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expiationlogs2024-02-11 08:51 pm
TEST DRIVE MEME #7
Welcome to Expiation, a pan-fandom adventure game with elements of fantasy, science fiction, and some subtle horror. As of December 2023, we’re making a couple of structural changes to the way our bimonthly test drive works.
TDM top-levels are now open to all, whether you are already in-game or not. New characters, please put TDM in your subject header so we’ll know you’re trying things out! There will be a directory of newbie top-levels at the bottom of the post. New folks are welcome and encouraged to use TDM threads as samples in their application. Current players may use TDM threads as part of their AC proofs.
The February TDM is going to be forward-dated to February 19.
Our CALENDAR is here to help to remember dates. That means RESERVES will be opening on February 19 and APPLICATIONS will open on February 22. After this, applications will next open in April 2024.Full Navigation
You awaken in a room of blinding white light–so bright that you can’t make out any details. You hear voices around you, speaking in muffled tones. It sounds an awful lot like they’re talking about you. You’re on the verge of figuring out what they’re saying, you’re so close...but then the floor drops out from under you. You fall into blackness.
Sure is cold out here. For new arrivals, even moreso: they find themselves waking in this strange new place in the middle of Aldrip, most of them harmlessly sprawled on the ground. Some may have landed in a snowdrift. A few unlucky folks may have appeared in one of the fountains or on a rooftop. Either way, their unfortunate state is on display for all to see. It may be embarrassing, but hey, at least it makes getting help a bit easier.
Locals and Chosen alike will be happy to brief newcomers on where they are and what's going on. Welcome to Aldrip, many will say, though they're clearly very busy. Newcomers will quickly learn that they're preparing for a delegation from a neighboring city, a diplomatic visit that should hopefully ease tensions between Aldrip and neighboring Ketsora, after one of the Chosen attacked the latter city. Apparently Aldrip agreed to host a lavish party for the Ketsorans, but they're a long, long way away from finishing it. Attitudes are tense, but cautiously excited; who doesn't like a party, right?
Oh, and don't mind the toads. They're fine. Everything is fine.
FESTIVE PREPARATIONS
As a show of good faith to the Ketsoran delegation, Aldrip's locals hastily turn the events center into an elegant reception hall. Apparently it's Ketsoran tradition: visitors to your city should be welcomed with a lavish party--the more days and expenses paid, the better. Aldrip is determined to make this party generous and opulent enough to appease their neighbors to the south. There's a long, long list of things to do in preparation–not just setting up for this party, but rebuilding and cleaning up damages left behind from January's events.
i. REBUILDING
Aldrip’s run-down state was of little concern right after January’s tense situation, but now that they have guests to impress, the locals are working themselves into a frenzy trying to get the town back to normal. Any Chosen seen with idle hands will be asked, cajoled, guilted, or outright volunteered into helping the clean-up process. This isn’t limited to rebuilding or clearing rubble: some may be put to work cleaning up public spaces, like the inn or the many businesses in town that could use some love. Some will even be asked to tend to green spaces or clear out monsters lurking too close to the town borders. Chosen-run establishments that are necessary to the community, such as the clinic, will also receive extra attention, getting their supplies and maintenance requests handled quickly.
ii. WORK HARD, PLAY HARD
Naturally, the other focus is on preparing for the party itself. The entire town is getting decked out for this: fresh paint on buildings, colorful flags, banners, and lanterns strung in public places and gathering spots. Local businesses will be putting their best foot forward, and some may need extra help to make that happen. The Chosen will find themselves pulled into this prep work as well, not just in the events center but around the rest of the town as well. They may be asked to run errands for businesses, work on decorating, prepare a delicious menu of food, or even to practice an act they can perform at the party. Better brush up on those juggling skills.
As always, we leave the type, scope, and placement of any of this work up to players!
A MASKED AFFAIR (19-23)
iii. ALL DRESSED UP
Aldrip’s tailors and seamstresses have their work cut out for them. All the way up to the first night of the party, and even in the evenings between party days, they’ll be doing their level best to make sure everyone in town, locals and Chosen alike, look their absolute best for the ball. They may even grab some reluctant characters off the street to deck them out in the latest fashions. They do take requests, of course, but those Chosen with no opinion may find themselves at the whim of the tailors’ creativity. There’s no telling what they’ll come up with.
Tailors are available to alter, clean, or completely change characters’ costumes between party nights, but they may come up with something less elaborate after more than one go-around. They may even be less altruistic about giving things for free.
