove played by: The Mechanical Designer, Contract Kuzentsov )
"I will mourn the wicked... even if it kills me." - Dove
** can be acquired through the "Birdcage" package in the shop.
"To Where Grief Flies" is a shop s-tier costume depicting the main protagonist of the Rite of Farewells event. The s-tier costume (alongside the s-tier accessory, "Ode to Love") can be acquired through the "Birdcage" package in the shop. She is played by my own Contract Kuzentsov! She has two forms, although it isn't as drastic as "Thorn Briar" is.
Dove is the current protagonist of the Rite of Farewells universe. She is associated with the Angel Dove, who is commonly known as the griever bird. In the event lore, Dove is a normal girl whose death brought her to the Isle of the Rite, although Dove herself has forgotten this fact. Throughout the event, she is determined to return home. However, as she travels through the Isle's different parts, she meets different people who shape who she becomes by the end of the story.
However, the journey catalyzes and changes during the first death, in which Dove discovers the River of Time and its ferryman, a man named "Guest", as well as the endless timelines of the Rite. Determined to save everyone, Dove willingly travels through the River of Time with "Guest" to enter certain points prior in the timeline in hopes of preventing the others from dying.
Dove's character motif is that of "grief", as in her name. She is extremely emotional and gets attached easily, and grieves people in a way that is self-destructive in its own way. Yet, due to the erosion of the Rite after Lyrith's corruption, Dove's grief is much more powerful than it initially seems, as it can quite literally break the laws of the timelines. She grieves both the dead and the living, and has a deep love for those she's come across. She also has a deep determination to protect those around her, both in the physical and in memorial, believing everyone deserves a chance to be mourned, even if they were "wicked".
Her character design is inspired not just by doves, but also by angels. She is dressed in all whites with a white winged hairpiece, light blues and pinks complementing the light cream/white on her outfit. Her hair is a stark contrast; however, it brings much more attention to her outfit and headpiece. She floats, similar to angels and birds. In her second form, she gains a set of double halos, as well as golden leaves in her hair and a long pink veil. In this form, her eyes are also open, instead of being closed. Something something metaphor about no longer being afraid anymore.
Exclusive S-Tier Accessory: "Ode to Love"
You once told them that you'd always love them, despite the terrible things that happened. That ring is proof of such a pure resolve.
Dove's exclusive s-tier accessory is the "Ode of Love" ring. Canonically, this accessory is the physical manifestation of the love derived from the pain and the grief in her journey. (Contract wears the ring on her finger, no matter if she's equipping the "To Where Grief Flies" costume or a different costume.) It was created by Couture using the powers of "Starborne".
A-Tier: Nocturne Night ( Lunaes played by: Night Watch, "Ithaqua" // @/ask-idv-night-watch -- @m1ss-detective )
"Show me how deeply you can grieve." - ????
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Nocture Night" is an essence a-tier costume depicting one of the several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Nocture Night" depicts Lunaes, a folklore god from the Rite's past, known for guiding lost souls to rest. However, in current times, he takes up the mantle of a lighthouse keeper on the Isle of the Rite. He is played by Taegan's interpretation of Ithaqua, the Night Watch.
Lunaes is technically the only original folklore god who remains alive in the current era. In the event lore, he resides in the most dangerous, darkest, most corrupted and decayed parts of the Rite, utilizing his cleansing fire to keep wanderers in the night safe. He oftentimes keeps to himself, only answering basic questions and keeping everyone at arm's length. It's later revealed that the main cause of his self-imposed isolation is due to his fractures, causing him to spiral out of control and eventually become consumed by it, shattering completely and ceasing to exist as "Lunaes".
As Dove's journey continues, a dark truth about Lunaes is revealed. Lunaes' spirit was fractured by Lyrith during the fall of the Frostmoon Goddess, causing Lunaes to fracture in reality. Because of Lunaes' fractured soul, his lifeline within the timelines foresaw by the River of Time was distorted and corroded. While Dove can save everyone else due to their lifelines remaining intact, Lunaes ended up being someone Dove would be unable to save. In every possible timeline, whether he is killed, kills himself, or is consumed by his own agony and ceases to exist as Lunaes, there is no timeline in which Lunaes survives Dove's journey.
Lunaes' character motif is that of "passion", specifically fiery passion. His main color is blue, due to blue fire typically being recognized as the color of the hottest flame. Additionally, his palette included black and deep greys as well as elements of blue butterflies and the phases of the moon, due to his connection to the Frostmoon and the region of land he resides within being dark and gloomy. His costume starts off as the lightest blue, and as more ciphers are popped, the darker blues slowly appear until the lightest blue is replaced by the darkest blue. He also has dead drop roses in place of his left eye and on his collar, as dead drop roses are the local flower found in the land. Beneath the roses is supposed to be Lunaes' left eye; however, what is underneath the roses in his unshattered state is unknown. (He is, however, canonically only able to see with his right eye, so it's safe to assume that whatever is there isn't a working eye.) In his shattered/consumed state, however, the roses fall off due to Lunaes losing his physical form, revealing a completely white eye in its place, most likely replicating the eye from before Lunaes was fractured by Lyrith.
Lunaes' outfit is mainly designed with his environment in mind. The part of the Rite where he resides is very cold and snows often, as well as always being very dark and having dense fog, meaning I had to design him to traverse through the cold often, as well as giving him a portable light source, and a weapon that doubled as a walking staff. (Lunaes uses his staff to grip onto things, pulling himself up eroded cliffs, and more.) Canonically, Lunaes uses stilts to reach high-up places such as trees, cliffsides, and certain places within the lighthouse. Therefore, Ithaqua's stilts are based on Lunaes' canonical stilts that he keeps inside his lighthouse.
Oh yeah. Due to him having fire as his ability, Lunaes made his coat fire-resistant. Oftentimes, he uses the coat to protect wanderers or guests when something in the forest goes astray, and he needs to burn it away.
Canonically, this man does nothing but die. However, here are the most notable ways he dies through the timelines.
He is consumed by agony and shatters completely, ceasing to exist anymore as Lunaes. This death branches out into two paths, either where he exists as his shattered self and becomes one of the many monsters in the Nocture or where he burns up entirely and ceases to exist altogether as Lunaes or as his shattered self.
He kills himself as he's shattering, preventing him from becoming his shattered self.
He kills himself as Lunaes, Halos, Dream, and Mel in a giant forest fire he created.
He kills himself (mid-shatter) and Dove in a giant forest fire, burning both of them to ash.
He is impaled by either Dove or Dream while he is still Lunaes.
He is poisoned by Dove with Mel's help, but he technically does not "die" in the traditional sense. It's closer to being completely asleep, effectively preventing him from shattering. This death is not reversed by Dove.
Lunaes is one of the only two characters to avoid being killed by Lyrith; however, this is due to Lunaes being out of commission by the time everyone else gets to the point of being killed by Lyrith.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: "Ablaze"
There's nothing left to save. It's already been reduced to ash.
Lunaes' exclusive a-tier accessory is his gloves, but specifically his gloves set ablaze. Canonically, you can see how this accessory ties into Lunaes. I hope. However, the more interesting aspect of his gloves is the actual accessory effects, depicted in the doodle to the right side of Lunaes' reference. Basically, the a-tier accessory (when equipped on "Nocture Night") brings Lunaes' shattered form into all of his effects, such as Ithaqua's dash or Ithaqua's wind. When used on non-Lunaes' skins, it just kind of sets Ithaqua on fire, giving all his skills a burning blue flame effect, as well as the carry animation, depicted in the middle upper right.
Basically, when Lunaes uses his skills, he temporarily transforms into his shattered version during the skill's duration before reverting to his regular form. It shows the inevitability of Lunaes' death in a way.
