![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Entry tags:
April | Test Drive Meme
Jikan Test Drive MemeMinimize
You've seen this before. The thought strikes suddenly, during whatever it is you were doing. Having an important conversation? Running away from home? Dying in the midst of a fierce battle? Where ever you are, one things is true: you're certain this isn't the first time you've lived through this. But upon realizing this, that's when it happens. Like someone hitting rewind on the VCR, you're back where you were ten minutes ago. And it happens again. And again. And again--Until finally, something is different. A door stands in front of you. Will you go through it? Nothing else seems to be working, so this might be your only chance.
Upon opening the door and heading inside, a strange feeling overwhelms you. It's comforting and warm, like being enveloped in a soft, heavy blanket. You hear a voice murmuring in your ear, but it's unintelligible.
And in the next moment, you've appeared in a laboratory, surrounded by the unfamiliar yet worried faces of people in lab coats, speaking in a foreign language that doesn't sound so foreign to you anymore.
Nanjikan Research Laboratory
There isn't much time to process what's happening before characters are ushered out of the arrival room. They're passed between a medical and a psychiatric team, checking them for injuries and psychological trauma. Their every need is met: food is offered, injuries are tended to, and questions are answered. "You're in the Eastern Kingdom of Nippon on a planet called Gaia," they explain. "You were brought here because you became aware of the timeloop... we'll explain everything."
Orientation Nanjikan Research Lab, Tokyo
Everyone is brought to a large auditorium, where dozens of other people looking similarly out of place are seated around them. The scientists and doctors from before file on stage, thoroughly explaining the situation. What they experienced back home was a timeloop. While the loops in their home worlds are smaller and likely to resolve on their own, the fact that such a small amount of time is being repeated is what makes them so dangerous for those who become aware of it. And they've been working around the clock in collaboration with the neighboring Western Kingdom, checking adjacent universes for others who've become aware. While the technical explanations may go over the heads of most, that's not the reason they were all brought together like this.
And they continue to explain: their own world was trapped in a year long loop for decades, if not longer. Through the use of an ancient form of bonding magic, they bound their world to the present flow of time, allowing it to progress past the timeloop. Or at least, that's how they thought it worked. In truth, Kizuna is very powerful reality-warping magic. And thanks to the powerful bond all refugees now share with the country of Nippon, the magic surrounding them will only continue to evolve.
Until they find the means of resuming the flow of time back in your home world, the refugees will just have to make due with this one. But not to worry, because Nippon is fully committed to taking care of everyone!
A Place to Call Home Tokyo, Kanto
Once orientation is over, characters will be allowed to choose housing in both Kyoto and Tokyo, enabling them the means of easily living between both Kingdoms if they please. These housing options will be fully paid for by the government of Nippon, with the NRL and MRU providing a stipend for food expenses in Tokyo and Kyoto respectively.
In lieu of providing transportation, all refugees will be granted an unlimited rail pass that they can use to travel all across Nippon! Thankfully, express routes connecting Tokyo and Kyoto will be running at all times of day, allowing refugees to freely travel between the Eastern and Western Kingdoms as they please. While this TDM and its prompts are focused on the Eastern Kingdom, you are welcome to have your character arrive in the Western Kingdom instead.
For those bound for Nihonbashi, be careful not to board the train too late at night. Because on Friday nights, the Loop Line's final train of the night is a party train! Every train car is set up with its own theme and decor, with this week featuring the return of the ever popular sexy maid cafe in the rear of the car! Dress up in a surprisingly demure maid outfit (this is 1921) and take customer orders, or have a seat and peruse the menu. Aside from a small bar, there's no actual food service or exchange of currency going on here, so it's all in good fun! The train will loop endlessly past the same station until sunrise, so hopefully they weren't planning on an early night's sleep.
In Little Edo, a Great Nippon Salamander has been spotted wandering the streets in search of clean water. While this may not seem like a big deal, these creatures range in size from that of a large dog to that of a large house. To subdue the creature, the local hunting clan, the Hanzaki, are searching for volunteers to help coax the salamander back out into the swamplands of the Tokyo Outskirts. While the safest method is to lead it using a hose or another source of water, those looking to get the job done quickly may instead choose to fight the creature, causing it to flee in whichever direction they point it in. Careful, they move faster than you think!
Over in Yoshiwara, the Tokyo branch of the refugee-owned nightclub, Club Hexxx, has finally opened its doors! Enjoy a dark and spooky atmosphere while listening to the latest jazz hits. And best of all, refugees will be offered a free glass of Club Hexxx's signature drink: Kinklist, a coffee-flavored drink that turns white after one sip, and causing the drinker's deepest sexual desire to appear written on their cheek in black ink. The text will remain until they finish the rest of the drink.
