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pixieledmemes2025-05-15 12:28 am
Test Drive Meme #3
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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.
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.
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.
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.
!!
"But, Madame, you don't need to call me so. I'm not Mam'zelle. Just 'Ponine."
She shrugs. "Truly, I ain't had food for..." She tilts her head whilst she thinks. "Perhaps a week. I don't know. It is hard to keep track. And now there is food and plates and as much as we want. I don't know what it is, but truly, I wouldn't care if it tasted of shit either. But it don't. I mean - I shouldn't use such a word to you. But la! It tastes sweet, like a strawberry a little, or - well, I don't know. And there are chewy bits in it. It is strange, and I should prefer your cake, but food is food to me."
no subject
Still.
"Believe me, people have said much more indelicate things around me. I've done it myself. Always best to call something what it is." When a crisis is unfolding, nothing is inappropriate. A little twitch of her hand, almost like she's inviting Eponine to go on. "Though - all that said, I've never heard anyone say pasta tastes like a strawberry."
no subject
She's convinced that Lune is laughing at her for being poor or starving: she wouldn't be the first person and no doubt the last, but it doesn't make it any easier for Eponine to swallow.
"I don't know what pasta is, truly, Miss."
Eponine's cheeks are flushed with her anger; she fights to keep her tone even vaguely respectful. She hates, hates having to be polite to those that are rude to her, but she knows too that the balance of power does not often lie in her favour. She stops eating, stops sucking on her fingers, stubbornly standing there with her hand at her side so she doesn't give this woman the satisfaction of seeing her eat with her fingers. Almost sarcastically, she adds,
"But I am that grateful to try it instead of one of your stupid cakes."
no subject
Eponine doesn't know? Well, it's always frustrating not to have knowledge. And at least that has an easy solution.
Always problem-solving.
"Pasta's flour and eggs, usually." A little nod, confirming herself. "Cut it into strands, or...any shape you care to, I suppose. Best to have it with some sauces or cheeses."
no subject
“I am such a woman what can afford to have egg and flour and cheese and sauce. In fact, I shall ask the cook to create it when I am home and lording over my palace stuffed with servants.”
She kicks a stone with her bare foot by out by of sheer frustration. It’s not fair. It’s not fair how casually this woman can talk about expensive foods when Eponine has had to beg and steal and worse just to get by.
“What more do you wish to laugh at, Madame? I know I ain’t got the right to say, and I shall want coin after it. A sous or that. But, if you please, can you do it quick?”
no subject
For one thing, she's speaking on the heels of a flash of irritation. Even if she thinks the words are very actionable. "You should probably be asking whichever court wants to adopt you for all those things."
...A sigh.
"Merde. Lording over a palace, really?"
no subject
Eponine still can’t imagine why she’s there. She cannot fathom that they’d willingly choose her. She’s sure she’s a mistake and she’ll be found out and thrown out or sent home or locked away.
But Lune is scoffing Eponine’s words now.
“Well then, laugh all you want. I don’t care. What’d a gamine like me do in a palace? We both know I shouldn’t be allowed in the grounds without being arrested.”
She holds a hand out. “You might be as rude as you want, but I want payment. A franc if you please.”
Eponine aims high, knowing she’ll be knocked down.
no subject
Simple, sobering truth will answer the demand.
"There isn't anything useful left to give away." Lune handled her belongings before setting out on the expedition in much the same way someone prepared for their Gommage. Like some storied leader burning the boats on going ashore in a hostile land. "I was going to die on an expedition, or succeed and come back to convince the Council to supply me for new research. I thought - someone else in Lumiére could put it to use."
She's at risk of going distant thinking about futures that would never be realized, before circling back around. "In any case, I doubt they'd have someone here if they didn't want them."
no subject
Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
Eponine swallows her disappointment.
"People make mistakes, Miss. I don't want to go back if I am a mistake."
no subject
She softens a little when those more vulnerable words come.
"People make mistakes, but they are very deliberate when they are making a great effort. Less likely to commit an error then." Lune tips her head at the feast. "This looks like a lot of effort to me."
For what comfort that might be.