thetube | Test Drive Meme: August 2015

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Welcome to the Underground test drive meme! This is where you can try out the AU version of your character, start some potential CR and get a feel for the world of the game. Choose your character's species, read up on the available factions and you're ready to go. Put your character's name in your subject line when you post, tag out, and have fun!

Note to current players: Activity in this meme counts as game canon! So you can use it for activity check. If you end up playing anything that you can't or don't want to use as game canon, it's fine to ignore it. (In that case you shouldn't submit it for activity check.)

For prospective players: Thinking about bringing a character to the game? Feel free to comment to our Potential CR Planning meme for OOC planning and discussion.

Here are some prompts to inspire you:

1) BABY COME BACK. Is there someone you miss? Maybe you've come to visit for the first time in months. Maybe you'll even stay.

2) FULL MOON. (29th August) Uh oh, it's that time of the month. Werewolves, have you been feeling more aggressive lately? A little short of temper? Better start preparing for your monthly transformation and hope that you don't get interrupted. And then there's the morning after, which feels like a massive hangover. Wait, where are your clothes?

3) CARNIVAL. (30th-31st August) It's the August bank holiday weekend and that can only mean one thing: the Notting Hill Carnival! With the sun high in the sky, enjoy the parade, the music and of course the food. Jerk chicken, anyone?

4) SPECIAL EFFECTS. There's nothing like a touch of subtle magic to add to the occasion. Dress up and show off. Mind you, there could be other supernatural types around who see straight through your tricks.

5) PARTY ALL NIGHT. It's not over when the sun goes down. Get yourself to one of the bars or after-parties and keep on partying. Just don't drink too much. You know it makes it harder to control your powers... and your urges.

6) BRAWL. The police work hard to keep London's gangs away from Carnival. When you have supernatural gangs to contend with, their job gets a whole lot harder. Drunk and disorderly or simply looking for an excuse to cause trouble, encounters between rival factions can soon become hostile. Now are you here to cause a fight or to stop it?

7) NIGHT IN JAIL. Oops. What did you do? And who's that with you?

8) CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE. Anything goes.

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It's been a while since Aradia's visited the Carnival. She used to go every year, but... well. Previous shenanigans, untimely death, etc. The narrative knows the score by now. But she needed a pick-me-up this year, and she had been getting better at the whole manifesting thing lately, so what's the harm?

Turns out the harm was barely dodging a street brawl. Oops.

Most people can't even see her, this she knows, and she can practically feel Will's disapproval over her breaking her word already but- but some poor idiot's in over their head and she doesn't stop to think. Just anchors herself to the nearest streetlight and reaches for something to throw, planning to start a steady barrage of rocks at the nearest thug to hopefully give the Dude an opening to fight back. Or run, if that's more his style.

Something about him looks familiar, though. It's hard to place and it'll bug her all night, but something keeps gnawing at her attention. Whatever, she'll pick at it later when New Dude isn't in danger of becoming a pretty chalk outline on the pavement.

It takes him a second to realise it wasn't a really weak punch from someone else that hit the back of his head. It was a rock, little one at that, followed by another and another and whoa it's raining pebbles. Is bam-bam going to come join in on the fun or?

Whatever. Dave is sure as hell not going to complain that much since he just needs to take a sidestep and have the guys have fun in their bonkkake and have a bit of comeuppance for being a pair of dickweeds that needed to be wedded out by the weediest weeder who ever wedded and that's going to be him now, thanks.

He's not supposed to use his flashstep so much in public but then again Chip and Dale over here aren't supposed to cause a ruckus and try to beat his ass into the ground and they're still trying to. Using the flying rocks as an advantage, he quickly moves around them and borrows someone's glittery parade stick. It'll have to do since he can't haul his shitty sword around and finds it has just as a satisfying THWACK sound to hit when he hits Chip across the back.

Looks like Chip's been skipping leg day with how quick he is to reel into Dale, smashing into each other like a wrecking ball. Look, man, he never meant to start a war, he just wanted to let Nic Cage in. Maybe instead of using force, he should have let them win.

… Nah.