A-Tier: The Frostmoon ( Halos played by: The Keysmith, LeRoy Smith // @manor-tea-time -- @/asystemerror )
"You must understand what it's like to be saved, but unable to save others. Only then does your grief bloom as bright as the Frostmoon itself." - Halos
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"The Frostmoon" is an essence a-tier costume depicting one of the several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "The Frostmoon" depicts Halos, a folklore god from the Rite's past, known for the worship of the moon and protection of the forest. However, Halos is simply a direct blood descendant of the real Frostmoon Goddess and not truly a folklore god. She is played by Al's IDV OC, LeRoy Smith, the Keysmith.
Despite being called a folklore god, Halos isn't a true folklore god. Rather, she is the direct blood descendant of one. Saved by Lunaes after the Frostmoon fell, Halos dedicated her life to continuing what her ancestor had started, as well as trying to find a way to repay Lunaes for saving her that day. In the event lore, Halos is the first person Dove meets after awakening in the Isle of the Rite, traveling to the main land of the Rite with her. Later, the two girls reunite when Dove has to travel through the land of the Nocturne, the land where Lunaes resides. Taking it upon herself, she guides Dove there. In the original timeline, Halos is killed by Lunaes while protecting Dove and Dream when he shatters for the first time. (It’s unknown what happens to that timeline’s Lunaes, but it’s safe to assume he died.) This death is what strikes Dove and causes her grief to overflow into the River of Time, giving her access to time through her own pain of losing a friend. Due to Dove rewinding time and preventing Lunaes from getting to the point of shattering, Halos original death is overturned, resulting in her surviving her original death node.
Halos’s character motif is that of “peace” or “tranquility”. Her main color, similar to Lunaes, is blue, however while Lunaes’ blues have their origin in destruction, Halos’ blues have their origin in peace and moonlight. Through the storyline, Halos brings those around her a sense of peace and relief, acting as a calming and caring source in the chaos. She Carrie’s a sense of both responsibility and desire concerning those around her, wishing to protect them all the way she was once protected a long time ago.
In a similar fashion, her costume was designed with flowiness and openness to it. Being a comforting and supportive force, I wanted her costume to reflect something more open and visible as compared to Lunaes and Dove, whose clothes hide themselves, making them appear to be more closed off. However, as a pseudo goddess, I wanted Halos to retain an aura of elegance, beauty and importance as well. Therefore, I kind of gave her outfit a lot of layers, a lot of lighter portions and overall sometimes fit of a worshipped and well revered goddess. Which is what she ttttechnically is.
Halos dies a few times through the timelines and nearly dies in others. The deaths and near deaths are as follows:
She is killed by a shattering (but not fully shattered) Lunaes for the first time, protecting Dove and Dream.
She is killed by Lunaes alongside Dream, Mel, and Lunaes himself in a giant forest fire that she is unable to escape from.
She is nearly killed by Lunaes' shattering, but is dragged to safety by Nether. Nether dies instead of Halos.
She is killed by Lyrith's thorn briars.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: "Phases"
The Frostmoon blesses your journey. Love will always watch over your growth.
Halos’ exclusive a-tier accessory is the Frostmoon Phases, shortened down to simply “Phases” for convenience. Canonically, it is the physical manifestation of Halos’ unique abilities she gained from the Frostmoon. In addition to having a deer form she can switch between freely, she has control over water. However, her control over water is limited and considerable weaker compared to Nether’s control over her lightning or Lunaes’s control over his cleansing fire.
A-Tier: The Price of Pride ( Mel played by: The Opera Singer, Sean // @/yaboimitzu )
"The price of pride means nothing to me." - Mel
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Price of Pride" is an essence a-tier costume depicting one of the several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Price of Pride" depicts Melbourne, or simply Mel, a survivor of one of the worst societial collapses during Lyrith's corruption. Mel was an academic professor in the past, teaching a class about alchemy and magic research before the collapse. In the current day, however, he spends most of his time by himself, absorbing himself in the pursuit of forbidden knowledge. He is played by Mitzu's IDV OC, Sean, the Opera Singer.
After meeting Lunaes for the first time, Dove travels to the remnants of Startorch Academy in order to seek out old books about the myth of the River of Time. She ends up running into Mel while there, forming a friendship with the prior professor as he shows her around the academy. Mel sees his late wife in Dove, both being curious and sweet souls. Despite this, he holds a certain level of contempt towards her because of this. To him, her presence feels like reopening old wounds. With Mel's guidance, Dove learns more about the history of the Rite and even introduces Mel to things he never knew, such as the River of Time being a real place. Throughout the event lore, the two bond and become closer.
Mel's character trait is that of... well... I mean, you probably could have guessed it, but his character trait is "pride." Although not too outwardly present like some other character traits, Mel is extremely smart and well-informed, and he constantly seeks out more knowledge. Oftentimes, he can come off as cold or uptight and sometimes even prideful (both of himself and his abilities), though in truth, Mel is simply scared of being hurt again emotionally, and closes himself off as a result. The only one he allows himself to feel comfort in is his puppy, Penny. She was named after his late wife, whose name was Penelope.
His outfit, similar to Lunaes, is designed with the environment in mind. Being in a dark, snowy area, Mel is required to dress warmer than most others. Underneath his massive coat, however, a bit of his professorial profession shows through. He wears a white sweater over his brown turtleneck shirt and a green vest with deep grey pants. He presents himself constantly in a clean, neat, put-together manner. His outfit is meant to express structure and reliability, being someone you can trust. Additionally, he's also coordinated his outfit to match with his dog, Penny, giving her a green neckscarf.
Mel has been killed the least amount of times out of everyone, with the exception of Comett.
He is killed once by Lunaes, alongside Halos, Dream, and Lunaes.
He is killed once by Lyrith's thorn briars.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: Letters to Nowhere
“My Cecelia, my darling... I miss you every day. Even if we never see each other again, I hope you know I've always appreciated the lease on life you've given me.”
Mel's exclusive a-tier accessory is "Letters to Nowhere", a notebook filled with letters he had written to his late wife following her passing. Canonically, it captures his grief and his journey as he's forced to live without her, as well as giving insight into his day-to-day life. All his letters are addressed to "my Cecelia", since Penelope's favorite flower used to be the Cecelia flower. It's called "letters to nowhere", since he knows that these letters will ultimately never go out, they will never be real, and ultimately, they will always stay by his side until the day they may be able to meet each other again.
A-Tier: Without Tomorrow ( "Guest" played by: The Unknown, Heifu // @/idv-ask-the-unknown -- @klai-16xoxo )
"I've been here before. Why is that?" - "Guest"
**can be acquired through the "See You Tomorrow" package in the shop.
"Without Tomorrow" is a shop a-tier costume depicting the ferryman of the River of Time, a young man named "Guest". "Guest" is later revealed to be the remains of two prior residents of a prior timeline of the Isles of the Rite known as the Isle of Woe. The a-tier costume (alongside the a-tier accessory, "A Real Heart") can be acquired through the "See You Tomorrow" package in the shop. He is played by Klai's OC, Heifu, although he is specifically played by his IDV counterpart, The Unknown.
"Guest" takes the role of the ferryman who escorts Dove across the River of Time as a rare spoken guide. He, similar to his prior timeline counterpart, has amnesia and cannot remember much of his past. He can only traverse upon the River of Time and see where it takes him. He is canonically unable to leave his ferryman boat when he leaves the River of Time. This is later revealed to be because "Guest" does not belong to this timeline, and his physical body is incapable of accepting him on in-time land. If he steps outside of his boat for too long, his physical body starts to decay and cause him intense pain and discomfort. Because the area where the River of Time resides, also known as the Catacombs, resides outside of "time", he can freely traverse it without issue.
