repeter | JUNE TDM

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! tdm

JUNE TDM

TEST DRIVE

JUNE TEST DRIVE
The city of Recollé. The kids are out for the summer and the weather's just fine. The sun's shining brightly, not a cloud in the clear gray sky. Everything seems at peace and citizens are out and about, smiling to one another and enjoying each other's company.

Oh, and this thing (complete with cardboard cut-out) has currently taken the place of the founders' statues in Recollé Square. But that's probably not a big deal.

What will you do today?

I.
What is this thing? Why is this thing here? For those of you in Tribunal Terrace today you may wish to investigate the five-foot-tall spinning wheel. How did it even get here? And where did the statues of the founders go? Even if you cannot answer those questions, it's hard to ignore the urge to give it a spin.

Check out those colors go 'round and 'round. Depending on what number you land on, you will find a notification pop up on your phone with a short list of…words. Are these supposed to be qualifications? Weird. That was a waste of time.

However, the moment you walk away you will find yourself accosted by various recruiters wherever you go, congratulating you on your impressive resumé and leading you to an office in Chata. Their offices have been equipped with tabletop-sized spinning wheels much like the one in Recollé Square that will spin 'round and 'round, determining the position you qualify for. Are you ready to show how these traits make you the perfect applicant? It looks like you have time to consult with your fellow candidates before your turn comes.

Or perhaps you've managed to resist spinning that wheel. The recruiters absolutely love your willpower and determination and want you to join their team! For those who can resist, they will still find themselves whisked away by recruiters to the same office and thrown straight into training to prepare for interviewing their neighbors. Recruiters will set up pairs of interviewers and applicants, leaving them alone to ask the hard-hitting questions and pick the most qualified candidate. Do your best and beat out the rest! It's your time to shine.

II.
Just because school is out for the summer doesn't mean Apparassage is quiet. Students and faculty alike are bustling about already preparing for the next school year. Campus tours of Recollé University run every two hours, and there are open house tours of the local elementary, middle and high school. Perhaps you're a future student exploring the campus and getting to know your future classmates. Maybe you're faculty or a student guide wrangling the kids and keeping them in line. Or you just might be one of the unfortunate ones who have found yourself with six weeks of summer school.

However, no matter where you find yourself in this district things get a little tricky when you're ready to leave for the day. The sidewalks outside of the buildings have all disintegrated, revealing a large void leading to nowhere beneath your feet. Without a clear path it seems impossible to escape, but stacked at the entrances of every doorway are large tiles with the letters of the alphabet carefully printed on them. When you look across the devoid path, you may notice you have a partner in a similar position with their own stack of letters.

Get ready to expand your vocabulary. Building a bridge of connecting words may be your only chance of getting home before sunset. Strangely, as the letters are laid out they seem to suspend mid-air enough to hold your weight as you make your way carefully across this pit. Balance and precision are key in this game. The stack floats along behind you as you cross the void, letters seemingly adding to the pile to provide more materials to build.

But like all games, there can be only one winner. Those who clear their letters first will arrive outside of the district safely, free now to come and go as they please. For those who do not clear their stack in time, you might have luck jumping from word to word to cross the finish line. Try as you might, if this is the method you follow, the moment you land on the winning word to leave the district the letters will glitch out, sending you plummeting into the void and landing on a long slope down to the bottom. Upon landing, you will see a series of chutes and ladders one can use to climb back up. Some ladders lead back to Apparassage. Some lead straight into Tisse, and some even lead to unexpected places. Where will you end up? The journey is up to you now.

III.
The days are longer, the nights are shorter, the sun is shining and it's noticeably warmer. Isn't it a perfect time for a summer potluck? The citizens of Recollé seem to think so and have all gathered today in Hollingberry Field with friends and loved ones to share food and fun. Kids chase after each other in friendly games of tag and hide-and-seek while other attendants mingle with one another, piling plates of food and sharing with their neighbor.

Why, even Mayor Mayer is out today for this summer kickoff with his lovely red Chocobo, Seabiscuit.

As the evening begins to wind down, however, there's a startled cry from the Mayor as he realizes someone has kidnapped his beloved pet from right under his nose. Was it you? How about you? Everyone has become a suspect and it's up to you to solve whodunnit. The Mayor provides everyone with a pen and a pad of paper divided into three sections for a suspect, a method, and a location. Grab a friend (or even a group of strangers) and get ready to interrogate each other to crack this case.

(With a little looking, however, it's easy to see that Seabiscuit's merely wandered down the hill away from the park. But maybe it's better not to tell the Mayor. He seems very adamant about this game.)

