#so... there's... there's kinda magic?

Pinchy:

Pinchy is not sentient, just to be clear.

D10 has a sliding scale of how visible and integrated Pinchy is when he transmutes to his golem form. On one end we have "not operational" in which Pinchy is just some additional folded plating on his back. On the other end we have "fully integrated", as shown above - far more "organic" feeling, but distinctly sharp and claw-like.

Pinchy normally appears as a sort of armor, as seen in the top left. Combine knuckle armor and artificial claws with some plating reminiscent of its hydraulics, and you've got a decently functional accessory that also isn't horribly in the way.

D10 can switch which arm Pinchy appears over typically. He favors his left when he needs to use his right for normal things, but if he actually needs Pinchy for anything heavy-duty in golem form (which is rare), he'll put it on the right.

If Pinchy is folded into plating on his back, he can technically switch it to one of his arms while still a golem, but it's difficult and rather uncomfortable. Last resort kinda thing.

The caveat of "with some exceptions" regarding his control concerns a specific time frame. As hinted in this post, there's a stretch of time where he's far from lucid. During that time, he doesn't have much control over how integrated or not Pinchy is, and defaults to "fully integrated".

The Snake:

The snake is still not sentient, at least as far as D10 can tell. Only D10 can see it. But it does seem to talk to him.

This talking and its thoughts are (as far as he can figure in retrospect) simply an extension of his own subconscious trying to churn through the sheer quantity of head-splitting information crammed into his brain. It's a sanity check and regulation mechanism, however subconscious and unwitting.

Consequently, Snake-Pinchy talks less and less over time as he restabilizes. It still appears sometimes, but doesn't talk as often.

He wonders if Lady had a hand in this particular oddity - perhaps some desperate attempt at damage control? He doesn't know, and he's not sure he wants to try asking at this point.

Spectral, Why is Percy Possessed?

Great question! I just wanted to draw out what it looks like if Lady "borrows" someone, and Percy seemed like a good candidate. And also the visual was in my head and I wanted to get it out lol. I'm not sure it'll be at all canon.

When Percy is telling D10 about it after the fact, he describes it as someone's fingertips pressing gently against the back of his skull. Almost like a knock, a request for entry. One he could have declined, at that.

But when he let her in, it was like those fingers pushed through, and there was a cold pressure behind the face. And then everything was black, but it also felt golden? And it felt a bit like being held just beneath the water's surface - the only comparison he can really think of from his own experiences. Except someone was keeping him from sinking too far. And he wasn't drowning, really.

Percy described it as not altogether unpleasant if you can bring yourself to trust her. D10 has his skepticisms, both of whether it's actually so painless, and of why on earth this dream-creature would ever need such a resource.