NRL Time Refugee Support Network
Once they've received their housing assignment, all refugees will be given small handheld devices called magi-tech communicators, or magi-comms for short. They're heavier than a conventional smartphone would be, but far sturdier, and powered by the ambient magic that flows through the city. Now available with limited sepia-tone color, and video cameras! They don't need to be charged, but they won't work outside of cities at all. Upon booting it up, they'll find a message linking them to a special channel for refugees.
#nrl_time_refugee_support - online
Use the following code for your top-level if you'd like! This is how network communication will look for characters in the game until more advanced magi-tech comms become available for characters.
Springtime Flowers
With the changing of the seasons, the cherry blossoms have finally bloomed, painting the landscape with dashes of pink and white on nearly every corner. Not even the busy citizens of Tokyo can resist stopping to smell the flowers, or even enjoying picnics underneath them!
And those looking for the best place to view the flowers need look no further than Little Edo, a suburb in south Tokyo that borders the vast wetlands that separate Tokyo from Yokohama. And between the lush parks, interesting shrines, and mysterious ruins, there's no shortage of things for those settling in to explore!
A Very Special Festival Kanayama Shrine, Tokyo Outskirts
While most residents are celebrating the spring season under the cherry blossoms, a different sort of celebration is taking place at the Kanayama Shrine, located just south of Tokyo on a tall, narrow hilltop that juts out of the flooded landscape. Once more, it's time for the annual Kanamara Matsuri, and all refugees will find themselves invited to the little island to see the festivities. And what sort of festival is it, you may ask?
Why, it's the Festival of the Steel Phallus! According to legend, there was once a plague of a type of ayakashi that was known to live in the genitals of humans, whose vicious bite caused the birthrate of a certain city to drop down to zero. To combat this, an afflicted young woman asked a blacksmith to forge a steel phallus in order to break the ayakashi's teeth, freeing her of the curse. It's said the original phallus remains enshrined in the innermost chambers-- and in honor of this most venerated dildo, a festival is held every spring to celebrate sexuality and fertility, all leading up to a procession in which a giant steel phallus is paraded around the island.
(And no, I didn't make this one up.)
Refugees visiting the shrine will find no shortage of phallic-shaped foods and merchandise. Outside of the wide array of oddly shaped dildos to choose from, in terms of food, there are stalls selling lollipops, popsicles, sausages, grilled squid, octopus balls, cream-filled dick waffles-- but there's more at work here than a simple theme. Those who choose the popsicles will find themselves with a temporary oral fixation, causing an urge to have something between their lips at all times. Now, is this a naughty trick, or merely a marketing ploy to sell more popsicles? It's hard to say.
But the real treat is inside the shrine itself, where a single dildo stands tall among gilded offerings and flowers. The inner chamber is only ever put on display once a year, and for good reason. Anyone whose eyes fall upon the majestic phallus will become overwhelmed with a desire to fill or be filled - which might just be why viewings are done in groups of two or more, with the outer doors of the shrine closed behind them for privacy. There's a nice pile of pillows and no shortage of lubricating oils available, so why not get into the spirit of the season with a friend or two?
Flowers of Evil Little Edo, Tokyo
Festivals aside, many people are coming out to Little Edo to enjoy the array of cherry blossom trees for Hanami, or flower watching parties. Of these, the refugees will find themselves invited to a special gathering, taking place under the shade of a massive cherry blossom tree that was planted in their honor the year before. And yet despite it's young age, it's the largest tree around, continually growing since the initial growth spurt when it was planted. Although most understand that it was likely Kizuna that caused its sudden growth, locals have begun treating it as something sacred, leaving offerings and making prayers beneath its branches.
And should the refugees decide to take part as well, they may be surprised to find that whatever they wish for comes true. These wishes are rather limited, and some may only exist for a few minutes. But for those wishing to meet someone from home, the may be surprised to find that the person in question will appear beside them in Nippon... (See notes below for details!)
But while everyone else is enjoying the cherry blossoms, a certain park in Little Edo is drawing crowds for a different reason. After last year's outbreak of jubokko ayakashi, the cherry blossom trees in this area were permanently stained by the jubokko's red pollen, causing the pink petals to develop distinct red veins.
