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October-November 2024 Test Drive Meme
October-November 2024 Test Drive
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 βCurrent Character.β
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.
π¦ 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. Then you fall like a shooting star, falling to the land in a burst of starlight.
π¦ 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.
Content Warnings: Natural Disaster/Natural Disaster Relief
It seems as if the Star Children will be restricted to Amrita Academy forever, when nothing changes at the one month mark. Yet, after another week has stretched endlessly past, a morning dawns to show that the moat of Lorasses has vanished. The way is clear to discover what the chaotic storms have left behind.
Most of Folkmore's resident spirits return. Good thing Catbus is among them because the train is not operating. Debris litters the tracks throughout the land. Someone's going to have to work to clean all of that up before normal schedules can resume... within the first week or so, everyone fervently hopes.
That is far from the only wreckage from those storms. As Star Children have seen, even Amrita Academy hasn't really been spared; between the Lorasses moat and the various structures built to weather the storms, the past weeks have left a mark on the school.
The rest of Willow shows signs of extreme growth and age, as if decades, not weeks, have passed. Epiphany and Tides suffer major flood damage, and Exile is entirely soggy and saturated with a sense of sorrow. Avalanche debris covers Wintermute, and the mountains aren't in the same place. Cruel Summer is even dryer, cracked, and in part of it littered with exploded, partially melted robot parts. Never Fade may be the best off; the ground has leveled off, and only the unsecured outdoor items have crashed around or dropped off the island. In general, all regions show signs of warping.
Talaria has been outright knocked down (once again) and will need to be rebuilt (once again). The contents of Talarian homes have been thriftily saved by Thirteen (yet again). They'll be back as soon as the homes are ready to be redecorated! There's also a new elevator connecting Tides to a platform in the ocean at surface level, making it a little bit easier to get in or out of the neighborhood. Fly, swim, or use a boat from Nereid marina to reach it.
Many of the buildings throughout Folkmore, businesses and residences alike, have been damaged, some past the point of habitability. For better or worse, some residences will wait unclaimed, as their resident spirits have not returned from wherever they went while gone from Folkmore. Newly arriving Star Children (or those interested in relocating) just might find those residences awfully appealing. As with all unoccupied homes in Folkmore, they're free real estate.
Each neighborhood has a new (and structurally-sound) building near its center: a hospitality station of sorts, stocked with basic foods (to suit a variety of dietary needs, relevant to the known local residents), clean water, personal protective equipment, basic tool kits, fresh clothing, and clean linens. For those ill equipped to cook for themselves for whatever reason, there's also a canteen/soup kitchen area. The canteen tends to collect idle spirits and Star Children who might be willing to assist with any cleanup tasks too big or too complex for one person to tackle on their own.
Working with the neighbors has an additional benefit, of course: sooner or later, whether while helping clear the train tracks or fixing up someone's home or business (including a Star Child's own), shifting the debris will reveal a weathered container of some sort, locked up tight, that will only fall open at a touch if and when the right Star Child finds it. There is only one chest per Star Child. Inside, is an item from home, either that of the resident whose house/business it's found in or the one keyed to the lock. It may even be a magical item or weapon.
There's some good news as well, in the midst of all the chaos: most Star Children will find that their homes are wholly unharmed; their pets, companions, PokΓ©mon, etc. are all hale and hearty, having spent the entire time cozily asleep in their boxfoxes β which can be reused if kept, and just as easily abandoned now that they've released their occupants.
It seems as if the Star Children will be restricted to Amrita Academy forever, when nothing changes at the one month mark. Yet, after another week has stretched endlessly past, a morning dawns to show that the moat of Lorasses has vanished. The way is clear to discover what the chaotic storms have left behind.
Most of Folkmore's resident spirits return. Good thing Catbus is among them because the train is not operating. Debris litters the tracks throughout the land. Someone's going to have to work to clean all of that up before normal schedules can resume... within the first week or so, everyone fervently hopes.
That is far from the only wreckage from those storms. As Star Children have seen, even Amrita Academy hasn't really been spared; between the Lorasses moat and the various structures built to weather the storms, the past weeks have left a mark on the school.
Other regions show clear signs of the warping they have endured similarly.
- Wintermute alternated between blinding light and pitch blackness, with mountains growing and crumbling away alike. Cabins were transformed into igloos.
- Willow experienced all the seasons in a matter of days multiple times, growing crops and new trees, losing old ones, and its buildings weathered as though through decades.
