This Makes So Much Sense

terrible news. the exact fanfiction i want has not magically appeared and i may have to write it myself. more at 11

Katara went from Sugar Queen to Sugar Queen

I think you're right that Vertin is 16.

Vertin should be around the same age as Sonetto, Mesmer Jr and Matilda as they all shared a class together (though either they have a larger range of ages within a class due to having few students or Matilda skipped a grade, which seems more likely)

I think Door is the same age as life on earth??? Or at least land? That's what his first story implies

Sputnik is at probably at least around 3 months old? She awakened at some point between Oct 1957 and Jan 1958 but IDK how long she's been in Laplace since then

The Fool is at least 250 years old, though they may be older - having been seen in the 1650s - assuming that all characters come from the 20th century.

Likewise La Source is at least 150 years old as that is when she first came to Paris (1850s)

【ALL REVERSE:1999 PLAYABLE CHARACTERS’S AGE】

(until v1.4 in CN)

✏️ Some notes:

- Lilya’s age in Global is “unknown,” but in CN server is 17. I am going with 17 because it makes sense for her to have an age. Most likely a translation mistake in GLB.

- Eternity’s age is said to be “more than a century,” so more than 100 years old, I’d say?

- A Knight’s age is said to be “exhibited in Medieval Times,” iirc so around that-amount-of-years-below-ago since 1999? Very uncertain, please correct me if I’m wrong.

- Soooooo I think Vertin is around 16-18?

pov: you're a fanfic writer who's in school/college

me: I'm in the mood to write.

my brain: ....write your essay, right?

me:....

my brain: You're going to write your essay, RIGHT?

Everyday I hope a bridge falls on Constantine

I do see people talk about Constantine one-sided beef with 12 year old Vertin (and the proxy war against Manus that it represented) but god the Mesmer scenes fucking get me. Mesmer was willing to rebel against the foundation—she sings with Vertin! She wants to know more about the outside world!

And then Constantine say you want to know about the world? Fine. And she makes Mesmer play Doctor against the most vulnerable and unstable of people the foundation has. Here, Constantine says. This is what the outside world is like. This is the truth. And then immediately afterwards multiple of her classmates die trying to leave during the storm. It’s a statement of “Don’t step out of line, or you will die.” It’s the conditioning of expects at the St. Pavlov’s Foundation.

Make no mistake though Constantine only did this because she saw Mesmer Jr as a useful tool—if she wasn’t part of the Mesmer family, she probably would’ve have died as well. So basically she inflicted immense trauma onto a 12 year old because she sees said 12 year old as an asset.

And I think three doors basically emphasizes that this is not an uncommon occurrences for the Mesmers, both in and outside the family. They are only truly valued by what they provide to the world, and not as people. Scott Mesmer is thrown away and discarded until his death, and then all of his “value” is scraped up as a way to appeal to society’s good graces.

Anyways. Mesmer lore makes me go oughh

Taako looks like such a fckn meme, lol

Oh damn

HM?!

Every time I see someone try to lean into the softness of the crimeboys ending it just makes it feel more cruel.

I see something like This

And it makes me think about how c!Wilbur leaving wasn't some quiet inevitablity or a sudden tragedy that nobody could have stopped, it was a choice.

Wilbur wasn't taken, not by tragedy and not by a person, he left. He left Knowing that the people he cared about weren't safe and weren't okay. And then he tried to present That as softness. Not just to us the audience, to the narrative, but to tommy.

And that's what needles me about people trying to present it this way, about it being presented as necessary and soft and healing.

Because wilbur's allowed to prioritize himself. he's allowed to say that he doesn't want to stay, that he doesn't want to be there to protect tommy or tubbo or fundy or anyone else, but he can't have his cake and eat it too. He doesn't get to make the choice to leave them at the mercy of an abuser and serial killer and expect them to be there when He's ready to have a relationship with them. He doesn't get to avoid being honest, to avoid talking about it at all, until he's skipping town to a new country and expect the trust to be there when He wants it.

Wilbur is under no obligation to stay, but tommy is under no obligation to forgive him. Wilbur is under no obligation to protect tommy from a monster, but choosing to abandon tommy with his serial killer abuser on the loose utilizing the power of a god Should erode whatever foundation that relationship had left.

