Designed Prickley a bedroom that they hate (more notes and an explanation for Prickley’s breakdown under the cut)
Some analysis of the other member’s bedrooms that we’ve seen so far. Forgive me if anything is wrong.
Prickley’s bedroom is based more on their avatar rather than their personality/likes or dislikes (similar to many of the others’ bedrooms). Because of this it feels incredibly impersonal and even impractical (obviously the bed doesn’t fit them. Caine didn’t think to size up the basic bed model for their unique body shape). They also hate all the generic decorative items, it gives them this uncomfortable faux “lived in” vibe kinda like hotels/airbnbs have.
When they were in the real world, Prickley’s safe space was their bedroom. It held their many collections, their comfort items, and hundreds of items that held fond memories of the past. They curated it after many years of collecting. So the room Caine generated them especially feels like a smack in the face, a painful physical reminder that the life they had spent so much time and effort building for themselves is now gone, and that they’d never see anybody who knew them ever again.
That feeling continues to intensify the more it sinks in that escape from the circus is impossible, and they finally snap and destroy everything in their bedroom is an uncontrollable emotional meltdown.
All the noise of shattering pots and screeches of a voice box wakes Kinger and Queenie. Kinger leaves the fort to investigate, assuring Queenie he’d be right back, and finds Prickley in the dark wreckage of their room, surrounded by overturned furniture and shards of ceramic and glass. He sits by them and offers a hug, letting them hold him until their shuddering staticky sobs turn into sniffles. They look exhausted, fabric under their eyes stained dark with tears, so he invites them to sleep in the fort with him and Queenie. After all, their room was in shambles, and he didn’t feel right leaving them alone that night.
Kinger continues to let them stay in the fort until Caine lets them redecorate their room (which he does begrudgingly. He’s a tad annoyed Prickley didn’t appreciate what he thought was an excellently designed room if he does say so himself). Even after their new room is finished, the couple gives them an open invitation to the fort if they ever simply wanted the company.
The pillow fort becomes a secondary safe space for Prickley. The dark and quiet is a much needed reprieve from the usual overstimulating sounds and colors of the circus. Although they always liked Kinger and Queenie, their kindness towards Prickley in that moment solidifies Prickley’s attachment to the couple. They feel safe around them.
