seasonsgreetings | Test Drive Meme #3

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Test Drive Meme #3

Test Drive Meme #3
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Arrival

Part 1

You arrive in an unknown space, dressed in white clothes (player choice what kind of clothes, as long as they cover everything). Whatever was happening to you before no longer happens. It's like everything was put on a pause and you were transferred away from the situation without you realizing it happened.

The space that you find yourself in is one of these four options:

An empty landscape filled with snow and ice, almost like a blank canvas.
A field with cherry blossom trees and spring flowers.
A sunny beach near an ocean that seems never ending.
A quiet forest with falling autumn leaves.

All of the spaces seem to continue endlessly. No matter where or how far you walk it almost seems like you're not moving at all. There are no animals here - just those who happened to wake up there at the same time, in the same place. Everyone is wearing the same kind of plain, white clothes.

Despite the possible rollercoaster of emotions you might be feeling, the place somehow feels familiar. Like somehow you belong there.

And it looks like you're not alone.

Part 2

After half an hour has passed the surroundings change as everyone is teleported into a room with all the other new arrivals, no matter what space they woke up in. It's a large place with plenty of seats to sit in and beverages to enjoy. Medical attention is offered to those who need it and the doctors here are very prepared for any challenging situations.

Here, in this room, everyone gets an answer to where they are and why. A hologram of a man appears at the center of the room, waiting to be heard. He brings a message on behalf of the leaders of Ellipsa.

The Message [ Click to Expand ]

Hello, my name is Olwen. I'm one of the leaders of Ellipsa as it currently is. I'm also one of the four who summoned you here.

Our world is in trouble and we need your help. I apologize for tearing you away from your world and forcing you to come here but I hope you understand. The magic we used doesn't let us ask in advance, nor does it let us choose who we bring here.

This world is composed of four Seasonal Segments. All of them represent one of the seasons. They were the places we used to get our resources from, but now they're dangerous places no one should go into unless they have the power to fight back. All of them have their own sets of powerful monsters and natural catastrophes.

We used to have plenty of people here who could control the powers of the four Seasons. We called them Seasonal Power Holders. Unfortunately, due to a tragedy you can read about later, we lost almost all of them. Now only four of us remain and the world is in chaos. We have done our best to protect the world, but we need more power holders to do that.

That's where you come in.

All of you have been assigned to one of the seasons. Whatever space you were in just now is what season you represent. You will learn different skills based on the season and those skills are going to help you save this world.

These powers don't interfere with your own natural powers. They use a new energy that has formed inside of you. It's harmless to your health, but it's vital to your seasonal powers. Your own powers should still work, even if the dark energy outside the city might interfere with them.

Unfortunately bringing you here wasn't as simple as it sounds. We couldn't do anything about how to keep you anchored to this world other than making a simple spell that helps with it. That is, you need to touch someone else who is not from this world ideally at least once a day. It will help you stay in control of your powers and boost your magical energy. If you don't, the consequences aren't very good. But as long as you hold someone's hand or give someone a handshake, you should be fine.

That's all I have to say about the situation. The staff of the Research Center will give you more information about housing and other necessary things. I will, however, promise that you will be sent home once the situation becomes better. That's the least we can do.

The hologram can be viewed in private in a separate room later, should someone wish to look at it again. For now, the staff of the Research Center hands everyone their new smartphones with their small flower lucky charms (the flower is anything the player decides). They're also told that the building next door is where everyone can find a room assigned to them with some of their belongings there and possibly even any animal companions. Those concerned about their mount-sizes companions are welcomed to the stables downstairs to see if their friends are there. The mounts are allowed to stay there until you find a place more suitable for them.

In the Arrival's hall there are also several stands with information pamphlets.

First type of stand is for the local Guilds and about the benefits or joining one.

Second type of stands is for the Welcoming Committee that aim to show otherworlders what the world is like and help guide people in the beginning of the journey and helps in getting settled into the new world. They even have people to help if you're unfamiliar with the new phones.

Third type of the stands is for The In Touch Support Group that is led by the Otherwordly Ambassador, Kamisato Ayato. The pamphlets have contact information for businesses looking to help Otherworlders. They also focus more on the lore of the World and what they have discovered so far, as well as a guide on what to think about when preparing to venture out to the Segments.

