countryclub | February 2022 Test Drive Meme

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meme: tdm

February 2022 Test Drive Meme

FEBRUARY 2022 TDM

Another month, another test drive meme! Our test drive memes are open to anyone interested - regardless of whether or not you join our game!

All Test Drive Memes are game canon. Players can choose to keep their TDM threads canon or not. TDM threads can be used for AC and can be used as your writing sample for your application.

Our TDMs serve as a way to build into the actual lore and worldbuilding of Deer Country and we strongly encourage everyone to enjoy and participate! Current players are always welcome to pull prompts from the TDM to reference on the Network or bring into logs as well as tag out to new characters top-leveling on the TDM itself.

Characters will always be able to actively die during TDMs as this is an extremely dangerous world. You can still have this be game canon! Check out how character death in Deer Country works here.

If you have any questions about the TDM, please ask down below!

IMAGE DESCRIPTORS IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE
Prompt One
[Image One: Carnival booths at dusk]
[Image Two: Gif of a scantily clad woman walking near a large blinking automatron clown head.]

Prompt Two
[Image One: A giant spider impales small boy in a black silhouette platform game.]
[Image Two: Laughing woman with nothing but a mouth on her face.]

Prompt Three
[Image One: Dice being tossed in slow motion.]
[Image Two: Overgrown mansion in the woods.]

[NAVIGATION]

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A Less Than Typical Arrival

WHEN: Last few days of February into mid-March
WHERE: The Farther Shores/The Boardwalk
CONTENT WARNINGS: Clowns, creepy dolls, extortion?

When you arrive, the process is as easy and comfortable as turning from a squid into a Sleeper can ever be. The weather is almost balmy and blossoms bud on the trees. Pink blooms float out like cherry blossoms across the coastline. It is comfortable enough out that you might be tempted to strip down to your shirt. However, you would be the outlier: the people of Trench cover every inch of their skin and wear their gloves. Despite the pleasant weather, there's an ominous feeling and dark clouds over the ocean in the distance.

Oh, don't pay any mind to that! There's a festival going on on the boardwalk. Trenchies beckon Sleepers forward, and they'll find that along with food stalls that offer typical carnival treats (fried dough, corn dogs, etc.) are carnival games of chance. Ring tosses, dart throws, claw grabs. All of the games seem to rely more on luck than skill, and there are gambling tables set aside for people to play against each other.

Among the prizes, Sleepers see familiar items from home, as well as their welcome bag items, such as their Omni. Their welcome bag can also be won, but inside they'll find only their Lamp Friend. All the items usually in the welcome bag can, and by the end of the arrival will, be won by them, but not always for free.

While most games are free to play, some Trenchies may ask for a small vial of blood, or a song, or a joke. Less common are Trenchies who may ask you to work at their business to pay for playing their game. If you're lucky, a kind Waker and/or veteran Sleeper may come by and play for you. However you play (or don't), it feels like an unseen hand is guiding the fortune to ensure that the right items end up in the right hands. The longer you play, the more you regain, the more you feel like someone is watching you.

If you find yourself at the carnival at night, you'll find an edgier crowd, and an energy in the air that inspires a risky kind of fun. You may meet more corrupted and unusual people who greet new arrivals with their idea of a welcome. Nobody is violent, but you may want to be more on guard with your possessions after you regain them. The food and games are the same, but Trenchies are more likely to take advantage of new Sleepers. Costumes that some wear are more risqué and counter-culture. You may find yourself dragged to play a drinking game by a joyful but slightly uncouth looking Trenchie in clown make-up. The prizes to win at the booths that sit next to your own items are unsettling looking but… harmless. Probably.

F.A.Q.

Sleepers can identify which Trench item, such as Omni, Lunar Orb etc., is theirs by either a label with their name on it or that presence watching them from behind urging the knowledge into their mind. Suddenly they will just know it is theirs and that someone watching them somehow gave them that knowledge.
It may be assumed that, regardless of 'how,' the Sleeper's welcome bag items are acquired by the end of their time at the carnival. The Moss King ensures that nobody ends up walking away with the wrong items, ensuring a loss or a gain here and there to manipulate fortune just right. But any number of awkward and fearful possibilities exist in the meantime while you roll the dice!
There are carnival rides at all hours, but they are limited to: carousel, ferris wheel and House of Mirrors. At night, the House of Mirrors becomes a House of Horrors.

Luck Be a Lady

WHEN: Last few days of February into mid-March
WHERE: All over Trench.
CONTENT WARNINGS: Giant spider, forced combat, creepy mouth face ghost lady

[From A SURVIVOR'S GUIDE TO THE UNKOWNS OF TRENCH, written by and added onto by many Arcane Scholars through the centuries and found in the Archives.]

