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Language:
English
Series:
Part 1 of Studioverse
Stats:
Published:
2022-01-28
Updated:
2026-06-05
Words:
157,496
Chapters:
51/?
Comments:
234
Kudos:
225
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33
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8,551

Call Signs

Summary:

Springboarded off the question, "What if Swatch and Spamton met ***long after*** Spamton became a Big Shot?"

And thus a Swatchton human AU was born.
_________________________
IMPORTANT! One does not need to have played DELTARUNE [or UNDERTALE, for that matter] to enjoy this story. This being a college/university AU, the events and references from the videogame enrich and ENHANCE the story, much like a movie's or game's Easter eggs, but aren't absolutely necessary to understand what's going on.

Notes:

This is a tale that will have more serious themes than my regular readers may be used to... racial tension, economic disparity, homophobia, and a few more nasty surprises to be revealed. However, there WILL be a happy ending.

Swatch is multiracial and rooms with their two maternal cousins, who are twins, and who've been nicknamed "the Swatchlings" because they do everything together, including playing on the same college basketball team.

Spamton, on the surface, is as WASP-y as can be.

Of course, nothing is ever that simple.
 
Chapter titles are taken from TV Tropes.
 
Each chapter will have warnings where appropriate. All artwork belongs to their respective creators and is used with loving and grateful permission. Credits listed in the BONUS MATERIALS chapter at the end of this work.

(See the end of the work for more notes and other works inspired by this one.)

Chapter 1: DRAMATIS PERSONAE

Notes:

Artwork of the main cast by Jay, who can be found on Tumblr.

Chapter Text

CAST OF CHARACTERS IN [APPROXIMATE] ORDER OF APPEARANCE OR MENTION:

