APPLE ORCHARDS AND TORN DREAMS [OPEN]

[cordibus]

Who: Open Log (All)
Where: Around the city (one prompt at the Green Valley school
Summary: Welcome Ceremonies, Dreams, Stirring a shadow hornet's nest. No big deal.
Warnings: N/A

"Are you ready my black lambs? Let's get to work..."

Apple Picking (General Prompt)

As September begins, the apple orchards of Greenfield Valley school are bursting with thousands of apples of various flavors and colors. There's even an experimental breed that's blue!

Those who have been attending the school know that this means a few important things. The first (and most important of course) is that it means that fall vacation is coming in just a few weeks (despite school having started just a few weeks ago), the second is that the school's menu is going to have a high number of apple-themed dishes until winter, and finally, the opening ceremonies.

The opening ceremonies are - well - one would consider them mostly boring for typical schools. And truth be told, Green Valley is not an exception. A single camera posed at the school's main gymnasium, a large podium in the center. For those who can't be physically there, the school's televisions all synchronized to a live broadcast as does the audio feeds. You can't quite escape it. Yet most people don't - after all it's one of the rare times of the year where the principal appears to wish students good fortune.

The person who stands in the front, Ms Michelle Andersen, is the very definition of an ice queen. Her face is perhaps locked forever into an emotionless stare. Bright blonde hair with blue eyes, both contract to her orange and black outfit.

Behind her, three men, the vice principals, who tend to play the good cops to her bad cop routine and insist that most students call them by their first names unless something really bad has happened; Norman (the most average man on campus that no one would know who he was if it wasn't for his name tag), Jeremy (the tallest staff member standing at over 195cm, thin, a bit of a lisp but he always means well), and Felix (possibly the hairiest man on campus as far as the rumors go, muscular, and a black beard that matches his scowling face when he isn't laughing - which is usually all the time. In fact, he's holding back himself from doing so when Ms. Andersen speaks.)

The presentation is short, as the Principal wishes all the students a great year, gives a bit of data on the number of students (they are up 300 new students from last year), the number of important guests that have passed, then as quickly as she was there, she leaves, explaining that there are additional meetings and events she will explain in greatest detail in the upcoming months.

Afterwards the students are treated to the vice principals singing a welcome song (it goes as well as one would expect it to go), telling the students that they are free to pick as many apples as they want as long as they all get eaten, but everyone is limited to two of the new apples and report to the hospital wards if any of them feel anything unusual after eating them. Just in case.

When the ceremonies are done, students and staff can return to their day...although some of the staff can be heard commenting that the Principal seemed even more...cold this year. Of course asking them for details would just cause them to shoo anyone away and pretend they didn't say anything.

[OOC: Players are welcome to speak to themselves or go have some apples. It's a general school mingling prompt! Additionally, it will be possible to email the vice principals during that week should the characters want to talk with them or ask school questions. Typical school stuff.]

Sound the Rebellion

(Special Prompt for the Unawakened, Monday the 4th)
The school's opening ceremonies aside, the Unawakened’s Monday was rather...strange. The night was plagued with restlessness as they heard the voice of someone laughing. Waking up feeling 'odd', although that differed between all of then - some would feel sick, others have a headache, or some just deciding that wearing a piece of clothing they haven't wanted to worn would look great right now. Perhaps they got a few comments from their relatives about how strange they were acting that day, or a worried glance if they felt sick. It might get dismissed with a wave of a hand.

After all, how can you explain that when they sometimes look upwards, they hear the sound of a child laughing and briefly see a symbol above their heads? Or that this somehow feels...fine?

Maybe in their new state of mind, they might not even notice the people that keep following them around...

Better than a GPS

(Awakened prompt, Monday 4th, day and night.)
"Alright Lambs, time to get to work."

Luci's voice echoed in their phone, laughing. Was he doing a peace sign?

"There's only a few but they'll be useful. I want you to find them and see what you can do. Who knows! Maybe you might be better at this than me, although I doubt it heh heh heh…Now remember what I said! You have to get them to fall asleep...but there's no real rules for that!"

For the Awakened, the symbols above the Unawakeneds’ heads will be as clear as day - Luci will even go so far as play little musical tunes when the characters are close by or distract them using electronics. "Come on! Stop wasting time and do something!"

For the Unawakened who have a relative, it will be somewhat easy. It is the others that will be a pain. Maybe that's why Luci asked for help. Or maybe he just wanted to see his 'lambs' struggle. "Get them to bed! It's not that hard! If you have trouble, just show them the program I've put into your phone and toaster! Or knock them with your toaster first if you want, I don't care! Just go in teams when you go after them, got it?"