"There are a number of phenomena, plant-life, creatures and entities big, small, incorporeal, corporeal, so on and so forth that have yet to be defined. Are they more Pthumerians, half-Pthumerians, a creation of one, a product of blood pollution? We simply do not know, but that only increases the need for understanding how to survive them when they appear. Yes, many appear benevolent, for now. But many more have their dangers and caveats...
THE LADY OF LUCK
An ironic name to be sure and what is theorized to be a being or phenomena with some sort of connection with the Moss King as it only ever occurs in the beginnings of his designated month, after all. Anyone who experiences a moment of good luck or chooses to take a gamble that pays off will soon find themselves tested by the Lady of Luck. A card will suddenly appear in the hand of the lucky person seemingly out of thin air.

The moment the card is turned around to view its face, the holder's fortunes and fate will shift depending on which letter or symbol on the wheel they look at first, and not all will have an effect. Every year the effects change without repetition, records of each have been lost to time and have no value for the purposes of this guide. The only common advice recorded over the years amounts to one word: win. If you do not, misfortune awaits."

This year's tests by Lady Luck are as follows:

T: Reality distorts around you and anyone within a twenty foot radius is pulled into a cylinder of bright colors. The afflicted are made to dodge giant falling candy and work together to push them into sets of three matching candies until they crush together and eventually there is only one row of piled giant candies. If successful, the cone keeping them in that colorful nightmare will drop and characters will find the candies they crushed were objects in the area at the time. A bag of hard candies replace the card in their hand as a reward. When the candies are sucked on, you will feel energized and gain the ability to float.

A: This time the world shifts to appear two dimensional and black and white, you and everything around you are reduced to a black silhouette. You have to leap from moving platforms, solve puzzles and climb ladders. To get to levels above or below you, you must break through with a leap to punch up or stomp down. The goal is to reach a clear finish line and what drives you forward is a massive black spider. Many of the puzzles and obstacles require two people to solve and get over. When you reach the end, your card will be replaced with a white feather. It's a single use item that can revitalize anyone you place it on. Also, you have indeed been jumping through the roofs and floors of businesses and houses etc.

O: A clear force field forms up around you and the nearest sleeper, anyone else in the area or who is walking by will be able to see you inside this cage. Suddenly music begins to play, dance music to be precise. And a hologram of what you're expected to do appears between you in the large area: dance battle. Literally. You are expected to fight Mortal Kombat style, but most of your moves must be some form of dance move. Lights and holographic dancing figures will appear in the area with you to cheer on your match. You can fight till one person is K.O.ed or killed. Yes, there will be a 'finish him' announcement upon your victory. If you refuse to participate you both lose. The winner's card becomes a gold coin that allows you to charm anyone to do what you wish once a year.

"After each phenomena, some sufferers report seeing a woman in the distance laughing so wide it appears she has nothing but a mouth. She makes no sound and appears only briefly, but she has earned this phenomena the nickname 'Lady Luck'. Many attribute it to her direct influence, but thus far it is not clear whether she is the cause or a symptom. Many theorize that the point of these occurrences is to test whether the individuals affected are worthy of the gift of luck."

F.A.Q.

Yes, the first scenario is Candy Crush meets Tetris. I am not sorry. And the feather in the second is in fact a phoenix down.
The consequence for losing each of these is exceptionally bad luck for a day or several days depending on player preference. Bad luck can be lethal.

The Moss King's Summer Home

WHEN: Until the Second Week of March
WHERE: Unknown Location outside Trench
CONTENT WARNINGS: Perceived Death by Spontaneous Combustion, Acrophobia, Possible violent death, temporary insanity, cursed items

The morning after your first day in Trench, or the morning after new Sleepers arrive, there is a small envelope marked with your name within easy reach. Without realizing it you feel compelled to open it. Three things drop out of the envelope: a six-sided die crafted of what looks deceptively like bone, a small white pill, and a hand-written note.

“Dear friend,

I have had the good fortune of acquiring a new summer home outside of Trench and thought to share my good fortune with the Sleepers of the city. Take the pill, then roll the die to come to me. One visit per Sleeper.

-The Moss King.”

What could go wrong? Then again, given the Moss King's love for life and death gambles, what could go right? The moment you roll the die, before you can see the side it lands on, you explode in a shower of self-immolation and gore, only to be recombined painfully at the Moss King's summer house. The house is shaped like a giant die, and you're in front of the face you rolled. Hope it wasn't a one!

Rolled a 1: Congratulations, you're crushed under the giant die and wake up in a coffin in the cellar. How much air do you have left and how do you get out? Scream loud!
Rolled a 2: You're in front of a conservatory. When you walk through the glass door, it's impossible to avoid the itching ivy. You're going to be uncomfortable and scratching for hours...
Rolled a 3: You're in luck, you're at the front door! When you ring the doorbell, the sound outside is positively deafening and your ears will ring for hours.
Rolled a 4: Crawling in the master bedroom window like a burglar from the private porch. How uncouth. Even worse is the security measure, which dumps a can of paint on your head, leaving your hair and skin some unholy and nauseating color for the next hour.
Rolled a 5: The backdoor seems almost harmless, and in fact? It is. Nobody expected you to come in the back door, you barbarian. Better wipe your feet on the floor mat or you may never get the mud out of your shoes. No, seriously, wipe your feet or you'll be slipping and tripping every couple minutes for the next few hours.
Rolled a 6: Hope you're not afraid of heights, because you're falling from pretty far in the sky and through the roof below. Thankfully the shingles and mattress beneath somehow break your fall into the attic, but it probably hurts like hell.

Once you're inside the house, you find a quaint, strange space. There's a surreal sitting room decorated with flowers and moss hanging down the walls and the smell of lilacs fills the air. Tea and cakes are set out for guests and you seem to have the run of the house. There are spare bedrooms that you can stay the night in and when you wake the next day, you will be in your own bed in Trench feeling extremely well rested.

Around the house, there are strange objects and curiosities, some of them very familiar and some that just seem useful. You can find at least one item from your own world here, something of great significance, or even something that you thought was lost forever. Or instead of an item from home, what catches your eye is one of the small potions that says 'drink me,' or a strange, useful tool that you find in the closet, or even a wabbajack. No, seriously, it could actually be the wabbajack. The Moss King's a bit of a hoarder when it comes to the strange and surreal things people have lost in bets. Almost anything is possible. A note is attached to the item you want with a promise: “Give and take, tit for tat.”

You can take one item from the house, for a price. Should you have been 'unlucky' enough to have rolled a one or a six? You're now in luck, the Moss King considers that suffering a fair trade. If you rolled any other number, you must leave something behind. If you do, your item is yours to keep. If you decide not to make the trade, you can spend your time in this surreal home, surrounded by hoarded knick knacks as long as you care to.

If you choose not to spend the night, leaving the summer home is a lot easier than entering it: just go out the front door... and then walk along a winding path that allegedly leads back to Trench. It looks and feels like it's going to take forever. Space warps here and you can feel it, it's uncomfortable but not painful. Before you know it, the walls of Trench are visible through those woods and you are in Trenchwood again. Be wary, though, monsters lurk and odd mushrooms with varying unpleasant effects such as hallucinations grow along this path home.

F.A.Q.

If characters try to enter the house in a different way than the number they rolled, they'll instantly teleport back to their starting point.
Despite what the note says, characters can visit the home again by rolling the die, but the pill that was taken the first time can't be replicated.
If they decide not to take the pill, or you visit again, they feel like the house keeps shifting around them, tilting and distorting and revealing horrors in the walls, what horrors they see is up to you. The painful process to get there will be even more harrowing and hard on the body as well. But there's benefit to continuing to go back: the objects you can take.
Items taken that are not special items from home and invented by you must either be a one-time use item or a weaker benefit multi-use item. One time use items would be for if you want to give your character an especially big benefit like a staff that instant heals lots of people or a big death laser, multi-use items would have lesser abilities such as providing more endurance in a fight or healing small scratches.
The more times your character visits and items they take, the more unpredictable the items become. It's on them for ignoring the note saying you may come only once. You may grab an enchanted sword that's supposed to make you stronger on your third visit, but find when you use it, the enchantment will randomly have the opposite effect. Single use items will also be subjected to this drawback and after their one big beneficial use, the item will become cursed and hard to get rid of, always finding its way back to you. What kind of curse your single use item generates is up to the player. Players may also decide on the method it will take to get rid of their cursed object so long as it's not simple.
The price characters pay to get each item may be any range of things: another item from home, any object of general value or personal value, a good amount of your blood (enough to make you woozy when you're done), a small but important memory, if you rolled a 6 and were badly injured falling through the roof or rolled a 1 and suffered escaping the coffin.

CODING

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[shit, another useless one. but the username... aw hell, seriously?]

what dya mean, take it upon themselves?
spirits called phtumerians...

types of places? stop talkin vague. i want answers, not ramblin.

[whereas dabi immediately looked at the username and is disgusted. this place is dragging the damn kids in here? place? person? what the hell even is this place?]

Well, people that want to help other people, I guess.
Make sure no one gets hurt, and has everything they need and stuff.

Sorry, sorry!! ^^;;
I've been to a different world before coming here. Not like this, but the one I was in before we couldn't leave, either. Something about time being broken and causing infinite loops of one particular event, without end...
People were brought in not only to save them from that, but to figure out how to fix it and get everyone back to their correct timeline or something.

