OCTOBER TDM

[recollecters]

TEST DRIVE

OCTOBER TEST DRIVE The city of Recollé... When the crypt doors creak, and the tombstones quake, spooks come out for a singing wake. Happy haunts materialize and begin to vocalize...grim grinning ghosts come out to socialize... Every year during the Halloween season, the city of Recollé comes to life with plenty of fall activities for everyone. There's something to do in every district if one were to take a look. What will you do today? I. Family fun seems to be the theme today over in Tribunal Terrace. Several tables are set up and in a semi-circle near Recollé Square with stacks of pumpkins, carving tools, paint and anything else you may need to create your own jack o'lantern. Other stations are set up for face-painting and games to win mini-sized candy bars including a ring toss, bowling, and bobbing for apples. Be careful with the apples though. They like to wiggle and jiggle with their happy little faces staring up out of the water. ...so maybe apple-bobbing is for the brave at heart. Are you the artsy type to carve a beautiful pumpkin? Are you helping to run the games (or even cheating to get more candy)? It's time to relax and let your creativity flow. II. Pumpkin-carving not your speed? Never fear, horror is here. Over in Tisse there's plenty to do for those looking for a little more adventure. Several coffee shops have harvest specials made with pumpkin, maple, and pecan flavors. Over at Flix a monster movie marathon and costume contest are taking place (with a prize of two free passes for the best monster costumes.) But the highlight of this district is the annual haunted funhouse. Anyone daring enough will find the usual spooks and scares in a haunted house, jump scares and fog machines galore. But...the house certainly didn't look so big from the outside. How did you possibly get shuffled straight to the center? No worries. This hall of mirrors will guide you out safely...if the walls closing in don't crush you first. It's a race against time as the halls narrow, and if you're one of the lucky ones you'll escape and exit through the main doors. For those not quite so lucky, the walls will stop just inches from crushing you completely before the floor drops open and you find yourself on a slide, falling through the dark and tumbling into an underground room filled with plastic skeletons, rubber spiders and more. There must be a way out, right? Hopefully you aren't alone and you can navigate the lair with a friend or two. III. Meanwhile, the rest of the city's usual hustle and bustle continues. The shopping districts are busy, students wander the sidewalks after class, and that oddly-shaped ghost appears right in the middle of the crowd. Wait, what? You could have sworn that ghost wasn't there before. Maybe you don't even believe in ghosts. You may blink a few times to clear your vision, but the faint outline of the ghost remains as a few more of them pop up around the city. They won't speak, but they will cause some trouble for anyone who gets too close whether it's by playing pranks on passerbys, stealing items and running away, sitting on a person and applying a gravitational force so they can't move or other crafty, sneaky tactics. Are the ghosts messing with you? Or are you going to find a way to mess with the ghosts? IV. As the sun begins to set, a strange sort of fog rolls in. Several citizens of the city may not even think it's unusual and others seem to capitalize on the weather. The Churchhill Downs Stables are hosting their annual haunted hayrides through Recollé Woods as soon as the sun sets. There are plenty of carts and chocobos saddled up and ready to go. Once passengers are seated the chocobos begin to trot forward into the woods as a pre-recorded ghost tour of the city takes place. The stories range from silly ones about two ghost children who like to play hide and seek in these woods to scarier ones about a jilted lover chasing her husband off a cliff at the edge of ocean. For the most part they're a bit cheesy and in good fun, but something about this haunted ride seems a bit...off. Peering into the fog you may see something strange that follows you, be it a monster or a shadow or an object. You may hear things whispering your name and you may see your greatest fear manifest right out of the fog and chase your cart through the woods. Even worse, it seems to follow you right out of the woods and back into the city. No matter where you run or where you hide, the fears from the fog will track you down and they change for every single person in the city. Will you run or will you fight? You may wish to be careful since the creatures will fight back. BONUS. With only a few short weeks left until the end of October, Retrospec's Halloween Mode is in full swing and popping up on new users' devices. Retrospec users will find their application decked out in cheerful Halloween colors, and their userpics in a randomized (work safe) costume. However, there's always a trick to each treat and this time the seasonal mode can't be turned off for new users. Notifications chime with zombie groans, a rousing game of Candy Crush must be played and beaten before you can use your device again, and the new Trick or Treat function has a few upgrades. When a user enables this function, they will be met with the phrase "Trick or Treat?" Users who select "treat" will get one virtual candy! Yay! The catch though is that they will also find themselves in a costume representing that specific candy. Should a user pick "trick", however, they will find all sorts of harmless but unpleasant things happening to them including but not limited to pranks, being splashed by vehicles driving through puddles of water, being unable to speak in anything but rhymes and other such things. None of these effects last over ten minutes, but the game will show up periodically over and over again and even giving you the option to play the game with others. 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! For current players, TDM threads will not count toward your Trick or Treat freebie! Additionally, please remember that TDM threads can only be used for bonus points, not regains. Please note: you will need a reserve to apply, and current characters must have full AC posted at the time of their reservation. Your October TDM directory is here, and your AU workshop is here! Our mod questions thread for this TDM is over here!

