folkmeme | February-March 2024 Test Drive Meme

Entry tags:

*tdm

February-March 2024 Test Drive Meme

February-March 2024 TDM

Introduction

[ TDM Questions ★ Jump to Comments ★ Full Navigation ]
This Test Drive meme is open to all.
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.

Current players are always encouraged to tag new people on the TDM!

🦊 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.

[ Soon You'll Get Better ★ Netfox & Chill]

Soon You'll Get Better . ★

Content Warnings: Power Nullification, Potential Kidnapping, Potential Animal Spirit Harm

The island of Never Fade can no longer be seen in the sky from elsewhere in Folkmore, enclosed within a large purple tinted cloud. Within that cloud, the island is under water—a dreamy purple underwater that all Star Children can breath in if they breath and function in if they function on electricity, so on and so forth. It causes no more difficulties than reduced visibility and greater effort to walk. It's even possible to swim underneath the island, so long as Star Children make sure to make landfall before they get too exhausted and… well… fall.

Friendnapped

The purple water has streaks of silver shot throughout it. Beware, these silver streaks neutralize powers, canon and role abilities alike, for at least an hour. A neutralized Legend won't be able to sense others in danger. A neutralized Myth won't sense danger coming. A neutralized Familiar won't be able to shapeshift to help others. That may set of a danger alarm but not any spidey-sense. These silver streaks are harbingers of spirits recently returned to Folkmore thanks to donations at the Shattered Spoon Shrine: lonely sharks.

The source of the silver streaks in the water, these silver gray sharks swim up and gently bite people. These bites make people go instantly limp but otherwise don't do any damage. They won't even break the skin. Once limp, the lonely sharks take their ~~prey~~ new best friends down to a cave or grotto off the underside of Never Fade. These caves are full of silver water, saturated by the magic of lonely sharks, and the entrances are covered by a thin silver barrier that prevents Star Children from leaving. That means should a Star Child track down where someone is being kept, should they enter its home, they too will be trapped there.

Being held by the lonely sharks isn't the worst experience. These spirits will try to please their new friends, giving them their favorite foods and perhaps even an item from home. This may even be a weapon or magical item. Mind, the magic of these items will be neutralized in the shark's cave. It is possible to fight a lonely shark, even to kill one, but that will only be a temporary measure. Star Children will remain trapped and have to wait for the lonely shark to revive—with even more golden cracks than before. In the end, the only way to escape are hugs, cuddles, and other measures of friendship. Once all the golden cracks have thinned and disappeared, Star Children can leave.

Spread the Love

By the time mid-March comes around, most of the lonely sharks have been fully healed and no longer kidnap Star Children. Instead they swim the None of the Above tunnels below the island's surface, where they provide guidance to Star Children who ask them how to get somewhere. If Star Children have nowhere particular in mind, the lonely sharks encourage Star Children to make their way toward the Shattered Spoon Shrine.

The lonely sharks still create silver streaks in the water that neutralize powers, but they will accompany Star Children and warn them of some of the dangers. When voices call their names, the sharks will snuggle up against Star Children to provide comfort. They're devoted to helping Star Children reach the shrine. Once there, they will encourage the Star Children to donate Lore to one of the broken spoons there, each spoon representing spirits who have left, spirits who became shells of themselves from lack of lore, or ghosts.

Star Children who donate Lore will find their companion lonely shark presenting them with an item from home. This may even be a weapon or magical item. Mind, the magic will be neutralized until the Star Child has spent at least an hour away from the silvery water lonely sharks create. Lonely sharks will happily spend as much time with Star Children as they're willing but will show the way back to the surface either via LIM (Lavender Institute of the Mind) or the None of the Above tunnels.

Never Fade is underwater within a cloud.
Silver streaks in the water neutralize powers, both canon and Role based.
Lonely sharks kidnap Star Children and take them to caves on the underside of Never Fade.
Star Children who find those caves are trapped too.
Escape by hugs, cuddles, and being friends.
By the second month, most lonely sharks are healed and found in the tunnels.
Lonely sharks guide Star Children to the Shattered Spoon Shrine to donate Lore to help others.
Either when captive or once donating Lore, lonely sharks will give Star Children an item from home.

