Test Drive 001

[iyashikeimods]

Test Drive Meme 001

Welcome to our first Test Drive Meme!

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✨ Test Drive Memes are game canon.

✨ Please remember that at least 5 comments are needed directly from the Test Drive Meme for your Application sample section.

✨ Invites and Reserves open on FEBRUARY 1ST.

JANUARY TOPLEVEL DIRECTORY (Updated: January 20th)

TEST DRIVE:

Arcane - Viktor
Alice in Wonderland/Alice Through the Looking Glass - Alice Liddell
All Dogs Go to Heaven - Anne-Marie
Avatar: the Last Airbender - Iroh
Avatar: the Last Airbender - Katara
Avatar: the Last Airbender - Mai
Avatar: the Last Airbender - Ty Lee
Avatar: the Last Airbender - Zuko
Avatar: the Legend of Korra - Jinora
Black Butler - Ciel Phantomhive
Cardcaptor Sakura - Sakura Kinomoto
Cardcaptor Sakura - Tomoyo Daidouji
Chuubo's Marvelous Wish-Granting Engine - Natalie Koutolika
Cookie Run Kingdom - Hollyberry Cookie
Danganronpa - Makoto Naegi
Demon Diary - Raenef V
Descendants (Disney) - Harry Hook
Dokidoki! Precure - Alice Yotsuba
Dokidoki! Precure - Mana Aida
Final Fantasy XIV - Foulques
Final Fantasy XIV - Haurchefant
Fire Emblem: Three Houses - Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd
Firefly/Serenity - River Tam
Hazbin Hotel - Carmilla Carmine
Heaven Burns Red - Karen Asakura
Heaven Burns Red - Kayamori Ruka
Heaven Burns Red - Yuki Izumi
Helluva Boss - Blitzø
Helluva Boss - Loona
Helluva Boss - Octavia
Honkai Impact 3rd - Kiana Kaslana
Honkai Impact 3rd - Raiden Mei
Howl's Moving Castle - Sophie Hatter
Imposter the Hedgehog - Metal Sonic
Kamen Rider Den-O - Nogami Ryotaro
Kingdom Hearts - Sora
Kingdom Hearts - Xion
The Last Unicorn - Lady Amalthea
Loveless - Kio Kaidou
Madoka Magica - Homura Akemi
Marvel Cinematic Universe - Agatha Harkness
Marvel Cinematic Universe - Billy Maximoff
Marvel Cinematic Universe - Cosmo the Spacedog
Marvel Cinematic Universe - Wanda Maximoff
The Murderbot Diaries - Three
My Adventures with Superman - Lois Lane
My Hero Academia - Denki Kaminari
My Hero Academia - Izuku Midoriya
My Hero Academia - Todoroki Shouto
My Little Pony: Equestria Girls - Fluttershy
Nana - Layla "Reira" Serizawa
Night in the Woods - Mae Borowski
Oshi no Ko - Aqua Hoshino
Original Character - Ari Tayrey
Original Character - Bea Valentine-Sinclair
Original Character - Bellatrix Bakhar
Original Character - Echo Darkglass
Original Character - Eclipse
Original Character - Helios Sprensonne
Original Character - Henry Drake
Original Character - Paige Hirsch
Original Character - Pauline Bonheur
Original Character - Royse Sidman
Pandora Hearts - Oz Vessalius
Pokemon OC - Kitt
PJO/Riordanverse - Annabeth Chase
PJO/Riordanverse - Luke Castellan
Project Sekai - Ena Shinonome
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish - Lobo/Wolf
RWBY - Weiss Schnee
Samurai Jack - Ashi
Senki Zesshou Symphogear - Chris Yukine
Senki Zesshou Sympohgear - Hibiki Tachibana
Shadow Generations - Ivo Robotnik/Dr. Eggman
Shadow Generations - Maria
Shugo Chara! - Amu Hinamori
Sleeping Beauty (Disney) - Maleficent
Sleeping Beauty (Disney) - Princess Aurora
Sonic the Hedgehog - Amy Rose
Sonic the Hedgehog - Espio the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog - Shadow
Sonic the Hedgehog - Tails
Spirited Away - Haku
Star Wars Legends - Boba Fett
Super Sonico: The Animation - Super Sonico
Tangled (Disney) - Rapunzel
To the Moon - Dr. Eva Rosalene
Twisted Wonderland - Yuu
Virche Evermore - Mathis Claude
Wicked - Elphaba Thropp
Wicked - Fiyero Tigelaar
The Wild Robot - Roz
Worlds Beyond Number: The Wizard, The Witch, & the Wild One - Eursulon ("Bear")

