Honestly, the schoolhouse in Poppy Playtime Chapter 3: Deep Sleep is probably the most stressful part of the entire game. And it’s mostly because of her. Miss Delight isn't just another jump-scare monster; she’s a disturbing, hollow-eyed plastic mess that manages to feel way too human for comfort. If you've played through the section, you know that feeling when the lights flicker and you realize she’s standing right behind you, frozen like a statue. It's creepy.
But there’s a lot more to her than just a "red light, green light" mechanic.
The Teacher Who Ate Her Sisters
Most people think Miss Delight is just one person. She isn't. Or, she wasn't. Originally, there were eight "sisters," all identical Miss Delight models, built to teach the orphans in Playcare. They were part of the Bigger Bodies Initiative, which is the fancy, corporate-speak way of saying they were human souls shoved into giant toy bodies.
After the "Hour of Joy"—that's the massive massacre where the toys turned on the employees—CatNap locked the teachers inside the school. He did it to protect the kids, which is wild to think about, but Miss Delight admits later that if she’d gotten to those kids, she would’ve killed them too.
Then things got dark. Really dark.
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The teachers ran out of food. Starvation set in. Miss Delight started losing her mind and convinced herself her sisters were plotting against her. She built a weapon she called "Barb"—basically a mace made of a ball of yarn and sharpened colored pencils—and started hunting the other seven Delights. She killed them. She ate them. By the time you walk into that schoolhouse, she’s the only one left, and she’s developed a psychological dependence on "Barb," treating the weapon like a real friend.
Why She Moves Like a Weeping Angel
If you’ve ever watched Doctor Who, you know the drill. Miss Delight uses a "Stop-Motion" mechanic. When you look at her, she’s a statue. When you turn your back or the lights go out, she sprints at you with terrifying speed.
It’s not just a game mechanic, though. The lore explains this.
During the years she was trapped in the school, she learned that if she stayed perfectly still, her sisters thought she was dead. She’d wait for them to let their guard down, then she’d strike. It’s a survival tactic born from pure insanity and hunger. By the time you meet her, she’s literally a "Psychotic Cannibal."
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A Few Facts You Might’ve Missed:
- The Voice: She is voiced by Avalon Delaney, who also voices the Counselor.
- The Face: Her "shell" is shattered around her mouth. It reveals fleshy red gums and huge, human-like teeth.
- The Agreement: She actually made a deal with CatNap. She stayed in the school and acted as a lookout, reporting anything weird to him and The Prototype in exchange for being left alive.
The Tragic Theory of Claire Harper
There is a huge theory in the Poppy Playtime community that Miss Delight was originally Claire Harper, an orphanage counselor. Claire was one of the few adults who actually cared about the kids and tried to investigate why they were having nightmares.
If this is true, it makes her story even more depressing. Imagine being one of the only "good" humans at Playtime Co., only to be turned into a plastic monster that eventually eats her own "sisters" to survive.
How It Ends for Her
You don't fight Miss Delight with a gun or a sword. You use the environment. After a high-tension chase through the school corridors where you have to constantly check your back, you lure her under a heavy shutter.
When you pull that lever, the metal door slams down, crushing her head instantly. It’s a brutal ending. The Prototype eventually comes and drags her body away to add her parts to his "shrine," which is pretty much the standard fate for any major toy we take down in the factory.
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What You Should Do Now
If you want to fully understand the Miss Delight lore, don't just rush through the school. Take the time to find the VHS tapes scattered around the area. Specifically, look for the one in the computer lab; it gives a lot of context on the teachers' descent into madness. Also, if you’re struggling with the chase, remember: you don't always have to run. Sometimes, just keeping your eyes on her while walking backward is the safest way to navigate the puzzles without getting "Barb" to the face.
Watch the cardboard cutouts, too. They’re creepy, but they give little snippets of her "kind teacher" persona before she completely snapped.
Practical Next Steps:
- Go back to the Schoolhouse section and look for the hidden notes; they explain the "starvation" period in her own words.
- Pay attention to the background noise in the school; you can sometimes hear her talking to "Barb" before she even sees you.
- Check out the Orientation Notebook (real-world merch) for even more details on her toy-line origins.
The school is a death trap, but knowing why Miss Delight is the way she is makes the atmosphere so much thicker. She isn't just a monster; she’s a victim of a company that didn't know when to stop.