Netfox & Chill . ★

Content Warnings: Forced Relocation, Potential Secret Revelation, Potential Coerced Physical Intimacy

With the wide range of Star Children from many different worlds, sharing similarities, it's no surprise when moments of deja vu happen. That sense of the familiar with the new, the sense of something that happened before without quite being able to place it… or perhaps it being impossible. Regardless, when that connective moment happens, the Star Children involved are transported to a windmill home from the Cloud Colonies. They land together on a couch before a large television with all the makings of a movie night. There could be wine and cheese. There could be soda and popcorn. There could be tea or other hot beverages. There's a cozy blanket (only one). The movie has already been selected, and it starts playing.

Headliner

The movie is roughly based off one of the Star Children's lives, specifically for the Star Child that experience deja vu and triggered this experience. Regardless of the moment of deja vu, the plot of the movie is based off of some real or potential relationship—romantic or queer platonic—in their life. That Star Child can recognize some similarities immediately. If they had any doubts, they get a text message on their relic as the movie starts:

You need to get closer with your companion(s). You can either talk about what happened (or didn't) or not talk wink wink about it with them. The choice is yours (and theirs)! Have fun!

It's possible to ignore the message, at least for a while. The longer the movie plays, the more apparent it becomes that it's based off that Star Child. The starring character's clothes will change to resemble theirs. The cadence of their voice will shift to imitate theirs. Their facial features will shift. These changes will become more and more heavy handed as the movie goes on until even the most clueless companion will have real trouble not picking up on it. It may get harder and harder to distract them from talking about it! There's no pause button, and the only way to mute the movie is to *ahem* distract themselves from it until it becomes an indistinct background murmur.

Remake

If any Star Children thought this experience might have been a Valentine's Day prank, they'll be poorly mistaken come mid-March when it continues with a twist. The movie less closely resembles any one Star Child's life (whew?)… because it blends the lives of all those present together into a new story. One character is based off each Star Child, and it fits the other Star Child into the role of someone who was or could have been emotionally and/or physically intimate with them. If they had any doubts, each Star child gets a text message on their relic as the movie starts:

You need to get closer with your companion(s). You can either talk about what happened (or didn't) or not talk wink wink about it with them. The choice is yours (and theirs)! Have fun!

Not only does each Star Child have to decide what approach they want to take, but the other Star Child may pick up on what they're putting down! One Star Child may want to talk it out, but the other one desperately doesn't. Oh noes, how shall it be resolved? Well, the longer it takes, the more clearly the film demonstrates one way they could resolve it—a fictionalized ending, happy or sad or bittersweet or anything else, between the characters as they more closely resemble those watching them on the sofa. No one's free until they have a heart to heart or a something to something else. Any physical intimacy can do.

Experience a moment of deja vu and get transported to a cozy living room in a Cloud Colony windmill.
For the first month, the 'host' Star Child gets a text letting them know to get intimate—emotionally or physically.
For the second month, all Star Children get that text.
For the first month, the movie is based on the 'host' Star Child's experiences, what did or could have happened. As the movie progresses, it becomes more and more obvious that's the case.
For the second month, the movie is a story blending Star Children's experiences together. That too will become more obvious over time.
Some form of intimacy is the only way out!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

⇢ 𝒜𝑅𝑅𝐼𝒱𝒜𝐿
» ʟᴏᴄᴋᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ

notgrande
[ Diluc’s eyes snap open and he bolts upright, head whipping around immediately to take in his surroundings, searching for any sign of familiar flora or fauna. The environment he finds himself in though has none of that, let alone any architecture that he recognizes. He remembers investigating suspicious leyline activity near the border between Liyue and Mondstadt when he came across a strange fox that reminded him much more of one of Inazuma’s kitsune than an average, run-of-the-mill fox. He remembers the way she glowed bright like a flame in the dark night and the way the air changed— warm as a summer’s day with the bite of winter and a spray of autumn maple leaves, all at once. He felt compelled to follow her trail when she turned tail suddenly and ran into the underbrush…

