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June-July 2024 Test Drive Meme
June-July 2024 TDM
Introduction
Welcome to Folkmore's monthly Test Drive Meme! Please feel free to test drive any and all characters regardless of your intent to apply or whether you have an invite or not.
All TDMs are game canon and work like "mini-events". For new players and characters, you can choose to have your TDM thread be your introduction thread upon acceptance or start fresh. Current players are also allowed to have in-game characters post to the TDM so long as they mark their top levels ‘Current Character.’
TDM threads can be used for spoon spending at any time by characters accepted into the game.
Playing and interacting with the TDMs will allow characters to immediately obtain canon items from homes especially weapons or other things they may have had on their person when they were pulled from their worlds! There will always be a prompt that provides some sort of "reward" to characters who complete certain tasks.
🦊 New Star Children meet the Fox still in their worlds, and she brings them into the new realm of Folkmore. As you follow her, your body begins to change and new characteristics emerge. These may stay for a while, or perhaps they will hide away after. And during all of this, the Fox explains to you where you will be going: to Folkmore.
and then... you fall like a shooting star, falling to the land in a burst of starlight.
🦊 Experienced Star Children are already familiar with this time of the month. There are shooting stars all across the sky, and some fall to the land, which means the Fox has brought new arrivals. These newly arrived Star Children will face some tests, but Thirteen wants the more seasoned residents to participate as well.
Perhaps you follow the falling stars on your own, or perhaps the Fox simply teleports you there, but it appears you too will be part of this.
Content Warnings: Ghosts, Potential Violence, Potential Death
Summer has hit. It's hot, and nowhere is it hotter than Cruel Summer. Naturally, new Star Children arrive in Cruel Summer with no indication of which direction to go to escape, unless they're so lucky as to arrive near the Selkie River. The water provides a break, and a selkie skin will protect Star Children from the heat. Though beware the cruelty of leaving a selkie without their skin. Along with the heat, Star Children can hear whispers and the echoes of screams throughout Cruel Summer. There's no obvious source of the noises. Not the normal creatures. Not anything anyone can see.
Whether new or old Star Child, anyone lost, overheated, in need of a rest, or anything else will find a friendly spirit will find them in the sands, rock, or shores of Cruel Summer. They'll guide the way toward the huts found in Cruel Summer. These huts have changed; the huts are bigger and grow together, making them one interconnected twisting winding empty town. No one appears to live there. The wooden town is in disrepair, varying from building to building. Even so, they are cool inside, a welcome break from the summer heat.
No matter how one entered, even through the swinging doors to the saloon, that exit disappears behind Star Children. There's no turning back. The only way out is to explore the way through the buildings. This fact continues to be true building to building as exits continue to vanish. The abandoned town isn't as empty as it first seems. As Star Children explore the branching paths through the wooden structures, they see ghosts of spirits going through the paces of their lives. They're familiar to these spaces and interact with missing objects that sometimes shimmer in spirit energy.
Spirit Children may interrupt these routines to try to talk with the ghosts. Some ghostly spirits are friendly. They may interact with Star Children as though they're someone else, someone the spirits used to know. Others, like the bartender, may treat them like a new customer. Other ghosts are determined to stick to their routines and, should Star Children continue to interrupt, will attack those who disturb them.
These spirits may kill Star Children when they attack. Normal weapons won't hurt them. There are revolvers, shotguns, iron pokers, hunting knives, and other plain weapons around to grab in self-defense. Salt bullets and iron will dispel ghosts. These weapons may be grabbed at any time. However, doing so attracts the creatures in Cruel Summer. A blood red worm spitting yellow acid may break through the floor to eat or spray Star Children. An enormous coyote may leap through the window. Whether attracted by the use of weapons or passing by, any dangerous creature found in Cruel Summer seems agitated when they come near these structures and will attack them and anyone inside. They will focus especially on anyone with a stolen selkie skin.