Canonically, “Guest” travels with a small hand-sewn doll named “Lily”. Lily was with him when he woke up in the ferryman boat originally, and he feels a strange sense of familiarity towards it and a strange warmth. It’s revealed that Lily is what remains of two people from a previous timeline, someone that Lyrith himself had personally killed and erased from existence permanently for unknown reasons. Both Lily and Guest are different combinations of what little of them escaped intact, combining into one person and one small doll.
“Guest”’s character motif is that of death, as he is made up of the remnants of two prior residents that persisted after their deaths. This is further pushed by the physical presence of red spider lilies on his attire and in/on his skin, since red spider lilies usually signify death in the Isle. Lily’s name also originates from the flower.
“Guest”’s outfit is directly inspired by the two characters he is the remnants of. In addition to that, the human skeleton motif also crossed over into “Guest”’s new design. On multiple parts of his outfit, you can see the different bones in the human skeleton, including the chest, hand, legs and feet. The reds, while a part of the original designs his is based on, also double as the “muscles” overtop the bones. (Although, that’s only somewhat in theory.)
Canonically, "Guest" cannot be killed in any manner, due to not having vital organs.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: A Real "Heart"
A "heart" given by someone who no longer exists. The roses are as fresh as the day he tore them out of his chest.
“Guest”’s exclusive a-tier accessory is the heart-shaped dead drop rose bouquet that he inherited from a past life. Originally (in canon), those roses replaced someone’s heart when they didn’t have one. However, when they were ultimately broken and erased from existence, all that was left of them were the scattered roses. In the current day, “Guest” has all the roses preserved in a heart-shaped bouquet.
B-Tier: Star Bakery Owner ( Comett played by: The Baker, Beth Anastazja // @ask-idv-baker -- @/beth-bethar00 )
"Welcome to the Star Bakery! I see you've completed some commission, Miss Grief lady!" - Comett
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Star ☆ Bakery Owner" is an essence b-tier depicting one of several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Star ☆ Bakery Owner" depicts Comett, one of the three owners of the local bakery on the Isle of the Rite, the Star ☆ Bakery. Comett is the owner of the bakery on paper, gaining ownership over it after their guardian, Lilith, disappeared one day. She is played by Bethany's IDV OC, Beth, the Baker.
When Dove goes to the town of Woe for the first time, she enters the Star ☆ Bakery while exploring the town. There, she meets Comett for the first time. Comett and the Star ☆ Bakery acts as something similar to a reputation system afterwards, tracking Dove's progress and how friendly she's become with the town. Canonically, Comett is what pushes Dove forward while on the Isle of the Rite. She is the reason Dove meets many townsfolk, such as Meliodas and Nether. Despite being younger than most (Comett is 15), she's very caring and rather mature. This is attributed to the events that occurred before Dove arrived on the Rite, such as her original guardian going missing, the death of "Coronation", the decline of "Cluttered Stars" health, and more.
Comett's character trait is that of "community". Through the canon story, Comett is one of the few characters who are capable of bringing everyone together. She uses the bakery as a spot for everyone to gather, chat, and overall have a community together. She considers everyone in the town to be family of some kind as well, believing they are each extremely important to her. She also tends to be grateful to those around her, especially Meliodas, for taking it upon himself to care for Annahime after the fall of "Coronation", in which she was seriously injuried in.
Comett's outfit is based on the original outfit of Comett's original counterpart. It takes part inspiration from the original counterpart, but it also takes part inspiration from the kidcore aesthetic, with lots of yellows, pinks, and a giant, puffy coat. I wanted her to look very soft and very cuddly, someone you could get a nice and warm bear hug out of. Heh. Bear hug. Bear. Similar to her sisters, she also wears gloves and a scarf with bells on the ends.
Canonically, Comett dies in several timelines and is critically injured in others. Dove has experienced timelines where Comett is critically injured, but Dove has not experienced any of the timelines where she dies. The timelines in which Comett is critically injured are:
When attacked by Lyrith's thorn briars. She is saved by Nether, who is killed instantly by Lyrith.
When attacked by "Coronation"s corrupt corpse. She is saved by Meliodas, but they're both severely injured in the process.
When she dives into the River Styx to save Dove after she gets pushed in by false "Halos". She nearly drowns, but she manages to get them both to the surface in time.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: Star Purse
It's like a Mary Poppins bag, if it were somehow even smaller, and star shaped.
Comett's exclusive a-tier accessory is her star shaped purse. Canonically, it's one of those plush purses with a small pouch inside it. Usually, Comett carries around small items in there, like gummy bears, keys, picks, flashlights, and more. It's similar in concept to the "Mary Poppins bag", where it's deceptively deep.
B-Tier: Verse and Vow ( "Couture" played by: Reverie )
"You can't rewrite the ending if you don't have a feather pen! You can borrow mine!" - "Couture"
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Verse and Vow" is an essence b-tier depicting one of several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Verse and Vow" depicts "Couture", a recent arrival to the town of Woe. She resides in the town as a record keeper. She's played by my IDV OC, Reverie.
"Couture" is one of the many residents of the town of Woe, mainly being a record keeper of sorts. She has a deep interest in the history of the Rite and enjoys traveling around the Rite whenever she's got the chance. However, she can be a little airheaded at times. She believes in the concept of fate, designating it as a "romantic" thing as opposed to scary, frightening, or any of the other ways one might describe the concept of fate. Couture is also capable of breaking the fourth wall, since her main role is that of the storyteller and archivist in the lore. Her true form is that of "the audience", kind of like you guys. Yes, she would talk ships with you guys. She's a dork.
Couture's character trait is that of "romance". To her, she believes every interaction is "fated by the stars" in a way, she believes there is no such thing as a coincidence. She is a hopeless romantic at heart! She believes Dove's dedication to saving everyone is another sign of a "romantic story" and a "love like no other" and wants to do her best in helping Dove achieve it.
Couture's outfit was based upon the dress code on the town of Woe, combined with the colors of romance and love. She sports a similar outfit style to the townsfolk who live there. Her design is meant to blend in and complement everyone else in the town while keeping design elements unique to her specifically.
By the end of the event lore, Couture ceases to exist, having sacrificed herself to utilize "Starborne"s full power to grant everyone a different ending.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: “Starborne”
“Thank you for giving me the courage to rewrite this story.”
"Couture"'s exclusive a-tier accessory is her "Starborne" feather pen! Canonically, "Starborne" functions the same way as "As We've Written", in which it's a physical record of the events of the story. Most times, when "Couture" writes, she is seen using her "Starborne" feather pen. It writes in colorful ink.
Canonically, "Starborne" has the power to overwrite the timelines and create new endings, due to being originally created by Lyrith, causing it to have an immense amount of power. So far, the only person capable of using "Starborne" at its full power was its creator, Lyrith. It is also connected directly to the River of Time, which is what gives it the ability to technically turn back time.
B-Tier: Beyond the River ( Nether played by: Castorice Styxia )
"I always wish we had more time to say goodbye. You can't follow me beyond the river." - Nether
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Beyond the River" is an essence b-tier depicting one of several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Beyond the River" depicts Netherite Mei, more commonly referred to as Nether. She was the former royal retainer to "Coronation" in the past; in the current day, she is a gardener and a graveyard attendant. She is played by Castorice of Styxia.
Nether used to be the royal retainer and assigned swordswoman of "Coronation", a young man with ichor for blood. Prior to his death, she spent most of her time by his side, both as his guard and as his friend. However, following his death, she had become displaced and felt lost as to her purpose in life. For her, she had been trained from the first moment she could remember to protect and serve, and now that there is no longer someone for her to serve, she felt a great deal of confusion, sorrow, and generally felt lost. In an effort to cheer her up, Meliodas suggested she keep a garden.
