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

[ ugh, god, he doesn't want to do this. there's a reason he ignores it all, isn't there? it's none of his business. it's not his place to look after strangers. he's not.. what He was.

his glance drops to his coffee again, lips thinning uncertainly. ] Uh. Yeah, they seem nice. [ he rubs a hand over his brow, then digs a knuckle into his temple. ] I-- Sorry, it's been a weird coupla' days. [ he could say something right now. he could. but it's just an echo, isn't it? ]

Short answer: yes. I-- I see stuff in and attached to people, too. And it's none of my business and I-- I'm not trying to make you uncomfortable or anything, but you've got this.. fog, like, or mist sometimes. [ a shaky breath. ] And it's not strong or anything, it's more like a reminder? But you're sitting at my kitchen table and I'd feel like an asshole if I didn't.. say something. In case you didn't know. [ helplessly: ] I don't know what it is, I never know what it is, all I can do is see it, and I can't help that part.

[Martin is silent for nearly half a minute, turning over his response to that. Honestly? If this were his world? He'd immediately peg Sunny as an avatar for the Eye with that kind of ability. It's reminiscent of some of Jon's powers as the Archivist. And that 'knowing, but not understanding' is... yeah. He sips his coffee and looks away.]

I know it's there, Sunny. You don't need to worry about it. It's... not a part of me anymore. [Except it is in some ways.] Not really. [He smiles at the other man again.] It's called the Lonely, but I'm pretty sure it doesn't have any power here.

[ he's tense and silent, headache growing, as martin seems to process what he said. he doesn't throw the coffee at him or storm off or start crying or anything, though, so that's.. probably good.

when he speaks again, sunny actually jumps a little, wound up like a spring and breath stuttering out of him in surprise. but martin's.. calm, so he finds his shoulders easing again. ]

Oh, [ he breathes, and, relieved: ] Good. Okay. [ a beat. ] Well, good that.. I'm not telling you anything you don't already know. I-- I'm sorry about-- I just can't turn it off. [ ever, really, though some days are considerably easier than others. ]

It's fine. [Not really, but he'll accept it for what it is and be careful about how he directs this conversation.] I know someone with that sort of power. He's here, and you'll probably want to be careful around him. He can't help looking, either. His name's Jon Sims. Short, graying, sort of looks like he hasn't slept in two weeks, lots of scars. What's attached to him probably is here. He's a good man, but he can be dangerous to people like you.

[ he stiffens, hands going white-knuckled around his mug for a moment. someone with a similar.. power? how similar? for the same.. reason?

but he said attached to him. not inside him, not part of him, attached. is it like this.. lonely? ] Dangerous.. how. Exactly.

[How to explain this succinctly? Martin takes another long moment to think about it, how best to phrase it so Jon doesn't seem like just a monster.]

Someone did something very bad to him, tricked him. Because of that, he has different things he needs now to stay alive. One of those things is stories. Stories from people who have encountered supernatural things. If you talk to him about them, it might give you really bad nightmares. And he has trouble not asking for them because of what was done to him. Writing it down works for him as an alternative, and it won't hurt you if you do it that way. If he asks about things, maybe suggest that, instead. It'll remind him he shouldn't be asking.

[ so this jon eats.. stories. is that why martin was asking about the things in sunny's world..? that's honestly a little bit scary, that this jon person was changed, but it's not like he asked for it. and martin seems to.. care about him? maybe they're friends or something?

he glances down at his coffee, touching a finger to the spoon still sitting in it, and then takes a breath. ]

Should I.. write something down for him, then? I mean.. and give it to you to give to him? [ his glance lifts once more, flickering over martin's face. ] How often does he need, um.. stories?

If you... want to? I mean, I'd really appreciate it!

[This is surprising, honestly.]

He needs them... pretty often. But I can feed him with some things, myself, too.

[ thinking back on all the things he's seen the last few years, and all the times michael or raphael were near, or even the things he half-remembers.. ]

I can't promise they'll all be exciting reading, [ he admits with a huff of laughter. ] Sometimes Michael stops by just to, um, bring lunch because he knows I haven't eaten all day. But I'll put as many down as I can, and hopefully.. uh. Hopefully, your Jon won't have to go hungry for a while.