Comments

[cardcaptured]

[Ugh, as if this couldn't get any more embarrassing. The accusing looks from the other patrons in his direction was bad enough, but now there was someone else joining in the ruckus too.]

I'M not--!

[There's a loud 'harrumph!' from across the room, and Xiaolang peeks over his shoulder just long enough to see the librarian glaring daggers at them both, and his cheeks flush brighter, scrambling to grab a stray book to shield them from any more angry eyes. His voice lowers to an angry hiss, attention now solely on Mabel.]

Are you crazy? This is a library, for crying out loud! Why would I want to scare anybody?!

... wait, YOU didn't do this, did you?

[alienates]

Karkat. [ he pauses once they get their first look inside. fake cobwebs, and fog? he actually frowns at the fog, considering all of the creepy figures that have been appearing from it all month, but it seems like this is just made from a fog machine. he moves on. ]

I bet this is just going to be jump scares.

[faeblooded]

No way! Not when you stole my thunder like that!

[Cheesy was never any good when it was someone else's idea, after all.]

1b

[blind_badass]

If I'm feeling this right, it's probably this one.

[Light, who also has the nickname of Snake, hands one over to Rowen. Snake is still trying to determine what kind of masterpiece to throw on his pumpkin canvas.]

[compendiem]

I'm relying on you, then.

[ With that, Minato kneels down so Shinji will have an easier time of getting on. He really is relying on Shinji, though, because his reflections look just a bit larger, walls just a little closer, and he settles his expression into as neutral as one he can manage, so that Shinji doesn't see any misgivings on his face.

The misgiving is the fact that he could probably carry a child maybe five to ten minutes before needing to stop for breath, and then they'll get crushed by glass, so. He's counting on you, Shinji. ]

[axefaire]

Oh, please? Having such a kind gentleman around will make me braver, I'm sure of it!

[More eyelash fluttering! Surely this is working!!]

[axefaire]

[Charlotte looks up when she's addressed, then quickly sets the knife down. Focus, Charlotte! Don't let him know you're doing this for stress relief!]

Oh, it's my first time trying something like this, so I'm afraid I'm not very good... But it's so much fun, isn't it?

[axefaire]

Even a moderately-strong throwing arm would be good enough, I'm sure! But there's one way to find out!

[She moves a little so he can get a look at the ring toss game. C'mon, buddy, you know you want to try it!!]

[notbunaga]

[And she just strolls over to the fridge to start rooting around in there because...

Because she was here for a much shorter time, compared to her old apartment, but in that time Sakura made this place feel more like home than that apartment ever did.

So it's hard to get out of that mindset.

Then again, she'd be like this with a total stranger's place too.]

I don't think anyone does. How long's that been a thing, anyway?

Bonus

[blind_badass]

I have found it a little strange that the town is overly excited for Halloween. I understand people getting creative for it, but usually not the town itself. Except to set up times for trick-or-treating for small children.

[compendiem]

[ He wouldn't really call it "fun," but he would have agreed that it's good stress relief; he liked art, though most of his experience with it has been with paints— adding things to creation instead of taking away, as carving does. ]

...Yeah. It's my first time too, so...