After Dove's arrival, Nether offers her services as a prior retainer. While escorting her between the different areas in the Rite, Nether and Dove become closer, where Nether accidentally lets her confusion about Meliodas slip. They had been friends prior to her friend's death, and even then, she had always felt strangely about him. However, due to both her position and her personal shyness, she never got that level of personal with anyone. Has she unknowingly had a crush on Meliodas for over 2000 years? Yeah!
Nether's character trait is that of "loyalty", but also that of "guilt". Being a loyal retainer and protector, she had dedicated her life to using her gifts to keep those around her safe. Yet, when she fails to keep them safe, she feels an immense sense of guilt. She often believes she has no worth if she cannot protect others, and something without worth and honor has no place in warm circles such as the town of the Woe. However, she knows that if she disappeared one day, it would make everyone sad, especially Annehime, who sees Nether as a motherly figure. She struggles a lot with her self-image and her self-worth, but stays by the side of those she cares about nonetheless.
Nether's outfit is based on her profession as a gardener. She dresses simple and light, but respectful as well. It also draws inspiration from her Japanese heritage, with the kimono sleeve and her footwear. (Additionally, her a-tier accessory also takes inspiration from her heritage, although that headpiece was a gift from her friend "Coronation".) Her color scheme is majorly purple in association with her innate abilities with lightning.
Nether dies a couple of times throughout Dove's journey, each one reversed when Dove reverses the timeline. The most notable times are:
When she fights "Coronation"'s corrupted corpse and wins, but ultimately dies from ichor poisoning her body.
When she sacrifices herself to prevent Comett from getting impaled by Lyrith's thorn briar.
When she sacrifices herself to save Halos from the fire caused by Lunaes' shattering, when the force of the explosion knocks Halos out.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: "A Gift From a Friend"
“This gift isn’t for my retainer… but rather for my dear friend and greatest partner, Nether.”
Nether's exclusive a-tier accessory is the hairpiece her friend and the person she used to guard gave her for her birthday. Canonically, it was just a fan headpiece; however, he has added a pair of fake purple flowers that he had come across on one of his solo travels, due to them reminding him of Nether's eyes, as well as two strings of pearls. He had gotten her this gift, as a friend rather than her master/leader because he had genuinely cared about her and wanted her to have something special and truly unique just to her. Nether keeps it inside the box that he had gifted it to her in, in an attempt to preserve it and keep it safe. However, sometimes she does wear it in her hair.
When equipped by Nether, she will wear it in her hair where the large black bow is. When equipped by non-Nether skins, Castorice will wear it on her back instead, usually attached to the bow on her dress.
B-Tier: Daydream ( Meliodas played by: The Gogo Dancer, Tatya Baudelair // @tatya-time -- @/littlegloriosa )
"To hell with unavoidable goodbyes. I'm not letting you sacrifice yourself because you feel guilty." - Meliodas
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Daydream" is an essence b-tier depicting one of several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Daydream" depicts Meliodas, the owner of the Daydream Hotel, a famous large hotel in the town where most of travelers stay at while traveling the Isles of the Rite. He is played by Emma's IDV OC, Tatya Baudelair, the Gogo Dancer.
Meliodas is first introduced when Dove first enters the town of Woe. He offers her a room in his hotel for the night due to her helping Comett with something upon her arrival there without having to be asked to. Eventually, the two of them become friends when Dove offers to help Meliodas with a hotel event, acting as a waiter bringing food to guests' tables. Meliodas later on joins Dove's journey as she prepares to confront the god of the Rite. In response, Lyrith resurrects the old corpse of "Coronation" as a challenge to the townsfolk of the Woe.
Meliodas's character trait is that of "protection". He generally acts like a guardian to those around them and provides safety and protection in any way he can. From running a hotel to offer food and shelter to quite literally taking bullets and getting impaled for people, he's the definition of protective! He wants to see those he cares about safe and sound, and he doesn't really care what happens to him in the process. He cares in a way much deeper and intensive than anyone else.
Meliodas' design is heavily based on his own personality. Flamboyant, strict, yet blasey and chill. He prefers to be free, to be able to move around freely, to captivate presence but not demand it. He's kind of chill, but like... in a hot girl shit kind of way. In the best way possible... he was designed to be completely comfortable in his own skin and unafraid of the world around him. That's why his shirt is open, and he wears a ton of jewelry. He's shiny but not quite flashy... he can control a room, but he doesn't need to command it. Respect makes up his presence, not fame or control, even though he can have it easily. In addition to this, he wears a shoulder pad with a flowing scarf similar to Annahime. He does this out of respect to the Star family, showing a certain level of gentleness and thoughtfulness to those around him. He also has a butterfly-shaped belt buckle out of respect for Nether and her butterfly motif.
He is also one of the only two characters to enter the River Styx, the River of passed on souls, and make it back out alive. He is also the only character to directly prevent someone else from dying in a timeline besides Dove.
Meliodas dies several times during the timeline of the event.
He dies after being impaled through the chest by "Coronation"s corrupt corpse.
He nearly died in the past after pulling Annahime out of the River Styx when she nearly died. However, he survived by his own strength.
He is killed by Nether's Slash of Euythmia alongside Coronation while holding "Coronation" down, sacrificing himself to save the rest of the town of Woe.
When Nether nearly passes from ichor poisoning, Meliodas risks his life again by going into the River Styx to drag her out. (He does not die, due to already having faced the River Styx once before and emerging stronger from it.)
He dies being strangled by Lyrith's thorn briar.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: Dango Snack
A soft, chewy, sugary treat. Perfect for shutting assholes up and bribing rowdy children.
Meliodas' exclusive a-tier accessory is a pair of dango snack skewers. Canonically, these dango snacks were handmade by Meliodas himself as treats for Annahime and all the small children on the Woe. He dabbles in cooking and baking on his off-time, and often gives out food to the homeless and the less fortunate. But he's most infamous for the tri-color dango he carries around.
B-Tier: "Your Color" ( "Dream" played by: The Librarian, Elaine Schreiber // @idv-thespians -- @/eucharist-eulogy )
"You can't save everyone. There's no way to. Someone has to die." - "Dream"
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Your Color" is an essence b-tier depicting one of several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Your Color" depicts "Dream", an entity that resides in the town of Woe. She places herself as Dove's main companion throughout the story, and often tries to keep Dove on the right track.
"Dream" is one of the first people Dove meets after awakening in the Rite. She positions herself as Dove's companion when they meet, offering her a tour around the town and introducing her to all the residents of the town. Throughout Dove's journey, she sticks by her side, trying her best to guide her and keep her safe. However, she takes issue with Dove using the River of Time to save everyone (herself included), as she believes that death is inevitable and Dove shouldn't waste her efforts on something that she cannot change. While she only wishes the best for her, she can be cruel and harsh with her word choices.
In truth, "Dream" also shattered a long, long time ago, doing something similar to Dove in the current day and age. She had to pull herself back from the brink of insanity, and is constantly worried about the same thing happening to Dove. Not many people can will themselves back from completely shattering like she had, and even then, you're never quite the same ever again.
"Dream"'s character trait is that of "transcendance". Her entire character revolves around the fact that she has transcended death itself and transformed into an entirely different person. She has grown and changed and quite literally morphed into something beyond human. In a similar fashion, she's transcended the known limits of the natural world, and she's broken the rules in a way that she can't repair. She transcended limits she never wanted to, and now she can't find a way to turn back.
