i know, right?

isola-affiliated blog for steve from cucumber quest. written by garrus!

[othernightmareguy]

STEVE // cucumber quest

“ what i see here is an opportunity! - for revenge. ...c’mon, we didn’t even get to the diabolical laughter! ”

he’s all smiles! :3

kind of literally. he doesn’t have eyes

he’s also a dad and he loves his son very much.

opposite of the nightmare knight, basically.

it’s a sore spot for both of them though

but very cheerful, goofy, and loves to have fun!

definitely a former theater kid. he LOVES costumes!

Powered by Fear™

you may fear me or my son anytime you wish. pwease

was sealed in a??? coffin??? underwater??? for a really, really long time???

might also??? be an actual bad guy??? 

relatively harmless right now, though ... relatively.

i do not get good vibes from him AT ALL but he hasn’t actually Done Anything so :/ he’s on thin ice

[othernightmareguy]

forsakenpumpkin​:

“Boy, I’d love to comprehend something!”

        “ wouldn’t we all ! ”

[othernightmareguy]

       “ these entities are beyond your comprehension. i get them, though. ”

[othernightmareguy]

         he can sense the nightmare knight being a square from across the city.

[othernightmareguy]

whohassummonedme​:

There’s a silence that scares him, but it’s a weight he’s planned on carrying for a long time now. The lack of a smile probably would’ve bothered most, but with their history, he could see things about Steve that most couldn’t. But, then, he brings out a remark about the situation. He couldn’t even hide a soft chuckle rumbling through his chest. “I suppose so.” His hand covers where a mouth would be, as he lets out another chuckle.

“Everything here is temporary. Everything here can change. Still… That doesn’t make any of it less real.” He looks up from Steve for the first time in a long time, and gestures to the island around them. “Everyone, prisoner and civilian alike, lives their own life. A thousand, thousand lives, from a thousand, thousand worlds. Lives small, lives grand, lives cut from whatever grand destiny or cruel fate awaits them. I’ve added to their pain, I’ve taken from it. I want to know what a life is like.”

His hand is outstretched. “Wouldn’t you like that, too?”

      oh, that laugh again. he gave a quiet one in return - his grin a bit sheepish as he did so. steve definitely hadn’t pictured this when he’d confronted the knight - patience, honesty, laughter. that combination made him stay silent as the other spoke of the ephemeral, unpredictable nature of this place. fleeting, but significant - to the nightmare knight, at least. he couldn’t say that he really felt any sort of sympathy for the lives of the citizens of this realm - how many had they both destroyed millennia ago? what made this place so different that the knight himself had changed his outlook so drastically?

       steve stared at the hand offered to him; once so capable of destruction - along with himself. he could still recall what it was like to be driven on instinct in those ancient days, chasing the fear that fueled him. creating besty had awoken something else in him, and perhaps that ‘something else’ had extended to the knight, too. but that desire for chaos and fear still remained. the same clearly couldn’t be said for the nightmare knight. whatever his counterpart felt that he was driven by now ( affection? compassion? mercy? ) steve wasn’t accustomed to thriving on it. but there was that spark of it - whatever it was - whenever he embraced thebestmaster. and ... maybe when he was able to get the knight to laugh like earlier. it fought against his real nature, leaving him a powder-keg - even as weak as he was. yet, nightmare knight knew that - more or less - and still offered his hand.

         his hands had been held uncertainly in front of his chest, resisting the urge to fidget. he hesitated for a few moments longer, before ambivalently raising his hand to meet the knight’s. “ i don’t know how much you can really call it a ‘life’ - you tend to be a bit of a sucker for the sad-sack shtick, now. ” even through the mild taunt, he smiled again, hooking his entire arm around one of the knight’s fingers the way one would do with another’s shoulders. “ but i guess we can try things your way... for now. ” within reason, of course - he still didn’t necessarily feel remorse the way the knight clearly did. but he could aspire for better, and nightmare knight seemed to think that this was the way to go.

[othernightmareguy]

whohassummonedme​:

He laughed. It was, sadly, maybe even unfortunately, a fond laugh. “Always impatient. I have more to speak with you about. The questions here are part of it. And, as I am asking honesty of you, you deserve it from me.” He looked at Steve straight in his none of eyes. “I do not care what your plans are for Dreamside. We cannot affect that world from in here.”