However, unlike the jubokko's pollen, these petals carry a very different effect. Anyone who stands under the shade of these trees will feel an irresistible urge to confess something. This can be something minor, like a strange food combination they are particularly fond of, or something major, such as the name of the last person they had sex with. This urge will linger even after leaving the flowers, until they've either confessed enough to appease the tree, or until the trees go bare when the blossoms fall.
Underwater Mysteries Tokyo Outskirts, Kanto
Those who are familiar with some version of Nippon may find the changed landscape to be rather confusing. Due to a massive time surge many decades ago, the entire region of Kanto was flooded, leaving many cities underwater or transformed into swamplands. As nature took over, the flooded region surrounding Tokyo came to be known the Tokyo Outskirts.
Ordinarily, exploring this area can be rather dangerous, given both the presence of dangerous Ayakashi and the unstable landscape that's peppered with the ruins of drowned cities. But this week, those looking for a little adventure can take part in special boat tours exploring the ruins and viewing the cherry trees from a unique vantage point.
Up to four people can fit in a single steamboat, which is preprogrammed to follow a path that will take passengers past the top of a large hill that's almost completely covered in cherry blossom trees, with the ruins of a few old buildings just barely visible beneath the overgrowth. But beauty aside, the real marvel is within the water itself, which is clear enough that one can look down and see roads, trees, and even entire buildings still mostly intact beneath the surface. You'd think the water just appeared one day, given that nothing seems to have been destroyed when the flood occurred.
But not every trip will go as smoothly as planned. Hidden beneath the pink petals that pepper the surface of the water, unlucky refugees may spot the long, long body of an Ikuchi, the sea serpent ayakashi. Thought to be the longest Ayakashi to exist in Nippon, these thick, snake-like creatures may take entire minutes just to pass under a boat. Spotting the body is simply distressing, and thankfully not of much concern. But should someone make eye contact with the third eye on top of its head, the Ikuchi will climb over the side of the boat and coil around it, attempting to drag it beneath the surface. And for the one who initially made eye contact, they'll find themselves affixed with a curse that temporarily makes it impossible to float in the water.
Thankfully, this ayakashi isn't interested in attacking those who fall overboard, and there's plenty of spots where the water is far more shallow. But those who fall in will have to wait until another tour comes by to ferry them back to shore.
OOC Notes
Welcome to Jikan's April TDM! The TDM is considered game canon, and also serves as the intro log! That said, whether you choose to carry threads over to the game or not is up to you!
• For this month only, please include in your top-level if you are a new player without an invite! Those seeking an invite can do so here!!
• CRAU characters may start regaining their CRAU memories one month after the TDM. However, vague feelings of familiarity are allowed between previous game CR! For more on this, please read the FAQ!
• You do not need to sign-up for housing! Choose whichever style you prefer. Roommates can be chosen by the characters or can be random. If you want to switch housing later, your character has the option of moving at the beginning of each month.
• Despite everything, Kanamaru Matsuri is considered an all-ages event!
• Wishes can be anything, from food items to items from home. All characters in the game will be allowed to redeem one item, magical or otherwise, from home using this prompt! However, for new character apping into the game, you have the option to have your character join the game by being wished into the setting. The wish can be anything from a direct plea to see a certain castmate again, or even just a wish for more friends that goes awry. These characters will still remember a time loop, but will not remember seeing a door, instead appearing in Tokyo after hearing the wishing-character's voice call to them. These characters will then be encouraged to visit the NRL for orientation, and will be offered an explanation that Kizuna saved them from the timeloop directly.
• While characters may attempt to fight the Ikuchi, it will not fight back, and cutting its body will cause it to grow another head and become another separate Ikuchi. This new head is also capable of cursing people, so it's probably best to leave it alone.
Please leave any questions about the TDM prompts in the thread below! General game questions can be directed to the FAQ!
Apps are always open!
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
jikan_rpg ⌛ jikan_network ⌛ jikan_oocRules ⌛ FAQ ⌛ Apply ⌛ Taken
Auxiliary ⌛ Hiatus/Drop ⌛ Activity Check ⌛ Bonus
Game Timeline ⌛ Code Directory ⌛ Contact
Setting ⌛ Housing ⌛ Businesses ⌛ Kizuna ⌛ Flora/Fauna ⌛ Magic
NPC Database ⌛ NPC Contact
no subject
it makes something is jasper's chest ache.]
Pleasure to meet you Daeshim. You will have to help me make said cupcakes. [ a pause before:] Wait, do you think they have egg white substitute here? Strawberries on pavlova sound really good about now...
