soddersays | APRIL 2020 TEST DRIVE MEME

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APRIL 2020 TEST DRIVE MEME

Welcome to April's Test Drive Meme! This month's Test Drive's theme is: ENCHANTMENT HORROR.

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: Enchanted food, possible body horror, mild finger injuries, magic based mind control, rapid aging, possible death
Don't forget to tag content whenever necessary. Have fun!

Prompt One
Prompt Two
Character Arrival
Master Navigation

YOU UNCULTURED SWINE

Pork is on sale!! Time to buy it up for all your family meals. It also means anything with pork in it in all of the restaurants is on special and super affordable for just about anyone. New arrivals can even get a free meal of bacon, sausage and eggs at the diner! Seeing all the low prices, you find yourself craving pork more than ever. But who doesn't love bacon, right? Maybe you had ham and pineapple pizza at Peter's or those delicious and mouthwatering pork dumplings at the Hot Pot. You could have cooked a nice pork loin with your friends and family for a large get together. Candied bacon is a real treat to munch on in the park!

You're cooking it yourself or getting it from the local restaurants, so nothing bad could happen with a little self-indulgence, right? Just about everyone has learned not to trust the food at a giant feast in Deerington, but short of the lunch and dinner menus at the diner, the restaurants and the grocery store have never done a Sleeper harm! At least, that's the way it's always been before. Two years is long enough to start taking things for granted.

Anyone who has any of the specials from the restaurants or who cooks any kind of pork related product at home will find that once they have finished their meal, they will slowly turn into... pigs. It seems to vary on how fast a single person turns, some moving slowly over the course of days while they eat more and more food, and others will turn into a full blown pig in a manner of minutes. At first you can still talk to others and display your usual personality in pig form, but the longer you stay a pig, the more boarish you'll become.

So how do you break the curse? Locals say there's a magic stream up on the mountain that will stop these kinds of enchantments, but you can't go alone. Someone will have to carry you up and sing to you while you drink. It might be a friend or a lover or a complete stranger, but whoever you can nudge into it will have to physically carry you in their arms up the side of the mountain looking for this stream. It can take a while— the walk is fairly long, a few hours at best, but you'll know it when you find it. The stream sparkles unnaturally in the sunlight and it seems like none of the animals are willing to drink from it's unnaturally cold waters. The moment you take a long sip while your companion sings whatever song pops into their head, you'll turn back into a human. Hopefully your clothes turn back with you.

If your character does not eat meat/pork, then they'll be safe from this event!

GOOD ENDURES

Mirror mirror on the wall...

The pork doesn't seem to be the only enchanted object around Deerington this month. There are several of them cropping up all over the place and each one has a different outcome for those unfortunate enough to run into them.

Spinning wheels seem to be in the most random of places. Some of them will even just appear in your house. Sometimes multiple spinning wheels show up. Anyone who gets to close will have the strong urge to prick their finger on the spindle, the needle very easily cutting the tip and making you bleed more than you might have expected. Hopefully you have a first aid kit around.

Anyone who pricks their finger will find that they are forced to follow the next person they see around everywhere. They'll follow them to work, to school, to the bathroom, to the kitchen, even to bed. It doesn't matter if it's someone you've never spoken to in your life, you will follow them like a lost duckling every hour of every day. It's enough to drive anyone bonkers.

Mirrors will also suddenly be being displayed in every home and every shop, even if you never had them before. It doesn't matter whether or not you have a reflection, any person who looks into the mirror will find that they are forced to imitate the next person they make eye contact with. This can be their personality, their posture, the way they speak, their basic movements— you'll start to become a total mirror image. If it goes on too long, you might even start to find the two of you start to look more and more alike...

Apples start to pop up in all the stores as well as in your fridges. They're bright red and look so delicious, you can't resist taking a bite. Even if you don't like apples or are normally allergic to them, you'll want to eat these, and you'll find they taste delicious and don't bring harm to anyone. At least... not at first.

A few hours after eating the apple, you'll start to notice differences in your appearance. Your hair has start to thin and become gray and limp, your skin is wrinkled and covered in spots, your hands become frail and shaky. You're aging, and rapidly at that. Before you know it, you've turned into a hideous hag, one that would frighten children in any fairy tale book. But how do you reverse it?