- In Epiphany, the streets ran with water so high it was difficult to walk, and the buildings shifted to reflect related settings.
- Cruel Summer grew hotter and more oppressive, so that survival away from the Selkie River was impossible. On the 13th, there was an explosion, and it rained robot parts.
- Exile was swallowed entirely by the Swamp of Sorrows, leaving no dry land.
- Tides filled with water, dark deep water that could not readily be seen through.
- Never Fade became even more purple, with a thick haze that erased visibilty of borders. It also became steeper, so there was no flat ground.
The rest of Willow shows signs of extreme growth and age, as if decades, not weeks, have passed. Epiphany and Tides suffer major flood damage, and Exile is entirely soggy and saturated with a sense of sorrow. Avalanche debris covers Wintermute, and the mountains aren't in the same place. Cruel Summer is even dryer, cracked, and in part of it littered with exploded, partially melted robot parts. Never Fade may be the best off; the ground has leveled off, and only the unsecured outdoor items have crashed around or dropped off the island. In general, all regions show signs of warping.
Talaria has been outright knocked down (once again) and will need to be rebuilt (once again). The contents of Talarian homes have been thriftily saved by Thirteen (yet again). They'll be back as soon as the homes are ready to be redecorated! There's also a new elevator connecting Tides to a platform in the ocean at surface level, making it a little bit easier to get in or out of the neighborhood. Fly, swim, or use a boat from Nereid marina to reach it.
Many of the buildings throughout Folkmore, businesses and residences alike, have been damaged, some past the point of habitability. For better or worse, some residences will wait unclaimed, as their resident spirits have not returned from wherever they went while gone from Folkmore. Newly arriving Star Children (or those interested in relocating) just might find those residences awfully appealing. As with all unoccupied homes in Folkmore, they're free real estate.
Each neighborhood has a new (and structurally-sound) building near its center: a hospitality station of sorts, stocked with basic foods (to suit a variety of dietary needs, relevant to the known local residents), clean water, personal protective equipment, basic tool kits, fresh clothing, and clean linens. For those ill equipped to cook for themselves for whatever reason, there's also a canteen/soup kitchen area. The canteen tends to collect idle spirits and Star Children who might be willing to assist with any cleanup tasks too big or too complex for one person to tackle on their own.
Working with the neighbors has an additional benefit, of course: sooner or later, whether while helping clear the train tracks or fixing up someone's home or business (including a Star Child's own), shifting the debris will reveal a weathered container of some sort, locked up tight, that will only fall open at a touch if and when the right Star Child finds it. There is only one chest per Star Child. Inside, is an item from home, either that of the resident whose house/business it's found in or the one keyed to the lock. It may even be a magical item or weapon.
There's some good news as well, in the midst of all the chaos: most Star Children will find that their homes are wholly unharmed; their pets, companions, PokΓ©mon, etc. are all hale and hearty, having spent the entire time cozily asleep in their boxfoxes β which can be reused if kept, and just as easily abandoned now that they've released their occupants.
- The moat is gone! Freeeeeedom!
- The train is not operating for one week until October 27th due to debris over the tracks.
- Every region of Folkmore shows scars from the past month's extreme disturbances. Things have not reverted to before.
- Most spirits have returned; some remain absent. Claim the free real estate, if quick or bold enough.
- Hospitality stations have appeared in each neighborhood stocked with food, water, clothing, and linens.
- The canteens serve as a social hub and place to ask for/volunteer assistance.
- One time only, cleaning up or moving debris will reveal a container holding an item from home: yours or the person's you're helping.
- Most Star Children's homes will be unharmed; any damage should match the region's damage flavor. The level of destruction is up to you.
- Creatures in boxfoxes are out, fine and dandy! Boxfoxes can be kept/used again.
Offshore near Agrona Academy, there's something new. Something bewildering, maybe. Something growing. There's also something swimming up to any Star Children near the coast: a very large sea turtle, not willing to come far ashore. She's singing and chirping to get attention, in case being big enough to have a six-foot-long shell isn't quite good enough for some reason. (Or the way she has a blue-green bioluminescent glow when underwater, as becomes quite visible around dusk.)
She's happy to explain that she needs a place to lay her eggs. She doesn't have eggs to lay, just yet, but she wants to have her place all ready anyway. To that end she's busily building a brand-new island not very far from shore. It's just over there, visible once she indicates it with a flipper, barely any higher than the waves cresting around it. Here's the sad part: while she's used a great deal of cleverness in building it, from rocks and sand and bits of broken reef, she's all out of construction materials that she can reach! So she needs help: more construction material for the island.
