changelinged: (Default)
Pixie Led Mods ([personal profile] changelinged) wrote in [community profile] pixieledmemes2025-05-16 12:28 am
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Test Drive Meme #3

TDM #3 - May/June 2025
🦋 Introduction

Welcome to the Pixie Led Test Drive Meme!

The prompts will always be game canon, provided both characters who participate in a thread are either already in the game, or get accepted in the next application round.

You do not need an invitation to join the Test Drive Meme, it's open for anyone!

Please indicate character name and canon in the subject line of your top-level. For current characters, you may also indicate your character's court.

For prospective players, Invites open on the 18th, Reserves on the 20th, and Applications on the 22nd. Thanks for checking us out and we hope you'll join us!

🦋 The Party

You wake up at a party.

You're not sure how, exactly, you got here. You may have just been walking in the woods or at a meeting for work or doing any other normal activity for you. But you know you weren't supposed to be at this party, you're fairly certain.

Anyone you ask about it will say the party is for you. You and the others also waking up and looking confused. Further questions will lead to the partygoers insisting you have something to eat. You're starving and others are eating the food without repercussion, so you figure there's no harm in a bite. You finish your portion.

It's another garden party near a large hedge maze in the middle of the night. With his penchant for games the Ruler of the Spring Court decided it would be nice to hold an actual game for all the Adopted present. None of that dreidel game a couple of parties ago. This time, he wants more spectacle with higher stakes. Forced to participate and host aspects of this gathering as well, the Ruler of the Dark Court wanted nothing to do with this, so he figured his participation in itself is for the party to happen at night, during his rule, when his mood is at its most pleasant.

Of course, there is no shortage of light sources such as candles and torches, much to the Earl's chagrin, as well as no shortage of food. This time, the fae decided to try their hand on some pasta. They heard it's a good delicacy from the mortal plane. Thing is, sauces look and smell bizarre. One's purple, while another's bright pink, and they taste fruity, as well as flowery, much like the cookies from the last gathering.

As the party winds down and everyone's eaten, a tall, stately woman stands up and speaks. You feel her voice more than hear it.

I am the Lawspeaker of the Fae, elected by Seelie and Unseelie alike, and you are all, now, subjects of Faerie. You cannot leave this realm once you have eaten our food, and even if you could, there is no saying how much time has passed back where you're from. Your loved ones are likely dead, your problems have likely played out. We require assistance in various matters, and each of you has been chosen for your talent and skill. You will be adopted by one of the Seelie or Unseelie Courts based on your strengths and personality. Your Court will decide what to do with you from there.

As suddenly as she stood, she sits back down.


🦋 Feeling on Hedge

So, what about this hedge maze that seems to have appeared out of nowhere and looming quite eerily beside this night's gathering? For one, peculiar noises can be heard whenever one's near its entrance. From the rustling of leaves to a woman crying, everything seems to be coming from inside.

Of course, the Adopted's participation is required and paramount. Anyone who refuses will be met with harsh penalties and consequences, whatever those may be. They also hint of a prize to anyone who comes out victorious on the other side. It's unclear what it is, though.

The fae know that while the Adopted have been very useful so far, they are also vulnerable and susceptible to fear, so to mitigate that, they have some colorful shots on a table marked LIQUID COURAGE near the entrance to the maze with such effects:

  • Gold: Essentially a strong drink that gives you profound energy for 24 hours.
  • Red: Downing this will make you feel warm like an aphrodisiac.
  • Blue: Basically functions like a normal tequila shot. Or three. Comes with a little bag of salt.

These shots are not compulsory for the Adopted to take, but they will be highly encouraged to do so before entering. Once inside, the rustling of leaves and the sounds of someone crying become louder and even more evident. There are also a few key things that seem to be very clear the longer an Adopted is within the maze's walls:

  • The maze is moving. How it's doing it, nobody knows. But it appears to be alive somehow, much like the castle grounds, so finding a clear pathway is almost impossible.
  • Whenever an Adopted turns right two consecutive times, they will see a more positive outcome from a terrible event in their lives. Lost someone? They're now here and alive. Gave up on a dream? You find yourself currently living it.
  • If an Adopted turns left two consecutive times, they will see someone, a family member or a friend who's still alive and had a deep impact on their lives, bleeding and dead on the ground.