And then there was that surreal, unnatural feeling of floating. Even as he broke through the tree-line and climbed over rock and greenery, splashing through the reeds of the Liyue marshes, he could feel the eeriness of it. Something wasn’t right, and yet he couldn’t stop his pursuit of the Fox. In fact, he felt no fear of how distinctly wrong it all felt. Tiny wings sprouted from his back, beginning as downy white tufts of feathers before rapidly growing and stretching into massive, magnificent, brown-feathered wings, just like an owl’s. A searing light shines from above his head and finally the Fox acknowledges him:

“…Folkmore. We’re going to Folkmore. You know the way.”

And that’s the last thing Diluc can recall before there’s this horrible sensation of falling, falling, falling… as if for an eternity. “You know the way.” But he doesn’t. He doesn’t recognize any of this and he’s lying in a circle of owl feathers, feeling a little like he bumped his head. Immediately, a hand shoots up to feel over his shoulder, groping at his own back frantically.

No wings. There’s nothing there. But of course, he hasn’t realized his eyes have been shifting colors all this time as he runs the gamut of emotions at the revelation that he is not in Teyvat anymore. ]

⇢ 𝒟É𝒥À 𝒱𝒰
» ʟᴏᴄᴋᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ

shadowsincryo
[ Happening upon Venti in his first moments in Folkmore was… well, a boon, truly, even if Diluc senses he might at some point regret deciding to stay with his archon in such a seemingly long-term sense. Venti does like some good mischief every now and then, after all. Still, he doesn’t know why, but he feels somehow responsible for the god of anemo, though Venti is easily more capable than he is, no matter where they are. Without his Vision, he’s even less capable, but he didn’t think to ask if anyone else had discovered Venti’s true identity, so, as for now, as far as he knows, he’s the only one who knows that secret and he’ll help as much as necessary to safeguard it.

He’s wandered back to where he landed earlier, kneeling down on one knee among the owl feathers. He still doesn’t know where they came from. He presumes they’re from those wings he had while he was chasing the Fox, but there’s no sign of them now. Not even the little tufts of the juvenile owl feathers are on his back anywhere.

Diluc picks one up between his gloved fingers and turns it over, looking for anything strange about the feather other than its sheer size. As he does this, he suddenly feels a warm tickle up along his spine and his shoulder blades itch suddenly while he senses someone watching him. He looks up. And he swears his heart stops beating in his chest. ]

⇢ 𝒩𝐸𝒯𝐹𝒪𝒳 𝒜𝒩𝒟 𝒞𝐻𝐼𝐿𝐿
» ᴏᴏᴄ: ʏᴏᴜ ᴄʜᴏᴏꜱᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏᴠɪᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ɪꜰ ʜᴇᴀᴅʟɪɴᴇʀ ᴏʀ ʀᴇᴍᴀᴋᴇ
[ Teyvat is a world full of wondrous sights and strange, inexplicable happenings, and yet Diluc has never suddenly just appeared out of thin air onto a sofa with another person before, apparently all prepared to watch what he supposes must be something like Fontaine’s motion pictures. Even as cozy as things are, Diluc doesn’t have a good feeling about this. ]

» ᴀ. ᴄʀᴇᴘᴜꜱ
» ʙ. ᴋᴀᴇʏᴀ
» ᴄ. ᴛʜᴇ ᴛʀᴀᴠᴇʟᴇʀ
» ᴅ. ꜰᴀᴛᴜɪ (ʀᴇᴍᴀᴋᴇ ᴏɴʟʏ)
» ᴇ. ʙᴇᴄᴏᴍᴇ ᴛʜᴇ “ʜᴏꜱᴛ”

⇢ 𝒲𝐼𝐿𝒟𝒞𝒜𝑅𝒟
( ooc: totally down for petting sharkies or any other new arrival shenanigans, so feel free to pm for questions and pick a prompt i didn’t write a starter for! diluc’s legend wings and halo are hidden for now but his eyes do change color regularly when he feels strong emotion. diluc cannot do any of his fire abilities currently but he is still highly skilled at both armed and unarmed combat and will fight anything that is a threat. )

[His days have hit a routine again. Teach classes three days a week. Keep unpacking boxes and slowly move into his house.