Should Star Children die, whether to ghosts or creatures, they will not immediately return to life.Do not pass go. Instead they will haunt the ghost town for one week in the room where they were killed. Other Star Children may recognize them and work to snap them out of their routines. Yet nothing will free the Star Children's spirits before the week is through. At the end of the week, they'll come to, alive, in their bodies in the room they died in. Best get through and out of the ghost town before dying again!
A constant through these scenes are the spirits' spoons, visible somewhere in each scene. The ghost spoons are whole. Once free of the ghost town, Star Children may choose to travel to the Shattered Spoon Shrine in Never Fade to search for the broken fragments of any of these spoons. They are in such small pieces, however, that no Star Child may feed them enough Lore alone to bring the spirit back. Two or more Star Children may spend time in the Shrine creating and feeding Lore toward the spoons to heal them. It just may be enough to bring someone back.
Summer has hit. It's hot, and nowhere is it hotter than Cruel Summer. Naturally, new Star Children arrive in Cruel Summer with no indication of which direction to go to escape, unless they're so lucky as to arrive near the Selkie River. The water provides a break, and a selkie skin will protect Star Children from the heat. Though beware the cruelty of leaving a selkie without their skin. Along with the heat, Star Children can hear whispers and the echoes of screams throughout Cruel Summer. There's no obvious source of the noises. Not the normal creatures. Not anything anyone can see.
Whether new or old Star Child, anyone lost, overheated, in need of a rest, or anything else will find a friendly spirit will find them in the sands, rock, or shores of Cruel Summer. They'll guide the way toward the huts found in Cruel Summer. These huts have changed; the huts are bigger and grow together, making them one interconnected twisting winding empty town. No one appears to live there. The wooden town is in disrepair, varying from building to building. Even so, they are cool inside, a welcome break from the summer heat.
No matter how one entered, even through the swinging doors to the saloon, that exit disappears behind Star Children. There's no turning back. The only way out is to explore the way through the buildings. This fact continues to be true building to building as exits continue to vanish. The abandoned town isn't as empty as it first seems. As Star Children explore the branching paths through the wooden structures, they see ghosts of spirits going through the paces of their lives. They're familiar to these spaces and interact with missing objects that sometimes shimmer in spirit energy.
Spirit Children may interrupt these routines to try to talk with the ghosts. Some ghostly spirits are friendly. They may interact with Star Children as though they're someone else, someone the spirits used to know. Others, like the bartender, may treat them like a new customer. Other ghosts are determined to stick to their routines and, should Star Children continue to interrupt, will attack those who disturb them.
These spirits may kill Star Children when they attack. Normal weapons won't hurt them. There are revolvers, shotguns, iron pokers, hunting knives, and other plain weapons around to grab in self-defense. Salt bullets and iron will dispel ghosts. These weapons may be grabbed at any time. However, doing so attracts the creatures in Cruel Summer. A blood red worm spitting yellow acid may break through the floor to eat or spray Star Children. An enormous coyote may leap through the window. Whether attracted by the use of weapons or passing by, any dangerous creature found in Cruel Summer seems agitated when they come near these structures and will attack them and anyone inside. They will focus especially on anyone with a stolen selkie skin.
Should Star Children die, whether to ghosts or creatures, they will not immediately return to life.
A constant through these scenes are the spirits' spoons, visible somewhere in each scene. The ghost spoons are whole. Once free of the ghost town, Star Children may choose to travel to the Shattered Spoon Shrine in Never Fade to search for the broken fragments of any of these spoons. They are in such small pieces, however, that no Star Child may feed them enough Lore alone to bring the spirit back. Two or more Star Children may spend time in the Shrine creating and feeding Lore toward the spoons to heal them. It just may be enough to bring someone back.
