TEST DRIVE MEME 001 (#2)

[happyheartsstaff]

HAPPY HEARTS HOTEL

You wake up in a padded box. It rocks, gently, as though suspended in mid-air. You begin to stir, confusion or distress pushing you to try to sit up — and then the air begins to smell sweet, and you fall back asleep.

You wake up in a padded box. For a moment, you are beatifically calm. You don't know how you got here, or why, but that isn't really all that important. You don't need to know where you are. You're just... here. And here is a wonderful place to be.

But there is a niggling suspicion growing in the back of your mind. A suspicion that here is not somewhere you wanted to be. That it is not where you're supposed to be. You remember... chasing a white rabbit (or was it a person)? A mirror? Bright light, and green ivy crawling over your skin... Before you can worry too much, the box jolts, and then settles, and after a long moment the walls fall from around you to reveal —

A hotel lobby?

"Welcome to the Happy Hearts Hotel and Casino," says an attendant behind a desk. "We're so pleased you could join us for our grand opening gala. We have your room keys and Empathies here, please make an orderly line and we'll hand them out once we've confirmed identities. After that, feel free to explore the hotel! We highly recommend starting with the casino. Everyone's a winner here in Happy Hearts!"

Is this normal? It doesn't feel normal. And hey — you could swear you had shoes before!

I. THE CASINO FLOOR

As you pass through the entrance to the casino floor, an attendant passes you a small bag of chips. The casino is loud and bright and filled with games of every kind — you want to play poker? They've got a table for that. Sabacc? There's a table for that, too. Slots, pachinko, and bingo are just a few of the other games on offer. The attendant in the lobby wasn't lying, either — everyone who plays wins. Everyone, every time.

Servers wander the floor with trays of shotglasses full of multi-coloured liquids, offering them to every Oyster "Compliments of Her Royal Highness." If you're expecting alcohol, though, you'll be surprised — these drinks are teas made of the distilled emotions of every Oyster in the hotel. Each colour of tea corresponds to a different emotion, and as soon as you take a sip, you feel overcome with that emotion.

JOY — the distilled essence of happiness, this tea makes even the most rough and tumble of Oysters giddy with happiness — for a moment. The effect fades into a general sense of contentment and affability after a few seconds, and that itself fades away slowly over the course of twenty minutes.

ANGER — this tea, anger in liquid form, can make the most even-tempered of Oysters ready to absolutely blow a gasket. For twenty minutes, anyone who drinks this tea will find themselves much more easily annoyed, frustrated, and all around irritable and snappy.

SADNESS — distilled sadness is a potent tea, capable of turning a stoic, stalwart Oyster into a blubbering mess in moments. Events that may have previously only been a minor disappointment become the end of the world, every repressed unhappiness comes to the fore, and for twenty minutes, any Oyster who drinks a sadness tea can hardly keep themselves together.

II. MAKING WAVES

If gambling isn't to your interest, there are many other areas of the hotel to explore! For the moment, only The Pool Of Tears and the Pig & Pepper Buffet are available for Oysters to peruse, but the staff assure anyone who asks that the other facilities will be open by the next day. Unfortunately, that means no one can buy any swimsuits from This Elegant Thimble, but the staff aren't going to kick anyone out of the pool for jumping in in their clothes!

There are four main attractions to The Pool of Tears: the pool, the jacuzzi, the wave pool, and the lazy river. The water is always just the right temperature, clean and clear and refreshing. It feels as if the sun shines down from above you, warm and comforting. Scattered through the pool area are clusters of modern lounge chairs, just waiting for someone to come relax in them. The Pool is, in a word, serene.

But not for long. The waves generated by the wave pool begin to get choppier, and larger, until it becomes clear that the generator itself is malfunctioning — too late, however, to avoid the tsunami that crashes through the whole Pool and leaves it flooded. Thankfully, no water escapes into the rest of the hotel, and the hotel staff work quickly to rescue those trapped in the Pool and drain the flooding — but you better hope you can tread water until they get to you!

III. EAT ME, DRINK ME

The Pig & Pepper buffet serves lunch foods from across all different cultures, offering something for everyone, and some things you've never even heard of.