I feel like this world is different though...
I just arrived today, and am still figuring things out, so I really don't know too much, tho

[The message stops very abruptly. Oh. Oh, hello. Ochako is staring down the username now and swallowing hard. There's a very real possibility it is who she thinks it is, but then again...a possibility it isn't. Or that he wouldn't recognize her code name. Ochako sucks in a breath and just.

Waits.]

[so noisy and it's not even audible. he knows that username. that hero name. it's that floating girl toga gets hung up on. the one who talks about helping people and then in the same breath says you shouldn't do things you want to or should act a certain way...]

sounds ridiculous. you sure ya ain't drugged or somethin?

[he's not even sure he isn't drugged. doesn't know how whoever's behind this could've drugged him in the first place, considering where he fell asleep, but...]

seems like a lot of people 'just arrived' recently. like some kinda mass kidnapping.

[Ochako is really playing with fire here, isn't she? Literally and figuratively when it comes to Dabi... She has no idea if he recognizes her or her Hero Name, and she can't even be fully certain it's him, either. She'll have to play it by ear.]

If I was, I'd imagine a way better place than this, I think...
Or Nippon, for that matter. Even if fighting ninjas on a cable car hanging over a sea of boiling water was REALLY cool.
And fighting Godzilla.

[Because that. Sure fuckin happened.]

It isn't dissimilar, no.
Worst part is, there's really nothing anyone can do about it, either.

[She makes a face at her crystal, brows furrowing. Ironic as hell that Dabi has anything to say about kidnapping.]

[she's simply a piece of information he can use. might as well get what he can out of her and bounce. heroes always have that weakness of wanting to "help" people which is easily exploitable and usually worthless in the end.]

ya gonna give me something useful or prattle about nothing?

[if this really is some doped up rambling, he could kill the connection. the latter part, however, is somewhat helpful. as a lead.]

nothing they "can" do or "will" do?

[still sore about that, huh. ain't the first time. crime happens.]

[It takes all of Ochako's willpower not to make a sassy comment in response to the first sentence - it'd be exceptionally easy - but she does roll her eyes and shake her head before responding. This is just as much helping as it is gathering her own little bit of information, too.]

Can.
You CAN try to swim back the way you came, but it won't do anything. You CAN probably beg the spirits of this world to send you back, or fight them, but it won't do anything.
Other than get you hurt, I'd bet.
And no one wants that.

[Is that sarcasm or a genuine comment? It's anybody's guess.]

Other thing to know, from what I was told by the locals here:
Blood types are important, and yours changes the second you come into this world.
No more A, B, or O blood types. I think it's now warm, pale, dark, and...vile??? Each one can do different things, but I don't know the full specifics of each type yet. I'm still trying to get as much info as I can, too.
There's supposed a library or something that might have more details on everything, too. I think.

[really should let those kinds of comments out. pretending not to be human like the rest of the scum is one thing that makes you heroes sickening. but the comment goes unsaid, so the equally snarked response remains unmade. dabi's also aware he's giving out information as well, so don't expect him to be so truthful. or the believe everything said.]

ain't stupid enough to drown myself. what about these spirits? interactive or are they simply "things that be" we gotta listen to?

[there's a lot of people who want him hurt, so that pithy ignorant statement gets a roll of his eyes on his side. how naive. saying stuff like that for attempted comfort is nothing more than showing ignorance to the reality. kids these days...]

apparently ya not supposed to bleed, but i dunno if that's truth or some coward's advice who's too scared to fight. said it'll corrupt things and make it all worse.

[silently notes the library.]

[Being "human" is finite term, and perceived differently by different people. Dabi's is definitely vastly different from Ochako's, and while she'd love to dig into him, now's not the time nor place. She's well aware, and can maintain a shred of decency when addressing him.

She's answering his questions honestly, without getting too snippy, after all.]

It seems to be a mix, or at least different from each one of the really important ones...
If you got tossed into some weird mansion after rolling a bunch of dice, that was apparently the home of one of them - the Moss King.
There was also another one...at the festival that was around when I first got here. That one was CREEPY. I'll be honest, I kind of didn't bother trying to find out anything about it.

I heard about that, too. And I don't think it's just a general piece of advice.
The locals here have been really forthright about a lot of super weird things that'd sound crazy anywhere else. And in my experience, you should listen to what the locals tell you - they know more than what we think we do, and have way more experience with it.

[Considering Ochako came from a different world herself and all. This isn't her first rodeo in world-hopping, and though Nippon was way better than this creepy, crazy place, a lot of things sort of remained the same overall. Magic, strange creatures, spirits of all shapes and sizes...]

Anyway...about the corruption.
It supposedly takes a hold of someone and turns them into a monster if it gets too bad. I think they call it Beasthood?
Also makes plants unable to grow and food to rot or something. It effects almost everything, it sounds like.

[nothing's gonna change until they strip the heroes of their definition of "human" and ram the reality of what their society really does to people who can't reach those self-proclaimed and talent-guarded ranks of "heroes" down their throats. they can have that argument (or fight) about such things later. for now, he's tolerating her for the sake of information.]

wasn't a mansion, just some weird place that tried droppin rocks on ya from above. i drew a card, looked more like a tarot card than one of the normal ones. maybe that's what did it.

[since she said something about dice booting people off to the Moss King mansion.]

too bad ya got scared outta learnin something useful.

[what'd she expect, a compliment for running away from something "creepy"?]

guess i'll go shake down a few locals then, if they got all the information.

[better than getting in too thick with a hero. he notes the comments about corruption. fits in line with what shouto was saying.]

and if we try and kill the monster, it's gonna bleed and make more? sounds like a fun quirk.

[last part's sarcastic.]

[Quite the same on her end. And in all honesty, Ochako knows how crummy these new world can be - she's been to one before - but this one seems...worse. So, so much worse. There's an air about it that just seems unsettling, and from what she has been learning from locals and people who've been here longer, this is just the tip of a much larger clusterfuck.

And despite who he is and what he's done, Ochako still can't not try to help someone. She simply can't. And it's not like he wouldn't find out from someone else, anyway. Dabi's too smart.]

Too bad for the person asking questions. ;P

[...Bullseye. Quirk. A defining term, and Ochako now knows, with absolute certainly, this is the exact same Dabi from home. She'll shoot a text to Bakugou later, to let him know.]

Seems like it, though I heard something about, uh...rituals and ministers and stuff. This place has a lot to do with magic, so it's possible that might undo the effects.
Don't know for sure though...
Might need to keep a journal...

[unsettling is an air he's used to. dark and deplorable. not the kind of place a shiny hero would know anything about, much less feel comfortable being within. welcome to the other side of the street, bitch. he's seen this kind of shit for much of his life. looks like these kids are gonna have to start learning that life's not always shining school days and heroes winning.

at least he can only hope that's the case. she's free to try, but he doesn't need her "help" in any reach beyond what he can use. that said, since she's offering some of it, he'll take what he can. call it a temporary compromise.]

can't learn more if ya don't.

[who else does she think is going to go around with that kind of name? relax, kid. he's already met the exploding guy. they know each other is here. don't be an overprotective double down gossip.]

magic? great. just what we were missin. haven't heard shit about "rituals" or "ministers" but it ain't surprisin in a place like this.
go for it. least people'll know ya existed at some point if they find it.

[That's...so far from the truth. The dark and deplorable are what Heroes throw themselves into day in and day out, because no one else wants to. No one else feels responsible enough to. The "shiny" picture painted by society is built off the work that those Heroes do at the sake of a corrupt and twisted government, but also for the sake of innocent people who still has the blinds pulled over their eyes. Everyone exists within the dark and deplorable - that is simply life itself.

She has been on this street for a long time.]

This place definitely does feel like it would have it, just by looks alone. I've dealt with a little already, in another place that's like this, but it was still different.
If a field journal hasn't been done already, I'll maybe start one. Couldn't hurt to have, if your don't find what you need at that library, Mr. Dabi.
Just be careful out there, while you're looking.

[And that, she actually does mean sincerely. If this place is as bad as it seems to be, there's going to be moments where they may need to rely on one another, and she's not necessarily against it. It won't change anything, but Ochako doesn't want anyone to really die here.]

[ooc: i saw that... one of them's probably a real sweet guy with all his skin too. *gag him*]

[please, that's like saying someone can walk into a warehouse and all of a sudden know what the gangsters inside are going through. heroes only deign to descend from their lawful podiums to throw down with the riffraff because they'd have nothing better to do but fight amongst themselves for top spot if the villains didn't give them something else to focus on. if the heroes know how corrupt and twisted their government is, and do nothing to change that, then they're just as guilty, if not moreso, than the people they say they follow. who's worse? the mugger or the one who walks past the victim and pretends it's all good. just 'the way it is', huh. status quo is fine so long as it doesn't directly affect you heroes. it's why y'all get so freaked out and angry when someone comes along and tries to change things. don't wanna lose those comfortable spots.

for all dabi cares, she knows absolutely nothing of what the villains go through. toga's told him about their encounters. as well as uraraka's stance. pretty merciless.]

ya one of those who also went to another place? damn, how many people from our world've poppin off to other dimensions? this another government cover up?

i'll keep that in mind. wouldn't wanna be passin out useful information to just anyone.

[did she just... '-san' him? wow, he's not sure if he's amused or just feels gross.

he'll make his own allies in this place, and use who he has to in order to ensure his survival. at least until he figures out how to navigate this horror show.]

[There are ways to do things - right and wrong, depending on the one asking - and it's never easy. The government sure loves to hide things, to make their society look like a sparkling, clean beacon that holds no wrongs, and the "threats" will be nullified by the Heroes that protect them. Dabi's not wrong, there are fact to his words that some Heroes reap the benefits of their power and status, but not all of them. There are those that do good for the sake of others because it's simply what should be done. There are those who question the status quo, too. Or attempt to challenge it. Hero and Villain alike, the world revolves endlessly as things change, slowly but steadily.

Ochako herself is not yet at the point where she questions everything, the reality of what her definition of a Hero is hasn't been questioned, and she hasn't yet had the chance to reflect on events that have not happened in her timeline. But there's at least a push now, to think about what sort of person she wants to be. Not Hero, but person.]

Yeah, been in another place for a while.
And I doubt it... Same thing here as it was in the world before:
Time sort of STOPS the second you leave your world. I dunno how to explain it, but so far it's been two-for-two. A local told me the same thing.

[Why hide it? Ochako got another question answered just then - he knows who he's talking to. So she'll roll with it. It also means Dabi's probably met with Bakugou, too.]

Mmhm...
If that's the case, you might wanna be more private about it.
Most cases these things broadcast what you say to pretty much everyone with a similar device. At least that's how it was in Nippon, but technology there was kinda crummy.

[of course it's easy. just have to get rid of those limitations called rules and morals and go with pure selfish will. rip the hidden things out and throw them into the light. expose the liars for who they are. tear off the sparkling glasses people love looking through. ruin what was considered "good" and swing the masses. look what he did to this society with nothing more than a fucking twenty minute videotape! people are gullible and emotional. if you want change, make them hate the status quo and change follows quickly. it's too bad it takes this long for the heroes to finally start to get their heads out of their asses and look around at the reality they created. but it sure is fun to watch everything they worked so hard to build come crashing down.

dabi could care less what kind of "person" she wants to be. so long as she isn't going to become an "interruption" or blockade to him, then she can do what she likes. for now, however, none of that's on the table and he's content to simply kick around a few words and see what kind of "hero" he's dealing with here. figuring someone out gives him more advantage.]

time stops, huh. so when ya go back home, you'll still be bleeding out? that's good to know. [this is called being a grade a+ bastard.] was worried ya might've been saved.

[he's given her two truths by now, so why not throw in some falsehoods and see how she gets along thinking she's got a hand on him. it's not like she's made a huge effort to conceal her identity either. even if only someone from her world would know from that clue.]

ya know how to make this shit private then?

[the hell? he doesn't want everything he says into this rock broadcast to every bastard out there.]

[One video that Ochako's not yet privy to. She is still far behind the times, living in a time where things haven't yet been shaken to their core, and the ugly truth about many things still hidden in the shadows. Soon, maybe, if fate deems fit, but one thing is for sure - no matter what time brings, Ochako's sworn to save, as many as she can. Regardless of who they may be. Even this jerkoff...she'd still attempt to save his life if he were in any real danger. Even if he didn't want it, even if he didn't ask, even if he'd hate her more...she'd still make the attempt.

She's not about to stomp on his parade from the gate, but she's most certainly going to be watching for him from now on...and making others aware to be on their guard, just in case. Honestly, Ochako knows there's people here that could probably snap him in half with little effort, who're stronger than All Might himself and then some. She's simply been in the world prior long enough to know that people come from all over, and the limits of their strength goes beyond even her wildest dreams. Dabi is going to get in over his head is he tries to make waves in a bad way...and what would even be the point? There's no Heroes here, after all. Not a one, other than those from their world. Everyone's just trying to survive.]

Oh please...
I may have been in that world for a while, Dabi-san, but I still remember what I was doing.

[Don't mistake her for your Fearless Leader™ after he folded like a paper bag when Snipe shot him a few times after the USJ.]

Nope! ;D
Maybe you'll get lucky and figure it out yourself. You're pretty smart, aren't you?

[Two can play the troll game.]

