Fourth TDM: Winter's breath

[upcyclingmod]

Welcome to the Test Drive Meme.
| Premise | FAQ | Full Navigation | Rules | Reserves |

As a quick note: This will be the last TDM and Application Round of the year! Have fun everyone!

Arrival


Not all characters (known as Wickie, singular or Wickies, plural) arrive at the same time, surprisingly enough! That’s life for you. Some Wickies find their way to the island at a pivotal (or very mundane) point in their life, or even after or during their death.

Wickies who were standing or walking often find themselves entering the town South Sister, located on Lighthouse Isle, through an open doorway. Those that were laying down, or sleeping, tend to be found lying prone in beds, bathtubs, showers, couches, and similar places within the cottages on Cottage Row. There’s no rhyme or reason to it all! To Wickies familiar with the era, they will realize that everything looks as if it’s come from the ‘90s.

The house which a Wickie finds themselves within could already be occupied. This includes walking into a fellow Wicke, waking up in the same location, or accidentally scaring a room full of people with their sudden appearance.

Oops.

Start of Winter

Thankfully things have more or less dried out, for the seasons are already changing. Or at least, the weather is, and with it...comes snow.

The grass on the island is covered, various trees lose the last of their leaves, the sand becomes crunchy, and even a portion of the ocean water becomes frozen solid. (Take THAT, water!). And with it, Wickies wake up at their feet (or suddenly in their hands if they don’t sleep) warm clothing and various ways to keep warm- or at least keep the cold from messing with their joints!

And with it, there are snow shovels and boots that are set out neatly by the door. It seems more snowk is expected, and foot protection is more important than ever. While it is possible for some (those who are not infected by the Silence at least) to use the teleporter to get from town to their homes, there are pathways that need to be cleared for everyone.

It might be a good time to offer a helping hand! Especially with some Wickies who are snowed into their homes.

Or it could be a good time to use the shovels to gather snow for snow ball fights, snow forts, and similar winter activities. The nice thing about the winter shovels is that they’ll have them for a few months.

Too bad the ground is nearly frozen solid, and these particular shovels are not good for digging into the ground.


Frosty Protections

While there may be the snow and the quiet that’s coming in, there are other things that are coming into the island too. There are tables that linger day or night, which have tangyuan. Some in the shape of various animals, and some of them that are simply balls of colored dough. They are edible, and thankfully they don’t have a negative consequence to eating them (unlike the mooncakes from before) but there are written instructions, which also proclaim outloud to a Wickie if they linger for awhile:

“For the use of protective talismans! Stick it on your chair, your door, your window!”

Interestingly enough, they do seem to work. Wickies who are Silence infected are repelled by them, feeling uneasy and nauseous around them and touching the tangyuan even with covered hands will cause a burning sensation.

Infected Wickies who eat the treats...they’re in for a rough time. Really rough.

There are also little tables with various drinks, some being fruit juice, sparkling fruit juice, champagne and of similar ilk- but not ever with water. That’s just bad luck after everything.

The inscription for this table, which is again read out loud, “Toast to others health”

Picking up the cups, they will be unable to drop it, and the fluid will refill in the Wickie’s cup until they find someone to toast to- whether it’s in humor or in earnestness.

For the next twelve hours after the toast is made, even if the drink is not drunk after, the Wickie toasted will find they will have better luck in that subject, whether it is in health, love, or friendship, or just in general.

The same applies if Wickies toast together to a group of people as well.


Of hooves and horns

The strangest thing of all isn't the sweet rice balls, nor is it the smell of evergreens heavy in the air. Instead, it's the masks set to everyone, and the ruckus music that thrums through the air, deep into the night.

The masks are of a haggard old woman, well worn and aged, and that of a man with horns and facial hair similar to a goat.

There are different effects when it comes to the masks, both happening at night with the music starts.

Wickies wearing the devilish mask find themselves wearing a ragged fur suit, prancing in the streets, ready to whip other Wickies whose behavior has been suspect or bad as of late. Finding the wicked and punishing them is an impulse, neigh impossible to ignore. And, too, there is a sense of wicked glee when they do punish someone with their reeds and whips. Krampus masked Wickies thankfully can be pacified with rum or brandy. They'll need the help of another to pull of the mask. But once it's off, the costume vanishes, and the chagrin of what happened ( or the satisfaction) follows.

