37.1 - Sakura and the Literature Club! by YukiAkuma
(DDLC)/(Cardcaptor Sakura)
It was always a treat to begin a Loop snuggled up in bed. Not really her bed, but it was still…her bed.
Her Unawake self's bed, that is.
Slowly opening her eyes, Sakura glanced towards the clock by her bedstand. Time to get up…she definitely had school today. So, out of bed, set the stuffed toy she had been hugging in her sleep on the pillow, reach into her closet for her uniform…
Huh. High school uniform? It looked kinda familiar, but Sakura was still too half-asleep to tell whether it was her Loop memories or her own memories making it seem so. Before she could sort it out, though, another glance at the clock reminded her that she really had to get a move on. If she was late, her friend would be late, and if her friend was late…well okay nothing would happen, she was late as often as not, but still. She felt a responsibility to make sure her friend wasn't late!
"I'm off to school!" Sakura called to the house as she stepped out the door, munching on a slice of toast as she fastened her skates to her feet. She felt four Pings, and automatically sent off a Ping of her own.
Sakura rolled the ten yards to her friend's house - seriously, they lived right next door to each other, this was pretty convenient - and rapped smartly on the door. "Heeey, get up sleepy head, you're gonna be late for-"
"Good morning Sakura!" chirped a voice from behind her. Sakura span around to see her friend. Her pretty, ditzy, slightly clumsy, peach haired friend, in her light gray blazer, ochre vest, blue skirt with white socks…innocent, bright blue eyes…
"...Nope," Sakura said after a while. "Nope, nope, no way, definitely not," she continued, calmingly flicking her wrist and producing one of her Cards from the aether. "Maze."
Sayori reached out a hand. "H-hey!" But then, the air around her best-friend-for-this-loop lensed, folded in on itself, and Sakura was nowhere to be seen. Sayori stared for a moment, then pulled out her phone. "Heeey, Monika? I think she's played our game."
"...Okay, that might complicate things," came the voice of her club president.
Sakura sat in her deck chair, looking up at the false sky of her Maze-space while doing her best not to totally freak out. Sure was lucky Dash wasn't a real animal, or she'd have probably rubbed all his fur off by now with how firmly she was petting him. "Why in the Tree would Doki Doki be Looping? What Admin would even allow it? It's a videogame even in-setting it doesn't even make sense it would be Looping!" Sakura looked down at her hand in suddenly-dawning horror. "Wait does that mean I'm made of DATA right now?!"
Fortunately, before Sakura began to really consider the implications of no longer being flesh and blood - it was bad enough that the stars in most branches felt really weird - she was interrupted by a pink, polka-dotted rectangle appearing directly in her line of sight.
["I don't blame you for overreacting - I hesitate to even call it an overreaction - but surely we can talk about this?"] the text box read, in English. Sakura winced, glancing at the name tag at the top. 'Monika'.
Sakura took a deep breath, then looked down at the foxlike spirit in her lap. "Do you think she can hear us, Dash?" she asked conversationally, trying to keep her voice level.
["Yes, I can hear you Sakura."] the text box promptly replied.
Sakura sighed, looking up at the sky again. She contemplated for a while, then looked down at the text box again, as if looking Monika right in the eyes. "Okay, I just have one question first."
["Yes?"]
"Who's the Anchor?"
"So is this Sakura person…important?" Sayori asked innocently.
"Important?!" Natsuki looked up from the box of manga she was rifling through. "Cardcaptor Sakura is the shoujo manga! The quintessential Magical Girl manga! It introduced an entire generation - an entire international community to cute girls who fall in love and still kick ass! So many manga and anime have homaged it, the second magic wand basically became the go-to 'this is a magical girl' prop, and the dresses she wears get referenced so much, and-"
"Huh. I've never heard of it," Sayori said.
Natsuki shot up. "Never heard of it?! How could you possibly-"
Sayori giggled. "I'm kidding~"
Before Natsuki could decide whether or not to slug her, the door to the club room opened. In she strode, that Magical Girl icon, dressed up in their school uniform. It suited her. Natsuki could imagine her battling monsters or capturing another card wearing that uniform.
Monika, sitting at a desk to the side of the room, looked up from one of her monitors. "Ah, Sakura, thank you for coming. I hope we can-"
The sudden magical pressure shut Monika up even before Sakura raised her hand to summon a card from the aether. "Libra," said the Magical Girl. The card promptly vanished again, blue energy rushing out of it and coalescing into a ghostly…pan scale. Albeit, a pan scale with its pans replaced by a sun and moon.
Monika blinked. Sayori let a momentary frown flash across her features before adopting a neutral expression. Natsuki just stared with barely-suppressed glee at getting to watch a Magical Girl icon use magic. Yuri glanced at Natsuki for a moment, shook her head, then stood up, closing the book she had been reading. "All right, Miss Kinomoto. Please explain for those of us who are not massive fangirls what it is that spell does."
Sakura paused halfway through moving a chair around. "Oh, nothing major. It's just a lie-detection spell," she admitted with a casual, no-big-deal air.
"Fair enough," Monika said with a shrug.
Yuri rounded on Monika. "It is not fair enough!" she insisted, turning back to Sakura. "Don't you think it's a little rude to walk into a stranger's home and hook them up to a magical polygraph?"
Sakura ran a hand across the back of the chair, giving Yuri a thoughtful look. "I…suppose, yeah. We aren't really strangers though. That's sort of the problem?" Sakura dragged the chair across the floor, turning it around and straddling it backwards - facing Monika. She leaned her arms on the back of the chair. "I'll…make it up to you later. I really need to do this. It's important."
The room went silent. Monika tried not to fidget. This…was an older Anchor. She had to be. The confidence was unmistakable, and anyway, didn't Cardcaptor Sakura come out twenty years before Doki Doki Literature Club? Was that a factor?
On the other hand, no one had ever mentioned that Cardcaptor Sakura was Looping before. Maybe she was young, and this was all bravado from the first few thousand Loops.
