undyingcourt | Test Drive Meme

Entry tags:

Test Drive Meme - New Blood

DEC TEST DRIVE MEME

Welcome to the Undying Court Test Drive Meme! This post will allow players to test drive their AU characters in the setting, as well as meet fresh faces or even connect with those they have preexisting CR with. As with anything involved in the setting, this post will likely contain: violence, enthrallment, torture, and sexual content.

Regarding continuity, all TDM threads can be taken as in-game canon if desired. Please keep in mind that the game proper will begin in mid December, in the Winter Season, so Students/Novices should create their prompts under the assumption that the TDM takes place during the season prior to the one they will be apping as. This means that students planning to app as first season novices will be visiting Castle Courtsheart prior to their Beginning. In other words, if you plan to app a student as a second season, the TDM will take place during their first, and so on.

Feel free to brush up on the Premise, Vampire Powers, and head over to the FAQ/Game Info page if you have any questions!

Make sure you are aware of the Rules when posting your top-level. (Content warnings are always welcome!)
Please format your Top-level in this format: Character Name (AU Name if different) | Canon | Teacher/Student | Court
As a reminder, a Test Drive sample is required in order to app.
If you have any questions specific to the TDM, ask them in the Questions thread below!

Top-Level Directory:

Chat with NPC: Revar
Ace Attorney - Apollo Justice (Student)
Alice in the Country of Hearts - Alice Liddell (Student)
Attack On Titan - Erwin Smith (Teacher)
Baldur's Gate 3 - Astarion (Teacher)
Baldur's Gate 3 - Halsin (Teacher)
Baldur's Gate 3 - Raphael (Teacher)
Batman - Bruce Wayne (Teacher)
Bridgerton (Netflix) - Anthony Bridgerton (Student)
Castlevania - Soma Cruz (Student)
Castlevania: Nocturne - Maria Renard (Student)
Cosmo Warrior Zero - Harlock (Student)
Critical Role - Percy DeRolo (Teacher)
Daria - Daria Morgendorffer (Teacher)
Devil Summoner - Raidou Kuzunoha XIV (Student)
Dragon Age - Fenris (Teacher)
D&D: Honor Amongst Thieves - Edgin Darvis (Teacher)
D&D: Honor Amongst Thieves - Xenk Yendar (Teacher)
Ensemble STars!! - Mayoi Ayase (Student)
Fate/Zero - Kariya Matou (Kariya Makiri) (Student)
FE: Three Houses - Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd (Student)
FE: Three Houses - Hilda Goneril (Student)
FE: Three Houses - Lorenz Hellman Gloucester (Student)
FE: Three Houses - Marianne von Edmund (Student)
FE: Three Houses - Sylvain Gautier (Student)
Final Fantasy XIV - Estinien Varlineau (Teacher)
Frozen - Prince Hans (Student)
Genshin Impact - Diluc Ragnvindr (Teacher)
Genshin Impact - Tighnari (Teacher)
Hanna Is Not A Boy's Name - Conrad Achenleck (Teacher)
Hannibal (NBC) - Will Graham (Teacher)
Jujutsu Kaisen - Gojo Satoru (Teacher)
Jujutsu Kaisen - Toji Zen'in (Teacher)
Lucifer (Netflix) - Lucifer Morningstar (Teacher)
MCU - Loki Laufeyson (Teacher)
Original - Aurinn Laurentius (Student)
Original - Bellatrix Bakhar (Student)
Original - Christine Delacroix (Teacher)
Original - Hanako 'Rosalina' Nurumi (Teacher)
Original - Jisu (Eden Woods) (Student)
Original - Karma D'Auvergn (Teacher)
Our Flag Means Death - Edward Teach (Teacher)
Our Flag Means Death - Izzy Hands (Student)
Persona 3 Portable - Kotone Shiomi (Student)
Persona 5 R - Goro Akechi (Student)
Persona 5 - Haru Okumura (Student)
Persona 5 - Ren Amamiya (Student)
Pride and Prejudice - Elizabeth Bennet (Student)
Return to Labrynth - Sarah Williams (Teacher)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs - Snow White (Student)
Stargate: Atlantis - John Sheppard (Teacher)
Star Trek: AOS - James T. Kirk (Student)
Star Wars - Darth Vader (Teacher)
Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order - Trilla Suduri (Student)
The Adventure Zone: Balance - Kravitz (Teacher)
The Adventure Zone: Balance - Lydia (Teacher)
The Adventure Zone: Graduation - Fitzroy Maplecourt (Student)

NEW ARRIVALS

New arrivals will be starting their first season in the winter, but they're welcomed to the castle early, under the watchful eyes of the Silver Court. Upon arrival, they will be shown to a room by a human whose eyes glow softly from within, with vacant smiles. Thralls. There, the human thralls will draw them a bath and bring them new clothes to wear to their first meeting. These are rich, expensive things made of high quality fabric. Whether it's a silk dress and a heavy velvet cowl, or a fine pants and a vest made from a brocade, the servants will provide. The new initiate's old clothes will be burned after, in a symbol of the life they are leaving behind. If they are hungry, they will be provided food. If they need anything at all, they need only ask their new servants.

