repeter | OCTOBER TDM

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OCTOBER TDM

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!

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'Course you do. [ Which is to say: he knows exactly your type, coming into these places, being the center of your universe with a charming smile and alcohol for a casual companion. They're the ones meant to convey how it easy it is to have a good time, they're the ones who infect a small crowd to feel confident enough to chase his good graces.

Why would he jump to such an immediate conclusion? Because that's who his brother was, down to a T. ]

Sudoku.

[ Is he serious? Is he still showering this conversation with irony?! A mystery. ]

[Yukimi stares, and it lasts for a good couple moments. His mouth puckers a bit, in that thoughtful way of someone who's cycling through considerations. When he seems to settle on a thought, he taps his own temple with his index finger, and then points that finger at Minato.]

Lemon cider. With honey. It won't make it too sweet. Manuka honey. Shit's expensive but there are a couple places you can get it for a good price, and it'll last you a while even if you just get a jar. Anyway, here— [He's gesturing with his right shoulder, his empty sleeve—] Take these a sec. [The manila envelopes, he means. If successful, he'll be reaching into the inside of his coat for a little flip notebook and a ballpoint pen.]

[ He opens his mouth, maybe to protest, but he can't argue with that tone, can he? Instead he just presses the tip of his tongue to the back of his teeth, saying without saying, shrugging. Well, you've got me pegged. ]

The one with the numbers? Fun once or twice, I don't know about doing all of one of those little books though.

[ Still companionable even after getting called out... ]

And maybe I don't like playing by myself.

(his question is met with a small smile, cause wow the first person who's stuck around and talked to her since passing out free candy.)

Not all day. But I want to try to master all the games before I go explore some more.

(Tsuyu is like all chill and no sweat about these games. instead of offering him more candy, she offers John a ring to try the game.)

Do you want to try?

[ Very tall, scruffy dude, meet very short, not-at-all scruffy dude. He's actually passing by here coincidentally on his way home after his shift at the coffee shop... so it's theoretically possible Jamie is the very barista who sold that coffee to Saif.

And it's not only theoretically possible but totally factual that he's pretty on edge and easy to startle. So even though that was a pretty low-key "boo"... ]

--Gahh!!

(she pauses, tapping her finger lightly against her chin as she tries to recall just how many games she'd won. she'd been at the activity for a while and hadn't really been keeping count of how many she'd won but the number was pretty high.)

A few? I can't remember. (Tsuyu hasn't let her new companion gone unnoticed. in fact-) Do you want more? I just want to play the games and they keep giving me candy...

Oh? That's useful. I didn't think carved out vegetables would last long enough for decoration anyways.

(but it doesn't really explain what Minato is going to do with the seeds. while she's taking the time to stencil out how she wants this new pumpkin to look, Tsuyu decides to finally ask him.)

But what are you going to do with the seeds?

(her pumpkin is coming along... in an oddly adorable adorable fashion?)

Two types of people, I guess.

[ But if that's an invitation, Hyperion's going to make him spit it out. By not doing anything. #logic ]

Could always get someone to do the book for you.

[ Since... you were looking to do it with Candy Crush, and all. ]

[ Sounds expensive and fancy, not really worth the cost if all he needs is sustenance to get through the day, maybe a multivitamin in the morning if he remembers to take it, to provide everything his body needs to keep "healthy."

He's probably using that definition loosely.

He reaches out to take the envelopes though, because he can do that without committing to a healthier diet, turning them over in his hands as he stares down at them. The temptation to open them is very real and very strong, but as long as he flips them idly, mechanically, he can head the urge off, tapping his feet restlessly instead. ]

[Mary blinks, a little taken aback by this. Not the touch, no that's fine. Just the way it's phrased.]

You don't think there's actually a ghost, do you?

[Do you?]

[ The crooked smile, ]

No, no, you see... [ He picks up his phone, the game is still sitting there. ] It's locked me here until I beat it.

[ This isn't for fun, you fool! ]

I'd like to be able to take phone calls.

[ That was mainly how he got work, people called him up with their little tasks when they had no one else to get to it fast enough. ]

[ Saif's laughter is warm and throaty, pleasant. He pats Jamie on the shoulder, ]

Steady on, friend. Just a joke.

[With the envelopes safely in Minato's hands—they're just photographs, large prints, thin sheaves of them in each envelope, that high quality photographic paper nowhere near flimsy—Yukimi gets to scribbling. His penmanship is a series of clipped strokes made like short cuts with a pocket knife. It's legible, though. When he tears out the little page, it's got the name of whatever special honey, instructions for making cider, and the address of a family-run specialty mart.]

You're not gonna start doin' this right away. I don't think you'll go check out that store today or anything, either. But keep this. Once you're ready to take a whack at it, you're ready to start thinkin' about other stuff, too.

[You can't force someone to take care of themselves. Unfortunately. Nobody was able to force him, either. But it helps, at least, to have the tools at hand.]

Edited 2017-10-20 23:27 (UTC)

Over 10 hours?

[Y I K E S she can not even imagine... which is a little sad for a soon-to-be college student, being robbed of the joys of sleeping in like the world's about to end.]

