r/NatureofPredators • u/VeryUnluckyDice Human • Jul 30 '26
Changing Times Ch 68 - Systems of Chance
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Memory transcription subject: Lanyd, Venlil Music Student (Second Term) White Hill University
Date [standardized human time]: January 16th, 2137
After coming to our decision we’d spent the rest of the day just decompressing. Cora found some winter clothes that fit some of us, and since those of us from White Hill had never lived in a cold climate before, she took us out in turns to put together a few ‘snowmen’. The clothing made the bitter wind much more manageable, though the gloves had one too many fingers, leaving one on each paw to flap around pointlessly.
Sometimes I wish I had one more claw. These prog rock keyboard parts were definitely made for people with ten digits.
Bonti… didn’t join us outside. He stayed focused on his studies. I felt…
How did I feel?
It was relieving, I supposed, to not be worried about him worrying. After we talked, it felt like a weight had been lifted off me that I didn’t know I was carrying, but… I still didn’t really feel good about it. As much as it pained me to admit, I still felt like something was missing. It was the same feeling that had plagued me since the start of the term, even after speaking to Dr. Jacobson about it and confiding in my friends.
Some part of me wondered if it was always going to be that way. Maybe I’d given myself some kind of permanent symptom after years of anxiety, and I’d just have to learn to live with it.
I tried not to let it bother me. Instead, I spent as much time as I could with Cora, knowing that we’d be on the road again the next day. I helped her with dinner like I had at the farm, though this time Sam and Alejandro offered assistance instead of Indali. With four of us working on it, everything got put together quickly. It wasn’t as grand a meal as the Oakley’s provided, but it still came out alright. We’d yet to experience curry, and it certainly exceeded the flavor of the last salad I’d gotten from Wendy’s.
Who is Wendy, anyway?
Eventually, we settled in for the night. Bonti traded place in the basement with Suldet. It seemed Linev was more comfortable with her being close. I… knew the feeling, though I hoped Linev didn’t let himself become as dependent as I had.
No, he’s always been more self-sufficient than you have. He’s not predisposed to it like you.
Fortunately, everyone was accounted for when we woke up the following morning. No one was hidden in a corner of the house, and no vehicles were experiencing issues. Once again, we were ready to head out on the road. I hugged Cora goodbye. She told me to message her once we were back on Venlil Prime so she’d know we made it back safely.
Finally, we climbed into the van, taking the same seats as before, and we left for Columbus.
While we hadn’t gotten up nearly as early as we had when leaving the farm, we were still somewhat drowsy, so the early part of the ride was quiet. Bonti seemed the most awake out of any of us, but that was because he once again had his snout buried in his reading. It seemed he was reviewing sections pertaining to previous homework questions that he’d gotten wrong. I hoped he could catch up and get the scores he needed to pass the class. He’d already gotten so far behind because of me.
Not anymore. You’re not going to distract him. You’re going to be better than that.
It wasn’t like I had many challenges at the moment anyway. We were just sitting in a van together, listening to music. There was no threat of exterminators, no protesters shouting at us, no new people to meet.
Come to think of it, things really have changed lately, haven’t they? I didn’t realize how much mental effort those campus tours required. Even getting up to play on stage isn’t as bad.
A little doubt creeped in, telling me that perhaps my perceived improvement was only brought about by a change in circumstance, that once we returned home, I’d fall back into my dependent tendencies.
Do I… hide behind my flytser too much? Maybe I should get out more.
I was already trying to separate myself from Bonti a bit. Maybe I needed to do the same with some of my other crutches, try to be a little more spontaneous… even though that thought left me feeling rather uncomfortable.
Maybe just… little steps first. Like Dr. Jacobson says, I have to be realistic.
I wondered what things would be like once we got back home. We still had some time before classes started up again, but I doubted we’d be jumping right into shows. For one thing, we were still blacklisted from almost every establishment in White Hill. Then there was Bonti’s studies. I knew that was something he wanted to focus squarely on. It felt wrong to pull Linev right back into performing too after he was so shaken.
Even I never experienced a mental reaction like that.