In a similar fashion, "Dream"'s outfit is representative of her changes from a normal human to a shattered being. Her entire premise is something inhumane, something ethereal, something quite literally out of this world. I wanted "Dream" to give off almost... uncanny vibes. She's mysterious, yet she glimmers and glistens. She is dressed in dark colors, yet the purples in her outfit make her stand out in the perfect way. Her outfit is inspired by the deep sea, where the most mysterious and odd creatures are usually found. She invokes a deep-sea fish aesthetic with her colors and the silhouette of her outfit.
Dream canonically dies once in the timeline, as well as once prior to Dove's time. Those are:
When she gets trapped beneath a burning tree during Lunaes' quadurpale kill.
When she shattered originally, the human part of her died and ceased to exist all together. However, she managed to pull herself back together and rebuild herself as the "Dream" we know in the current day.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: Stunner Shades
She thinks they make her look cool. The shards keep scratching the lenses though...
"Dream"s exclusive a-tier accessory is her Stunner Shades. Canonically, they are the sunglasses "Dream" used to wear before she had shattered. It's the last thing left of her when she was still human, and she wears them to feel a little closer to the version of herself she lost along the way. She does genuinely believe they do make her look cool and badass.
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And that's everyone's references complete! I'd like to thank everyone who joined off the bat for trusting me enough to lend me their characters and their muses! I had a lot of fun doing this after not doing one for so long. I was afraid I wouldn't do everyone justice, so seeing everyone here is just... such a treat to be honest!
Honestly... I've already done more than I usually do for these essences, but I wanted to really challenge myself with this essence to make something worth remembering! So this time, inspired by my friend Al's Music of the Night essence, I also gave a shot at adding some lore-related accessories!
But, you might wonder what else I did if it wasn't just costumes, accessories, and tier cards? Well... I did say I wanted to try something different, something challenging! Therefore, I present...
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Title Screen: "Thorn Briar" and Phainon
"Welcome to my garden, dear brother. You should stay a while! I'd prefer it if you stayed forever."
I had always wanted to try my hand at one of those Identity V style crossover title screens where there's the essence high-tier and the person who got the high-tier on the same artwork together... this is what my attempt looked like, although its moreso in my style rather than the Identity V artstyle? Anyways, the point IS I tried my hand at it for this essence, and I had a lot of fun with it! (I actually streamed part of my sketching it out <3)
Might try to make more... maybe I will in the future, but for this collection, this is the title screen concept! Been told it might make a cool wallpaper, but someone never got me back on that. (/j)
Loading Screens: Lunaes, Halos, Mel, and "Guest"
What do you see in those blue flames? A friend? A foe? Or something... different?
The other thing I really, really wanted to try my hand at making were those transition/loading screens when you load into a quick/rank match! I figured I'd give it a shot with my 4 a-tier skins, and I had the idea to make them all blue. (And it made for fun lighting practice too!)
I only made 4 of them (again, as a test) to see how it came out, and honestly? Super cute, I enjoyed it a ton. It was nice to be able to draw the a-tiers again after the initial time, too.
Skin Package - Birdcage Poster (Dove)
"I love all my friends! They are what give me the courage to fly free from this birdcage."
This is the package "poster" for Dove's skin, To Where Grief Flies! Every shop skin has one of these posters, and I figured it'd be neat to make one of them myself... or uh, two of them, since I had two "shop" skins! I also included Contract's "Ode to Love" accessory. I thought the idea was cute to have both skin and accessory in the poster.
Skin Package - See You Tomorrow Poster ("Guest")
"See you tomorrow... I've always liked that idea; it's not a farewell, but rather an invitation for more to come. I'll see you tomorrow."
This one is the other "shop" poster, although this one is for "See You Tomorrow"! He ended up being the a-tier who went into the shop, since usually I have at least one a-tier who ends up in the "shop". I wanted to include his roses and whatnot, as well as his boat, so it focuses on "Guest" inside the tunnels on the River of Time! It's a simple poster, but I think it looks nice.
And, if you think about it, now Klai doesn't have to spend all her life savings to get Heifu's costume! She's just gotta sink like... 50 bucks to buy his package from the shop.
Original Concept Designs: Lyrith, Nether, Couture, and Comett
I did mention original designs/concepts, and I have three (four?) of them here! These are the original designs/concepts for Lyrith, Nether, Couture, and Comett!
For Nether and Couture, you can see their full original designs there. Not much really changed? Well, not much for Nether. Couture got a few changes haha.
For Lyrith, you can kind of see his design stayed similar, but he definitely got an upgrade! I fleshed out the dress a ton more and reworked his flower crown more! (I also gave him horns and adjusted the markings on his neck.) Lyrith's original design came from the Halloween Concept I had for 2025, which is why it's a different title there entirely. This entire essence is based on the Rite of Souls AU from my Halloween series, actually. Not sure if you guys knew that.
And then there's Comett. Comett is based on our little pal in the corner there! RoS Tribbie! Similar to Lyrith, Comett got an upgraded design based on the original design there. Replaced the rose with a scarf, gave her a hat instead of the rose headband, adjusted her sweater, etc.
Doodles and Mock-Ups:
And finally, my doodles and my mockup drawings! My doodles are from when I was at work for 7 hours and dying inside haha. That's why the quality is..... honestly kind of low and scribbly. You'll all be pleased to know I've bought a proper sketchbook now, since I quite literally did not have a physical one since August 2025-ish. It's mostly Dove since her design was the one easiest for me to remember at the time (it was right about the time I finished designing her character reference sheet.)
The one on the bottom left is my poster mockups! Originally, I was gonna have the title screen be Contract and Dove, with Dove's second form peering from outside the birdcage, but I ended up going with Lyrith and Phainon instead... but the behind-the-scenes is interesting nonetheless, right? Right. I also have the shop poster mockups for Dove and "Guest". They both had their changes to them, but I overall think they came out super cute.
I also had my mockup for the loading screens. I ended up ignoring that completely KJSNDFKSJEFNDKSJFND.
And the last one I have here was... Leviathan. I don't remember what this sketch was for, to be honest? It coooould have been for the essence poster? I don't know! But, it looks cool. I think? I don't know. Him and that damn bonefish, sassy bitch duo.
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Okay. I'm done, dare I say, after two months of work? I did it! Obviously, I'm not done with it, but I am at a point where... I think I'm happy enough to share everything in full! I'm very, very proud of myself and what I accomplished in time passing! I also like the lore bits I got to add into the text sections for each... outlining the characters and who they are within universe... it really gets you thinking, you know?
I hope everyone else likes it too? I hope everyone else is at least somewhat pleased, god i'm gonna sob if you guys aren't. I might actually die. perish. explode. become one with the confetti.
Kidding, kidding! Or am I?
It's been so long since I've done one of these, I'm at a quite literal loss for words right now. This never happens! Like, ever! Unless you compliment me, but I'm literally incapable of taking a compliment, so I don't think that should count.
Okay! That's it! Hopefully, you guys got some kind of kick out of this! Bye!
Melodic humming echoed through the halls of the manor. Drifting from tune to tune before it was quickly interrupted by a few prompt knocks on The Scientist’s door.
“Hello? My name is Delilah Fowler. I’m scheduled to have a match with you tomorrow.” A woman’s voice came from the other side of the door. “I don’t believe we’ve gotten the opportunity to play together before and was hoping we could exchange strategies before the match itself. I can stay here in the hallway if that’s more convenient for you.”
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
((@manor-tea-time Hiatus be dammed I need to know what happened to Glenn 🫵
“S-strategy? Um… I’m afraid I’m not the most useful in matches. I’m good with decoding, by myself of with others. But once the hunter finds me, they catch me rather fast and I’m too weak to struggle fire… So I just end up jumping into hiding at the slightest hint of danger.”