Wickies wearing the woman’s mask will find that they’re not trying to scare people, but instead, they find themselves loping in and out of the crowds, searching, scanning, for certain people, all the while wearing ragged clothing, and often a scarf on their now ratty, graying hair.

It’s with a sickening horror that Wickies will realize there is something in the mask that is watching through the mask itself, and is nodding to itself far away and writing their names on a list.

And it’s not Santa Claus.

The Wickie’s wearing the old woman’s mask can be distracted by scattering seeds or threads in front of them- one inducing a true distraction to count and pick up the seeds, and a rage that comes over that of wasted thread.

Seeds make it easier to pull off the mask, and thankfully popcorn counts as a seed! But thread...well, it is a distraction too, but one that can lead to violent consequences. It might mean some rounds of bait and switching until the mask is taken off.

And that’s when the Wickie who had been wearing the mask realizing the list is of ‘bad’ Wickies, But…

how bad could they be?

Confession network

Yet again, the phone goes off. Doesn’t look like it’s anybody in town, but it’s that weird, cheesy app called The Heart Game. And it’s persistent, too: it doesn’t want to be ignored, making a series of beeps and chirps, much like a pet that wants attention.

The message that pops up is as follows:

We’re back! It’s the time for everyone's favorite game- Confession! So beloved users, our question is:

What do you love about winter? Is it the nip on your nose? The hot drinks? Playing in the snow? Tell us!

Comments

Queen Glimmer | She-Ra and the Princesses of Power

[queenofsparkles]

[Contains spoilers up to the S4 finale!]

Arrival
When Glimmer comes to, she doesn't know where she's expecting to have found herself. Laid out on someone's couch, shivering from the cold permeating the building when there's no blanket to cover her, was extremely low on her list. Did she just pass out, after that beam took her and Hordak...?

Everything still aches, exhaustion hanging in her bones, and she grunts quietly as she pushes herself up into a sitting position, legs curled up underneath her, and she takes a moment to hold one palm up so a small, brilliant orb of sparkles can coalesce above it, and there's a quiet sigh of relief from her. She's still charged, somehow.

It's only then that she actually looks around, seeing if there's anyone present in this weird room she's woken up in. "...hello?"

Frosty Protections
Well, at least there was a thick, light purple coat for her to wear, so she doesn't have to go outside in her extremely thin, temperate-weather-only outfit. Her hands are still bare, but that means she's more disposed towards picking up one of the bowls of weird dumplings and holding it against her chest, rather than just picking some to eat standing at the table.

Because she still feels very awkward and nervous and completely mildly unsettled about whatever the hell is happening right now; but warm food is warm food, and it's nice to just be able to enjoy something that feels normal - the dumplings remind her of the ones she used to make with her mother, even if they seem like they're made of something other than flour.

However, she has taken an entire bowl to herself, which is less than polite.

Of Hooves and Horns
There is a very short, surprisingly aggressive little Krampus figure flashing around with a wickedly gleeful laugh, letting out the kind of totally unhinged manic laugh that only comes when that person is having the most fun they've had in forever - which seems to stand true for this short one, especially after it scores a really good crack on someone's ribs with its whip.

But it doesn't try to run-- instead, it sparkles, and in a blink of glitter the figure vanishes, cropping up in the same-said sparkles a distance away: it could be a few metres, it could be halfway across town, or it could be directly on the other side of the poor individual they're tormenting, but they're definitely .teleporting.

Which is gonna make it a bitch to get the mask off them.

Frosty Protections

[measuringdistance]

Chikai, having had a bad run-in with cursed mooncakes not too long ago, has been carefully eyeing the new displays of food for a while now. Taking advantage of free stuff was always a smart idea in Chikai's books, but you usually can't know for sure what's okay and what isn't in this place until it was too late.

He's trying to weigh whether or not it was worth the risk of giving them a try, when he catches sight of a younger girl carrying off a whole bowl. A grin pops up on his face, taking this as a perfect solution to his problem. With no warning or hesitation, Chikai strolls right up to her to ask, "Oi, that stuff any good? Y'haven't had anything fall on you since you started eating, right?"

