#reset:intro

01. when the virtual reality shut down, what was your muse’s reaction ?  how did they handle the dark period?

annabeth was in california when the world suddenly went black. she’s no stranger to otherwordly occurrences, but something just felt different about this one. that underlying hum that comes with daily life had winked out, and the complete silence that now accompanied the chaos of the sun seemingly disappearing was unsettling. it was no shock to discover that annabeth had taken on a bit of a leadership role in terms of the half-bloods. it took all of her willpower to not show that she was even the slightest bit anxious about not knowing what was happening -- and that was the most frustrating part. annabeth hated not knowing anything, and the fact that she couldn’t seem to figure out the reasoning behind the world’s fall into darkness created a new meaning of being ‘on-edge’ for her. but, she handled it the same way she handled any curve ball -- with an ease that people were jealous of. 

02. what was their reaction to finding out they were fiction ? how did they feel about the offer to become human ?

for someone who is used to relying on intellect, she found what the programmers were telling her to be quite suspect. how could she not be real? she certainly felt real. she looked real. but annabeth of all people should have known that everything was not always what it seemed. the further they explained the virtual reality simulation to her, the more things seemed to make sense. she was enraged at the idea that she and her friends had been put through emotional traumas and wars and life or death quests all for the sake of someone else’s personal enjoyment. she was saddened by the idea that her relationship and her friendships might not have even been real. annabeth has always been the type of person to truly value her close companions, and to realize that perhaps those bonds that she had formed with people were all just for show was absolutely heartbreaking. 

the offer to become human had caused her to take a step back. she wasn’t entirely sold on the idea of leaving behind everything that she had ever known. but, like everyone else, she was promised that everything would remain the same. why she, someone who rarely ever trusted anybody upon first meeting, agreed to go through with it, no one will ever know. but she did, and from that point, orion montgomery was born.

03. before the island, where did they live ? what was their reset life like ? who are the significant people in their lives ?

orion has quite the cinderella story, without the happily ever after. she grew up in henrico county, virginia with her father and step mother ( who came into the picture when ri was three ) in a nice neighborhood close to the high school where her father taught american history. her parents ( both actors, obviously ) loved each other very much but did not take the time to really care for orion. she was often times left at home to fend for herself, which helped to manifest her fiercely independent personality. her father never had time for her, her step mother never really wanted anything to do with her, so she did what any child who felt unloved would do -- she ran away. multiple times, actually. though she always ended up coming back when she realized that she didn’t have anywhere to go. orion’s life has never been butterflies and rainbows. it’s been hard work, heartbreak, and learning that you can’t trust anybody. 

04. what drew them to the island ?

orion has always been at the top of her class. enough so that she managed to get her credits to graduate early. she was barely seventeen when she graduated high school as valedictorian, and was accepted into harvard university as an architecture major. she never was able to complete her degree though, because before she could, an offer came from the island to work as an intern for a top architectural company that had settled there. the opportunity was too good for her to deny ( this is the trackers doing ) so she packed up and shipped off to the island, where she now resides. 

05. does your character have any secrets ( big or small ) that they think are private when in reality they were broadcasted live to the whole world ?

to ensure that she would remain at the top of her class, annabeth once snuck into her high schools front office and changed a few of her classmates grades.

06. what are the major similarities between the character’s canon life & their reset life ? what about the differences ?

her home life is very similar to annabeth’s before she ever decided to reconnect with her father. she also has that same desire to be an architect that annabeth has always had. 

a few key differences between annabeth chase and orion montgomery is that orion is much more frazzled than annabeth ever was. she’s level headed, yes, but when she’s in a panic it’s much more evident than it ever was before. she’s also much harsher than annabeth was.

07. how much of their old life will they remember when their memories return ?

01. when the virtual reality shut down, what was your muse’s reaction ? how did they handle the dark period ? 

newt did not handle the dark period well, even if he’d like to say he did. one moment he was living his elderly life with his family, still seeking adventures (though now more tame ones) despite his age. and the next moment it was like all power was gone. even the sun wouldn’t rise, and newt was frustratingly puzzled by it all. even his magic didn’t seem to do anything. he started to get restless, desperate for some solution. his restlessness caused stress, frustration, made him volatile in his emotions in a way he hadn’t since he was young. 