It's not Fair to expect tommy to forgive him, that it's taken for granted that his trust doesn't have to be earned or nurtured. It's not fair that he's been abandoned and left behind and hurt time and time and time again and yet he always forgives, perpetually waiting for the chance to Earn being loved and being left behind anyways.

Letting his anger and sadness at wilbur go because there's nothing he can ever do to have his feelings respected wouldn't be Healthy. It's not the soft ending where everything's allowed to be okay. It'd be a link in a long pattern of unhealthy behavior.

Phil didn't have to apologize, in fact he told tommy to his face that he earned the trauma he gave him by being selfish and tommy not only Let him, but he tried to follow Phil's advice to Fix himself. Because he Needs somebody, Anybody to be there.

He refused to let tubbo apologize after exile because he saw Himself as a bad person, because he Believed that he wasn't worth saving. He held himself responsible for betraying techno before doomsday even started, despite techno being the one who lied to Him. Even if he'd been angry, even if he'd recognized that techno hurt him at first, he quietly let that anger go because techno was Never going to acknowledge that.

He's full of abandonment issues a mile deep and desperately Desperately wants to hold on to the people he cares about, but time and time again he's nobody's priority. Nobody will choose him no matter how desperately he needs it.

This will not teach him to not have abandonment or attachment issues, this will not make the genuine threat of being kidnapped and tortured for eternity go away.

The only thing worse than Wilbur knowingly choosing to leave him when he's in This vulnerable of a position, without even talking it through with him, is the idea that Tommy's not even allowed to be angry about it. That even if he Is angry now he just doesn't have the Perspective to know that it's a good thing yet and he'll Learn eventually.

Just like he Learned that he was selfish all along for wanting to protect his home and friends. Just like he Learned that he was an annoying child that just needed to be fixed.

Nobody has to put in the Work to earn Tommy's love and trust, he just has to realize that he never had the right to be upset in the first place.

While you make some great points I think you're overlooking some aspects of his character - I don't think either of these voice lines are a part of his facade, and are in fact both a result of it being broken.

X indeed likes to be, or be perceived to be, in control of a situation. You explained this really well and made some points that I didn't even think of before, so I won't touch on this.

X likes to project an image of a goofball, a silly fella, little guy. Someone who is aloof and careless. We can see this in his placing of newspaper clippings in a prominent places of his cabinet in his second story (Something for nothing 40%) - the second headline where he is called a "Foolish Genius" is placed just as prominently as the previous one praising him.

Neither of these responses to being hurt allow him to retain this image very effectively.

I think that he's surprised by being hurt and that breaks through his mask. The second voiceline is indeed probably a more controlled, less vulnerable response, but that doesn't mean it isn't also genuine.

We know that X is very calculating. He's a genius and likes to plan around situations, manipulating chance and other variables in his favour. In Laplace/the suitcase this means inventing new things (and getting praised for it), testing his machines on/with people, being helpful and having mischief/adventures with his friends.

We also know that he can also have pretty violent tendencies and that he killed someone whilst at the orphanage (presumably an abusive caretaker).

-

From the interview with UTTU in his story: Life Is Filled with Surprises (80% bond)

Pandora Wilson: Please introduce this exquisite mechanical ball you're holding.

X: It's just a toy I made for fun. Instead, I'd like to introduce this Auto-Seduction Lipstick I've just invented. Have a look! Is there anyone in the world better suited to test this out?

Pandora Wilson: That's alright. What an impressive invention.

Pandora Wilson: Let's talk about something else. There was an accident at an orphanage a few years ago and I heard you were present.

X: Oh? If you want to discuss topics that have nothing to do with the interview, you have to test this Bubble Gum Spraying Alarm Clock in exchange, okay?

Pandora Wilson: The deceased appeared to have been killed by a loose shingle from the roof. The angle, wind speed and power it had was incredibly precise.

X: Oh, such is life. It's filled with coincidences and accidents.

X: Don't be sad. Now, let's try this Mini Priest Bouncer and pray for him, shall we?

Pandora Wilson: Please excuse me.

X: ～♪～

Pandora Wilson: Ouch! Don't pull me!