On offer with these lunchtime dishes are cookies and biscuits and scones of all kinds, held on tiered trays with signs that proclaim Eat Me! in delightfully whimsical calligraphy. Nearby, hotel staff man a small booth for doling out cups of fruit waters from large pitchers, which have Drink Me! painted playfully on their sides.

It takes a while to feel the effects — perhaps you've even left the Pig & Pepper by the time it happens — but those who eat the cookies and scones inevitably end up growing in size, whether a few inches or feet, and those who drank the fruity water similarly shrink. Eat enough and you might strain the ceiling; drink enough and you'll be the size of a thimble! It's not permanent — if no one else can help you figure out how to get back to normal, the staff certainly will — but it's definitely inconvenient!

IV. WELCOME HOME

Maybe you just want to be alone — well, that's what you have your room key for! Oysters room on the second and third floors of the hotel, one to a room. You were assured your room would be exactly what you'd always wished for — and for some, that's right! It's exactly as you would have decorated it yourself. But for others, their rooms are totally wrong. A grizzled cowboy can't have a pink room! Hotel staff are firm, though: every room is exactly as its owner wants it to be. Search your feelings, Oyster. You know it to be true.

On each bed are the Oysters' personal effects, minus weapons, as well as a towel folded in the shape of a heart, and a single foil-wrapped chocolate. If eaten, the chocolate is delicious, and incites a feeling of tender warmth in Oysters — not lust, but a desire for closeness. Why spend time in your room, when you could go find a new friend in the casino?

Welcome to the (second!) first TDM of Happy Hearts, a new panfandom roleplaying game here on DW! If you have any questions, please direct them to the first comment on this page. Happy playing, Oysters!

PREMISE RULES FAQ TAKEN RESERVES APPLICATION MOD CONTACT HIATUS & DROPS WORLD INFO NPCS CALENDAR AC REWARDS

© tessisamess

Comments

[stopinthenameofawe]

[In the 'fight or flight' battle, Melissa almost always chooses 'fight.' When he steps closer, she raises an eyebrow at him and stands even taller, somehow.]

Do you have another suggestion?

[sixrealmsofhell]

If you desire revenge, some of us are going about a more..tactical approach to finding out more about this place and the ones in charge.

[But that's not what he is interested in at that moment.]

But unfortunately as of this moment I have fallen under one of their traps so I have interests that go beyond my normal personality traits.

[And apparently all regards for personal space have been evaporated. But at least he is aware of the change. He is smart and has enough self awareness to know that things aren't right even if he can't completely stop himself from trying to remedy it.]

I desire company and you just happened to arrive to fulfill that need.

[stopinthenameofawe]

[...Alright. That gets her attention.

Melissa eyes him carefully, analyzing him for a moment. She is not the most tactical person in the world and she knows it; there's a reason she usually works with a team. She's there for muscle and the ability to talk to people without falling over herself.

Yes, she is the most charismatic of her hunter cell. They were not the most functional of groups.

Point is, she knows she does better when other people do more of the thinking. So she crosses her arms, stilling enough to look less like she's about to attack.]

I'm probably poor company, but if you want to talk about that, I'll listen.

[sixrealmsofhell]

[Mukuro's smile looks sincere but he isn't really the smiling type. The expression often used simply for deception and getting what he wants. This time is more out of reflex when he finally gets what he wants.]

Excellent. Shall we proceed somewhere more comfortable versus looming in a hallway? You'll get information out of the arrangement and I will get to fulfill whatever requirements this unfortunate drug desires.

[stopinthenameofawe]

[Melissa takes a long to look him over, trying to get a better read on him. If she did have her guns, she would feel a lot more comfortable going into a room with a stranger. As it is, he looks like the kind of guy she could probably still beat in a fist fight, so she winds up nodding.]

Lead the way, I guess.

[sixrealmsofhell]

[Mukuro is lean but deceptively strong. As a member of the mafioso, he has to stay in pretty good shape. But he has no desires to fight, especially in a place that might be trying to make such occurrences happy. He turns to lead her the few doors down to where his room is.]

I could offer you a drink upon return but I don't know that it will necessarily be safe. I have yet to uncover anything that doesn't have some sort of additive to it.