"Monika-san," Sakura said, gazing at her with a steady gaze.
Monika managed to quell the reflex to jump. "Yes?" This was stupid. Why did she feel so nervous?
"Are you sorry?"
"Yyyes?" Monika said slowly.
The sun half of the Libra scale dropped sharply, lifting the moon up as far as it would go.
Sakura adopted a bright smile. "Well, I'm convinced," she chirped, and hopped out of her chair. Monika fell out of hers.
37.2 - Zombozo's Misery, by Boohoooo!
(DDLC)/(Ben 10)
Monika sighed as she walked home after a long day at school. She was the only one Awake currently, so she wasn't really sure what to do.
"Maybe I should go to another protest?" She mused idly. However, she suddenly felt a chill in the air. She looked around suspiciously, getting into a fighting stance.
"Hello…I think we haven't met. I'm Zombozo. I'm your worst nightmares given form!" Said Zombie Clown cackled.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHH! AHHHHHHHHHHHH! AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Monika screeched.
"Heh, I haven't even done anything yet! Now- Wait, you're a Looper too right? I guessed based on that…flamethrower…you pulled…outta nowhere…oh, this will be unpleasant…"
Zombozo's screams of agony soon fill the air.
Much later, Albedo stared down at the broken, battered and burned form of Zombozo.
"Hmmm…yeah, maybe getting you Activated wasn't the most effective plan…" He drawled.
"Shut up…" Zombozo weakly whined. Albedo shook his head.
37.3 - In Which the Prince of the Underworld Finds Out He's a Video Game Character as Well as What a Video Game is
Or: Zagreus Still Won't Sit Down
By Awesomedude17
(DDLC)/(Hades)
Zagreus Awoke and found himself in a very unfamiliar situation. Sun, he knew well. He had felt it on his skin every time he escaped as well as when he met with Heracles from the world where his father was a flamboyant villain with hair of literal fire.
But this world's buildings were completely different. They were unrecognizable. And the girl approaching him. Who was she again?
A childhood best friend? Like Thanatos? Heracles told me there were more worlds than ours. Maybe this Sayori can help me out.
Apparently she wanted him to join the literature club. Fine by him. If he went along, this might allow him to figure things out.
And then things went weird. The world became more…solid yet it was still undeniably fake. It bugged him a lot. Sayori quickly shook her head and he felt a Ping, and then three more and then he Pinged himself.
She looked at him with a knowing look and put on the kind of devious smile she had only seen Megaera show every so often.
"Well Sayori, I suppose you know where this is going then?"
"Yeah Zag. I do. Come on, I'll make it a surprise for the others."
"And the cupcakes are finished. Now we wait for the visiting Looper." Natsuki said as she set down the plate in the center of the classroom.
"Alright, they're almost here. I can feel it." Yuri said.
"You mean smell them?"
Yuri gave Natsuki a look.
"Hey, vampire."
Yuri didn't stop looking until the door opened.
"Hey girls! We got a visitor!" Sayori said gleefully.
"Yeah, we felt the fifth Ping too. Bring them in."
"I am a man, just so you know." Zagreus cheekily said as he casually walked in.
"Well you don't need to snap back." Monika replied.
"Oh trust me, I meant no harm in my remarks. I just enjoy some banter from time to time. You know what I mean?"
"Well, yeah."
"Hold on hold on hold on!" Natsuki spoke up.
"Err, yes? Is something the matter?" Zagreus said, tilting his head in confusion.
"Yeah. I know you. You're Zagreus!"
"Huh. Heracles told me this was a thing, but I wasn't expecting to come across this situation on my second go outside of father's realm."
"Ooo, you met Hercules? Which one?" Sayori asked.
"Uh, the one where his archnemesis is the flamboyant, flame headed version of father." Zagreus replied.
"So Disney's Hercules. Right, that checks out. Zag, check this out." Natsuki spoke up.
"If you say so." Zagreus got close to her as she took out a laptop. Zagreus looked at it in amusement as the screen lit up, and after seeing Natsuki manipulate it, she brought up Steam and saw what was undeniably him, and the title 'Hades' right above his artist's rendition.
"So that's what my world is like on the outside. Question, what is this thing?"
"Err, a computer. We're technically a simulation inside one, if you wanna get more meta." Sayori replied.
Zagreus just stared at Sayori, then Natsuki's computer then back to her.
"That last time I was this confused, I was in one of my father's seminars."
"That's just about what I expected from someone who just got out of Ancient Greece." Monika remarked.
"I suppose a series of explanations are in order miss..."
"Oh right. I'm Monika. That's Natsuki and Yuri and I assume you already know Sayori, right?"
"Of course. Charmed to meet you all. I am Zagreus, Prince of the Underworld, son of Hades and Persephone."
"Hold on." Monika held out a hand. "I've been reading some old Greek scriptures and I barely saw your name in there."
"Oh gods, don't tell me that Orpheus' tale actually-"
"If said tale was that you died and then became Dionysus, then yes. That's what was left of the records of you."
"Blood and darkness." Zagreus facepalmed in exasperation. Well, at least Hades got his wish regarding that song.
"Although Greek tales are so contradictory that that alone could account for your existence, at least in your world." Monika shrugged.
Zagreus sighed. "Right then. Explanations please and thank you. I'd rather not simmer in embarrassment."
Some time passes…
"I see, so that explains quite a lot actually. I suppose Achilles was correct in his assumptions regarding the Adamant Rail, though it seems that this 'Hub' world has yet to capitalize on the Aspect of Lucifer…yet." Zagreus mused.
"Thank the tree, because the idea that Satan himself rebelled against God and his army of archangels with a laser gun is scary enough as is." Natsuki said with a cold sweat.
"Well what did he expect would happen? He rebelled against a god. Even though I am a god myself, father is certainly more powerful than I am. Have you been skewered by Gigaros? I can tell you that it hurts. Quite a bit."