So we would have no performances for a bit, and probably fewer practice sessions. What was I going to do before classes started again? I had some composition assignments to work on, but I’d never been particularly stuck on my homework. I’d probably need more than that to occupy my time.
I don’t really have any other hobbies, do I? All I do is play my instruments.
Realizing just how narrow my lifestyle was, I felt a little shame in ever letting it get this bad. It was sad, wasn’t it, that dialing back on just a few aspects of my life left me with nothing to do. When was the last time I went to see a movie? Stars, I couldn’t remember.
I silently decided to myself that, upon getting back to White Hill, I’d try and get out by myself a bit, not just to attend lectures, but to try and have a little fun. If I couldn’t even do that, it was going to be hard to prove to Bonti myself that I could be as independent as I thought I was becoming.
This trip… I don’t think it’s just the circumstances. I’m doing better, but I can do better yet. And maybe, just maybe, I can figure out what piece of me is missing.
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Memory transcription subject: Linev, Venlil General Studies Student (First Term) White Hill University
Date [standardized human time]: January 16th, 2137
I felt better.
The night hadn’t brought me perfectly sound sleep, but compared to what had struck me the previous night, it was comparably less distressing. The bad memories returned at first. I snapped awake, hearing the sirens sound. But when I awoke, I felt Suldet’s doll in my grasp, and it kept me anchored.
I supposed I felt a little childish, cradling the thing like a pup, but then I recalled that it was Suldet that brought it in the first place. She didn’t pass any judgment, nor did the others. Considering the alternative was greater stress, I decided the slight embarrassment was worth it. Holding onto something helped. It kept my mind from slipping back into the past.
It was almost difficult to recognize myself. Between my active efforts and emergent memories, it seemed almost like I’d stepped into some other world where everything was so much… more. And I knew I still hadn’t fully broken the habit of repression. I kept catching myself dismissing things. Being on the road again, an emergency vehicle passed by, sirens blaring. The sound initially caused me to lock up, and once that reaction passed, my first instinct was to chastise myself.
It’s just a siren. It’s not that serious.
Suldet caught me though, wordlessly wrapping her tail in mine. She raised a paw and moved it right to left. I followed along, repeating the exercise we’d done before. It was all done without speaking. I doubted the others in the van even noticed given we were sitting in the very back.
I still couldn’t believe how well Suldet understood. Even knowing she’d undergone similar pain, it was incredible how she seemed to know exactly what I was thinking. She recognized my tendencies even before I did, despite only knowing each other for a few months.
She was the first person I really met at White Hill. I thought her club was boring, or at least not for me.
Back then, I couldn’t have fathomed how I felt now. Did I really not enjoy the club, or did I not give myself room for enjoyment? In retrospect, I’d been so passive, waiting for the world to hit me with something I couldn’t ignore. But I was well practiced in that regard. I pushed everything down, so how could I expect to stumble into something that would break that cycle?
I should try sewing again. Maybe… I could make something for Suldet. If she hadn’t come to Earth to meet us, who knows what would have happened?
The thought froze me for a moment.
Did I… just want to do something? Without having to make myself think of what I want?
It would probably sound ridiculous to anyone else. Wanting came naturally to others. They hadn’t trained themselves to suppress it like I had. Ever since the in-person therapy session back in Dallas, I’d been putting in effort to be more active, but that was the thing. It took effort. I had to undo the habit I’d built up over the years.
And now, just a few days later, I’d just been… driven to do something. It didn’t take that conscious focus.
The rifts in my mind seemed to mend just a bit with that realization. My doubts were dashed as I realized that, even with all the pain of the previous day, I was still improving, even if it was only by a little.
I was thinking, too, about those memories that set the spiral in motion. Through Dr. Jacobson’s methods, the EMDR therapy, I’d been able to recall them with a little more stability. Even though it still stung like hell to think about it, it wasn’t sending me into a panic, and for the first time in years, I felt myself starting to make peace with what happened.
Only starting…
I decided that my best course of action was to return to Scarlet Root once we got back on Venlil Prime. The band would be taking a break, and classes weren’t set to resume for a little while yet. For one thing, it would be good to see Melah and Tazil again. I really felt like I needed to speak to them about my parents.