It's obvious that 'sleeping' as far as Luci is concerned, is when someone is unconscious - he seems to almost want someone to knock an Unawakened out and then drag him into a room and let themselves go to sleep.

Once the task is done, and the place is secure, the characters will have to do the same. While the hypnotic wheel from the program is the easiest way, there's no hard rule about knocking oneself out either.

MINDJACK
Once the characters get inside, they'll be in the person's mind and dreams. Eddan's memories are predominant, and the unawakened will be standing there wandering around. It will be up to the Awakened to peel back the fabric of reality, much like curtains and show them the true memories of their past...

But beware. Shadows lurk here, and transforming will be necessarily. And if a character dies in someone else's dream...they might never wake up. So be careful...

The main mission is to showcase the person a few memories. Give them an idea that something might be amiss...it can be a little or a lot. Just be careful that the more memories, the stronger the shadows become... When both are done and awaken, ten minutes will have passed. Perhaps it will be time for question afterwards.

[OOC:The Unawakened characters need to be isolated for the program to run, and so do the players, so half the 'fun' will be setting up the traps so that the characters will be alone.

Awakened might decide to have someone stand on guard while the others go to sleep with the Unawakened, or just all stupidly go together, or find an area where they won't be disturbed - everything is up to you.

The dreamscape can be anything the Unawakened desires! It could be good memories of their time in Eddan or bad memories, a mixture of both, or just silly dreams. Whatever it is, the Awakened will need to 'peel' those memories away - for example showing them that their mother was someone else in their other life, or even directing the person to a mirror so that they can see their true selves. But for each memory - both good or bad, shadows will start to attack both the Unawakened and Awakened. Be careful and let the mods know if a mission goes REALLY bad.]

Comments

[blacktemper]

You're a song.

[and a damn good one, the fact he was able to hold onto this thought at all in his woozy state proof of that. Vincent can hear the melody in his head even now, fingers tapping out the beginning against the other boy's back. soft but menacing, restrained but passionate. it was all there.

it's so pleasing that he makes absolutely no attempt to hide his smile, although after a few moments his brain considers that his previous statement may need a little extrapolation. whoops.]

Because your clothes are so goddamn hideous.

[...nailed it.]

[whitefox]

[...as Vincent went on to explain, Kit was glad he'd withheld from saying anything.

To think, he'd almost been touched!

Although, considering the way the other boy had been laughing, he really should have known better from the start. At this rate, if he was touched at all, it was in the head for thinking Vincent might actually have been sincere about anything. Never mind the drumming beat against his back. For now, he was going to pretend that didn't exist as he closed his eyes and sighed quietly.

Perhaps heavier than he would have liked, but not so grumpily that it could be mistaken for being annoyed rather than tired.]

Go to sleep.

[He was sorry he'd asked.]

[blacktemper]

[he makes some incoherent protesting mumbles before nuzzling his face up against Kit's chest. the other boy wasn't nearly as warm as he was, but there was something soothing in that very fact; it was as if a cool cloth was keeping his constant fever in check.

shifting slightly to get a little bit closer to his beloved heartbeat, he mumbles again - only this one's actually possible to make out with some effort.]

...I'll tell you when it's finished.

[Kit's song. his essence, meant for music, boiled down into its purest form. he deserved to be able to hear his true self as soon as he could.]

[whitefox]

[Uncertain of how to respond to that, Kit nodded, his cheek brushing the top of Vincent's head. A song about him? It might have been a nice gesture if Vincent hadn't seemed inclined to write it at his expense, and completely without asking him, besides. Then again, Kit could have just as easily told him no...

He wondered why he didn't. Was it curiosity or masochism? Punishment for letting down his guard and letting things spiral so far out of control?

It seemed like it, although...if he was honest with himself, he wanted to hear the finished song, too. He'd only ever seen Vincent's lyrics so far. What did his band even sound like? And would Styx even know who the lyrics were about?

...that was a thought that tugged at the corners of his mouth more than he cared to admit, the smile even causing his arms to tighten a little around the other boy. He could permit something unflattering to be written about him so long as he was allowed to be present when Styx was told the truth. The look on his face would be priceless.]