02. what was their reaction to finding out they were fiction? how did they feel about the offer to become human? 

newt felt a number of things: shock, curiosity, rage, doubt; it was all quite overwhelming. generally he was someone who thought well on their feet, who took life in strides and didn’t worry about his day-to-day actions. and yet worry was a primary emotion of his. deep concern, for the type of people that would find entertainment in watching the suffering of others. overall, he was apprehensive, but his restlessness living in this frozen, powered-down world had grown too great, and the offer to live an actual life free from the control of others seemed too good to pass up. 

03. before the island, where did they live ? what was their reset life like ? who are the significant people in their lives ?

nolan lived in dorset, much like newt did in the later years of his life. his childhood was calm. he grew up in a rather wealthy household, with parents who expected him to behave properly. unfortunately for them, nol was never one for behaving. even as a baby, his curiosity was insatiable, as was his love of all things that crawled, waddled, swam, and flew. nol took to animals immediately. he’d often bring home any creature he could convince into his little critter box in the hopes that his parents would let him keep it. 

they never did. 

nol didn’t have many friends in school. his social skills with people were less than average, and his interest even more so. in nol’s eyes, people were the least likable creatures out there. animals were better, and so it was with animals that he spent most of his time. 

despite not having much of an interest in human friends, nol did manage to make one. they stuck to him like glue, even if he had often tried to avoid them when they were on the playground in primary school. eventually, nol came to enjoy their presence. it helped that they were always encouraging his love of animals, and that they’d help him sneak out from his home to explore the parks around town. 

04. what drew them to the island ?

it was the opportunity that drew him in. over the years, nol had rescued a number of wild animals that were unable to return to the wild. he had a knack for handling them, despite it not being their natural instinct to tolerate humans. perhaps it was because he was the same. but his small two bedroom home in dorset didn’t have the space to accommodate for them. 

when the opportunity was presented to him to open up a sanctuary for recovering, rehabilitating, and rehoming wild animals and exotic pets, as well as adopting those who were unable to return to their natural habitat due to a number of circumstances, nol jumped at the chance without a second thought. 

05. does your character have any secrets ( big or small ) that they think are private when in reality they were broadcasted live to the whole world ?

he certainly thought all of the animals, bugs, and birds he “snuck” into his childhood bedroom had remained a secret, save for the ones that were caught. there was also the time he stole a bag of rabbit food from the store to feed the bunny he’d brought in. and the time he’d taken money from his mom’s purse to pay the vet to help fix an injured squirrel. 

however, all of these instances were during his childhood and teenage years. now there isn’t much that would bother him to have shown, beyond just the general discomfort of being watched. nol is ashamed of very little. 

06. what are the major similarities between the character’s canon life & their reset life ? what about the differences ?

nol’s love and affinity for animals remains, despite these critters being far less magical than those prior. his friendships with people are a big difference, especially growing up. while newt was always an odd boy, he was surrounded by other odd people. hogwarts was full of strange and curious things, and it made him feel more comfortable and at home. he had professors who supported him, and friends who grew alongside him. and after hogwarts, during the height of his career, he had his work, and his creatures, and eventually his wife and dear friends by his side. 

nol, however, always felt like he didn’t quite fit in. as though he was the black sheep of the heard. and with parents who discouraged his interests, and children around him who thought he was strange, he only closed in on himself further. 

07. how much of their old life will they remember when their memories return ?

01. when the virtual reality shut down, what was your muse’s reaction ? how did they handle the dark period ?

hana was scared at first. her mech was broken and there was nothing she could do to fix it -- what if the omnics came back and MEKA was unprepared? what would become of her country if she couldn’t protect it? they were lucky, though -- throughout the dark period, there were no attacks from the omnics, almost like they’d been turned off, too. this was actually a relief to hana, who had previously dedicated all her energy to the cause. she had time to do other things -- not that there was much to do, in the panic and chaos that erupted during the dark period. it wasn’t a comfortable life, but it was a safer one.