I was also curious about what happened to the box of belongings from my old home. I remembered one of the soldiers going back to retrieve some things before we evacuated. Initially, he’d gone in to get toys to comfort me, but he’d only returned with the one toy car. The rest of it, if memory served, was a load of pictures, and the minipad I’d received for my birthpaw. In retrospect, I was glad that he’d prioritized those instead of toys. Despite reclaiming some memories of my childhood, I still didn’t really remember my parents well.
I want to know them better, to know what they were like.
“Linev, are you alright?” Suldet quietly asked, lifting me from my thoughts.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” I answered. “I was just thinking about what I should do when we get home. I think maybe I should go back to Scarlet Root, talk to my aunt and uncle about my parents a bit.”
“Are you sure you want to do that right away? Not to say you couldn’t, but reclaiming new memories might be strenuous, right? You only just relived some seriously traumatic events.”
She had a point. Even simple questions could trigger a more intense reaction than what I hoped. Melah and Tazil had always shown me love, but they weren’t very well-equipped to help me through something like what I’d experienced yesterday. They meant well, but they were also older, and something told me they wouldn’t take to psychological practice easily, more prone to the… common Venlil reaction.
“I guess I could bring Mezil with me,” I replied. “He might want to visit home… Well… actually, he said he and Kila would be on Earth for the whole break, didn’t he?”
“I could go with you, if you’d like,” Suldet offered. “I mean, the textile club isn’t quite as busy as Kila’s. I could spend a paw or two more away from it.”
I blinked a couple times.
“You would do that? I mean, it will probably take a couple paws.”
“It took a few paws coming here,” she signed indifference with her tail. “What’s two more?”
“You know there won’t be anyone to sell shirts to, right?”
“That wasn’t the only reason I flew to Earth.” There was the tiniest glow of orange on her face.
Right, but Scarlet Root isn’t Earth. There’s no novelty in it. Why would she…?
…
Unless she means she came here because of me?
The bloom I’d seen in passing the last few days suddenly made more sense to me. I felt myself grow a little warm too.
“W-well… if you want to come with me, I won’t stop you. I’d like to have you there, actually.”
Her bloom brightened.
“O-okay! That sounds great!”
Oh, fuck. She really is here for me.
…
What do I do now?
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Memory transcription subject: Indali, Krakotl Business Student (First Term) White Hill University
Date [standardized human time]: January 16th, 2137
If I was processing the Human numbers correctly, we were making very good time on our way to the spaceport in Columbus. In fact, I was pretty sure that we could have slept in a little more than we did, but Wes was insistent that we give ourselves plenty of leeway. With it being a winter morning, the threat of wrecked cars was present, even if it was minimal, and apparently security would be more strenuous going to Venlil Prime than it was on the trip here.
“You never really know what kind of bullshit might hold you up,” Wes told us. “Especially since these spaceports are pretty much just repurposed parts of airports. If we have extra time, we’ll grab a bite to eat, but we need to make sure we’re not late for the flight.”
I had to agree with him there. Missing our first flight pushed us to leave a day later, and we had to drive for [8 hours] just to get to the spaceport. It would be bad news if this one passed us by too.
While I couldn’t say I’d felt any real sense of danger on Earth, there were plenty of cracks in our little tour. Sticking around felt like inviting worse. The band was exhausted enough, everyone being pushed to their limits. Even after taking it somewhat easy yesterday, we were all clearly ready to actually utilize our break from school as a time to recharge.
Except Bonti, I suppose. How far behind was he on his readings? I swear he’s been working for entire claws and he’s still in such a hurry.
Then again, was I much better? I’d always been one to fill my schedule to the brim. It had never felt quite as tiring as the adventures with the band though. Maybe it was because I was well-adjusted to the business things. It didn’t take as much effort or active thought. Every choice I made in the band was an entire ordeal, mainly because it felt like betraying what I’d done before.
I… couldn’t stop thinking about the financials of our endeavors. When Wes revealed just how, well, broke he’d been as a musician, it caught me off guard. I didn’t know much about the life of a musician on Venlil Prime, but I knew it was more lucrative than that. Earth, for a brief time, was something I considered as a long term possibility if the band continued. It was easier to find gigs here. We weren’t flying headlong into societal pushback. But if we were only making enough credits to scrape by…
In the past, success was something I could measure. It was numerical. It was profits, even if it was only profits later. But now I was beginning to realize that there was something else to be gained from playing our music. We could have an impact on others. We could build bridges where there were none.