The cure for all three enchantments is to tell three facts about yourself. Even just introducing yourself will show improvement if it's to someone who never knew your name before. Those who ate the apples will have to seek someone out, but anyone who pricked their finger or looked in a mirror will specifically have to confess these three facts to the person they're enchanted to follow/imitate. Once three facts have been shared, you'll be able to leave, return to normal, and age back to your regular self.

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

[Not too far off with the Web suspicions, then. Martin frowns faintly, looking back the way he'd come and wondering if he shouldn't make more of an investigation. In the meanwhile, he does as the other man suggests, reaching into his pocket first and finding nothing useful to wrap around the wound.]

I'm Martin. Just... Martin. Thank you for the information. D'you know if you can get pricked more than once? I know someone who might be really interested in these.

[And maybe it's something Statement-worthy? Martin's keenly aware of Jon's feeding situation and wants to be sure it doesn't get away from them. Falling off the wagon would be bad for a lot of reasons.]

Pretty sure you can get pricked as many times as you run into spinning wheels, [ he admits with a tired, worried quirk of his lips. ] Here, uh.. let's see.. [ he digs through his own pockets and comes up with nothing, then frowns faintly, brows knitting. he was almost back to his place when the stranger--martin--started following him. he doesn't want to walk back, but he also doesn't want to just.. take him home with him. it's not like this is some potential one-night-stand at a bar, for fuck's sake.

then again, what other option does he have? ]

Listen, um.. [ he sighs, shifting to tuck his sketchpad against his chest instead, folding his arms across it because this might be even more uncomfortable than being the one enchanted. ] I-- I don't really wanna' stand around until you can walk away from me, and I have bandaids at, uh.. I guess it's home while I'm here. And I make pretty good coffee?

[Martin contemplates the merits of thimbles and purchasing ten of them before trying to approach another spinning wheel. The offer of coffee and assistance has him feeling incredibly self-conscious.]

You don't have to go to the trouble. I can just sort of... wait outside your door, if you want to go home. It can't last forever, right?

[Right?]

[ sunny knows his face must do something complicated at that, something between amusement, horror, and sympathy. ] We're not all assholes, hon. [ not that he thinks this is a case of generalizing americans, but it's kind of funny in an awful way anyway. just what kind of people is this poor guy used to..?

at the very least, it does its part to relax sunny a little, and his lips quirk up, shoulders easing as he ushers the other man--older man?--in the direction he was heading. ]

Pretty sure I wouldn't even make the devil stand outside my door like that. [ at least in part because the devil is apparently his child, so there's that. ] You'll have to excuse the mess, though. I've been turning part of the place into a-- a studio, so it's.. [ he trails off, then shrugs. ]

[Stranger Danger blares loud in Martin's head. Trust doesn't come so easily these days, but then... Martin is the one who started stalking Sunny. He's frowning as he's ushered along, though. Right. Okay. Get a Band-aid, politely turn down the coffee and see about-]

Oh! You're an... artist? [His eyes fall to the sketchpad.] That's... cool? [He used to be able to socialize. Martin finally offers a tiny smile.]

I'm not very good at art, but I used to do poetry.

I am, [ he agrees with a smile that's only a little shaky in return. the truth is, sure, he's an artist, but he's still getting back on his feet after.. well. after everything that's happened in the last few years.

but he heard that past tense. ] Why'd you quit? [ it's asked with genuine interest; sunny's always liked poetry, even if he's not sure he could rhyme two words together to save his life.

he stops at a door and digs his keys out to let them in, switching on the light and ushering martin inside. the 'mess', as it turns out, is his living room, which is a sort of makeshift studio already. there's a large canvas on the floor atop sheets of plastic, and several smaller canvases are propped up against whatever he can lean them against. sketches are taped to the walls and stacked on the furniture, and his supplies sort of scattered everywhere.

the rest of the place seems basically spotless, though, as evidenced from the extremely clean kitchen he leads them into. he sets his sketchbook down onto the countertop, then nods toward the table. ] Take a seat if you like. Hopefully the spell won't make you follow me to the bathroom, at least. [ to.. get the bandaids, which are in his medicine cabinet. ]

['My muse died,' would sound fairly epic, but that's also not something to get into with a new acquaintance.]

