sixthiteration | Test Drive 21 (October & November)

→ Holds and applications are always open. Holds are required for all applications.

→ Choose one of the scenarios below or make up your own. Feel free to try multiple scenarios.

→ Write LOGS or TEXT prompts, or both.

→ THERE ARE ONLY THREE RULES FOR THE TDM:

1. It has to take place in the 6I universe.
2. It cannot be the character's arrival into the game.
3. Please only test new characters who do not have a version in the game. Our cast list is here.

→ TDM threads cannot be used to meet AC, but if the character is accepted into the game and both players agree, you may keep the CR.

→ Character want ads are here.

Prompts

STAYING POWER - Go down to the bunker, they said. You can get yourself amazing powers from the vending machine, they said. Well, you've done that, and you've made your choice, but one thing nobody told you was that unless it's a power you're familiar with, you might be on a teensy bit of a learning curve when it comes to keeping it under control. You have a week to figure it out without killing anyone; have fun!

FORGIVE AND... - You poor thing, you've gotten into some dust moths. Not that you can remember that, because depending on how big that swarm was and how quickly you got out of it, you might not remember much at all. Better hope somebody's got some Forget Me Nots on hand.

HIT & RUN - Life in the village can be pretty sleepy... until suddenly, it's not. Were you being a troublemaker? Were you disturbing the local wildlife? Because it's now disturbing you, chasing you down the street in front of everyone. Maybe it's a herd of chupapaca or a swarm of fireflies. Or maybe you went old school and it's just a really pissed off badger. Godspeed and good luck.

WILDCARD - Choose your own adventure. Maybe play powers roulette.

Texts

All characters are fitted with a smart watch-like device on their left wrist, which they can use to send text messages to other villagers.

- Texts may only be 140 characters long
- No video or voice, text only
- Display names may be changed by characters on the fly, but anyone can tap to see someone's real full name

Please list your CHARACTER NAME, CANON & PROMPT in your SUBJECT LINE.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Forgive and...

Why was it always memory loss?

If he was quicker to laugh, he would be very amused. But instead he frowned, thinking hard, hoping he could remember what he was out in the forest to do. There had to have been a reason--he didn't exactly go for leisurely walks. He could remember that much, as well as his name, his past, and even what he had for breakfast that morning.

He even could remember he must have touched up against a dust moth, but not what had brought him here in the first place or when he had come in contact with the obnoxious insect.

He sighed and rubbed his forehead with a hand. Pure force of will would allow him to remember what he needed to do. He would not fail...whoever had asked him to do whatever it was. Nevermind that he had been wondering in these woods for longer than he could remember.

More importantly, he was going to find some way to never lose his memory again.

Rinoa was pretty certain that she shouldn't be trusting any of the plants until told otherwise, but she felt like she was accomplishing nothing just walking around. Her hands had to stay busy. She had to gather something as proof that she could contribute to a situation way outside of her expertise. But she looked from one to the other and thought about how much worse it would be if she brought back something poisonous.

She sighed and ran fingers through her hair, starting to turn around head back to the village. Only to see a familiar form she'd know from miles away. "Squall!" Her mood lifted and she started to walk toward her, an echo from a distance at the moment, and walked right into a couple of dust moths. Wrinkling her nose, Rinoa waved them out of her face, coughing as she breathed right in their powder in the process. She kept walking, because she was ....

She was going somewhere. To someone. She'd been doing something else. Oh no, not again. This was familiar, but at least she was in charge of her own limbs. Rinoa was definitely moving, but to where, she couldn't remember. She stopped where she stood, dark eyes blinking away the last residue of powder. She hovered there in indecision, too distracted to look up from where she was to see him now.

The sound of his name shook him out of his own rambling thoughts, which was always for the best. It gave him a destination, too, and he walked towards her, although she was just staring at the ground.

Nothing like annoying status effects from monsters to make him feel like home.

Hmph. He stopped a few feet away and crossed his arms, letting her work through her own distracted thoughts. "Rinoa? I think we need to get out of this forest."

At least he had a plan now. He had no idea what he was doing here, and he was going to kick himself later when he remembered what he was supposed to be doing, but protecting others--especially Rinoa--took priority right now.