  • Swatch Paletta. Computer sciences major at Inwood College, attending on a sports scholarship; 21 years old, entering senior year, has artistic and design talent that's often repressed or dismissed. Deltarune equivalent: Swatch, Queen's Butler and Barista at the Color Cafe.
  • Indigo "Indo" Dyer. Swatch's maternal cousin, Catechu's twin brother. On the Inwood College basketball team with Swatch and Catechu. Majoring in hotel administration. Quieter than his brother. 20 years old, in junior year. An excellent cook. Deltarune equivalent: Swatchling.
  • Catechu "Catto" Dyer. Swatch's maternal cousin, Indigo's twin brother. On the Inwood College basketball team with Swatch and Indigo. Majoring in hotel administration. More outgoing than his brother. Age 20, junior year. Fences with sabres as a hobby. Dating Kendra Kiefer. Deltarune equivalent: Swatchling.
  • Spamton Addison. Legal name Gainsboro Stanton Addison. Transfer student at Inwood College, left previous studies at North Dale University under mysterious circumstances. Member of the Addison family who made their fortune in cybernetics. Has a bad stutter that he can disguise when singing or using voice change software. 24 years old, just entering junior year. Deltarune equivalent: Spamton G. Spamton.
  • Ballew Addison. Spamton's older brother, Chief Operations Officer of Addison Cybernetics. Essentially runs the company, despite not having the highest-ranking title. Protective. Deltarune equivalent: Blue Addison.
  • Tabitha Montgomery "T.M." Tanner [later uses the name "Terese Marlena Tinker"]. Grew up in the same neighborhood in Queens, New York as Swatch, Indigo, and Catechu. Swatch's best friend; Swatch calls her "Moggy", she calls Swatch "Birdman" because of their "wingspan" [long arms]. Communications major, age 21, in her senior year. Works at WRCI, the college radio station. Deltarune equivalent: Tasque Manager.
  • Ed Bontempo. Head coach of the Inwood College basketball team. Plays the tuba, is a former gourmet chef. Original character.
  • Eos Addison. Spamton's eldest sibling, CEO of Addison Cybernetics. A company figurehead only. Deltarune equivalent: Pink Addison.
  • Sienna Addison-Timothy. Spamton's older sister, the "New Age" guru of the family. Financially successful in her own field. Deltarune equivalent: Orange Addison.
  • Saffron Timothy-Addison. Spamton's sister-in-law, Sienna's wife. Runs a fitness center. Deltarune equivalent: Yellow Addison.
  • Fairlight Paletta. Swatch's maternal grandmother, also grandmother of the twins. Raised Swatch from the time Swatch was ten. Deceased before the start of the story, encouraged Swatch's art. Deltarune equivalent: unnamed Lightner for whom Swatch built NEO.
  • Claudine Paletta. Swatch's mother, Fairlight's daughter. Raised Swatch as a single parent until suffering a traumatic brain injury when Swatch was ten, is now in a nursing home. Original character.
  • Father of Swatch. Unknown. Original character.
  • Desiree Dyer. Maiden name Paletta. Swatch's aunt, Claudine's sister, mother of Catechu and Indigo. Original character.
  • Julius Dyer. Married to Desiree. Swatch's uncle, father of Catechu and Indigo. A father figure of sorts to Swatch. Original character.
  • Mister Arcobaleno. Mentioned only, does not appear. Owns Arcobaleno's Color Cafe, a restaurant where Swatch and the twins have worked in the past, which has frequent celebrity guests like Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga. Original character.
  • Leroux Kaard. Manager at WRCI, the radio station at Inwood College. Deltarune equivalent: Rouxls Kaard.
  • Regina "GiGi" McCray. T.M.'s roommate, can be quite abrasive. Deltarune equivalent: Queen.
  • Mike Cowley. Professor at North Dale University, where Spamton was previously enrolled. Hints given that he is an expert in robotic design. More to be revealed. Deltarune equivalent: "Mike".
  • Dr. Alphys. Mentioned only, does not appear. Mike Cowley's office mate at North Dale University. Currently on sabbatical in Holland. Deltarune equivalent: Alphys.
  • A. Z. Flowers: Mentioned only, does not appear. Student of Mike Cowley who transferred out of NDU before he could complete Mike's project. Deltarune equivalent: Asriel.
  • John Nagle. Professor at Inwood College, teaches English and Film Studies. Spamton's academic advisor for the first semester that he's a transfer student. Original character.
  • Kirov Rouvin. Freshman at Inwood College, ESL student that Spamton is roped into tutoring on Wednesday nights before his radio show. Deltarune equivalent: Virovirokun.
  • Pitch Black, a high-strung drama major while at North Dale University. Went through four years in a “fight & fuck” relationship with Coz Pitchiner. Now he's the executive director of a community playhouse and living with his parents in northern Westchester County. Crossover character from the Nightmare Dork University fanverse.
  • Piki Black, Pitch's more financially successful twin brother, independently wealthy playwright, had a toxic dating relationship with Jack Sickle during Jack's time at North Dale University. Piki is currently recovering from a nervous breakdown after Jack disappeared. He is now living on the Upper East Side in Manhattan in the care of his godparents and is casually dating a man named John who looks very much like Proto. Crossover character from the Nightmare Dork University fanverse.
  • Cossimo [Coz] Pitchiner, lacrosse player, athletic scholarship student, and history major during his time at North Dale University. Coz served in the military in Afghanistan after a bitter parting with Pitch and has recently been discharged. Crossover character from the Nightmare Dork University fanverse.
  • Proto, no last name ever cited, is conjectured to be related to Piki and Pitch somehow, roomed with Pitch and Pitchiner at North Dale University, has some HIGHLY unusual habits and is very unsettling in appearance and manner. No one knows where Proto is currently. Peru, probably. Good riddance. Crossover character from the Nightmare Dork University fanverse.
  • Jack Sickle, an extremely shy and nervous student of early childhood education, traumatized by the death of his younger sister, fled from a toxic dating relationship with Piki Black after graduating from North Dale University. Whereabouts unknown at the beginning of this story. Crossover character from the Nightmare Dork University fanverse.
  • Michelina Conte Anselmo. Coz Pitchiner's grandmother. Crossover character from the Nightmare Dork University fanverse.