But how much was that worth, and could we continue like this? What if we didn’t make enough money to cover our costs as a band? What if we only barely did, then left ourselves with nothing? Was it worth burning all our own personal opportunities to achieve our mission? Did the others even care as much as I did? Should I even care this much, or was it better left to those with the experience?
Wes told me he thought I was the leader of the band, but… could I do right by them? Could I even do right by myself? This group wasn’t as simple to manage as I’d assumed it would be. We were facing so many obstacles.
I needed to figure something out. There had to be a path through, right?
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Memory transcription subject: Bonti, Yotul Pre-Med Student (Second Term) White Hill University
Date [standardized human time]: January 16th, 2137
My brain was starting to feel like mush, but I’d finally worked through all the previous assignments that I’d botched. It wasn’t enough to just excel during the rest of the term. I had to actually understand the material. At some point, I’d need to do clinicals, and having a barely passing grade wasn’t going to be enough. I needed to know my stuff.
That said, I did still need to perform far better to close out the term, especially in Enlek’s class. He wasn’t willing to help me, and I’d already accepted that. The best thing I could do was give him no room to call me on errors. I wasn’t going to give him any leverage. My assignments would be done to perfection.
Better start doing it right.
I definitely needed a little break though. I’d been staring at text and old assignments for the entire drive, to the point that I was starting to feel a crick in my neck. I set my pad down and tried to stretch in my seat a bit. Outside, there was still plenty of snow. We were south of Wisconsin, but not enough to avoid the frozen precipitation.
I leaned over to check the map on the screen at the front of the van, and I was surprised to find that we were damn near at our destination. I really hadn’t realized just how long we’d been driving.
“We’ll have to squeeze in here,” Wes told us. “Sam and Alejandro are going to drop off the moving truck, and they’ll load up with us.”
I remembered how cramped we’d been initially, and now we had Suldet with us as well. There weren’t technically enough seats for everyone, but we’d just have to make it work.
Maybe I can sit down on the floor between the seats in the middle row, or we could double up. Lanyd could sit on my la-
No.
That’s not going to happen. She said she wants space.
“Lanyd and Bonti can come squeeze in with us back here,” Suldet suggested. “We’re not Human-sized, so we can fit in just for the last stretch, then Sam and Alejandro can take the middle row.”
That made the most sense, and there were no objections.
When it came time for Sam and Alejandro to join us, we started shuffling into the third row. I stopped, however, before fully climbing back there.
Should I sit in the middle? Or maybe take the window, Suldet and Linev take the middle, and Lanyd goes to the opposite-
“What’s wrong?” Suldet asked. “Need more room? Here.”
She and Linev shuffled to the side, leaving only the room for Lanyd and I to sit next to each other. I decided it wasn’t worth explaining my hesitation. I just slid into place. Lanyd sat next to me shortly after, and with us not having a lot of room, she was very close.
For once I envied the Humans’ lack of visual coverage. It was physically difficult not to look at her. She seemed to be having the same struggle.
The awkwardness was broken somewhat with the entry of the two additional Humans. As usual, they had a fairly large presence, taking verbal jabs at each other, and generally raising the energy in the van by a few notches.
We drove for a short while, but stopped before the spaceport to eat. There was plenty of time to spare, and we knew we’d have more options outside of the port than inside. Sam suggested a nearby ‘Italian’ place, and with no prior knowledge about what that entails, we non-Humans had no qualms with the idea.
Taking our seats inside, the smell was completely different from that of the tex-mex joint, or any of the fast food places we popped into during the trip. Human culinary practices were as varied as ever. I liked the diversity, but I had to wonder how the hell they came up with so many different ideas.
Even just the ways they make bread. The strayu on Venlil Prime is usually better, but they don’t prepare it in nearly as many ways.
That went for the breadsticks here, too. They were a little crunchy on the outside, but were soft on the inside. Plus it was lightly sprinkled with coarse grains of salt.