Not everyone is lucky enough to get these ornate getups free of charge, unfortunately; some of the clothing shops in town got hit pretty hard by recent events! Chosen who pick certain shops may find that they’re asked to work to earn it in a variety of different ways. Some characters may be asked to model new fashions outside of shops, or to run errands for the shopkeepers. They could find themselves distributing flyers to advertise for the store, cleaning up, cooking meals, or any number of different tasks. We leave the options in your capable hands.
Please note that this event is a masquerade, meaning that masks aren’t just encouraged, they’re required. Tailors will often offer to provide a mask, but if there’s another way a character would like to obtain a mask, please feel free to utilize it.
iv. FOR LUCK
Aldrip’s locals certainly are a superstitious bunch, which might explain why they decorate the elaborate formalwear with certain motifs, designs, or colors. Some of the Chosen wearing embellished clothing may find that it enhances certain aspects of their personality or appearance. For example, Yellow can encourage a sunny disposition, or a heart could make them seem more desirable. Perhaps a flower brooch makes them smell like roses, or a peacock design has them preening and strutting. Maybe matching patterns could even inspire feelings of friendliness or affection. On the other hand, raindrops or dark colors may make them feel a little gloomy. Please note that this is optional, and that the range of effects is entirely up to you.
NIGHTS AT THE BALL (19-23)
Thanks in no small part to the help of the Chosen, the events center has been transformed into a lavish dance hall. Thick velvety curtains drape from ceiling to floor, adding an air of luxury to the whole event. Servers carry trays of delicious, exotic foods and drinks, offering them to attendees. Various performers and acts will rotate through the space as the week progresses, featuring different types of music, dramatic numbers, joke telling, acrobatics, and any number of other things.
Some may see familiar faces working in various capacities throughout the week. That’s right! Some Chosen may choose to–or be volunteered to–work during the event as bartenders, servers, cooks, entertainers, game runners, etc. Maybe they need the cash? Or…maybe they’re just bored.
Partygoers may find, oddly, that their masks make it suspiciously difficult to recognize their friends–they may even have trouble recognizing their voices. Some may even mistake a total stranger for someone they know, or vice versa. Either way, it’s strange, isn’t it? Almost as if the masks are obscuring peoples’ identities.
v. SAVE ME A DANCE
A local at the door is offering dance cards to those who will. Those who choose to participate in this fun game will find that they’re missing something–or several somethings, around 4-8. These could be any number of things, including but not limited to: physical items, appearance traits, memories, powers, attributes, or anything else you can think of. How do characters get them back? By dancing with other Chosen, and writing their names in the dance card. Who knows? Maybe you’ll make a new friend!
vi. ALL FUN AND GAMES
Some of the gaming tables from the casino make a return, as well: there are small rooms in the back for blackjack, darts, pool, and other games. There are other games, too, for people who will. A flower vendor encourages people to buy single roses in different colors, each with their own meaning in the language of flowers. Various scavenger hunts ask people to find people wearing certain colors, patterns, or shapes in their elaborate clothing. Some even play games like charades.
At the stroke of midnight on each night of the party, the band stops playing their music, just for a moment. They count down to the last chime of the clock, and then everyone removes their masks. Surprise!
You know the drill–this is the wildcard one. Just because it’s not listed in the prompts above does not mean it’s unavailable as an option. We encourage you to do whatever you’d like to utilize the setting to its full potential. To help with this, the SOTG for February is here. If you have any questions about what is and is not possible, please don’t hesitate to ask!
Click to view:
| CANON | CHARACTER/TOP LEVEL |
| The Case Study of Vanitas | Vanitas |
| Circle of Magic | Sandrilene fa Toren |
| The Dresden Files | The Archive |
| Dungeon Meshi | Mithrun |
| Final Fantasy VII R | Aerith Gainsborough |
| Final Fantasy VII R | Cloud Strife |
| Gnosia | Sha-ming |
| House M.D. | Dr. Gregory House |
| The Locked Tomb | Gideon Nav |
| Metro Exodus | Colonel Miller |
| Naruto | Kakashi Hatake |
| Onmyoji (Netflix) | Abe no Seimei |
| Original | Astralin Turnont |
| Persona 3 | Aigis |
| Persona 3 | Minato Arisato |
| Persona 4 | Naoto Shirogane |
| The Tarot Sequence | Addam St. Nicholas |
dr. gregory house | house m.d. | tdm
o1.) Rebuilding.
[ Let the record show that someone else volunteered House to the clinic against his will. A fate crueller than, well, death. And that’s not an exaggeration by any stretch of the imagination. You spend your entire professional career ducking away from hundreds (if not thousands) of clinic hours only to be sentenced to…whatever this is.