Rinoa glanced up at the sound of her name and immediately smiled. "Squall...." Nothing could be wrong when Squall was there. If she's confused and lost, he always appeared eventually. She can't remember exact details, she knew they were there, but the feeling was unmistakable. Safety. Reassurance. She stepped forward as if she was going to hug him, but hesitated. There was so much newness to it all, and she felt so fuzzy in the head. "I was here for a reason. I wanted to do something."

It was lost to her now. "I guess it could be worse." She glanced up at him through her partial bangs, mischief in her eyes. "They could be giant monster bugs trying to eat us." Monsters were something they stumbled upon every day walking in their world. She kept expecting one around very corner. "And you without your sword."

The feeling was mutual: he might be the knight, but Rinoa had saved his life. He would never forget that--unless a whole group of dust moths collided into him. Sadly, that might happen if they stayed in this forest any longer. His shoulders eased a little when she could still recognize him, though. He only tensed again when she hesitated. He barely moved, but his eyes narrowed and ran over her to make sure there weren't other injuries.

But his eyes softened when she joked. Even his mouth relaxed into a ghost of a smile. "Don't remind me." Being without his gunblade hurt a surprising amount. It wasn't as bad as the loss of his friends, but in a way, his gunblade was a part of him. He had fought wars with that sword. He was at a severe disadvantage without it.

"Come on. We can do what we wanted to do once we've remembered it."

"But you look so small and frail without it." She was definitely joking now; Squall towered over her by more than a head. They're at the perfect height for her head to settle into the crook of his shoulder. But he existed in her space and therefore she had to tease him. It was easier than dwelling too much in the strange world that apparently could randomly make them forget what they were doing. Rinoa was paranoid about losing memory, but she knew not nearly as badly as Squall and the others. They had good reason to be touchy.

So she reached out to take his hand, sliding her fingers into his, and tugged him in the direction that seemed out of the forest. Rinoa doesn't remember getting into the woods, so she's pretty sure she can't remember getting out either. They'd have to figure it out together. "You know the weirdest thing about this for me? It's so silly, I don't even know why I am telling you." She sighed and fluffed her hair with her free hand. "I miss my clothes. These are so baggy and ... wrong!" Shallow, yes, but it's more about her lack of comfort.

If there were words he didn't want to hear from her, it was that he looked small and frail. In his head, he knew she was teasing, but he raised his eyebrows in a brief look of annoyance all the same. "I'll be sure to workout more."

Thankfully, she was easy for him to forgive, and he let her take his hand. After a few steps, he moved just half-a-step ahead of her. They didn't usually find the most dangerous animals out here, but one never knew. He was ready for anything.

A light smile returned when she started to talk, especially when she said she didn't know why she was telling him this. Because you're outgoing. It's just what you do. he answered to himself, amused. "You do seem not like yourself," he allowed. "Welcome to a uniform." Not nearly as nice as SeeD uniforms, though.

"Oh, you!" was her only reply, patting him on the arm soothingly. Of course Squall managed to know she was joking and still get fussy. That's who he was though, and it was comforting. Some things really didn't change, which was good because she didn't want them to. They were supposed to change together, that was the deal. She leaned into him, it felt nice, hooking her arm into his as well as holing his hand. She knew it took him longer than most to get comfortable with touch, so she'd make it happen one gesture at a time.

"I knew I'd look terrible in a uniform." Rinoa wasn't sure she'd ever fit in with the SeeD entirely. With the people, yes, but with the military aspect? It wasn't as easy. She was too independent and too flashy to settle well in anything uniform. She didn't consider herself vain (although maybe a tad), but more colorful. "I need to find more blue." She grinned up at him. "Maybe I'll get you in yellow. Orange. Something to suit you." All jokes aside, he did look fantastic in blue.

Squall might be getting better at building relationships with people, but they were the friendships of soldiers still—sarcastic remarks and working for justice. Physical affection was not something he was used to, but he was okay with that remaining Rinoa’s privileged area. It was strange, but...nice. It reminded him how much they relied on one another, in a way that he didn’t with anyone else. He squeezed her hand slightly, a small gesture to convey all his thoughts.