It seems she's got a very loose definition, though, so pretty much anything that can later be covered in sand or dirt is fair game. Lucky that she wants it now. There's a perfect place todump all that debris in the ocean recycle all the debris, anything not structurally sound enough for a repair-in-place job. Bigger is probably better, too. Work together with other Star Children to haul up the big stuff. It brings more and more joy to her songs as she finds the exact place for each and every item, making her island grow bigger and bigger.
Anyone who actively participates will be rewarded five (5) spoons by the turtle directly, as a thank you for helping her to keep her eggs safe. (If anyone asks, she'll explain that it's the number of limbs she has, so she thought it was perfect!) In addition, she gives each person a smooth and shiny sea rock that fits in their palm perfectly! If the island gets big enough to be more than a sandbar, anyone who helped with the construction will find it far more welcoming than those who didn't. She isn't expecting to use anything but the beach.
She's happy to explain that she needs a place to lay her eggs. She doesn't have eggs to lay, just yet, but she wants to have her place all ready anyway. To that end she's busily building a brand-new island not very far from shore. It's just over there, visible once she indicates it with a flipper, barely any higher than the waves cresting around it. Here's the sad part: while she's used a great deal of cleverness in building it, from rocks and sand and bits of broken reef, she's all out of construction materials that she can reach! So she needs help: more construction material for the island.
It seems she's got a very loose definition, though, so pretty much anything that can later be covered in sand or dirt is fair game. Lucky that she wants it now. There's a perfect place to
Anyone who actively participates will be rewarded five (5) spoons by the turtle directly, as a thank you for helping her to keep her eggs safe. (If anyone asks, she'll explain that it's the number of limbs she has, so she thought it was perfect!) In addition, she gives each person a smooth and shiny sea rock that fits in their palm perfectly! If the island gets big enough to be more than a sandbar, anyone who helped with the construction will find it far more welcoming than those who didn't. She isn't expecting to use anything but the beach.
- A large sea turtleβwith a 6 foot in diameter shell and about 3 feet tall at the shoulderβstarts building an island off Cruel Summer.
- She needs help getting more building supplies. Bring your debris, bigger the better, here!
- All Star Children who help will be rewarded five (5) spoons and a shiny and smooth rock from underwater that fits in their recipients' palms just so.
- Star Children who help find the island more welcoming than those who didn't.
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You ever do that again and I'll be the one putting you in a coma next time. Fucking prick.
[Then he pulls back, hurriedly scrubbing his eyes. Out of his system, at least for now. AND DON'T YOU DARE ACCUSE HIM OF CRYING]
What the hell are you doing here? Did you see the fox too?
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Honestly, he should have expected something along these lines coupled with the temper and likely burning desire to sock him in the face. Despite the distance purposefully kept between them the past five years on his part, they still had a relationship with one another β still saw each other around here and there. Hell, he'd even sent Nero a Devil May Cry sign of his own via Morrison as a means to have him in the family business... without knowing they were family, but. The point of the matter is that, unlike with Vergil, he knows the kid. Has both fought against and alongside him. Protected him in a number of ways he doesn't even think Nero will ever really understand. There's history there and history with this family almost always entails an explosion of complicated emotions at some point; he knows firsthand with both his own old man and his brother.
With those complicated feelings comes the stinging of the eyes he's also all too familiar with and, because he knows that same frustration all too well, he doesn't bother to comment on it. Just looks around them β gives Nero a moment to collect himself. )
Sure did. Little bugger led me here about a month ago. Starting to wonder if I should have followed them after all. ( A beat as he looks back to the kid. ) Your old man's here, too. Been here longer than I have apparently.
( Something that's still strange all things considered. )
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Though he supposes, knowing Dante, the guy is a world-class concealer. He's rarely direct about anything. If he lied to Nero by omission, there was a reason. It's getting the doofus to admit it that'll be the hard part.]
Vergil's here? And you're both still alive? [Dante's lack of grave concern over the matter suggests that their truce is still in effect.]
Is he... you know. [An uncontrollable demon king? Out for blood? Torn off anybody's limbs lately? Crumbling to dust?] Okay?
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So rather than say any of that β because why would he? β he huffs and rolls his eyes. )
He's a pain in the ass like always.