[queenofsparkles]

Well that's certainly not a lot of warning for the poor Princess, and Glimmer jumps when the slightly older man speaks to her. It's lucky she doesn't choke on her dumpling, really.

"Uh--! Not... really, no? They're just." She looks down at her bowl. "...warm, dumpling things. They're really nice actually," she adds a bit more confidently, as she looks back up at Chikai, "Have you not tried any yet?"

[measuringdistance]

Ahh, he remembered being in her shoes. Naive, trusting, just eating whatever this place had to offer without a care in the world... y’know, a month ago. He clicks his tongue and shakes his head, slightly condescendingly.

“Not yet. You’ll learn that you gotta be careful around here - never know what it'll do to ya." That said... it doesn’t sound like she’s lying, and she doesn’t look injured. So he guesses he’ll believe her. “If you’re vouching for ‘em, though, I’ll give them a shot.”

Yep, he’s just going to try to take one of her’s. It’s closest and she doesn’t really need a whole bowl, right?

[queenofsparkles]

There's a quick flash of anger in her eyes as she yanks the bowl away from his hand and cuddles it against her protectively. How dare you sir!

"Hey! You can't just-- talk to me like that and take whatever you want!" It's honestly more of a pout than a scowl, but it could definitely swing colder. "There's plenty of other bowls!"

[measuringdistance]

Oh, so she’s no pushover, huh? Chikai can appreciate that - after all, neither is he. Which means he can’t go backing down that easily either.

“Yeah, but like I said, the food here can be sketchy and I only got a guarantee that yours is safe.” Chikai crosses his arms, giving her a pointed look. “What if I try one of the others, and it turns out they’re poisoned or something? Do you really want that on your conscience?”

[queenofsparkles]

She's not relenting in her grip on the bowl; and her scowl doubles down.

"Wouldn't the odds be much more in my favour that I did grab a bad one, if you think there are so many like that?"

She is going to steadfastly ignore the conscience comment, even if it makes hers twinge unpleasantly.

Of Hooves and Horns

[bowfaire]

There's a disadvantage here: He'd arrived here without any of his armor or regular battle gear and his class uniform doesn't offer him much in terms of protection. The only thing he really has going for him right now is that he's been around the block and has certainly felt worse before.

His hand shoots for his chest when he's struck, instinctively trying to protect himself from any other attacks that might come his way. He dislikes fighting at close range. He'd much rather attack from a nice, safe distance you know? But bows and arrows won't help him here and he'll have to default to his sword instead...

Now, if only he could catch this pesky foe! He swings just as the figure teleports away and he curses, "Great... teleporting. Who could have seen that coming? I sure didn't."

Or else he wouldn't have been hit in the first place!!!

Anyway he's just a squishy archer type unit and can only handle so many hits. He's going to have to rely on his dodgy (literally and metaphorically) nature to get by here.

[queenofsparkles]

Not every strike is with a whip, at least - the next one incoming is a switch at knee level from behind, aiming to snap against him hard enough to topple him with another sadistically gleeful laugh.

[bowfaire]

Literally why is this happening to him just let him snipe from a cliff or something, please. Or rest. If he had to choose between fighting or reading a good book, he'd choose the latter.

It'll take a little more than that to get him to topple over! He does stumble a bit though as he leaps forward out of reflex.

It's clear that whoever is harassing him right now is finding joy in it and the more he struggles, the more pleasure he can only imagine will come from it. So he decides... to wait.

He braces himself, listening and watching carefully for any sign that they might appear again. Will they come at him from behind again? Directly? Or maybe from the side? The teleportation factor definitely makes it harder to predict where they might come from but he'll figure this out. As soon as he feels something coming for him again, he's going to immediately reach out for it. Is it another switch? That whip? He'd rather minimize his future risk by hurting himself now in an attempt to disarm them. Maybe if he's lucky he'll actually grab the figure, though? We'll see.

[queenofsparkles]

The teleporting might help, funnily enough: now that he's watching for a sign, he'll see some bright sparkle spontaneously develop just above his eyeline, about two feet away.