"Possibly. If not causing it, I'd guess at the bare minimum, it's certainly not helping it heal any further." Delilah tilted her head, narrowing her eyes at the spirits as though they could confirm or deny anything she was saying. Alas, it seemed these ones were quite quiet, or perhaps even silent compared to the ones she was usually plagued with.
In any other situation, she might be jealous of such a fact. However, in a situation where talking to such spirits might grant insight into how to proceed, it was a bit of a pain.
"I think it's possible." Delilah finally answered, her gaze returning to Glenn's. While she didn't sound unconfident in her answer, there was a sliver of uncertainty that peeked through in her demeanor. The way she held herself seemed more cautious than before.
"It's the process of how that might be a bit tricky, considering we don't know its exact origin." In other words, lots of trial and error. And Delilah wasn't sure how many "errors" they could get away with before something particularly bad could happen. Especally with the influence of the manor being at play.
"We could try a séance. It could help us gain our footing on the motivation of the spirits themselves. Plus, if I act as the medium, the likelihood of you getting injured in the process should be far slimmer."
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
The spirits fluttered as if upset at the lack of credit they got. But, without proper communication, it was hard to say what exactly they were doing. They may as well be harming poor Glenn more than doing good - if they did any good at all.
However, as a scientist, Glenn knew that assessing the situation thoroughly before making a decision was fundamental, so he agreed:
“It is better to know what I- no, we are dealing with here. I am unfamiliar in these kinds of occult dealings, so if you say a seance is the best and safest way to investigate, I'll trust you and your expertise on that matter.”
Despite his foolishly rash reply, he could not help but doubt himself. But he had already agreed, and his silly pride kept him from immediately backing out again.
“Thank you for your trust. I’ll do my best to make sure that it’s properly earned.”
Delilah was doing her best to not stare too much at the fluttering spirits.. but it was hard when they seemed to be reacting to the conversation. Somewhat good news on one end, but bad in the instance of she wasn’t sure what exactly in the conversation upset them.
She decided to distract herself by mentally making a list of the supplies she’d need to move forward. Most things were readily available for her to grab from her room. Her only real concern was where they’d need to set up. While normally she’d assume Glenn would wish for them to conduct it in his room, she felt wary of the possibility of something finding a way to linger past its welcome.
The last thing the poor man needed was a cursed arm AND a haunted room.
“Did you have a preference on location for the séance? I’d understand if you wanted to keep more spirits away from your living space.”
“Oh! And the tools I’d need can be easily- so don’t worry about those logistics.” She quickly added, miming the action of carrying a small box.
Love is whizzing through the air like mighty arrows from a cupid's bow. Can you feel your heart flutter like a falling petal? A gentle pull of your heartstrings, pulling you towards thoughts of those you care for? Love can come in many forms, detectives, and thus many Cupids must be ready for the holiday! Who do you think you might spot in the manor's halls?
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
Skin Appearance:
The "Key Master" A Tier - Eros' Garden
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
Skin Appearance:
The Glass Artist A Tier - Strings of Fate
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
I was feeling very festive this year and decided to draw some Valentine's themed drawings and skins. I came up with a very basic story for them/the general vibe I was aiming for when making them. That being cupids representing some common tropes (soulmate strings and love at first sight).
I might make full bodies of them later, but for now- Happy Valentine's Day! I hope you're all able to enjoy the holiday. I personally plan to eat a ton of chocolate and sweets, hehe.
Melodic humming echoed through the halls of the manor. Drifting from tune to tune before it was quickly interrupted by a few prompt knocks on The Scientist’s door.
“Hello? My name is Delilah Fowler. I’m scheduled to have a match with you tomorrow.” A woman’s voice came from the other side of the door. “I don’t believe we’ve gotten the opportunity to play together before and was hoping we could exchange strategies before the match itself. I can stay here in the hallway if that’s more convenient for you.”
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
((@manor-tea-time Hiatus be dammed I need to know what happened to Glenn 🫵
“S-strategy? Um… I’m afraid I’m not the most useful in matches. I’m good with decoding, by myself of with others. But once the hunter finds me, they catch me rather fast and I’m too weak to struggle fire… So I just end up jumping into hiding at the slightest hint of danger.”
"Well, yes- I must admit I did too." Delilah faltered a bit as she spoke. Honestly, she wasn't sure what she was expecting. A scientist would be, by any logic, a man of science to some degree. It was just a hard thing to prove. With such a thing being so easy to fake, it was truly hard to find something substantial.
Glenn did provide an excellent point, though. The manor was more or less a hub of oddities. Be it that of a nature that could be understood and described, or something completely otherworldly. It wasn't even just from the hunters in her experience, either. Sometimes, she'd run into a fellow survivor who'd have an experiance before their arrival to the manor that Delilah couldn't have conjured up if she tried.
It did, admittedly, make her curious whether any of the hunters could even be used in a scientific study. Perhaps the one made of rocks could be used to compare rock samples? She'd circle back to that at a less urgent time.
"Well," Delilah played with the ties on her cuffs as she debated the best way to break the news. He already didn't seem to have a good relationship with whatever had happened, and she wasn't sure if being blunt on the matter would trigger anything. She decided to opt for trying to ease into it as much as she could.
"Remember how I said I could see spirits? I believe I have seen a few in here. They're very small, though." She began slowly, her eyes flicking between the flickering souls and Gleen cautiously. "I don't wish to alarm you. However, I do think you should know that they're leaking from your wound."
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
“...”
The scientist's eyes wandered down to his own arm.
“Ah...”
He kept staring with wide eyes, his gaze caught between fear and surprise.
“Is that what's causing this... abnormal festering?”
Wouldn't that be ironic? A man of science, infected by things he could not see nor prove their existence. Maybe he was cursed or something - the grudge of another taking root in him. Yet, as scary (and cliché) as this would be, it was very unlikely. Glenn knew he was a kind soul and appreciated as such by many with very few who despised him, despite his insecurities often making him question the fact.
Then, maybe, it was merely something his stay at the manor - or perhaps one of these matches he was forced to participate in - had caused. Some of the hunters featured tendrils and tentacles just like the ones sprouting from his arm. Perhaps this was how new hunters were made? Infected, corrupted and reborn as something terrifying and unfathomable? Being forced to impersonate a nightmare - even just while participating in a match - was such a horrifying idea to Glenn, it sent a shiver down his spine. He did not want to hunt his friends! In fact, he did not want to hunt anyone! Such a thing had to be prevented at all costs!
"Possibly. If not causing it, I'd guess at the bare minimum, it's certainly not helping it heal any further." Delilah tilted her head, narrowing her eyes at the spirits as though they could confirm or deny anything she was saying. Alas, it seemed these ones were quite quiet, or perhaps even silent compared to the ones she was usually plagued with.
In any other situation, she might be jealous of such a fact. However, in a situation where talking to such spirits might grant insight into how to proceed, it was a bit of a pain.
"I think it's possible." Delilah finally answered, her gaze returning to Glenn's. While she didn't sound unconfident in her answer, there was a sliver of uncertainty that peeked through in her demeanor. The way she held herself seemed more cautious than before.
"It's the process of how that might be a bit tricky, considering we don't know its exact origin." In other words, lots of trial and error. And Delilah wasn't sure how many "errors" they could get away with before something particularly bad could happen. Especally with the influence of the manor being at play.
"We could try a séance. It could help us gain our footing on the motivation of the spirits themselves. Plus, if I act as the medium, the likelihood of you getting injured in the process should be far slimmer."
Essence Project ♡ The Rite of Farewells .. Within Grief's Hands
‘ THE RITE OF FAREWELLS ’
They say that the very first god of the Rite was a kind, caring, loving, and pure god. He loved in a way only an innocent child could, pure and true. He adored and was adored in return. However, he was dragged into that thorny briar by those same people whom he had always adored and cared for.
╒═════════════════════════════════════════╕
⊹₊⋆ S-Tier: Thorn Briar
They say the corpse of that old god is trapped deep within the thorny briar, stuck in an endless nightmare crafted by those he trusted the most. Yet, within his briar, I can hear his still beating heart as it cries out. Why can’t they all hurt the way we do?
[ Character Name: Lyrith and Leviathan || Character Slot: OPEN ]
This character, commonly referred to as Leviathan, is the corrupted version of the first god of the Rite, commonly referred to as “Our Lordship” or Lyrith. Thorn Briar has two forms, being Leviathan and Lyrith pre-corruption. This skin is intended to be a hunter skin.
⊹₊⋆ S-Tier: To Where Grief Flies
Grief is like a bird. Small, pure, entirely whole, and entirely unique. They are kept within a cage, hidden away from sight, kept out of mind. But, where does grief fly to, once the cage is finally broken?
[ Character Name: Dove || Character Slot: Contract Kuzentsov ]
This character, commonly referred to as Dove, is the protagonist of the Rite of Farewells. To Where Grief Flies has two forms, one being before the exit gate activates, and one being after the exit gate activates.
────
⊹₊⋆ A-Tier: Nocturne Night
All is silent on this nocturne night. It is my oath to the Frostmoon that keeps my soul bound to these lands, and until we retrieve that god’s corpse from the Thorn Briar, your ambitions all lie in vain.
[ Character Name: Lunaes || Character Slot: OPEN ]
Nocturne Night, also known as Lunaes, is one of the two remaining folklore gods still alive after the corruption of Lyrith. Lunaes and Halos made an oath beneath the frostmoon to retrieve Lyrith’s corpse from the Thorn Briar and put his tortured soul to rest. Nocturne Night is intended to be a hunter skin.
⊹₊⋆ A-Tier: The Frostmoon
All is peaceful beneath the frostmoon’s light. It is my oath to the Nocturne, which I protect these lands and all that inhabit them. The moon shall remember your courage, your pain, and your final farewells.
[ Character Name: Halos || Character Slot: OPEN ]
The Frostmoon, also known as Halos, is one of the two remaining folklore gods still alive after the corruption of Lyrith. Lunaes and Halos made an oath beneath the frostmoon to retrieve Lyrith’s corpse from the Thorn Briar and put his tortured soul to rest. Halos is also the last living blood descendant of the Frostmoon Goddess, who was killed during the aftermath of Lyrith’s fall, protecting her people.
⊹₊⋆ A-Tier: The Price of Pride
All is within control inside the academy. There is no price too great to pay for the pursuit of knowledge, no price too jarring to save the land she once held so close.
[ Character Name: Mel || Character Slot: OPEN ]
The Price of Pride, also known as Mel, is one of the survivors of the Startorch Academy. He seeks archaic knowledge recklessly, primarily driven by the desire to learn more about the corruption of ancient deities. His wife was killed protecting him in the downfall of Startorch, and he secretly wishes to prevent another tragedy like that from occurring, no matter the price.
⊹₊⋆ A-Tier: Without Tomorrow
Within the gleam of yesterday, today cannot exist. Your greed has eclipsed the sun, and robbed us of our right to say “see you tomorrow”.
[ Character Name: “Guest” || Character Slot: OPEN ]
A Nameless Individual. Without Tomorrow, who refers to himself as only a “visiting guest”. Not much is known about him, aside from his use of the term “see you tomorrow.”
────
⊹₊⋆ B-Tier: Star Bakery Owner
My sister always loved the stars. She always claimed one day, she’d eat one, and it would be delicious.
[ Character Name: Comett || Character Slot: OPEN ]
Star Bakery Owner, also known as Comett, is one of the three sisters who own the Star Bakery. She takes turns with her other sister, taking care of the bakery and delivering food around the Rite. Star Bakery Owner is intended to be a survivor skin.
⊹₊⋆ B-Tier: “Coronation”
The king’s coronation must be paid in full with his ichor.
[ Character Name: ??? || Character Slot: OPEN ]
“Coronation”, also known as “The Deliverer”, is one of the many famous figures who fell during the corruption of the god of the Rite. He fell protecting his people when monsters from the sea attacked the small town.
⊹₊⋆ B-Tier: Beyond The River
What lies beyond the river? Will I ever get to you again, or was the life we lived together nothing more than a fleeting daydream?
[ Character Name: Nether || Character Slot: OPEN ]
Beyond the River, also known as Nether, is one of the several townsfolk on the Isle of the Rite. She is friends with “Daydream” and “Cluttered Stars”, although she seems to have unresolved feelings for “Daydream”. Beyond the River is intended to be a survivor skin.
⊹₊⋆ B-Tier: Lost Memory
Forgetting me was your greatest fortune in this life.
[ Character Name: ???? || Character Slot: OPEN ]
Lost Memory, with an unknown name, is a character who is related to “Without Tomorrow”. However, due to being unknown to everyone but him, she is relatively unknown in general.
⊹₊⋆ B-Tier: Cluttered Stars
Can you tell me that story again? The one about the shooting stars?
[ Character Name: Annahime || Character Slot: OPEN ]
Cluttered Stars, also known as Annahime, is one of the sisters mentioned by “Star Bakery Owner”. She is the youngest of the three sisters. However, she is blind because of the fall. Her eyes were gravely injured, and she is currently being cared for by “Daydream.” Cluttered Stars is intended to be a survivor skin.
⊹₊⋆ B-Tier: Daydream
I wish she could remember our faces. The way we looked when we were all happier. I miss seeing the light in her eyes.
[ Character Name: Meliodas || Character Slot: OPEN ]
Daydream, also known as Meliodas, is a hotel owner who has taken it upon himself to take care of “Cluttered Stars” post-fall. He is friends with “Beyond the River” (who has unspoken feelings for him) as well, and often hurts himself trying to care for everyone else. Daydream is intended to be a survivor skin.
⊹₊⋆ B-Tier: Shadowborne
This… is your punishment. Serves you right. That’s what you get for lying to me. Go on, cry, make me believe it.
[ Character Name: Sera || Character Slot: OPEN ]
Shadowborne, also known as Sera, is one of the many townsfolk on the Isle of the Rite. She is an informant and often deals in the trade of information. She also has a strict moral code, and believes in “punishments that fit the crime”.
⊹₊⋆ B-Tier: “Your Color”
Don’t look back. There is nowhere to go but forward.
[ Character Name: “Dream” || Character Slot: OPEN ]
“Your Color”, also known as “Dream”, is one of the many townsfolk on the Isle of the Rite. She often pushes Dove to move forward, as the path back no longer exists.
╘══════════════════════════════════════════╛
..
Essence Project ♡ Rules and Additional Information
Woah. In the big 2026? An essence? From me? woah! Its been a while since I've gotten to do one of these, and I'm not going to lie, I'm excited! so, yes, it is real! welcome welcome!
To ensure everyone gets a chance to participate, everyone is limited to two muses. To reserve a slot, you can contact me either in my inbox or on the Campus Life Discord. Muses, OCs, canon muses and the like, I'll still take them, and when the essence is finished, and the skins come out, I will simply DM or tag your main. It's the same old rules as all my other essences haha.
Each skin comes with a small description of each character, so do that as you wish!
Melodic humming echoed through the halls of the manor. Drifting from tune to tune before it was quickly interrupted by a few prompt knocks on The Scientist’s door.