Later that night they are taken to a grand hall, with high arched ceilings and candles burning in chandeliers. There are figures painted overhead, beautiful and entwined. Some have their eyes are colored to match the courts, others are gracefully placed in their death, with blood dripping from necks and wrists.

Balconies line the hall behind a forest of pillars, and vampires all watch as the group walk through (some more hungrily than others).

"Welcome to your first undying season, initiates," a pale, silver-haired vampire calls. They have silver eyes are clad in silver robes, but command the attention of everyone in attendance. They have a beauty that seems neither male nor female. They are standing at the center of a wide semi-circle of other vampires, "As the Silver Court's acting voice at this end of the Autumn season, allow me to introduce you to the Houses that will be your new homes."

The vampire, Revar, gives the newcomers an overview of all of the courts—Blue, Red, Gold, Silver, and Black—and then invites those already claimed by their Courts to join the vampires who will be their Makers.

Revar offers the Foundlings who are left a gentle, knowing smile, and then allows them to be chosen. They are like the last sheep left at the auction, and the vampires who take them may not be the enthused about it. Nevertheless, Revar waits patiently until all have found a maker.

Now that they are paired up it is expected—indeed, required—that the initiate drink from their maker. That is their Beginning. Only once they have truly begun can they can be considered novices.

AUTUMN NOX

Silver Court is in season and for the Autumn Nox it holds a large symposium, inviting all the best vampire minds from around lands nearby and far. The whole castle is abuzz with new activity. The stables are packed full of horses, carriages litter the grounds, but somehow the castle has enough rooms to house all the new arrivals.

Novices will find that some of these vampires have not seen a human-novice in a very, very long time. These vampires might see the human-novices more like specimens, curious about their every move. They won't bite, but novices may find themselves observed as they wander the castle and its grounds.

The symposium itself is open to anyone at the castle. Scholars can present on any topic at all. Novices will find that these range from the incredibly mundane (you've always wanted to attend a history of bottom-feeding river fish, haven't you?) to the truly fascinating (new insights into how vampire hearts work) to the downright strange (the symposium has a range of lectures very close to dawn about the sharing of vampire...fluids). Seasoned novices with their own Autumn classes to attend are expected to keep up with their studies, but some teachers may let them out of a session to attend the lectures and workshops of the symposium.

The Silver Court vampires are incredibly busy between running the symposium and trying to help the new novices get settled in. They may need some volunteers to lend a hand with setting up rooms or helping scholars find their way around. In fact, volunteers might find themselves leading scholars down to the second kitchen for a bite to eat, a strong reminder that even these demure learners are still monsters who must drink blood.

PUMPKINS-GONE-WILD

The symposium isn't all that the autumn season brings. The Silver Court’s talents are on display in other ways—sometimes not in ways another had particularly hoped. An overly zealous youngblood in the Silver Court tried to grow a few extra pumpkins for the occasion and ended up with a few too many! The pumpkin vines break out of the green house and start sprouting pumpkins everywhere. These are no ordinary pumpkins, they will sprout and grow and become fully formed in the course of a night. Better keep an eye out for those vines or else your room might become full of pumpkins! Luckily, the pumpkins aren’t rotting any time soon (they’ll last until winter, or so the Silver Court vampires are saying), but it can be pretty inconvenient for them to grow everywhere. Start cutting those vines to pieces, and hope they don’t try to entangle you in the process.

LIBRARY CLEAN-UP

Meanwhile, with all the scholars in town are making a mess of the library, much to the Silver Court vampire’s dismay. Books are being checked out and not checked back in, passed around from scholar to scholar. You might find those lost books just about anywhere. Who was reading in a tree? Anyone who collects the books and returns them to the library is sure to get a little bit of favor with the librarians, and it’s never a bad thing to have a bit of an in with a Court. If you’re worried about failing Silver Court, it’s time to get searching! Although how you’re going to convince a 300 year old vampire that time is not fake and that deadlines are real (and in fact were two days ago) is anyone’s guess.

UNETHICAL EXPRIMENTS

[CW: Torture, experiments]

Those who venture towards the basement might hear something a little different than normal. The thralls who spend their time down there are normally quiet, commanded to keep silent and pleasant for the vampires they serve. But with the arrival of the new scholars comes disquieting, inhuman screams from the darker reaches of the basement. Novices trying to catch a glimpse will be chased away, but teachers might be invited to watch as these vampires experiment on one another, all in the name of science. What’s a little torture, when you’re undying?

Thanks for joining us for our first TDM! For any questions regarding the TDM prompts, please comment in the thread below. For general game questions, please check the FAQ/Game Info. Remember that the game proper will begin mid December, in the Winter Season, so Students/Novices should create their prompts under the assumption that the TDM takes place during the season prior to the one they will be apping as.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ his eyes flit to Erwin's hand on his shoulder, but only for a second; he doesn't stiffen, but he was pretty stiff to begin with. as much as Erwin's told him, he still doesn't really know how this next part is going to go. there's a faint pang of fear when he thinks about it, but he won't acknowledge it.

instead he just takes a deep breath and nods. ]

Lead the way.

[ it's strange: erwin's never felt this drawn to anyone he's turned before, but for some reason with levi the pull feels inescapable.

so he nods, turning to head out and go somewhere more private. his office maybe, or a secluded sitting room area. ]

You're going to feel both exhausted and hyped up once we're done. It's a strange sensation, but other than that you should feel fine.

[ it's his sparkling smile and magnetic personality pulling Erwin in, obviously. few can resist his unique charms.

okay, maybe not. whatever. who knows the real reason? it's a mystery.

he nods again, solemn, but confusion catches up with him after Erwin finishes speaking, and his brows furrow. ]

'Fine?' Really? I kind of assumed it would hurt.

[ it has to be exactly that.

erwin pauses at that, considering how best to word his answer.

finally, he speaks. ]

It's strange, certainly. There's a... pull, that can feel marginally painful, and there will be a point where you feel dizziness. That will be rectified after you have my blood in return. But the concept of it being an excruciating experience isn't the case, generally speaking. In my experience, the most unsettling part of the process is the brief feeling of lost control before things even out again.

[ lost control... phew. he doesn't love that. only the slightest of winces would give it away, though. easy to miss for anyone who's not exceptionally good at that kind of thing.

so much for that.

perhaps unconsciously, he reaches up to rub at his neck. ]

Okay. Where, uh...

[ fuck. how is he supposed to end that sentence? "where would you like to bite me?" it sounds so stupid in his head that he can't make it come out of his mouth. hopefully Erwin gets the idea. ]

[ easy to miss for someone not erwin, and he tilts his head slightly to watch levi and catalogue his reactions further.

the question doesn't surprise him, but he doesn't have a canned answer ready. it always depends on the person, and he thinks he might, after a moment's thought, have an answer that would be satisfactory, at least for now. ]

Would you be more comfortable if we used a knife instead of my teeth? And that said, it doesn't have to be the neck. Personally, I find wrists more intimate than necks, but it can be easier for people new to the experience to nick an arm rather than feel that kind of pressure on their neck.

[ well, damn, that's a good question. would he be more comfortable if they used a knife?

it's something that gives him pause, because his very first thought is yes—a knife is easier to sanitize than a mouth, after all—but there's more to it than that, isn't there? if they use a knife, his blood is more likely to spill and stain something. he's more likely to see it, even if it doesn't. if Erwin bites him, he can minimize contact with his own blood.

it takes him a moment to answer. ]

...No, that's fine. There won't always be a clean knife on hand, so I might as well get used to it.

[ this is a true statement, so it's fine if it's not his primary reasoning, right? ]

You can take one of my wrists.

[ erwin is patient as he waits: he has all the time in the world, and levi can take his time making his decisions about this because it's changing his life forever. erwin thinks he'd be more conservative about the matter if levi had happily, immediately jumped right in—it can be difficult to tell when someone just really wants this or when they're starry-eyed over the idea and will regret it later.

levi's healthy sense of caution is what made the decision for him, in the end. ]

Alright. I'm going to do it quickly.

[ no time to agonize about it. he carefully takes hold of levi's forearm, eyes flicking from his face to his wrist before he leans down to sink his teeth in swiftly but mindfully.

it shouldn't hurt: it's not the most pleasurable experience or anything, but it's also not agony in any way.

there's something to be said for the fact that so far, erwin hasn't spilled a drop of blood. ]

[ at first he doesn't look. he's not really afraid of pain, but it is a little unnerving. how does this not hurt, anyway? he assumes it's just more weird vampire shit; if Erwin wanted it to hurt, he's sure it would hurt.

he does turn his attention back to Erwin after a moment, though, and he watches until the deed is done. he doesn't miss the fact that Erwin didn't spill even a drop of his blood, either—he even watches the bite for a few seconds after to see if it bleeds, and it doesn't.

impressive. ]

Sorry if it tastes like shit. Not much I can do about that.