[ maybe because daeshim said they were sweet. or maybe because the blossoms make him think of something pretty and dainty. ]
no subject
[it's a start, something that is both familiar to daeshim and also a way to prove himself to jasper. he can be a good kitchen helper. he won't eat too many of the berries or get distracted by looking at his reflection in a silver shiny spoon.
much.
but it's what jasper says after that really makes the fae's eyes sparkle. he leans forward, voice almost a whisper.]
What's 'pavlova'?
[could it be
could it be that this jasper is a better baker than the one he knew?]
no subject
Ah, did your me never make it? It is... tedious I guess.
[ no judgement, it is one of those desserts that took time and effort and some kind of weather witchcraft most of the time.]
It's a type of meringue. Which is basically whipped egg whites and sugar that are baked in little next shapes before you fill them with berries. Or anything else really, I don't think there is a limit on what you put in pavlova, but I lean towards fresh berries and cream, which is what made me think of it...
no subject
I would very much like to try it. There's lots of nice teas here, I bet it would go well with.
[he's suddenly on his very best behavior, which is almost as rare as the faint smile that touches his lips, and a color as soft as the cherry blossoms on his cheeks.]
Jasper...how can you call lightning to your fingertips?
[another thing that his jasper couldn't do. he would've fried him a dozen times over if he could have, especially in the early days.]
no subject
[ nice teas, that is. jasper hasn't done much in the way of exploring. sure, he has walked around, asked a few questions, tried to make sense of this place, but-- well he has yet to really figure things out. part of that he feels is that it still doesn't feel real. that there have been so many things piled on top of each other for this to be anything more than a fever dream.
or maybe he failed to get what those priests wanted and he's dead now. either or.
jasper leans back on his hands a little, lets himself start to unfold on the blanket with daeshim beside him, absent noise caught behind his teeth as he tips his head up towards the blossoms.]
How? No idea, just a thing I can do. Always have. [ he reaches up then, arcs of lightning jumping from fingertip to fingertip before curling up his arm and vanishing. he looks at daeshim then, brow raised. ] I couldn't do that? Your Jasper? [ then, quieter:] Not sure how he managed survive then...
no subject
He couldn't. But...he could bake. And imitate birdsong. He could jump and dance. Baein, I remember Baein saying that he could fight when he was in their world.
[his jasper had many talents of his own, and he'd be remiss to not mention them. oh, and there was at least one more thing.]
And he could kiss, slow, stealing your breath until the whole forest spun around us. He was maybe best at that.
no subject
I think being able to fight is a necessity for any me. It's survival.
[ it isn't a lie. he needed to fight to keep bae safe when they were younger. then he needed to fight to get rid of the anger. then he was just good at it, but who would win against the guy with lightening at his fingertips? not that they knew. sometimes jasper almost felt bad about that but not really. the people he fought before he took to theft full time deserved what was coming to them.
he isn't so sure he deserves the way his breath catches in his throat nearly choking him when daeshim mentions the way that this other him kisses though. that-- huh. that's interesting.]
Kiss better than he baked or fought? That-- ah, that is interesting.
[ blushing? he's not blushing. nope. that's reflections from the blossoms on his face. ]
no subject
[there's a hesitance in his voice, a wince like he's not sure he wants to know. he doesn't like it. he doesn't like violence in general. even verbal confrontations would often end with daeshim simply running away. but he also wants to know more about this jasper, why he has lightning and why his hair is pink.]
Not better than he baked! Well!
[huh. he's not sure about that. which did jasper do better, bake or kiss? daeshim gets all squinty-eyed as he thinks about it, like he can squeeze the answer right out of his head.]
But don't worry, I won't hold it against you if you don't!
[another scoot closer before he just puckers his lips up. deadass.]
no subject
[ and jasper doesn't mean to giggle at that face you make, honestly. it just kind of... trickles out. it's weirdly endearing in a way that he has never encountered before.
even if there is a moment or five when daeshim scoots closer and--]
Wait, you want-- do you want me to kiss you?
[ yes he is asking. he needs clarification thank you.]
no subject
The magic here...it requires certain things. Bonds.
[in the end, it's probably not unlike his own magic, just on a bigger scale. the ruinwood was true to its name for a long time before baein and jasper came there - ruined woods. but with them, it sprouted and bloomed and came alive again.
but. he can't honestly say that that was his reason.]
