Cleaning & Videos Saturday
May. 2nd, 2026 11:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
crossover_chickYeah, this was not my most productive day -- but then again, I didn't plan for it to be, so I cannot be annoyed by that fact. In fact, I technically accomplished MORE than I set out to do:
Cleaning: ‘Twas a pretty typical Cleaning Saturday (though, happily, Mom finished all the laundry while I was still dusting, so I was able to just dump my sheets and PJs in the hamper this morn) – started around 10:40 AM or so; completed all my dusting and about half of the Swiffering before lunch at a little after 1:20 PM (parents were out this morning buying more tea for Mom at Job Lot), then finishing up the Swiffering and the vacuuming between 2 and 2:25 PM. ...I then sat around watching the second half of Jon of Many a True Nerd’s “Fallout 4 Is Better Than You Think” video essay (ironically the half covering the game’s many problems) on my phone because I really wanted to finish it after listening to the rest while I cleaned, but – well. I said today was primarily going to be a video catch-up day, so… :P
YouTube: I didn’t get to ALL the videos I wanted to watch today, thanks to spending the afternoon working on finishing off yesterday’s entry, but I did get to the ones I most wanted to watch –
A) First up was a YouTube Short that I spotted in my Recommendeds and decided I was sufficiently intrigued by to watch – “More people finished honor mode than got this #baldursgate3” by good old SuNStereO! A very short clip of someone’s Tav (or possibly Durge, it wasn’t specified) playing their lute in what appeared to be Baldur’s Gate, drawing a crowd, then ending the performance and receiving general applause and a bunch of thrown gold from the NPCs. And, as a result, earning what is apparently rarest achievement in BG3 – “Busker: Earn a hundred gold from playing sweet, sweet music in a single playthrough.” Which, at the time that clip was recorded, was an achievement only 2.6% of players had. Given only Bards start with musical instrument proficiency, and it’s pretty damn hard for the other classes to get (you either have to help Alfira finish her song a specific way or take the “Performer” feat), I’m not surprised this is a pretty rare achievement! ...that being said, earning it sounds like Smiler’s jam, so I’ll have to see if I can pick it up during my own playthrough. :D
B) Then it was over to OXBox for the latest list video: “7 Most DISAPPOINTING Plot Twists: Commenter Edition!” Jane and Mike going through another set of video games that were unable to pull off their plot twists, as suggested by comments on the last game. Oh, Batman: Arkham Knight revealed the titular Knight to be none other than Jason Todd, aka the Robin who died, aka Red Hood? Yeah, half the fanbase already guessed that because it seemed obvious, and the other half didn’t know Jason’s comic history enough to care, so... Oh, Sea Of Thieves revealed at the end of Season 6 that the killer of DeMarco Sing, son of the Pirate Lord, was the Siren Queen – a Season 3 villain who the players ALREADY KILLED? Yeah, okay, nobody guessed that one, but everyone was like “wait, how did she come back to life?” and “What the hell, we spent all the time following the clues for this?” and “WAIT A MINUTE, THE PIRATE LORD IS GOING TO KILL HER SO WE DON’T EVEN GET A BOSS FIGHT?!” (Yeah, she does genuinely get killed again in a cutscene by that guy, not the player. Boo!) And oh, Star Ocean: Until The End Of Time revealed that the protagonist’s whole universe was a giant video game, and the reason it was in trouble was because it wasn’t making enough money and the server was shutting down? ...okay, this one is a little more “your mileage may vary,” because while some might think making everything virtual cheapens everything that came before, I think that’s actually a pretty decent twist. Though maybe less suited to a JRPG (which has all the characters survive in the end despite their universe being deleted for unclear “managed to grow beyond being 1s and 0s” reasons) and more suited to a horror game. Or a Black Mirror episode.
C) And finally, it was over to C. M. Alongi’s channel to watch “CaFae Latte Season 85 - TikTok Compilation” – because, yes, the hiatus is officially over and the compilations are officially back, baby! And this one covered:
I. Oscar coming back from his brief stint in jail – revealing that the seraph agent who was chasing him before got caught up in Bob’s mass curse and fired for embezzling before he could press any charges – and getting caught up on the current situation; Bob told him things had calmed down some around the cafe but that poor Cyrus was still swamped. JC asked about the Hotel Jacaranda situation and if Cyrus had been needed there after all – turns out partially, as Bob explained that, after Herla left one of his witches there to replace the one snatched up by ICE, Cyrus managed to get the original witch freed. She also threw in that the hotel was serving as a refuge and helping fundraise for Havenwatch, a real-life charity helping those affected by the current crisis (letting us fourth-wall viewers know they need gas, gift cards, and just plain old cash, GoFundMe’s in the description). And then Cyrus walked in...and revealed that he was handing in his two-week notice. Cue general shock. :O
II. JC protesting Cyrus’s decision to quit, noting that he absolutely loved food service (particularly stealing JC’s food), and Cyrus countering that he did, but he had too many clients and thus had to start his own proper law firm! Oscar was like “...I thought you already had one,” but Cyrus explained that he’d been working freelance so far with some part-time paralegals, but, again, case load was just too great, so he had to start a proper business now. His new office was going to be in the building where one of the many antique shops in the area used to be. JC was briefly puzzled by how Cyrus managed this, because Bob’s paychecks were good, but not THAT good –