X: ～♪～

Pandora Wilson: ...♪

-

He refers to any casualties in battle as an accident in voicelines and claims that there are no such thing in others.

He's also been stated to be a hitman by a Twitter post from the developers, but whether this is outright stating that he worked as an assassin or just a translation issue or metaphor, I don't know (It is also in several places of the wiki, but I'm not too sure on the sources for these).

His Green Lake garment described him as being the perfect killer and that all the cases go unsolved (though how cannon this and the other garments are I'm not sure, so take it with a pinch of salt).

Fortunately this is supported by his Portray/Artifice description: Sometimes, he has to shed some blood for the sake of others. Fortunately, he has machines to do that for him.

He doesn't want people to know about this violent part of himself.

I also think his use of the seduction lipstick is very interesting as it's his response to Pandora's persistence in her line of questioning when redirection fails. (Also did he just grab her and kiss her??)

Anyway I think the idea of identity, morality and choice are very central to X's character - can any actions be considered fake if you are still choosing to act in that way?

From an item description for the Green Lake garment:

A broken white mask that likely came from a corner store having a Halloween sale. The respondent raised a question with a smile: "Does the mask need the face that wears it, or does the face need the meaning the mask gives it?"

Very very disorganized X thoughts

Based on mostly voicelines

His incoming lines make me think a lot, honestly

X is a liar, as it's stated several times in-game. He hides in his Goldberg machines and creates his own reality for fun, and quite possibly to feel safe from the external world. All of his confidence shows in times where he knows he has the full control of the situation ("Haha... I got you! I won't let you go, unless you agree to join my experiment!"). He likes to push people into his own world, but he's also dependent on them; he needs people to show them his machines, no matter how much he tries to satisfy his own desires with his creations, if there's nobody to test them on or show them to, what's the point?

"Try my new inventions... Ah! I had never prepared for a plan B in your absence..."

"Can I borrow you tonight? I really need your help for my new machine... please?"

"It's so nice to meet you! I've been waiting for so long!"

So, despite the confident and self sufficient facade he likes to put on, X is constantly referencing and asking for the attention of those around him ("Please live up to my expectations, colleagues!" "Ah, I seem to have grown a bit taller recently. Can you tell?"). If he ever takes an "imposing" role, it's when he's 100% sure he has enough power to enforce it, and he does want to have that power and confidence permanently and don't depend on other people and the external world anymore ("The day I've waited for has finally come. Welcome to my world."; Bottom of Insight line).

He reaffirms everyone likes him although of his eyes, something that caused a lot of rejection from people his age ("My eyes.. a little scary, aren't they? Kids new to the orphanage were a little afraid of them, but in the end everyone likes me."), and possibly the adults in charge of them themselves. He's dealt with a lot of rejection and mistreatment since he was a kid, and he looks for validation constantly, hiding under fake confidence and acting rebellious and chaotic on purpose to reaffirm said facade. He references his orphanage quite often in his voicelines, only when he's talking to Vertin, a friend he presumably can trust.

Going back to his Incoming voicelines, the first one really sticks out. They're both completely different reactions to the same threat, and one if them is most likely an act. My point is: considering X's facade mostly consists on appearing capable of anything, in control and smarter and more powerful than other people I don't know why he'd pretend to be scared.

Given how he talks about the orphanage, being a place where kids weren't even fed enough, didn't have winter clothes, weren't even allowed to exit the building, how much he liked to cause trouble, even trying to scape once, and how orphanages were in that period of time, it's highly possible kids faced physical violence from the adults in charge of them. Imo, the first line is genuine. He's recognized a threat, he knows he lacks enough power to face it, and he's scared of getting hurt. The second one is just another attempt at looking like he's in control of the situation. As I've said before, these lines are specially interesting to me because he is in battle, where he isn't in perfect control of everything, that's not his world completely and he can't drag people into it like he does at Laplace, so it makes perfect sense that he drops the facade for a moment facing a real threat.

Maybe this was all really obvious but whatever. I like him a lot

Cool!

If the earth was completely and perfectly spherical with a uniform Ocean depth how deep would that Ocean be if the earth still had the same amount of rock and water?