"Tell me about it. He game over'd me several times before I got his patterns down."
"There's a reason why the Olympians disliked hubris from mortals." Yuri admitted.
"I suppose." Zagreus replied. "Such an ego would infuriate father, let alone others who have a sense of righteousness."
"Speaking of, do you expect dear old dad to join in?" Natsuki asked.
"Eventually, though I feel he'll be on the later end of my journey through Yggdrasil." Zagreus admitted with a shrug. "All I know is that Thanatos has joined me."
"And how close are you?" Sayori asked.
"Well…he did come from when Megaera convinced him to join our coupling, if that means anything."
"YES! OT3!" Natsuki shouted at the top of her lungs.
"Err…what?"
"Don't mind her." Monika spoke up. "She doesn't admit it but she plays matchmaker sometimes. Sayori and I certainly would know about that."
Natsuki shot Monika a glare while Yuri looked away with a blush.
"Err…alright then ladies. If you don't mind me, I suppose I'll consider trying out some literature myself, if you don't mind."
"Absolutely not. We are a literature club after all. Have a seat." Monika closed her eyes and let loose a gentle smile.
"Err, no thanks. I prefer to stand."
Monika opened her eyes as her smile became more forced.
"No no. By all means, have a seat. Relax. We'll bring some books for you and maybe we'll write some poems too."
"Do I really need to sit down for that, Monika? I can easily do that standing up or leaning against the wall."
"Is there something wrong with chairs for you?"
"Oh no. I know they have their uses. Father has a magnificent one himself back home. It's just that I myself don't see much reason to indulge in them when I could be out and about. You know what I mean?"
"I think I do. You have no respect for rest, after all."
Natsuki was about to speak up when Zagreus beat her to the punch.
"Well I never needed it and I doubt you ever needed it yourself."
"I beg to differ, Zagreus."
"As do I, Monika."
Sayori jumped in between the two suddenly. "Okay, I know where this is going. Zagreus, I get you've kinda got that charming gentleman with an edge to yourself but please don't aggravate our club president."
Zagreus nodded.
Monika put on a smug look. "Thank you Sayori."
"Hold on, Monika. You're being really irrational about this yourself, especially with the hypocrisy. You got the 'no sleep' policy after all."
Monika began to sweat as Zagreus looked at her with amusement. Sayori then continued with her admonishment.
"So what if Zagreus doesn't like to sit down? If you don't wanna rest, he doesn't have to either."
"Sayori, it's just…I get it's irrational but I cannot imagine anyone not sitting down at least once. It makes no sense. Even I sit down sometimes, even if I don't really sleep."
"And that's just a piece to the puzzle that is the issues that you have that you have not fixed at all." Natsuki spoke up. Yuri got up and tried to keep Natsuki at bay.
"If something doesn't make sense, I get really irritable, alright!" Monika said as she got close to Natsuki.
Zagreus leaned on a desk and then said, "Oh, I think it makes perfect sense. Then again, I am immortal while you are…kinda mortal."
"Kinda mortal. Oh ho, you did not just say that to me, bucko!" Monika said as she teleported in front of Zagreus.
"Indeed I did. You're being really petty about your issues."
"Oh, and now who's the hypocrite now? If I recall, the Greek pantheon was certainly petty."
Zagreus put a hand to his chest. "Oh my. You wound my feelings. I'll have you know that I don't really follow the sensibilities of my family on Olympus, Monika. I'm more than content to let them be so long as they don't involve themselves negatively with me."
"So you let them give you their food and drink and not their grievances?" Monika said, unaware of how she's losing this 'debate' she's having with Zagreus.
"I wouldn't need them. I know the taste of nectar and ambrosia and can get them easily, even in the Underworld. What do you have?" Zagreus shot Monika a look.
"Natsuki's cupcakes." Monika said as she grabbed one and chomped down into it, letting out an overly audible moan of contentment.
Zagreus rolled his eyes as he took one himself and bit into it.
...
"Okay, I'll give you that much, it is absolutely delicious."
"Thank you so much! I put in a lot of effort to make it just right." Natsuki chimed in.
"You should trade lessons with Eurydice if you visit, Natsuki. I'm sure you both could learn something new." Zagreus said with a genuine smile.
"I say you're being overly dramatic now, Zagreus." Monika spoke up.
"Look who's talking, miss hypocrisy and irrationality. You've been relying too much on coffee to keep awake." Natsuki spoke up. "Tell you what. How about if Zag sits down, you have to take a nap?"
"Oh, fuck off." Monika stomped the ground.
It was then that Zagreus decided to defy the alternate title of this snippet and sit down, grinning smugly and knowingly.
"Oh, I like this one!" Natsuki grinned.
Yuri then made some intrigued noises.
"...not that much, you horndog."
Monika growled in frustration.
"See that crankiness? Nap time!" Natsuki replied.
"Yay!" Sayori shifted into her pajamas. "Sleepover time!"
Zagreus looked over the group as they one by one changed into sleepwear.
"Well, if nothing else, this whole trip went to places I did not expect. Not that I am complaining after all. So far, this has been great." Zagreus got up from his chair.
"Glad you're having fun." Monika said with an underlying sense of snark.
Zagreus chuckled. The rest of this trip was going to be fun for sure.
37.4 - Absurdly Powerful Literature Club, by Tetradrachm
In the Variants where the Literature Club existed in a real school, outside of a computer program, its Looping members tended to simply use it as an extension of their normal activities. They'd invite members of the school in, discuss literature and goof off as best they could with their new friends for the Loop, and generally just enjoy ordinary high school life.
That wasn't so easily possible in this particular Variant.
"We got the funding for the Science Club?" Sayori asked, one hand lightly gripping the official Sakura High Literature Club-distributed yoyo on her waist.
"An anonymous donor sent us the final half million we needed," Monika smirked, her eyes darting around the nondescript high school hallway as they walked towards the club room, a pile of legal documents in her arms. "Of course, we all know it was Yuri's mom—"
"Stop right there!" Five figures in full black bodysuits shot out from behind doors, corners, and even a locker and assumed ninja battle stances in front of them. "The Principal wants to see you in his office—and those documents, too!" the leader shouted.
Monika and Sayori exchanged a look. "You can tell the Principal, and the rest of the criminals that run this school, that the information about their administration's corruption in these papers will be all over the headlines of the school newspaper tomorrow," Monika said triumphantly.
"Not if we have anything to say about it," the administration ninja challenged her.
Ten seconds later, the thoroughly subdued and tied up ninjas groaned in pain as Sayori and Monika strode past. "What is that, the seventh group of goons we've taken down this week?"
"Eighth," Monika said, "Natsuki dropped a pair of Drama Club members into the dumpster out back yesterday. According to her they'd been trying to swipe some of our permission slips."
"What? Why not just ask us for them?" They pushed through the Literature Club double doors to enter its massive club room. Easily the size of a regular school's gym, its elaborate wood paneling, long tables, and painted portraits of previous Literature Club leaders on the walls resembled a state legislature's meeting hall. Considering the "business" they got up to in here, the comparison wasn't so far off.
Natsuki looked up from signing off on a grant to one of the other clubs as they came in.
"You got the evidence?" she asked.
"Yup!" Monika dropped it onto the table with a pftumpf. "We beat a squad of admin kids to get back here, though, so I'm sure they'll attack us again a few times before tomorrow."
"I think they might send the phys ed teacher after us again," Sayori said with a hint of concern.
"Is he actually a death robot, or does he just act like one?" Natsuki wondered, tapping her official Sakura High Literature Club-issued pen against her chin.
"Probably real," Sayori answered. "We know the Vice Principal has a storeroom full of killer robots in the basement, so…"
"Right, right."
Monika sighed. "I still don't really get how this high school has more military strength than the national government. These animesque Variants don't make a lot of sense when you look too closely…"
"That's just it, you shouldn't look too closely! We are operating on full bore anime logic here, baby! I am so here for it!" Natsuki nearly shouted, hands balled into fists at her side as if she were about to shout an attack for five episodes straight.
"Well, it's only because the administration is so ridiculously powerful that the students have entrusted our Club with the power to fight back," Sayori reminded Monika. "With this proof of corruption, we might finally have enough evidence to topple them once and for all!"
"Of course we will, we—wait, where's Yuri?" Monika asked.
Natsuki waved a dismissive hand. "She's out using her vampire hypno skills to deprogram a bunch of students who got mind whammied by the art teacher."
"What, again?"
37.5 - The End Result of an Accidental Arsonist Cook and a Reality Destroying Cook Making Burger Dogs, by Awesomedude17
(DDLC)/(Warhammer 40,000)
Everything is on fire on a random planet that was suddenly invaded by Tyranids. To most, it'd be an unmitigated disaster.
To Leman Russ and Sayori of the Literature Club, it was good timing. The planet was already evacuated because of Leman alone.
The fact that somehow there was someone worse than him at cooking amused Trazyn the Infinite greatly, even if Monika was not amused at the slightest.
"You're seriously recording everything happening here?" Monika asked in resignation.
"Absolutely. This will make great entertainment for my collection." Trayzn replied with a lot of glee.
Leman let out a guttural growl of annoyance. "This whole mess over an idea to make cheeseburgers in the form of hot dogs."
Sayori did nothing but continue her comical silent crying.
At that point, the Swarmlord appeared out of nowhere, leading Monika to take out a shrink ray, and make the monster tiny, right before Leman stomped on it anticlimactically.
How bizarre it must be for an outside observer to this event, and how the group overall was barely reacting to their surroundings to the point where the Necron was the most emotional of the four.
Tis the natural state of Loopers, it seems.
37.6 - Kill the Literature Club, by tsubaki410
(DDLC)/(Akame ga Kill)
Mine Awoke in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar house. Forcing down her immediate shock, the newest Looper of Night Raid took a deep breath to steady herself as she checked her Loop Memories.
'Huh. Looks like I'm an ordinary high school student. About time I got a change of scenery!' Despite her relative youth by overall Looper standards, the teen genius was, to her annoyance, something of a "late bloomer" compared to her contemporaries. The dual Anchors had each had their first Fused Loops before they were a thousand repeats old, and neither Sayo nor Ieyasu had been much older when their respective turns came. Mine knew, from everything she had learned during her first tentative go-arounds, that such swift progress was highly unusual, but it still galled her to no end that she had been forced to slog her way through nearly double the number of Loops as the others before the stupid Tree saw fit to send her someplace new.
'At least some of the Variants were interesting,' she admitted, smirking as she remembered the time she and her comrades had saved the Federation from the evil Anarchist Revolution. The literal mountain of sweets they'd received from President Makoto and Vice President Honest had been well worth the trouble, as had the look on Glorious Leader Esdeath's face when Tatsumi had suddenly dropped to one knee in the middle of their final duel, just before declaring "Gotcha!" and punting her into orbit. Shaking her head to clear it in preparation for the new day, Mine hopped out of bed to get ready.
"Okay," the pinkette murmured as she slowly raised a fist to knock on the club room door, "No need to be nervous, just let your memories guide you and everything will be fine." Nodding to herself, she rapped quickly on the door, then turned the knob and strode in. Inside, the other club members were gathered around the tea table, all turning and smiling as she approached.
"Hello, Mine," Monika greeted, "Would you like some tea? You look like you could use some help Waking Up."
The assassin nodded thankfully. "That would be great, thanks. Things have been kind of Loopy all day today." Taking the open spot beside Yuri, Mine chuckled as the taller girl Unpocketed a package of wafer-thin chocolate cookies. Opening the package and setting several of the treats on the nearby tray, Yuri offered the plate to her clubmate.
"I hope these are to your liking. The others said I should try to be more…engaging with visitors. It's not easy, though."
Mine gave the knife-wielder a small smile. "You're doing fine. And these look wonderful. I admit, I have something of a notable sweet tooth, though it's not the absolute biggest in my Loop. That honor goes to Chelsea. I can count the number of times I've seen her without a lollipop in her mouth—per Loop, anyway—on one hand. Thank the Admins she's not Looping, stealing my cake in Baseline is bad enough!"
Sayori grinned at this. "Sounds like she'd get along famously with Natsuki," The Pink Sith chirped, "That girl has a HUGE appetite for treats. She's who you're Replacing, by the way, which unfortunately for Yuri means a whole week without cuddles, but I guess that's a small price to pay for making a new friend. So!" Her fellow pinkette leaned into her face so suddenly Mine nearly choked on her tea, "What's your home Loop like?" Setting her drink back down on its tray, Mine sighed.
"You really want to know?" The others frowned at her somber tone, and Monika cleared her throat awkwardly.
"If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. We're not exactly strangers to bad-"
"No, it's fine." Tensing and untensing her muscles for several seconds, the sniper finally brought her gaze back to her new friends. "To put it simply, it's horrible. Like, not as bad as 40k, from what the others have told me, but a little worse than Worm." Seeing their eyes widen, she pressed on, "I'm normally an assassin, part of a rebel group fighting to overthrow a corrupt and cruel empire. Over the course of Baseline, most of the people I know, many of whom I love like family, are killed off one by one, generally in brutal ways. I myself die in the anime version of our Hub back-up, although thankfully our Loop seems to generally play out more like the manga. In any case, it's not exactly a fun time, goofy Variants notwithstanding." With a final sad smile, she picked up a cookie from the plate. "I hope you'll forgive me for sparing you the graphic details." For a moment, the local girls were still, the only sound being the soft crunch of their guest chewing her snack. Then Monika blinked.
"That…wow, that's rough. I mean, it's not exactly as nasty as what I pulled in our Baseline but still…my heart—at least the code for it—goes out to you, kid."
Mine looked at her. "Uh…code?"
Monika nodded. "Yeah, you haven't noticed, huh? Can't say I'm surprised, most visitors don't unless they're familiar with our Hub back-up, and it sounds like you're not. Okay, try not to scream, but…this isn't a fleshy Loop. It's a computer game."
Now it was Mine's turn to stare. And stare. Until… "What."
Standing on the namesake beach of Beach City, Natsuki paused, volleyball in one uplifted palm. Cocking her head, the Looping Literature Club's resident Majin reached up and comically extended her ear with her free hand. Around her on both sides of the net, the other players furrowed their brows in concern.
"Everything okay, Nats?" Steven inquired. The presently-a-Gem Looper shoved her ear back into place and shrugged.
"I thought I heard someone screaming. Eh, must have been my imagination."
37.7 - Velvet Kitchen, by Venku
(DDLC)/(Persona 4)
Time is a gift to be treasured by all. When time is stuck on repeat, most view this opportunity to learn as they can.
Igor was one such being. Though he was aware of the ebb and flow of time, he also held a special responsibility. As an Anchor, it was his task to guide, if possible, Loopers. These Loopers would either be native to his branch or visitors.
He took this task as he did others. Philemon, his master, was aware of the Loops even though he was not Looping himself. As a part of Philemon's wager with Nyarlatoteph, Igor utilized the Velvet Room to guide their guest to their ultimate purpose.
These purposes ranged from a remarkable young man who was the barrier between a primordial desire to end things and humanity; to another young man who proved to a vengeful goddess how children of man do accept truths they'd rather ignore.
While he wished he could claim a guiding hand concerning a trickster and false hope and desires, he had to admit that his attendant bore the lion's charge for that miracle.
The Velvet Room, Igor's domain, served a purpose to Loopers and non-Loopers, guide them on their path. As a genius loci, it took on the shape of what the guest most needed.
Even if what the guest needed was a kitchen.
Natsuki Awoke. With millennia of understanding time's fickle nature, she thought she was immune to what the Tree sent her way.
The tree thought that she didn't spend enough time in this location.
The woman singing soprano in the background was the first thing she noted after accessing her Loop Memories and sending a Ping. She received quite a few responses in return. A small frown formed on her face. Before she could say something, a clear voice spoke.
"Welcome to the Velvet Room. Should you find yourself adrift in the sea of souls, know we provide a steady anchor for what's to come."
She turned her gaze to the other man. Noticing his enormous nose, Natsuki paused.
"You're the Anchor, right?" she asked
"Indeed. This is the Vel…"
He paused, holding up his hand as he issued a deep sigh. "Young Lady. Might I ask you not to touch the stove behind us?"
Natsuki paused as she turned to look over his shoulder. The setup was similar to the Looping Literature Clubroom, even down to the stove. There were three people in front of it. A tall, blonde man, a woman with curly hair, and a woman with short hair. A glance indicated they were related.
"Why?" she asked.
At that time a loud BOOOOOM could be heard as the shock wave reverberated through the Velvet Room.
The stove itself was destroyed. Black smoke rose from it while a black gelatinous blob oozed from the opening and began to run. The short-haired woman gave chase while the curly-haired woman used a fire extinguisher to smother out the flame on the blonde man.
Igor had a deadpan stare while surveying the damage, while Natsuki's left eye started to twitch.
"Can I...give them cooking lessons?" she asked, the urge to repeat what she did to Chie and others rising to the forefront.
"Be my guest," Igor responded. "They destroyed the method used on how to fuse Persona. And caused massive damage here."
The way his tone cut through the Velvet Room as a disappointed father caused the others, Elizabeth, Margaret, and Theodore, to turn their gaze to the duo. Igor just sighed and shook his head as Natsuki let loose a loud cackle.
Elizabeth paled. Her only thought? This might be a rough loop.
