JANUARY 2019 TEST DRIVE

[sodder]

JANUARY 2019 TEST DRIVE MEME

Welcome to January’s Test Drive Meme! This month's Test Drive's theme is: NEW YEAR'S.

All Test Drive Memes contain at least one clue to the Deerington's upcoming in-game events for the month! Keep your eyes peeled! But...not literally.

Characters may die during TDMs, but you do not need to count it towards a game-canonical death unless you want to. Consider it a freebie. All TDMs can be considered game canon as TDMs introduce minor aspects about the world of Deerington that can be revisited by characters later on in the game. You may also use TDMs for your application writing sample as well as AC.

CW: Mind alteration, alcohol, options for self-harm, knife violence.

Don't forget to tag content whenever necessary. Have fun!

Prompt One
Prompt Two
Character Arrival
Master Navigation

YOU BETTER GET THIS PARTY STARTED

It's party night at the Grady Hotel and the hosts are pulling out all the stops. Champagne, funny hats, pictures, great music, and a wonderful countdown clock that let's everyone know just how much closer they're getting to the end of what has probably been a pretty crazy year for everyone. The glasses never seem to empty themselves and the citizens serving them out to people seem to be making extra sure that everyone has one for themselves. Regardless of whether or not you usually like champagne, anyone with a glass in their hands will eventually be tempted to take a sip, especially the closer it gets to midnight - the bubbles make you giggly, friendly, talkative in a way that you may never have been before. It lifts up just about anyone's spirits, no matter how rough of a time they've had before (or during their time in) Deerington. It doesn't seem to get you drunk, no matter how much you drink, but it definitely makes you more euphoric. Enough so that you might start to think you can do anything; tell someone how you really feel about them, compliment whoever you've had your eye on all night and see if they want to spend more time together, make up with someone you've been fighting with lately, do a magic trick you never were able to master, or even something as drastic as fly when you know you can't. Hopefully you start off trying to jump from a chair, but there is definitely roof access for those who are a little more daring - maybe someone a little more sober will have the wherewithal to stop you before it's too late.

There is also plenty of entertainment happening in various parts of the room. A table with beer pong for the adults who never outgrew their college days, a dart board, card games in the back, and a game called Guess the Candy for those who want to test their sweet tooth. Anyone who wins a round of any game will get rewarded with a small gift from home (no bigger than a toaster). Unfortunately will disappear once you leave the party, so make sure to enjoy it while you can.

The dance floor is also lively, the music upbeat and easy to move to no matter what your personal tastes might be. If you want a random dancing partner, take a dance card! Each one has a random, glowing number on it and it's your goal to find the person who matches. Once you do, no matter who it is, you'll find yourself literally stuck together (hopefully just by your hands, but it can be any body part) and will have to go through an entire dance (or maybe even two) with them before you come unstuck.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Everyone starts to gather around the countdown clock as it nears midnight, and when it's down to ten seconds, obviously you've got to start counting too! Everyone seems to be having such a good time as they shout out each number (10! 9! 8!) and you might not even notice the way some of the people around you have started to get a little... twitchy? (7! 6! 5!) Or the way some are starting to get more handsy, pushing themselves up close to whomever is beside them. (4! 3! 2!) And it isn't until they all shout 1! in unison that the room seems to shift in two very different moods.

If you're lucky, the person next to you will just have the urge to kiss you - and you might even have the urge to kiss them back! After all, sharing a kiss at midnight is supposed to bring you good luck for the rest of the year. And with the way everyone else is starting to act, you might need it. For some, the urge to kiss might be stronger than just a chaste peck. For those who find themselves wanting to get a little more intense, it might be best to try to sneak out the back and head back to your place. The moment you step outside into the cold air, though, the urges seem to disappear - unless, of course, you were in the mood all on your own.