It would be great if no one else can see an Adopted during their most vulnerable, but since the maze moves constantly, another Adopted or two might be able to see them trying to parse out what they're seeing, even if their fellow Adopted can't see it themselves.


🦋 Can't Unseelie It

CW: dismemberment, body horror, forced body transformations, mild gore, asphyxiation, drowning of children, death

The Spring King only wanted some good-natured fun within the maze, but unbeknownst to him, some Unseelie creatures and Unseelie magic have appeared inside, threatening the safety of the Adopted traversing every nook and cranny. Surely this will not have any lasting consequences between the relationship of the Seelie and Unseelie court rulers. Not at all.

A few of these Unseelie beings and Unseelie magic roaming around the hedge maze that the Adopted will have a chance to meet are as follows:

  • Manananggal: Capable of severing its torso from its legs, this vampiric creature usually preys on sleeping pregnant women and unborn babies. But not anymore. Due to magic put on it, this manananggal will strike anyone it comes across. Better pour salt on its severed lower torso once you find it, or else.
  • La Llorona: Remember that woman crying? Well, somewhere in the maze alongside the eerie sounds of water flowing, you'll come across a weeping woman cloaked in white with her back turned against you. Be careful not to approach her because once you do, she'll try to choke you to death, reminiscent of how she drowned her own children.
  • Jersey Devil: The first thing you'll hear once you turn is a high-pitched, blood-curdling scream then the sound of bat wings flapping. You better run as fast as you can to the other direction because this devil is out to attack anyone it sees on its path.
  • A fountain: How odd. Running from the jersey devil or the manananggal might have made you thirsty so perhaps there's no harm in drinking from it. But just coming in contact with its water will make any Adopted soon realize they have transformed into an Unseelie creature.

Fighting off these creatures might be best with a fellow Adopted. After all, there's power in numbers. Just be careful not to die within the hedge maze. There might be some dire consequences.


🦋 GEIS

You feel a vibration in your pocket sometime after the Lawspeaker addresses everyone. When you search for the source, you will pull out your Leaf, the device the Fae use to stay in touch with each other. Anyone who's used a smart phone will easily recognize how it works.

Greetings, Adopted. This is your Lawspeaker.

To be on theme with our festivities for tonight, we want to know a time in your life when you felt lost and wandering about. Perhaps the most compelling story will receive a reward from us.



navigation

meforsaken: (- 89.)

[personal profile] meforsaken 2025-05-16 12:31 am (UTC)(link)
yes but i personally want and deserve a reward and they have to deal with me on a daily basis
goldwraith: (unless otherwise stated) (109)

[personal profile] goldwraith 2025-05-16 12:35 am (UTC)(link)
[It was very final, cemented in stone if you will- Mel didn't expect either of them to come out of the final battle alive. Of course, she wasn't going to just lay down her life without a fight, but full victory seemed like a pipe dream. And she hates that she was right, and her surviving because of whatever her mother has done to her. After all, without that magic, Mel was nothing in front of Ambessa.]

I won't. I actually feel nauseous, [and hungry at the same time, but the first easily rules over the other.] And this... food [food does not look like food] is not helping the matter.

[So instead she chooses to focus on what Jayce is telling her about the place.] Fae? Why does that sound like the place the professor is from? [Heimerdinger.]

Also- it would seem I'm an easy target for kidnapping. Second time in a year, [she says half disgruntled, half joking.]
goldwraith: (unless otherwise stated) (Default)

[personal profile] goldwraith 2025-05-16 12:36 am (UTC)(link)
...you 'deserve' a reward because...? of other things you answered?
viennoiseries: (Earth Rising)

ii.