Mmm, well... sometimes diet plays a part in how well you can sleep. Each time I eat anything sweet before I go to bed, I'm guaranteed to wake up in three hours no matter how tired I am.

Edited 2017-10-20 23:27 (UTC)

[ it's a part of his great halloween costume, called his daily look... but he unsheathes his sword, holds it over the water... and strikes at one of the fruits.

when he pulls his sword back, there's an apple impaled on the sharp end of it — which rindou holds out for him to take. ]

There! Now we can get a closer look at it.

That's sad.

[ That he's going for that one. It's not so great that Hyperion is willing to come over and play along, either, because that means the infection is at the tip of his fingers. That's okay, he can hate himself about it if and when it spreads. Sometimes you can't help but reminisce about when your dead, abusive piece of shit twin brother was less of a piece of shit. ]

Don't drink and call. You'll regret it.

[ Minato stirs in recognition of his name, too late to take back the reaction and pretend he's still asleep. One eye gets cracked open— the one not covered by his bangs— and he blinks blearily up at Clover several times. Not moving. ]

Hey. How far is the exit...?

[ If it's 200 feet, he might be justified in giving up and continuing to sit here. If it's like... 2 feet away, he'll probably be too ashamed for giving up early and sit here anyways. It's a win-win situation. ]

You're a sour one.

[ He thumbs his lower lip. Honestly, almost tempting to see if you can make this grumpy bastard crack a smile. ]

[It's training. That's what she tells herself as she stands in line. After all the late night horrors she's fought over the course of this month, she hardly needs any training of the physical sort. No, this is to try and toughen herself up mentally and emotionally, to get back to the girl who wasn't afraid of the dark before August happened. She needs that courage again if (when) things with Retrospec get worse.

Still. Walking into the funhouse, she's never felt so apprehensive as she does now. She hates it. She used to love these things.

Minako breezes through the beginning by virtue of the decorations being really terrible and fake. Which is to be expected. It's the dark corridors up ahead that take more fortitude to walk through. It's safe, it's safe. She hums the melody of Yu's song in her head to calm herself. You're okay, there's no Nyx here. Only actors, and really good blackout curtains. It's when she reaches the end of the corridor, with some artificial moonlight streaming from above, that she completely freezes.

There, sitting next to some fake skeletons, is a prop so unfairly lifelike and lifeless at the same time that it has her stumbling backward towards the darkness, unconsciously choosing to deal with her nightmares over needing to deal with this. Though it's undeniable this is a nightmare too-- the doll looks uncannily like Ryoji in the dim light, eyes closed and unmoving. A visceral reminder of August, the other elephant in her mental room that she hasn't truly come to terms with yet. Ice crawls up her spine, settles in her hands, and clasping them together to warm them suddenly feels so much like clutching Ryoji's hands as he died that she wrenches them apart again, wrapping her arms around herself and trembling badly.

Some of the guests walking behind her give her encouraging words, and it snaps herself out of her reverie. She won't remember what she says to them later. But she waits for them to go on ahead so she can pull herself together with relatively contained embarrassment.

It's just a prop, Arisato. Nothing to freak out over. Get a grip and finish your training.

She starts to walk away-- and that's the instant the prop moves, its leg jerking out. Minako trips, crying out and crashing hard to the ground.]

[Howard takes a bite of his own apple too to mimic John - well, despite the face, it's nice and fresh and crunchy. Really not bad at all.]

Oh, I don't think I want to dunk my head into there. [The last thing he wants is nightmares about being surrounded by laughing fruit.] I don't know what else is going on...maybe we should walk around? There's some other games, I think.

[ The words are different, but the approach is similar to what Minato was learning in school, of how to encourage people towards weight loss or smoking cessation and such, letting him know that the resource is there for whenever he feels ready. He glances down the paper in silence, eyes lingering longer on the recipe than the names. ]

If I don't go today, I'll probably put it off forever.

[ He can be honest, at least, as to why some things in his life have fallen to the wayside. The paper gets folded neatly into quarters before being slipped into his pocket, and he looks back up at Yukimi. ]

Not sure what other stuff I'm supposed to be thinking about, though. I'm paying off student loans. I can't afford anything fancier than this honey.

You had to meet one eventually. [ With a shrug, ] Sorry.

[ No amount of Candy Crush could make him sweet!! ]

Well, there's no doubt in her mind now that it's not fake, even with Sora saying so. Obviously fake projection ghosts don't just pick someone's pocket!

"Ah, yeah..." Marina goes to follow after him, still looking rather puzzled about the whole situation. "Is this like... normal in this town? I just got here a few weeks ago."

[ It's cute; he likes the little mole on the corner of the pumpkin's eye, though he can't quite place why it makes him smile when he sees it. He's not too good at faces, so he'll probably do some sort of picture on his. Maybe a lizard, or some sort of bird. ]

Roast them. Do you like roasted pumpkin seeds? I can give you some as thanks, when they're done.

[Minako catches the apple as it falls from Zack's mouth mid-scream, turning it over to glare at its face.]

I am so going to put a stick up your butt and drown you in the caramel fountain if you don't shut up.

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OCTOBER TDM

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