Cue Cyrus revealing both he and Bob were millionaires because financial divination IS a thing in this universe, and by Bob’s own admission, her prophecy skills aren’t THAT rusty (even if she’s not as good as Nicole). Also being able to leave it in a savings account with compounding interest for a few decades (because immortal) didn’t hurt. JC was like “I hate you” and Cyrus told them to get Nicole into stocks. :p Oscar then pointed out that Cyrus was acting oddly grouchy for someone starting his own business, with Bob agreeing that she thought he LIKED practicing law on his own terms –
Cue Cyrus hitting her with “do you like war?” And pointing out that she was an excellent soldier, but when given the option between fighting and opening a cafe, she opened a damn cafe. And implying that the only reason he was opening this firm was because he knew he had to step up to protect the people coming to him with cases, because he’d hate himself otherwise. Bob responded “I think I raised you with too much integrity,” which Cyrus absolutely agreed with. XD
III. JC visiting Cyrus’s new law firm and ragging on him for using IKEA furniture – Cyrus explained it was easier to get the boxes in than full-sized pieces...right before one of his new employees, a Japanese oni later revealed to be named Yuna, threatened to feed him to her children if he made her build another shelf. JC pointed out Cyrus was way too stringy, and Yuna informed them that they were going to be best friends. XD This was immediately followed by:
a. The reintroduction of Kenny the goblin (who JC noted they hadn’t seen in ages), warning JC that if they didn’t want to be in the promotional “we’re building our office” video, that they needed to keep away from the camera and confirming that they were the new social media guy for the firm
b. Rethu showing up to move a big old sculpture into the corner of the office – a sculpture that turned out to be a massive protective charm made by Bob, with Cyrus assuring the others that she was working on smaller ones for them and their families
c. And the introduction of a Somali woman who would be later named Amari, building some furniture with none other than Drek’s new friend Mark, who was very interested in the “dragon daddy” – and quite disappointed to learn that they were Cyrus’s partner. XD Romantic dreams crushed, she instead asked Mark how long he’d been working at the cafe – he explained that he was just a customer and a friend of the dishwasher, who came to help because Cyrus promised to pay for pizza and also gave him $20. Amari promptly told him to go for $50 next time, as Cyrus was good for it. XD Mark then asked if she was a lawyer, and she confirmed she was, if a very new one – she used to work as a paralegal for Cyrus, but he paid her so well that she was able to get back to law school and pass the bar. JC promptly realized she must have been Oat Milk Girl, which she happily confirmed.
All these new and returning faces made JC wonder just how many employees Cyrus had – Cyrus explained that, besides Amari, there were two other full attorneys to represent people; four paralegals, one for each attorney (to keep them from getting burned out working for multiple people – they’re all remote workers); Yuna, who is the office PA (“god of the office and schedule,” as Cyrus put it); and, as previously stated, Kenny, who does the social media and marketing (to get both clients and donations so they don’t have to charge clients). Oh, and Rethu as volunteer moral support – though they made it clear that it was moral support for Cyrus only, nobody else got to go on their delayed Valentine’s Date. :p Kenny asked if Rethu could at least get Cyrus to give the place a better name, with JC wondering what the current name was –
Prompting Cyrus to reveal that it was Para Legal. Which, yes, is an excellent pun, but I can see why Kenny was so frustrated. XD
IV. Post JC leaving, Amari asking Cyrus why the upstairs level of their new office was just for storage, and Cyrus explaining that it was ADA regulations – installing an elevator to make the floor wheelchair-accessible would take time and money they didn’t really have, so instead the plan was to meet clients downstairs, and store sensitive data upstairs, justifying it being employees-only. Amari accepted this and said that she planned to stay late to make sure her office would be ready to meet with her first client tomorrow – Cyrus told her that was fine and then asked Kenny if the office’s aesthetics met with their social media sensibilities –
And was informed that they did NOT – while they had the Necessary Bookshelves With Big Books Of Law, yes, and all the furniture in, they had exactly ONE bit of interior decorating and almost no lighting. Yuna said that she had ordered more standing lamps with rushed delivery, causing Kenny to grouse that they could get some properly-lit photos in like a week and Cyrus to joke that they could turn it into their first social media story – “we had shitty lighting, and now we don’t!” Kenny incredulously pointed out that Cyrus was a booktoker who had loads of subscribers, with Cyrus weakly laughing that he hadn’t posted on there in months. Amari, meanwhile, wondered why the aesthetics even mattered, given people didn’t hire law firms based on THOSE, with Yuna added they had no shortage of clients –
Only for Kenny to hit them with “maybe not NOW, but if you want to KEEP getting lots of clients, you gotta make this place look good, because people are dumb and make stupid decisions based on stupid stuff, and aesthetics is one of those.” Amari allowed this as the token black woman of the group, but insisted that courtroom wins HAD to be better PR than a nicely-decorated office – Kenny admitted they were, but reminded her and the others that this was supposed to be a refuge for clients who had already been through a LOT, and that the office should actually reflect that. Cyrus accordingly said that, since he’d been told he was SHIT at interior decorating, he’d leave everyone’s offices up to them, and let Kenny do the lobby. Yuna assured them that the budget was very big –
