「 TDM 01 」

[watertrade]

i. Arrival

There isn't any strange feeling or sudden blackout to warn someone of what's to come; it simply happens. One moment they're in their own world attending to their own business, and the next they're underwater. Specifically, the dark, cold waters of the Sumida River. With air temperatures in the high 40s it's not a pleasant experience and the sudden shock leaves new arrivals at risk of drowning.

Luckily, they aren't alone. The crews that constantly patrol the river are quick to fish the newcomers out, dry them off, warm them up, and explain the situation. Maybe the names mean something to said newcomers, and maybe they don't. No matter the case, they're the same for everyone: you're in Yoshiwara, near the city of Tokyo in the country of Japan, and you're here to stay.

New arrivals that feel up to the task are encouraged to help with retrieving other newcomers. Those that don't welcome to huddle under blankets until the boats return to docks. Once there everyone is given directions to their faction headquarters, where they can receive their housing and job assignments - and maybe a change of clothes. Those that still feel overwhelmed are permitted to mingle on the docks. There's not much to do but sit around and shiver, but at least there are friendly locals that are willing to answer any questions for them.

ii. Loose Change

It's easy to drop things in crowded areas and hard to retrieve them. Luckily that doesn't seem to be the case this time. The sound of a coin hitting the ground is quite clear and the coin itself is easy to locate. Considering that single coin likely represents a distressingly high percentage of any given newcomer's wealth, picking it up is highly advised. The supernaturally inclined might sense the faint magical buzz around the coin, but nothing significant.

Maybe two people reach for the same coin at the same time. Maybe one of them realizes it's not theirs and turns it over. Whatever the case, the second they're both touching the coin they find themselves stuck to it. No amount of tugging or prying can get it to detach, even though there's no sign of any sort of adhesive holding them in place.

Upon closer examination the coin isn't a real one and is instead inscribed with the words 'Pinky Swear', along with an image of the act in question. And that's the only clue to the method of escape: the two parties must link pinkies and make a solemn oath to one another before they can let go of the coin. Fortunately is seems any oath will do, even one as simple as 'I solemnly swear to give you a high five'. They shouldn't take their newfound freedom for granted, however. Breaking the oath or leaving without trying to fulfill it will result in the two being stuck together again and a new oath will be required to escape a second time.

iii. Hot Chocolate

Despite their reputation the people in Yoshiwara can be generous. Anyone who looks appropriately cold, bored, or just plain unoccupied will find themselves approached by attractive young men and women bearing sample cups of hot chocolate. The beverage is rich, warm, and expertly crafted, and even comes in dark, milk, and white varieties. If someone wants more, they're in luck: the cafe Lazy is running a special promotion in which all newcomers can receive a full serving for free.

Anyone who accepts will find themselves whisked into the cafe, seated at one of several kotatsu (which are all partitioned off with thick curtains), and presented with a tall mug of the hot chocolate of their choice. They won't be alone, either. Everyone is seated with at least one partner and encouraged to make idle chatter while they drink. The socially awkward might find the small book labeled 'conversations starters' helpful, and if that doesn't work there's also a small box of goodies on each table. It sure is a friendly atmosphere.

Perhaps too friendly. It turns out that the hot chocolate is laced with aphro, a variety that causes both arousal and mild giddiness. The thick, nearly soundproof curtains might make more sense now: they're clearly meant to muffle the sounds of lovemaking from other patrons. Visitors don't have to mingle so extensively, of course. But the 'conversation starters' book goes from fairly innocent subjects to ones likes 'describe your ideal sexual partner' in a hurry, and the box's goodies consist of lubricant, sexual position guides, and bullet vibrators. Sex is clearly the intent here.

On the way out customers will be told that the whole process is an advertisement for the cafe's 'couples service', thanked for their participation, and sent on their way with a smile. Maybe it's a good idea to accept Yoshiwara's generosity with caution from now on.

iv. Later That Night

No one would call Yoshiwara safe, but the dangers are predictable. An actor might end up with a stalker, a prostitute might have to deal with a violent client, and a business owner might have to deal with a criminal extorting protection money. There aren't really surprises when it comes to the sort of threats one can expect to face. The rigid control exerted by the four factions ensures that.

But there's money to be made in Yoshiwara, especially when it comes to visitors from off world. For some groups the reward outweighs the risk. Newcomers in particular tend to be disoriented and there's rarely anyone to miss them, which makes them ideal targets. Any new arrivals alone on the streets after dark run the risk of being kidnapped by a group of shady individuals prowling the town. Their methods range from snatch and grab tactics to luring targets into dark alleys, but once caught everyone is given the same treatment: gagged, hands bound, and left in a dimly lit room to wait until they can be removed from Yoshiwara and sold to a third party.