[stopinthenameofawe]

[Melissa follows, her posture staying sharp and alert. Her supernatural strength and perception might have been taken from her, but she was a cop for many years before becoming a hunter and those instincts die hard. Even if he's on the level, she'll stay on guard.]

Yeah, I'd rather not risk it. [Not to mention that unless the drink he's offering his blood she can't drink it, but he doesn't need to know that.] What did you try before?

[sixrealmsofhell]

[He unlocks his door and opens it for her revealing a room that is black a purple everywhere. Black carpets and purple chairs in the sitting area which is where he gestures her to.]

I would recommend avoiding any of the colored teas that the casino serves and the chocolate in your room..throw it away unless you like forced social interactions. I have also heard there is some drinks and snacks that will either make you large or shrink you down, as witnessed by a small man I carried in my suit jacket pocket earlier.

[stopinthenameofawe]

[It's a lot, is what it is. She is suddenly much more appreciative of the style of her room. She hadn't realized they were so... personalized.]

Noted. [And easy for her to avoid, thankfully.] The larger or shrinking thing is weird as fuck, though. I get drugging people to manipulate their emotions, but that seems... [Stupid. It seems stupid.]

[sixrealmsofhell]

Are you aware of the story, "Alice in wonderland"? It's reminiscent of that. [He walks over and sits in one of the chairs.]

I'm not sure if there is an underlying theme here but perhaps stay out of any gardens if you encounter them.

[stopinthenameofawe]

...Of all the fucking... Haven't seen the movie since I was a kid, but yeah, that does sound kind of familiar now that you mention it.

[She doesn't know all of the kind of supernatural beings that exist out in the world, unfortunately, but she is vaguely aware of the Fae and their bullshit. If that's what's happening here, she is Not About That Shit.

She stays standing because of course she does, having too much anxious/angry energy to bring herself to sit.] I didn't see if there were gardens. Seems like most of the place is closed off to us right now.

[sixrealmsofhell]

It's smart to limit us to one area as much as possible until they can determine who might be more problematic then others. There are several of us that are already trying to determine a course of action that will gain us access to whomever brought us here.

[Mukuro is glad just this bit of closeness is enough to appease the chocolate. Or at least, the combination of this and his own strong self control.]

[stopinthenameofawe]

The fact that they're smart just makes it harder. They're going to keep the masterminds as inaccessible to us as possible.

[Which... is fair, and even if they weren't kidnappers keeping their higher ups away from the riff raff is what they'd normally do.]

[sixrealmsofhell]

No one said we expect to get answers immediately. All good plans take time. But we need to figure out everyone's strengths so we can utilize them in the best means possible.

Some are better fighters, some are better strategists. We need to make groups of each so we know what we are working with.

[He gives her a look with a slight smirk.] I'm guessing you would be in the fighter group.

[stopinthenameofawe]

[...Melissa does kind of hate how easy she is to pin.]

I do better with some direction, yeah. [Point her towards something and she'll shoot. Leave the pointing to her and... well she's never been real good at knowing what direction will lead to the best outcome and becoming a vampire made that worse.]

[sixrealmsofhell]

Hopefully we will have some to give. Obviously not today, but in the future once we have gathered more information. Are you open to joining such a group?

[stopinthenameofawe]

I might be. [Depending on how dependable people here are and how much they're able to be subtle. ...She's not great at subtle herself, but she is at least a decent liar. Which can accomplish the same goal sometimes.] It would be a bad idea to let our hosts know what's happening.

[sixrealmsofhell]

Which is why small groups at most would be best with a main go-between that relays information. The more we can do to avoid suspicion, the better.

[stopinthenameofawe]

Mm. Good. [He at least seems to not be completely shit at this from a planning perspective, so... points for that.] Got anything to go off of yet?

[when can she start hitting things. since shooting them is currently out of the question.]

[sixrealmsofhell]

It's still too early. We don't know enough about this place yet. But that's the best time to start assembling the groups.

In time, things will be revealed. It's all about patience right now.

[stopinthenameofawe]

[melissa hates patience. she can do it, but.... she hates it. it's too easy to just wait for a perfect time that will never come.]

Hopefully we'll be able to find out at least something before too long.