Right as Rethu showed up to sweep Cyrus away for their extremely-belated Valentine’s Date. They managed to stop themselves from making the obvious sex joke as the place hadn’t officially opened, but warned Yuna the grace period WOULD be coming to an end soon – Yuna responded with “I have four teenage sons, you don’t scare me.” XD Rethu allowed they’d been beat and asked Cyrus if he was ready to go – Cyrus double-checked with Yuna that he wasn’t double-booked with anything, and she assured him he was not, he just had to make it back to the office by tomorrow afternoon for a client meeting. ...well, if ICE didn’t decline the client a lawyer meeting, that is. Cyrus told Kenny to be prepared to document that if it happened (client names may be anonymous in all the social media, but the bullshit the state and feds made them deal with was not), then said that he was ready to go to the sushi place –
Only for Rethu to tell him that they had to hit Duluth first. Cyrus assumed initially something was up with their sister, but Rethu explained that they’d actually had a call from Rabbi Rabbit about something that had freaked him out, and they really didn’t want to leave him hanging. Cyrus was game, leading into –
V. Cyrus and Rethu entering Duluth and waiting to meet up with Rabbi Rabbit, with Rethu telling Cyrus that, according to the phone call, something supernatural seemed to be going on with one of the people in his synagogue – Rabbi Rabbit showed up shortly thereafter, and after a brief acknowledgment of his new “this is how you identify me in skits” hat (got at a charity auction, apparently), he told Cyrus and Rethu he really needed to show them what was happening. Cue a trip to the house of Joe and Lucy, the former of which seemed to be suffering from amnesia (asking Lucy if they’d ever had a dragon and a fairy in their living room – “Yes, but not at the same time” XD). Rabbi Rabbit asked Lucy to tell the pair Joe’s story (over Joe’s objections that everything was fine), and Lucy explained that Joe was an electrician who’d gotten zapped on a job and taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced DOA (dead on arrival). The hospital called Lucy to come identify him and get his things, and Lucy got Rabbi Rabbit to drive her there as she was naturally upset and needed the moral support – only to find her husband sitting up alive in the morgue, apparently fine but with no memories due to the brain damage he’d sustained during his time “dead.” Rabbi Rabbit, however, noted that Joe seemed to be suffering an unusual form of amnesia, with not only his memories of becoming an electrician gone, but his actual skills as well – Joe asked if that was actually weird, and Rethu confirmed that people diagnosed with the type of amnesia he had could still do the things they’d learned how to do, even if they didn’t remember learning them. His earliest memories of being a child had also been wiped, which the Rabbi noted was also odd. Joe played it down, saying that he was going to meet his parents and kids this weekend to catch up (with Lucy happily telling him about how his parents would have so many embarrassing baby stories, and how awesome his children were), and Cyrus noted that things seemed to be okay, so why the heck were he and Rethu there –
And then one of the family portraits went smash. Causing Rabbi Rabbit to reveal that the house was apparently haunted immediately in the wake of all of this happening. “Way to bury the lead!” Rethu complained. XD
VI. Cyrus summing up the situation – Joe died, got better but lost his memories, returned home, and immediately found the house was haunted – and Joe insisting he wasn’t sure that it WAS despite a photograph having been broken moments before. Rabbi Rabbit was of the opinion that Joe had accidentally brought a poltergeist back with him after his little accident – Joe insisted that if he had, it was a pretty harmless one, as it kept just attacking the photographs. Lucy said that she didn’t want to keep dealing with the broken picture frames, though – and that she was NOT about to let a ghost chase her out of her own house when Joe suggested they move, being empty nesters and all. She asked Rabbi Rabbit if he could do some sort of exorcism, but Rabbit stated that he’d have to know WHO he was exorcising before trying anything –
Causing Joe to be like “we are NOT talking to the ghost.” Rethu said that they should worry about this, as ghosts and other such beings did not respond well to being ignored for too long, but Joe replied that he still didn’t believe it was a ghost – old drafty house was drafty – and asked the group to leave, as it had been a long day. Rethu went to protest –
But Cyrus interrupted, stating that they would be happy to depart. Rabbit Rabbit apologized once they were outside for bringing them all that way for nothing, but Cyrus assured him it was NOT nothing, and that he knew something rotten was up. He asked Rethu if they were okay with canceling the dinner reservations (they were, saying they could bug their sister for dinner) before calling up one Ghost Hunter John for his assistance…
VII. John meeting up with the group at Rabbi Rabbit’s house and asking him about the ghost’s behavior – and then, upon learning it was mainly doing the traditional “opening cabinets, moving objects around, appearing as smudgy shadows in mirrors,” declaring it to be a “baby ghost.” Rethu was initially concerned that this meant it was the ghost of a child, but John explained that it referred to a ghost who had recently died – a freshly-deceased ghost simply didn’t have the power to manifest and cause the trouble an older ghost did. Cyrus commented that he thought timing played a role as well, and John confirmed that on Halloween and the Winter Solstice, ghosts were generally able to do more because the veil between worlds was thinner – but as this was happening in spring, season of life, this ghost was going to be a LOT more limited. Rabbi Rabbit asked what they could to figure out who the ghost was – John noted that he’d NORMALLY recommend an Ouija Board, but he’d had to trash his after a job went south, so instead they were going to have to rely on a pendulum board and yes and no questions, which he assured them would probably get them farther than they thought. Rabbit then asked if this had to happen in his house –