[ he may be trying to play off the fact that the next part of this makes him a little more nervous, and it's not because of the taste. ]

Why do you think it would taste bad?

[ he sounds curious more than anything, like the lack of confidence required to assume your blood tastes bad is completely unfathomable to him. that said, he shakes his head slightly as he straightens up. ]

That said, no. It doesn't taste like shit. [ mildly. the curse sounds strange falling from his mouth, like he doesn't do it often.

then he draws out a small knife and digs a small slice into his own wrist, offering it over to levi. ]

You don't have to drink much. It'll heal over once you're finished.

Edited 2024-02-05 02:08 (UTC)

Because blood tastes bad. Like licking a coin. It doesn't taste that way to you?

[ it doesn't make him terribly excited about adding it into his regular diet. it's kinda hard to believe someone could acquire a taste for it. then again, what does he know? he's just a lowly human.

for a little while longer, at least.

he doesn't really have time to ask what his blood tastes like or otherwise waste any more of their time because by then Erwin has already nicked himself, and if he doesn't get off his ass and do the thing he's going to have to deal with blood even more. on top of that, somehow it feels like it would be disrespectful to waste any of Erwin's blood. it's way more valuable than his own, surely.

it makes him wonder if he's even worthy of it. Erwin must think he is, though, right?

he doesn't get it, but he swallows anyway as he takes Erwin's arm, leans over, and closes his mouth around the tiny wound.

...he has no idea what he should be looking at during this. eye contact would be too weird, right? for now, he just closes his eyes and waits for a sign he's had enough. ]

It doesn't, no. It's... difficult to explain.

[ he'll think about it and come up with something, surely. for now he's focused on the moment, watching levi carefully and closely, making sure he's not too upset or out of sorts by what he's being tasked to do.

it's not long that erwin has him drink though, and after a moment he gently taps levi's shoulder and withdraws his arm. even a few drops is enough to initiate the change, after all, and levi, like most novices, isn't too fond of the blood at first.

it makes sense, and he'll respect it. should levi end up wanting more during later exchanges, erwin won't stop him. ]

That's enough.

[ gentle. there's a smile in his voice. he almost sounds proud. ]

[ aaand before he knows it, he's already had enough.

huh. well, that wasn't so bad.

he wipes his mouth with a hand; just a habit, as there's no way he managed to get blood on his face drinking so little. his brows furrow in thought after, like he's trying to decide if he feels any different.

he opens his mouth to ask, but nothing ever comes out. when he looks back up at Erwin, it's like something clicks into place. he does feel different—not significantly different, but somehow Erwin feels a little more... familiar? that's not quite it. he doesn't know what to call it.

for a short moment, he just stares up at him, seemingly dumbfounded. he only had a tiny bit of Erwin's blood—how is this gonna be when he starts having more? ]

—Huh. So that's it?

[ he'll try to play it off, of course. it's fine. he's fine. ]

[ a starter dose, one might say, if they were inclined to say such things. erwin's too busy examining levi's face when he looks up, like he's making sure he's alright. bad reactions are rare, but he's a cautious man.

finally satisfied after a moment, in part because it's become just slightly easier to gauge levi's state of being now that they've shared blood, he nods at the question. ]

It'll become more intense over time, and as that time passes you'll need to drink more and more at a time. However, it's a gradual thing and starting out small is usually the best way to go, in my experience. If only because it keeps one from becoming overwhelmed by the experience.

[ haha, overwhelmed. who's overwhelmed here? nobody. certainly not him. he just drank another man's blood, thus beginning his gradual transition away from being a human and also handing said man a free viewing pass to his thoughts and feelings—what could be overwhelming about that?

yeah, starting small is good. he nods in agreement. ]

I assume you have others.

[ other novices, he means. surely he can't be getting all of the attention, right? ]

[ erwin searches levi's face a moment, but he's apparently satisfied by whatever he finds there. the question seems to startle him slightly though, and he shakes his head this time, certainly not offended but a bit surprised. he's aware that other vampires can have many at once, but he's always been... ]

No. I never have more than one novice at a time. If I'm going to help someone, I'm going to do it right, without any distractions.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Test Drive Meme - New Blood

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