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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ trust is not something that caleb widogast builds easily, and so when he finds himself seemingly trapped in a world far removed from his own, he has his reservations. a hefty pile of them, actually, made heavier by the strange noises and foreboding note and basket brimming with secrets that await him when he wrenches himself from the unfamiliar bed.

as much as the house unnerves him, his interest in stepping out into the open without some expectation of what he might find is remarkably low, dragging itself through the dirt, actually.

of course, this is where having a cat from an otherworldly plane comes in handy.

sitting alone and vulnerable in the dark is not the ideal circumstance for performing this spell, but he is working on the assumption that no one will coming knocking at a house that was, he assumes, given what evidence he can find, completely empty prior to his... appearing here. he doesn't exactly have another choice.

which explains frumpkin, the lithe, orange cat that goes wandering purposefully down the street about ten minutes after caleb discovers with a near stifling relief that his familiar can be summoned here, amber eyes large and keen while caleb's go blank where he hides behind closed doors. it's here that he studies the stretch of buildings through frumpkin's vision as the cat marches on, but in short order, finds himself staring instead at sturdy boots.

hello, neria. there is now an inquisitive cat at your feet. ]

[ WELL, then literally everything else going on - unhelpful magical explosions, eating chicken, whatever else might be going on in any of these other threads - just became far less important; Neria has been traveling for over a year, and with the exception of that time she visited her actual childhood home, which shouldn't be included on account of all the abominations and whatnot, an inquisitive cat is one of the few nice reminders she's had of the Circle since leaving it.

Therefore, she abandons what she was doing to crouch down and offer an outstretched hand for inspection. ]

Helo, dear friend.

[ That's right, they're only barely acquainted, what of it? All cats are dear friends, shut up. Even this cat that is ...s...omething that also isn't a cat? She can't make out the particulars, which of course makes this encounter even more interesting, if not also more caution-inducing. ]

I don't suppose you can tell me your name? If not, I'm afraid I'll be forced to burden you with Mr. Wiggums the Second.

Edited 2019-01-04 14:28 (UTC)

[ frumpkin responds with a curious sniff of neria's hand and then sits back on his haunches, staring up at her as if considering his next move, tail swishing.

caleb, too, inspects her, though it's fair to say he's immediately heartened by her warmth towards the cat. much, much preferable to those soldiers who seem to believe kicking supposed strays is a perfectly fine method of sending them on their way.

he also takes some small comfort in her dress. while much of what surrounds them here is different in a way that unnerves him, she appears to have come from a place at least similar to his own if the armor is anything to go by. which makes her his best option at the moment, despite how staying tucked out of sight for the foreseeable future does have its own charms.

he should also save his cat from the fate of mr. wiggums. frumpkin is a family name, ok.

so he will instruct frumpkin to brush up against her hand and wind his way around her foot as caleb makes his way outside, tugging his scarf tighter around his neck in the vague hope of appearing inconspicuous. he can't say whether or not a scrawny man in a dirty coat is likely to draw attention here. ]

Ah! [ a light ""exclamation"" as he approaches neria. ] You found my cat.

[ he sounds only mildly surprised, but maybe that's a symptom of the angular clip of his accent. he offers a smile, somewhat crooked, but still appreciative. ]

[ listen here, you, mr. wiggums was the name of a very beloved animal!! who ...may or may not have been possessed by a rage demon at some point, it's hard to tell with anders. also hard to tell when a franchise has the kind of sense of humor that almost involved a staff with an unknown cat's skull mounted on it. delightful!

aaaaaanyway, having been given the go-ahead brush, as caleb appears neria is busy scratching frumpkin right on the brow ridge, a spot that can actually cause all the bones of the average cat to evaporate. if she didn't have the faint sense they have something to do with one another, she pr...obably would pay attention to the cute little kitty several minutes longer before she deigned to turn large, twinkly eyes to a scrawny man in a dirty coat. not out of disrespect or anything! it's just that scrawny men in dirty coats don't appreciate petting nearly as much.

............... or. they do. but we're not going to finish that thought, dear maker. instead, neria looks up at the mild surprise, then back down at her new anklet accessory. ]

Have I?

[ drolly. ]

He doesn't seem lost.

[ ;D ;D ;D ]