And they get the one guy with the bad leg to get the supply closet back in order. Woof. Good luck with that.
Well, that’s if they can get House to complete a single task. He is gripping a broom that had done no sweeping in the last hour. But he finds a sturdy box to sit on. I guess there’s a silver line in all the mayhem that’s been going around. He can hear the commotion coming from the window; nails being hammered, people pushing wheelbarrows full of dead wood, people cursing out at each other down the road. Sounds like your typical day in New Jersey.
Eyes shift to look at the clear sky from out the window. Flecks of dust bunnies float around his line of vision, ignoring the rest of the mess that needs to be taken care of.
A set of footsteps becomes more audible as it approaches the closet. He shoos them away with a simple: ]
Man! Would you look at the size of that poisonous snake?! Wow. This is going to take a while!
•• Part II — A Masked Affair
o2.) For Luck.
[ After several existential crises and a few alterations, the tailor had finished House’s suit. The entire get-up is campy, but public nudity is (sadly) not an option.
In front of the mirror, he adjusts the cuff of his sleeves. He can feel the weight of the black rose brooch his tailor costumed made for this piece. Formal wear isn’t a new concept for the medical doctor, however, the thought of going into a social gathering with no one he recognizes grates the hell out of him.
From the corner of his eye, he spots a humanoid-like figure. He assumes it’s the tailor trying to make “one more alteration”, sooo — ]
Look, Daddy! I’m all done now.
•• Part III — Nights At The Ball
o3.) All Fun And Games.
[ Poker is House’s game of choice. In his hand is a Four of a Kind. A decent hand. The kind you can bluff your way to having the rest of the table to fold. Although, let’s be honest, the stakes aren’t particularly high. It wasn’t like House was throwing Wilson’s car keys into the pot.
He keeps the cards close enough to his person, wearing a blase expression he’s adopted for these types of games. The next person is only sitting a few feet away from him. That’s when he leans in and says, ]
The only reason that guy keeps looking at the clock is because they know they’re gonna be so broke before midnight.
o4.) Wildcard.
[ Drop in with a starter if none of these aren't meeting the vibe check. I'm flexible with whatever you want to throw @ me. ]
01
She's a very short, small girl in rumpled green-and-yellow clothes, dirt-coated bare feet showing more than a few signs of frostbite. She shoulders her way rudely past House into the clinic stock room to start rummaging around. ]
Got anything in here I can use to warm up my feet?
[ Toph likes to push herself to her limits, sure, and she's not about to put shoes on or stop helping with the rebuilding, but she's also not going to chance getting blisters on her feet, which she depends on for her most important sensory input. If she has to take breaks then she'll take breaks. That being said, she's been spending enough time outside that she's starting to think she needs to do more than just take breaks to rub some warmth back into her toes... ]
no subject
That brush past his shoulder doesn’t phase him. This kid can’t be more than what seven? Ten? He can’t tell. Kids are just that…kids. So it’s only a fraction less annoying when they barge into your secret hiding spot to find what? Socks?
But he doesn’t move an inch from where he is. His eyes drift from the window to the floor which is in desperate need of a sweep. ]
Gosh. Now what in the world can you use to warm up feet?!
[ He asks out loud with feigned curiosity while lightly wringing his grip around the broom ]
If only you can put together sturdy, insulating fabrics so you can walk while keeping your feet warm. Like I don’t know…a shoe? Pfft! Man. Wouldn’t that be something?
no subject
[ If he's going to be sarcastic then Toph can absolutely return it with maximum sarcasm herself. She ruffles through the stocks, throwing things behind her on the floor carelessly. Toph of all people couldn't care less about the relative cleanliness of the clinic closet. ]
Do you think you could explain to me in smaller words what a shoe is?
[ A box goes flying over her shoulder. ]
no subject
Well, when a mommy cobbler meets a pile of synthetic leather for the first —
[ Bam! That thought goes interrupted by a box being tossed to the ground.
A beat. ]
Or you can use the stockpile of gauze rolls to the right. Your call, Little Foot.
no subject
That might work, [ she admits, not begrudgingly but because it will require testing.
Toph immediately snatches up a roll of gauze and plunks herself down right on the dusty floor littered with scattered medical supplies from her searching. She starts wrapping a few layers over one tiny calloused foot as she responds, pausing intermittently to test her earthbending sensitivity through it by flexing her ankle to place the bottom of her foot flat on the floor. Toph highly respects sarcasm so she is not put off in the least by their exchange, and he'd actually been helpful already. ]
I'd take anything that can start a fire quickly, too. I keep having to take breaks while I'm out there and it sucks starting one on my own.
[ The one thing firebenders are good for, and none of them around... ]
no subject
[ And that’s just a universal fact. You can be a pre-teen alien from Pluto and still play with fire.
Once again, he doesn’t get up from his makeshift seat. Instead, he uses his cane to point out the chemical shelf. ]
Potassium. Ten feet down to your left.
[ Trust him on this one, Toph. He paid attention to his high school chem lessons. ]
no subject
Please, I have better things to do than mess around with pointless kid stuff.
[ Toph pops to her feet, partially wrapped with gauze, and follows the directions for finding the suggested potassium. Being a walking lie detector in terms of sensing heart rate fluctuations, she has no reason to doubt him. ]
Thanks for the tips, old man. Does this come with instructions?
no subject
No.
[ But Toph’s curiosity is genuine enough to move House from his makeshift seat, walking steadily on his cane towards her direction. ]
Afraid you’re gonna have to experiment with this one! Just like those men in the Stone Age.
[ There is a shift in his mood. His annoyance is replaced with the demeanour of an adult who doesn’t want to be responsible for a kid receiving third-degree burns. A proper man of science, some might say. ]
But really — [ He snatches the bottle off from her hand. ] Just fifteen millilitres on some dry wood. A dab and some flint will do. Any more than that and you’ll be in another prison for arson.
no subject
[ Toph appreciates the explanation, though, and doesn't mind it being given with some sarcasm attached. She just wants to be clear on what she's doing so she doesn't commit arson.
Nothing like fighting a war against fire-wielding enemies to make you respect fire. ]
Think you could demonstrate for me? I can't read so I don't know what it says on the bottle, but if you do it once I can copy it. [ She sounds completely unembarrassed to admit her lack of literacy -- it's why she was asking about instructions. ]
no subject
[ That’s being nice, right? This is a good deed. Look at Dr. Gregory House: New prisoner at Aldrip, maker of fires for blind teens.
He takes one more once over inside the closet. His hideaway served its purpose. ]
C’mon — [ He says, turning to exit the closet. ] Let’s go set the roof on fire.
no subject
[ Toph isn't gonna make a big deal out of it, but if it's possible for her to repay someone who did her a favor, she will. She doesn't like charity-- and she likes showing off and helping others. It's great when she can accomplish all three aims at once.
Teaching her how to set fires with chemicals definitely counts as a favor to Toph. She trots after him eagerly. ]
I'm Toph, by the way.
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wildcard — before/mid-prompt 2
unfortunately, the locals of aldrip know of jinx far more than they would like to. she is a menace to this town, and every time she comes around to any store, the atmosphere shifts with so much tension and discomfort. jinx, too, ogles back to the laborers, but more in a bewildered fashion than anything. she doesn't understand what the big deal is, especially when every single chosen is being forced to a party whether they wish to attend or not.)
What? He needs a top hat.
( the teenager shakes her shoulder to indicate the shark-like rocket launcher is nodding in agreement with his owner's words. the locals hesitatingly return to their stitching and snipping as she maneuvers further in the store. she isn't paying any mind to house (yet), but that's because she throws herself in a conversation with her rocket launcher. .... which, she is providing the goofy voice for him. )
❝Jinx, are you sure it's okay for me to be out here...? They seem a little scared of me. ❞
( the twin-braided girl rolls her eyes at her companion's concern and exhales out a frustrating groan. )
— Uuuughhh! So? Who cares? Look, I'm not going to this stupid party alone. I need a date. And I can't ask... you-know-who, so... you're the next best thing. You're welcome, by the way!
( plopping the missile on a nearby bench, jinx straightens her back with her hands prop on her hips -- scoping out the place. the girl locks her gaze over to house, but it's extremely brief as she makes her way to where they store the hats. )
❝Pick me up something really nice! ❞
( "fishbones" exclaims out to her, and she waves back at him in a "yeah yeah, i hear ya" notion as she browses. )
no subject
At least the seats are comfortable. Even though this maroon velvet loveseat isn’t enough real estate to splay his entire lanky body, he makes it work (somehow).
He ignores about 99.9% of what’s going on. His eyes glance at his reflection in the full-bodied mirror on the other side of the shop. Middle-aged is wearing on him like a rotting bowl of fruit no matter how much fancy dress you throw his way.
House’s attention goes from the mirror to the punk-looking girl toting a what…Toy bazooka? Cool design. ‘Too cool to be real’, he muses. Says the man dragged from Princeton and straight into Fantastical Psychodelic Land. Her banter with the ‘toy’ doesn’t go unnoticed. A rather interesting friend she’s got there.
His eyes meet with Jinx for a second. As she walks further inside, his attention leads off again to another part of the room. This time, it’s the ceiling.
He senses her passing by and says: ]
Cool trumpet. Does it have a name?
no subject
His name is Fishbones. ( she answers sharply, and not at all hiding the fact how offended she is. ) — And he's a rocket launcher not a... whatever you called it.
( jinx whips back around to the headpiece selection, lifting the purple one to inspect its material, then placing it on her own head. )
Maybe you oughta look into gettin' glass, Old Timer. I thiiiiink your vision is going. And I'm not gonna escort you around town. That's goody-goody work, and I don't do goody-goody.
no subject
His eyes glance once more at the rocket launcher, then at his cane. House will gladly play up the old man card if it means finding out why Jinx is lugging that thing around. With a get-up like that, the Chosen should have been setting off the guillotines by now. You can sense all the glances, the side-eyes being pointed towards her, and yet… ]
Damn! Thought I had you there. I’m searching for a new hospice nurse to hand-feed me tapioca.
[ The sarcasm is as thick as molasses in his tone. ]
Pay’s terrible, but you know? The goodness of your heart. Justice. All that cozy stuff.
[ He steadily lifts both his feet up from the arm of the loveseat and swings them over to the side. There is a slight stagger in his movement from his bad leg, but both feet land on the floor and House is sitting upright. ]
Or I can ask your buddy over there to do me a solid. He seems fun at Bingo Night.
no subject
He's fun until he yammers on about how you should put up your laundry every day, be nice to others, or you shouldn't pickpocket people without their consent.
( jinx throws her arms up in exasperation over her last example, looking to house in the hope he would agree to the next point she's about to whine over. )
— The whole point of stealing is to do it without asking. But then he goes, "but Jinx, what about their feelings" and blahblahblah. And then this jerkward — ( she thumbs over her shoulder towards..... the hat rack? ) butts in all of my conversations like he just owns the place.
( there's an abrupt pause in her rant (maybe that's a blessing in disguise), and her face crinkles when she feels a sharp jab to her temple. she winces quietly, but takes big and deep breaths to compose herself. because she refuses to let "mylo"'s words spiral her into a tantrum, it's the last thing she needs when she's already on thin ice with the people who are in charge of this whole island. )
Anyway... ( she starts again, breathing out the word and puffing up her chest to appear unbothered. ) If you wanna hang around with a stuffy missile who is supposed to be a death machine, be my guest. But don't come whining to me when he schools you about table manners.
3
You picked up on that too. If he knew any better, he'd go ahead and bow out now.
[he's currently got a three of a kind, and he's trying to decide if he's going to fold or bluff everyone into doing so instead. but at least he's good at keeping it neutral on his own expression, if not a little cocky.
he throws some more chips on the table. he's got a decent amount of money now that he's been here for a couple of months... so it is what it is if he loses some.]
no subject
Telling from that internal tantrum? Yah! He's a goner.
[ He tosses a few more chips on the table, feeling a touch more confident now than he was a moment ago. Offhandedly, he comments: ]
They’ve got a little uhh — [ He gestures a scratching motion on the side of his lip. ] disappoint sitting riiiight there.
no subject
One down.
[Lelouch smirks, looking at the next person. they were more stony-faced, and threw a large amount of chips into the pile before staring them down.]
Oh, this one's going to be tougher to crack.
[but he's going to get another card anyway.]
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What’s that saying?
[ House asks Lelouch while picking up his whiskey glass. He knows the younger man won’t know the literal saying. For all he knows, the kid could be a techno-wizard from the planet Sagittarius. ]
"Speak softly and carry a big stick"? [ He plays up the ignorance, goading their next victim across the table. ] Or was it "puff out my chest with all my money even though I’m shooting all blanks"? — Nah. I’m sure it’ll percolate soon enough.
1
I wanna see the snake!
[pause.]
Is it a poisonous snake, or a venomous snake?
no subject
Don’t know! Good question. [ A beat to look behind his shoulder. ] Which one will make go scamper in the opposite direction?
no subject
Probably neither! I like snakes. [His little green face pops up in the doorway, and he smiles cheerfully at House before glancing around at the floor of the closet.]
...I don't see any snakes. [Heyy....you weren't messing with him, were you??? :( ]
no subject
Not with that attitude you aren’t.
[ Maybe this is his chance to hand off his clinical clean-up duty to this gullible sap. He holds out the broom to the younger lad for him to grab. ]
Take it. [ He speaks in a slight whisper. ] If you’re rweally qwuiet and start sweeping around the corner, you can chase those rwascally snwakes out of their holes.