"Thanks," he said aloud as he braces himself with the parade stick in front of him, stance taut and ready for a hoedown. Either someone is helping him out and he can't see them or maybe there is a god out there since there are real life furries running around the town. "Didn't think I'll get help but guess I owe you a solid. An I.O.U from me to you with a dash of a thanks and fist bump if you're up to that sort of thing."

It's lucky the rocks did enough to help. There's not much more she really can do in a fight besides break a few lights, and that gets messy fast - besides, she's trying to cut back on those. Mostly. It's a habit she has to stop, because that gets way too addictive and there's probably a metaphor about that somewhere.

And then time stalls, because Aradia can't tell if the monotone 'thanks' means The Dude realized she was there or not. It's always such a headache trying to figure out who can do what, honestly, so it's faster to bite the bullet and edge into view. If he can see her, it'll become pretty clear soon.

If he can't, then she's going to feel like an idiot. Even chance of both, really.

"You're welcome! I figured evening the odds a little wouldn't hurt," and her voice wavers for a moment, her worry over being seen or not impacting her manifesting but-- no, concentrate. Maybe if she's lucky she can focus hard enough to be seen regardless. Or he'll walk off during the one-sided silence, if she fails. "Since they looked like they were cheating. Being twice your size and all."

Then she winces, because way to go Megido, already insulting someone two steps into a conversation. "I mean. I might need a rain-check on the fist bump. Not so good with anything involving hands these days."

"Wha--" Dave, for a second, stills just as Aradia moves in front of him. For a second, the coolkid facade breaks a bit as his brow furrows and the straight line of his mouth moves enough to be considered a possible maybe frown. Thanks to all the witches, vampires, werewolves, and shit, the activity could be enough to have spirits be seen if someone spots them at the right time in the right space in the right light if the air is decent enough. It almost looks like he could see her but the moment is ruined since a mood killer runs headlong at him faster than a sudden image of Nana Egbert sporting the latest version of Bro's smuppet swimwear and oh christ he really likes making it hard on him.

Dale finds enough breath from Chip's bungled snuggle session to charge like a bull seeing red on a Spaniard during the Pamplona encierro and Dave is the Spainard wearing the bitchingest red during the encierrno so ándale ándale for him please hold the phone as he rolls to the side and sticks his foot out, making the guy trip and fall face first to the pavement.

Eat the aftertaste of knockoff converse sneakers and glitter, bitch. Dave got rid of one of them for now and he looked fabulous in his orange feathered boa/cape thing too. Watch him get on Hot Hillingdon Monthly after this. Dave Strider, tagteamed by two buff beefcakes and gives all he's got and what spunk what determination what oh hey looks like Chip got him in a headlock.

"Whoa dude how about some personal spa--aurgh." Chip tightens his headlock harder in response and Dave is now starting to wear the bitchingest red but it was on his face and it was going to clash with cape how tacky. Oh yeah he was suffocating too under the hands of a giant sweatasaurus. "I could, er, use a miracle mile over here, falling rock skies perouugn-- Easy there, champ! Gotta buy me dinner fuuurgh."

He saw her. Even if it was only for a moment, even if it ended in a maybe-flicker of discomfort and even if it promptly turned into the Running of the Creeps, the fact remains that The Dude actually saw her. It's a novelty that never quite fades, and it doesn't hurt that it gave her a clear view of him, too. The shades give her some clues, but... no dice. Either way; connection established, good deed achieved, time to move on - only then the game changes and oh dear.

Aradia watches in shock as Dave gets lifted into a chokehold, reflexively crying out despite knowing that it's pretty useless, how does yelling even help. Throwing rocks is immediately ruled out - she'd run the risk of hitting him too, and there's no guarantee the jerk would even feel it. Which leaves her with a grand total of not much. Lights? No, wouldn't work, it'd require him being near one when she possessed it--

Wait.

This is probably the worst idea she's had in at least a month. But she sprints forward all the same, forgoing manifesting in favour of throwing herself at-through-into Chip the Thug, and trying to work out how to make her shaky willpower work in her favour in the process. Possessing people can't be too much harder then falling into computers and fountains in theory, all it takes is shoving her sense of self at theirs and hoping that they break before she does. Right?

Eugh. Bodies are gross. This is the worst idea ever. "Drop him!"

"Drop him!"