“Hello? My name is Delilah Fowler. I’m scheduled to have a match with you tomorrow.” A woman’s voice came from the other side of the door. “I don’t believe we’ve gotten the opportunity to play together before and was hoping we could exchange strategies before the match itself. I can stay here in the hallway if that’s more convenient for you.”
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
((@manor-tea-time Hiatus be dammed I need to know what happened to Glenn 🫵
“S-strategy? Um… I’m afraid I’m not the most useful in matches. I’m good with decoding, by myself of with others. But once the hunter finds me, they catch me rather fast and I’m too weak to struggle fire… So I just end up jumping into hiding at the slightest hint of danger.”
"Thats quite understandable, honestly..." Any time Delilah could remember having to bandage an injury to a similar extent as Glenn had, it was infinitely easier to bite the bullet and have someone help. Especially if it was her dominant hand. Although, on the other end of things, she could empathize with simply not wishing to deal with people's lectures in safety.
"Half of the time when I'm wrapping my own hands I have to redo them multiple times before they're even close to secure." She admitted, wiggling the fingers on her left hand as an example.
The mention of the injury itself was quite interesting, though. Hiking alone was already something peculiar in of itself. Delilah supposed that could just be due to some form of research she didn't fully understand, rather than something odd or otherworldly.
It did, frustratingly, only give her more questions. Many of which she wasn't entirely sure Glenn could answer given he didn't remember the events.
"I must admit I feel like I have more questions now." Her gaze flicked back to the man's arm, squinting at a few especially fiesty souls trying to escape. Now that she thought about it, could Glenn see them? She had intitally assumed he might of considering the knowlage he held on the topic, but now that they'd talked about the injury itself more, she honestly couldn't tell.
"This is a tad off topic, but can you see spirits at all, Glenn?"
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
“Spirits?” The question had quite evidently taken him aback. “I thought them to be a figment of the imagination - a shadow in the corner of your eye, a misprint on a photo.”
Isn't that how it usually went? People were fast to explain things with something occult and science - once it had recorgnised the problem as severe enough to warrant attention - would respond with a perfectly reasonable explaination.
And a little bit of imagination makes your life a lot more colourful. Being too set on science and rationality is no fun at all! - at least Jaques would say so.
“Staying in the manor, however, has taught me otherwise... while science can explain many mysteries, what is happening here barely seems real half of the time.”
Being chased by monsters that - even to the untrained eye - should not be biologically possible, floating beings that defied gravity, some even got into your head. It all seemed more like one of his nightmares or a fever dream than reality. Just remembering his matches made Glenn shiver.
“So, no, I have never seen any, but they might exist...? Why do you ask?”
"Well, yes- I must admit I did too." Delilah faltered a bit as she spoke. Honestly, she wasn't sure what she was expecting. A scientist would be, by any logic, a man of science to some degree. It was just a hard thing to prove. With such a thing being so easy to fake, it was truly hard to find something substantial.
Glenn did provide an excellent point, though. The manor was more or less a hub of oddities. Be it that of a nature that could be understood and described, or something completely otherworldly. It wasn't even just from the hunters in her experience, either. Sometimes, she'd run into a fellow survivor who'd have an experiance before their arrival to the manor that Delilah couldn't have conjured up if she tried.
It did, admittedly, make her curious whether any of the hunters could even be used in a scientific study. Perhaps the one made of rocks could be used to compare rock samples? She'd circle back to that at a less urgent time.
"Well," Delilah played with the ties on her cuffs as she debated the best way to break the news. He already didn't seem to have a good relationship with whatever had happened, and she wasn't sure if being blunt on the matter would trigger anything. She decided to opt for trying to ease into it as much as she could.
"Remember how I said I could see spirits? I believe I have seen a few in here. They're very small, though." She began slowly, her eyes flicking between the flickering souls and Gleen cautiously. "I don't wish to alarm you. However, I do think you should know that they're leaking from your wound."
Melodic humming echoed through the halls of the manor. Drifting from tune to tune before it was quickly interrupted by a few prompt knocks on The Scientist’s door.
“Hello? My name is Delilah Fowler. I’m scheduled to have a match with you tomorrow.” A woman’s voice came from the other side of the door. “I don’t believe we’ve gotten the opportunity to play together before and was hoping we could exchange strategies before the match itself. I can stay here in the hallway if that’s more convenient for you.”
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
((@manor-tea-time Hiatus be dammed I need to know what happened to Glenn 🫵
“S-strategy? Um… I’m afraid I’m not the most useful in matches. I’m good with decoding, by myself of with others. But once the hunter finds me, they catch me rather fast and I’m too weak to struggle fire… So I just end up jumping into hiding at the slightest hint of danger.”
"Are you sure? I assure you it wouldn't be a bother at all, really." She tilted her head to the side, trying to gauge the other's reaction before thinking about pushing further. "Besides, it's nice to have people to confide in sometimes. Have some people in your court, you know?"
Delilah blinked, trailing off as her train of thought seemed to escape her, as she noted a whole new detail of the various souls flickering in and out of the bangages. It was almost hypnotic in an odd way, something akin to watching the flames flicker in and out of the hearth of a fireplace.
By the time she had properly blinked free from it, she had realized she had probably been staring for far too long.
"Apologies- I'm not sure what came over me there," She mumbled as she rubbed her eyes for a moment. "You're free to not answer me if this is prying too deeply, but may I ask how you initially got your injury? Or who gave you the bandages you've been using now?"
-Ⴑ(‘❁◡❁’)Ⴑ
It is nice to have someone... as long as they don't leave.
Glenn did not even know why he had these thoughts, but this feeling of someone missing from his life, someone important to him, had been following him for a very long time.
Yet he quietly averted his gaze, squeezing his malformed arm to force it to quiet down, at least a bit.
It did come as a surprise to him when his own silence was met in kind. First, it was welcome. He did not want to refuse her again, yet her help was not wanted either. Then... it stretched too long, too awkward. And when he finally lifted his gaze, her staring felt weirdly panic inducing. But thankfully it was only a moment, before the glass artist recomposed herself - and Glenn mirrored her.
“I sneaked into the kitchen and got the bandages from the first aid kit in the cabinets”, he confessed after clearing his throat. “Though wrapping your own arm, especially your prominently used one, is more difficult than I had anticipated.”
“As for the origins of... this... there is very little to say: I sustained this injury during a hike in the mountains - or so I was told. Since I was alone, nobody really knows the details, but I had a heavy concussion when I returned. So, naturally, I myself remember very little of that incident.”
"Thats quite understandable, honestly..." Any time Delilah could remember having to bandage an injury to a similar extent as Glenn had, it was infinitely easier to bite the bullet and have someone help. Especially if it was her dominant hand. Although, on the other end of things, she could empathize with simply not wishing to deal with people's lectures in safety.
"Half of the time when I'm wrapping my own hands I have to redo them multiple times before they're even close to secure." She admitted, wiggling the fingers on her left hand as an example.
The mention of the injury itself was quite interesting, though. Hiking alone was already something peculiar in of itself. Delilah supposed that could just be due to some form of research she didn't fully understand, rather than something odd or otherworldly.
It did, frustratingly, only give her more questions. Many of which she wasn't entirely sure Glenn could answer given he didn't remember the events.
"I must admit I feel like I have more questions now." Her gaze flicked back to the man's arm, squinting at a few especially fiesty souls trying to escape. Now that she thought about it, could Glenn see them? She had intitally assumed he might of considering the knowlage he held on the topic, but now that they'd talked about the injury itself more, she honestly couldn't tell.
"This is a tad off topic, but can you see spirits at all, Glenn?"