I got a promotion at work and it ended up being a lot more involved than I expected in some ways. And I was never really good at it, either.

[He offers a tiny shrug and continues to clutch at his finger, hands bloody at this point. Martin sits as directed... and then immediately stands back up to follow Sunny. He grimaces to himself before smoothing out his expression.]

I'm really sorry about this. I'll get out of your hair just as soon as I can.

[ he muses over the answer to his poetry question until martin actually has to get up from the chair and follow him, and then he finds he's giggling in spite of himself, pushing his knuckles against his mouth to try to muffle it. ]

S-Sorry, it's just-- what a silly curse. It's okay, though, don't worry. [ the bathroom is as clean as the kitchen, and he gets bandaids and antiseptic out of the medicine cabinet. ] Since we're here, I reckon you can clean up your hand in here, too.

[ he leans against the wall to let martin clean the blood off, brain drifting back to the poetry as he does. ] .. Just because you're not good at it doesn't mean you should give it up, [ he says at last, forgetting that they've technically moved on from the subject. ] And who said you weren't good at it? Were you writing for them?

[He tries to take it with good humor, quirking his lips in a smile as he washes his hands. The continued focus on his poetry brings more than a little color to his cheeks, though, and Martin finds himself regretting mentioning.]

I said I wasn't good at it. [It's half-snapped as he tenses up, then breathes out a little sigh.] Sorry. It's just... writer's block. I haven't been in the right head-space for a while.

What d'you draw? Or- paint? People? Landscapes?

[ his glance drifts over martin again, taking in the weird, fuzzy.. something, trying to make sense of it in spite of what he'd told himself about not looking. ]

I understand, a little, [ he says softly, and flips his own hands over so martin can see the needle scars over his veins. they curl in against his chest again after. ] I wasn't in the right, um.. head-space for a while, either, though for different reasons. It almost took my art completely, I think.

[ he takes a hand-towel down, offering it out and blinking at the question. ] I-- [ ah. ] .. Memories, mostly. [ these days, at least. ] I have a lot of surrealist and abstract influences, you could say.

[Well, okay. The openness, honesty, and just... trust with someone this man has met not ten minutes ago is intensely disconcerting for a moment. Martin feels the sensation of wanting to withdraw further warring with his desire to offer empathy for Sunny's situation. He settles for a concerned look.]

I'm really sorry that happened to you, Sunny. I hope... things are better now. Or they're getting better.

[The words stick on his tongue, feeling like platitudes, even when they're heartfelt. He presses on.]

Surreal and abstract art can be really interesting. And I guess you'll have... a lot of material here for that. The people are sort of weird-looking, aren't they? All pastels. Or the ones with gas masks. It's like someone took a blender and mixed up all the nuclear bomb threats and the-the perfect families from movies in the 50s or 60s.

Edited 2020-04-07 04:56 (UTC)

[ the truth is, sunny's embarrassed about his addiction, ashamed of it, but grateful for his second chance. and while he hides the worst of the scarring, the ones on his hands are still pretty obvious.

he shakes his head, lips quirking back up. ] Don't be sorry. It's just.. [ he trails off, then shrugs, curling his hands together again, rubbing his thumb over the back of one absently.

the mention of the people here earns a huff of laughter. ] It's definitely spooky around here, [ he admits, and tips his temple against the wall, glance flicking away from martin to the doorway. ] Real Stepford-like. I.. [ he worries the inside of his cheek with his teeth, tastes copper and has to stop himself. ] I'm not used to this kinda' thing.

I don't think most people are. It's pretty creepy. [And it screams some Dread Power, even if Martin isn't sure which one, yet. Probably more than one.] Um... can I have that plaster? I think I've got the blood cleared up for now.

I guess some weird things have happened where I'm from, but this is definitely some of the most overt. Consistently overt.