[personal profile] viennoiseries 2025-05-16 12:39 am (UTC)(link)
[When Lune recognizes Maelle, she makes her way over to the table. Does peer at the drinks, curious about them. But it doesn't look like tints to her, and she doesn't need "liquid courage."

Besides, Maelle sounds nervous. Even though she's relieved to have spotted someone familiar, even though there's a storm of thoughts and emotions in her. Lune figures she needs to be the composed one.

She touches the corner of the table, rather than surprise Maelle.]


Of course. We'll go together. Maybe we'll even get to the end without something trying to separate us.
miraclewater: (moody)

[personal profile] miraclewater 2025-05-16 12:39 am (UTC)(link)
[Adverse effects...? He takes a look at his own, letting it swirl slightly.]

I have no idea. [It's the truth. But knowing the fae...] Nothing that last longer than the beneficial effects, I imagine. And usually the cost is the worse effect, but these were free.
coolcustomer: (Default)

geis

[personal profile] coolcustomer 2025-05-16 12:39 am (UTC)(link)
To be fair, the flickering light does catch someone's attention, if... not in the way the device was meant to.

Before too long, Haru can't resist investigating. She does her best to figure out where the reflection is coming from and follow it back to the source, which at least gets her to the bottom of the ledge. "Hello? Is someone up there?"
miraclewater: (look at my hand)

[personal profile] miraclewater 2025-05-16 12:40 am (UTC)(link)
Oh, I'm sure it was. But I doubt anyone else here saw it. [Hm, how does he explain this. He's never fully understood all this multiple world stuff...]

Everyone came from very, very different places.
meforsaken: (- 25.)

[personal profile] meforsaken 2025-05-16 12:41 am (UTC)(link)
because i'm a special little birthday boy of course
dessendre: (pic#17850594)

YES more clea stans pls 🙏

[personal profile] dessendre 2025-05-16 12:42 am (UTC)(link)
It was an unexpected response, and Clea found herself scoffing in genuine amusement. "That would actually be useful for once," she said dryly, lowering the glass to observe the newcomer with more clarity. They appeared rather young — perhaps not as young as Alicia, but close. It stirred something in the pit of her chest, something she tried never to study.

She can at least empathize with the look of boredom. This entire situation was highly irritating, but then again, Clea was well-practiced at maintaining a veneer of detachment when necessary. Best not to let everyone know just how frustrated she actually was.

With an impressed raise of her eyebrow, Clea watched the young man drain the contents of the drink in one smooth pull. "Can you be certain?" She eyed her own glass a moment longer before drinking the entire thing herself. Her own face pinched at the taste. "You may be right," she managed after a moment, still wary about this being some trick or charm.
miraclewater: (goddamnit)

[personal profile] miraclewater 2025-05-16 12:43 am (UTC)(link)
Part of him had half worried Wrathion might reacted more violently -- he probably would've, for a moment, if the situations were reversed.

"The fae here really like to mess with us," Nahobino explained. Even so, he peered down at the tauren's figure, eyes narrowing in sympathy.

"Though this is... crueler than they've been before." There's a hint of something in his voice, something of a softness for Wrathion's situation of a building anger at the Rulers.

"If your companion was really here, I don't think they'd let that happen. They value us too much."
killedzordon: (lockers)

[personal profile] killedzordon 2025-05-16 12:44 am (UTC)(link)
[Andros might not be a people person but he was definitely putting some things together. And he was still a little confused. Especially now that he could see the pink pterodactyl on the coin. Because the ranger in front of him? Was not Kimberly Hart.]

Kim. Kim Hart?

[How did he say this without sounding super rude? What was this, ranger identity theft? He was pretty sure that wasn't the same Kim that Jason and Tommy and shown him.]

I'm sorry, I'm really confused. You don't look like Kim.

[Then again there were like. Three Loki's here.]

I guess there's more than one universe?
thephotosynthesis: (Flora and fauna)

[personal profile] thephotosynthesis 2025-05-16 12:44 am (UTC)(link)
[Olivia listens with interest. The river isn't familiar, but the name sounds like something out of Rondon.]

That sounds different from what I remember... maybe in other places, the change just felt like falling asleep. That, or some places weren't affected at all...
thephotosynthesis: (Default)

[personal profile] thephotosynthesis 2025-05-16 12:46 am (UTC)(link)
Is that so? Different worlds, or something like that? [She reads fantasy books.]

Where I'm from, a very dramatic change had just happened to the whole world. I can't imagine anyone not having noticed it when it happened unless they were from somewhere else entirely.
deprime: (pic#17850078)

[personal profile] deprime 2025-05-16 12:48 am (UTC)(link)
just in case
[ The silence didn't sit right with Gustave and the longer it stretched out, the deeper the pit in the center of his chest felt. As he stared at him, shifting his feet slightly, Gustave started to notice things — the stripe of white in his hair, the almost familiar scar across his face — and that pit became a chasm. ]

Who are you? [ He's more forceful this time, his distrust beginning to seep into his voice. Gustave might have crowded into the man's space if arms hadn't grabbed him from behind, sharp, bony fingers biting into his neck and shoulders.

Twisting in that grip, Gustave felt his fingers start to close around his pistol, only for hands to grasp at his wrist.
] Shit. Shit.

[ Gustave grit his teeth, eyes darting back to the other man, watching that moment of hesitance. That is being filed away. But he's instantly grateful in the next moment, one of his own hands cradling his throat as his other summons the pistol again, aiming right for her and pulling the trigger. Once, twice, three times. It's enough to make her stumble backwards and give him a second to catch his breath. But to put his back to her again or this other man was the question. Cautiously he choses neither, putting himself off to the side where he could see them both. As she stutters and starts to lunge for them, he pulls his own sword out of the aether, still panting. ]

What is this thing?
viennoiseries: (Default)

The Party

[personal profile] viennoiseries 2025-05-16 12:50 am (UTC)(link)
The dressed up but barefoot woman wouldn't be the worst one to peg as someone who isn't quite what she seems. Little oddities that set her apart from a normal person. But when Roui speaks, she's taking a moment to simply consider him.

Humans, gestrals, and nevrons. That's what Lune knows. But in the times when she indulges imagination - why can't there be even more out in the universe? So she doesn't question what exactly he is, yet.

The more immediate, blunt question, is...

"The Mad Rook...causing trouble in the Flat?" These things are supposed to be significant, Lune is certain. "Is that a code?"
deprime: (pic#17850076)

[personal profile] deprime 2025-05-16 12:51 am (UTC)(link)
[ Pulling something cold out of the chroma in a glitter of light, he held out the piece of ice, now wrapped in a cloth. ] Little trick I picked up from an old friend. It should help.

[ Gustave looks up at the wall, and then at the hedge maze. ] How are you at climbing?
theyputitback: (serious)

[personal profile] theyputitback 2025-05-16 12:51 am (UTC)(link)
[He knows her?

Her fingers wrap tightly around her coin, slipping it back into her pocket. Not that she really needed to worry. As far as any of them could tell, the coins had bonded with them to the point of even teleporting to them from other rooms.]


Is it the hair? [Bad joke.] I chopped most of it off a couple weeks ago but I'm still definitely Kimberly Hart.

[[Ugh, where's Billy when you need him? He'd be able to wrap his head around this better.]

How is that possible?
dessendre: all commissioned, dnt s'il vous plaît (Default)

wow this got depressing fast!!

[personal profile] dessendre 2025-05-16 12:52 am (UTC)(link)
more spoilers sob
Clea.

No.

It wasn't a response she managed to choke out, but it was one she seemed to telegraph from the burning look she tried to send Verso's way. She didn't need saving. She didn't want it. Of all people, she thought this version of her brother would understand. They had, both of them, endured what felt like an eternity fighting the bitter conflict of their parents.

When the creature dies with a gut-wrenching noise, splattering blood down the front of Clea's already stained clothes, she can only wonder if their own mother would have wished for this. It wasn't a pleasant thought. But then again, what comfort did they have left between any of them?

"You could have waited your turn," Clea rasped, attempting to inject steel into a voice that wavered. Weak, their mother's voice filtered through her mind, and she winced, turning her face away. Rubbing her neck, she fell silent, refusing to thank him. Not for this.
coffeencurry: (Default)

Chopsticks?

[personal profile] coffeencurry 2025-05-16 12:52 am (UTC)(link)
What utensils are available to eat the pasta with? More specifically, are there chopsticks?
dessendre: (pic#17850583)

[personal profile] dessendre 2025-05-16 01:00 am (UTC)(link)
[ I don't need this lecture, Clea thinks. The others do. I never did.

See me
.

SEE ME.

She tries to let this go. The ongoing battle of the eldest. ]


An illusion of chaos, then. We control it so that it can't control us. [ Unlike certain people. ]
gentlemenshallwe: (Default)

Elijah Mikaelson | The Originals

[personal profile] gentlemenshallwe 2025-05-16 01:01 am (UTC)(link)
Party

[A bit of champagne and a kidnapping, just the sort of soiree that the Mikaelsons are normally famous for. Sadly, the tables have been turned and Elijah is on the receiving end of such "hospitality". Of matters at home weren't so delicate, he might actually be curious about this realm. There were stories about such creatures when he was young, but having a witch for a mother pushed such things in the background. After all, the only supernatural that Elijah knew about were the big three, vampire, werewolf, and witch. He might be amused otherwise, but sadly, his time is limited.

So, don't be surprised to see him look at his watch from time to time. There’s no telling what Niklaus is up to.

Still, there's no point in wasting good champagne.]


The Maze

[Given this is a requirement and not a request, Elijah reluctantly ventures into the maze. It’s a bit absurd, as his family only does such things if it benefits them. It's a strange thing to be forced by this mythical species. An Original forced by a faerie. If Niklaus were here...no, it's better not to think about it.

He avoided the liquids offered at the gate, but stole salt just in case. There's a part of him that wouldn't mind using his speed to make this quick, but caution is the better idea; and honestly, there's no reason to ruin his suit.

Elijah is hardly fond of mazes and each time he takes a double left, he sees images of Rebekah, Freya, and Niklaus covered in blood, dead...so to speak. It's easy enough to tell this is magic, but it's still distressing.

By the time he runs into someone, anyone else, he's far from displeased.]


Are you lost?
goldwraith: (unless otherwise stated) (100)

[personal profile] goldwraith 2025-05-16 01:01 am (UTC)(link)
So... you take anything that is free, regardless of the consequences it might bring?

[She gives the guy a look-over and, it's been a while, but she's impressed.] I can't tell if that's reckless or brave. Perhaps both.
lementeur: (031)

cw: suicidal ideation

[personal profile] lementeur 2025-05-16 01:04 am (UTC)(link)
Let's find out.

[ With how this maze seems to shift, is a landmark going to be any help? Like everything else, there's little here to actually rely on, but nor can they stand around forever waiting to see what happens. They need to move forward.

With a nod, Verso will take a few chance steps, motioning for Lune to remain behind him as he hopes to edge his way around the woman without her reacting. Of course, the sounds of her grief are difficult to ignore—he's not heartless. It strikes a unique chord within him. But he trusts when a trap is sensed, and everything about her posture and how she refuses to even acknowledge them beyond her weeping is plenty to set off alarm bells.

Unfortunately, he steps a little too close when circling around, needing to close in to reach the opening on the other side, and he barely has time to summon his sword and dagger before she's wrapped her hands around his throat with a grip that is entirely inhuman.

Shit.

That shouldn't be a threat to someone like him, but everything about this place seems to break the rules, and there's a morbid curiosity as he hesitates to counterattack. ]