  • Patrice Eglantin Black. Mother of Pitch Black and Piki Black. Socialite. Plays bridge and Mahjong, serves on various charity committees. Trained at Julliard as a concert pianist. Sister of Anton Eglantin. Crossover character from the Nightmare Dork University fanverse.

  • Marcus Black. Father of Pitch Black and Piki Black. Chief financial officer of a worldwide biotech firm. Considers himself a patron of the arts. Keeps a keen eye on the stock market. First cousin once removed of Tallulah Deyvill. Crossover character from the Nightmare Dork University fanverse.

  • Tallulah Deyvill, nee Tallulah Ernestine Black. Divorced from Roger Deyvill. Jetsetting fashion designer with her own well-regarded fashion house. Maintains homes in Manhattan and Paris.   Piki’s godmother. Crossover character from the Nightmare Dork University fanverse.

  •  Anton Eglantin. Professional columnist and critic whose work appears internationally.  Maintains homes in Paris and Boston. Piki’s godfather. Crossover character from the Nightmare Dork University fanverse.

  • Thea George. Family doctor for the Addison family. Original character.
  • Kendra Kiefer. Captain of the co-ed sabre fencing team, dating Catechu Dyer. Original character.
  • Fergus Ignatius Gonzalez. Mentioned only, does not appear, deceased before the start of the story. Went to high school with Swatch, T.M., Indigo, and Catechu. Swatch had a short and volatile romantic relationship with Fergus, whom everyone called FIG. Original character.
  • Rex O'Toole. Mentioned only, does not appear. Is currently in jail on corruption charges. Deltarune equivalent: King Spade.
  • Lance O'Toole. Rex O'Toole's biological son, four-and-a-half years old, legally adopted by Rex's ex Leroux Kaard after Rex was sent to jail on corruption charges.  Deltarune equivalent: Lancer, son of King Spade.
  • Susie Lafontaine. Lance's babysitter. Plays electric bass. Deltarune equivalent: Susie.
  • Seam Docherty. Pronounced "Shawm". Owns a thrift store near Inwood College; the awning out front reads "Seam's Seap". Has a tendency to be cryptic. Varies in appearance depending on mood, which usually falls somewhere between nihilistic and punk. Deltarune equivalent: Seam, former court magician to King Spade.
  • Ambrose Gerson. Retired professor of law at the University of Chicago. Great-uncle of GiGi McCray, acts as an impromptu godfather as she gets older. Deltarune equivalent: Gerson Boom.
  • Detectives Dynah Unwin & "Blooky" Knapp. Investigators into an incident involving Inwood college students. Deltarune equivalents: Undyne and Napstablook.
  • Police Chief Flowers. Mentioned only, does not appear. Supervisor to Detectives Unwin and Knapp. Old friend of Ambrose Gerson. Deltarune equivalent: Asgore.

  • Ramb. Last name as of yet unknown, bartender at The Cathode Ray, which is under new ownership a few years after Spamton spent time there. Deltarune equivalent: Ramb, a British plugboy from Cyber City.

  • Reynard "Shuttah" Williams. Restaurant host at The Cathode Ray, also a vlogger and photographer. Deltarune equivalent: Shuttah, a camerathing.

  • Metthias Alcantara. Waiter at The Cathode Ray. YouTuber and influencer. Deltarune equivalent: Nobody, heavily suggested to be Mettaton from UNDERTALE.

  • Anthony "Tenna" Thompson. Mentioned only, does not appear. Retired television personality, new owner of The Cathode Ray. Was a recluse until introduced to Metthias by Reynard. Deltarune equivalent: Mr. "Ant" Tenna.