If you're unlucky, there's a murderous rage that runs through you, and there seems to be a table of weapons near by to help encourage a messy time. Various knives, swords, machetes, and other blades are laid out, enough for almost everyone. You might find yourself driven to plunge your weapon into the closest person, or maybe someone you've hated for a long time, and even more - maybe someone you've loved. Whoever it is, the image of their face will be burned into your mind and you'll do everything you can to try and make them bleed. Hopefully they can fight for their life - or at least evade your attacks until they can trick you into going outside. Like the desire for love, the desire for murder will also disappear the moment that someone steps outside, regardless of whether or not they did so on purpose or just to try and hurt whoever they're after.

Character Arrival

You can read how all characters arrive in Deerington here.

There is not a collective "all these characters showed up at the exact same moment" occurrence in Deerington. Since characters fall asleep, die, or pass out at various times throughout all their worlds, it wouldn't make too much sense if they arrived in game all at the exact same time. There should be some discrepancy between character arrival, whether by a couple minutes, hours, or even days up to a week.

The players are entirely in control of how/when they want to play their characters arriving in Deerington. For TDMs, you can play it like your character has just arrived and that can be maintained as your game canon, or you can wait until game events for that moment. Or you don't need to acknowledge it at all. The flexibility for character allows a bit more of an organic feel to the character arrival situation, so please play it to whatever feels right for you.

If you are interested in having an "arrival" introduction for one of your TDM prompts, you are more than welcome to explore that option.

Comments

James Griffin | Voltron

[leadsupport]

all those feelings bubblin' up
[ James has a glass of champagne. It was pushed into his hands, and he hadn't been able to give it back before the person responsible had walked off. And every tray seems to be full, and he doesn't want to just leave it on a random surface. Nor does he want to shove it off onto someone else.

So. He just holds it, and the longer he holds it, the more it seems appealing. Really appealing. James tentatively takes a sip, and... ]

Huh. Not bad.

[ And later on, James looks absolutely delighted to be here. Why wouldn't he? It's a good environment, and he's just happy to be around so many new people. It's New Years! He hasn't been to a party, like, ever, but no time like the present. Catch him playing a game, or just sidling up to you with a grin. ]

Great party, huh?

happy new year
[ So... yeah. James hasn't kissed anyone, ever? He's definitely thought about it, but training at the Garrison occupied all his time. And then he'd become an MFE pilot, so any thought of dating was dashed away.

But right now... He turns to the person next to him. ]

So...

stabby new year
[ But if you're unfortunate, James has a knife.

A very sharp knife.

One that he's raising right now, with a look in his eyes.

>Counterattack? ]

FEELINGS

[shiro2hero]

[A party is the last place he wants to be. He really, really does not have a good track record with parties. Or with Deerington parties, in particular. Hence, the reason he's eying the glass shoved into his hand with complete disdain -- hello, alcohol, what bad decision are you going to make today?]

[Maybe there's a table he can set it on... ]

[It's in looking for one that he feels himself knock into someone else from behind. There's a brief glance over his shoulder, before he automatically moves away.]

Hey, sorry about that --

[leadsupport]

[ He's about to tell them it's no problem--no harm, no foul--when he turns to the guy. And, immediately, he straightens up. ]

Don't worry about it, sir.

[ He'd almost saluted him, too. ]

[shiro2hero]

[Well. That gets a double-take. Because, seriously, he hasn't seen that face in how long? But now he's all grown up.]

[Shiro has to take a step back. Shaking his head to clear it.]

I'm hallucinating.

[THAT'S CLEARLY THE ONLY REASONABLE EXPLANATION HERE.]

[leadsupport]

... Hallucinating? Is there something in the drinks here, sir?

[ James, too, looks... a little weirded out? The first time he'd met Shiro, he'd had black hair and two human arms. The last, he'd had pure white hair and a floating, Altean arm.

Alright. This is definitely weird. Should he bring it up? He doesn't know. ]

[shiro2hero]

Probably...