He didn’t comment on how she would look in a uniform—she was still beautiful in these scrubs—but he also didn’t see her as a SeeD. She wasn’t a mercenary in her heart—she was many things and strong, but just not a mercenary. “Yellow? Orange...?” He trailed off, thinking more of Zell and Quistis. They were not colors for him. Instead of arguing, he gave a customary “Whatever.” He sounded more amused than dismissive, though.

Squall was never going to be the boyfriend who was overly PDA or said and did all the right things. The moment she realized that, she started to see who they could be together as they were. His small gestures were big ones. His rare smiles were treasures. And the fact he chose her of all people to trust and take care of? It made her feel very special. She wouldn't trade her Squall for anyone in the world.

"Whatever," she echoed at the right moment, in her fake gruff Squall voice. And then she laughed. She really didn't care anymore what they had been doing before they forgot everything. It couldn't have been that important. They managed to find their way out of the thicket, and she breathed out a sigh of relief. "I'm glad whatever they are, they didn't make me forget the good things." Both of them had issues surrounding memory problems. She really hoped those days were behind them. "I thiiiink I was trying to figure out something to help everyone with. But I don't know what."

She was special. Squall had never pictured himself in a relationship until her, and he wasn't exactly the easiest to get in touch with. She could have chosen any other SeeD or young man who would have happily followed her in her rebellion. But here they were, and he was always grateful for it.

He smiled at her impersonation, watching her as they moved into more of a clearing. "Does it seem like anything else is missing?" he asked, a little more seriously. Guardian Forces and Time Compression had done more than a few bad turns to their minds, and he would like to avoid anything risky on that front.

"Something to help?" Squall pondered that, eyes narrowed slightly in a familiar thinking expression. If only there were something that could help them remember. "...Not a concert," he said half to himself. He could remember that attempt to help, though.

Seifer has not, particularly, gone looking for anyone. Rather, he's still finding settling in to a community... difficult. Unsettling, or more rather uncomfortable, when he has neither his gunblade nor the rest of his posse to stand at his side. But he'll be damned if he's going to actual admit that to anyone.

Thus, his little trip out into the forest, where no one will see him while he works through his thoughts on the matter.

Running into Squall somewhere in the middle of it all is, therefore, something of a surprise; for a brief moment it actually shows on his face before it slides back into the more usual half-smug.

"Didn't take you for the outdoors type."

It didn't matter how many enemies he fought or how far he came, his first rival always had a soft (or, rather, hard) spot in his heart. He knew it wasn't fair: Seifer had gone through all his own struggles, and, really, they weren't so different. Squall at least could understand Seifer's unease at being without his gunblade.

But he still couldn't shake this feeling that Seifer was always trying to mock him.

He internally took a deep breath and returned a blank expression. "SeeD are prepared for any terrain," he returned easily. "We have to be familiar with our surroundings, too."

Was that why he was out here? He didn't think so. But he wasn't going to tell Seifer he couldn't remember what brought him out here in the first place.

To be fair, he is trying to a little, in this case. He might not know exactly what he's doing here nor, for that matter, what he should be doing with his life in general, but poking fun at Squall is familiar. Comfortable, in a way few things have been of late and that's something that he's more than willing to focus on, as opposed to the mess that's the inside of his own hand.

The comment about SeeD being prepared for any terrain, on the other hand, stings a bit. He's relatively certain that Squall hadn't exactly meant for it too, but he still can't quite help but read it as a reminder of the fact that he'd failed. That he is not and never will be SeeD and the brief flicker of irritation that crosses his face is all too visible for someone who knows him as well as Squall does.

"Sure," he answers, with a shrug that suggests a casualness to the conversation that he doesn't quite feel. "But that doesn't make you any more the outdoors type."

Seifer knew how to get right under Squall's skin, too, which had to make it extra fun. Squall had grown out of his worst teenage insecurities over the time he was in other worlds, but his rivalry with Seifer went all the way back before Squall had memories. It wasn't being shaken off so easily.

But even with that, Squall hadn't meant to provoke him with the SeeD comment. He only realized his error when he noticed Seifer's annoyed expression, as clear as the scar that Squall had given him on his face. Tit-for-tat, the two of them.

"Fine, and?" Squall returned with his own hit of aggravation. "Were you looking for me for some reason?"

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Test Drive 21 (October & November)

Squall Leonhart | Final Fantasy

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject