strangetrip_ooc | [ Meme ] August-September Test Drive Meme (TDM)

[ Meme ] August-September Test Drive Meme (TDM)

It's that time again!

→ Comment with a new character you'd like to test out in the game's setting. (put character/canon in subject line pls!)
→ You don't have to be in the game to comment! HI NEW PEOPLE LET US ENABLE YOU.
→ Tag around with new and old characters.
→ App all those characters
→ ???
→ PROFIT!

Holds for current players are here. Current cast list is here. If you're a new player and you'd like to place a 2-week reserve, you can do so here.

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Here, have a few helpful scenarios for test-driving. Feel free to ignore them and make your own.

I.
Wherever you were, you aren't any longer. You took a turn, a step, blinked and you're somewhere else entirely. A long dusty road leads from nowhere to an oasis (or a nightmare, depending on your taste) of pink and bright light in the midst of the scrub desert and there's nothing and no one else in sight. If you linger long enough on the road, one of the Inn's residents will find you, but you feel noticeably drawn to come inside.

The pink and gold lobby looks like a bunny puked Easter everywhere, and the guy at the reservation desk looks a sort of silly putty shade of pinkish grey. He knows you by name and has a room reserved for you, but other than offering you fresh towels, that's all he has to say. Chances are, one of the residents will intercept you before you talk to Darryl the shade. They'll give you a guest basket with toiletries and chocolates and whatever else Caroline thinks a newcomer needs, and explain (nicely) that you're stuck here, but hey, it's not so bad. It's pretty safe, anyway. At least... so far.

II.
The red, gold and gaudy pink of the Copper Cafe overflows with residents. It's morning, the one and only time nearly everyone finds themselves in the same space for a short window before going about their day. The scent of fresh coffee laces the air, mingling with the buttery aroma of fresh baked pastry. The shade who serves as a cook, Kahni, awaits any orders that include chicken (chicken, not eggs), and Carlos has staffed one of the residents who can cook to make anything else you'd like. Kitty's pouring drinks -- no reason not to drink bloody maries or mimosas on your permanent holiday. Grab a spot at the counter or take a seat at an empty table, now that you're a resident too, there's no better way to start your day.

III. Network
[ooc: Our network is text-based and magic journal. No computers yet. You see this suspiciously well-painted image appear in your network-journal. Uh-oh. Someone taught Lillith to meme.]

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Being on duty for arrival day meant Liz had to keep her eye open and so, when she saw someone she recognized - barely, but she did from Peter's video - she walked over tentatively. He looked... dangerous. Not that there weren't dangerous people at the inn, but he looked like maybe he came here at a bad time.

"Um.. excuse me?"

Bucky blinked, turning around at the sound of someone speaking to him. He gave a small, almost nervous smile to the girl and raised an eyebrow at her. His head tilted and he watched her, assessing her as a non-threat.

For now.

"Yeah?" He forced himself to relax, or at least appear that way. "Uh, where is this?"

Liz realized after she opened her mouth she might recognize him from Peter's phone video, but that was exactly where her context ended. She had no idea who he was or why he was in Berlin and if she remembered correctly he was not on Peter's team. Still, she knew he had been fighting people he admired.

"This place is called the Madonna Inn, but it's not really, um. Like a normal place." She decided to, at the moment, just go with the usual 'new arrival' welcoming. She wished she saw Peter or someone else from his world in the lobby to direct him to. "This is some place like an alternate reality or some people call it a pocket dimension. But it's this place that's outside of your world, and mine, and brings people from all sortf of places and times."

She paused. She always felt like the people she told this to were going to think she was crazy. "Back home, for me, it's 2001... for example."

If she asked, he'd most likely tell her what she wanted to know. He wasn't really in a position or a place where he could keep a secret. After all, he'd been brought here against his will.

He doesn't seem surprised by her words. After everything he'd seen with HYDRA and what they did to him, he wasn't surprised at all. He could easily see Stark making a portal jumper or some other form of time travel. His head nods in understanding as he glances around the room. "Interesting."

His gazed turned back to her. "I... I'm from a little further than that." In fact, he didn't look at her like she was crazy at all. "I... I'm from 2016."

"I know..." She wet her lips, trying to figure out how exactly to explain how she knew, but he could be from before he met Spider-Man and then the whole thing would be even more awkward. And at that moment she realized that the man in front of her might know Spider-Man, but probably didn't know Peter himself.

"My name's Liz." She offered him a small smile. "And some people from your world are here." She paused. "Do you remember someone dressed in a red suit? He goes by Spider-Man?"

"You... Know?" He blinked, feeling only that much more insecure. Did she know him? He didn't know her, so that was certainly confusing to him. He nods his head, but doesn't even try to smile. It made Bucky wonder what else she knew.

"Bucky," he said softly. He'd been tempted to give her a false name, but if she knew him, then it really didn't matter at all. When she said there were others here, he felt a little bit better. At least he had not been taken alone.

His face scrunched up as he tried to remember the airstrip. Everything had been a bit of a blur due to how fast it had all happened. "Red..." He blinked. "Yeah... He... He tried to take Steve's shield," he murmured. "He's a spider man?" Well, if he was working for Iron Man, he really should not have been surprised. "Is he... Is he okay? Things..." He frowned. "Things got really bad and Steve and I got out. I... His friends..."

He still had felt terrible about everything. He wasn't worth all the trouble in his mind.

His reaction caused her to frown a little and she felt the urge to hug him, but hesitated - he was a grown man, after all, and probably getting a hug from a teenager girl was not something he wanted to have happen. Instead, she tentatively reached out to touch his hand, then paused and it awkwardly hovered for a moment before she lowered it. Liz had no idea how to provide Bucky comfort right now and it was bothering her.