[typical hero. perhaps in some circumstances, he might accept aid, if only to take advantage of her naive intents to help himself out. what always amuses him is that a hero would rather save than kill. so how exactly would she feel if she saved his life, and the next day, learned he'd burned a bunch of cops to a pile of ash? damn, he'd love to see the look on her face if such a thing happened. wouldn't that make her indirectly responsible for the deaths of everyone he kills after she spares him? too bad, little girl; if only ya hadn't been such a hero...

psh, like he's gonna let any of these kids "keep an eye" on him. unlike them who love the light, dabi's grown to live in the shadows. doesn't want to be seen, he won't be. simple as that. already met up with the little puppet and that explosive brat, and both of them had similar throw away thoughts of keeping him on their radar. wow, invasion of privacy much? ah, he knows they'll be looking for him, wondering. he'll use that too. (as for getting in over his head... yeah, probably. he already had a brief encounter of something like that.) good thing for her--and him--that dabi's only suicidal in the selfish way. his life's too important to him to be squandered on someone or something he doesn't want.

anyways, her comment about "that world" piques his interest.]

and what was that? i heard people come from different times here.

[thanks for the crash course on that topic, fearless leader™. sounds ridiculous, but it's the only explanation. outside of death or some really crazy drugs. (wow. look, bitch, not everyone's got access to ready-made meals in a cozy dormitory. don't be so arrogant and elitist about your health.) this is going to be fun...]

nothin "lucky" about learnin how to operate this rock.

[your trolling skills need work...]

[Bold of Dabi to assume he'd ever see the sun again. She'd save his life in dire situations, yes, but that doesn't mean she'd just let him go after - absolutely not. He has committed crimes he must pay for, but it's not on her to be the judge or the executioner, that's not what she does. Maybe the time will come where Ochako needs to make a decision that will question what she deems right and wrong, that will test her moral code, but she's still young and...yes. Naïve. But that's just an opportunity for growth, in a way.

Ochako taps her foot, leaning back where she was sitting and chewing on her response. He right, time is weird in these cases, with how these worlds work, and she's not some temporal scientist of anything, she doesn't know how this shit works one hundred percent, just can detail the little she does know.]

Yeah, it does.
YOUR timeline stops.
It's weird how it works, and believe me, I'm no expert on time travel and quantum physics, but...whatever timeline YOU have going stops the second you enter into a different world. For the most case, anyway.
But someone else could be farther in THEIR timeline than you. Or way back in what would be considered YOUR past.

[Time is a weird soup. Ochako stopped trying to make sense of it all, really, and just focused on the important things like trying to get back home.]

Should I leave you to it, then? Since I can't offer anything useful to help and all...

[Not a lie, Ochako doesn't know hoe to operate this rock yet herself, but she's also going to be a brat about it. Dabi's instigating, and she's not going to just roll over and the the "good girl" card, pffft.]

[he's very much aware that he's not got any positive future ahead of him should a hero manage to capture him. and rather than suffer the horrors of those prisons (ignoring they fact they'd be broken into now), dabi has ever intention of burning himself to death instead. with luck, he'll take his would-be "captors" with him, and hopefully his targets. but that's not something he's thinking will happen here. (cute, if this girl thinks she stands a chance at taking him in.) how about a fun little deal, huh? he'll pay for his crimes once the heroes pay for theirs. simple as that, right?

he's less asking about her ability to explain timeline shenanigans and was more asking about what activity she last remembered doing in her time, but that seems to have slipped over her head. ask a simple question, get some complex essay back. he clicks his tongue in irritation at the text scrawling, but reads it anyways. information's information.]

so nothin i do here matters back home, is what you're saying. if i get out, i'll return at the same time i left. and other people are from different points in their own timeline...

[not too hard a concept to grasp, even for someone like him who didn't have the luxury of reading comic books when he was younger. interesting either way. dabi's similar to her in that regard; not focusing too much on the details of this and instead deciding to keep his focus on getting back home. he's got someone he wants to ruin and kill back there...]

i ain't gonna play a game of "figure it out" with ya. but if ya find out any information on how to get back home, i'm all ears.

[hell if he's gonna turn down that potential aid. might even volunteer some of his own if he finds any. for a trade or price.]

wait. what's the last thing ya remember from your time?

[Thing is, Dabi isn't a villain in this world, nor is she a Hero. They rarely exist in places like this. Ochako has the firsthand experience to know that - people who were criminals in their world are simply strangers in the new, refugees that were taken by whatever power governs at present. Laws, rules, everything is different, and Ochako technically can enforce what she feels is right, but there's no saying that she wouldn't be in the wrong here... So, all she can do is watch and wait, then react.

It'd be best if they all just left the other be, but that's a pipe dream she won't amuse much.]

From what I've been told, and what I've experienced, yeah. That's exactly it.
As for getting back...
It'll depend on the world, I'm pretty sure. And how we got here/the reason why. But if anything comes up, I'll try to remember to let you know.
I'd like to ask the same for you though, Dabi-san.

[She's not some double agent. This is just for everyone's benefit. If he stayed or if he left, there'd be no difference. Better to just go with the flow and let what happens happen in their world.