And then next attack is front on and from above, striking down directly on his face with a shrill cackle - that cuts off abruptly when he does manage to catch something. Not the switch, but the figure's sturdy wrist, and the disruption is clearly enough to throw them off completely: they stumble as they land, the hood flapping wildly enough to reveal a shock of pink hair beneath it for a moment before they yank it back in place with their free hand, and starts trying to viciously yank her switch-hand free.

[bowfaire]

Wonderful. He definitely catches that and he laughs back. He actually laughs back, "Can't have you hitting that, can we?"

His face. He means his face. Look, impressions are important and he knows he's handsome so he'd like to keep his face as lovely as possible. His priorities are definitely in place.

"I'm not letting you go." Not after all of this trouble he's been through and he holds on tight. That flash of pink had been... interesting. He was so convinced he was dealing with some crazy old man but that seemed too vibrant. Struggle all she wants, he's going to hold on and even give her a yank towards him so he can reach for that mask, "Now, let's see what's under that mask, huh?"

He's so tired of masks.

[queenofsparkles]

She certainly does struggle, and there's fight in that small figure, even going as far as trying to open his grip with her other hand; but really, all that does is leave the mask entirely undefended.

And when Claude pulls the mask off, there's-- a young woman underneath, probably around the same age as him, and for a moment her eyes are still glazed, her expression twisted into furious panic.

Then she blinks - and all at once, she stops fighting and the billowing robes and switch disappear from her figure and she squeaks in surprise as her face turns up, clutches her free hand to her chest as her face turns bright red when her eyes meet Claude's. Her voice is very quiet when she does speak.

"I-I am... so sorry."

frosty

[swordjock]

A lot can change in a week or two.

Before the flooding, Adora walked around the island with a certain confidence, an (undeserved) assurance that she had things under control. She was making progress with Catra, despite the crushing weight of her lies, and no matter how often it felt like two steps forward, one step back. She'd made new allies, new friends, and not even Shadow Weaver had the power to stop her anymore.

In the end, it wasn't Shadow Weaver, or even Catra she should have been worried about: it was herself. When the water rose, she was useless; inside the lighthouse... she was worse. Far, far worse. For the most part, she's been avoiding people since, but guilt alone can't preclude her from needing to eat, even if the new food burns her hands when she touches it, as if telling her she deserves to starve instead. (Maybe it's right, but Etheria still needs She-Ra, and Adora can't hand off the sword with nobody in line to give it to. At the very least, she needs to make sure it gets back there safely.)

She's trudging towards Fruit's Basket to pick up her usual rations when she spots a familiar shock of pink hair attached to an equally familiar face... only, not quite. It's Glimmer all over, but she looks different than Adora remembers her--and instantly, fear pools in her stomach as she thinks of how quickly she'd believed Nero's reassurance that things back home would just stop, all out of a selfish desperation to keep Catra close again. That by not wanting to lose anyone, she might have lost everyone; leaving Bright Moon undefended and giving the Horde time to regroup.

For the first time in over a day, Adora finds her voice; dread permeating every word, heavy as the weight of the world on her shoulders.

"Glimmer?" Until recently, her biggest concern would have been keeping Glimmer safe from Shadow Weaver... and Catra safe from Glimmer. Now, she's terrified for an entirely different reason. "You can't-- you shouldn't be here. Where's Bow? Who's protecting Bright Moon?"

Her right hand grips her infected arm, the marks under her sleeve sealed, but still a threat. She's still a threat, like Mara was, the way Light Hope warned her she would be. If only she'd listened, instead of thinking she had a right to be herself, too.

lets fucking go

[queenofsparkles]

Glimmer doesn't see Adora until she hears her name spoken out loud by the familiar voice - though she hasn't heard it with that kind of deep, gut-wrenching dread in a while, and it tugs at her own core hard enough to make her pause, and gasp, and turn quickly to look at her friend.

Who looks... different, somehow. It takes her a moment to realise she's carrying the sword, not wearing it on her wrist, but there's something else she can't quite pin.


