#lunatic lore

who Lunatic is (Act One idea of them)

OH BOY-

i think i’ve mentioned before that Reader/Lunatic would be stalker-type enemies; like, you think you see someone on the edge of your vision, only for them to be gone when you actually turn your head to face them

i think Reader would likely stalk him in the cellar, just watching his every move, maybe occasionally knocking something over because they can’t see perfectly in the dark

i don’t think they would mutate until they know he’s a threat, be it by trying to attack them or by stumbling across the crystallized corpse of one of their beloveds

if the latter was the case, the man wouldn’t make it out alive

even so, just imagine walking through the darkened castle, unsure of where anyone is but feeling like you’re being watched, just unable to actually SEE anyone. you might catch glimpses of a dark silhouette watching you nearby with glowing eyes, but they’re gone in a moment’s notice

assuming Ethan had to battle them, i’d say it would take place in one of the bigger areas of the castle, or perhaps through several of them. maybe it would start out in the foyer and progress to the courtyard if they chase him?

it would be incredibly difficult to kill them, though, and i think he would really only be able to find a way to force them to leave and regenerate rather than actually take them out for good

let’s say he starts shooting because this strange person approaches him and asks if he’s a threat. they’re just curious, but he doesn’t have time for this. he shoots, hits them, but they don’t… move? they barely even act like he’d done anything, but he SEES the blood dripping from the wound

“oh, that’s no good,” they mumble as they lightly touch the blood, bringing their hand back to stare at it. “they won’t like that.”

he obviously doesn’t understand. he tries to, sure, tries asking them questions, maybe even tries to apologize for shooting them, but then he sees them lift the red collar of the woman who he’s killed in the kitchens

he’s fucked, plain and simple

i think their wings would start to come out as they monologue and perhaps circle him, oh so casual despite the wound likely in their chest. they tell him a bit about themself, tell him his daughter is not there, and gives him one last chance to leave

he doesn’t, of course. he can’t trust someone that’s so similar to her

they understand, but then they… apologize? they tell him he should have taken their offer

and that’s when he would see another, much taller version of this strange person appear from nothing. they move to stand behind the first, grinning, and that is when the battle starts

oh for sure-

on the one hand, the gay panicking is absolutely hilarious and adorable, but i feel like there are a few reasons why they were actually afraid of Cass in that little excerpt:

1. Miranda isn’t there to “protect them”, or so they like to think. they have no expectations from her, so they really just. don’t know how to act? what are they supposed to do, besides threaten Cassandra? are they allowed to do anything? is this really who they are when Miranda isn’t around?

2. kind of hesitating even being themself (or how they think they should be around Miranda) because of what Reader has said to them about her not caring for either of them. why should they do anything against the real Dimitrescus when Miranda isn’t there? what do they have to gain?

THIS IS SO CUTE PLEASE

honestly, it would be very hard to dislike Daniela. like, the woman is literally a ray of sunshine. no one could last against that smile for very long

but!! yes >:) if any of this doesn't make it into the final cut, i'll 100% just write like. a little AU on it LMAO

Lunatic is introduced to everyone, and Daniela takes a massive liking to them (they're funky-looking and she loves that). They develop their own relationship with one another, and she shows them what it's like to be cared for and loved unconditionally. It does take a bit of time for them to be comfortable around her and realize she's just very touchy and means them no harm, but she accommodates their flinches and ensures they see her every movement.

OOH I CAN SEE THAT, despite the inclusive language to ensure everyone can kinda see themselves/a character in Reader, they were intentionally written to be a POC :D

i did a picrew of them so i’d have a picture to look back on and what i imagine them in my head:

(technically kinda darker skin than that, but i guess they could have this skin color in the winter ? i remember this picrew just being funky with darker tones)

this art of Lunatic done for me actually kinda represents what they look like in my head a bit better:

(ty ezzie <3)

i personally always thought shorter hair would be more efficient for all the shit they go through, but i can also see having darker/longer hair :D <3

🧍‍♀️

it might be a bit of a tricky answer-

as far as copies go, there are a lot of times where what they do overlaps. like in chapter sixteen (i think?) where we saw the copies of the girls again and C-Bela was grabbing onto Reader, the real one was doing the same thing, just a little different. so it's little moments like that where sometimes - often rarely - copies will do the same thing or live the same life as the real one, if only for a few moments

Lunatic, just like Reader, most likely would have woken in the "same" forest, and it would be like watching two extremely similar scenes play side by side, only for one to drift off at a certain point. we see both of them stumbling through the snow, injured, both hearing howls and cackles behind them... and while they both fall, only Reader is found that night. Lunatic is found in the morning

they both then wake in the castle, and that is where their stories begin to drift apart. but up until that point, Lunatic wouldn't have just appeared out of thin air in the castle as if they'd joined an online game and were then spawn-camped by the girls. it would have been gradual

Reader’s height is literally the only thing i base off myself 😭

i do! they’re just picrews of each variant of Reader because i haven’t had the time or motivation to draw like. a “set” appearance of them, but i needed something to look back on when i would struggle with writing them

in order, we have the Reader, the Lunatic, and the Watcher

they are supposed to look however you imagine them, which is why i try my best to use inclusive and neutral language anytime i need to describe something (like “she brushed her hand over your hair” instead of “through your hair”, yknow?)