02. what was their reaction to finding out they were fiction ? how did they feel about the offer to become human ?

having been an actress, hana knew a thing or two about fake lives. the idea that she was fiction, however, took some time to wrap her head around. all that her city, her country, the whole world went through was had been simply for others’ entertainment? she had risked her life -- which wasn’t even real -- countless times, but that had just been a script. she was furious, and demanded answers.

the offer to become human, however -- it was tempting, to say the least. after finding out that she had risked her life for the simple entertainment of people, hana wanted the same freedom they had. she wanted to make her own decisions and live a life independent of any script. these people, the directors, the programmers, were evil in her eyes, but a deal with the devil can certainly seem sweet. and she took it.

03. before the island, where did they live ? what was their reset life like ? who are the significant people in their lives ?

nari was born in busan, south korea to two loving parents. she led a relatively sheltered life without much danger. her parents were always supportive of their daughter’s dreams and proud of her accomplishments. while her life had plenty of typical adolescent drama for the viewers to watch, nari much preferred the time she got to spend playing video games, a passion of hers. she held the high score on most of the machines at her local arcade and played in local super smash bros. tournaments. the most important people in nari’s life, aside from her parents and a handful of friends from growing up, are probably her online community surrounding her stream, which lets her interact with fans. she doesn’t yet know most of them are also fans of her live feed, as her chat is heavily moderated by the producers to keep any comments about that away from her.

04. what drew them to the island ?

good wifi nari came to the island to live with a friend (who unbeknownst to her, is actually an actor) she met on twitch to live and stream together. 

05. does your character have any secrets ( big or small ) that they think are private when in reality they were broadcasted live to the whole world ?

the fact that her memories are coming back is her only big secret, and she’s desperate to keep it so that she doesn’t get institutionalized or something (she’s not sure what it all means yet).

06. what are the major similarities between the character’s canon life & their reset life ? what about the differences ?

both hana and nari love video games. it’s their passion, and at one point in both their lives, their career. other than that, their lives are pretty different. nari has never known true danger, while hana was recruited into MEKA at nineteen and from that point on was constantly risking her life for her country.

07. how much of their old life do they remember ? what triggered these memories ? when did their memories return ?

she remembers bits and pieces of her old life -- the pounding of her heart in her chest when piloting her mech, the flashing of camera lights, the feeling of pride and satisfaction after fending off an omnic attack. it started a month or two after nari came to the island -- nothing in particular triggered it; maybe it was being around all these other people in a situation similar to hers. she doesn’t quite know what it all means yet though, or really that they’re memories at all -- she’s confused and a little scared, and that’s her biggest secret that she’s trying to keep from everyone she knows.

LAYER     ONE   .          QUESTIONNAIRE   .

001.     when  the  virtual  reality  shut  down,  what  was  your  muse’s  reaction     ?     how  did  they  handle  the  dark  period     ?

her  first  thought  was  that  the  stars  had  finally  gone  out,  that  despite  all  their  efforts  the  darkness  had  come  and  to  an  extent,  she  was  right.  if  she  looks  back  on  it,  it  all  seems  like  a  blur   ---   one  minute  the  sun’s  out,  the  next  minute  everything  feels  dark  and  like  it’s  moving  in  slow - motion.  all  she  really  could  do  was  find  jackie,  the  baby,  her  doctor  and  hold  them  together  for  fear  that  they;d  disappear  too.

during  the  dark  period,  rose  spent  hours  upon  hours  trying  to  find  the  doctor  to  tell  him  that  they  were  in  trouble  and  that  she  needed  him  more  than  ever  now.  it’s  a  horrible  time,  to  say  the  least     ;     she  cries  on  jackie,  on  pete,  on  her  metacrisis  doctor  but  more  than  anything,  she  hopes.  she  hopes  that  it’s  the  darkness,  because  at  least  then  he’ll  come  back  and  save  them,  she  knows  him  well  enough.  he  never  comes,  and  the  darkness  stops  feeling  like  momentary.  she  never  stops  hoping,  but  it  gets  shoved  to  the  backburner  instead.

002.     what  was  their  reaction  to  finding  out  they  were  fiction     ?     how  did  they  feel  about  the  offer  to  become  human     ?

at  first,  she  laughed.  after  everything  she’s  seen,  everything  she’s  done,  everything  she’s  fought  and  saved  and  nearly  died  for,  the  world  she  knows  isn’t  real     ?     she  nearly  left  the room  right  there  and  then  because  she  genuinely  thought  they  were  having  a  laugh  but  the  grim  expression  upon  the  directors’  faces  told  her  otherwise.  the  realisation  was  swift  and  sudden  and  left  her  gasping  for  breath,  clutching  at  the  edge  of  the  table  to  stay  vaguely  upright.

003.     before  the  island,  where  did  they  live     ?     what  was  their  reset  life  like     ?   who  are  the  significant  people  in  their  lives     ?

sienna  kaye  is  sick  of  this  shit,  and  that’s  a  fact.  born  in  a  council  estate  to  a  single  mother  and  the  unfortunate  string  of  boyfriends  that  have  ruled  her  life  since  before  sienna  can  remember,  she  learned  to  fight  for  herself  at  a  very  young  age.  nicknaming  herself  si  at  five  years  old,  she’s  always  been  frighteningly  independent,  too  fierce  to  be  told  what  to  do  by  anybody.  she  grew  up  fighting,  arguing  with  anyone  who  dared  to  try  and  correct  her  behaviour.  she  finished  her  a  levels  but  never  bothered  to  even  try  to  apply  to  university,  instead  choosing  to  find  work  and  essentially  find  an  escape  from  her  mother  and  the  ever - judging  estate  that  she’d  been  trapped  in.

004.     what  drew  them  to  the  island     ?

she  won’t  admit  it,  but  it  was  to  get  away  from  her  mother.  the  elder  kaye  was  too  overbearing  for  sienna,  too  involved  and  yet  too  apathetic  to  what  she  was  facing.  alison  kaye  never  paid  enough  attention  to  the  good  things  si  did,  never  stopped  to  notice  how  bright  her  daughter  was  but  instead  hyperfocusing  on  her  rebellious,  wayward  behaviour.  si  viewed  the  island  as  a  way  to  escape  that,  to  finally  rule  her  own  life  without  her  mother’s  critique  on  her  every  move.  

005.     does  your  character  have  any  secrets,  big  or  small,  that  they  think  are  private  when  in  reality  they  were  broadcasted  live  to  the  whole  world     ?

si’s  biggest  secret  is  probably  that  she  feels  nothing  but  cold  indifference  towards  her  mother.  she’s  never  particularly  viewed  alison  as  a  maternal  figure,  moreso  inclined  to  understand  her  as  a  particularly  nosy,  annoying  roommate  that  she  got  stuck  with.

006.     what  are  the  major  similarities  between  the  character’s  canon  life  and  their  reset  life     ?      what  about  the  differences     ?

sienna  runs  on  anger  alone,  whereas  rose  is  very  different  in  that  respect.  rose  understands  the  intricacies  and  the  shortcomings  of  human  beings  and  accepts  that   ---   fuck,  she  even  did  that  for  alien  races.  si,  on  the  other  hand,  doesn’t  stop  to  understand  or  to  acknowledge,  she  fights  and  fights  and  fights  because  she’s  never  known  otherwise,  doesn’t  know  how  to  stop  and  relax  and  appreciate.  she’s  too  caught  up  in  her  own  battles.

i  suppose  they’re  very  similar  in  their  background  alone,  i  guess     ?????     i  wanted  to  make  them  super  different  so  uh  i’m  runnin  on  fucken  empty  for  this  bit  lads

007.     how  much  of  their  old  life  do  they  remember    ?     what  triggered  these  memories     ?     when  did  their  memories  return     ?

rose  remembers  everything.  she  remembers  the  cybermen  and  the  daleks  and  flying  into  the  void,  she  remembers  finding  her  way  out  and  finding  the  doctor  again.  she  remembers  the  human  meta - crisis  doctor  and  how  happy  she  was  to  have  him,  to  have  him  all  for  herself  but  how  it  never  felt  quite  the  same.

008.     what  were  they  bribed  with     ?     and  if  they  couldn’t  be  bribed,  what  did  the  programmers  try  to  bribe  them  with     ?

the  programmers  bribed  her  with  the  one  thing  they  knew  she  couldn’t  live  without,  the  one  person  who  means  the  entire  world  to  her:  the  doctor.  her  doctor.  they  threatened  to  cut  off  all  contact,  to  wipe  any  and  all  memories  á  la  donna  noble,  to  erase  any  trace  of  him  from  her  life  whatsoever  and  she  couldn’t  stand  it,  couldn’t  stand  the  idea  of  a  life  without  him  so  she  agreed.

LAYER     TWO   .          AESTHETICS   ,     TID   -   BITS   ,     ETC   .

01. when the virtual reality shut down, what was your muse’s reaction ? how did they handle the dark period ?

when the lights winked out and the world went dark, mike’s first thought was that they had all somehow ended up stranded within the upside down. this caused a bit of internal panic, though he wasn’t going to let it outwardly show ( despite how expressive he can be ) because the last thing he wanted was to clue his friends onto the fact that he was, in fact, freaking out. mike likes to think that he handled the dark period well. he certainly didn’t handle it horribly, but at the same time, he could have handled it much better than he did. compartmentalizing your own panic can only get you so far before you eventually break down, which is exactly what happened to him only hours before discovering that he was, in fact, a fictional being.

02. what was their reaction to finding out they were fiction ? how did they feel about the offer to become human ?

there was something so unsurprising, yet so...well, strange, about this newly uncovered detail. truthfully, it hadn’t been the most wild thing that michael wheeler had ever heard in his life. mike’s never been much of a skeptic anyways. he’s a very big believer in that which is unknown, which is precisely why he didn’t have as large of a reaction to finding out that he and his friends were fictional characters. was he upset that he had been traumatized for the sake of other’s enjoyment? absolutely. was he intrigued by the notion that such a program existed, especially having come from a time period where technology wasn’t as advanced as it obviously is now? one hundred percent. 

it wasn’t until mike was presented with the once in a lifetime offer to truly become human, and to live in the real world, that he started second guessing his initial reaction. he was suddenly plagued with the idea that he and his friends would be separated, and that was a complete deal breaker. but then the creators promised him that nothing would change. everything will remain the same, they said! you’ll be reunited with your pals in no time! oh, how they had played him. he readily agreed if it meant that he wouldn’t be separated from the newly rejoined eleven, and the rest of his party ( yes, that included max, though mike would likely never admit it out loud ) and into the world he went, blissfully unaware that everything he had ever known was going to change. 

03. before the island, where did they live ? what was their reset life like ? who are the significant people in their lives ?

alex grew up in a suburban family living at the end of a cul de sac in a cookie cutter home in a conveniently named neighborhood in the heart of hebron, kentucky, only a mere 20 minutes away from cincinnati, ohio. in short, there was never really anything to do growing up. he had a distant father who enjoyed pointing out the things that alex would do wrong, a mother who monitored almost every more, and an older brother who would spread his hands out wide and go on and on about how one day he was going to teach alex the ways of the world. the youngest costella hadn’t the slightest clue that these people were only actors, paid to pretend to care for him. did they grow to love the boy? absolutely. did it change their views on their job? unfortunately not. a gig was a gig, and they were making good money raising the infamous mike wheeler. 

04. what drew them to the island ?

he was tired of the suburban lifestyle. he wanted out of kentucky. it was by chance that he saw an ad in the newspaper for a position at the latest, more popular escape room that had opened up on the island. alex saw his chance and took it, and before he could really comprehend what was happening, he was on the island. it wasn’t until he’d gotten there though that he realized that this was the place that he should have been in all along. if only he’d realize that that was just the tracker speaking.

05. does your character have any secrets ( big or small ) that they think are private when in reality they were broadcasted live to the whole world ?

when alex was in his senior year of high school, he and his then girlfriend ( who was an actress ) had quite the pregnancy scare. 

there have also been multiple times that he’s very easily cheated on tests, which was probably amusing for the streamers to see. 