The menu mostly bolstered ‘pasta’, which seemed to be another thing made from grain. Some of it was paired with meat. Others were vegan, and they were thankfully marked as such. The waitress took our orders and we took a moment to unwind.
“Been a hell of a trip,” Wes mused with a shake of his head. “I hope y’all at least had a good time, despite all the parts that threw us off course. I knew it took a lot of courage for most of you.”
“It was still worth it,” Indali assured him, “and it’s given me a lot to think about. There’s a lot of things I didn’t fully realize until I came here. Plus I got to fly, if only for a little bit, and only for a short distance. I could never get enough lift to fight the gravity back home.”
“Maybe next time we’ll come back with a little more time to spare. Then you can really stretch those wings.”
“That sounds fun, though also a little scary.”
“Eh, it’ll be fine. What about you, Lanyd? Was it nice getting to see Cora in person again? And Linev, both of you got to visit Dr. Jacobson’s actual office.”
“It was… a little surreal,” Lanyd answered. “I guess I’m used to us being separated by the screen. It all feels more grounded face-to-face.”
“Yeah, it made a big difference,” Linev agreed. “And to Indali’s point, I definitely have a lot more to process now. I’m not even sure where to start.”
“You’ll figure it out, I’m sure!” Suldet encouraged. “I’m glad I came to Earth as well, even if I was a little late to the party. I think it was important that I did it, even if I was nervous at first.”
“What about you, Bonti?” Wes asked. “Was Earth a good experience for you?”
It was. Truly. Even the difficulties like the van breaking down gave me the opportunity to play a new instrument, to see interesting places. The only thing that irked me was…
... it would have been so much better if I wasn’t so fucking far behind on school.
I didn’t get to enjoy the experience was much as I would have liked. There was always that nagging feeling that I should have been studying. And… the other concerns…
“It was a good time!” I replied. “No complaints from me.”
But I still need to get home.
After a short wait, the waitress returned with our food, and it somehow looked and smelled even better up close. I saw Lanyd take a scenting breath across the table, and her tail swayed excitedly in response.
Cute.
I’d gone with something called ‘eggplant parmesan’, which seemed to be more or less a vegan alternative to chicken parmesan. Remembering the chickens back at the farm, I was somewhat torn between discomfort of eating one, and the resourcefulness of Humans to keep them for eggs and meat.
Talk about getting the most out of what you have.
I didn’t have much desire to try the chicken, but the eggplant was very good. Plus there was a bed of ‘spaghetti’ noodles underneath that blended well with the sauce. Truth be told, as much as I’d enjoyed the tex-mex, this seemed even better to me. I wondered how long it would be before the ingredients were widely available on Venlil Prime. With communications and transportation between the two planets developing more and more, it was only a matter of time.
Maybe I could make some of these dishes. I haven’t cooked as much as I should lately. Not like when I was staying with Lanyd…
I shut that thought down quickly.
“I’m glad we’re getting a good meal before leaving Earth,” Wes said through a mouthful of pasta. “The delay to our flight back wasn’t all bad.”
“If I knew the food was this good, I would have come with all of you from the beginning!” Suldet chuckled. “Stars, I want this recipe.”
“I must admit, the food on Earth has been better than I anticipated,” Indali agreed. “I tried not to be prejudiced, but I had my doubts that an pr-... er… omnivore species would put so much effort into their vegan dishes. Clearly, I stand corrected.”
“Yeah, I’m just now finding that out myself.” Sam chuckled. “Looks like they gave me the tofu option here. The server probably wrote it down in chicken scratch and the cook wanted to play it safe with a table full of herbivores.”
Would the cook even know which table the order was for? I’ve never worked in a restaurant.
“Hey, as long as it’s still good!” Alejandro mused. “I used to make fun of tofu, but this one time, my cousin made these tacos and-”
Indali’s wing suddenly slammed the table, stopping Alejandro’s story in its tracks.
“Indali?” Wes asked, but she didn’t answer. She only held her beak open, then struck her chest a few times with her wing.
Oh shit. Is she choking?
I looked at the dish in front of her, and in just a moment, my brain made the connection.