[Look, he's just being honest. There's been a lot of things messing with their heads here. And the last party was no exception.]

[He takes a deep breath -- if this really is one of Keith's old class, all... grown up, he absolutely has to get it together.]

It's all right. You're not the only one from the Garrison here.

[leadsupport]

[ He looks at his drink... then decides very firmly to not take a drink, before promptly taking a drink without even thinking about it.

Nailed it. ]

... Who else is here, sir?

[ He has a very distinct feeling he knows who else is here. ]

[shiro2hero]

[That quick drink gets a look. If only because, well. Didn't they just talk about that???]

Lance and Keith, for starters. [He wonders if he should mention Pidge. How long was she there before getting dragged off on a wild adventure with the others? In the end, he errs on the side of caution.]

Most of our team is here. If you know who they are?

happy new year .... I MAKE NO APOLOGIZES FOR THIS

[rattailmom]

[ It's been awhile since Krolia's been to any sort of New Year's celebration.

Or, at least, watched one on TV. But that was neither here nor there, as she calmly sips her glass of... something. She' snot entirely sure what it is, but she's trying to be careful, since the last time she had drank something and she didn't know what it was, she had inadvertently talked Shiro's ear off for hours about her son and his father.

The countdown had intrigued her, so she stepped closer, curious to see it up close, since really, TV didn't show much and the crowd had been too far away for Krolia to make note of Earth customs. To this day, she didn't understand the allure of a shiny metal ball slowly making it't way down a poll (or up it, as she learned that some places apparently saw it as going into the new year? Or something. She was even far more in the dark about that tradition then the ball dropping).

At the sound of someone's voice, she turns to look. And glance down, because the one thing about being Galra is that she tends to be a little taller then a lot of people. Especially humans.

She blinks owlishly at him, wondering at this strange feeling suddenly enveloping her, before leaning down towards him. Maybe he'll know what it is? ]

Yes...?

[ Maybe he feels it too? ]

[leadsupport]

[ James has seen her around--not just at the party, but around at the Garrison. She's Keith's mom, and he's surprised to see her. At the same time... this is in their dreams, right? Galra have to sleep, too, so it shouldn't surprise him.

What does surprise him is the way she's leaning toward him. And the way he's leaning in to meet her. ]

... I'm not really sure what's happening here, but...

[ smooth. ]

stabby new year anyone

[missingache]

[Roxas is just here because it gives him something to do other than hang out with his dog in a quiet apartment. He's been sticking to soda himself as everyone seems to be drinking the night away and just mostly being a wallflower. It is exciting in its own way to watch the crowd get happy about a countdown into a new year.

The glint of the knife makes him look up and kind of stare at the knife wielder. Feeling like there's been an interruption to his people watching.]

Can I help you?

[Not too impressed by your knife, buddy.]

[leadsupport]

Yeah. You can stay still.

[ What the fuck, okay. Don't cut yourself on that edge, James. James is... well. He's definitely swinging at Roxas's shoulder, and he's fast. It's also a hell of a stab, so.

If you get struck, good luck, Roxas. ]

cw: knife injury

[missingache]

[Coming from a world where stabbing doesn't do the damage this place does puts Roxas at a disadvantage. He doesn't expect it to hurt this bad when the knife connects with his shoulder. He swears he can feel the fabric tear under the sharpness before it digs into his skin and further.

There's a strangled noise as he moves away even if it does more damage. Great. His arm was useless. At least he still has his other one as a black, wicked looking Keyblde is summoned to his hand. If he can focus on the fight instead of his now rather freely bleeding injury, it's fine, right?]

What the hell?!

[leadsupport]

[ At least he doesn't drag the knife through muscle and skin. That's good, right? He pulls the knife out and aims again... right for Roxas's throat. ]

[missingache]

[Roxas manages to deflect the certain to be lethal hit. He'll counter with one of his own, slashing down at James' wrist holding the knife.]

[leadsupport]

[ It's a sure hit. The keyblade connects, and he lets out a yell as he drops the knife. It lands near Roxas's feet, and he dives for it. ]

[missingache]

[Panic makes decisions that sometimes aren't smart. Like him stomping down on the blade and kicking out at Jame's face with his other foot. The blade isn't stable and makes the blond lose his balance, causing him to fall backwards. At least the knife slides a few feet away with the force into the mangle of feet of the other partygoers.]

stabby new year

[princessences]

[ The Human beside you is armed with a knife. What do you do?

> Talk him out of it. Father always said, "diplomacy first".
> Make him regret picking up a knife in the first place. ]

...

[ He's getting one chance. ]

I do hope you know what you're doing.

im so sorry | cw knife

[leadsupport]

Yeah, I do.

[ Which is the truth. He's about to stab her! Unfortunately, he's not really in the right mind to realize just how bad of an idea this is.

He swings, and aims right for her throat. ]

not as sorry as i'm about to be

[princessences]

[ It is absolutely a terrible idea. While he is certainly fast for a Human, Allura is...well.

Allura. An Altean. A skilled combatant and stronger than Humans by default. Already on guard and so not in the mood to deal with This Shit that Deerington has a way of causing. Which is why when he swings she grabs his arm to halt the knife, grab the opposite shoulder with her free hand, and flip him over her shoulder and across the room with such a surprising ease that one might think he's half the size he is.

Yeet. Dis bitch empty. ]

[leadsupport]

[ Well.

This isn't what he expected to happen.

"Across the room" ends in him eating shit right through the door. He's still holding the knife, which, in his daze, he looks at in confusion. ]

Ugh...

[princessences]

[ Honestly, the fact that he's still holding onto the knife is impressive. But not as impressive as the fact that he managed not to hurt himself with it en route to eating the door.

Allura walks over, standing in front of him with her hands on his hips. ]

I strongly suggest that you put that down.

[leadsupport]

[ If Allura looks close enough... yeah, taht's a line of blood at his stomach. Incredible. James groans softly and drops the knife.

He then gets a closer look at her, and-- Oh.

Shit. ]

I didn't mean to try to stab you. I... don't really know what I was doing.

[princessences]

[ Good. With the knife down, her expression is marginally less stern, but she's still on guard lest he pop up and go for a right hook. But when he speaks, it hits a little too close to home. Any other place she might assume it's a rouse, but here?

Here one never knows when some insatiable urge might come over them and turn them into someone they aren't. ]

...

[ Her expression softens a little more. After a moment, she offers a hand. ]

Here, allow me.

I AM SO SORRY. i drew numbers and went for best 6 of 10, but after the 9th pull...

[praecipitem]

[ The last time he'd gone to a 'party', he'd wound up absolutely beyond trashed, dressed in Allura's leggings, Shiro's hoodie, and his own boots with his hair tied up off of his face, a borrowed pair of sunglasses perched on his nose, and a Ring Pop in his mouth while he tried to hook Shiro up with a guy on a poster and refused to get off the table because he'd thought the floor was lava before puking his guts out in a bucket behind the bar. This time, he only wishes he was in that state, because then he could blame it all on the alcohol. It's not his fault that he'd gotten jostled and pushed into the person he's next to... only to hear a voice he hasn't heard in years. And yes, that is a face he hasn't seen (or even thought about, really) in just as long.

And Keith is not really the kissy type. Or the huggy type. Or the 'being the first to show affection of any sort' type.

This is bad. ]

... No.

[ And for reasons he neither understands because nothing in this town runs on logic nor wants to understand because this is all kinds of messed up, he can't shake the morbid curiosity. Why couldn't it just be the desire to kiss that face with his fist? Why does there have to be any desire to kiss someone involved at all? Because he doesn't want to... except for some weird reason, he kind of does? Clearly that means the right answer to this is denial. ]