Chapter Text
After the House’s front gate opens, you try to equip Memory of Family, so you can get your family leveled up faster. You just learned Tear You Apart, which helps even more when fighting the King, but you want to make your family members as strong as they can be when fighting him next time.
After what he did to Bonnie, he deserves to feel every strike.
... Memory of Sadnesses is equipped…? You… didn’t equip that after getting it last loop. You could have sworn you had Memory of Victory equipped.
You don’t see any other memories.
(???!!!)
Don’t panic. Maybe it’s some kind of… glitch in the loops. Or maybe you’re not looking hard enough. You never knew something like memories and equipment working like this was a thing until the loops started! Yeah, that had to be it.
(Check Isa’s memories.)
He should have Memory of Reflection equipped, now that a new loop began and you didn’t go stargazing again with him.
(Even though you kind of wanted to.)
But instead, Memory of Isabeau is equipped…?
You check Mirabelle. She should have Memory of Change God equipped now that Memory of Faith wasn’t available for this loop, but instead, she had Memory of Mirabelle equipped.
(???)
You check Odile. She should have Memory of First Strike equipped, but the pattern holds, and instead, it’s Memory of Odile.
(…)
You check Bonnie, trying to remain calm. They should have Memory of Snacks equipped, but if they have Memory of Bonnie equipped, it’s not the end of the world.
But, they… don’t??? Have Memory of Bonnie equipped????? You… don’t recognize this memory—Memory of Iron Fist.
You feel cold. You forget how to breathe.
You… you read the description: Where’s Bonnie? [Bonnie will disappear whenever something NSFW happens.]
(What.)
This was a mistake. A glitch in the loops.
You just. Need to get to that first tear on first floor and loop back to the meadow. That has to reset everything and make it right.
MIRABELLE
(anxiously) Oh! Up ahead, that’s…!
(You breathe in, and out.)
ODILE
(unimpressed) A Sadness, huh? The house must be crawling with them...
MIRABELLE
O-okay everyone, let's, um, uh—
ISABEAU
Don't get overwhelmed now!
ODILE
(annoyed) Come on... We've seen tons of those already.
BONNIE
Don't worry, Belle! We can take care of them no problem!!!
MIRABELLE
(nervous) O-okay, but...
(Here again.)
(…)
“Let’s just defeat it…” (Skip.)
“Oh my, should we go over strategy again~?”
> (Stay silent and skip.)
You’re still too confused about the memories to say anything.
MIRABELLE
…? I, um… S-Sorry! I'll be okay! Let's go, everyone!!!
Isa gives you a weird look before he jumps back to follow the script.
ISABEAU
Monster tiiiime!!!
(If you're not careful, you might defeat this Sadness in one hit...)
The same sadness as always makes eye contact with you and screams before running away…???
“What.” Odile remained frozen in a ready stance, hand out like she’d been about to examine the sadness.
You’re as confused as she is, before you remember that Memory of Sadnesses equipped itself. Somehow.
At least that means getting to that tear on the first floor shouldn’t take too long? But, somehow, you don’t believe you’ll be granted that kind of grace.
MIRABELLE
We… did it???
Isa doesn’t say his line. He’s looking at the cowering sadness in the corner of the room instead.
BONNIE
Going through the house will be a piece of cake!!!
(Remember to take the lead and not scare them by acting weird!!!)
You take the lead.
Your family members don’t say anything else as you all enter the next room.
No one says anything as the sadnesses scream and run away from you. You just keep walking.
Your skin starts to feel tight and itchy. Your single eye twitches every so often, and you don’t realize you’re not taking full, deep breaths until your chest begins to twist and burn.
You ignore it all and ignore the tonics and get the key.
Your jaw starts to hurt, and you stop clenching it while turning the key and opening the heavy door.
You remember the switch, and it’s only when the big rock hits the ground that you think you could have just “forgotten” to disarm the trap and let it kill you.
(Blinding idiot.)
BONNIE
ARE WE NOT TALKING ABOUT THE BIG ROCK?
YOU
(smiling normally) "I haven't noticed any big rock."
ISABEAU
Too cool, Sif. Too cool.
He says that but looks up as always, like he’s trying to solve a puzzle.
A puzzle he’ll never have enough pieces to, no matter how hard he tries. Poor guy.
(Keep going. You’re almost to the tear.)
You wonder if Loop had anything to do with this, if they’re still annoyed at you for ignoring them ever since they suggested hanging out with them.
You almost call them to see, but if they do have something to do with this, they’ll only tell you to come to the Favor Tree to talk.
And you’d rather yell at them for naming Bonnie’s memory Memory of Iron Fist in person.
The two sadnesses pacing around the stairs leading to the gate scram and hide behind pillars. They try to make themselves smaller, like you can’t see their big, drippy bodies behind the crumbling pillars.
Sadnesses weren’t known for being able to think, you guess, and you don’t really care. You’re just glad your family members don’t comment on it, because you really don’t have an explanation for what’s happening.
You know it’s the memory, but you never really thought before what they were exactly and how they worked the way they did. Would you even get to keep them after the loops end? Even if you haven’t used it yet, would you still be able to read your native language after you get out of here? Or did it depend on if you had it equipped on the final loop? Would everyone keep their equipment? Would Isa suddenly wonder how he got his papier-mache gloves and how they turn his attacks from rock to paper? Would Mira wonder where her original rapier went?
… Wait. You never checked their equipment either.
You have your dagger instead of those garden shears, you realize, but maybe you actually had the knifekey equipped last loop? And now it switched to your default weapon? And you just… forgot. Because you’re good at that.
… Isa doesn’t have the papier-mache gloves or broken earring anymore. Mira doesn’t have the needle sword or her sparkly bow. Bonnie doesn’t have the wok. Odile doesn’t have that first edition book.
Your skin continues to itch—it almost feels like it’s crawling over you, suddenly too tight and trying its best to stretch. You trip on purpose, and Bonnie laughs at you again.
(You’re not overpowered. You’re not scary.)
You see your ghost. You’ve never seen your ghost in this hallway, only in the other one, past the door with the egg key lock.
Your ghost looks back at you and slashes his own throat with his dagger and disappears.
Mira and Isa make a choking sounds, and you know they saw that happen.
(You never thought to use your dagger before.)
But you can’t use it now. Isa’s watching you too carefully.
Even though he doesn’t say anything.
The tears aren’t where they’re supposed to be.
That’s… fine. You’ll just run into that wall of tears in front of the kitchen.
But your stomach sinks as you ignore the storage room and keep walking past the whimpering, cowering sadness.
The Head Housemaiden’s words come back to you: Something's broken, something's failing, rotting!!!
You roll your shoulders under your cloak. It feels like your shoulder blades are trying to push through your blinding skin.
(…)
> (Just keep going.)
There’s nothing else you can do.