[ he straightens up off the wall, opening the antiseptic first and handing it over, then pulling out a bandage and opening it, offering it out from the paper packaging so he isn't handling it with his bare hands. ]

What kinda' weird things? [ he both wants to know and doesn't want to know. there are more people here he's seen with something odd about them than not, but honestly, sunny isn't great about being able to tell how. just because he sees it doesn't mean he can make sense of it. ] I mean, if you don't mind if I ask?

[The antiseptic stings, but only a bit. Martin's quick with it, getting the Band-Aid on after that as he thinks about how to answer Sunny's question. He's not sure how much Jon would want him to tell people.]

Mm... it might sound too fantastical to be real, but I guess... we're all here? There are monsters and cursed objects where I'm from. Supernatural things. A few of my coworkers have met ghosts.

[This is nothing even approaching the whole truth, but best not to scare the man.]

[ .. monsters? he thinks about the things he's half-remembered, the things he sees sometimes in dark alleys or lurking on rooftops, and a nervous sigh stutters out of him. at home, most people never know, never have to see.. any of it. it's a shame that this person is so aware. ]

Are there that many of them? [ if several of his coworkers have met ghosts..

once martin's got his bandaid on, sunny washes his own hands, gesturing him back into the kitchen to put coffee on. ] There's things at home, but I don't have much to do with any of them. [ he makes a conscious effort not to, too nervous about what they might bring out in him. ]

Ghosts? I'm not sure. I don't think a lot of the stories we have from people are real. We're just in a position where we get a lot more interaction with that sort of thing.

[Or they... did when the Institute was still operating.]

Or well, mostly my coworkers. I stay in the office for the most part.

[It's not really a lie. All of the others have had more encounters than him. Jon, certainly. He has the scars to show it.]

The things in your home, are they dangerous? Or... friendly at all?

[He heads back out into the kitchen. Maybe if he befriends Sunny, he can get a story or two for Jon about whatever is in Sunny's world?]

[ stories they.. have from people? he gives him a curious glance at that, wondering what sort of office collects ghost stories. what is it that he.. does, exactly? do they edit paranormal non-fiction or something..?

he opens the cabinet to get mugs down, nearly dropping one as martin asks about that. ] Um. [ he stares down unseeingly at the mug for a few moments, temples beginning to throb in spite of himself. he's not even looking, not really. he's not hearing, or-- or remembering, or any of that.

he takes a careful breath and turns back to martin, setting the mugs down on the table. ] .. Bit of both, [ he admits with a crooked half-smile. ] There's, um.. angels and demons? And.. other.. things. Witches and the like, stuff that ain't.. uh, ain't none of that. I don't know how to, uh, to.. classify it, I guess, and I don't really ask.

[ he turns to the fridge to get cream out, the cabinet for sugar, a drawer for spoons.

when he returns to the table, he sinks slowly down into the other chair, looking a little dizzy for a moment as martin's face fuzzes briefly out with that weird.. foggy something again. ] I've met a coupla' angels. No demons, though. Don't really wanna'. [ though he knows he--or rather, He--did something to them that they never could have deserved. ]

[Martin's general concern level is slowly creeping upward, as is the need to fuss now that he's not bleeding everywhere. He drums his fingers lightly on his own thigh, considering the other man.]

Good or bad, it doesn't seem like you've had the best experiences with them. We don't have to talk about this.

[He can press for Statements when they're better acquainted. Martin thinks he could write up a few for Jon just off the first days here.]

Um... How did you get into art?

[ he folds his hands across the top of the table, thumb brushing absently over one of the knuckles as the coffee brews. the concern is.. kind. human-kind, rather than the overbearing, exhausting sort of kindness michael tends to show him. ]

That's nice of you. [ he hesitates, then shrugs slightly. ] When you've believed the world a certain way for most of your life, only to be shown without room for doubt or question that it's not that way, it's.. hard, I guess? I'm still, um.. getting used to it. [ he smiles again, self-conscious, a little flustered. ] You'd think, considering I'm here.. [ that maybe everything would be a little less difficult, but it's not.

talking about art's a little bit less overwhelming, at least. a little. ]

I'm not really sure, honestly. I guess I was drawing since I could pick up a pencil, and my grade-school and high-school art teachers really helped me out, teaching me about materials and all. [ the coffee drip finally trails off, and sunny gets up to get the pot to pour for them both. ] My first boyfriend was older, he helped me to get exposure, but it's always been a way to get things out of my head and onto paper where I can deal with them. A-- A little like poetry, I guess? I've never written it, but.. [ the idea seems similar enough.

he sets the pot aside and settles again, pouring cream into his steaming mug, then spooning in sugar and stirring. ] I've, uh.. I got distracted, but.. Martin, what is it you.. do at home? I mean, you said y'all collect ghost stories.

[It's a sentiment that Martin can well appreciate, and his expression softens a bit as he puts cream and sugar into his own coffee. He lets that part of the conversation rest for now. They can come back to it at some point. Making his host uncomfortable would be rude.

Martin's more than content to offer simple, polite questions and just let Sunny talk, but apparently the man has other ideas.]

I work in an archive. [Worked.] It's part of a research institute that deals with paranormal and occult activities. Mostly, we help out researchers in parapsychology from the local universities in London. They come in looking for the first-hand accounts we can provide.

You said your boyfriend helped get you exposure? So, you've done gallery showings? That sort of thing? [He's just going to swing this conversation back around to be about Sunny.]

Yeah. I picked up some fame in the area I'm from. [ he takes a sip of his coffee, then turns his hand again in a little wiggle. ] Until this started taking over. [ his addiction, that is. ] According to gossip I'm makin' a comeback, though. [ his lips quirk back up, amused, as he sets his cup back down. ]

I didn't know parapsychology was that.. big? [ well, no, he knew it was popular with all the ghost tv shows and investigators and the like, but that's all so.. campy. he didn't think there were enough actual academics in it to justify an entire research facility with an archive and everything. ] I guess the ghost encounters thing makes sense, though. If you'd seen a ghost, you'd want to find a way to.. make sense of it..

[ he rubs his thumb over the chapstick print on his mug, wiping it away absently. ] No wonder you're so calm. [ well, that and the.. whatever-it-is shadowed over martin. he has his own story, doesn't he? ]

It's not really that big. We're just one of those niche things. [His smile is pleasantly bland along with his tone.] You get used to hearing a lot of things, it's true. Like I said, I'm pretty sure most of it isn't real.

[He knows full well most of them aren't real, but for the ones that are...]

I hope you can get the gossip going here, as well. Although... this place seems like it might be kind of dangerous. And the people who aren't like us are... kind of unpleasant? Just... the looks they give you.

Most of it. [ most of it, but not all of it. surely martin knows about the.. whatever it is attached to him. barely attached, like an echo. .. but what if he doesn't? but he could be hiding it, maybe he doesn't want people to know about it, and it's none of sunny's business. but what if he doesn't know? what if it's something that's.. hurting him, or causing problems, and sunny could.. help? or what if mentioning it just makes it worse? it's not like sunny has answers for him, he refuses to dig that deep into the box.

maybe he can just.. bring up what he can see in general and take clues from martin's response? ]

Definitely more dangerous than I know how to deal with, [ he agrees, hands tightening a little around the cup. ] People say ignorance is bliss, and in a way, I'd agree. Not being aware of all that.. other stuff would be a blessing. Sometimes I think I'd-- I'd rather not have any answers, and just.. [ he makes himself really look at martin, forces himself to acknowledge that there's more there than just a pleasant, quiet man. ] .. be able to pretend I don't see.. the things I see. Pretend they're just in my head.

Edited (additional clarification) 2020-04-07 18:20 (UTC)

[Sunny seems to be very stuck on this and Martin's sort of regretting bringing it up. His expression remains neutral to mildly concerned. There's a prickly sensation at the back of his neck that makes him want to fade away, just disappear from this conversation and leave Sunny to his coffee, not really understanding why he'd made two cups for himself. Of course, that's no longer an option.]

Are you seeing a lot of things here? I've definitely noticed there are a lot of unusual people. Even the animals are pretty strange. Three-eyed dogs and cats that look like they're sort of made of smoke. Those are definitely real. The dogs still seem nice?

APRIL 2020 TEST DRIVE MEME

YOU UNCULTURED SWINE

GOOD ENDURES

Character Arrival

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