A pause then, after getting the last question. Ochako knows he's fishing, she's not stupid, and wonders idly if he's before or after her point in time. She could be vague...give him a date and event, let him piece together the rest. Or not.]

It's around the new year...winter break.
I was doing my work study with a few friends and a Pro Hero.

[that's not the easiest mindset to accept just because it's reality. same as uraraka didn't immediately let go of her own ideals as a hero or thinking she was one or acting like one. somewhere in the back of his mind, the obviously notion is there, realizing that no one--outside of a handful of people from his world--know he's a wanted criminal and despicable villain back home. of course, interrogating and threatening at least three people, watching others die in that candy game without bothering to help, and burning down an entire tent in the fair, to say nothing of stealing (back) his own things, probably tosses dabi right back towards the villainous way of life already, but moot point since she doesn't know. maybe later, he'll grasp the realization he doesn't "have" to be a villain here. but at the same time... hard to deny it's easier to live without rules.

hell if he thinks he'll be able to move through this world without running into the kids at some point.]

so we gotta find out how and why...

[time to go looking for who's sitting in the highest seats of power in this place. power and control comes with information to. as for the request that he share any new knowledge with her... psh, scoffing at that one.]

prove it's to my advantage and i will.

[at least he'll give her that. if it comes down to it and he has to work with them to survive or get back home, then he will, however curtly or reluctantly. this place, anyone here, none of it's worth his life, because that's reserved for endeavor. he's too selfish with his own survival for something like that. besides, wouldn't be the first time he's made use of heroes.

at least she gives him an answer about her timeline placement. vague and dabi's has zero idea what sort of things those kids were doing during their winter break. but after a solid chunk of seconds wracking his brain, he does recall her face beside the dragon lady on tv after dealing with a trigger drug bust. least that gives him a time setting.]

so ya don't know about that yet. too bad.

[Fair enough, Ochako's still got her own set of morals, and still acts very much like a "hero type" - has even been called it on several occasions - in this world as well. It's a hard habit to break, considering her teaching, and the need this world seems to have for people willing to do good and protect others. If there's monsters the like brazenly prowling around, and people can turn into them, then...there's definitely something she ought to do. This world, unlike Nippon, is in dire need of Heroes. It gives her back her purpose, if anything, even it'll never be the same.]

If it's the same as the place I was in before this, then yeah.
Time was screwed up there, way worse than what I told you about, but this place seems more complicated than that.
I wouldn't doubt those Pthumerians or whatever have something to do with it.

[Ochako rolls her eyes, but that response is to be expected. Not like the thought of being "chummy" with someone like Dabi doesn't leave a bitter taste in her mouth, but she'd like to believe they could at least do this much. Share information. Just to keep the other alive long enough to return home. It seems simple to her, but...eh.]

I'll do my best. ♥

[And oh, here's the bait. Ochako frowns at her screen but leans heavily onto one arm and holds her cheek in one hand. He's either trying to be a jerkoff or really is farther in the timeline than she is. Grumbling something, she responds curtly.]

Whatever THAT is, it'll happen in my time one way or another, so I don't care either way. Not until it happens back home.
And I'm not interested in knowing the future.

Anything else?

[that's what he thought. he has is own thoughts on how this world is shaping up. from the monsters to the corruption, the idea wandering through his mind is to look out for himself. prioritize his own life and goals and make use of people and things he can take advantage of to see that happen. of course he wants to know more about this place, see what else there is to see. the only good thing, "good" thing, is dabi's not one of those villains who wants to take over and rule the place. nah, he's too focused for that kind of crap. burn the world down? bring it to ruin? sure, that's fun. but he did that all to destroy his father.

and that's the problem: dad's not here.

so now what the fuck does he do?]

pthumerians? that somethin i'll learn about readin this book i got in my pack?

[he didn't get all chatty with those people in white around the carnival. way too distrusting for that, and he wanted all of his shit back that got stolen. first things first. now he's kind of thinking something else...]

or should i go grill one of those welcomers? the ones in white. heard they know a lot.

[yeah no, he'll leave you heroes to get all cozy with yourselves. sharing information is going to be a case-by-case basis with dabi. if it's to his advantage, then yeah, he'll likely toss in his proverbial two cents. if not, they can do without.]

not really good with lyin, ain't ya?

[let her believe and say what she wants. he'll call her out as he likes. even if it's not true. sometimes shoving a lie along or assuming incorrectly ends up digging out the truth later on because people get pissed or frustrated. it'll be interesting, but he won't pursue it right now. good to know she's adverse to learning about her future. he'll make use of it later. ("can't say; future shit" - disclaimer.) he's a prick.]

nah, got no more use for you, kid.

[and easily hangs up.]

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February 2022 Test Drive Meme

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