( Though it's said affectionately rather than with disdain. )
But he hasn't needed me to kick his ass.
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You'd know better than me I guess. [That was not at all intended to be backhanded, even though Nero does somewhat grumble it. Yeah, Dante, knowing that Nero was Vergil's son for all this time and not deigning to say anything is another gripe he'll have with you later...]
You even seen much of him? Can't imagine he's expecting me.
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( And he hadn't expected to find his brother here. That he has been here for a couple months shy of a year almost. Doesn't make sense as far as he can tell, but. Really it's just another day that ends in y for the Sparda family.
Turning on his heel, he starts down the street, clearly expecting Nero to follow. )
He's got a place around here that I'm gonna be crashing at. You know. Until I figure ( as he waves a hand around him ) all this out.
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Y'all gotta try this sometime. It's called "expressing your emotions."]
You've been here a month? How long has he been here? That's fucking weird when the Qliphoth shit happened yesterday.
[Wait... "gonna" be crashing at?]
So where were you staying up until now?
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( He had been wondering if he'd ever see any of Folkmore given the length of time they'd been roughing it up as they had been, but. After about a month-ish, give or take, of all that, they were free. Thankfully, he hadn't come in right at the beginning of it all.
Making his way over to a bit of destruction left in the wake of what happened in Epiphany, he lifts a couple things up with relative ease. Thanks, demon strength! )
As for your old man, turns out he's been here a couple months shy of a year. ( A beat, he looks over his shoulder to the kid. ) Trust me, still trying to wrap my head around that myself.
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[Let's see. If the academy only just opened up again...]
Guess that means you don't know your way around yet.
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He's setting a few pieces of debris aside β making sure they're out of the way while he huffs and waves a hand. )
Hey, I'm working on it. Give me a break here.
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[He's not about to let Dante go wander off again so soon. Especially when Vergil is here too. It's not that Nero needs a buffer or go-between himself and his brand new estranged mess of a father, but... maybe he feels better having one, at the moment.
He feels a little guilty thinking such a thing. Then he remembers the garage incident and how the Yamato feels jammed through his ribcage, and he immediately stops feeling guilty at all.]
Looks like a bomb went off everywhere I've been so far. Must have been a real shitshow.
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Heβs digging through some of the debris, making sure itβs all out of the way when he glances over his shoulder to the kid. )
Something about reality warping. Trying to lend a bit of a hand because I can.
( And because heβs been marked as a Legend around here. Therefore, he feels the pull to go where others need help. )
Also, fresh air does the mind good. Little tip to carry with you.
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It looks like Dante's got that pile handled, so Nero leaves him to it, though sidles up looking for another place to clear rubble away.]
Right. Me too. Looks like they need the help, and I could use the workout. New arms and all. [Plural!]
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Guess you hit that growth spurt a little late in life, huh?
( Tapping into his devil trigger, he means, and he canβt help but chuckle a bit at that as he shakes his head. That sure had been something to see. A surprise, too. He knew Nero had demonic strength and the like, but. He hadnβt yet seen him slip into the demonic skin both he and Vergil inherited from their father. He actually wondered if Nero was even able to or if it was just the arm. Then Vergil had to go and rip it off like an obsessed creep. What a guy. )
I was a bit younger than you. Your old man and I were at odds at the time and he rammed me through with old Rebellion. Seems thatβs all it really took to wake up the devil inside.
( Thatβs the gist of it anyways. No need to get into anything before that. )
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Bad habit of his, huh? [At least Nero knows not to take it personally.] Would have been nice if it kicked in after he yanked my arm off...
[Whatever. At least he grew it back.]
Sure surprised you. I was heated in the moment, but gotta say, that felt pretty good. [Also, the bitchslap. Sorry, Unc.]
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I wasnβt sure what to expect with you. Like I said before, might have underestimated you a bit.
( Itβs said with a wink and a soft chuckle on his lips, recalling their first meeting back in Fortuna all those years ago. Heβd had his suspicions, but. As heβd told Nero not all that long ago, it was only when he saw how the Yamato pieced itself back together for him that he was really sure who he was related to. That he was family.
Dropping some of the debris out of the way, he sighs as he straightens up - stretches his back and shoulders some with a bit of a lean back before heβs dropping his arms down to his sides. )
Didnβt know how much of your old man you had in you. That includes the devil part.
( Itβs not like he was used to others like him or his brother after all. )
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[This is new. Dante, freely telling anecdotes about his past with Vergil. Anecdotes where he got fucking stabbed, yeah, but it's nice to hear them. Feels good. Maybe having their relationship known will let Dante be more open about his past and his family. It's all stuff Nero wants to know, even if he doesn't want to pry.
He looks thoughtful, wondering what if anything he should ask.]
You said you knew when Yamato chose me. What did you think back then? [Unlike earlier, he's not accusing or demanding or angry. Just curiously questioning.] Probably as surprised as I was...?
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( Still, it's said rather fondly despite the way he rolls his eyes.
He lifts a couple chunks of debris and walks with them to get them out of the way of the building he'd been perched on above. Dropping the pieces, he gives another look up to where he had been before he turns his focus back onto his nephew there.
Sigh on his lips, he shifts his weight to one side as he stands there, expression gently sympathetic. )
If you're gonna ask about your mom, I don't have a clue myself. Sorry.
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But you know... yeah. Maybe it's not fair to say, hardly knowing Vergil at all but... Nero's existence is kind of a miracle, huh.
He didn't figure Dante had any knowledge of his mother, given he had no knowledge of Nero until they met in Fortuna. But nice to get the clarification anyway.] I'll just have to ask him, I guess.
[There's a long pause before he speaks again.]
Has he said anything about me?
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( The answer comes bluntly as he surveys the building, almost coming off as though he's not entirely paying attention. He is though. He always is even through his nonchalance. )
Hate to be the one to break this to you, kid, but your old man's a bit of a dumbass with others.
( Taking a few steps off to the side, he stops and rubs the stubble there on his chin, contemplative as he keeps looking up. )
He'd rather spend his time buried in his books than chit chatting with whoever's around him and that includes people he's related to. ( A glance over to Nero, he offers a look of sympathy again. ) But he'd burn the world down to keep you safe. Just give him some time.
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Well. It sort of makes sense. Obviously there's a lot to deal with in this world, and a lot has been happening before he arrived. It makes sense that Vergil wouldn't have said anything about him to Dante. He's still not convinced the two aren't at each others' throats again.
It does lead him to regard the next bit very, very skeptically though.]
Rather he didn't try that a second time, actually. [Totally deadpan, and accompanied by an eyeroll.] I'll believe it when I see it.
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( Because then they'd be at odds with one another again. For everything that happened to their mother β to their home and the way their childhood was stolen from them at the hands of Mundus and his lackeys, Dante would have accompanied Vergil to take revenge out on the demon β would have fought at his side with him to kill him for what he did all because of the blood in their veins. But Vergil took it too far. Sought too much power and didn't care who he hurt or even sometimes killed in the process. Too many innocents suffered because of his brother, people who had absolutely nothing to do with the feud between Mundus and their father and he can't go along with or condone any of what Vergil had done.
But he seems to have recognized the error of his ways finally β gently trying to turn over a new leaf as best as he can and he has to let him try before he can assume the worst again. Doesn't mean he doesn't keep an eye on him, regardless of Vergil having been here as long as he has. He knows all it takes is One Little Thing to make him snap and then it's game over.
Pointing a finger over to Nero then, he shakes it at him. )
So stay outta trouble. Got it?
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What, you're serious? You think the guy who ripped my arm off is really all that concerned about me?
[To be fair to Vergil... it's not like they had much time to talk. At all. But somehow Nero isn't terribly convinced he's all that important in his father's regard, except on principle maybe.]
I'll believe that when I see it. He can take it up with me whenever he feels like it.
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He will though. He always will. No matter how many times it rips his heart to shreds doing it. )
Whatever you say, kid.
( Huff on his lips, he shakes his head and steps over some of the debris having fallen off the building. It's nothing too bad β most of the housing here seemed to handle the damage relatively well minus the water damage, but. Some suffered a little, like the one he'd been working on fixing up prior to catching sight of Nero showing up.
Hopping off the pile of rubble and splashing into a rather shallow puddle, he makes his way around the building to see what the back looks like and, as expected, some of it's crumbled. Blowing out a sigh, he saunters his way on over to start working on that. )
Clean up crew! Hey, there's an idea. Devil May Clean. Maybe I'll start a new business up here.
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Instead, he rolls his eyes and gets back to work.]
Not a bad idea. From what I hear there's not much in the way of demons around. We're gonna get rusty.
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cw: gentle mentions of alcoholism
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