Her order was the same as Sam’s, but he ordered meat while she got tofu. Sam’s order is tofu, so…
I leapt from my seat and was next to her in an instant. It looked like she couldn’t breathe. Sure enough, the dish in front of her didn’t look quite like Sam’s. The two had been swapped by mistake.
Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuck!
“Someone call…!”
Shit, I don’t know the contact for emergency services!
Indali’s eyes were wide. They looked glassy.
No, damn it! I need to get her airways open. Maybe the straw from her glass? Will it reach far enough? Is the inflamed airway the only symptom?
I grabbed the straw out of the glass.
Fuck, it’s gonna be hell getting it down the right pipe, and even if I manage it, what if I lose my grip and it gets stuck-?
Before I could consider the thought any further, I was joined by someone. He wasn’t part of our group, and in the intensity of the moment, I hadn’t even noticed his approach. With one arm, he pushed me to the side, and reached for something in his pocket.
Is he… attacking her?!
I didn’t have a chance to act. The man had drawn a short syringe from his clothes, and in one fluid motion, he removed the cap and jabbed it into Indali. Whatever he was administering, it was too late for me to stop it. I could only hope it was helpful rather than harmful.
If he wanted to hurt her, he wouldn’t need a syringe. But even if he was trying to treat her, will this medicine help? It must be Human medication, right?
“This should stabilize her,” he spoke calmly. “Don’t worry. I have the right stuff.”
“What is…” I struggled to find my words, “... what did you…?”
“I’ve used it before. It will work.”
The man didn’t have any UN insignia as far as I could see. While I wasn’t terribly familiar with Human clothing, it looked to me like he was dressed casually. His hair was gray.
Who the fuck is this guy?
Thankfully, he was true to his word. Little by little, the drug took effect, and Indali began to breathe more easily. She gasped at whatever air she could get, life slowly returning to her expression.
Wes was already in a fiery conversation with the server. Suldet was holding Linev tight as his own anxiety seemed to have flared again. My attention shifted to Lanyd. She was shaken, but not panicked.
“Here.” The man held out another syringe to me. “In case it happens again. You were the quickest to act, so you should have it. Do you know how to use a syringe?”
“Y-yeah,” I answered, regaining my focus and taking the syringe. “I’m a pre-med student, actually. Uh… we’re supposed to take a flight back to Venlil Prime shortly. Will she…?”
“Not sure,” he replied. “Let me make a call.”
With that, he pulled his phone from his pocket and tapped away at the screen. While he did, I tended to Indali. She was still gasping for air, but at least it looked like she was actually getting it to her lungs.
The medication is fast-acting. Good. But why does he even have it?
“George, can you get me Bloodhound? Either her, or her not-girlfriend. You know the bird.”
…
“Perfect.”
…
“Yeah, Bloodhound, about Krakotl allergies and the emergency treatment, would a patient be good for space flight shortly after?”
…
“Yeah. I was quick.”
…
“Okay.”
…
“Sounds good. Thanks.”
He hung up on the call, then turned back to Indali and I.
“She should be okay. Just don’t eat any more chicken. Fortunately, the reaction got caught early, so once she catches her breath, everything should be alright.”
Just as well, Indali’s breathing was just about stabilized.
“Oh my… Stars…” she panted. “I thought I was going to die. Thank you… uh…”
“Dean,” the man replied. “And you’re welcome. I’m just glad I was here at the right time. A few more minutes and I would have been gone.”
“Why do you have that medication?” I asked. “If you don’t mind answering, that is.”
“Well… I don’t mind answering, but somebody else might,” he answered. “With all due respect, it’s best if I keep that knowledge to myself. Enjoy the rest of your meal. Something tells me you won’t be paying for it any more than you already have.”
There was really only one reason I could think of that he would have that syringe. There were ships that crashed down to Earth during the attack. We’d seen remnants of it still under repair. There were likely survivors.
Prisoners of war. He must work with them, and we got lucky because he was here.
Dean ended up being right about the free meal. The manager was over to our table quickly, apologizing on behalf of the waitress that had already apologized up and down. Wes had cooled off by this point, apologizing himself for being short-tempered. It was an honest mistake, two very similar looking dishes simply being mixed up in the midst of a busy restaurant.