"Yeah, he's fine. Everyone's fine. Did you, want to sit down? I can get you something to drink? I know this is a lot of take in." There were times like this she questioned Kitty's confidence in her to be on the Welcoming Committee.

There was the tiniest of flinches when she reached out to him, but he doesn't pull away. When he saw that she wasn't going to hurt him, he relaxed a little bit. If anything, it wasn't her that was upsetting him. He needed to find a way to convey that to her.

"Uh, water. Yeah?" He smiled a shy, awkward smile at her as he nodded his head. It wasn't her that was being the trigger to him. "Water... Please?"

"Okay. I can do that. Just... wait here?" And she really hoped he would. When she turned, she realized she might come back to him having left. She knew there wasn't anywhere to actually go but that didn't stop a lot of people from trying anyways and Bucky looked so uncomfortable.

When she came back, she had a glass of cold water and had grabbed a simple chocolate chip cookie on her way back too.

Not sure what else to do about anything, he waits. When she does return, he glances up at her, taking the water and the cookie with a very small nod of thanks to her. He smiles, the barest flicker of emotion on his face. It's not her, it's him. He's been devoid of real human connection, hiding in Bucharest until Steve came for him whether he wanted it or not.

He has to slowly get used to people again.

Slow movements guide him as he sips the water and then takes a bite of the cookie. "How long have you been here," he finally murmurs.

She watched him quietly. He sort of reminded her about how Brad was when he got here except maybe a lot worse. She didn't say anything until he spoke, hoping maybe to at least provide some comfort in 'being' without having to 'do' something. When he asked the question, though, she hesitated.

"Um.. Almost a year now, I guess. I came in November and it's, um. It's now August?" Not the best news for anyone who wanted to leave. "Some people... have been here longer. No one really knows yet how to leave, but people are working on getting out somehow."

She paused. "Sorry... I know that's not really good news for most people."

"I... I've been in worse situations. This looks pretty nice for being trapped."

Bucky looked up at her. It wasn't her fault that he was here and he did know that. Hesitantly, he reached out and patted her hand. "I... I get it. Thank you, for telling me what you know." He smiled in spite of everything happening. "It's not your fault. Won't hurt the messenger."

Bucky took a bite of the cookie. He'd forgotten what chocolate tasted like.

"And you... You settle in here? Find a room. A job?"

Liz couldn't help thinking Bucky seemed really nice. He was the second adult man she felt the need to hug here and the first was Tony Stark - it seemed like Peter's world had a theme.

At his question, though, she flushed a little and then nodded. "Um, yeah. I've, um. Well, everyone has a room. You'll have one too. And you can pick stuff to do, but everything here is free. I... I work at the restaurant sometimes as a server and at the clinic. And I'm one of the people who helps new arrivals settle in." Her flush seemed to deepened and she glanced away briefly. "And I'm sort of dating someone." Not 'sort of', she was. She had no idea what admitting that was strange, but maybe it was because it was to someone from his world.

Bucky listened to her, nodding his head as he took the information in. He glanced down at the key he'd been given, turning it over in his hands. "I should go see my room, hmm?" And yet, he really made no movement to actually go see it. He was enjoying his conversation with her, stunted as it was. He felt bad that he wasn't better at the social norms like Steve.

"Is there a list, like, of jobs?" He frowned. "Things that can be done or are needed," he said softly. "Dating? That's... Good?" He really didn't know much about dating. His last real date had been in 1945.

"um, yeah. I mean... You'll meet Caroline soon. She's great. And she's really good at assigning roles if people need that." It was politer than saying 'telling people what to do' at the very least.

She ducked her head for just a moment, sheepish. "Yeah. It's.. it's nice." Sometimes really complicated, but nice.

"Are you... I mean, did you want to check out your room? I could walk with you, if you like."

(ooc: Bucky is so damn cute lol)

"Caroline." He files the name away for future use. Should he need to ask for her or find her later, he will have cataloged it. "Useful. Good at delegation," he murmured softly. "I'm sure it's helpful." Sometimes, people prefer to be followers and take orders. Bucky didn't want to be that again, but he'd choose his battles till he had more information about this place.

His head tilted and he watched her curiously. "I would assume it's better than being not nice?"

His good hand reached up to scratch at the back of his neck. "I..." He didn't know how to politely say that he wasn't sure he wanted her to. He barely knew her. And, while she had been nice to him, he didn't know if it was the truth or an act. He'd been good at acting a while. "Not yet. Tell me more about this place? Can you show me around it? Bedrooms will be similar. What else is there?"

"Yeah, sure." She gestured for him to follow her as she headed toward where the restaurant and bar was. "So.. there's a cafe, a restaurant, and a bakery... oh, and a bar near the pool. There's a pool here. The restaurant's really nice, but the chef who works there is from here? He's kind of.. strange. Like the man at the desk. He only makes chicken stuff. But there are other people here like Emma who make other food - and you can make your own food, too. So you're not actually stuck with chicken for every meal."

She offered him a small smile. "There's a gym here and a library... a clinic and a temple that was just built. Plus a stable, if you like horses. The gardens are really pretty too." She sort of felt like a tour guide. "You saw outside, right? There's forest and desert and a mountain. If you go south enough there's even a beach. You can't go on forever, though. After about four hours you get sent back closer to the inn. No one knows why or how yet."

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[ Meme ] August-September Test Drive Meme (TDM)

Bucky/Liz

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