- Whispers, echoes of screams, etc become common throughout Cruel Summer
- Huts become bigger, interconnected, growing together. Anyone lost, overheated, in need of something in Cruel Summer gets a friendly spirit redirecting them to these buildings
- Buildings will still be in some state of disrepair, but like a whole twisting winding town
- Insides are a cool respite
supernatural ghost spirit air conditioning - Only way out is through, no turning back, as the exits disappear behind you
- Many are friendly, but some are not. One can attempt to talk to them, but how interactive they are varies
- Occasionally other creatures from Cruel Summer may burst in and attack
- If a Star Child dies, rather than return to life immediately, they stay a ghost for about a week, part of the tour
Content Warnings: Fire, Coerced Confessions
Fire! Fire across the realm! For the second half of June, wildfire burns everywhere. While it doesn’t hurt Star Children, it can reduce everything else to ash: homes, businesses, gardens, spirits. The local spirits will be in a panic and beg Star Children for help from small ice mice in Wintermute to fennec foxes in Cruel Summer. How can Star Children help? Confessions. Anything the person they are with doesn’t know. The more earnest and meaningful the better.
When wildfire erupts and spreads, Star Children may stand in or in front of an area they want to protect and confess something to another Star Child who happens to be nearby. Their neighbor? Their partner? A stranger lost in a new land? These confessions simply need to be something the other person doesn’t know to protect structures and spirits. Memories related to the confession will show in the fire. The fire will fuel these memories until they run out of energy, dying down to embers. At least in that place at that time.
Should something start to burn before someone confesses, multiple confessions are necessary to catch the wildfire’s attention and distract it from the fuel source it is feeding on. Two or more Star Children will need to make confessions whose memories are shared in the flames. Water powers can also help quell the flames, but confessions are necessary in the end.
Once July hits, the wildfires are mostly gone, only sparking up here and there on occasion. In their stead are embers. They spark in the air like fireflies and fly around Folkmore, attracted to Star Children. These embers land on Star Children and make them glow. There’s no pain. In fact, the embers provide sparks of insight into memories, situations, and other emotional dilemmas that Star Children haven’t previously understood. Talking the issue over with another Star Children provides further emotional clarity.
Spirits are welcoming to both embers and Star Children. Confessionshelp Folkmore grow as well. Gardens bloom in beautiful displays. Crops grow healthy and joyful. It’s even possible to hear humming from some of the vegetables and fruits. The land grows with the Star Children. Anyone who lacks a green thumb can work their way around that with confessions! Save that dying plant and grow those tomatoes.
One time that a Star Child confesses, either to wildfire or to embers, they will find a jeweled box shaped like a flame. The peak of the flame comes off to reveal the insides. Within, there is an item from home. It may even be a weapon or magical item. Larger more meaningful confessions are more likely to receive weapons. These items may even be larger than should fit in the box or its entrance. Whether the box should only hold a single ring or fill the palm of one’s hand, these items fit. Star Children also can keep the jeweled box, and this one item from home can be stored within the box. Other items too large to fit the box will not enter it. Only the one from the box.
Fire! Fire across the realm! For the second half of June, wildfire burns everywhere. While it doesn’t hurt Star Children, it can reduce everything else to ash: homes, businesses, gardens, spirits. The local spirits will be in a panic and beg Star Children for help from small ice mice in Wintermute to fennec foxes in Cruel Summer. How can Star Children help? Confessions. Anything the person they are with doesn’t know. The more earnest and meaningful the better.
When wildfire erupts and spreads, Star Children may stand in or in front of an area they want to protect and confess something to another Star Child who happens to be nearby. Their neighbor? Their partner? A stranger lost in a new land? These confessions simply need to be something the other person doesn’t know to protect structures and spirits. Memories related to the confession will show in the fire. The fire will fuel these memories until they run out of energy, dying down to embers. At least in that place at that time.
Should something start to burn before someone confesses, multiple confessions are necessary to catch the wildfire’s attention and distract it from the fuel source it is feeding on. Two or more Star Children will need to make confessions whose memories are shared in the flames. Water powers can also help quell the flames, but confessions are necessary in the end.