It's too late to teleport away, now. But she takes a deep breath, and puts a steely expression on before she starts moving towards Adora. Be angry, be cold - then she won't immediately burst into tears about how terrifying her mistakes were for not listening to Adora.

"Hey, Adora." It's not the cocksure purr Catra uses; her tone is cold, stoic and markedly Not Friendly. It's certainly not surprised to see Adora. "I could ask you the same thing. About Bow, at least - the other Princesses are guarding Bright Moon and the prisoners."

[swordjock]

Really, she should have expected this. She knows she's earned that cold tone, but it's still a knife in her chest, just like the look of betrayal on Catra's face at Thaymor. As Glimmer advances, she takes a step back, glancing behind her for any sign of Catra. When she sees nothing, hears nothing, it's a relief... and also makes her feel so very, very alone, in a way not even leaving her whole life in the Horde behind ever did.

"He's not here," Adora says, sounding guilty. She thought he'd be with Glimmer, that he'd be safe, but obviously, whatever force stole them both away had other ideas. Another assumption she'd made for her own benefit; that she'd been targeted specifically, for being so desperate, so eager, to fulfill whatever penance this place expected from her. "I haven't seen him in months."

Months. The passage of time is so strange, with the sun, the stars, that the days seem to blend together. Saying it out loud makes it real, makes her ashamed at the idea that she could ever accept being apart from her friends for this long. The knowledge that Bright Moon is doing well enough to hold prisoners does little to quell her angst; only raising the question of how much they ever needed She-Ra in the first place. How much they'd be willing to forgive, to get her back.

(She really is worthless, isn't she? Glimmer might be mad at her now, but she has no idea how mad she should be, and Adora's going to have to be the one to tell her. She's so tired of lying to the people she loves, that she just can't do it anymore.)

"We aren't on Etheria anymore. I know that sounds crazy, but there are people from all kinds of places--kingdoms I've never heard of, even whole worlds." Adora takes a breath, feeling tears start to sting her eyes. "And there are stars, Glimmer. I've seen them before, in some kind of vision, but they're real. It means we're stuck here, and we can't get home, and I'm sorry because I missed you, and now you're stuck too, and it's all my fault."

She spends the last part of her outburst staring at the ground, hands balled into fists, not ready to see the accusing look she's sure must be crossing Glimmer's face. All her effort is spent on trying not to cry, but judging by the quivering of her jaw, she hasn't managed that, either.

[queenofsparkles]

She can't stop a shock of hot tears burning in her eyes at hearing Bow has been gone for months. Months plural. Rage, frustration, horror all welling in one thick burst that crinkles her face in an ugly attempt to maintain composure.

That's impossible. That doesn't make sense, there has to be something they're missing here.

She almost misses the rest of what Adora says from the shock of that one line, but she manages to maintain just enough focus, and then she's... confused. Horribly, numbingly confused at how much Adora just has wrong.

"What are you talking about?" Her voice is thick and shaking and she hates how weak it makes her feel, but she keeps going, tries to pull it together. "Of course there are stars, we fixed the Heart of Etheria, Light Hope--" tricked me tricked us used us--

She bites her lip to stop herself talking, and feels those tears finally spill. Her whole body is trembling from the tension of holding herself up. She ruined everything and Adora is still trying to take the blame and make her feel better, after everything...

[swordjock]

"Me?" Suddenly uncomfortable being the focus of the conversation when she doesn't understand why, Adora's head snaps back up--and when she sees Glimmer crying, she steps closer, raising a hand to try and comfort her, somehow...

... and lowering it again, too afraid of hurting her instead.

"You talked to Light Hope?" She didn't think the hologram would answer to anyone else, with all her talk of Adora being chosen. But Glimmer must have gone to the Crystal Castle for answers, and apparently she'd gotten something for her efforts; even more than Adora did, because nothing else she says makes any sense at all. "Glimmer, I don't understand. What happened with the stars? What did you do?"

There's desperation in her voice, but not anger. Light Hope mentioned that her duty was to balance the planet, but nothing about the Heart of it. Nothing about undoing what Mara did, bringing them out of their empty dimension. If Glimmer fixed that mistake, then why does she sound so distraught?