06. what are the major similarities between the character’s canon life & their reset life ? what about the differences ?

his home environment in hebron was very similar to that of his life back in hawkins. the same nuclear family aesthetic, the same style of parenting, even the aspect of an older sibling. alex spent a good majority of his childhood playing video games and reading fantasy genres, like the lord of the rings and the hobbit, which is very mike-esque of him. 

a few key differences between mike wheeler and alex costella is that alex is much more stoic than mike was. he’s much better at keeping what he’s feeling off of his face, internalizing and compartmentalizing way better than he was able to before. he’s also funnily more athletic than mike ever was. alex was the captain of his high school’s baseball team, and honestly that’s going to be a funny realization for him when he actually wakes up. alex also has tattoo sleeves on both of his arms. karen wheeler is rolling in her little section of darkened hawkins.

07. how much of their old life will they remember when their memories return ?

01. when the virtual reality shut down, what was your muse’s reaction ?  how did they handle the dark period?

james had only been on the hogwarts express for mere moments before the world seemingly shut down. the train had come to a very abrupt stop, and being only thirteen at the time, it was quite an ordeal. his immediate reaction was to seek out his younger brother and cousins, and he’d honestly tried to act as though he wasn’t afraid, but it was a bit difficult when all you could think of were the stories that you’d heard your whole life from others regarding the ‘dark times’ when his father had saved the wizarding world. though, whenever he thought of those ‘dark times’ he didn’t think that it had literally meant...well, dark. he’d only assumed it to be in the metaphorical sense. 

he was relieved when his father apparated onto the train to collect him and al, enough so that he was able to collect himself enough to seem somewhat strong for his younger siblings and cousins. in his head though, it was constant freak out all the time. 

02. what was their reaction to finding out they were fiction ?  how did they feel about the offer to become human ?

he didn’t believe it. james sirius potter was in complete denial over the fact that he wasn’t a real person. it made no sense to him. he was real! he was real, and he was a wizard, and he had a mum and a dad and siblings and a giant family that were all real too! how could he possibly be fake? he was very angry during this time, though he made sure not to lash out at his family. it wasn’t any of their faults, after all. he was stubborn when conversing with the programmers, the way a young teen is stubborn about almost anything. stubborn enough that he really...wasn’t given much of a choice when it came to being reset. they didn’t bother asking him, they’d just reprogrammed him and sent him off into the world without any knowledge of anything.

03. before the island, where did they live ? what was their reset life like ? who are the significant people in their lives ?

graham prince was raised in cheshire, england by two devoted parents who did the best that they could to teach him the ways of the world. the two actors that had been chosen to portray his parents did not like the idea of having to pretend to be the boys parents, but they needed the money, so they took the job and hoped that they wouldn’t grow attached. unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. the pair grew not only to love the boy, but to love each other as well, making for a very functional, loving family unit for people to watch over the stream. 

since graham is still james sirius in every possible way, there’s no questioning as to whether or not he truly behaved. the boy was always getting himself into some kind of trouble, at home, in school, you name it, he’d most likely caused a ruckus there. however, just like james, gray would never plan a prank for the purpose of being cruel. he knew what his limits were, and he knew how far was too far. his pranks were just for fun, never to hurt anyone physically or emotionally. 

he did alright when it came to school, made decent grades and passed all of his classes. he was by no means in the top fifteen percent of his peers, but he wasn’t in the bottom fifteen either. a happy medium is what he could call it. 

04. what drew them to the island ?

he earned a lacrosse scholarship for the university on the island, and has been a starting offensive player since the semester began back in august. 

05. does your character have any secrets ( big or small ) that they think are private when in reality they were broadcasted live to the whole world ?

all of his prank ideas that he muses aloud. he kinda needs those to stay private, because if they weren’t, someone could steal the concepts. 

he also will very unexpectedly walk around naked, so sometimes the cameras don’t have enough time to pan away and his business has just been broadcasted all over. 

06. what are the major similarities between the character’s canon life & their reset life ? what about the differences ?

graham grew up without siblings and without the knowledge of magic. he also did not attend a boarding school like hogwarts. those are the only major differences. his life was quite similar to his old one beyond those aspects.

07. how much of their old life do they remember ?