For anyone who manages to solve the case, the Mayor will be immensely grateful and reward you with a valuable prize! Congratulations! However, for anyone who fails to solve the puzzle, or even anyone found guilty of this heinous crime, by order of the Mayor you will be subjected to jail time for a full half an hour. (The Mayor can't stay too mad at his citizens. He loves them all.)

IV.
A nice, leisurely stroll through the entertainment district of Tisse seems to be in order. Summer sales are aplenty and now's the perfect time to shop 'til you drop. On the other hand, that doesn't seem to be the only thing dropping in Tisse. Do you hear that? Perhaps it is easy to ignore the sounds of stone crashing to the ground. Construction isn't unusual in this district. You think maybe you passed an ongoing demolition on your way inside a shop. But the crash happens again, and again, and again, a loud string of booms growing closer and closer.

Are those buildings tipping into one another? Or is it your imagination? You may not have time to answer while the string of events is put into motion. A crane swings overhead, knocking into a well-placed boulder that begins to roll down the street. Cranes, pulleys and wires move in sync as the ball rolls right toward you. Will you run? Will you collide right into the next set of traps? You may recall learning about this type of experiment once upon a time, coming to realize the elaborately planned Rube Goldberg machine spans the entirety of the city.

Maybe you're one of the lucky ones and you find a safe shop to dive into to escape. Or perhaps your sole focus is to run and get as far as you can, failing to notice that the large boulder herds you right to the end of the district and into a caged-in area. Make yourself comfortable. Someone from the outside will have to free you. But hey, maybe you aren't alone in this trap. Misery loves company, doesn't it?

BONUS.
The Retrospec app is at it again, just as useless as it's always been. After downloading to your device and allowing you to upload a profile picture, the app seems to take over your phone. Any time you open your phone to use it, a splash screen appears prompting you to pick one of the brightly colored wedges (or one of the two grayed out ones.)

It's time to exercise your brain and buff your trivia stats. Answering a question from your selected category will allow you to use your phone once again, but if you get it wrong? Retrospec will encourage you not to give up and try again.

...or, you know, you could ask someone to help figure out the answer. Hey, that person looks like they're bursting with knowledge! Perhaps it's best to see if they can help you stop this madness.

As usual, any attempt to get the company to reply are futile. Once a question has been answered correctly, phones will return to their usual functionality until the next time it settles into idle mode.

Welcome to the

recolle test drive meme! All characters will be begin in-game AU'd as Recollé residents. You may use any of the above prompts for ideas or make up your own depicting your Recollé AU! Prompts do not have to be set in the districts listed above. You can review our list of locations for what's available. Please note that TDM threads can be used as samples, can be kept as game canon, and can also be used for bonus points for future item regains. Share a few minor details of your AU, tag around, and have fun!

Your June TDM directory is here, and your AU workshop is here!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I.
[ Is there a reality TV series like this? The Assistant? The Intern? Well, whatever, this is probably as absurd or as dramatic as those things. Kagetsuna was sitting all defiant in his modest interviewee chair for all of a minute, but he straightens out when the recruiter gets thrown into the office. ]

Alright, hit me with your interview questions; only way we're getting out of here. Just make sure it's all legal ones you can aske, this process isn't a new one for me.

[ He... atually doesn't know what he's being interviewed for, there was a glimpse at the ridiculous jobs to fill before he was swept away. But he's been in worse situations if that says something. Here's hoping (okay not really but humor him a tiny bit) it's the executioner job because that would be one hell of an interview considering his qualifications. But, if it's singer... uh. He likes karaoke bar from time to time, but please no, his singing skill is a secret. ]

III.
[ There may have been an attempt at this whodunnit game. But obviously, it puts a reasonable, if not gruff man to his wit's end because there are better ways to find a supposedly courageous, battle ready, and attack boosted chocobo, if the wiki is telling me right about this. ]

Screw this, I'm finding the damn bird like you find any other normal lost pet.

[ As useless as he found the little party game, it did give him an idea. They like greens, right? A certain kind, but they'd work as great bait. If that doesn't work... A random chocobo from another did go after his popcorn the moment he got a bag it... Why do people like these big birds again? ]

Come on, we can get some food too while we're at it. I was really bad at the game anyway.

[ It's their win, the afternoon snack is on him! Even if winning is actually having Seabiscuit. Also, he just feels bad if they got shuffled to another partner and have to to go threw the nonsense. For right now though, they're gonna need some veggie greens for their chocobo search. ]

bonus.
Kagetsuna Katakura Okay before my phone gets locked by another trivia question
Kagetsuna Katakura Humor me, what's the hardest category for you?
Kagetsuna Katakura I feel so old, Entertainment is giving me a headache from hearing that song for the 6th time

Edited 2017-06-17 06:58 (UTC)

[ Sakura takes this all very seriously. She's got a little deerstalker cape with matching hat, a magnifying glass and a leatherbound notebook. ]

Ehhh, where does one even buy Gysahl Greens?

[ She really had no interest in animal husbandry, so she's kinda in the deep end a little bit here. But at the mention at food, she perks up. ]

Hmm hmm! What kind of food are we having today?

[ He can think that's a little cute, right? Her... seriousness (the outfit helps)? He won't say it out loud, of course, and the whole thing is still too extra... anyway! Actual info. ]

Specialty places that make a killing off of rich Shocobo owners.

[ ...There's totally an underground market for Chocobo supplies that help with raising and breeding the best Chocobo. Recently, the value of black and gold ones has skyrocketed! "Gray" ones are just too varied in their abilities as of late. ]

It's a potluck, get what you want. I think my neighbor brought fried dumplings, that's what I'm looking for.

[ Time to enter the giant picnic tent that's like a giant outdoor buffet. Kagetsuna will gladly hold the plates that Sakura's dainty hands can't hold. ]

[ She looks at Kagetsuna with a little bit of hesitation, then once she's sure he's not going to mind - she rushes off down the long tables. It was a potluck and a lot of food. She's just gonna help herself to everything - little packets of rice and chicken, noodle bowls in sealed tupperwares, cookies wrapped in plastic bags. When she manages to come back, she's tottering under the weight. ]

I hope you're hungry...

[ And up on the top, is a plate of fried dumplings ]

I make sure to eat light. It feels bad to refuse food--

[ That pile of food has him staring. Of course, it all looks super good, he isn't picky at all. Homemade food is always his preferred kind of meal, if only he had better skills with cooking a variety. Oh well, that's what a potluck is for.

With a good look at the food and what is where, he's going to cut that mass of food about in half so the girl doesn't topple over, with a surprising amount of grace. Some of the tupperware on the bottom, dumplings get to be on top. ]

I hope your appetite can match your ambition.

[ You know, eyes bigger than stomach and stuff. ]

Absolutely! Never underestimate how much young people like free food!

[ This is the person who has gone to job recruitment fairs to grab free food and drink. She's grateful and bows her head when he takes half of it. ]

Let's just go to that table and eat, okay?

[ Sakura gives him her brightest smile and proceeds to direct him to a free table so they can put all of their acquired foods on there. ]

[ HONESTLY... He'd do it too. Except with party food. He's seen ladies shove the non-perishable hors d'oevres in their purses! Back on topic and after smilig the tiniest bit at her appreciation, he follows her to the free table, going for the dumplings first. ]

Where does someone even get a detective getup at the last second?

[ He's asking between dumpling 1 and 2, quietly stuffing his face. ]

[ Sakura slurps up a long strand of noodles noisily, smiling all the while. ]

Umm, I just have one! Like they want someone to be a school girl, maid, nurse, detective, police woman...

[ But her type of modelling was hella obscure and was mostly by small specialist shops in the area trying to cater to shut ins. ]

But this one is the cutest! Cause it comes with a hat.

[ She readjusts her deerstalker, which has a fanciful array of white ribbons for decoration. ]

Let's get the chocobo back first.

[Maybe she just wants to feed seabiscuit okay...]

I'm sure they weren't expecting to be able to feed it for a few hours while it's here, which means it was likely already fed its proper meal. That means fruit is our best bet.

[...not to get it back, but for its nutrition.]

[ Akinobu: Gamer, newly discovered Swordlady, and a Chocobodere. ]

Makes sense. [ He nods, it's a better use of logic than at the little game the mayor planned. Totally why he was stumped. ] Saves us the trouble of finding fresh vegetables at a potluck that's not covered in dressing.

[ New-age Recolle vegetarians on the Chocobo feed fad diet are... something. A former yakuza would rather not deal with that at an event. He has to deal with them at his day job. ]

...With those big beaks, how are people able to hand feed them fruit so easily?

It seems as if everything's a holdover from horses. They eat the same food even though beaks aren't very good for solid foods like that, but they're able to snap them shut hard enough to bite into it.

That or swallow it whole like a duck.

[She shrugs. The world is a strange place, Kagetsuna.]

[ He didn't expect a logical answer, for one; the thought of a larger scaled version of a bird eating just a bit too aggressively and nipping a finger is frightening. ]

...They really don't make sense in terms of biology.

[ If someone apps in a vet who awakens to the realities of Recolle, hopefully their reaction is popcorn-worthy. ]

Apples slices it is.

They're good birds.

[SHE WILL DEFEND HER CHOCOBOS UNTIL HER VERY LAST BREATH.

In any case, there's an apple tree in the park so she just starts walking over to that instead. Considering this is a pot luck everything's likely been prepared to some degree; fresh fruit is better.

..except when they get there-]

Alright, grab one.

[She's too short.

Although it looks like he might have to do some climbing.]

Animals are better than more kinds of people.

[ Aki will hopefully (probably) become "the chocobo girl".

When the get to the apple tree though. ]

...I haven't done this in years. Hold on.

[ Yes, between the smaller girl and the bear, the bear should climb a tree. Not that he'll complain, it's for the bird. Who he will respect a bit because animals make people happy.

On a scale of 1 to 10, how silly does this look? ]

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notbunaga - 2017-06-21 01:24 (UTC) - Expand

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gedanzuki - 2017-06-23 20:56 (UTC) - Expand

[ Enjoy this unhelpful partner, Kagetsuna. He's trying to help, honest. ]

Do they eat carrots? If he eats greens every day, maybe something else will get his attention.

[ You may be thinking of horses, Kiryu. ]

Edited 2017-06-17 20:11 (UTC)

[ He can make it work! Thug life is being resourceful. ]

They like leafy vegetables, actually. [ ... ] At the garden center, people try to grow them because they're fresher that way.

[ The amount of love that is given to these giant birds... Kagetsuna wants to understand, but he just can't. Cats and dogs, even rabbits are much more endearing in his opinion. Then again he lost his snack to one hours ago. ]

I think people treat them with fruit? Nuts too. The mayor looks like a guy who spoils his bird, don't he?

Ah, I see. Must be nice.

[ Yeah, he doesn't quite see. But he is also of the opinion that chocobos are kind of just giant chickens. They're smart, sure, but they shouldn't be that hard to take care of, right? ~~Maybe they can learn to manage real estate.~~ ]

That's probably true. Maybe an apple, since it's red? Or would it like something sweeter...?

[ Not that red chocobos are prone to eating red apples, but people probably feed it red things often just by virtue of matching the feathers lbr. ]

[ The chocobos or this duo at real estate is the question The former sounds like an adorable mascot mobile game, the latter sounds like a long term side quest from hell. ]

Hey, apples are plenty sweet if you get the right kinds. It's a potluck, we're sure to find 'em. Pink Lady ones are small and popular with kids, those will work.

[ They're also reddish without being horribly bland like Red Delicious. THE "DELICIOUS" IN THEIR NAME IS A LIE. As in yes, he'll follow the Kiryu line of thought by chance. Can't hurt! ]

[ Sidequests from hell are the Yakuza aesthetic. ]

Ah, that's a good idea. I'm sure people won't mind if it's for the Mayor, we should ask around.

[ Why are red delicious so awful, that's an eternal burning question.... ]

[ Inexplicable crazy shit is the Senbasa aesthetic. This works. ]

I'm sure someone's offering up fruit to the picnic gods. Let's go look!

[ To the picnic area! There's tables of food up for grabs, but also hungry folks. To no one's surprise, you can find those blah red delicious apples everywhere. ]

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judgementkazzy - 2017-06-21 06:12 (UTC) - Expand

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gedanzuki - 2017-06-23 21:39 (UTC) - Expand

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judgementkazzy - 2017-06-24 17:12 (UTC) - Expand

David Song History, hands down.
David Song I'm tangentially involved with Entertainment, so that one isn't nearly as bad.

Kagetsuna Katakura Oh, that would definitely help.
Kagetsuna Katakura What do you do? Got time to kill.

David Song I'll see what I can do.
David Song Long story short, I'm the personal assistant to the boss of a software company. Which basically means I'm making sure I keep his ass out of trouble and in line.
David Song Feels more like a babysitting gig some days, if I had to be honest.

Kagetsuna Katakura Haha, I can understand that.
Kagetsuna Katakura I work as a doorman for a club, that's definitely babysitting if people don't behave.
Kagetsuna Katakura It doesn't help with this trivia thing, but I enjoy it.

David Song At least in my case it's usually just babysitting one person. If he's trying to do a coding blitz or something it's not so bad but when he has to take a meeting seriously...
David Song Not that I blame him with some of the content but gotta set an example.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

JUNE TDM

Kojuro Katakura | Sengoku Basara | AU: Kagetsuna Katakura

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bonus!

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