[Having someone call him 'your Jon' makes Martin's stomach do a strange little roll as something warm blossoms in his chest. There's a much wider smile this time, sappy almost.]

Thank you. Anything would be amazing. I want to make sure he doesn't have to worry about it. He's got too much to worry about, as is. And-and thanks for the coffee, too. This was really lovely.

[ oh. not just friends, then. sunny returns the smile, his own crooked and charmed. even though the subject matter is still kind of spooky, martin's clearly besotted state is sweet. ]

I'm glad you think so. I know parts of this whole meeting have been kinda' upsetting, but I'm still really glad I met you, anyway.

[ martin's a nice guy, and anyone that can smile like that about another person is probably okay in his book.

he rests his elbow on the table, chin in his palm. ] How long have you two known each other?

[The follow-on question snaps Martin back to the reality of the moment and a deep blush colors his face.] Jon? O-oh, well... um. I mean, I knew of him for... a really long time, but we only properly met... four years ago? [He's doubtful Jon remembers the first time they met in the library, even if Martin has a detailed catalog of every single second of that brief encounter.] I started working in his department.

It's- I guess it's lucky we wound up here together. Is there anyone from your world here? You mentioned... Michael? Is he your boyfriend?

[ it is lucky, he guesses.. or awful, depending on how you look at it. not only is one of them stuck here, but both of them. but at least they're together, so that has to count for something. they can be there for one another, support one another..

the question about michael makes him choke on a sip of coffee, though, and he coughs once to clear his throat, setting the mug hastily back down to keep from spilling it. once his throat is clear, he finds he's laughing a little, imagining the look on michael's face if someone suggested that. ]

Um, no. Michael's.. [ a pause. ] I don't wanna' assume, but are you familiar with Christianity and, uh, related.. mythology..? [ his lips twist up wryly. ] Specifically with the archangel Michael..?

Archangel... Oh! Wow. Um... yeah, none of that's real where I'm from.

[But Sunny did mention angels and demons.]

That's- Wait, why is an archangel making you lunch?

[ he looks aggrieved for a moment. ] I still sometimes wish it wasn't back home for me. [ the look fades, though, as he feels his face go a little warm.

that is the question, isn't it? why would michael, of all creatures in creation, want to spend time with some lowly ex-addict? it's also part of that thing sunny doesn't like to spend much time thinking about or dealing with.

he shifts, arm lowering again as he sits up straighter, fiddling with one of the rings he's wearing to give his fingers something to do. ] It's.. sort of.. complicated. I'm technically his parent?

[The wheels are turning on that, give him a moment.]

You're... is this like one of those every time a baby laughs an angel is born type things? I've- I think I heard that?

[Somewhere? Somewhen back when he'd been a lot younger.]

Or are you an angel?

[ he breathes another little laugh, startled, then shakes his head. ] No, neither of those things.

[ it's his turn to go quiet, contemplating how to explain something he doesn't even like examining on his own. to excuse the silence, he lifts his coffee to his lips again, more careful this time. when he sets it down, he looks a little dizzy-- his headache is still.. there, and he's starting to feel that familiar not-right-in-his-bones sensation, but he pushes it away as hard as he can. ]

So, best I understand it, a real long time ago, God left heaven. Left.. everything, just up and disappeared. Michael spent a long time looking, but He was nowhere around. [ he gently nudges his cup away to toy with his rings again, staring down at his hands as he picks the words he wants. ] Only.. twenty-eight years ago, I guess God got it into His head He wanted to try something new. So He took everything that made Him.. Him, and jammed it down into the shape of a human soul, and-- and let Himself just.. be born as a human. And His ma named Him Sunny.

[ his hands turn over and spread in a nervous shrug. ] Only I don't remember most of it. Bits and pieces sometimes, like.. like teaching Lucifer to Sing. Or holding the first star and what it felt like. .. And there's the things I.. see and.. know, sometimes.

[There's an impulse toward skepticism, but that would provide some explanation for why this man can see like he does.]

Hmm...