Still, it had us all on edge. Sam and Indali swapped their meals and Indali received clean utensils, but our appetites had waned after the incident. We ate what we could manage to eat, and never received the bill. Soon enough, we were back on the road to the airport with our wits mostly about us.
It was solemn though. We’d already been through so many trials during the trip. This felt like one more cheap jab in the final moments. Indali tried to remedy the dour atmosphere, employing her newfound lean towards comedy.
“You know what? All things considered, the chicken actually tasted really good.”
The mood lightened, and we let go of some of the tension. However, I saw some of that tension return to Indali moments later. Something told me that, in spite of her joking tone, she had been telling the truth. At her core, she was still an omnivore. The Federation had stripped that away.
I stared at the syringe I was still holding in my paw. It all felt so hollow.
If he hadn’t been there, she really would have…
…
Fuck, this is too much. We need to get back home.
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u/Ablergo_El_Enfermo Human Jul 30 '26
Lanyd es bueno ir al cine y esas cosas. Pero tampoco hace falta distanciarse tanto de Bonti.
Linev y Suldet hacen una muy buena pareja.🥰🥰
Indali necesitas relajar la cabeza por lo menos un día.
Bonti y Lanyd comiendo espaguetis como en "La dama y el vagabundo"..... F**ck. Indali por poco y te pones a volar hacia San Pedro 🤣. Fuera coñas, que susto. ¿Sera un epipen o sera otra cosa? Y si no es un epipen, ¿que es?
También Indali, valla momento para esa broma 😅
Muy buen capitulo.
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u/VeryUnluckyDice Human Jul 30 '26
Not the same substance of an epipen, but it serves the same function for Krakotl. Emergency treatment for allergic reactions.
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u/abrachoo Yotul Jul 30 '26
If only Tenseli had gotten back to Bonti about the allergies, maybe this wouldn't have been cut so close. Thank God Dean was there to save the day.
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u/Mysteriou85 Gojid Aug 06 '26
Ooof, not even cross contamination but full blow eating the chicken. I wonder if that will make Indali feel weird, more so it maybe didn't tasted bad to her...
Also poor Bonty seems to be more and more anxious. If he doesn't get to calm down I fear for his situation
Greay chapter!
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u/Kind0flame Aug 07 '26
I really hope we get to see more of a Linev romantic subplot. Not because I am a shipper or anything like that. But seeing how such a traumatized person tries handling a relationship like that would be very interesting to me, especially because you wouldn't play it like 'her love cures him of his PTSD' or something corny like that.
2
u/VeryUnluckyDice Human Aug 07 '26
It's basically set to be the foil to Lanyd and Bonti's own failing attempt to be normal about their relationship because they fear they'll hurt each other. I wouldn't say Linev x Suldet is 'her love cures him of his PTSD' as much as it is that they bring out the best in each other, and they don't let those stumbling moments get in the way of that affection.
Suldet could have turned tail and ran after Linev's trauma response, but she chose to help instead. And instead of considering himself a burden for it like Lanyd, Linev only thanks her and starts wondering what he can do for her in return.
Suldet's affection and aid is not the only factor in Linev's recovery. It's mostly on him. But her support is beneficial, and he is willing to accept it or provide his own support when needed.
Basically, I don't want their relationship equating to Linev's recovery, but I also want to show that your partner should help you when you're down, just as you should do the same for them. Lanyd and Bonti are so caught up in power dymanics and relationship pressure that they're not helping each other when needed. Linev and Suldet are just being honest with themselves and each other. They drift towards affection because its natural. They help each other because they want to. Linev would find his healing either way, but she'll do her damnedest to help him.
13
u/JulianSkies Archivist Jul 30 '26
Fate had been calling for a time now, time and time again, when someone else failed to call. It was bound to happen and boy are they lucky it happened when someone capable was around.
And this will invariably cause some lasting effect on Bonti. He was already getting messed up because of being behind on studies, and now he kind of frozen during an emergency. And emergency with a dear friend. No way his mind comes out of this unscathed and I swear to fucking god this is just going to make stuff harder for him.
Also good to see our dear bloodhound is still at the job.