His posture changes, leaning forward a bit more. “That leads me to the important part of this discussion. I suppose I should cut to the chase then.” The Nightmare Knight sighs, and rubs the back of his neck. “I’ve been in this world, and worlds like this, for years. I‘ve been able to see my life from the outside, explore the crevasses of my memory and find caverns still unexplored. I’ve seen heroes, villains… monsters. I’ve had friends. I’ve had family, even. I’ve… I’ve been given chances I don’t deserve. I’ve caused hurt I can’t take back.”

“But, it has given me a new perspective. There are many like me. Those who are forced into roles they can never leave. Those who never get chances. I want to give those who are trapped a chance for freedom from these roles. Chances those in their world could never allow them. I want to see in them what I can’t see in myself. That things can change. I’ve feared the day we would meet again, even more as I wonder what i would do. I want to do this for you. I want to give you a chance to change. To right wrongs we’ve simply let fester.”

The corners of his eyes droop, a pleading look on the face of one otherwise not prone to requests. “I want to do better. I want us both to do better. To have better. We have done terrible things, and have been judged to be terrible.” He stops, the feeling of his throat tightening causing him to hesitate. 

“Prove me wrong.”

        that laugh - not dismissive or spiteful - did something to him. it made him uncomfortable and paradoxical want to hear more of it, which just served to frustrate him even more. he’d approached the knight with a chest full of cinders and thorns - ready to set fire - and now he was deluding himself to think that he’d heard fondness in the other’s voice.

       steve, eye-less as he was, still managed to gawk at the nightmare knight; completely and utterly caught off guard by the speech the knight had just laid at his feet. his defenses wavered, beginning to wonder if he wasn’t doing this as some sort of manipulation tactic. it sounded ridiculous when he really thought about it, but ... he’d be darned if the nightmare knight didn’t sound ... genuine. and that look on his face ... maybe he’d just been alone for so long that he was becoming gullible. his smile had long since disappeared entirely, his expression blank as he looked up at the other, clearly trying to process everything.

       ‘ actually - stevie, you’re not gonna believe this! he wasn’t anything like before! i mean - mostly. but he was nice. ’

       had he not heard it from besty first, he wouldn’t still be entertaining the notion that the nightmare knight actually wanted to change, nor that he wanted better for them both. and it wasn’t just accusing one of them ( himself ) of the wrongdoing - he was confessing to it, as well. it gave him a tangled feeling in his chest - unable to sort out just how it made him feel, other than pulling him in all sorts of directions. 

      “ ... so...  there’s a vacancy now for the role of big bad enemy of dreamside? ” he joked, wearing his signature grin again - though it was strained and unsure. steve really hadn’t been expecting a heart-to-heart - and his sense of humor was being used as a defense mechanism, of sorts. ‘ i want to do better. i want us both to do better. to have better. ’ those words in particular stuck in his head more than he’d like to admit, and he swayed back and forth slightly in the air - rocking his heels on an imaginary surface in thought. 

       besty said that people here got thrown back into their own worlds all the time. how long could any of this self-reinvention really last - even if the nightmare knight was sincere? at the same time, that kind of sounded like the point - the knight was offered a quick reprieve from his part. steve’s flippant demeanor dwindled, and when he spoke again, it was quiet. “ ... even if it’s temporary? ...you really want that? ” 

[jothrpmemes]

Cucumber Quest Sentence Starters #7

CHAPTER 3: THE TITLE MATCH - PART 1

“I… never wanted you to see me like this.”

“This… is lower than I ever dreamed to go.”

“The spirit of limbo never dies!”

“I don’t know where you think you’re going, but you might wanna make it a history class.”

“You’ve got to let me dress for the occasion, at least.”

“You wouldn’t celebrate your own wedding, [name].”

“Suppose… Suppose we just did that again.”

“Listen to me, asking for favors. As if I were your friend.”

“Well, I… I only wanted to say that… I understand how you feel. About all of this, I mean.”

“Oh, I’m hopeless, asking for favors again… But I’d like you to hear me out.”

“You might think I’m going soft on you. But I haven’t given up. Not yet.”

“I really mean that, you know.”

“I detest that sweater. But I like the way you think.”

“What’s the matter, [name]? You don’t think I’m princess material?”

“Oh, thank goodness you’re still with me.”

“My, aren’t you a charming one. I almost wish I could return the compliment.”

“Is that how foolish you think I am?”

“I do as the darkness commands.”

“I’m not here to make friends! I’m here to win!”

“Why does this strange child think I’m their father?”

“You’re looking at a man who cares deeply about his finances.”

“You stole 70 salt packets from a burger chain because you said it’d save money on groceries.”

“Tell me you’ve got good news.”

“Don’t look so pathetic, dear. You’re breaking my heart.”

“These things happen. I’ve been in your place enough times to know.”

“It’s all in a day’s work for [OWN NAME], CHAMPION OF… underwear. Hmmmm.”

“You did everything you could to save me, and that’s all that matters.”

“Oh, the kid from earlier? He ran into the wilderness during our ad break. Screaming.”

“JUST ADMIT THAT WAS COOL!!”

“I’m not here for this thing… I’m here for YOU.”

“I knew you were chicken.”

“You’re gonna have to do better than that this tiiiime…!”

“You’re seriously never gonna beat me, though.”

“We keep running into each other, don’t we?”

“How bold you have grown, [name].”

“It was not an act of pity that spared your life then. Make no mistake of that.”

“If we just talk, there’s got to be some way we can come to an understanding.”

“How many times have I heard those words?”

“Give me a break! It’s just a trick!”

“This was a mistake.”

“You have forgotten what I am.”

“Do you know nothing of mercy?”

“You are more pitiful than I imagined.”

“Continue this folly if you must, [name]. It will change nothing.”

“I get that we almost DIED!!”

“I just don’t want you to… y'know?”

[memeroundups]

Questions/Comments to be sent anonymously!

(though off anon is fine too!)

“Is there someone you hold dear?”

“Don’t you feel any guilt?”

“You’re actually afraid to be alone, aren’t you?”

“There must be something you fear.”

“Do you have a home?”

“Is there someone you like?”

“Are you really expecting a positive outcome out of this?”

“Aren’t you ashamed?”

“Aren’t you happy?”

“Who do you despise?” 

“How do you sleep at night?”

“How do you manage to keep going despite everything?”

“What do you think of kindness?”

“What do you think of hatred?”

“Why do you fight?”

“Why do you live?”

“How much blood have you spilled?”

“How much death have you seen?”

“Don’t you think your actions are reckless?”

“Don’t you know how much good you’ve done for others?”

“Can’t you tell they love you?”

“Can’t you see he/she would die for you?”

“Can’t you see that they hate you?”

“Can’t you tell the truth for once?”

“You’re not tainted.”

“You’re not alone.”

“You’re awful.”

“You don’t think of anyone but yourself.”

“You’re an emotionless robot.”

“You’re just a lap dog.”

“It’s not over.”

“He/she needs you.”

“Stop lying.”

“Stop fighting.”

“Stop pushing others away.”

“You’re cruel.”

“You’re far too kind. Too kind for your own good.”

“You depend on him/her too often.”

“You’re overprotective, it’s stifling.”

“You’re too impulsive, it’s reckless.”

“You’re too careless, it’s a liability.”

“He/she is bringing you down.”

“You’re too timid, it’s easy to see you as a target.”

“You need to listen.”

“You need to speak up more often.”

“You’re weak.”

“You’re strong. Stronger than you’ll ever know.”

“You’re too proud.”

“Quit blaming others for your mistakes.”

“You won’t always be around to save him/her.”

“One day, he/she won’t need you anymore.”

“You can’t cheat death.”

“You can’t hide forever.”

“They’ll find out the truth eventually.”

“That person is only holding you back.”

“They’re too good for you.”

“You’ll be rewarded for your efforts if you keep trying.”

“It will get better.”

“You look lonely.”

“You look bitter.”

“You look tired.”

“You’re hiding a painful burden.”

“You’re perfect.”

“You’re beautiful.”

“You will always be worthless.”

“Your hands are too dirty, too tainted to be clean.”

“You’re lost in this world. Wandering without a purpose.”

“You’ll rise above them all.” 

“You’ll find your place in this world.”

“Eventually, someone will knock you off your pedestal.”

[exaltawakened-deactivated202009]

deicidescarred:

    Alice Isn’t Dead Episode 1-5 Sentence Starters

“This wasn’t a nightmare. What I remember most about it was how real it was. ”

“Who am I -at this point in my life- to talk about unreality?

“I don’t have to explain myself to you…but I will.”

“Good people deserve good things.”

“It’s dangerous out here.”

“Want to see something funny?”

“There are times I hate you more than any of them.”

“So much of what I’ve seen is beautiful - more than you would think. Even the worst things.”

“We are nothing if not absurd.”

“This was not something that he had to do in order to survive…it was a demonstration.”

“The darkness is vast here. It really has a depth to it. Keeps going.”

“He wants me to know he’s following me.”

“I thought you were dead! I really did.”

“I couldn’t think of another reason you would vanish like that. Just gone.”

“I mourned you.”

“I never loved anyone so hard. From my god-damned gut. So screw you for that.”

“I don’t think the world passes through here.”

“I don’t think the world has been to this town in a long time.”

“It won’t help, though. We are helpless.”

“Nothing ever is a surprise to you, is it? You always know everything.”

“So, my wife isn’t dead. That’s good to know. That’s new information.”

“Every relationship, no matter how long, no matter the history, is temporary. Separation is never a surprise.”

“Are you doing this? Are you doing this to me?!”

“I don’t know what this means. I only know that it’s meaning does not include me. I am not necessary to it.”

“Freedom can be good or bad. There can be terrible freedom.”

“You freed me and I didn’t ask you to. I didn’t want you to.”

“I want our lines to cross one more time.”

“You may think you’re free, but you’re not. You are not free of me.”

“You know I can’t resist a bad joke.”

“What was that? What the hell was that?!“ 

"You know that I get scared. It doesn’t stop me from doing what I need to get done, but I’m scared pretty much all the time, just of living -of life- of going on with the day to day. ”

“Oh, god, am I being condescending? I am, aren’t I? Shit.”

“You miss me?”

“Where would you even go that I couldn’t follow?”

“There’s not a person in this world who would help you.”

“I could take a big bite of you right now and it would be over. I could devour you.”

“If I had to come talk to you, then you’ve been asking the wrong questions.”

“My advice is ’stop asking the wrong questions’.”

“I can’t go home. ‘Home’ isn’t a place, ‘home’ was a person! I can’t go home.”

“They let me off with a warning, I guess. I guess it’s a warning I’m going to ignore.”

“Is this the world you left me?”

“What is this world you’ve left me?”

“Hey, help me with this, would you?”

“I shouldn’t judge. No one should. We all do lots of things we shouldn’t, though.”

“Turns out that I didn’t know what you were thinking at all.”

“Are there wild cows?”

“Of course ‘we’ don’t talk. I do. You vanish.”

“I love cruise control more than I love most of my family members.”

“You’ve made yourself a mystery, now.”

“Time moves, but we stay still. We only like to think that anything is ever changed.”

“Was I a fool?”

“When it was just the two of us, it wasn’t like being alone. But it also wasn’t like being with another person. It was something in between.”

“You thought you had good reasons to lie.”

“You were lying to me.”

“What was worth my trust? And what was worth the life we had together?”

“There are far worse thing than men circling these roads.”

[animusbell]

where we belong.

[othernightmareguy]

autumnalrefrain​:

“Hey!” Wirt yelled indignantly. “Traffic cone? Actually, I took a santa hat and- wait. Never mind, I don’t have to explain myself to you, you-!”

Wirt looked up at the pestering voice and immediately recoiled. A dark visage, a haunting, mocking smile - a devil? A personification of his worst nightmares?

“U-um, I’m sorry, sir,” Wirt managed, backing away. “Yeah, I guess it’s a… fashion… choice.”

Then, barely audibly. “I thought it looked kind of cool.”

          he’d been about to ask what the heck a ‘santa’ was and why did its’ hats look so very much like traffic cones, but then the kid grew frustrated with his comment. he hadn’t actually been trying to rile him up, but when the young man turned to face him, he was all too glad that he had - because he immediately recognized something he hadn’t experienced in millennia.

           fear.

           it was more like a startle, really - small, sudden, and not that strong ... but it lingered, and it didn’t fade - and that was what really caught his attention. when the human started to back away, steve reached out a long, spindly arm to place it in on his shoulder in a faux-friendly manner as his grin grew even more. “ ‘sir’? nah, that’s the other nightmare guy - you can call me ‘steve’! ” he moved to place his elbow on the other’s hat now - his levitation making it appear that he were using the “santa” headpiece as support in a casual way.

            “ cool? hmmm ... ” steve tapped his chin in a comically overstated gesture of thought. “ now that you mention it, i guess it is! i mean, just think of all the traffic accidents you've probably caused! i don’t even have eyes and i thought it was a traffic cone - i imagine people with eyesight better than mine would’ve swerved all over the road if they saw that headgear in the distance. that’s a pretty good prank! ” the nightmare entity pretended to examine his nails with a smirk; the kid seemed like an anxious sort - maybe the threat of accidental destruction in his wake could spook him again. 

[othernightmareguy]

         oh yeah, nightmare knight? well could a bad father do....THIS? 

[othernightmareguy]

whoops! i didn’t have my askbox open - but it is now! sorry if anyone tried to send me an ask!

[othernightmareguy]

okay! i’m still getting things sorted out for him, but here’s a little starter call! i’ll cap it if i feel overwhelmed, but for now it’ll be uncapped!

[othernightmareguy]

@code0a​ // sc.

          this place definitely wasn’t as cramped as the last place he’d called prison home, but it was still pretty uncomfortable to navigate the building when one was as tall as he was. he’d actually had to walk in order to avoid bending over too much - though even that wasn’t foolproof, as one of his horns managed to snag on a light fixture. “ ...maybe i’ll just hang out outside. ” he mumbled - it wasn’t like he actually needed anything in the housing he’d been assigned for the time being. he’d had enough rest for multiple lifetimes, a change of clothes wasn’t really a concern, and eating food was more of a hobby than a necessity. ( it would be nice to meet roommates, though - he’d been alone for so long, even the most unpleasant strangers here were a figurative breath of fresh air. ) 

        with that thought, it was almost on cue that he was able to narrowly avoid getting in the way of a door in the hallway opening - one of his neighbors’, he was pretty sure. his housing was only supposed to be a few units down. “ whoops! sorry there, neighbor! i guess this place isn’t big enough for the both of us. or one of us, actually. ” steve’s large grin recovered, and he offered a friendly hand to the stranger in greeting. how ominous having a being as large as he was lurking close to the doorway was either not registering to him, or he simply didn’t care.

[othernightmareguy]

@autumnalrefrain​ // sc.

          “ hey, i’m all for daring fashion choices, but ... ” steve floated closer, bending down a bit to avoid towering over the fellow too badly ( a difficult feat, when one was over ten feet tall ). he nudged the pointed hat on the boy’s head with a finger, trying to convey a quizzical feeling with his dampened smile. “ - but a traffic cone as a hat is a pretty bold one, huh? ” 

[othernightmareguy]

whohassummonedme​:

He was unhappy with the discussion about Besty. Fair, as he was certainly closer to the little one. Though, that didn’t excuse certain elements that made the poor boy think that he was nothing if he couldn’t do his job.

… Perhaps he was partly to blame. Now wasn’t the time for that though.

So, a more professional posture was taken. Sincere attention towards Steve, rather than acting dismissive. “… Thank you for giving me this chance, I suppose.” He faked clearing his throat. “Well.” His eyes, unreadable to most, looked around the skyline of the city from here. “I suppose the easiest place to start with what I wanted to say is to ask you a question.” He waves a hand, over the island around them.

“What do you think of this place, as your immediate perspective as a newcomer? What are your goals, generally speaking, now that you are here? Be honest, but if you wish to keep your secrets, you may use misdirection to keep me in the dark.”

        okay, well this was more ... genuine than he was expecting. or, at least it sounded like nightmare knight wanted an actual conversation. or maybe he was just a better actor than steve took him for. ( it had been thousands upon thousands of years, after all since they’d last spoken. his memory was likely to fail him. ) steve sat up, crossing his arms again - but in a slightly more defensive manner than before. “ i wasn’t expecting an actual conversation from you. ” he wasn’t sure what he was expecting. a fight, maybe. he would’ve felt more vindicated, then. steve crossed his legs, waiting not-so-patiently for the nightmare knight to ask his questions.

       that was it??? even more perplexingly, he expected him to be honest? he couldn’t even fathom what type of game the nightmare knight was playing at, now - and it was starting to grate on him even more. “ ... what? ” he blurted it out incredulously, staring at the nightmare knight in disbelief. he was in that prison for ages, and now that he was free - that was what the nightmare knight chose to ask? how he felt about his surroundings? what he was planning? honesty? his grin gained that unsettling, snarling quality again - his cheerful demeanor rapidly fading in favor of one he rarely displayed. 

        “ that’s what you wanted to say to me? ” he laughed, though it was forced and nearly-robotic. “ you really are a piece of work, you know that. ” steve muttered it under his breath, though he took a page from the nightmare knight’s book and waited a few moments to force himself to calm down ( or try to ) before responding. “ i think that this place is far better than the last prison, at least. but it does warm my heart to know that you’re stuck somewhere, now. even if it is with me again. ” 

          “ and fine, i’ll bite. my plans for here are ... to be determined.” really, he had none - he’d barely been here a day. but it sounded more impressive this way. “ but dreamside? hmm... “ he tapped his chin in mock pensiveness. “ i’d think it’s long overdue for some payback whenever besty and i find our way out of here. ”