Hiya Night! :D For some reason I feel like it's been a while. I saw you might write some headcannons for lilytale, so I thought I might ask about how what these skeletons cling on to when life gets tough, or what gets them through. For example if they have a belief, a memory, a goto plan, or if they draw strength from family! Oh, but remember to take breaks if your inbox ends up flooded - we know everyone loves lilytale.
ohhh this is a super cute one! i’ve got a couple others in my inbox i’ll answer too, but this was a sweet one to consider first.
(long post, so press J if you’re on desktop and want to skip it, or just scroll on by mobile users!)
Serif: She's got an album she keeps in her desk - full of polaroids, reminders of good times, reminders of incredible places that exist out there, reminders of the *realness* of the life she's living now. She'll also go out on a walk, either by herself or with her sister, and will take a few more to add to her collection. Some end up strung up on her walls, the only wall decoration she has besides a starry tapestry on one wall - yet *plenty*, taking up all manner of space.
Vellum: Depends on the day; one of two things will be chosen... if she needs activity to cheer her up, she'll cajole her sister into an evening (or night) of cooking and hilariously bad, cheesey sitcom reruns to cheer her up. In the quiet moments, though, when she can't keep up her usual cheerful smile, she'll cling to any kind of physical activity to ground herself. It ranges from physical training - she's a brilliant sparring partner - to something as 'calm' as yoga. It helps her remember that even if she doesn't have a 'goal' achievable at the moment, that just being here is good enough, that she's got a real life and world and hopes and dreams and friends and her sister - so much, right here, and after rooting herself in her own body she can go seek them out and find purpose just in being with them.
Sapphire: She'll climb up to the roof and watch the stars turn into the breaking dawn while listening to music. Oftentimes, she'll sing softly along, reminding herself that it's *real*, it's all real, and no matter what another dawn will keep coming. She also takes a lot of strength from her sister & her friends and will seek them out for some quality time.
Amber: The key necklace she and her sister both have - a grounding object from when things were really dark for her Underground. That and baking with her sister. It brings back good memories and helps get her through the rough patch with the warmth of family (as well as delicious pastries).
Crimson: She used to have a few far worse habits, but since ending up on this Surface environment with the other girls she was able to put most of them behind her. Nowadays she'll either find a friend with benefits to have sex with, or she'll actually make a couple cup of coffees and go silently sit with her sister or one of her closest friends (Amber, Serif, Cinnamon), cuddled up and surprisingly quiet. Basically, physical intimacy grounds her a lot.
Scarlet: Like her sister, she deeply values physical intimacy; if she doesn't seek her sister out for some quiet, safe time where neither of them have to do anything but just be, she'll seek out one of her closest friends (Vell, Pepper, Sapphire). Alternatively, she pulls out a small journal she keeps locked up in her room - not a diary, but partially a recollection of important things she's seen/done here, and more presciently a list of goals. She grounds herself, reminds herself that she's got so much more to achieve - that she *will* achieve, with more time and continued work.
Pepper: She'll go out into their yard, to a well-established firepit, and build one. If she's up to it, somehow, she'll manage to cook a campfire feast - if not, she just watches the light and stays warm by it. More often than not, her sister will find her while this is happening, and will come sit by her with an instrument in hand. If you eavesdrop, you can hear Cinnamon playing old songs for her - and Pepper singing along in a language no human has ever known. (If she's unable to do this, Pepper will seek out light, almost like a moth - the more warm and natural the better. It's engrained, from when she was underground, thinking about the stars and the sun. Once she's in a slightly better place, she'll seek out a friend to challenge to some competition or other.)
Cinnamon: Her hand's likely already on the lock necklace she wears at all times, often hidden under her sweater - Pepper wears a matching one. A reminder slightly echoing the one Amber and Sapphire share, of a dark time Cinn and her sister got through, ending up with these necklaces as a memento/reminder. Beyond that, she will either seek physical affection - possibly sex, possibly cuddling - or she will play an instrument (generally ukulele during these times). Beauty in the darkness, sense of something senseless, possibility from a few strings and bits of wood - it helps make sense to her, remind her of the infinite *possibility*, but the simplicity there too.
Blade: nowadays, she clings to the memory of when she and Twist first felt the sun after coming to this Surface - Twist couldn't see, of course, but the *feeling* was just as visceral. If the sun's out, Blade'll seek it, just sitting in it, and if it's nighttime she'll go stare at the stars. She'll also probably garden, if she's close to home - with the intent of coaxing a little more magic into the surrounding plant life to better her sister's life (as Twist can't see normally, nothing but vague senses of color, but she can 'see' magic - ergo, magic in the surroundings helps Twist navigate & see their gardens, etc). She's also unopposed to a cuddle session, especially if the weather's bad.
Twist: She listens to music, and like Blade, will seek out the sun if possible, for the same sort of reasons. If it's nighttime or stormy weather, you'll probably find her inside playing the piano - a physical reminder of what she's capable of, even in a low-magic environment - or she'll go take a bath in the large facilities they specially built for themselves. If possible, she also significantly values cuddling (on days both she and her sister are having it rough, they make/order a significant amount of food and listen to storytelling podcasts together.)
Glyph: she travels a lot, is a musician and a photographer alike - so if she doesn't already have an instrument in hand, she'll probably seek one out, and sing songs in an old language no human knows, reclining in the back of her truck and facing the open skies above her on some distant, quiet road. If that's not an option, she'll often think back to the first proper time she bonded with Serif after coming to this timeline - it's a good memory, and leads to the bonding with the rest of the skelesisters (it is, however, spoilers, so I can't share it, heh.)
Alpha: One thing is definitely spoilers, but in general she's likely going to dive into more work - but work that specifically betters the immediate lives of her found family with the rest of the Lilytale girls. Above all she wants a plan, wants to be able to do something actionable. Oftentimes, she'll end up in particular getting up to something with Cinnamon - in general, though, it's the bonds with the girls that keeps her grounded, and she’ll seek them out even just for some quality time & shenanigans.