Causing John to reply “No, you’re not the one haunted – we have to go to where the ghost is.” Cyrus noted that it was unlikely Joe would let them back in – Rethu asked if they were really giving him a choice, but Rabbi Rabbit managed to shut down strongarming their way in in favor of sneaking into the couple’s gazebo that night instead. Cut to the gang in the gazebo, with Rethu using their wings to hide any cellphone light from the upstairs bedroom window (where Cyrus was pretty sure the couple was) as John started asking if there were any ghosts that could hear him – and, upon receiving a yes, asking if the ghost died in the last week (yes) and if they had been murdered (no, surprising Rethu, who thought all ghosts were murder victims – John told them usually, but not always). They also said “yes” when John asked if they were a member of the Vanderson family – Cyrus asked Rabbi Rabbit for his thoughts, as he knew the family better than they did, but Rabbi Rabbit said that the only Vanderson who had died recently was Joe –
And Rethu noticed that the pendulum swung toward “yes” there. And when John asked if the ghost was Joe Vanderson, it went to “yes” again. There was a baffled moment of silence before Rethu declared the ghost had to be lying, as they’d just talked to the very much alive Joe that afternoon –
But the ghost insisted “no.” John asked if there had been some sort of glamour involved, but Cyrus said he hadn’t noticed anything like that, as Bob had taught him to see through those. Cue John going “screw it” and telling Cyrus to take his notebook to write down what the ghost said as he prepared to say the alphabet so “Joe” could give them a proper message…
VIII. And finally, at the ghost’s request, the group heading toward a local park with shovels! Rethu asked if anyone else found “Joe” asking them to do this very suspicious – Cyrus was like “don’t tell me you’re scared,” but Rethu explained they were just concerned for the squishier members of their group (Rabbi Rabbit was like “I want to be insulted, but…” XD). John declared that ghosts were like puzzles and they just needed some time to figure this one out, then pointed out the park was across the street from the hospital Joe was brought to, so it was likely whoever separated ghost from flesh left evidence here, specifically near the fence. Cyrus promptly spotted a patch of freshly-turned earth about a week old in the corner (“what, I’m a defense attorney, I pick up things from investigators” he explained to the incredulous Rabbi Rabbit), and they dug it up –
To find a skinless corpse. D: Everyone was naturally very disturbed by this – especially Rabbi Rabbit, who was especially upset that the body had been buried without ceremony. Cyrus told him to keep it down before asking Rethu if they’d ever seen anything like this – they confirmed they hadn’t and bounced the question to John, who said he had no idea what was going on either. And that they should call the police to report the body. Rethu wasn’t sure how involving the cops would help the situation, but John reminded them that they could run forensics and find out who the corpse was, and Cyrus added that it would make THEM look less like the ones who killed whoever this was to report it now. John tasked Cyrus with calling the police while he put in a call to another expert, telling Rabbit Rabbit this was above his paygrade – and cue the season ending with John pulling in the big guns, aka King Herla.
Whew – well, that took a while! But this was a good compilation – it’s sad, but unsurprising, that Cyrus has to leave the cafe to do lawyer stuff, and I trust his law firm to do a lot of good. And oh man, this supernatural mystery is a frankly worrying one – I’d guessed that whoever was in Joe’s body wasn’t actually JOE, but I thought it was a different ghost possessing his corpse, not something wearing his skin. Oh boy...at least I have faith that Herla can handle whatever the fuck it is!
Tumblr: To my own surprise, I actually put something up on both of my tumblrs this night –
Victor Luvs Alice (N Smiler) – Over here, I reblogged a post by silicon65 of Gef the Talking Moongoose, going on about how he wasn’t evil (but he could be, if he wanted to, and could kill all the listeners, but he wouldn’t) – Gef being a character in the eldritch horror Valice fanfic “Beneath A Broken Sky” by thesatiricaldemon (sort of Victor’s necromantic familiar, in fact), I reblogged it pretty much just to add the tag “#look Satirical it's ya boi (and BABS Victor's boy too)” XD Because that is what friends do, dang it. :p
Valice Multiverse – And over here, I answered the ask I couldn’t get to last night – from one thecovenwars, stating that “sometimes writing is just watching characters do something phenomenally stupid and then writing up the incident report.” XD I decided that one deserved a meta answer and had Cuddlepile!Victor express the hope that that wasn’t how I saw writing my Valice and Valicer stories – his Alice commented that it probably depended on which universe and which particular story I was writing, with the matching Smiler adding that if any verse was going to be hit by this, it would be Valicer In The Dark, whose stories were partly the product of dice rolls. Cue VITD!Smiler yelling over that I had promised them that they’d always successfully complete the score, at least. XD I thought it was funny!
And I have stayed up a bit later than I intended to get this done, so I really need to go to bed now. Goals for tomorrow include working more on my tumblr drafts on Victor Luvs Alice (N Smiler) (hopefully finishing up the VITD Meets BG3 Volume 3 post); playing some Fallout: New Vegas and seeing if I can get Victor a friend in ED-E by visiting the Mojave Express office; and keeping up with the latest F:NV YOLO Remastered episode -- if there is one this week. Depends on how Jon's feeling, I suppose! If I can get anything else done, that'll be a bonus. *nods* Night all!
Cleaning: ‘Twas a pretty typical Cleaning Saturday (though, happily, Mom finished all the laundry while I was still dusting, so I was able to just dump my sheets and PJs in the hamper this morn) – started around 10:40 AM or so; completed all my dusting and about half of the Swiffering before lunch at a little after 1:20 PM (parents were out this morning buying more tea for Mom at Job Lot), then finishing up the Swiffering and the vacuuming between 2 and 2:25 PM. ...I then sat around watching the second half of Jon of Many a True Nerd’s “Fallout 4 Is Better Than You Think” video essay (ironically the half covering the game’s many problems) on my phone because I really wanted to finish it after listening to the rest while I cleaned, but – well. I said today was primarily going to be a video catch-up day, so… :P
YouTube: I didn’t get to ALL the videos I wanted to watch today, thanks to spending the afternoon working on finishing off yesterday’s entry, but I did get to the ones I most wanted to watch –
A) First up was a YouTube Short that I spotted in my Recommendeds and decided I was sufficiently intrigued by to watch – “More people finished honor mode than got this #baldursgate3” by good old SuNStereO! A very short clip of someone’s Tav (or possibly Durge, it wasn’t specified) playing their lute in what appeared to be Baldur’s Gate, drawing a crowd, then ending the performance and receiving general applause and a bunch of thrown gold from the NPCs. And, as a result, earning what is apparently rarest achievement in BG3 – “Busker: Earn a hundred gold from playing sweet, sweet music in a single playthrough.” Which, at the time that clip was recorded, was an achievement only 2.6% of players had. Given only Bards start with musical instrument proficiency, and it’s pretty damn hard for the other classes to get (you either have to help Alfira finish her song a specific way or take the “Performer” feat), I’m not surprised this is a pretty rare achievement! ...that being said, earning it sounds like Smiler’s jam, so I’ll have to see if I can pick it up during my own playthrough. :D
B) Then it was over to OXBox for the latest list video: “7 Most DISAPPOINTING Plot Twists: Commenter Edition!” Jane and Mike going through another set of video games that were unable to pull off their plot twists, as suggested by comments on the last game. Oh, Batman: Arkham Knight revealed the titular Knight to be none other than Jason Todd, aka the Robin who died, aka Red Hood? Yeah, half the fanbase already guessed that because it seemed obvious, and the other half didn’t know Jason’s comic history enough to care, so... Oh, Sea Of Thieves revealed at the end of Season 6 that the killer of DeMarco Sing, son of the Pirate Lord, was the Siren Queen – a Season 3 villain who the players ALREADY KILLED? Yeah, okay, nobody guessed that one, but everyone was like “wait, how did she come back to life?” and “What the hell, we spent all the time following the clues for this?” and “WAIT A MINUTE, THE PIRATE LORD IS GOING TO KILL HER SO WE DON’T EVEN GET A BOSS FIGHT?!” (Yeah, she does genuinely get killed again in a cutscene by that guy, not the player. Boo!) And oh, Star Ocean: Until The End Of Time revealed that the protagonist’s whole universe was a giant video game, and the reason it was in trouble was because it wasn’t making enough money and the server was shutting down? ...okay, this one is a little more “your mileage may vary,” because while some might think making everything virtual cheapens everything that came before, I think that’s actually a pretty decent twist. Though maybe less suited to a JRPG (which has all the characters survive in the end despite their universe being deleted for unclear “managed to grow beyond being 1s and 0s” reasons) and more suited to a horror game. Or a Black Mirror episode.
C) And finally, it was over to C. M. Alongi’s channel to watch “CaFae Latte Season 85 - TikTok Compilation” – because, yes, the hiatus is officially over and the compilations are officially back, baby! And this one covered:
I. Oscar coming back from his brief stint in jail – revealing that the seraph agent who was chasing him before got caught up in Bob’s mass curse and fired for embezzling before he could press any charges – and getting caught up on the current situation; Bob told him things had calmed down some around the cafe but that poor Cyrus was still swamped. JC asked about the Hotel Jacaranda situation and if Cyrus had been needed there after all – turns out partially, as Bob explained that, after Herla left one of his witches there to replace the one snatched up by ICE, Cyrus managed to get the original witch freed. She also threw in that the hotel was serving as a refuge and helping fundraise for Havenwatch, a real-life charity helping those affected by the current crisis (letting us fourth-wall viewers know they need gas, gift cards, and just plain old cash, GoFundMe’s in the description). And then Cyrus walked in...and revealed that he was handing in his two-week notice. Cue general shock. :O
II. JC protesting Cyrus’s decision to quit, noting that he absolutely loved food service (particularly stealing JC’s food), and Cyrus countering that he did, but he had too many clients and thus had to start his own proper law firm! Oscar was like “...I thought you already had one,” but Cyrus explained that he’d been working freelance so far with some part-time paralegals, but, again, case load was just too great, so he had to start a proper business now. His new office was going to be in the building where one of the many antique shops in the area used to be. JC was briefly puzzled by how Cyrus managed this, because Bob’s paychecks were good, but not THAT good –
Cue Cyrus revealing both he and Bob were millionaires because financial divination IS a thing in this universe, and by Bob’s own admission, her prophecy skills aren’t THAT rusty (even if she’s not as good as Nicole). Also being able to leave it in a savings account with compounding interest for a few decades (because immortal) didn’t hurt. JC was like “I hate you” and Cyrus told them to get Nicole into stocks. :p Oscar then pointed out that Cyrus was acting oddly grouchy for someone starting his own business, with Bob agreeing that she thought he LIKED practicing law on his own terms –
Cue Cyrus hitting her with “do you like war?” And pointing out that she was an excellent soldier, but when given the option between fighting and opening a cafe, she opened a damn cafe. And implying that the only reason he was opening this firm was because he knew he had to step up to protect the people coming to him with cases, because he’d hate himself otherwise. Bob responded “I think I raised you with too much integrity,” which Cyrus absolutely agreed with. XD
III. JC visiting Cyrus’s new law firm and ragging on him for using IKEA furniture – Cyrus explained it was easier to get the boxes in than full-sized pieces...right before one of his new employees, a Japanese oni later revealed to be named Yuna, threatened to feed him to her children if he made her build another shelf. JC pointed out Cyrus was way too stringy, and Yuna informed them that they were going to be best friends. XD This was immediately followed by:
a. The reintroduction of Kenny the goblin (who JC noted they hadn’t seen in ages), warning JC that if they didn’t want to be in the promotional “we’re building our office” video, that they needed to keep away from the camera and confirming that they were the new social media guy for the firm
b. Rethu showing up to move a big old sculpture into the corner of the office – a sculpture that turned out to be a massive protective charm made by Bob, with Cyrus assuring the others that she was working on smaller ones for them and their families
c. And the introduction of a Somali woman who would be later named Amari, building some furniture with none other than Drek’s new friend Mark, who was very interested in the “dragon daddy” – and quite disappointed to learn that they were Cyrus’s partner. XD Romantic dreams crushed, she instead asked Mark how long he’d been working at the cafe – he explained that he was just a customer and a friend of the dishwasher, who came to help because Cyrus promised to pay for pizza and also gave him $20. Amari promptly told him to go for $50 next time, as Cyrus was good for it. XD Mark then asked if she was a lawyer, and she confirmed she was, if a very new one – she used to work as a paralegal for Cyrus, but he paid her so well that she was able to get back to law school and pass the bar. JC promptly realized she must have been Oat Milk Girl, which she happily confirmed.
All these new and returning faces made JC wonder just how many employees Cyrus had – Cyrus explained that, besides Amari, there were two other full attorneys to represent people; four paralegals, one for each attorney (to keep them from getting burned out working for multiple people – they’re all remote workers); Yuna, who is the office PA (“god of the office and schedule,” as Cyrus put it); and, as previously stated, Kenny, who does the social media and marketing (to get both clients and donations so they don’t have to charge clients). Oh, and Rethu as volunteer moral support – though they made it clear that it was moral support for Cyrus only, nobody else got to go on their delayed Valentine’s Date. :p Kenny asked if Rethu could at least get Cyrus to give the place a better name, with JC wondering what the current name was –
Prompting Cyrus to reveal that it was Para Legal. Which, yes, is an excellent pun, but I can see why Kenny was so frustrated. XD
IV. Post JC leaving, Amari asking Cyrus why the upstairs level of their new office was just for storage, and Cyrus explaining that it was ADA regulations – installing an elevator to make the floor wheelchair-accessible would take time and money they didn’t really have, so instead the plan was to meet clients downstairs, and store sensitive data upstairs, justifying it being employees-only. Amari accepted this and said that she planned to stay late to make sure her office would be ready to meet with her first client tomorrow – Cyrus told her that was fine and then asked Kenny if the office’s aesthetics met with their social media sensibilities –
And was informed that they did NOT – while they had the Necessary Bookshelves With Big Books Of Law, yes, and all the furniture in, they had exactly ONE bit of interior decorating and almost no lighting. Yuna said that she had ordered more standing lamps with rushed delivery, causing Kenny to grouse that they could get some properly-lit photos in like a week and Cyrus to joke that they could turn it into their first social media story – “we had shitty lighting, and now we don’t!” Kenny incredulously pointed out that Cyrus was a booktoker who had loads of subscribers, with Cyrus weakly laughing that he hadn’t posted on there in months. Amari, meanwhile, wondered why the aesthetics even mattered, given people didn’t hire law firms based on THOSE, with Yuna added they had no shortage of clients –
Only for Kenny to hit them with “maybe not NOW, but if you want to KEEP getting lots of clients, you gotta make this place look good, because people are dumb and make stupid decisions based on stupid stuff, and aesthetics is one of those.” Amari allowed this as the token black woman of the group, but insisted that courtroom wins HAD to be better PR than a nicely-decorated office – Kenny admitted they were, but reminded her and the others that this was supposed to be a refuge for clients who had already been through a LOT, and that the office should actually reflect that. Cyrus accordingly said that, since he’d been told he was SHIT at interior decorating, he’d leave everyone’s offices up to them, and let Kenny do the lobby. Yuna assured them that the budget was very big –
Right as Rethu showed up to sweep Cyrus away for their extremely-belated Valentine’s Date. They managed to stop themselves from making the obvious sex joke as the place hadn’t officially opened, but warned Yuna the grace period WOULD be coming to an end soon – Yuna responded with “I have four teenage sons, you don’t scare me.” XD Rethu allowed they’d been beat and asked Cyrus if he was ready to go – Cyrus double-checked with Yuna that he wasn’t double-booked with anything, and she assured him he was not, he just had to make it back to the office by tomorrow afternoon for a client meeting. ...well, if ICE didn’t decline the client a lawyer meeting, that is. Cyrus told Kenny to be prepared to document that if it happened (client names may be anonymous in all the social media, but the bullshit the state and feds made them deal with was not), then said that he was ready to go to the sushi place –
Only for Rethu to tell him that they had to hit Duluth first. Cyrus assumed initially something was up with their sister, but Rethu explained that they’d actually had a call from Rabbi Rabbit about something that had freaked him out, and they really didn’t want to leave him hanging. Cyrus was game, leading into –
V. Cyrus and Rethu entering Duluth and waiting to meet up with Rabbi Rabbit, with Rethu telling Cyrus that, according to the phone call, something supernatural seemed to be going on with one of the people in his synagogue – Rabbi Rabbit showed up shortly thereafter, and after a brief acknowledgment of his new “this is how you identify me in skits” hat (got at a charity auction, apparently), he told Cyrus and Rethu he really needed to show them what was happening. Cue a trip to the house of Joe and Lucy, the former of which seemed to be suffering from amnesia (asking Lucy if they’d ever had a dragon and a fairy in their living room – “Yes, but not at the same time” XD). Rabbi Rabbit asked Lucy to tell the pair Joe’s story (over Joe’s objections that everything was fine), and Lucy explained that Joe was an electrician who’d gotten zapped on a job and taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced DOA (dead on arrival). The hospital called Lucy to come identify him and get his things, and Lucy got Rabbi Rabbit to drive her there as she was naturally upset and needed the moral support – only to find her husband sitting up alive in the morgue, apparently fine but with no memories due to the brain damage he’d sustained during his time “dead.” Rabbi Rabbit, however, noted that Joe seemed to be suffering an unusual form of amnesia, with not only his memories of becoming an electrician gone, but his actual skills as well – Joe asked if that was actually weird, and Rethu confirmed that people diagnosed with the type of amnesia he had could still do the things they’d learned how to do, even if they didn’t remember learning them. His earliest memories of being a child had also been wiped, which the Rabbi noted was also odd. Joe played it down, saying that he was going to meet his parents and kids this weekend to catch up (with Lucy happily telling him about how his parents would have so many embarrassing baby stories, and how awesome his children were), and Cyrus noted that things seemed to be okay, so why the heck were he and Rethu there –
And then one of the family portraits went smash. Causing Rabbi Rabbit to reveal that the house was apparently haunted immediately in the wake of all of this happening. “Way to bury the lead!” Rethu complained. XD
VI. Cyrus summing up the situation – Joe died, got better but lost his memories, returned home, and immediately found the house was haunted – and Joe insisting he wasn’t sure that it WAS despite a photograph having been broken moments before. Rabbi Rabbit was of the opinion that Joe had accidentally brought a poltergeist back with him after his little accident – Joe insisted that if he had, it was a pretty harmless one, as it kept just attacking the photographs. Lucy said that she didn’t want to keep dealing with the broken picture frames, though – and that she was NOT about to let a ghost chase her out of her own house when Joe suggested they move, being empty nesters and all. She asked Rabbi Rabbit if he could do some sort of exorcism, but Rabbit stated that he’d have to know WHO he was exorcising before trying anything –
Causing Joe to be like “we are NOT talking to the ghost.” Rethu said that they should worry about this, as ghosts and other such beings did not respond well to being ignored for too long, but Joe replied that he still didn’t believe it was a ghost – old drafty house was drafty – and asked the group to leave, as it had been a long day. Rethu went to protest –
But Cyrus interrupted, stating that they would be happy to depart. Rabbit Rabbit apologized once they were outside for bringing them all that way for nothing, but Cyrus assured him it was NOT nothing, and that he knew something rotten was up. He asked Rethu if they were okay with canceling the dinner reservations (they were, saying they could bug their sister for dinner) before calling up one Ghost Hunter John for his assistance…
VII. John meeting up with the group at Rabbi Rabbit’s house and asking him about the ghost’s behavior – and then, upon learning it was mainly doing the traditional “opening cabinets, moving objects around, appearing as smudgy shadows in mirrors,” declaring it to be a “baby ghost.” Rethu was initially concerned that this meant it was the ghost of a child, but John explained that it referred to a ghost who had recently died – a freshly-deceased ghost simply didn’t have the power to manifest and cause the trouble an older ghost did. Cyrus commented that he thought timing played a role as well, and John confirmed that on Halloween and the Winter Solstice, ghosts were generally able to do more because the veil between worlds was thinner – but as this was happening in spring, season of life, this ghost was going to be a LOT more limited. Rabbi Rabbit asked what they could to figure out who the ghost was – John noted that he’d NORMALLY recommend an Ouija Board, but he’d had to trash his after a job went south, so instead they were going to have to rely on a pendulum board and yes and no questions, which he assured them would probably get them farther than they thought. Rabbit then asked if this had to happen in his house –
Causing John to reply “No, you’re not the one haunted – we have to go to where the ghost is.” Cyrus noted that it was unlikely Joe would let them back in – Rethu asked if they were really giving him a choice, but Rabbi Rabbit managed to shut down strongarming their way in in favor of sneaking into the couple’s gazebo that night instead. Cut to the gang in the gazebo, with Rethu using their wings to hide any cellphone light from the upstairs bedroom window (where Cyrus was pretty sure the couple was) as John started asking if there were any ghosts that could hear him – and, upon receiving a yes, asking if the ghost died in the last week (yes) and if they had been murdered (no, surprising Rethu, who thought all ghosts were murder victims – John told them usually, but not always). They also said “yes” when John asked if they were a member of the Vanderson family – Cyrus asked Rabbi Rabbit for his thoughts, as he knew the family better than they did, but Rabbi Rabbit said that the only Vanderson who had died recently was Joe –
And Rethu noticed that the pendulum swung toward “yes” there. And when John asked if the ghost was Joe Vanderson, it went to “yes” again. There was a baffled moment of silence before Rethu declared the ghost had to be lying, as they’d just talked to the very much alive Joe that afternoon –
But the ghost insisted “no.” John asked if there had been some sort of glamour involved, but Cyrus said he hadn’t noticed anything like that, as Bob had taught him to see through those. Cue John going “screw it” and telling Cyrus to take his notebook to write down what the ghost said as he prepared to say the alphabet so “Joe” could give them a proper message…
VIII. And finally, at the ghost’s request, the group heading toward a local park with shovels! Rethu asked if anyone else found “Joe” asking them to do this very suspicious – Cyrus was like “don’t tell me you’re scared,” but Rethu explained they were just concerned for the squishier members of their group (Rabbi Rabbit was like “I want to be insulted, but…” XD). John declared that ghosts were like puzzles and they just needed some time to figure this one out, then pointed out the park was across the street from the hospital Joe was brought to, so it was likely whoever separated ghost from flesh left evidence here, specifically near the fence. Cyrus promptly spotted a patch of freshly-turned earth about a week old in the corner (“what, I’m a defense attorney, I pick up things from investigators” he explained to the incredulous Rabbi Rabbit), and they dug it up –
To find a skinless corpse. D: Everyone was naturally very disturbed by this – especially Rabbi Rabbit, who was especially upset that the body had been buried without ceremony. Cyrus told him to keep it down before asking Rethu if they’d ever seen anything like this – they confirmed they hadn’t and bounced the question to John, who said he had no idea what was going on either. And that they should call the police to report the body. Rethu wasn’t sure how involving the cops would help the situation, but John reminded them that they could run forensics and find out who the corpse was, and Cyrus added that it would make THEM look less like the ones who killed whoever this was to report it now. John tasked Cyrus with calling the police while he put in a call to another expert, telling Rabbit Rabbit this was above his paygrade – and cue the season ending with John pulling in the big guns, aka King Herla.