[blacktemper]

[his companion's thoughts were as impenetrable to Vincent as his were to the other boy. unaware of the mental images his declaration had conjured he merely revels in the closer hold from his companion. it was far more peaceful than any blanket could ever hope to be.

he fights petulantly against sleep solely because Kit had instructed him to nap, but the alcohol coursing through his system is too strong even for his bullheadedness. little by little his eyelids droop until they finally close completely, mind already floating down into the warm abyss of unconsciousness.

his grip on his literal body pillow remains as strong the entire time. it seems that abandonment is something written into Vincent's very DNA.]

[whitefox]

[Unfortunately, for how determined Kit was to think about everything besides his and Vincent's current position, he'd failed to conceive a plan that would actually allow him to untangle himself from the other boy's limbs and tightly locked arms. In a sense, he'd walked willingly into this snare and while thrashing might free him, it would also bring the hunter down on him.

He was too tired for any of that, his thoughts leaving him dizzy as they bounced from the warmth feeding into his chest from Vincent's body to the questions he ought to ask Reimi when he saw her next. From the research he still had to do on some of the things he'd seen or the names he'd heard in those visions, to the soothing sound of Vincent's breathing as it reached his ears...

...a sound which lulled him to sleep before even he was aware.

When he awoke next it was dark out, a cool breeze blowing in through the open window. He couldn't see his clock from the angle he was at, but by the quiet of the neighboring dorms and the campus outside, he expected it was late. More importantly, between the fresh air and hours of proper sleep, he was sober. A fact that made the way his limbs were tangled so intricately with Vincent's all the more alarming and inevitably triggered a short sequence of events.

A sharp shove, meant to push Vincent away from him. Which instead resulted in sending him backwards over the edge of the bed. And for the grip Vincent had kept on him while they had slept, bringing the other boy with him and down on top.]

this is actually the dream log but i'm responding anyway so that mistake lives forever

[blacktemper]

[and this had been one of the most comfortable naps he'd ever taken in his life up until now, too.

that contentment is instantly chased away when he finds himself rudely awakened by crashing onto the ground. his eyes fly open in alarm, trying and failing to sit up thanks to the mess of limbs they'd created during their slumber. there's probably a lot of accidental poking going on at this time, but it stops as soon as he realizes he's not moving for the time being.

what the hell had happened..? he's sober now, but it still takes his mind a moment or two to rewind and piece together the events that had occurred just before sleeping. even with this new information in hand, things didn't quite add up.]

The fuck is your problem!?

it's. not a mistake. it's just time lines being smudged beyond recognition.

[whitefox]

My problem?!

[That was rich when Vincent had been the one clinging to him like the dead! Kit might not have recalled everything with crystal clarity, but he knew he hadn't wound up in this position because his company had been easy to get along with and certainly not because he'd wanted this himself.]

I don't know what you're talking about, now...

[Planting his hands firmly against the other boy's chest and, heedless of where Vincent might land after the fact, Kit gave him a hard shove.]

...get off me!

time is just one big lake, after all...

[blacktemper]

[this from the guy who'd intended to leave but had fallen asleep with him not once, but twice? now that was a funny joke.

what isn't hilarious is the awful angle that he hits the ground at after being shoved, despite his best attempts to remain where he was out of spite. Vincent can't help but grunt softly - he was still pretty sore from their fight. but he has the presence of mind now to retaliate quickly, kicking out at their still slightly tangled limbs.]

Maybe if you'd fucking get your hands off me I could!

polluted by all our threads?

[whitefox]

[His hands weren't the problem here, not with the way Vincent seemed determined to keep their legs in a tangle! His kicks were sharp, and while it was clear for now that he had no interest in delivering lasting damage, Kit returned every blow with one of his own, the pair of them squabbling like petty kindergarteners who had woken up cranky from their naps.]

I'm not the one who can't keep his feet to himself!

[He said while kicking Vincent in the kneecap, and then again in the shin. It would serve him right! For being someone Kit had inadvertently let his guard down around as much as he had. And for being so bullheaded and frustrating, too! None of which was Kit's fault. Absolutely not.]

i think you mean made a tourist attraction

[blacktemper]

[as if to further the unseen metaphor, Vincent grabs giant fistfuls of his companion's hair and starts giving them a vicious yank in retaliation for the barrage of kicks still raining down on him. no way was he going to back down, especially not when he was being blamed for something completely out of his control.]

No, you're the one who can't let me do just fucking that!

[YOUR LEGS ARE BIGGER AND THEREFORE THE REASON THEY'RE ALL TANGLED UP CLEARLY]

we should be charging admission if that's the case

[whitefox]

[That particular hair-raising tactic produced a rather undignified squawk as Kit lurched forward with every tug until, as any spectator would have seen coming, he crashed into the other boy, all knees, elbows, and low curses. Very much not the usual model of self-control he so often portrayed.]

If you'd just fucking stop...!

[Yeah, like that was going to happen anytime soon, and it wasn't like Kit could fight Vincent off seriously, not with his hands still as sore as they were. He talked a big talk the other day, but now that the adrenaline and the alcohol had both worn off, they were stiff and the scabs beneath his bandages were protesting so much movement.]

i'm down with setting up a patreon whenever you are

[blacktemper]

You fucking stop!

[who knew that the real displays of immaturity from Kit would come after his intoxication, not during? truly he was a strange boy.

Vincent growls (at least partially in pain) as he goes toppling over once more, the now familiar weight of the other teen pressing down on top of him. rather than let go he pulls even harder on the fistfuls of hair in his grasp, smacking him about the head with his hands every time they slackened to start another yank.]

💰 okay let's get us the monies 💰

[whitefox]

[There was no denying that, at least.

Or there wouldn't have been if the subject were even up for debate. As it wasn't, Kit's entire focus was on the painful abuse his head was suffering at the hands of one very irate house guest. A guest whom Kit was starting to think had overstayed his welcome! If it wasn't so late he'd consider just throwing the other boy out on his ass, but with curfew having no doubt settled by now...

Well, he wasn't that cold.

Having to straddle Vincent's hips to keep his balance, Kit grabbed at the other boy's hands with his own and fought to stall their assault on his scalp.]

This isn't helping!

yeyeyeye gonna be rich

[blacktemper]

I'm not trying to help, idiot!

[why should he when the onus was entirely on Kit? he was just getting his deserved payback for all the suffering his stupid host had put him through up until now. if the other boy wanted it to stop so badly then he'd have to actually do something about that.

as the battle for scalp control rages on above them Vincent turns to bucking his hips wildly in an attempt to unseat his companion. if he actually succeeded in knocking him over then the yank on his hair was going to be a delicious secondary victory.]

[whitefox]

[Of course Vincent misunderstood. Of course.

Kit hadn't meant help as in actually being courteous, but rather doing anything at all to actually put some distance between them. Distance that was much needed the second Kit felt Vincent's hips rush up against him from below.

Whether the gasp that followed was from the sudden impact or the sharp jerk of his head backwards was anyone's guess, Kit only knew that his body responded of its own accord, thighs gripping the other boy tightly to prevent being unseated, and fingers curling tightly around Vincent's wrists. Not pulling them away, but holding them steady.]

[blacktemper]

[thick-headed as he was, Vincent doesn't even consider the possibility that the noise which escaped from his companion could be anything but pain. taking the pressure around his hips as a challenge he continues rocking even harder, now stubbornly determined to throw him off one way or another.

the sudden cessation of Kit's attempts to remove him from his position of scalp superiority is a bit odd, but he chalks it up to the other boy deciding to focus on this new threat instead. it was understandably a bit more pressing of an issue.]

[whitefox]

[Pressing was indeed the issue, and it was made worse by Vincent's decision to drive his hips against his host's with more force than before. Lips parted, more than just another gasp attempted to escape Kit after. Vincent's name was perched precariously on the tip of his tongue until, sharply biting the inside of his own cheeks to silence himself, he buried that secret deep.

As deep as his hips reflexively fought back against the other boy's, both in brutal retaliation and...

...was he actually allowing this? Seeking it out, even?]

[blacktemper]

[fighting fire with fire hadn't been the strategy that he expected Kit to go with for this bout...but he couldn't say that he minded. should he? the doubt feels strange in his mind and is immediately discarded; there's no reason for this to be anything but the burning excitement from clashing with someone.

now that it had been made a real challenge there was no way he'd let up. the other boy's hips smash against him hard enough that he can guarantee extensive bruising, but it only serves to fire him up more. he fights back with even quicker thrusts now, trying to pull Kit down simultaneously by the hair so that the next cry of pain that tries to leave his mouth will have nowhere to hide.]

[whitefox]

[Physically, Kit was a fairly health specimen, athletic and meticulous about his diet, but his greatest strength was by far his intellect. However, without time to think, with only raw feeling rushing up from below and through him, each thrust of Vincent's hips further delaying the thoughts of an already drowsy mind, he could only react.

As he doubled over, mouth descending to brush against the shape of Vincent's ear, Kit's breath quickened. His hands relinquished their hold on the other boy's wrists in favor of curling into the front of his shirt instead. But his hips never stopped once.

It felt good, even the way his scalp ached, but that didn't mean it meant anything. This was fine.]

[blacktemper]

[it had been much easier to dismiss all of this as more of the same power plays that the pair of them seemed to thrive off of. but when the ghost of Kit's lips against his ear causes his pelvis to briefly jerk up with even more force than previously that becomes all but impossible.

ah, shit.

rather than attempting to stop things from getting any further out of hand the way that a mind in the midst of a gay panic should react, Vincent's hands instead pull the other boy's face even closer so that mouth could meet skin at last. he thinks idly instead can I make him moan? because apparently when the liquor had dried from his brain it took all of his cognitive functions along with it.

there was no need to stop. so long as neither of them acknowledge what was happening, it was fine.]

[whitefox]

[He'd already gotten him hard, getting Kit to moan wouldn't be too difficult.

Or so it seemed at first. But for as vocal as Kit was, showing no restraint in the heaviness of his breath as it reached Vincent's ear, it was clear it would take a little more than rough hands and rough hips to make him call out.

Especially with his mouth presently occupied, puckered lips lightly pulling on the other boy's earlobe, tongue gently rolling across it as his teeth clamped down. If it wasn't a kiss, he could write it off as the simple pursuit of pleasure and nothing else. After all, he'd done this before.

And as far as the other boy knew, Kit didn't even know his name. That meant this was no different than the others. Never mind that it was in his dorm. In his bedroom. On his floor. And he was the one writhing, hips rocking wildly as if to encourage more of Vincent's violence.]

cw sexual...stuff??? idk their pants are on but so are their dicks

[blacktemper]

[Kit may be the one writhing, but he certainly isn't alone in feeling some additional pressure right now. an awful noise rumbles in the back of his throat, mercifully restrained but vibrating against his companion all the same. this was a situation he'd never found himself in before and many of the sensations are piercingly white hot for their newness.

but Vincent refused to let the other boy undo him simply by latching onto his ear with such a tantalizing sting. this was about power and control, nothing else - so long as he kept that in mind he didn't have to worry about the consequences.

he takes the invitation to inflict more violence upon his partner readily, hands sliding from the other boy's hair down the back of his shirt where he proceeds to rake long gashes across his shoulders blades. every movement will sting those wounds even after their frolic had ended - a fitting memento for this encounter.

as he fights to keep his passions from exiting his mouth he grinds his hips up against Kit's, seeking to prolong the friction between them with every thrust. whose benefit this is meant to be for even he couldn't say with certainty.]

[whitefox]

[If nothing else, the sharpness of Vincent's nails clawing their way across his spine and down his back forced from Kit the desired prize: a throaty moan of pleasure that rolled out of him as his hips continued to battle Vincent's for dominance.

For all that Kit had a reputation, it had been more than a year since he'd felt anything like this. Between juvenile detention and needing to behave like someone allegedly reformed, he'd been doing his best to keep his head out of trouble and his urges in check. Until now. What it was about Vincent, he couldn't say. It may only have been that he had the opportunity and nothing more. And maybe that was all that mattered. Either way, he didn't want it to stop, certainly not if it meant cutting into him again in such a delicious way.

His body shuddered atop the other boy, legs trembling in their hold against him, and then his own hands found their way beneath Vincent's shirt. His nails left biting grooves down his chest and across his stomach toward the waistband of his pants, but his fingers weren't all that was penetrating.

With little warning his teeth stole their way from Vincent's ear and to his throat, a voracious pinch of flesh between them drawing a trickle of blood that was immediately lapped up by his tongue.]

[blacktemper]

[the sound is more than worth all the effort it had taken to draw it out. it's so pleasing to Vincent's ears that without realizing he's moaning as well, completely enraptured by the idea of his companion slowly unraveling.

just when he'd thought it may have been a momentary slip of the tongue Kit's jaws pierce his throat and he lets out a low gasp. never in his life had pain been so overstimulating. his back arches delightedly, crushing their hips together with enough force that he swears he hears his teeth click together.

it was like having an animal feeding off him, this feeling of a searing tongue sliding across his flesh, and the very thought nearly has him bursting then and there. instead his nails dig even deeper into Kit's back, clawing in place so violently that it would be a wonder if the thing didn't scar. he may have found himself a vampire, but the other boy would have to contend with a werewolf.

for no reason other than to make him work for it, he twists his neck to try and reach the other teen's face. how badly did he want to taste Vincent's blood? he was about to find out.]