A/N: Before I get into things, lemme say that while I tried to keep spoilers vague here, they're still present. Tread carefully if you haven't played/watched Psychonauts 2.
I loved the new game, but one little line interested me in particular... if Razputin didn't go to Whispering Rock, his sister would've been given the same offer. It got me wondering, how would the whole story go if just one little thing went differently and changed everything?
I don't know if I'll do very much with this, since it'd take a lot of time and effort to craft a divergent story that still follows major events. I mostly just wanted to get this idea out there. I did have some thoughts about it, though, and perhaps I'll work on them. Let me know what you think!
Updates:
Now has a TvTropes page!
Fic art drawn by EarthVsTheDerek!
Check out Funicular and Fancy Free by DiLithiumDragon on Archiveofourown for some nice Psychonauts 2 interactions set in this AU!
Crickets sang out around the tent alongside the chatter of departing guests. A couple dozen visitors in all... pitiful by most circus standards, but for the Aquatos, it was one of their biggest crowds in awhile.
The mood was jovial among the family as they prepared props for tomorrow. It may have been a good night, but there was no time to rest until everything was prepped for tomorrow's show. They still had a week of nightly performances before they packed up and roamed off, never staying in one region for too long.
Little did they know, they weren't alone. One of their guests had remained.
A tall figure lurked at the edge of the clearing, shrouded by the boughs. Their bright eyes watched the family, a pamphlet clutched between their fingers. They had a delivery to make. Only to a specific Aquato, however. Though a few psychics lingered among the family, there was one in particular the stranger sought.
Razputin.
And there he was. The boy grunted as he hefted a crate half his size, grumbling to himself. Were he allowed, he'd levitate the box and make it much, much easier. His father would never allow it though. Frustrated and straining, he'd fallen behind the rest of the group, alone.
Perfect.
This was the perfect opportunity. The stranger took a step out from the trees, ready to approach...
"Razputin!"
And immediately stepped back when his mom's voice called out.
"Yeah, mom?" Razputin took the distraction as a chance to drop the crate for a breather... right on his foot. He yelped, hopping back and forth on one leg while he cradled his aching toes. His mother poked her head out from inside the main tent, fingers pressed to her lips.
"Oh, Razputin, I thought you didn't want to add a dance routine to your act?" she asked. "Well, when you are done, your father and I could use a hand reaffixing the nets."
Wincing, the boy nodded and his mother dipped back inside. Meanwhile, the stranger clenched their fist, the pamphlet crumpling inwards in their grip. This was bad. Perhaps their only chance to talk with him was about to disappear. This pamphlet needed to be delivered tonight, or they might never get another opportunity.
Once he could stand on two feet again, Razputin glared down at the box and gave it a kick. A gentle one, of course - he couldn't afford any more toe damage. Afterwards, he cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted. "Hey, Frazie! Can you come get this? I gotta help mom and dad."
His older sister stepped up, twice his height and more than capable of carrying the load. "Need me to do the heavy lifting again, Pooter?" she teased.
Raz rolled his eyes. "C'mon, you know I could handle it easily if dad let me," he muttered as he left for the tent.
"Let you break his heart, you mean," Frazie tutted. Though she was one to speak about their family's psychic paranoia... she glanced around to make sure she was alone, only to pull the box up with her mind to easily drop it in her hands.
Off in the distance, the stranger quickly tugged at the corners of the pamphlet and smoothed it out. Frazie. Not the stranger's first choice, but still a choice. Raz was a psycho-nut and would've been easy to sway... her, not so much. But what other option did they have? It was time.
Before she could wander off, the guest approached. Frazie suddenly looked up, sensing someone, and held the box to her chest defensively. "Hey! You didn't see anything. ...Wait, who the heck are you? Show's over, and we don't do autographs."
"Relax, child, relax!" the stranger soothed in a forced, gruff voice. "I'm not here to bother you. I just wanted to give you something."
Frazie's eyes narrowed. "You know you're not supposed to take stuff from strangers, right? Especially one as suspicious as you."
The stranger tried to look as innocent as they could in their shady trench coat and face concealing beard. "Ahhhh, but the only thing I'm here to give... is an opportunity."
Frazie's eyes flicked between the stranger and the paper and, finally, she took a step forward. Then, in a flurry of movement, she snatched the pamphlet and whirled back to her spot. Keeping them in the corner of her vision, she eyed the crumpled paper. "Whispering Rock Summer Camp? Why would I want this?" She kept reading... and then her eyes went wide. "Summer camp... for psychics?"
"Correct!"
"You did see something!"
"Even if I hadn't, I would have known. Like attracts like, right?" the stranger replied, tapping under their hat. "I can sense your powers. Don't be ashamed, it's a great thing! And it can be even greater... if you'll go to this camp."
Frazie's caution shifted into doubt, the girl glancing away. "I don't think I should. I need to stick around and help with the circus. Even without that, psychics hurt us. My family hates their guts. I don't want to betray them..."
"I understand... but if you ignore your powers, you're ignoring a part of yourself." The stranger leaned in, but not too close. "Don't you want to be whole? To control this side of you, to show your family they don't need to be afraid? ...That you don't need to be afraid?"
"I'm not afraid!" Frazie protested.
"Then consider it." The stranger chuckled and shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe you'll learn a few tricks that can restore your family to the stardom they deserve."
"Hmph. What are you even getting from offering me this, anyway?"
The guest scoffed. "Who says I get anything out of this? I just want to see talent shine." They smiled, their teeth shining in the shadows. "Is that so wrong?"
"I guess not, but..." Frazie looked back into their face, squinting. Right into their wide, hazy pupils. "Say, your eyes look kinda... familiar. Have we met?"
The stranger lurched back. "No! Never! In fact, I wasn't even in the country until tonight!"
"...Soooooo the first thing you do when you travel is go to circuses and give out fliers to kids?"
"Do you want the paper or not?!"
Frazie blew out some breath, pupils rocking back and forth as she mulled it over. "...Hmmmmm... well, I guess I can take it. You know, just to properly throw it away and all."
Good enough. Somehow the visitor knew the paper would end up under her eyes and not in the trash can. "Yes, yes, good! Now if you'll excuse me, I really must be going."
A bit too hastily, the guest turned and hobbled off straight back into the trees. Frazie watched them go, then glanced at the clear dirt exit path to the side, then back.
"That's the biggest weirdo I've ever seen... and I live in a circus." Still holding the box along with the paper, she tried to flip it open with her thumb for just a little peek...
"Frazie! Frazie, what's the hold up?"
"Eep!" That was her dad. Thinking quickly, she shoved the pamphlet under her shawl just before the man popped out from behind an old wooden caravan.
"Is something the matter?" he asked. "Razputin said you were taking care of his box." He glanced at her face, then reached out to touch her cheek. "You look like you've seen a ghost. What happened?"
As if she'd tell him some weirdo stopped by to encourage her to run away and pursue her psychic powers. He'd disown her on the spot for not immediately turning him away, if he didn't think she was delusional from eating some really bad cotton candy.
Frazie forced a smile. "Juuuuuust had to keep Nona from wandering off first."
Her father rubbed his beard, her heart thumping as he considered her lie. Finally, he patted her shoulder. "Great work, dear! Honestly, I don't know why she's been so lost lately... must be something in the air. Let's get back to work, shall we?"
Frazie nodded a bit too eagerly, breathing a long and silent sigh of relief as soon as he'd turned away. She reached for her chest and felt the pamphlet still tucked snugly in her shawl, moving very carefully so she wouldn't accidentally stir it free.
She had some reading to do later that night. And a looooot of thinking.