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beautifulmemer2023-05-12 10:31 am
beautifuldreamermods) wrote in beautifulmemer2023-05-12 10:31 am
TDM #2
TDM #2
Welcome to Beautiful Dreamer's test drive meme! If you're unfamiliar with the game, then you can check out the navigation to get yourself up to speed on all the relevant info pages then check out the most recent AU Planning meme to see what juicy ideas your fellow players are cooking up!
As the prompts in the TDM are based on events from the prior in-game month, the overall TDM is not canon to Beautiful Dreamer though players are free to treat individual CR/threads on this post as canon to their characters if both players are happy to do so.
Dreamers on the TDM will have access to all of their starter powers as outlined on the powers page as well as two unique abiliites to play around with as you please.
Some prompts and location details have been provided below for you to play around with but please feel free to go hog wild and have fun!
YUMEMIGAOKA
May comes rolling in full of blustery winds and heavy rain, blowing away the sleepy spring atmosphere with aplomb! While the second half of the month perks up a little and there's more sunshine to be seen, the first half of May is decidedly dreary and wet. Hopefully nobody's plans fall through on account of all this miserable weather...
- ⧖ It's Golden Week! The city is buzzing with excitement as the holiday brings in crowds of tourists and locals alike, all aiming to take advantage of sales and promotions or just enjoy some hard-earned time off. Of course, this unfortunately means the city is a little more jam-packed than usual and maybe it causes just a few traffic and transport delays... but it's better than being stuck in work, right? Why not go out and see what all the fuss is about?
⧖ Yikes, watch that forecast! A massive thunderstorm blows in just over Kihada, plastering the streets with rain and causing a blackout that lasts a good few hours. Some people might be upset, but there's nothing quite like a good storm to make things more fun and exciting... so long as you're viewing them from a distance, anyway. You WERE wise enough to find safe shelter as soon as it started bucketing down, right?
⧖ Moon Bunny Market are organising a stamp rally all around the neighborhood, with prizes on the line if you manage to collect them all. Just find the right stalls and speak to the right people and you could win a tasty prize!
Of course, even with the city being in such a jovial mood that doesn't mean things are all fine and dandy. With midterms and exam results on the horizon and the high-strung anxiety and stress of muddling your way through a major holiday it just makes sense that some of that might seep through to the other side...
THE DREAM SPHERE
The Dream Sphere might be a very different kind of place to Yumemigaoka but that doesn't mean it's any less busy. The weather is miserable over on this side, too – the usually pretty skies have turned bruise purple with low, heavy clouds that are swollen with rain. Thankfully, it seems like more of the places around the Dream Sphere are getting away with just a few light showers but things are still pretty cold and miserable over here. Good thing you've got work to distract you, at least!
As usual, the emotions stirring over in the Waking World have begun funnelling into the Dream Sphere and causing all manner of problems here and there. Torments and Nightmares won't hunt themselves so be sure to properly scout out all the available locations of the Dream Sphere you can access just in case - maybe you'll find a new teammate to work with while you're out there!
In particular, it looks like trouble can be found...
- ⧖ At Fury Peak, things are hotter than hot! There's no rain here but the volcano is steadily leaking a heavy black smog which has turned navigating the place into a real task, even for a fully prepared Dreamer. To make matters worse, a group of particularly aggressive Torments made out of volcano glass and black rock are gathering and ganging up on any Dreamer they see. Torments at Fury Peak are even more foul tempered than usual and they're hitting especially hard today so you better act fast and deal with them ASAP!
⧖ In the Reverie Necropolis, the sky is hidden behind black clouds that hang low and a horrible cold wild blows all through the inside and outside of the place. Once you actually enter the labyrinth, frantic whispers can be heard and the scratching of nails against brick can be heard running up and down the corridor. The vibes are absolutely rancid, is what I'm saying – made even worse by the fact that when you stumble into one of the open caverns, you come across a Nightmare just about to manifest?! Better hope you're not alone, because you'll need some good strong teamwork to keep things from escalating any further!
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And then she tries a half-smile, to show that she was teasing.
"Besides, if I am to be fed a sundae, I would rather it be by a friend than an employee. ...Is that overstepping?"
She has to check, to be sure she isn't one of those problem people herself!
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"Hmmm. Well, I don't mind. So, lets us try this." She reaches for the top of her head, pulling the white maid brim out of her hair, and setting it on the table. "No maid would be seen without this. It is an essential part of the uniform. Without it, I truly cannot be considered a maid, I am merely a girl. So, let us finish your dessert as equals, Jeannette." Is that actually a smile on her face? It actually doesn't fade after a second or two this time. She'd been in a bit of a sour mood earlier, but now she feels a lot better. Its amazing what an actually friendly person can do for a bad mood.
The spoon is picked back up. "Now, open wide. Its starting to melt, and while its still tasty like that, there's a good chance it might end up all over your dress on accident. It would not be appropriate to mess up a friend's dress, right?
Of course she realizes there's a very large chance she's never going to see this person ever again. But she's already committed to it, and honestly, doesn't seem to mind in the slightest. They can be friends for now. It hurt nothing and, it was honestly kind of nice to pretend someone actually cared about her for a little while.
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Fun? Is she having...fun....being spoon-fed a sundae? Her ears warm beneath her curls, and yet, she cannot deny that now there's twice as rapid a happy little flutter in her stomach. And something that brings delight to both of them, no matter how peculiar - it can't be bad, right? Jeannette does not know what falling into wicked temptation would feel like, but she can't imagine it's dove wings against her ribcage and a joyful, effervescent buzz beneath her skin. No, that sort of happiness is the work of the Lord! Therefore, this is fine.
Obediently, she opens her mouth and turns her face towards "Antoinette".
"Thank 'oo vehhy much~"
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But it certainly seemed that way. There was an unfamiliar warmth inside Miruca's chest. While she really wasn't sure how long the feeling would last, she was startled to discover she actually thought of this near stranger as an friend. No one came to a maid cafe and acted this way, and the fact that Jeannette had done so proved she was something special that deserved to be remembered. She'd grown so used to a life being walked all over that she'd forgotten what that feeling in her chest actually was. Even now she couldn't quite place her finger on it. Being happy so rarely made that feeling almost like a foreign invader.
The dessert had not been that large to begin with, and with Miruca not awkwardly causing tears, it is not long before its reaching its end. The final spoonful is a special one, though. It contains the chocolate heart as well as the essential cherry on top.
"This is it." She actually sounds mildly unhappy as she says it. No matter how much they pretend to be 'friends', Jeannette will be leaving soon. They might be acting differently, but it didn't change the fact this was, at its heart, a business transaction. But she tries to drive that negative emotion away. "I hope I wasn't too awkward with you."
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Jeannette is quite firm and positive upon this point. The inside of her mouth is sweet and tart with chocolate and cherries, and so, somehow, is the fluttering inside her. It's too bad the dessert had to end....
But to order another would be gluttony. Better to savor its memory, and what matters far more than that - the new friend she's made.
"Thank you so very much for teaching me about the cafe, and for the dessert...and for accommodating my ignorance."
She giggles. "I may not have gotten to see angels, but I am just as glad to have met you."
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"I.....that is..." For some reason words had become very difficult for her. Why did Jeannette have to word it like that? Meeting her is something that normally annoys people. Why not this one? Why was she so....wholesome? "..P...please excuse me.." That redness on her cheeks was impossible to hide as she quickly scoops up the empty dishes and rushes to the kitchens.
She's not in there to clean that dish, that's for sure. She can't figure it out. Why did that get to her so much? It was just a person being friendly, why did she run away? She was being rude to someone who had done nothing but show her kindness. The dish is set aside, as she moves to a sink, splashing water on her face. This is stupid. She shouldn't be acting like this at all. And the moment alone seemed to be enough to get her to calm down. Drying her face off, she is more like herself when she steps back through the doors, and heads back to Jeannette without any hesitation.
"Apologies, I thought I felt a sneeze coming on." Its a very poor lie, one that definitely did not match the look that had been on her face and, for some reason, brings on laughter from a certain table. She knows who it is without even looking at her, and would definitely be speaking with her later. "Thank you for your kind words, I am glad to know you were not disappointed." Her voice is much more controlled now, somewhat professional but still with an underlying warmth in comparison to how she'd been earlier.
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She mutters it with some puzzlement, but seems willing to drop the subject. What matters most is that "Antoinette" is all right, and she seems to be now.
"Someone doing their best," she reassures the other girl, "could never disappoint me." And she takes out her wallet, since that seems to be the direction this is going. To do so, she needs to set her rosary aside, as it was atop her wallet in her pocket....her rosary, with her Sandglass clipped to it. "Will your employer be mad if I tip you? Or is that odd, for friends....?"
It's not a part of Japanese restaurant culture, but, well, Jeannette isn't all Japanese. And she does feel bad for not knowing what she was getting into ahead of time.
She may also frequently spend her allowance on Anyone But Her under normal circumstances. How much of Yumemigaoka's Catholic church's collection plate is Jeannette? Don't ask.
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But thankfully her temporary retreat had allowed her to mentally fortify herself. Further compliments don't send her fleeing a second time, she merely nods in response. "A tip is unnecessary. I am sure the owner wouldn't be angry, that man is as soft as they come. He calls us all his 'precious daughters' and somehow it doesn't feel weird when he does it. Still, I would not feel right taking your money. I'd feel rude, I didn't do anything worthy of some sort of extra reward." Judging by her own blonde hair, Antoinette is most likely also not entirely Japanese, at least by blood, but it didn't stop her from living the local culture.
There's a small spark of interest in her eyes at that rosary, more specifically what was attached to it. It was not that long ago she would have just assumed it to be an unusual decoration. She really had ignored everything there was to know about the city's Dreamers until she'd become one herself.
"That said, your bill...." She's interrupted by a meddlesome voice before she can get more then a few words out. Its the voice of the girl who had been over at Jeannette's table, the one called Mika. She's got the biggest, goofiest grin on her face she slides out of he chair and moves towards the two blondes. "...has already been taken care of." she says, that grin growing wider. "It was a small price to pay for such a fantastic show. I've never seen Annie like that before, you gotta share all your secrets!"
Instantly, Antoinette is on her feet. She doesn't look embarrassed this time, but instead very, very annoyed. "One moment." She grabs Mika by the wrist, quite literally dragging her into the kitchens. Once they are behind the doors, she gives the girl the sort of look that could freeze a person's blood solid. "I'm going to lock you in the freezer. I'm going to lock you in there until we close for the night." Obviously she doesn't actually mean it, but what she actually means is very much obvious. A little sigh escapes Mika's lips. "Fiiiiine, I understand. Sorry for butting in....but I really did already pay her bill." The grip on Mika's wrist is released. "Stay in here. Unless another customer shows, stay in here."
There's a bit of an exasperated expression on her face when she returns. "I apologize for that troublesome girl....but she was not lying. It seems its already been taken care of. I can't, for the life of me, understand what she was thinking. Please ignore her antics, and don't let them ruin your opinion of the cafe." Or me, she wants to add, but can't quite bring herself to say it.
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"Thank you so much," Jeannette says, stunned at this generosity. "But I must repay you for such a lovely visit somehow...telling my friends and neighbors of the cafe hardly seems enough...."
What can she do for Antoinette and the other maids....what can she do....
Ah! She knows!
Grabbing a paper napkin, she writes her phone number on it and offers it to Antoinette. "If anyone gives you trouble your manager cannot handle," she volunteers, "get in touch with me. I will visit them to their very great distress!"
It doesn't occur to her to mention things like "I've been freelance trained in bladed weaponry by a Mysterious Badass Antiheroine since I was 12."
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Being offered Jeannette's number could have had a much different effect on her if the offer had been worded differently. As it was, it wasn't obvious what she should make of it. Was this girl offering to beat up people who bother her? Not having any knowledge of this Mysterious Badass Antiheroine, the only image that could find its way into her head was the thought of Jeannette sternly talking down at someone. It was still a nice image, as just like no ever cried for her, people rarely stood up for her, either.
"You are far too kind to someone like me. I shall not use this unless it becomes absolutely necessary." In her mind, that meant never. It didn't change the fact she was going to add this number to her contacts the moment she had some privacy. Jeannette would be listed as 'Nice Girl' there, and other then Miruca's older sister, would be the only number not connected to one of her jobs in some way. Did she mention she's not very social? Because she's not very social. It'd be difficult to know that with the way she was acting now, though.
"Feel free to come visit us again. We're normally very slow on Tuesdays, so if you want to just come and chat, that would be the best time. I promise to keep certain maids from making a pain of themselves should you chose to return." Her voice takes on the sort of soft, gentle tone said troublesome maid would probably eat up. "Even if you don't, I won't forget this visit. You really were a special guest." Her next customer would have a lot to live up to, and there as no chance they'd succeed. She might end up disappointing them if they wanted her normal treatment, as her emotions weren't in the right place to be the sassy, somewhat bossy girl her regulars came to her for.
She tucks the very special napkin into her apron and, after replacing the maid's headdress she'd removed, she stands, and offers a bow from which she doesn't raise her head. Friend or not, this was standard procedure. She was on the clock, she was still being paid to be a 'maid', and it seemed their time together was coming to an end. For once, it didn't feel like a relief. She was actually a little disappointed.
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And even though Antoinette has her working headdress back on, Jeannette beams at her. "Nor shall I neglect Tuesdays. See you again!"
With that, she departs, color high in her cheeks and her spirits high in her heart. What an adventure she'd had! What a strange new kind of job she'd witnessed, and what hard-working girls.....though, really...
A hand touches her lips as she walks down the street, and she smiles a secret smile. What does feeding people have to do with angels....?