[queenofsparkles]

"What do you mean, what did I do?!" Of all the things to say, she knew what Glimmer wanted to do, and her voice - her composure - cracks completely, under the pressure of what she can only hear as an accusation. "You and Bow abandoned me! You didn't trust me and left me!"

It hurts - it's like losing her mother again, Adora accusing her, losing Bow, she cost Etheria everything because she was wrong and Adora is making her say it.

She's only still for a moment, glaring through the tears and runny nose, before she flails both arms out with her distress: "Double Trouble told me that Hordak is nothing compared to Horde Prime, and when I went to tell you, you two were gone, you left me to go to Beast Island and find Entrapta because you were right!!"

Wildcarding it up

[sinistramanus]

[While chaos is abound with the onset of winter, Shadow Weaver seemed hellbent on ignoring it all. Her starters had come along nicely, all considered, and despite the ice, despite the snow...]

[She was in the sad little garden, gently pushing snow away from the young plants, humming quietly to herself. The gardening may be part of the Shadow Weaver Glimmer had come to know, but the long black fur coat, tall scarf, and bandages wrapping around all that was left of her face surely wasn't. Or the cheap sunglasses over her eyes where her mask usually sat.]

[The plants looked newly planted, too, where the ground should have been frozen solid.]

[queenofsparkles]

[It's not like Glimmer was going out of her way to look at every single patch of garden she passes to see if there's signs of Shadow Weaver's passing.]

[Except she totally kind of is.]

[She definitely isn't expecting to hear humming, though, when she approaches her latest target, and despite herself she lets out a slight gasp when she sees its occupant, and immediately heat creeps across her cheeks as she feels like a total stalker.]

Oh--! I'm so sorry, I'm just--

[It takes her a few moments of stammering to realise she recognises the silhouette, even hunched over and differently clothed - Shadow Weaver's hair was telling, as was her entirely hidden face (even if the new look was. Remarkably different it's fucking weird), and she falls silent to stare, briefly. Honestly she might not have noticed if she hadn't been looking for her.]

...Shadow Weaver.

[sinistramanus]

[The humming pauses, and the sorceress tips up her hidden face. It's tempting to respond to the voice immediately, but given the state of Adora and Catra...]

[Ah, but that styling of her hair and choice of accessories was telling. Despite having been this one's prisoner, technically, for a time, she might be the closest thing SW had to calling a friendly face.]

[What an absolute headache this was going to be.]

Ah, that is not a voice I have heard for some time, [She starts carefully, clearing the snowfall from one final sprout before rising to her feet and clasping her hands before her.] I hope this island finds you well, my queen.

[queenofsparkles]

[Her eyes widen. My queen, so she knows--]

[Okay. She can work with this.]

Shadow Weaver. [Her tone is a bit more firm now, and she pulls her shoulders a little straighter. She knows that they're both prisoners in this place, and that she technically has no authority or power here, but habit remains and she doesn't want to feel like she's here on the back foot.] Adora warned me that you and Catra were here.

[Then her shoulders tense, almost hunching.] But she... Adora only remembers up until the battle of Bright Moon. [A brief breath, to unruffle herself.] You, however, clearly seem to know more. I'd like to ask what you know exactly.

...please.

[manners might help]

[sinistramanus]

[Ah, to be young again. She remembered a time when she, too, used to telegraph her thoughts to such an extent.]

[Instead, Shadow Weaver slightly inclined her head to one side, her hair falling with the gesture.] Warn, my queen? There is nothing to be warned off, seeing as I no longer pose a threat to you.

[A quiet sigh, only audible for the fact that it is entirely performative.]

But... perhaps this is a conversation to have over warm tea instead of all this ice. Don't you agree?

[queenofsparkles]

Adora doesn't know that. [And they'd glossed over Shadow Weaver too quickly to address it fully, but as it stands Glimmer doesn't currently have plans to tell Adora just yet. They'll get to it later. Probably.]

[She can't help but hesitate, just for the briefest of moments, before she nods eagerly. Tea is nice and warm and this place is so disgustingly cold, she'll never understand how Frosta likes it.]

That sounds like a good plan. [She looks down at the budding plants again.] They look like they're growing pretty well, though.