I like kissing. I liked kissing the Jasper that I knew. You're not him, you're not. [daeshim understands this, even if it might be hard to tell sometimes.] But your lips look soft and pretty. I liked it when they said my name. And I think I would like kissing you too.
no subject
instead he gets a reason he didn't quite expect and a warm feeling in his gut with how honest the words are. 'i liked it when they said my name'. why is that endearing? why is that making his ears feel warm.
there are a few sparks that seems to jump unconsciously along jasper's hands as he sits there and processes a little. ] You know I'm not your Jasper but you still... want to kiss me? Because I remind you of him?
[ that doesn't bother him, actually. not that he thought it would. but he also likes that daeshim at least acknowledges he isn't the same person. it makes him lean in a little, a teasing grin on his face.] Yeah, what if you like kissing me better? Then what?
no subject
You also remind me of you.
[though what jasper said isn't technically wrong either. there are undoubtedly things that are at the core of him, traits that go beyond his ability to make strawberry shortcake. his patience and his courage, his humor and his sensuality. daeshim can already see the things that he loved about his jasper shining in the bright eyes of this jasper.
...that is quite the dilemma that he poses though. daeshim had never considered it before, and so now he gives it the consideration that it deserves, and answers him with sincerity.]
Then...we should promise to keep that a secret from him, so that his feelings aren't hurt.
no subject
the seem to brighten a little at daeshim's words.]
You don't even know me, so I'm not sure how that works.
[ not that he refutes it. just... it is a strange thing to say.
the laughter that was hiding at the corner of his lips, the sparks, fade a little as he tips his head and speaks quietly.] Keeping secrets from people you love is never a good idea, even if feelings might get hurt. Besides, if it is a version of me who is to say he will not just try harder? I can almost bet that's what I would do.
[ there, the spark is back.] Perhaps I would even kiss myself to figure it out.
no subject
and when he says that, about jasper trying harder, daeshim knows that that's true too.
it makes the fae smile, distant but fond, until the words that follow make him blink quickly and maybe...maybe turn the color of this jasper's hair. ah. jasper...kissing jasper?]
Is that...I believe it's called masturbation, isn't it?
no subject
well daeshim isn't wrong persay, but it's also different. he thinks. maybe. he has never met another version of himself honestly, and there are times when he is sure that he would really only be annoyed by himself than anything else.
jasper opens and closes his mouth a few times before he makes a thoughtful noise.]
I mean, no. That would be if we got each other off. Not sure what kissing would be, because we are separate people, like you said, your Jasper has no sparks, so that means our pasts are different.
no subject
Then I'm looking forward to our first kiss.
[for the second time. daeshim moves carefully, eyes occasionally glancing at jasper's sparking fingers as he moves to settle himself over his lap.]
I've never tasted lightning on my tongue before.
no subject
but he can work with this.
jasper's shock lasts only a moment, him blinking with his. mouth parted at daeshim as he settles. maybe his hands move to daeshim's waist without thinking much of it either. spark free, which shows how he really isn't that opposed to it.]
...how about just kissing first, then some electricity play.
[ because he can do that, control the sparks in ways to make it pleasurable. but that will be for another time. right now jasper is just going to close the distance to give daeshim a teasingly shallow kiss.
the fae can probably feel the smile against his own lips.]
no subject
[a deal has been struck, and the best part of it preserved. the other leans in but daeshim waits until the last possible moment to close his eyes. jasper, this jasper, is just as beautiful as the one he knew.
and more of a tease. the shape of his smile is also familiar, but daeshim doesn't remember ever feeling it as part of a kiss. the contact is light, borderline chaste, and daeshim's lips have parted in an invitation that isn't totally accepted. the fae makes a soft sound and tries to lean in for a little more himself.]
no subject
and maybe a little more teasing.
there is a puff of laughter at the noise as daeshim leans in. when his lips connect with jasper's a second time, there is a barely there current that greets him. just static, enough to maybe make his hair pouf. and laughter, amused laughter from jasper until he speaks, lips still brushing against daeshim's.]
Would you like more kisses, is that it?
no subject
[some things come close: cuddling, wading through a stream on a warm summer day, eating an entire loaf of fresh bread (with or without jams and honeys and butters). but there is something special about kissing. an intimacy, though that word escapes him at the moment.]
It's you and Bae who taught me, first by watching and then by taste. [daeshim's voice is strangely subdued. the fae has a natural and tangible energy, something chaotic and just on the verge of being too much. but it's calmed when jasper's lips brush his. his breath catches at the static, but not from fear or pain. it was a pleasant surprise.] We would spend entire days just kissing, you to him and me to you. Some Fae can make a human dance without ceasing. Sometimes...sometimes I wanted that but with kissing.
[he didn't. wouldn't. as nice as the warmth of their lips was, it wasn't all that they meant to him.]