Dave looks up if the rubberband noodle that he's calling a neck will let him do that, staring at his current choking choker chokey through his sunglasses with a deadpan stare. "Drop what? My balls? Buddy, they've been swinging free like my people a looong time agoooooh fuck."

Rude much? Looks like Chip is the hit it and drop it type of guy and gives Dave more reason than ever to make the guy see more stars than on the parade's dancers. At least he's out of that chokehold, not!gasping for air as he gets back on his feet and is quick to flashstep to keep a healthy distance between them now to survey the battlefield where everyone is a jerk and no one wins except the guys filming this all for Youtube. Awesome.

The asshole looks like he's going to shit enough bricks to make the big bad wolf have some nightmares and he's still going to look pained as fuck. Serves him right: Give a hit, take a shit.

Now Dave as two choices at this point he could either walk away and ahahaha yeah no let's finish this.

"Hi my name is Dave Strider and welcome to Jackass.

Eat your hearts out, Youtubers, as Dave runs at full speed at the dude looking like he's going to pee stale apple juice from his nipples as the orange feathered boy runs, jumps, and gives a hell of a dropkick that's aimed right at the chest. So he falls flat on his back and ass after that.

Worth it to hear the sounds of a man who's going to feel that in the morning and the morning after like the aftertaste of a bad night out in the pub because Dave Strider is the hangover you wish you never had but is teaching you that you're not god. It gives him a minute to catch his breath, debate his life choices, and look around the crowd of gawkers and cheerers to see if he saw what he really saw earlier because no way it could really be--

While Dave's in the process of doing a talented acrobatic pirouette off of Chip's chest, Aradia's busy completely freaking out in the poor bastard's head.

The sensation that comes with possessing a living being is hard to describe to a non-ghost. She can feel everything, down to the individual thumps of his heart and the rough abrasion of his greasy wifebeater shirt on skin, there's no chance to filter it out and it's distracting and awful and she wants it to stop. Feedback bounces between spirit and host in a ever increasing loop, and if poor Chip's not already off his rocker from the Strider-approved beatdown by tomorrow, the migraine Aradia's leaving behind would probably finish the job.

In reality, it only takes a few seconds post-escape for her to be violently ejected, but it feels like an eternity. She doesn't so much hit pavement as get absorbed into it, glitching through the surface layer and. This sucks. She misses the missing chunks of her soul all the more now. "I regret everything."

Hopefully The Dude got away safe in the meantime. She didn't get a chance to check in the confusion. Owch.

Chip and Dale are down for the count and they better be: Chip looks like he's seen some shit after taking a nasty shit and is just refusing to move, looking like a pink buff starfish trying to do photosynthesis or something. Dale is still tasting gravel for breakfast in the coming months, knocked out cold like he was hit by the Stone Cold Stunner itself. It's safe to say that this is won for sure by yours truly with a bit of help.

Go Team Strider and Pebble Rain.

Though someone had the audacity to realise maybe they should stop this before someone got a real weapon on their hands and started calling for security to break up the fight when the fight was over seven minutes ago. Get with the times, grandpa in the nipple tassels.

Realising the jig was up faster than EggMcmuffin loudly proclaiming something dweeby in an attempt to impress him, Dave gets back on his feet and is ready to hide back in the ground when the beat of his head kicks in and the memories snap in place and oh yeah wasn't there someone here but now they're not here all Deception-style?

"--Hey?" He looks around, trying to see the person through the crowd. Still around, mystery chum? Were you real or did the chokehold allow him to see the face of god which happens to be a familiar face he knows in the past or what. "Hey. I'm serious about the fist bump. Least I can do. You didn't leave me hanging so I won't leave you hanging my mysterious saviour-sempai."

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Test Drive Meme: August 2015

BRAWL! \o/ also that username omg

YAY AND I FOUght long and hard for this username, you have no idea

it's a battle well fought tbh it's so beautiful

i like to think it is and these two i love them aaaah

they are the best time player trainwreck this town's ever seen

get #rekted town, watch them cause a pileup in bad life choices intersection

harken now the ancient words of mine ancestors, dave strider: do it for the vine.

yesss and! first time they met, instead of fighting they ended up playing cards. aradia won.