[ He tilts his head towards some papers next to him, splattered with pumpkin juice but it doesn't really matter since it's just scratch paper, sketches of a bear head and a toad and what might be a winged golem drawn out in pencil, to be transferred to the pumpkin after he decides what he wants the design to be. ]

[notbunaga]

[...honestly, she hadn't noticed it was him. If she had've she wouldn't have shoved him.

But in the heat of the moment, faces blur. Tensions rise. Now, being pulled along by her kid brother, looking at the marks on his face, reality sets in. Aki takes his hand a little tighter and runs fast enough to keep up with him, nodding.

Looks like that meeting in her dream was real after all.]

[notbunaga]

[Once she notices he's following, she decides to put him to better use than reunions and points ahead, still running.]

Just hurry up and catch that ghost!

[notbunaga]

That's what it is? You must be pretty popular now, huh?

[GHOST. BUSTER. She could see it.]

[spirithacker]

[Shinji climbs up onto Minato's shoulders. He's probably... average weight for an eight-year-old, so let's hope they get out in that amount of time.]

Ready! Let's blow this popsicle stand!

IV.

[bitemefightme]

[When Biffy comes up to him, he immediately tenses for a moment. He hasn't been able to tell what's what this month. so he just.... stares... at Biffy, as if trying to determine whether he's real or not.

Wait, did this guy just wink at him? An eyebrow raises in confusion. But, all things considered, he'd rather ride with a stranger than by himself with all this creepy bullshit.]

Yea, sure. As long as you're not actually one of the creepy things.

[It's said flat, showing that he's tired more than anything.

Still, he'll be a gentlemen to Biffy, holding the carriage door open for him and helping him up. Little things like that.]

[notbunaga]

Either do it or I'm telling Yuuko you're the reason I have to sleep on the streets tonight!

[SO THERE.

Also she has a ton of people she could bunk with so it'd be a lie.

But she'd do it because fuck karkat]

[notbunaga]

[She crosses her arms, expectantly.]

Well, what better time to find out?

[notbunaga]

[She nods.]

Just your typical granny smith.

[And then takes another bite to chew up and swallow.]

They aren't actually alive, I think. There're no little apple organs or whatever.

[storytelleroftime]

"I would be. Unfortunately, I haven't exactly made that ability very public. But... I totally could start up a business with this. Sucker some money from people."

[Priorities, clearly.]

[compendiem]

[ Charge!!! jk Minato walks at a snail's pace, careful not to jostle Shinji too much, and keeping his eyes trained on the ground so that his reflections don't confuse him and cause them to smack face-first into one of the mirrored walls. Like this, he can get through most of it alright, waiting on Shinji to tell him left or right when they come to forks.

That said, he's still curious. ]

...Figured out how the optical illusion works?

[ How are the walls moving... because it's getting to be a tighter squeeze through some of the paths. ]

[axefaire]

[Charlotte tips her head a bit before looking at the paper and her eyes go wide.]

Oh my! You're working on a design like that? You're going to create something stunning!

[And you're totally going to put my work to shame. Not like her pumpkin's looking all that great. It might frighten a child, but it's not doing much to look good.]

Hmm... maybe I should rethink my approach...

[storytelleroftime]

"Alright, fair enough."

[She wasn't going to press her too far. Yet. She still had some more info she wanted but, that could wait.]

"But I stole your thunder? So, you wanted to make some cheesy statement like that?"

I-A

[keelback]

[The mark glances over - and who can blame him, considering there's no less than 1 and 3/4ths beautiful women in sexy witch outfits waving him over. (Charlotte, being something like a friend, gets to be more than half a beautiful woman. Less than Haruka herself, of course.)

There's a long period of staring, Haruka even leaning forward, but for some reason that motion makes the man stare for a second, embarrassed, before running along.

Haruka sighs, crosses her arms beneath her chest as she leans back in her seat.]

Charlotte, dear, you have to work a little harder at this! Put your back into it, as they say. [Literally. What with the leaning.]

Or are you embarrassed? These costumes get sillier every year, don't they? [Haruka's tone is faux-sweet, more likely to rot teeth out than the actual candy they're hawking.]

i

[liberal_arts]

Art, at its best, is a meditative process. -Kasen hummed as he worked on his own pumpkin, something apparently intricate and detailed and *involved* from how much time and focus he was putting into it.-

And don't let anyone tell you that pumpkin carving isn't art.