Meanwhile, in Inaba, Chie Satonaka and Yukiko Amagi were talking in the Amagi Inn. Both were awake and both were just catching up on gossip.
Suddenly Yukiko's spine stiffened. "Chie!" she gasped.
"I feel it too, Yukiko. It's as if some poor schlub managed to piss off that pink-haired girl." Chie responded.
Yukiko sighed. "Well. This loop may be interesting after all."
37.8 - The One Where the Depressed AI Talk, by Boohoooo!
(DDLC)/(Borderlands)
It was an average day on Pandora. The sun was blistering, the Skags were picking at corpses and Claptrap was screaming as he ran for his life from Bandits.
"WAAAAAAA! MINIONS, SAVE ME, SAVE ME!" He pleaded.
"I'M GONNA EAT YOUR EYE!" A Psycho laughed insanely. Thankfully, at this moment, they are all hit with sleep darts, falling over asleep. Claptrap sighed in relief.
"Hey Claptrap." Sayori said simply.
"Sayori! My favorite out-of-Loop minion! I knew I could count on you to come to my aid!" Claptrap happily wheeled around her. Sayori giggled and gave him a pat.
"Anytime." She stated sincerely. Claptrap whooped.
"Wanna go play some video games?" He hoped.
"Sure."
"HUZZAH!"
X
"SON OF A B****H! How are you so good at this?!" Claptrap whined as he lost to Sayori for the 7th time in some Street Fighter parody.
"I have my ways." Sayori said mysteriously. Claptrap grunted. Suddenly, Claptrap's phone rang.
"OH BOY!" Claptrap ran over to it like a kid on Christmas.
"Hello? Is this Joe?" What was clearly Handsome Jack using a Fake Accent asked.
"Joe who?"
"JOE MAMA!" Jack laughed in his regular voice.
"GOD D**N IT JACK! DON'T YOU RUN A COMPANY?! DON'T YOU HAVE BETTER THINGS TO DO?!" Claptrap complained.
"Yeah, obviously. I just like to mess with you, Crappytrap." Jack shrugged. Claptrap threw his phone across the room, where it shattered.
"...You ok?" Sayori asked in concern.
"I don't know why I thought someone would sincerely want to call me." The Steward Bot sighed.
"I'd sincerely want to call you." Sayori promised, and she meant it.
"...Thanks. sometimes you feel like the only one." Claptrap sighed. Sayori pat the beanbag chairs they'd been using, and Claptrap sits down.
"If you want to talk, I'm here." Sayori assured.
"...Am I really so unlikable? Like, I know I'm kind of a screw-up, but I try... I try so hard..." Claptrap mumbled. Sayori gave him a comforting pat.
"Sucking at something is the first step to NOT sucking at something." She informed. Claptrap seemed to mull over that.
"Don't tell anyone this but I'm jealous of you."
"Really? What do I have the Great Claptrap doesn't?"
"Friends that do more than tolerate you."
This gave Sayori pause.
"You have me Claptrap. And I'm sure if you put yourself out there, you'll find plenty of others." She softly assured.
"...You think so?"
"I think so, yeah."
"...Thanks Sayori."
"Anytime."
And the two sat in peaceful silence.
37.9 - Overdue Meeting, by Venku
(DDLC)/(Persona 3)
Sayori Awoke. Ever since time was stuck in infinity mode, there were a few things that she did. Check her Pocket for her notes. See if there were any Ping responses. And finally, access her Loop Memories.
She paused. Surely this could not be right. Surely the Tree would not place her back here.
Standing in front of the mirror of the girl's bathroom, she looked at her uniform. The small symbol on her breast indicated she was at Gekkoukhan High. If she was there then she was in one of the few places she'd rather not be.
The sounds which came from her lips upon discovering she was in the Amala Branch were the sounds of an angry kitten who just had a bath.
Settling down, although furious about the joke being played on her, Sayori went about the Loop. In this Loop, she was one of the recent transfer students who had won a scholarship for the full year. Housed in one of the nearby dorms, her life for this Loop consisted of school, Volleyball Team, and Fashion Club. Though curious why those were selected, Sayori figured she would be able to make use of the Fashion Club to work on some of her cosplay ideas.
Navigating a hallway, Sayori was intercepted by a call of "Excuse me!"
She paused and turned her head to the sound of the voice. A small internal sigh was made as she recognized the speaker, a Mitsuru Kirijo. Her red hair standing out against her smooth skin, and her body something that a model would enjoy. Though Sayori's eyes narrowed some. Did Kirijo seem nervous with her here?
"Yes, Senpai?" the visiting Doki asked.
"Would you come with me to the Student Council room?" Mitsuru asked. She wanted to place her hand on the younger woman but had a feeling it'd not be smart.
Sayori paused as she asked. "Is this something to do with the time issue on my schedule?"
Mitsuru nodded, pleased that Sayori did signal she was Looping. "Yes! I must apologize but you've been booked for too many classes. There'll be a chance to go over your schedule there." Not the best answer, but in the open hallways she was trying to avoid undue stares.
Sayori nodded her head and followed the other woman.
Arriving inside the Student Council room, Mitsuru turned to face the other woman. "I'll start first by saying the Anchor had received your message," she added. "Though since you're here I had thought to clear the air" she added. Mitsuru recalled the last time that Sayori was here. Most of the Tatsumi Port Island loopers made it their mission to avoid the peach haired Doki if they ever ran across her in that loop.
Sayori looked at the other woman in curiosity. "What is there to discuss?" she asked as she took her seat. "I am aware that your Evokers were used to summon your abilities. Modified from actual guns. Mind you, I had a close friend who manipulated me in my baseline to commit suicide. Those references are a sore point" she added, idly touching her fingers together.
"Understandable," Mitsuru replied as she brought a tea pot closer. "Want a cup? It's not as good as Iroh's but it is quite refreshing."
Sayori gave a brief smile. "Thank you" as she fixed her cup of tea. Taking a sip, Sayori nodded. "Impressive. Might I get a bag later for my Pocket?"
"Of course," Mitsusu responded. She took a sip then asked. "You're familiar with other Persona users?"
"Naoto, Fuuka, Chie, Kanji, and Yukiko all Looped into our club," Sayori commented as she took a sip. "Naoto elaborated that you utilized your evokers to invoke death's embrace while there's another group in Tokyo who rip off their mask to show signs of rebellion" she added. Looking at Mitsuru for a moment longer as she added. "I do not object to what you can do. In fact I might like to have a discussion with your group or another with a concern I have. I do strongly object to the methods used, for reasons stated."
"I see" Mitsuru replied as she closed her own eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. "Though our Wild Card is the Field Leader, I do lead the S.E.E.S. squad and the Shadow Operatives overall. We did not take into account how our abilities might look to an outsider. I do apologize for any offense caused."
Sayori paused for a moment longer before slowly nodding her head. "I've forgiven the person who manipulated me into what I did in my branch. While I'll never like," and here she put emphasis on the word, "the way you utilize your ability, I cannot and will not fault you for having it. Apology accepted. Was that the purpose of this visit?"
"One of them" Mitsuru explained. "It's something the other Wild Cards from this group, the Inaba group and the Tokyo group had mentioned that I'd like to try with you." Seeing Sayori's expression, she elaborated. "They each said that sometimes just sharing common stories or anecdotes might help bridge the gap. I'd love later to discuss some literature with you but for now I'd like to share some stories from our Baseline."
Sayori blinked for a moment and nodded her head. "I'm interested. In both the literature discussion and the story." She leaned back, listening to the other woman talk.
"So let me get this straight. Your baseline has your MC," Sayori had used the term to describe Minato, "in essence flirt with every female he runs across?"
Mitsuru nodded her head as she took a sip of tea. "Yes. Oddly enough we get rather jealous when we catch wind of him with someone else. He also was invited into each of our dorm rooms."
The Doki shuddered. "Please tell me he didn't try this when Awake. Or that it's a common trait among the 'wild cards'?"
"Takeba, one of our Loopers, decided to teach Minato a strong lesson," the redhead replied. A small lazy grin as she pulled out some photos from her pocket and placed them in front of Sayori. "And the Inaba team, per Shirogane and Kujikawa...Naoto and Rise" Mitsuru elaborated with Sayori's confused expression. "Confirmed that in their baseline, if Narukami cheated, they had their suspicions, while the Tokyo people," and here she cleared their throat. "Injured Kurusu in his guardian's shop. Said guardian did nothing as his daughter was one of those that confronted him."
"I assume that Looping Wildcards learned not to do that?" Sayori asked. When Mitsuru nodded her head, she smiled. "Good."
"Did I ever tell you about the hot springs incidents?" Mitsuru asked. She disappeared for a few moments to handle a phone call. "And my apologies on the call. Shirogane and Akihiko are part of the Shadow Operatives and awake this go-round. Had to coordinate plans for this Loop."
Sayori nodded her head. "Understandable. And what hot springs incident?"
Mitsuru chuckled. "Our baseline has a class trip to a local inn with a hot spring. Naturally, it's a major attraction. Segregated of course. Men have their own time, women another."
Taking another sip of tea, Sayori asked "Did someone sneak in when they shouldn't have?"
Mitsuru nodded. "I think the boys just didn't realize they overstayed their welcome. And they tried to sneak out. Mind you, with someone who acts as mission support, another who is an android, a sharp archer, and myself it would be difficult. Sometimes they succeed." She then had a predatory smile on her face. "And sometimes they don't."
Intrigued, Sayori leaned forward. "I see," she replied as she took a sip. "What happens when they don't succeed?"
"Execution. Normally I'd just stab my rapier through an icicle but as I wish no harm to them, just a lasting lesson, I have them encased in blocks of ice" Mitsuru elaborated. A slight tap on the table. "It lasts sometimes from six to twelve hours. To make sure the point stuck, even though I did not stab them, I still called it an execution."
Sayori giggled as she nodded. "Those meanies," she muttered.
Mitsuru leaned over and grabbed a sheet of paper. Writing two phone numbers on it, she gave it to Sayori. "One's Shirogane's phone number. The other is Haru Okumura's phone number from the Tokyo group. Both are awake and each have their own version of hot spring stories if you're interested."
"Might be more one of my friend's interest. But I'll definitely give them a call. Thank you" Sayori added as she pocketed the number.
Time had passed. The simple art of sharing experiences can, if both parties are receptive, share experiences, and allow insight into the psyche of the other. Mitsuru and Sayori shared experiences from their baseline as well as various loops.
The tea had started to taste the same, so Sayori cleared her throat. "I think we have shared relatively enough experiences, right?" she asked. A small sigh as she leaned back for a moment. "I've got my own questions though it seems like I might need to talk to the Inaba crew on something." Making a mental note to look precisely where Inaba was to Port Island, she continued.
"We got off on the wrong foot. I'd like it if we could spend some time later this loop. Just to get to know each other?" Seeing the shocked reaction on Mitsuru's face, she continued. "I'm not going to lie. How this is set up really does suck. Blaming you for this is just silly though. Friends?" she asked as she held out her hand.
A genuine smile spread across Mitsuru's face as she shook the other woman's hand. "Friends."
Sayori grinned. "Yay! Oh I still want to discuss some literature with you later. And…" whatever else Sayori was going to say was stopped with the chiming of the bell. An 'Eep!' came from the Doki's mouth as she grabbed her stuff ran out the door. "Gottagotalktoyoulater!"
Mitsuru chuckled, pleased with the outcome.
37.10 - Monika's Microgame Madness, by Awesomedude17
(DDLC)/(Wario)
Monika Awoke as she noticed someone speed by on a moped. It was then that she looked deeper into her Loop memories and...
"Wario, huh? Well, I suppose I've been meaning to listen to Mona about creating those so called microgames.
Wario was picking his nose when he heard a knock on the door. He got up and opened it to see Mona and some woman he never met at the door.
"Hey, Wario. My friend decided she wanted to work for you. Finally!"
"Eh? Oh sure. Come on in. I'll need to do an interview, or whatever." Wario replied.
Monika already was unsure what to think. Wario was never known for professionalism, or general manners. Still, she couldn't knock his business acumen. She walked into the mess of a house and then sat down at the table.
"So, I'll need a smattering of short and sweet games. Anywhere between three to ten seconds each. Every so often, you can go nuts and make, get this... a minigame!
Monika nodded. "I can do that easy. I've been coding as a hobby. I don't even care about being paid either."
"Good! You're hired. I'll call you in when I need games. Now go and do your thing. I got stuff to do and places to be." Wario immediately got up and went right back to his couch before channel flipping. "Eh... one thousand channels and the only good thing to watch is in some stupid language."
"¿Como pudiste? ¡Ese pan de ajo era para mi sobrina!"
Monika looked at Mona, who nodded in approval.
What did she just get herself into, Monika will never fully comprehend.
37.11 - "Notice Me", by Venku
The Loop started.
Sayori Awoke and sent out a Ping. With three responses and no access to her Pocket, she figured out this would be a regular Loop. To her, that was fine.
The Heart and Soul of the Literature Club had something she wanted to practice anyway.
Natsuki came in early. She Awoke and received three Pings in response. Having already run into Monika, they had agreed to keep this as close to Baseline as possible.
That notion went out the window as she walked into the Club Room. A loud, rhythmic beat was vibrating through the room. Natsuki paused, listening to the lyrics.
"Huh. The singer is a dweeb. He can rap, though" she muttered, following the sound of the beat. It led her to a side door. This door was added to the Club and was only accessible when everyone was Awake.
Inside, she was surprised. Sayori was dressed in a sailor seifuku and was swinging her hips and dancing, Sayori-style. Natsuki was leaning against the door for a moment while Sayori continued, vibing to the beat.
Eventually, the smaller Doki cleared her throat. "Sayo! What are you doing?"
Sayori smirked. She sensed Natsuki's approach and did not respond for now. Still dancing, the other Doki replied: "I had a Hub-Loop recently and picked up this dance. Thought I'd practice it."
"It's unique," Natsuki replied.
"I know!" Sayori chirped. She eventually used a remote to turn off the radio. A small giggle escaped her lips as she faced Natsuki. "I had felt the rhythmic beat, and if I ever met a Looping Jedi, I wanted to challenge them to a dance-off!" the Vice President explained.
Natsuki smirked as she nodded. "Whatever it takes to win, right?" she asked. A small pause. "Meeting in about a half-hour. You gonna...?"
Sayori nodded. The MC should be approaching the steps to the school outside. "He's coming. I'll be sure to meet him. Monika is trying to come to terms with her last Loop, so I'll be stepping in today. That's the only difference for this Loop."
Natsuki nodded. "I'll clean up here." As Sayori left, Natsuki closed the door. While the singer might be a 'dweeb', as she called it, Natsuki did like the lyrics. So she turned up the music.
Natsuki began to vibe with the beat, dancing and swishing her hips. She did not notice Yuri entering the room. Nor did she notice Yuri closing the door.
How did she notice Yuri there, one may wonder? Simple. Yuri, in a richer voice, remarked: "Senpai noticed you."
Natsuki yipped.
37.12 - Poetry Of the Looping Literature Club - Natsuki's Early Loops, by Wookywok
Last Thursday
Have you ever heard of Last Thursdayism?
It's the theory that the entire universe
People, cities, civilizations, planets, stars, you
Was all created last Thursday.
All your memories
Fake
All your relationships
Fake
All of history
All fake
Until last Thursday.
I wasn't really a believer in it
Until I got handed the proof.
King of Poets
The King of Poets sits in his castle in the sky
Perfecting his craft
He has no need for ink
He simply calls upon the words
And they leap onto the paper like trained seals
Nouns, adjectives, verbs
They are all he needs
He doesn't eat or drink or even breathe
The words sustain him
And when the poem is done
The King of Poets tucks himself into bed
And dreams of words too complicated for even him to tame
Like "a" and "the"
Venom
It already smells in here
It's a bathroom and there's puke everywhere
Perfect to hide the reek of poison
The fangs are needle-thin, you don't even feel it.
But you do feel the venom.
It hits immediately
It twists your flesh into impossible shapes.
It melts your organs into sludge.
It makes you question everything.
The venom makes you go numb, one tiny bit at a time.
There goes an eye
And a finger
And your brain
Until all that's left is your soul.
And as that goes numb with the rest of it
All you can think of
Is what's happe
I never knew pythons were venomous.
Compiler's Commentary:
37.1: Well, everything will definitely be alright here :3
37.2: Zombozo's feeling the Pagliacci Blues, here.
37.3: Zagreus-1, Monika-0
37.4: I dunno about y'all, but Sayori vs. The Librarian in the season 2 finale is definitely in my Top 5 Anime Fights.
37.5: If Sayori had tried to make her pudding-cookies, there wouldn't have even been a planet left.
37.6: Just offscreen from the volleyball game, Onion is munching on popcorn while he watches this conversation play out on his laptop. Mine's sudden scream makes him chuckle.
37.7: Natsuki suffers no fools in the kitchen. She'll make competent cooks out of them if it kills them!
37.8: Sweet Sayori, kind friend to all, even the most obnoxious robot in the universe.
37.9: Overcoming personal biases through civil conversation? WHAT SORCERY IS THIS?!
37.10: Monika being Monika, she hid a secret verse in each of her microgames; all together, they formed a poem about how much Wario smells.
37.11: I prefer Rockwell's "Somebody's Watching Me", personally.
37.12: Poetry? In my Doki Doki Literature Club fanfiction?! It's more likely than you think.