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

chara dreemurr | undertale

[inconsequence]

i. this was completely preventable

[There aren't many places for a child to sequester themself, if they want to stay out of the way. The sounds of jubilation, of celebration, the smell of sweat and euphoria and too many human bodies packed together into one singular space, is both unfamiliar and unwelcome.]

[The colocalization of humans and mind-altering substances - that is familiar, which makes it no less unwelcome. Unfortunately, there is no place for a strange, perhaps unsettling child to be that puts them out of the line of proverbial fire, except for, perhaps, where they inevitably end up.]

[Namely: under the table.]

[They're not hiding, of course. They're waiting to play a prank, maybe, like pouring a drink down someone's shoe or sliding an ice cube out onto the dance floor to try and watch someone trip and fall. If they look a bit nervous, a bit at odds with the elated atmosphere, and if they seem like they're hiding...you wouldn't be wrong, exactly, but good luck in getting them to admit it.]

[Good luck in getting them to speak at all, really, unless your idea of fun conversation involves the alternating of vague insults and the kind of pseudo-eloquent, edgy quotes that sound like that one guy you knew from English 101 who only ever quoted 1984. Hostility is in their nature, in human nature, and this many of them all gathered together in one place isn't putting their nerves at ease.]

[At all.]

[But as the night wears on, you'd better watch your step. I hear some kid is pouring drinks down people's shoes.]

ii. Where Are The Knives

[They've been good.]

[They've been trying.]

[They've been trying to be...good. Better. Better than they have been. They've been trying, because monsters are so kind and they didn't have any reason to trust or even particularly like this human, this small creature that has the power to destroy them all. They know. They know they're not good, they know they'll never be good, but they're still - trying. Because Asriel has a funny little smile when he's trying not to laugh at something they've said, and because the King showed them how to pull weeds up by the roots, and because Miss Tor - because Mother hid the knives, and blunted the tools, and did everything she could to ensure that they wouldn't make any more...mistakes.]

[But despite that, despite everything, they end up with a knife.]

[Their breath is halting and strange, and the hilt of a knife feels good in that it is the first familiar thing they've felt since ending up here, and if they wanted to - god, if they wanted to they could make sure that no one ever touches them again.]

[They slide two more knives away, discrete. One up their sleeve - unhooking the threads of their sweater inside its long and useful sleeves, to serve as a sheathe for the blade - and one pressed up against their hip, held in place by their waistband.]

[The child's eyes are dark and nervous, darting restively from one person to the next. They draw back in careful retreat to a corner, or to a shadow. They're small. They can't be older than ten, or eleven. A child's only advantage against an adult is the element of surprise, and so - they wait. There seem to be no shortage of humans, here.]

[They wait for just the right moment before trying to slide a blade just across your wrist, or maybe your ankle - something small and vital and within easy reach of a child.]

[The good news is that they're very literally a child, and thus easy enough to disarm. The bad news is that this is not their only knife.]

[And they don't take kindly to being held down.]

iii. wildcard, etc.

[Chara is slightly less of a walking content warning than usual thanks to me taking them from a very early canonpoint - namely just after being adopted by the Dreemurrs. That being said, if there's anything you need me to run by you first, just let me know! You can also contact me at arrpee if need be.]

1 HELLO AGAIN

[shiro2hero]

[This is fine. This is totally good and fine. Nothing's wrong here. He's fine. Not trying to find an out of the way corner to duck into for a breather. Nope -- that's ridiculous. Why would he do something like that?]

[No sooner does he find one, slide down the wall to the floor, than something under a table catches his eye. Oh for -- he just wanted to sit. Catch his breath and move on. But... there's someone down there.]

Hey. You okay? [He asks with a little wave.]

HI.......

[inconsequence]

[Their eyes, their eyes - their eyes are not yet red. A deep, ordinary brown. They blink back at the person who's noticed them, the human who's noticed them, and wonder how they're supposed to answer him through the sudden rush in their throat.]

[They haven't forgotten. They haven't forgotten and they haven't forgiven and this might not be the first human they've seen since coming here, but it's certainly one of the few to out-and-out acknowledge them.]

I'm perfectly fine, sir. [Terse, but polite. They don't have any weapons on them, they don't have anything - god, they have nothing at all. Acutely aware of the size and height of him, they edge very slightly back. Keeping their distance is an absolute necessity. They cannot let him get close.]

[shiro2hero]

[Look, honestly, there's been enough weirdness going around to where he thinks maybe, just maybe, this kid has... seen it to. Seen enough to send them under a table to get away. That's understandable. And that could easily account for the tone of voice, too.]

[So he keeps his own level. Keeps it quiet and steady. Doesn't move close.]

This place can be pretty confusing when you first wake up. [He smiles, very slightly. In what he hopes is a reassuring way.]

I think I saw an exit back this way... if you were trying to figure out how to get out.

[inconsequence]

I know.

[They didn't know, actually. They didn't exactly have time to case the place; they instinctively search for doors, look for windows, watch for the quickest and easiest escape route in any given room, but here...here, they've had no time, no time at all to adjust to the tautness in their chest and the brightness of the room and the flurry of colors and shapes and sounds.]

[They try to smile. It doesn't really go anywhere.]

I happen to be exactly where I want to be.

[They're shooting for that unflinching resolve that would connote absolute sincerity, and don't quite get there.]

ii

[eudaimonikos]

Ow, shit!

[Michael steps back quickly, jerking his wrist away from the blade. He looks like just an old, human man; very tall, especially from a child's perspective, but maybe a little too skinny to be imposing about it. But the droplets that fall from the cut are an inky black, and they bead together on the floor as if magnetic.

He presses a hand over the wound to stop any more of...that...coming out, and stares at the child with narrowed eyes.]

Didn't know this was that kind of party.

[inconsequence]

[For half a moment, there's a victorious thrill - the blade marks home, and from there, the bleedout should progress very rapidly. It doesn't, though, because the man's veins are tarred with something dark and oily that coalesces on the ground.]

[That stays their hand for a moment. Maybe longer.]

It is.

[Red would be better. It would be better because it would be familiar, and they are at least confident in their capacity to handle that much.]

You're human. [It snaps out sharply, accusatory, with more self-assurance than they really ought to be expressing, considering the evidence that he may very well be anything but.]

[eudaimonikos]

I am not! And that's very rude.

[Michael bristles a little, because honestly. He might've softened on the whole human thing in general, but that doesn't mean that he's some cartoon robot, longing to experience squishy flesh and an infinitesimal life span.

Bending down, he uncovers the cut, allowing the spilled ichor to just sort of...get sucked back up into there.]

I'm getting a hot poker. If you're going to have a melee party, I think length is helpful. Just sort of a - [He mimes like he's swinging a baseball bat. Or a hot poker.]

THIS IS ON YOU BOO

[save_theworld]

[It’s nice to see people be happy, but when you’re a tad shorter than most of the merrymakers, it’s all too easy to become lost underfoot. And- become, underfoot. A few people have stopped to ensure they’re okay, others have apologised- more still are utterly lost to the moment, unable or unwilling to acknowledge any potential mishaps they’ve just been a part of.

They’re a little over it. Under the table, where they can still hear and see if they’d really like to, seems like a good compromise.

If it wasn’t already occupied.

They pause, unsure if their invasion of the space will be taken kindly to, hands frozen in the midst of a greeting they’re not sure will even be heard. Lots to be unsure about, tonight. Hard to think, hard to know the best course of action.

Frisk compromises, eventually, with a wave. Just to get the other child’s attention, if they don’t have it already. See... see how they respond.]

OH NO WHAT A CRIME WHAT SHALL I DO

[inconsequence]

[The lesson here is that children are better because they're safer, because they're not adults and thus can be easily overpowered, if the situation calls for it. The downside to this, of course, is that children are, in some ways, less susceptible to the same tricks that might scare away an adult. A subtle lifting of their chin, an unblinking stare, a slow, creepy smile, that might be enough for someone who gives that expression one look and decides no thank you, they won't be taking their chances on this strange, unsettling child.]

[Other children, apparently, aren't so easily swayed.]

Occupied, [says Chara tersely, trying to ignore the flush creeping up into their cheeks when they say it. The stupidest possible thing they could have said, they're certain.]

NOT REPAY MY PAID TIME OFFERINGS WITH PAID TIME OFFERINGS???

[save_theworld]

[Oh. Still stuck on pause, one hand raised but- fingers curling. Retracting an unwanted greeting because it isn't wanted, it seems. Occupied. Find another table. Sorry Frisk, but I already have a partner.
Is that really your memory to think of?
They'd retract without a word- in fact, it's something Frisk is already attempting to do- but when dancing feet come too close they're booted forward without so much as a condolence for the trouble. It's a dance of their own, from there; a forced buckle of the arm levering them upright, jean covered knees skidding forward on the polished floor. A frantic scramble back to the furthest table leg from Chara's position, white-knuckled fist rubbing circles over their chest in an apology they don't think they can voice right now, throat tight.

They're under the table now, at least.

Nobody is happy with this.]

SLAMS INTO i. | Are you okay with CRAU Max remembering Chara?

[mypartnerintime]

[Somehow, despite Max's dislike for the taste of alcohol, some random passerby manages to shove a glass of champagne into her hand. And, once again despite her dislike for the drink, she finds herself taking small sips of it as time goes on. It's sweet but with that telling bitter aftertaste, and each time she drinks it she regrets it. But a few minutes later she tries again.

It's as she's taking her third of fourth sip that she feels something catch under her shoe, slip, and completely throw her balance. God, of course she'd trip in a very crowded public space. She throws out her hand, catching herself badly on her palm and hip. The flute of champagne tumbles to the floor and breaks with the unpleasant cracking of glass. Her wrist feels sore, too, like she might've sprained it. Chara's ice cube disappears somewhere into the nearby murmuring crowd.]

Owwww...

[She begins to straighten from her semi-prone position, but something beneath the table catches her eye. A figure she might recognize. She ignores the whispers and the offers from help from the crowd as she squints past the gap in the tablecloth.]

...Hello?

YEAH MATE THATS COOL

[inconsequence]

[She can probably hear it: the low-pitched snicker of someone who's undeniably pleased that their trick went off without a hitch - for the first time in the evening, even.]

[Their smile drops when it gives them away. Or, maybe their position does. Either way, someone's face peeks through the tablecloth, and there's no ducking it. They recognize that her eyes have trained on them, that she's sighted them, well and truly.]

[They recover as best as they can. They raise their chin and, coolly, with as much haughty self-assurance as they can possibly bring to bear in short notice, as if they are not camped out beneath the table like some vagrant:]

Can I help you?

THIS CANT POSSIBLY GO BADLY

[mypartnerintime]

[She waves off some concerned bystandards even as she shifts closer to the table... and then gingerly reaches out to widen the gap in the tablecloth.

The voice is the same. And, now that she can see more clearly, so is the look. Her expression tigthens into surprise and disbelief.]

Cha-?

[She cuts herself short and glances around at the crowd. Chara might not like it if other people heard. Already Max is shifting into the old habit of dancing around their... many triggers. The crowd is dispersing. When she speaks again it's far softer.]

Chara?

I

[silvertongueheir]

[Luckily (?), not everyone attending this party is human. There's a small hedgehog-like creature running around as well, after managing to convince their trainer to bring them here. They've managed to snag some finger food, which they happen to be dragging under the table Chara is hiding under. Upon seeing the human, they tilt their head curiously.]

Miiiiin? [They thought humans were supposed to be outside of the tablecloth, not under it.]

[inconsequence]

[It is fortunate, that this thing doesn't look anything like a human. It is less fortunate that they appear...to not so much resemble a monster, at least their familiarity with one. They do not speak to them in a predictable way, which creases their brow as they regard them warily.]

[Certainly not your average hedgehog. Attempting to deduce whether they might be magical in nature may very well spook them off, and they're the first thing that the child can safely call friendly by virtue of not being conventionally human, since they've ended up here.]

[Schooling their expression into careful blankness is a skill they've practiced at length. Nonetheless, the veneer cracks very faintly.]

Are you lost, perhaps?

[silvertongueheir]

Sha? [Hydrangea tilts their head curiously to the side. They're pretty sure they can find Dad if they go out looking again, but on the other hand that's a lot of people to get by. In the end, they twitch the flowers by their ears up and down in a shrug-like motion, before approaching a bit closer.]

Shay-min? [Their expression is a bit curious, now addressing the child in front of them. Are you lost, tiny human?]

I

[portraitor]

[Mary heard about there being some kid pouring drinks down people's shoes, but the part she focused on was that it was a kid--someone that might be her own age, not one of these adults. As such, she's been looking around for them everywhere she can, and when she doesn't actually see one hanging out by the drinks table, she's lifting up the tablecloth to take a peek.]

Hmmm... oh! There you are! I've been looking for you!

[She doesn't even seem all that perturbed to find them here. Heck, under the table is a good hiding spot, she's jealous she didn't think of it first.]

I'm Mary! What's your name? Did you just get here too?

[inconsequence]

[The other child's assessment is sharp and immediate. Another child. Friendly. Small. There's almost something...irritatingly Asriel-esque about how bright and unreserved she is, despite the general aura of unpleasantness that they cultivate like a shell of brambles. And by irritatingly, they mean...]

[They're not sure what they mean.]

[But Asriel, of course, had an advantage; he wasn't human.]

[Chara's eyes narrow subtly as they watch her, now officially expecting the worst.]

You ask a lot of questions.

[portraitor]

[Mary blinks at that, before she smiles again. She's too happy to be deterred just yet, finally having found another person that she can talk to much easier than the adults.]

Do I? Wellllll... you're the first kid I've seen here! I was starting to think that I was the only one! So... it's not that weird I want to know who you are, is it?

2/3/whatever, hi

[catsuya]

[One of the perks he'd received from turning into a monster was great eyesight. Of course, he still wouldn't need that to recognize the telltale signs of...

Rule-breaking.

Though attempting to stab people certainly qualifies as something a bit stronger than rule-breaking, and the age of the person involved makes it even more disturbing. Which means that disarming the situation is priority, regardless of the comfort of anyone involved.

Sorry, Chara.

Another perk of being a monster is now being well over six feet tall, so he can bodily pick up Chara and physically remove the knife from their grasp (or the one they happen to currently be holding, at least). The downside is he's now incredibly bulky, and therefore easier to dodge, if Chara is prepared for it.

It will also result in a huge dragon person likely crashing into whoever Chara was trying to stab, which is hilarious.]

eye emojis

[inconsequence]

[If he were a human, perhaps they would have fought. If he were obviously human, perhaps this would have been enough to galvanize them into some sort of furious action, attempting to tear him apart before he could - before he could grab them.]

[As it happens, the sight of him alone is enough to stop their heart in their chest, widen their eyes - and all for the opposite reasons that one might expect.]

[For the first time this entire nightmare of an evening, a slender grain of recognition takes root beneath their skin and fans warm relief out through to the back of their throat.]

[Right up until the point where he tries to seize them.]

[They drop low and try to scuttle back, frantic. If he manages to grab them - it will be over. It will all be over, once someone gets their hands on them. It's impossible for them to squirm free from the grasp of someone that enormous, larger than any human, any adult.]

[But it is a monster, which means that reason is on the table. Which is more than they can say for humans, and thus the reason they manage to gasp out:]

What are you doing?

1 I am fINALLY HERE

[clussy]

(Thing about kids is they're all kind of similar to an extent. Being at an adult party was boring after a while when there was no one around to talk to, and Eddie had drank enough of the champagne to inspire some of his old playfulness. It was a pretend game.

He ducked under the nearest table, talking to himself because there was no one else around to talk to.)

We must get past the enemies.

(He flops onto his belly, hiccuping and thinking faintly about getting another glass of the bubbly stuff, but alas, his urge to play wins out.

He crawls under a few tables, occasionally mumbling to himself about pretend trench warfare until finally he ducks under the same table as someone else. It's dark enough that he doesn't instantly know who it was, and instead squeaks a bit in surprise and covers his mouth. This doesn't last long. Normally he'd shy away at a new (so he thinks) person but with the champagne, he realizes this is another kid and gets instantly thrilled.)

Ah thank fuck I thought I was going to have to go into this war all on my own. What's your position, soldier?

EYE!! EMOJIS!!

[inconsequence]

[The sights and sounds are a blur of overstimulation and adrenaline waiting to happen. The last thing they expect, then, would be the presence of another child in the vicinity - another child approaching them of his own volition, no less.]

[A human one. But the playing field is, at least, level. Something about his easy foulmouth, the way he is enamored with his game of pretend, how eagerly he expects them to play along - startles a vague pulse of something almost like amusement.]

[They shove it back almost at once. They can't afford to let their guard down. Especially here.]

...

[Incredibly, their mind fails to supply them with an appropriately sarcastic retort.]

I'm...on a strict timetable.

[Great. Fantastic. A cunning ploy to - to get him to let his guard down. Why don't we go with that? That sounds much better than their brain short-circuiting, and dredging up the first horrible joke it can think of as if in compensation.]

God i missed this so much wtf

[clussy]

(There's something distinctly familiar about that voice, but with the clatter of the party roaring overhead, Eddie only just barely hears it. He shuffles a little bit closer, bowing his head towards the other child so that he could hear them better, and a joke occurs to him instantly after they make their own joke. It has him stifling a giggle behind his hand.

He lowers his hand a second later and then points up.)

I'd say you're under a strict timetable.

(Get it. Because they're under a table. Yeah. Eddie's really the cat's meow sometimes. Really gets ya in the spleen and whatever. The champagne makes him more giggly than normal, and he's laughing again, his eyes squinting shut before he calms himself back down. That's when he takes a good look at Chara, looking over their face slowly, speculating. It's been a long while by now, and the darkness of the table...It disorients a lot...

But he's got that feeling of knowing something he can't quite put his finger on. At the tip of his tongue. That kinda thing.)

Do you only have til the end of the year? Cause if you do- buddy, you're shit outta luck.