Whew – well, that took a while! But this was a good compilation – it’s sad, but unsurprising, that Cyrus has to leave the cafe to do lawyer stuff, and I trust his law firm to do a lot of good. And oh man, this supernatural mystery is a frankly worrying one – I’d guessed that whoever was in Joe’s body wasn’t actually JOE, but I thought it was a different ghost possessing his corpse, not something wearing his skin. Oh boy...at least I have faith that Herla can handle whatever the fuck it is!
Tumblr: To my own surprise, I actually put something up on both of my tumblrs this night –
Victor Luvs Alice (N Smiler) – Over here, I reblogged a post by silicon65 of Gef the Talking Moongoose, going on about how he wasn’t evil (but he could be, if he wanted to, and could kill all the listeners, but he wouldn’t) – Gef being a character in the eldritch horror Valice fanfic “Beneath A Broken Sky” by thesatiricaldemon (sort of Victor’s necromantic familiar, in fact), I reblogged it pretty much just to add the tag “#look Satirical it's ya boi (and BABS Victor's boy too)” XD Because that is what friends do, dang it. :p
Valice Multiverse – And over here, I answered the ask I couldn’t get to last night – from one thecovenwars, stating that “sometimes writing is just watching characters do something phenomenally stupid and then writing up the incident report.” XD I decided that one deserved a meta answer and had Cuddlepile!Victor express the hope that that wasn’t how I saw writing my Valice and Valicer stories – his Alice commented that it probably depended on which universe and which particular story I was writing, with the matching Smiler adding that if any verse was going to be hit by this, it would be Valicer In The Dark, whose stories were partly the product of dice rolls. Cue VITD!Smiler yelling over that I had promised them that they’d always successfully complete the score, at least. XD I thought it was funny!
And I have stayed up a bit later than I intended to get this done, so I really need to go to bed now. Goals for tomorrow include working more on my tumblr drafts on Victor Luvs Alice (N Smiler) (hopefully finishing up the VITD Meets BG3 Volume 3 post); playing some Fallout: New Vegas and seeing if I can get Victor a friend in ED-E by visiting the Mojave Express office; and keeping up with the latest F:NV YOLO Remastered episode -- if there is one this week. Depends on how Jon's feeling, I suppose! If I can get anything else done, that'll be a bonus. *nods* Night all!
no subject
Date: 2026-05-08 01:39 am (UTC)That "I am a lazy boy trapped in a workaholic's body" wound up on merch, with choices of boy, girl, person.
Patreons came up the name for the law firm, and apparently the logo is in the works. Folks in the comments let CM know Cyrus will also need secretaries and file clerks and a bookkeeper. She said she'll add that in after the arc wraps.
People in the comments were also suggesting that Cyrus et al should commission Nicole and her students for art.
People in the comments (I'm saying that a lot this round lol) basically called what was going on with Joe right away.
Finding out about the ghost is Cyrus and Rethu's date now, lol.
Description of the pendulum episode states that she found out pendulum boards are designed less for talking to ghosts and more for divination but "ya use what ya got". People in the comments(TM) said John could've put letters A-Z on a piece of paper to use it like a Ouija board. But oh well.
When John said "Herla" I said "YAY!"
Lastly, CM stated that the whole arc was inspired by an Irish folktale she'd read over a year ago that's lived in her head rent-free.
no subject
Date: 2026-05-09 03:48 am (UTC)*snork* Not surprised, it's a very quotable line. And I like how they made sure it's customizable. :)
I see -- so THEY'RE the ones to blame for the pun. :p I look forward to seeing the logo! And ah yes, all important roles in a law firm -- Cyrus can get all those people once the current supernatural horrors have been taken care of, yeah. :p
He should, yeah! Be a good way to support a friend AND decorate the walls!
LOL, well, the commenters were apparently very busy this round. :p And I'm not surprised, I knew something had to be wrong -- though not EXACTLY what turned out to be wrong, yeeps. O.o
*snork* It is -- good thing Rethu's sister is nearby to hit for food!
Yeah, I think I've heard about that -- but yes, as stated, gotta use what you got. And oh yeah, that's true -- shame John (/Chris) didn't think of that earlier, but them's the breaks!
LOL, yes -- I do love them calling on each other in times of trouble. :)
I see, interesting -- pretty dark folktale if it involves creatures crawling into people's SKIN. *shudder*