Once you get your smartphone and necessary information, you're urged to go out and find your apartment. After that whatever you want to do is up to you.

Part 3

The building next door is where everyone can find their new apartments. As you enter, you're told by a friendly native that for the first two months you can live anywhere rent-free and five meals a day are paid for you. After that they get a monthly payment that helps with some of their living expenses, but otherwise they have to have a job to support themselves.

All of the apartments are comfortable, two bedroom apartments with all necessary utilities. They are also completely soundproof. Sometimes the magic system, however, does glitch and you might find yourself rooming with a stranger. This is not the intention and the staff will immediately prepare you your own room if you ask them. But maybe having a roommate isn't all that bad?

Party in the Underground

Part 1

The center of Nightwake never sleeps and there's always something happening, but today there's a lot of excitement in the air all around the center and every district! Locals and those who want to help them (for 100 Moon Coins or a gift card of their choosing), are walking to everyone to offer colorful fliers along with free vending machine tokens. There's also colorful advertisement on billboards and posters everywhere around the city advertising all sorts of things like items, clothes, drinks and more.

Local businesses, stores and restaurants are also going pretty crazy with their celebrations of anyone walking in being their 50th, 100th or whatever customer of the day and the prize among other things are gift cards and more free vending machine tokens but they aren't even for that same shop or restaurant? They also offer people to spin all kinds of different prize wheels, spin roulettes, buying a certain amount of things from them, and taking part in eating and drinking competitions for a surprise prize. Someone even put these surprise prizes into the Gacha Restaurant's randomizer, so for a week, you can choose it as a total surprise there too. (The surprises can be even more vending machine tokens and silly things like cute keychains or a 5-in-1 avocado tool as some examples.)

You can't find any of these shops, restaurants and other places, that they are advertising, in the whole city. The locals, posters and billboards will tell you where you can find them. There's a new entrance in every district, where locals welcome everyone to the grand opening of the Underground Mall!

Some may even drop into a sudden hole in the ground on their way and fall (or slide) somewhere far away. Don't worry, there will be very soft and huge pillows for landing in your destination.

Part 2

The Underground Mall's upper floors give the vibe of a joyous mall with several restaurants and shops you won't see on the surface. The mall is definitely a must visit place for those who appreciate different fashion and exciting food choices. The party from the surface continues down here with various sales around the area. A good day for shopping!

For those who like games, there's a futuristic VR Arcade for you! This Arcade focuses on games that are played with VR goggles on. Even your regular DDR machine will now take you to dance in different environments and feel like you're dancing for your life or for an actual audience.

There are all sorts of vending machines lined up in their own, huge corner. You can find the usual ones with all sorts of different snacks, food and drinks, but there are also some with cake, cookies, mayonnaise, cream, flowers, engagement rings and other less usual but normal things. Nothing here is randomized, unless you choose the random option from the machine, otherwise you get exactly what you want. So pick your favorites or try something new, that sounds more or less good! You can find a machine that turns moon coins on your phone into vending machine tokens (or you can pay straight with your phone).

And, yes, you can find vending machines full of snacks and drinks all around the area too.

Then there's also an area for ufo catchers with all kinds of prizes like pokemon plushies and lots of other plushies, items themed to different season, plushies and other items themed to any fauna and flora from all around Ellipsa, puzzles, food themed items etc etc.

Moving inside the mall is done by escalators and elevators, but there are also regular stairs for those who prefer them.

The fastest way of traveling from floor to floor in the mall is by quick teleport nodes. You choose a floor you want to go to from the list of choices, much like an elevator and then you're transported into that floor's node within seconds. Unfortunately, they're still working out on the bugs in the system, so you may end up in the wrong place - including places that aren't on the list of choices.

Part 3

There's also a Poké Ball Vending Machine, so anyone who recognizes poké balls may have some idea what they could get here. The vending machine somehow has enough balls for everyone in Ellipsa but everyone can only buy one ball! The balls don't have names in them and no one can see through them, so even those, who know Pokémon will NOT know what they'll be getting from this vending machine as it is entirely randomized!

Are you ready to get your first Pokémon? What about being ready to see how you two get along? Everyone, who plays this vending machine, gets either a Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Pikachu, Eevee, Chikorita, Cyndaquil, Totodile, Treecko, Torchic, Mudkip, Turtwig, Chimchar, Piplup, Snivy, Tepig, Oshawott, Chespin, Fennekin, Froakie, Rowlet, Litten, Poplio, Grookey, Scorbunny, Sobble, Spirigatito, Fuecoco or Quaxly.

(And yes, ICly it is entirely randomized but OOCly you can decide which one you want your character to get... Of course you can rng the result too. More about Pokémon guidelines in the OOC Tips of this TDM.)

Welcome to Our Dark Side

The third part of the TDM is under this details cut as it has Content Warnings, including Cursed things, Organized Crime, Illegal Activities, Monster Forms/Body Horror, Attempted Murder, Experimenting on People

The Third Part of the TDM [ Click to Expand ]

Part 1

The lowest levels of the mall are only accessible by random quick teleport nodes around the mall (if you know you know is the motto with these). You can run into them on accident (they're usually hidden, but with so much traffic, the hiding place becomes visible) and they sometimes immediately just teleport people without any warning. The arrival can be in various places. A random shady hallway, in the middle of the floor, in a shady establishment and so on.

Anything that seems shady can be found from these floors. Even the local diners here are very weird and likely have illegal things on the menu. Clothing stores sell all kinds of clothes fit for thieves and assassins and the amount of weapons shops here is twice the amount than on the surface. Rumor has it there are also people trying to summon the devil somewhere around here, but that's still just a rumor.

One of the teleport node locations can take you to the front of a cursed vending machine corner. At first they look like ordinary vending machines, but upon closer inspection one may notice they are anything but ordinary.

The food vending machines are full of different "eatable" bugs with half-hearted warnings that they may or may not be poisonous (they didn't really check before putting them in the packaging), Mystery Food boxes (includes some very suspicious foods that don't look edible, but are actually alright in taste? But may contain some side effects like growing mushrooms out of your hair if you eat the mushroom ones), ones that is labeled Energy Drinks but all of them look more like creepy potions (they provide energy but at the cost of poisoning someone for 24 hours) and hyper realistic cakes that look like various body parts (the cake part is intentionally written in small print).

Other vending machines have various shark eggs (hatching them will provide a magical shark with little hands and legs that invades the first watery surface it finds and bites whoever comes too close - it does not belong as a pet, but one may try to tame one), Mystery Boxes (with anything from highly cursed jewelry to books that suck your soul if written into) and Cheat Slips (it's said these slips will let you master a skill immediately, but all it does is cause one's powers to go berserk for 2 hours).

Part 2

The lowest levels are also a place for a large Casino. While they do exist on the surface, this one is a little different.

The Casino (named just that, "The Casino") is divided into four different sections; All of them are dominated by an organized crime group. This is the only area of the underground they work together in peace and sometimes come to relax. They don't cause trouble for each other here, but they definitely can try to cause trouble for everyone who is visiting the place.

Losing in this Casino can mean being taken to the back rooms by whichever group's area you ended up losing in. They will offer to let you go if you can pay off your debt you made in the Casino, but they have other options of compensation.

Name: Diamonds
Game Area: Card Games (Poker, Black Jack, Craps)
Compensation: They will send characters on a criminal quest to either steal or sabotage something or even smuggle a (cursed) item into important places.

Name: Spades
Game Area: Roulette
Compensation: They will attempt to kill the character that lost in the quietness of the backrooms.

Name: Clubs
Game Area: Pool, Darts
Compensation: They will just make characters clean their casino area.

Name: Hearts
Game Area: Slot Games
Compensation: They will drag characters into experiments in a different facility.

You may also end up taken to the back rooms for getting caught cheating, although it may also end up in a congratulatory meeting for an impressive sleight of hand instead or an invitation to join one of the groups. How would you feel about a life of crime?

Part 3

Those caught in Hearts Group's Experiments will be subjected to series of tests. Mostly they're to check the characters' physical condition before proceeding. Once the tests are concluded, the character will be given a medicine (either via shot or a pill). This medicine will not show any signs of working for a while and characters are let go afterwards.

The same medicine can, however, later be consumed by anyone else in various foods and drinks (free samples, some restaurants, even some grocery store items), even in the higher levels of the Mall. The experiments were the final test before distributing the medicine secretly to the public. So your character may accidentally end up getting the medicine in other ways.

What are the medicine? Monster Form activators. They will awaken a monster form inside a character that will trigger under one of the (player) selected conditions: strong emotional reaction, full moon, near death situation or bleeding.

The form can be returned from by calming down and focusing on their sense of self, but there's a chance to go berserk, making this difficult. If characters go berserk, their powers will be a lot stronger, but they won't know who's a friend and who's a foe. Their form may also be a lot scarier than it normally is. They will likely only want to cause destruction around them or want to feed on humans.

Monster	Description	Powers
Alraune	Plant monsters with a humanoid shape. They may have changes as simple as flowers growing in their hair or have complex body modifications such as roots for legs and long vines as hands.	Pollen with status effects like sleep/poison/paralysis, control over plants, poisonous kisses, etc
Gargoyle	Monstrous humanoid winged creatures with horns on their head and stony hides.	Super strength, tough skin, flight
Harpy	Human-bird hybrids. Anything part can be replaced with bird bodyparts, although the most common configuration is arms turned to wings and legs into talons.	Flight, sonic scream, hypnotizing voice, ability to whip up whirlwinds
Kelpie	Aquatic horses with a man made of seaweed and algae, covered in a sticky fur that makes it nearly impossible to get off if one is to ride them. Some may get a fish tail when underwater, although when out of water they have legs like any horse.	Water breathing, illusions
Lich	Undead humanoids, they may look skeletal or simply corpselike.	Raising the dead (into zombies/skeletons), necrotic touch
Manticore	Beastlike creatures with the head of a human, the body of a lion, and the tail of a scorpion or dragon. They vary greatly, some sporting horns on their heads, or resembling a Chimera or Sphinx.	Super strength, flight if wings.
Minotaur	Animalistic monsters with the head of a bull and the body of a human, although some variations exist in which there are different animal heads. Some sport hooves and a tail in place of legs.	Super strength, overall size, super defense.
Taur	This refers to any number of creatures with a humanoid upper body and a lower body that resembles a non-anthropomorphic animal in the same sort of style as a centaur. This category includes things like Arachne and Naga, and other variations of such monsters.	Varies depending on animal the taur is based on
Werecreatures	Monstrous, bipedal animals, the transformation of which is often (but not always) triggered by the full moon. Common variants are wolves and bears, although they can be about any animal. The Pooka would be one of the variations in the werecreature category.	Depends on the animal the form is based on, but usually super strong/fast etc

This effect can either be permanent or temporary, depending on how the players want it. Temporary can be up to just one transformation under the conditions or several.

OOC TIPS

- Ask your questions related to the TDM here.

- The TDM is available only to friends of the mods and their friends. If you want to play in the TDM, please leave a note here to inform us who invited you over. We will get to you as soon as possible.

- Test Drive is open for current characters to make a top level as well. New characters can add TDM (or "New" or anything else) on their subject line to indicate they're new!

- Current characters cannot access the starting area again to meet new arrivals. They can, however, be at the Research Center when the newbies are teleported in.

- The TDM is game canon so anything in the TDM can happen for your character(s) in the game as well.

- Remember to add Content Warnings wherever needed!

- Smut is not allowed on the TDM. You can play situations leading to it, but if the thread is turning into smut, please move it to a private space such a post in your character's journal, or a locked post in the game's log community if you decide to app!

- Pokémon Guidelines:
• Anything mindblowing crazy that the pokedex has to offer for any of the evolutions doesn't carry over to Seasons. They're closer to anime variants where people can get flamethrower at their face and live (we still do not recommend getting a flamethrower at face)
• Pokémon gain experience points much slower, even if they battle one another.
• You may be able to find a vending machine with weird stones mixed in for stone evolutions. Strange.
• All start at level 5.
• More Pokémon may appear later in the game but for now it's just the ones mentioned.
• More on all the available Pokémon here!

- Check Locations: City to find more areas to explore inside the city. Every place in the districts are open. The Underground Mall has been added to the locations page at the very end of it.

- Similarly, Locations: Segments is useful for outdoors adventures. You can find monsters to encounter on Beastiary.

- Minor NPCs page has been updated with the criminal organizations.

- FAQ has information on characters' smartphones as well as general things about the world that might be handy.

- Feel free to check and use out Questboard for additional prompts.

code bases by tricklet

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You've got a good point there.

[ Reiner folds his arms, apparently perfectly fine with this bizarre conversation. His frown remains, but it's evident that it's only directed at the "limbs." Could they actually be real? Maybe so. For all Reiner knows, there's a whole black market for cannibals in this world. It wouldn't be expected; however, the possibility exists. ]

Removing them from the machine would be the easiest way to determine what they are. [ He makes a face. ] But I'm not sure how much good that would do. Suppose they are real: then what?

Surely a place like this would have some way of reporting it?

[Authorities or something. It's a very modern-looking place. So many people, so many machines, bright lights. It's a bigger city than he's ever seen before.]

If we can collect the proof, couldn't we simply do that?

[Break into the machine! Steal limbs! For a good cause!]

[ Collect the proof? Well, that's easy enough. Reiner isn't about to pay for what may be human limbs, though. So he hums, then unfolds his arms and looks at the stranger. ]

Mind keeping an eye out for any guards?

[ If he gets a sign of approval and his new acquaintance starts doing so, Reiner will move to extract the limbs from the machine.

Only he doesn't do what a normal well-built human whose strength has been compared to an ox might do. That is, he doesn't use his boot to kick in the glass.

Instead, Reiner just … hauls back and punches it.

Punches the glass, bare-fisted, like a lunatic.

The glass breaks, of course. Reiner certainly has the upper body strength to take care of that. And yeah, it hurts, but aside from an emphatic curse that follows the satisfying shatter, Reiner seems weirdly fine about it.

Never mind the lacerations on his knuckles. He's fine! Or he will be soon enough. ]

Yes -

[He trails off, about to ask a few follow-up questions. Should they try to pry the glass off? Is there a hood to open, like on a vehicle? Some sort of panel? Something like that. That kind of breaking in.]

[And then???]

[And then this guy just.]

[Punches it.]

[Hakkai stares, taken aback. He'd really, sincerely thought the others of their little party were the only ones who would jump to a solution like that. Or they'd summon their weapons and use that to do the deed. Which, actually, would be smarter than what he just witnessed. He can already see the blood on the other's hand, and limps forward with a heavy, audible sigh.]

[The sigh of a disappointed parent.]

Your hand. If you please.

[This is not a request.]

[ That is most definitely not a request.

Funnily enough, it's only when Reiner hears the disappointed sigh that he realizes: oh, right, he probably should've given the man some warning. Or, at the very least, explained that what he was about to do wouldn't be a big deal.

Instead, Reiner finds himself automatically obeying what is definitely not a request, even as he says, ]

It's fine; it'll heal right up.

[ Which still isn't a sufficient explanation, but. That disappointment. Ouch. ]

Yes. It most certainly will.

[There's suddenly a smile so sharp and rigid it could have been used to cut the glass. Do you hear warning sirens?]

[Or maybe not. Because Hakkai's attention turns to the other man's hand. Examining it carefully. Nothing's broken, he can tell that much. But those lacerations are deeper than he'd like.]

[His own hands glow.]

[Bit by bit, the lacerations just straight up heal themselves. Until not even scarring is left.]

I would advise at least wrapping your hand, should you need to break any other machines. If they are truly human flesh, decomposition creates all manner of infections bacteria that can wreak havoc on open wounds.

[ Wow, what are those sirens suddenly blaring in Reiner's head?

Thankfully, they fade once the stranger sets to work examining his hand. Reiner opens his mouth once, trying to explain again that, really, it's fine, he'll heal as though nothing ever happened. Just as he always does. Just as he'll always do until the day he passes his power on to the next generation.

But then, the stranger's hands glow. And bit by bit—without the slightest hint of Reiner's usual steam—the wounds close up, leaving no trace behind.

Reiner blinks, his lips parting. Then his gaze rises to the man's face. ]

Um. Thank you.

[ He feels a little like his best friend, stumbling over his words like that. But it's one thing for Reiner to heal himself; he understands how that power works (more or less), knows its source and its cost. It's quite another to witness whatever this man can do.

Imagine being able to heal other people instead of only yourself.

Then he shakes his head, trying again to explain: ]

Things like infections don't affect me. They can't get a foothold for long enough to do any damage. My body basically rejects them.

Of course. Though, do try not to make it a habit. I can only do this so many times.

[That tight, pointed smile returns, for a heartbeat. That smile is more disappointment than amusement, more warning than friendliness. Don't be so stupid, stranger. It passes remarkably quickly.]

That's a very handy ability... [It's thoughtful. Almost curious. His eyes searching Reiner. For any sort of jewelry. There's no mark, the ears are normal, hair and eyes aren't the right colors. But that could be hidden, well enough. Hakkai himself is a prime example of that. Still, he remains as polite as ever.] Have you always been that way?

[He'll turn back to the vending machine in a moment.]

[ Under slightly different circumstances, Reiner would insist that the stranger's limited uses are all the more reason not to waste one on him. However, that disappointed smile stills his tongue. Reiner doesn't even know this man's name, and yet…

He tries not to squirm internally. He hates disappointing people.

Maybe that's part of why Reiner answers so readily. It's not like he has any reason to conceal his true nature in this world, right? ]

No, I inherited that power when I was ten. It goes hand-in-hand with rapid healing, plus some other stuff. [ Which he'd tried to explain! Really! ] As far as I know, it's unique to my world.

[ He hopes it is, at least. ]

[The power of a former teacher, Reiner. And Team Mom. You cannot escape. It's just not possible. His scrutiny relaxes though, fades away. After all, Hakkai's found himself in a totally new world. A whole new place. So there are clearly other worlds out there.]

[So it makes sense that what is true for his world won't be for another.]

Ah, I see. Those are very useful things to have. I imagine you save quite a bit on first aid kits and medication. [The man who has weaponized a smile finally manages to make it merely polite, instead.]

But, hm. We should probably return to the task at hand, shouldn't we?

Right, of course.

[ Reiner doesn't admit how much of a relief it is when the stranger's smile returns to "polite" instead of that combination of judgment, disappointment, and threat. Who knew a smile could multitask so efficiently?

He turns to the vending machine, using his boot (this time) to nudge aside some larger glass shards. Then he reaches inside, grimacing, prepared to touch cold, dead flesh wrapped in plastic— ]

…

[ —only to touch … something spongey?

He shakes his head, glancing at the other man. ]

This isn't flesh. [ He draws a plastic-wrapped "hand" out of the machine, holding it out for inspection. ] There's too much give to it. See?

[ He squeezes gently, and the "hand" smushes like the cake that it is. ]

[He braces himself. Corpses aren't anything new to him, or his friends, but that doesn't mean he particularly likes seeing dismembered body parts. Especially ones that look so... human. So he braces himself.]

[Only to blink, startled, by this revelation.]

What...? [That's not right. That's not how flesh is supposed to react to pressure. Even dead flesh. So he reaches for another, turning the foot over in his hands.] This feels...

[Hakkai trails off. There's no bone. He can't feel any of the bones in the foot he knows should be there. He squeezes a bit harder, trying to see if he's missed something.] Ah!

[Cake chunks. And icing. Pops out of the pressure points.]

... what on earth.

[ For Reiner, confections have always been a rarity. There were a few cakes in his childhood, rare and hard-won; in his teenage years, there were none at all. While he might have indulged in such luxuries in this new world, doing so simply hasn't occurred to him.

So it takes Reiner a moment to identify what the hell he's even looking at. He leans closer, squinting at the "foot," trying to puzzle it out. Then he looks back at the "hand," squeezing harder, finding that it does the exact same thing.

Finally, it clicks. He looks at the other man incredulously. ]

Are these cakes?

[There's... nothing else it could be. He slowly unwraps the plastic, all the way, gingerly picking at the exposed cake, at the bright red frosting. No bone. There's a bit of jam - raspberry, it smells like - but nothing even resembling flesh.]

[Shocking. A food he doubts even Goku would want to eat.]

It would appear we've stumbled onto the stock of a very macabre baker. [So yes, Reiner. These are cakes. What the hell.] Why anyone would believe this to be a good idea is beyond me.

[... so what does he do with this Foot Cake. Do they - do they put them back...?]

[ Reiner shakes his head in disbelief, watching the foot's "dissection." It really is a cake. What the fuck. ]

Why would anyone waste their talent on this? They could make cakes that look like anything!

[ Never mind the people who buy it. People hold bizarre interests no matter the world, it seems. But to waste such talent on making fake feet and hand cakes…

He shakes his head again. ]

This world just gets weirder and weirder.

Who can say? Perhaps they get their own sort of amusement out of it. Or perhaps it's poisoned.

[Which bodes... super well for the fact his hands are covered in cake right now. He grimaces, and tries to shake it off. He can feel Jeep clambering to his shoulder to peer at the cake crumbs, and shakes his head. No - do not eat that.]

Unfortunately, I can't say one way or another without trials.

[And no, he's not going to eat this. No one should eat this.]

[ Reiner's thoughts run along the same lines. He gives the stranger's hands a concerned look, then glances at the machine, searching for water. Unfortunately, every vial of liquid looks dubious at best, so he quickly abandons the thought of pouring some over the man's hands. ]

Let's find you somewhere to wash your hands.

[ He drops the "hand" cake unceremoniously back into the machine. If someone wants to come and steal stuff now that the glass is broken, more power to them. ]

I saw a restroom back that way. [ He indicates with a jerk of his chin. ] Come on.

[ Because apparently, they're in this together now. ]

[It's a very near thing - Hakkai saying he's all right. He can find his way on his own. But... he can't really do that. Can he? He doesn't have the slightest idea where he is in relation to anything else. And if this is really dangerous...]

[He sighs. Fine, he'll swallow the pride today.]

Please, lead the way.

[A slight bow of his head. He starts to fall into step with his new companion. And shrugs slightly, to get Jeep to stop trying to eat the cake.]

Jeep, please.

[ Reiner does as he's told, starting to lead the way back toward the restrooms he spotted. But he does glance over at the … Pokémon? Probably a Pokémon. What else could it be? Reiner didn't notice it before, but maybe it was in one of those little balls. ]

Jeep is a hungry one, huh?

[ Having spoken the name of the man's companion, it occurs to Reiner that he really should introduce himself. ]

My name is Reiner, by the way. Reiner Braun.

Something like that. He's used to sharing food with us.

[Himself and the others. Well - not so much Sanzo. Jeep gave him a healthy distance most of the time. Understandably.]

[His expression flicks back into that Polite Smile, but without the disappointment of it all.]

My apologies, I neglected my manners as well. Hakkai, a pleasure to meet you, Reiner.

Likewise. You and Jeep, too.

[ Reiner gives a smile of his own, quick but genuine. Such friendliness comes naturally to him. And it's easy to maintain when no baggage muddies the waters between them. ]

Although, it would've been nicer under different circumstances. [ Reiner shakes his head. ] I still can't believe those cakes.

[Jeep trills, like he fully understands he's being introduced. Maybe he does. We just don't know.]

It certainly would. Though I admit, I've met people under far worse.

[Like the worst day of his life, for example!]

At least they weren't real. I'd hate to be walking down the street to the washroom covered in blood. It makes a terrible mess.

[Hakkai]

[ Reiner gives Hakkai a quick, searching look that can be summarized as: "You okay, buddy?" But then he apparently decides to brush it off, answering with: ]

Yeah, that would be a real pain. Especially when the blood doesn't evaporate.

[ This is a totally normal thing to say. ]

[He notices the look, because of course. But doesn't seem to acknowledge it. Just keeps on walking.]

Have you actually seen that happen? In my experience, it just becomes tacky. And it's impossible to get out of clothing...

[SUPER NORMAL.]

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cw dumbass self-injury why even

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1/2

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