[Martin sips his coffee, and sips it, and he's sort of gulping it now like he would if he had something a lot harder in hand.]

That's different!

[And he has absolutely no idea how to respond to the idea that God just made him coffee and bandaged his finger up. Jon definitely needs to not meet this person.]

And a lot to take in. I imagine.

It is, [ he says emphatically, and doesn't specify which part he's responding to. probably all of it. ] I don't.. deal with it much, honestly. I like being Sunny, whatever I was.. uh, before. Whatever He was. D'you like wine?

[ he smiles a little as he gets up, getting two glasses down and a bottle of white out of the fridge. he pours for himself, then leaves the glass and the bottle for martin if he wants to partake. sometimes a little alcohol helps, he gets it. (sometimes you need a lot.) ]

You're not.. uh, religious, are you? When you said none of it was real, I just assumed..

Oh, I don't really drink wine.

[He bites back on the tannins lie he'd used at Jon's birthday party years ago and just sort of flaps his hands vaguely. Mostly, the thought of being out of control with drink is anxiety-inducing. Much more so in the past than now, but he's still not keen to let himself go.]

Thank you, though. I'm not religious, no. It's still sort of- Um... It's kind of impossible not to be aware of Christianity where I'm from? So, just- it's just odd. Not bad! Mm...

[He frowns, trying to think how to put it.]

I guess... my experience with things people think of as gods hasn't been the best, but you seem really nice. I hope it stays that way.

Edited 2020-04-07 22:18 (UTC)

[ he eases back in his chair to sip his own glass, eyes crinkling up a little at the explanation. ]

Thank you. I don't really.. [ he trails off for a moment, fingers drumming against the bowl of the glass. ] I'm human, though. I'm.. Sunny. I kind of think of us as two separate.. beings, even though I know technically we're not. God was kind of a bastard in my opinion, and I don't.. want to be Him. I know that might change one day, because let's face it, God's a lot more important than Sunny Holiday, but..

[ his shoulders lift in a narrow little shrug. ] In the meantime, I keep the lid on the box as well as I can.

[It really is like Jon and being the Archivist. Except Sunny's presumably slightly more benevolent and focused on creation as the Christian God than the Fears are. Still, he cocks his head.]

Mm... In my experience, individual people are a lot more important day-to-day than any god. [And a small shrug.] Just a thought. Especially if people are getting along without a god. Is there anything I could do to... help with keeping the lid on? I know we just met, but if you need to be... fed in different ways? Or- whatever. I can try?

[ he blinks, then smiles a little helplessly, looking tired and sad and a little fragile for a moment. ] Well, I have to hope that's what He was thinking. [ that humanity was too important, that humanity choosing its own path was too important to risk interfering in, even unintentionally.

but the idea of feeding god.. he drains his glass of wine and sets it back down on the table. ] No, it's.. Thank you, that's really sweet of you to offer, but I think I just have to be, uh.. strong. I think. It might even be.. easier here, without Michael around missing his parent.

[ speaking of being here and all.. ] Do you need to contact your Jon, by the way? I-- I just realized I sort of kidnapped you.

Right. Well, good luck, then. [He means that genuinely.]

And I was the one stalking you, remember? I wonder if I... [He trails off as he stands up and moves a little ways away, then further. Martin breathes a sigh of relief as he returns and collects the cups on the table to rinse out in the sink. It's a reflex to just take care of it.] I think I'm okay to go now. Maybe getting my finger bandaged up helped it? Jon can take care of himself for a little while, but I should probably go and see what he's found.

[He huffs out a little breath.] Hopefully not any spinning wheels.

[ he stiffens in surprise as martin just. cleans out the cups? he wants to tell him not to bother, that sunny will get them, but maybe it makes martin feel better.

he smiles at the reminder of the spinning wheels, shifting in his chair to brace his heel against the seat and fold his arms over his abdomen. ] Be careful out there, both of you. Maybe I'll see you around.

APRIL 2020 TEST DRIVE MEME

APRIL 2020 TEST DRIVE MEME

YOU UNCULTURED SWINE

GOOD ENDURES

Character Arrival

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