But the kidnappers are hasty and prone to mistakes. Victims may get a chance to shout before they're subdued. Their bindings are often loose. The rooms they're left in often have one or more other occupants. Escape is quite possible, especially with a little teamwork. The police are on the case, as well, and they're not picky about the help they'll accept. Newcomers can assist the cops in tracking down and freeing people as well, and help from already escaped victims is especially valuable.

But not everyone is opposed to this operation. Sufficiently motivated newcomers may also be recruited to assist the kidnappers. It's dangerous work, but the profits are high and the connections one makes in the process are invaluable.

Between the police and the assistance from newcomers most victims will be freed shortly after they're kidnapped. For those that aren't, the kidnappers will be stopped as they try to leave town and any remaining victims will be rescued at that time.

OOC

Hello, and welcome to the very first TDM for Yoshiwara Nights! Use this post to voice test characters, decide who you want to app, and get a feel for the game and your fellow potential players.

Events of the TDM may be kept as game canon. Once you're accepted you can submit a five comment thread of your character pulling people out of the river (Arrival), assisting the kidnapping victims (Later That Night), or assisting the kidnappers (Later That Night) to gain bonus reputation with your starting faction, the police, or an unknown third faction, respectively.

Reserves will open on February 3rd! Our schedule for the next few weeks can be found here. If you haven't already please make yourself familiar with our information pages.

If you have any questions about the TDM prompts please direct them here. You can also follow us on Plurk at yoshiwara for further updates.

Comments

Wataru Kurenai | Kamen Rider Kiva | OTA

[kivatteru]

i; arrival

[ If this were a dream, nothing would feel so cold like the sensation of getting plucked out from extremely chill water. Wataru spent his first few minutes wide-eyed, lost, his jaw hanging slightly but no words coming out although he's more than justified in loudly wondering what the hell is going on. Then again, he wasn't used to be a talker until the whole of last year, so it'd be a little justified if someone came up to him trying to start a conversation and all he could reply with was a confused stare.

After being provided a blanket and some explanation from the kind patrollers who fished him out, Wataru finally gathers his bearings and opts to stick around in order to help his fellow unfortunate souls out of the river. Relief had already come to him when he found Kivat safely sleeping in his jacket. Perhaps it would have been best that his friend remained behind, but should any stray Fangire come out to attack the new arrivals he'd have a means to fend them off.

Any person who's still not being assisted by the crews and is having a hard time coming out of the waters will promptly have a hand held out for them, the young man trying to smile reassuredly although it looks a bit forced considering the anxiety that has settled in his heart. ]

Here. Please, grab onto me and I'll pull you out. Don't worry.

[ His strength is considerable enough to pull even someone heavy along with just his arm. They'll be safe with him. ]

ii; loose change

[ Picking up a coin would be considered stealing and Wataru has not enough mean bone in him to even think about it. However, not everyone among his fellow arrivals would ignore something like free money, and soon he will stare down, blinking owlishly as someone is struggling with said coin seemingly stuck to their hand. Far from him to leave a person in distress behind, he will soon walk up to them and hold out one hand, careful, like he's silently telling them to wait. ]

Ah, wait... You might get yourself hurt if you struggle too hard.

iii; hot chocolate (potential smut, 18+ characters only)

[ He frankly needed a warm place to relax in after the stress piling up since his arrival. The feeling of foreign that he gets out of a place that's supposed to be part of his country also drives him to further restlessness. That's why he makes no resistance when a beautiful girl locks her arm with his all of a sudden and drags him into the cafè. Nothing wrong with drinking something warm that will help him think more clamly, right?

... Not really. Once he's forcefully partnered with someone random, the young man realizes how he's still got a ways to go in regards to communicating with others. Earlier he had reasons to speak with others, but he's still not that good with small talk with a strangers. He will still bow politely at whoever is sent at his kotatsu, the hot mug safely held in his hands. Another thing he discovers is the feeling of strange giddiness that tingles his chest and slowly spreads when he starts conversing with the person. He yanks the words out despite the absolute awkwardness of this situation that's been imposed on him. ]

... I'm Wataru Kurenai. Nice to meet you.

iv; later that night

[ Wataru was used to thwarting attempts at the life of innocents from the Fangire. Towards regular looking people with clearly ill intentions who are in the process of harassing someone, he doesn't even need to transform. He strides towards the group with confidence, going as far as to step in between the chosen victim and the attackers, his back turned to the former. Whether or not said victim is actually able to fight them off, he's not backing down as he throws a glare and politely tells the criminals to leave. Of course he's not listened, and it looks like a brawl is about to burst at any moment, tension thickening the air around them.

His head turns a fraction as he addresses the person behind him, soft and polite despite the situation. ]

Please, run and alert the police. I will handle this.

v; wildcard

[ Go ahead and either tag me with something different or PM my journal to plot it out! For the record, Wataru is 22 years old. ]

ii

[damnedsel]

[ This is some variant on the King Midas story, isn't it? Rita wants tge money, but she had to be able to give it away in exchange for goods and services, you know??? ]

Then what should I do? [ She sounds frustrated. ] I just— wanted— to buy— food!

[ Look at her still trying to shake it off her hand. Please help her, Wataru. ]

[kivatteru]

[ Far from him to argue that, but he'd feel quite bad to see the person hurt herself in the attempt to get the thing off. He mutters a small apology before reaching for the back of her hand, gently cradling it in his own. ]

Hold on. I'll try to—

[ There's no finishing his sentence, because the moment he uses his other hand to grab the coin and pull... he realizes with grave concern that his fingers got stuck, too. ]

Oh... uhm...

iii

[homefortea]

[ Good ole Jefferson isn't the best with talking to people either but for different reasons. He likes people, once upon a time, and knows how charm so as to get his way. But now he chooses not to talk to anyone. He doesn't want the company. He doesn't need it. He'd finally had his daughter back, was holding her close, and he shut his damn eyes. Opens them as water surrounds him and he's yanked from a river.

Should've known it was too good to be true.

Now he's persuaded out of the cold and into a seat, hot chocolate shoved into his hands. He tries to tell them he'd rather have tea but they don't listen. Jefferson adjusts his ascot with one hand and salutes with the mug in the other. ]

Guess you're my date for the evening.

[ His brow arches. ]

Lucky you.

[kivatteru]

[ Bold way to start a conversation, one that will strangely raise a bit of heat over Wataru's cheeks. Such wording is not foreign for him, but it was only reserved for the one girl he loved. At this moment, the two men are only being invited to be friendly with each other. Although he hadn't checked the book yet, nor the box laying nearby, he's pretty sure nothing more than social experience will come out of this.

Right? ]

I wouldn't call it that.

[ He looks down at his hot chocolate, the steam slowly ebbing away. ]

Nothing suggests about a date. We're only being set here to talk.

[ Sounds quite defensive, but the idea of this being a blind date doesn't sit well with him. ]

[homefortea]

[ Jefferson's frown slowly slinks into a wide smile. The stranger was shy, thrown off, or boringly straight. All three held potential to be something. ]

What would you call it then?

[ He sips his hot chocolate and sets it down. Enough to get that 'feeling' soon but no more than that. Again, where's the tea. Herbal, unsweetened, and piping hot. Sigh. This place gets worse and worse. ]

We're partnered up, given drinks, and told to talk. There's a box of sex toys over there. [ Sounds like they want a hookup. Jefferson isn't against it but he hasn't had sex in a long, long time. ] Well?

What else would this be?

[kivatteru]

[ The exact moment Wataru decided to take another sip, the man in front of him makes mention of sex toys.

And he spits, few droplets of chocolate splattering over the kotatsu. If he was just merely heated in the face, now he is, figuratively speaking, set up in flames. ]

Wh-... What?

[ He didn't sign up for forced socializing, but more than anything he couldn't imagine there was something this level of extreme awaiting him. The person leading him into the cafè made no mention of anything sexual. Like a deer in the headlights, he places the mug down, wipes his chin and stares at the man incredulously. ]

How do you know that?!

[homefortea]

[ That's hot. Not sexy, but literally hot. He drags a fingertip through a drop of chocolate that had hit his cheek. Jefferson had not expected that. Sex might not be the easiest conversation to slip into but it wasn't politics or religion. He'd assumed it was fine. ]

Sex toys. Lube. Condoms.

[ Forced into socializing and with someone that was a prude. ]

I saw another couple opening the same box. Does it bother you?

[ Obviously it does somewhat but did their conversation need to be steered towards more benign topics? He would but now he just wanted to know. ]

[kivatteru]

I-... I know what those are.

[ Vaguely. Never in his life, not even as a teen growing up into an adult, he ever thought of sex as something necessary for his wellbeing. In his defense, he'd been sheltered from the world until the recent year, when he was forced to learn all about it at once. But even as he got together with Mio, experienced how it feels to fall in love, nothing of the sexual kind ever crossed his mind. He simply loved her in the most innocent sense of the term.

That's why he's not sure he can go through with anything he has zero expertise with, let alone with a stranger whose name he doesn't know and whose feelings are nowhere near love. Not even close. It's distressing. He doesn't know what to do. ]

It... does bother me. I've never-... [ God, this is embarrassing to admit it. Megumi would make fun of him for the rest of his life if she were to witness this. ] I've never had... sex.

iii

[inthemiddle]

[Silas is already sat down and sipping on his first chocolate drink. The druid is entirely caught up in it, jumping slightly as he opens his eyes. "Suddenly", he has company! He hastily went to place the mug back down on the table, listening attentively to Wataru's introduction has he offered the man a handshake.

He's not aware of the streak of chocolate left clinging to his upper lip]

A pleasure, sir! I am Silas, druid of the Springtide clan.

[kivatteru]

[ Wataru's gaze shifts immediately to the flowers perched on top of Silas' head. A bizzarre appearance that doesn't shock him entirely, considering the world he comes from and his own origins. Neither "druid" nor "Springtide" sound any familiar to him.

He accepts the handshake and furthers that with another bow, after settling himself down with his own mug. ]

I suppose you're not native of these parts either, are you?

[inthemiddle]

No, no. I've only just arrived. Pulled from the river this very morning. [his tone is calm, rather flippant in a you know how these things are manner. He takes another sip of his drink, worsening the clingy chocolate fuzz over his lip]

Are you native, sir?

[kivatteru]

No... I was also pulled from the river. This is supposed to be a place situated in my country which is close to where I live, but...

[ He pauses, taking a whiff of his chocolate. Then he just decides to take a small drink, allowing the warmth to relax his throat before he continues. ]

But it doesn't feel that way.

[inthemiddle]

I see. Familiar to you. Yet not quite the way you knew it to be?

[Silas is curious how that feels, given his experience is much different. This place is all together foreign to him. Even the sunlight is still new, seeing as he had lived below ground most of his life. He'd only spent a couple months in the Above World before being dragged here....]

[kivatteru]

There are a lot of details trying to tell me this is Japan. Like this kotatsu. [ Wataru places a gentle hand on top of the table. ]

At the same time, the air I feel all around is different than I'm used to. It's not like home.

[inthemiddle]

This is all different. For me. I supposed I can't tell any oddness the the air. Not any more strange than the rest is... [he rolls the mug between the flats of his palms with a nervous, or perhaps just idle gesture]

Chocolate. For one! Chocolate is a very lavish thing. Where I am from. It would never be given so freely. [he's eagerly indulging, because of that]

[kivatteru]

I see... [ Not wanting his portion to get colder, he takes another couple drinks from his mug. A weird tingle settles in his stomach, but he tries to pay no mind in front of Silas. ]

Are you also from Earth? Different country? You told me you're from the Springtide clan, but I never heard of it.

[inthemiddle]

No, not Earth. My world is called Myddvai. Is Earth the name of your world tree? [Silas has very different ideas of how a world should be structured. They're all supported by a single large plant, right? This is a largely flat surface with distinct edges, right? A round planet is going to sound very odd to him....]

[kivatteru]

... Tree? [ Confused by that wording, he pauses short of answering and thinks for a few seconds, also distracted by the incresing weird sensation of butterflies in his belly. ]

No. Our world is not shaped like a tree, if that's what you mean.

[inthemiddle]

It truly isn't? What is it shaped like? How is the land being supported? [Silas' eyes are wide, but his tone isn't panicked, only very curious.]

[kivatteru]

It's shaped like a sphere. There's no real support, I think? It's... complicated.

[ Poor guy never went to school so there's not much he knows beyond THE EARTH IS NOT FLAT. ]

[inthemiddle]

[Silas is very educated, but not by Earth standards....]

A round world. How very curious. Do you fall off if you are on the lower side? [oh the kinds of questions flat worlder's have.......]

[kivatteru]

No, it doesn't happen. At least not the way you described. Gravity keeps us on the ground no matter where we are... or so I heard.

[ TV is something he watches sometimes, moreso after he started going out more. There were no news of people falling off the Earth, as far as he remembers. ]

[inthemiddle]

A world with no edges. That's very different than I've known it. Are there people who live below ground? In the sea? [Silas would think not? If the world is round, that much mean there is more Above World to occupy, perhaps more space between the different mortal cultures? There are many implications of this he's considering.

Wataru might be uneducated by modern standards, but Silas is looking at him like a wizen sage and taking his words as one would a teacher's]

[kivatteru]

[ Why does he feel like he's being put under scrutiny for knowledge? The idea of people having expectations of him became little of a burden after he gained confidence but it doesn't completely remove the pressure he feels right now. Good thing the hot chocolate loosens him up as he finds himself needing another generous sip. ]

People... I think so? Or they used to. I have a friend who told me he's the only merman left alive, but he now lives away from the water so I'm not sure whether that's true.

[ Plot twist??? Nowhere in this conversation did he say only humans inhabit his Earth, did he? ]