He had hit the tavern for take out and had come to the woods for a good clearing. People are used to dragons but-

None of that matters. His bag of takeout is clenched tightly and a golden dragon scale that shimmers with magic in the other hand.

He is a meld of wolf and man, more human than wolf but the long tail and ears look natural on him. His ears tilt back as he openly stares.

He closes his eye and tucks his take out containers into his bag slung over his shoulder. A dark suit jacket is matched with a dress shirt, slacks, and a sturdy pair of boots. The earrings he wore in Mond are now special clips to his wolf ears. He finally rights them.] Ah, it is the time people start coming in, isn’t it?

[The golden scale slowly dims to a pale glow around it. He tucks it into his coat. The shock on Diluc’s face…does he remember? He walks over to join him and on habit breathes in. He turns his head and sneezes.] Those are yours if you’re wondering.

[ Diluc stares openly as the man approaches. He recognizes the figure even before he can see details. He’d know it anywhere. He doesn’t say anything for a moment though; he’s too busy looking Kaeya over— from the wolf features to the clothes he’s wearing and how much longer his hair is… The differences from this man to the Kaeya in his memories would suggest this isn’t actually the man he knows, but it is. He knows it’s him for certain and he stands up, still holding the feather. ]

So you are here too.

[ Diluc’s tone is irritated, but it’s half-hearted, because he was hoping that it wasn’t actually true that Kaeya was here, but in spite of himself, there is a rather large part of him that feels a twisted sort of relief to find Kaeya here. The relief he feels just seeing Kaeya is strong enough that he has to fiercely tamp down on the impulse to reach out to the other man. He wants to ask if the other man is okay. He instead lifts the feather. ]

That’s impossible. Do you see any feathers on me?

[He doesn’t remember. His ears lower a bit. He diminishes a little bit. He takes one of the feathers from the forest floor and turns it over. He breathes in again.] These feathers smell like you.

[He looks at his eyes to see what color they are. That alone will give him an idea if Diluc is a familiar or a legend.] I assume you remember the Fox in the crossing. Has anyone told you about the roles she might have mentioned?

[ Diluc’s eyes shifted from their natural scarlet to a shimmering lavender when Kaeya approached. When the other man mentions in the most blasé way that the owl feathers smell like him though, the color instantly flashes back to his natural red with a soft bubblegum pink that glows around his pupils and Diluc suddenly can’t string a coherent sentence together. ]

Smell like m— What are you— That is absurd.

[ To Kaeya, this is clearly not a big deal, but to Diluc, it dances too close to the border of indecent. Kaeya knows what he smells like that well?? Diluc can’t decide between being embarrassed and being scandalized. As Kaeya begins peering into his face so closely, he goes with scandalized and lashes out a little— by reaching up to snag one of those lupine ears between his fingers. ]

Is this your idea of a practical joke?

[He realizes he stepped in it seconds before a hand closes on his ear. He lets out a surprised whine, exposing teeth too sharp and natural to be a joke. His tail lashes back and forth.] Ow! Hey, careful with that, they’re sensitive!

[He reaches his hand up but doesn’t grab Diluc’s wrist. His hand falls back down. But the tips of his fingers are clawed.] You didn’t listen when she mentioned roles, did you?!

[ Well, that whine just about settles it, along with Kaeya literally baring his fangs at him. This is all very real and that is extremely alarming. Diluc doesn’t immediately let go, since Kaeya seems to change his mind about pulling his hand away forcefully, but he does ease up on gripping the ear so harshly, choosing instead to just feel how the ear moves. With his gloves on, he can’t actually feel the fur covering them, but he can feel the warmth of them, how they really are a part of Kaeya’s body. ]

I heard her, but roles don’t necessarily explain you talking about recognizing my scent on things.

Diluc Ragnvindr • Genshin Impact • Legend

Deja vu

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject