#trnch.doe

basicallyyyy it is a cycle of TRNCH (or fully separate AU, if you'd like) where Clancy is raised under Sacarver rather than Nicolas Bourbaki. Rather than seizing and smearing her and all but trying to kill her, Sacarver kind of. Dolls her up and parades her around. Imagine if Scaled and Icy was happening the whole time but she was like maybe 16. 😬

The sort of bigger thing/elephant in the room about this cycle is that Sacarver lets Clancy transition. The stipulation being that she "is allowed to be a girl" if she follows Sacarvers rules and does what she's told and does it "the right way". Its a different form of control, no less insidious, but shouldn't she be happy? Isn't she grateful? This is what she wanted, right? Sacarver is also living through Clancy a little bit, her human form long gone, dolling her up and letting her try on her old clothes and treating her like her own daughter.

This is not to say she is not. Very very cruel. She treats Clancy as something to show off, a little doll or a lapdog, something with no autonomy and something she can discard at a moments notice. Caring and doting one moment then vicious and violent the next.

ANYWAY. All this to say. Clancy is still having a bad time in the City. And after something. Really scary happens to her, she flees in a blind panic, running desperately into Trench. She is still like. 16-17 years old.

Because she's not very old, very fresh into this cycle, and because shes not been seized or smeared, because the City and Blurryface have not touched her, Trench Herself can Cover her, and is able to fold Herself around Clancy and keep her hidden, guiding her through the forest towardssssssss

THE TORCHBEARER. or. Tinybearer. Not even that this is just Yeshua. This is just Joshua. Being it so so so early in the cycle, Joshua has No memories, no idea who Clancy even is, nothing even close. Because there was no inciting cry for help from Clancy from within the city, and because she like JUST respawned, Joshua doesn't even know how to project. She doesnt even know shes supposed to be looking for Clancy. Shes just a baby Bandito fucking around in the woods one night when some random girl comes wobbling into the clearing.

But because she's so pure of heart and niceys and this girl is super scared and cold and hurt, she bundles her in her hoodie, hoists her onto her back, and carries her to Bandito Camp.

While Joshua does notttt remember anything, everyone in Bandito Camp is fully aware of who this is. They remember the last cycle, and how badly it ended, so when dweeby, scrawny teenaged Joshua wanders back into camp with this tiny, scared, teenaged version of the woman they watched bleed out against their former leaders dead body, everyone's like Ohhhh Shit Okay. Um. Heyyyy Yeshua whos your um. Friend there... ^_^;

Whoever was made leader in the interim between this cycle and the last has enough sense to be like Okay Hey Guys. ^_^ Youreeeee going to the furthest most hidden settlement we have and youre Gonna Stay There. We're not doing this this time We're just gonna keep you as safe as we can for as long as we can. And bundles them off with a few riders the next morning to Avalon, a lakeside camp tucked away in the mountains.

The comic takes place during their journey to Avalon. The Bishops send out Goner birds (which are like. Prototype ouls made from Vessels) and they get separated from the rest of the riders and have to run on foot.

But after this the Banditos come and find them again and take them to Avalon without much else happening. And then they just kind of? Live there? Happy and healthy and peaceful and growing into two brave beautiful banditos who are joined at the hip and REALLY annoying about it . Lazy days spent together in the sun unbothered and safe from the City and its darkness.

The banditos are so happy for them. After the last cycles end, violent and bloody and terrifying, theyre glad the two of them can just have this. Trench keeps Joshua's memories tucked away, not wanting to burden her with the weight of it all.

And then fate comes knocking. Trench cannot hold Joshua's memories for her forever. Something has to give. Instead of a slow trickle , its like a dam breaking, hundreds of years of memories flooding her mind all at once. She freaks out and fucks off into the woods for like . A month. Clancy waits for her and when The Torchbearer returns he explains everything. And this is a cycle where Clancy gets to know about the whole of everything <:)

And then like. it ends eventually, whether it's the cycle breaking or just ending and starting anew is up to you, but the important thing is they just get to live together for years and years and years. Safe and peaceful and together. Unbothered. Clancy has cool Trench powers. They get married in this one!! Theyre happy :) yay.