Once July hits, the wildfires are mostly gone, only sparking up here and there on occasion. In their stead are embers. They spark in the air like fireflies and fly around Folkmore, attracted to Star Children. These embers land on Star Children and make them glow. There’s no pain. In fact, the embers provide sparks of insight into memories, situations, and other emotional dilemmas that Star Children haven’t previously understood. Talking the issue over with another Star Children provides further emotional clarity.
Spirits are welcoming to both embers and Star Children. Confessions
One time that a Star Child confesses, either to wildfire or to embers, they will find a jeweled box shaped like a flame. The peak of the flame comes off to reveal the insides. Within, there is an item from home. It may even be a weapon or magical item. Larger more meaningful confessions are more likely to receive weapons. These items may even be larger than should fit in the box or its entrance. Whether the box should only hold a single ring or fill the palm of one’s hand, these items fit. Star Children also can keep the jeweled box, and this one item from home can be stored within the box. Other items too large to fit the box will not enter it. Only the one from the box.
- Last two weeks of June, wildfire burns across Folkmore. After that, they are rare.
- Confessions can protect or rescue buildings, land areas, and spirits.
- Come July, embers spark across Folkmore like fireflies. They provide insight for Star Children. Talking helps.
- Confessions help the land grow.
- Confessions reveal a jeweled box containing an item from home.
no subject
If she knew him from before, she might know about the Winter Soldier, so he feels safe admitting it. The admission seems to make the fire go down a little.
"Huh. I admitted something and it started going down. Does it want a secret or something?"
no subject
She turns to where Bucky's eyes had gone and the fire does seem to be a bit lower. "It might. One thing you'll learn about this place is that it wants us to break down our walls and become better versions of ourselves by sharing our deepest darkest secrets." Midge is more than a little skeptical that personal improvement comes from spilling their guts to each other, but she guesses they have to play along while they're here.
She takes a deep breath. "I've worn a girdle a few times on stage when I've felt a little bloated."
Not quite as deep as Bucky's admission.
no subject
"I've killed people but I never wanted to hurt anyone."
That seems to be heavy enough to get the fire down to smoldering embers and he kicks at it a little. Maybe it's not everything about him and it's definitely not who he wants to be anymore but it's what the fire wanted, anyway.
"Guess war crimes mean more than girdles. For what it's worth, you probably didn't need the girdle."
no subject
Her lips curl in a smile at his compliment. Did that statement make the fire go down too?
Midge hates talking about herself and her issues back home in a serious manner, despite the fact that this place seems hell bent on making her do so. It’s so much easier to turn everything into a joke.
“It’s come down to a literal trial by fire to make me talk, hasn’t it?” She crosses her arms and takes another deep breath. “I’m afraid that my kids are going to hate me when they grow up, that they’ll say I was never around.”
no subject
Bucky knows it changed for him in ways he never expected it to.
"You'd be surprised at the capacity of a kid to love their mom. Even if you have to miss out on a lot."
no subject
She’s choosing a career over them and she knows she is. She’s consciously doing it, and she doesn’t know what that says about her.
The flames have gone down, but they aren’t totally out yet. It’s enough that she and Bucky can probably pick their way through carefully and get out of this area.
no subject
He gets the sense that Midge is from a time closer to when he was dancing with girls in New York than the reality he lives in now, though, so maybe that's got something to do with.
"Let's get out of here, yeah?"
no subject
“Sounds like a plan,” Midge says. Gingerly, she walks around what remains of the fire, Bucky a few steps behind her. “I have one more confession,” she says like an afterthought. “I think you’re really handsome.”
The fire has definitely died down enough for them to safely leave the area, but Midge thought she ought to throw that one out there anyway. You know, just in case.
no subject
"I think you might have smoke inhalation," he says. "Cause nobody would put me in that category. Did you miss the whole one arm thing? And the killing people thing?"
no subject
"What, people don't have eyes where you come from?" she asks. "Yeah, I heard about the arm thing and the killing thing. A lot of people have killed people in wars." It's not quite the same, but it remains true. Plus, he just said that he didn't mean to do it. It's not like he was in his right mind.
"As for your arm..." Midge waves her hand, trying to explain herself. "It's an arm? No, it's not normal, but look where the hell we are." Her arm now swings around to indicate Cruel Summer's landscape, currently on fire. "Nothing here is normal! Besides, that's the best prosthetic I've ever seen in my life. Where I come from, it's basically a stick with limp fingers hanging off the end of it."
To be fair, it's not like she's seen much of Bucky's arm. He keeps it pretty well hidden. But from what she can tell, it seems to function like a normal arm that just happens to be made of metal.
no subject
"We probably need to get out of here before having a chat about my arm or lack thereof. It's...not normal here. It's spooky even for me and nothing scares me. I'm the thing people are scared of."
no subject
She wouldn’t expect that dating someone like him would be easy though. Men came home from war broken, and what Bucky’s been through has been much more than that. It might not work. That doesn’t change the fact that she thinks he’s attractive and that she’d be willing to try at least.
“Good,” she declares with a nod. “If anything comes at us, hopefully you can menace it off.” She turns and narrowly misses stepping in some embers. “Can you menace fire?”
no subject
He doesn't think it's a bad thing to get a compliment even if it isn't something he's exactly used to and he guesses it has to settle on him like a new pair of shoes that haven't been broken in yet. Maybe he's still worth those compliments.
"You been here long?"
no subject
The two of them pick their way around the dying embers, careful not to make any of it worse. Midge scans the horizon to try to pick up any landmarks that seem familiar. Unfortunately, Cruel Summer isn't a place that she often frequents, so nothing is popping out to her as recognizable.
Tony lives out here somewhere, though she's pretty sure Tony and Bucky don't want to see each other. She doesn't know the backstory, just that it's acrimonious.
"Since January," Midge replies. "Long enough to sort of know my way around, but not long enough for it to feel like home."
no subject
"May 2024. What's the date here? The way you described it, you've been here longer than five months."
if i'm a dumbass who missed what year it's supposed to be in game, then i'm sorry
Amid the small fires around them, they manage to find something that looks like a path. Maybe if they stick to it, they can make their way out of here, or at least to a place where there's no fire. Some water to drink would help too. And maybe a muffin or something.
"Many people here are from the same time period that you are," Midge continues. "It was 1960 for me."
no subject
Most people are from when he is. It makes a strange sort of sense, in a way - people just felt less complicated back when. Maybe they weren't less complicated and just hid it better. Bucky knows about hiding.
no subject
Maybe it makes sense then, why Tiny thinks she's swell and the other Bucky found her attractive. She looks and acts more like women in their time than the women from the 21st century. "Why?" Midge asks. "What are women like in 2024?"
no subject
It's strange, talking about this with a woman from the past who would probably have the morals of the past on top of it. Still, Midge has said she had kids so it's obvious she knows about sex.
"I'm not the kind of guy who just jumps into bed with someone, you know? And that's what people want now."
no subject
Midge is pretty liberal. It's obvious that he hasn't seen her act yet.
"I see," she replies. "You want more than just a one-night stand?"
no subject
no subject
Not a lot of men would say that sex isn't worth it, especially not sincerely. It just endears him to her even more. "Feelings can complicate things, and sometimes people would rather just be physical than get emotional. Sex is easy."
The fires are fewer and far between now, and some of the buildings that they're passing look like they might actually be lived in. Maybe they're making their way out after all.
"I can't pretend to understand what happened to you," Midge continues. "But maybe I can just get to know you and not all that stuff. The stuff is part of you, sure. But it's not all of you."
no subject
Bucky says it sarcastically because if he says it sincerely and she says no, it will hurt more than if he says it flippantly and she shrugs it off.
no subject
She can hear the tone of self-depreciation and offers him a tiny smile. "I'm used to working for low pay."
no subject
"We did have a literal trial by fire, after all."
(no subject)