FEBRUARY TOPLEVEL DIRECTORY (Updated: February 1st)

TEST DRIVE:

Ace Attorney + PLvAA - Maya Fey
Ace Attorney + PLvAA - Phoenix Wright
Azure Lane - Cleveland
DnD OC - Rin Phanta
Doctor Who - The 14th Doctor
Fate/Grand Order - Oberon
Fate/Zero - Kiritsugu Emiya
Kokoro Connect - Himeko Inaba
Okami - Amaterasu
Original - Fauna
Project Sekai - Honami Mochizuki
Project Sekai: Colorful Stage - Mafuyu Asahina
Snow White and the Seven Dwarves - Snow White
Twisted Wonderland - Ortho Shroud

Double New Years Festival

WELCOME NEW ARRIVALS!

You made it just in time! It's the month-long Double New Years Festival! The Lunar and Solar year are coming to an end, what an auspicious time for you to have agreed to help create kindness and do good deeds! All over Iyashikei Main Hub and Outer Rim people have hung colorful paper lanterns, twinkling lights, garlands, wreaths, and ribbons in all sorts of colors to bring light and cheer to their Double New Years. Snow is gently falling off and on both in the Main Hub and the Outer Rim. The Great Iyashikei Redwoods are dusted with snow, and the Whitecap Mountains are living up to their names covered from top to bottom in snow as well.

Winter time is in full swing here in Iyashikei, bundle up to stay warm, new arrivals! If you haven't the right clothes, they're easy enough to find at the markets and stores.

Would you like to make a lantern to be hung up? Or perhaps you would like to make a wreath? Of course, you can help some of the current residents decorate! Turn a corner and there's always someone to help with decorations or cleaning. Clean homes for a clean Double New Years, after all! You may notice that helping and talking to others is already causing Stardust to collect along your skin. Don't stress! That's a good thing! Winter Stardust is unique! Winter Stardust takes on the shape of snowflakes and helps so that the cold doesn't bother you anyway.

Every other street or canal seems to have a winter market going on until sundown. They are selling all sorts of charms to help get you some extra luck for the Double New Years, or candles to help light up the home, or cleanse away negative energy. It's very common to buy a small gift for you or your friends to start the Double New Years with a smile. Some are gag gifts, some are more serious, and all of them show care and craft.

Of course, what's a winter market without amazing and delicious food? Just some of the items might be: yummy baked and steamed buns with meat or custard inside, fruit or meat pies, candied walnuts, dried fruit, fresh mandarin oranges, cookies, and everything else in between. No matter what treats you buy, to help you get into the spirit, some of the Council members have added some... magic to the food and it lifts your spirit and puts you in a friendlier mood. Besides, what good food doesn't already do that, after all? Eat a bit too much and you might be downright giddy and affectionate.

Maybe you don't want to eat or shop. The parks have been cleared of snow, though, it's still quite cold. Come have a seat, at many of the parks are lion-dance performers and dragon puppets to celebrate the Double New Years. They're even pretty good... but... well... you notice something going on...

OH DEAR! Seems like one of the lion dancers hurt their ankle, could you jump in to help save the performance? You don't have to know the steps! They don't want to disappoint the crowd! Please do SOMETHING to help!

The festival isn't done when the sun has gone down! At night, there's ice skating along the smaller, frozen canals. Don't know how to ice skate? Don't worry! Penguins are there to help you gain your ice feet. Yes, actual penguins, though they don't act as such. The penguins are there at the behest of two Council members, you'll know them if you meet them, one is a lively gentleman who seems to have an odd job everywhere you look, and the other is a lovely woman who is never wrong and seems practically perfect in every way.

What is the end of a festival without a giant firework show! Taking place over the bay between the Farmlands and the Main Hub, you can thank another Council member for the display. Giant fireworks fill the air, one even looks like a giant red dragon that soars across the sky. It's a perfect end to a perfect month-long festival!

Farmland Follies

OH NO! One of the farmers forgot to put his herd away at the end of the festival and they broke out of their pen in fear of the fireworks!

It's your first Re-Quest, should you be so inclined to help fill it. Can you please find and bring back his herd? They've scattered across the Farmlands. You can't miss them, all of them are tagged with a yellow tag on their ear.

They've gotten into some strange places! They're in people's backyards, some of the cows are munching on the winter crops, there are some blocking traffic, and others are lying atop the Metro-Rail tracks. They're everywhere!

While the cattle are incredibly docile and even love a good scratch under the chin, those horns aren't just for show. Do be careful not to spook them because they will defend themselves. Mothers are especially skittish about how you might approach their young. The horns aren't going to be your biggest problem, though.

You'll find that they enjoy playing in the cold in a much wider area than their pen (large though it may be). They're not as stubborn as a donkey, but some of the bulls can get up to 1,300 lbs, and if they don't want to move? They're not going to!
You will need to work with someone else to get those cows back home!

Once they're returned? What is your reward for this Re-Quest? 5 shimmers of Stardust for every cow, and a chance to pet some adorable cows. What more could you want?

Polar Bear Plunge or Hot Springs Soak

With it being a Double New Years, it's time to wash away any bad luck and get yourself some good luck! What better way to do that than donning a bikini or speedo and diving into some literally freezing water in some of the canals of the Main Hub for the Polar Bear Plunge! Don't worry, every location has staff on hand to help in case you go into shock! You needn't stay in for more than a few minutes to get the bad luck to wash away.

The Polar Bear Plunge isn't just a quirky tradition, though! For those who willingly participate, it really does bring good luck for an entire month! Maybe you'll ace that test, or you'll get that apprenticeship everyone is vying for, who can say what the Polar Bear Plunge Luck will bring?

While the cold never bothered some anyway, you might be reluctant to dive in, good luck or not. Worry not, the Great Iyashikei Redwood Hot Springs are open again for winter! Take the Metro-Rail to the main lodge and find your troubles melt away during your stay.

The hot springs don't wash away bad luck, nor do they provide good luck, instead, they're known for helping to ease a burdened mind. They make worries and troubles seem far away, less personal and raw, and help provide perspective on the past.

But be careful! The staff is there to remind you that even just one minute more than 60 minutes in the hot springs may cause more than just personal worries becoming distant! Those who stay too long in the hot springs have been known to have temporary amnesia. But don't worry, it doesn't last for more than a day or two... The more you talk to someone else to help figure out who you are, the easier it is for your memories to return.

... In any case, if it gets really bad you will be taken to the medical staff at Heart of Hope Hospital and they will get you back on track with your memory. But best to listen to the staff and the 60-minute timer they provide you if you want to prevent it entirely.

Did You Say Lodge?

Why yes we did! On top of the hot springs that are only open during the winter time, the lodge is at its busiest. The lodge is famous for its beautiful views as it sits right up against a small lake (which is frozen closer to the shoreline but the center never freezes) against the base of the Whitecap Mountains.

If you'd like something exciting, you can take the ski lift up to the top of the smaller mountains! There are bunny slopes and much more extreme slopes for the more advanced, you can rent all the equipment you need for snowboarding and skiing. Or if you prefer, there are gentle slopes for tubing! There are instructors from the lodge who are happy to show you how to ski or snowboard if you don't know how. Of course, with all the snow, there are ample opportunities for making snow angels, snowball fights, and snowmen.

Whether you want to spend your day indoors or outdoors, there's no denying how welcoming and inviting the fire pits look. There are blankets to wrap up in, and of course, marshmallows to roast, and if so inclined, chocolate and graham crackers to make s'mores. Resting around the fireplace makes you want to open up and share something from home, that might be the Council's doing or just the natural magic of a warm fire and hot chocolate. Maybe what you share is a poem, or a song, a fairytale, or something else. It can be a lot or a little, the coziness of the fire makes it feel easier to do so. And goodness! Just look at how you're gathering Winter Stardust along your skin.

If you want to enjoy a true winter wonderland, oh what fun it is to ride in a one-horse open sleigh! The sleigh travels along the most popular trails around the lodge. You'll get to see the redwood giants in all their winter splendor! There's just one catch. The sleigh driver only goes if two to three people ride in the sleigh.. That's great if you're riding with a friend, but don't be surprised if you and a stranger (or two) are going on the hour-long tour. This is a chance to earn more Winter Stardust, at least?

A Kindly Curious Question

There are several little beeps, or depending on whether you've begun customizing it, maybe a little song instead starts to play on your Glimmer. A little envelope notification appears and does a little wiggle. Should you open this, a cute little message appears:


Hello hello Iyashikei!

This is the monthly Kindness Curious Question (K.C.Q.)! In the spirit of the Double New Years, are there any kindness resolutions you would like to make?
Answer honestly to get your sticker!

Answer honestly on the Glimmer and you'll get your K.C.Q. Digital Sticker! It will immediately go into your K.C.Q. digital sticker album folder on your Glimmer.

What's the point, you might ask? Well, when you open that sticker and press on it, the little sticker will make you suddenly feel warm and toasty, like being wrapped up in a blanket, for ten minutes.

< isopods >

Comments

[ceded]

[ !

Maybe because she did it to him, she notices when he does it to her. He doesn’t want to talk about it, huh…? ]

Help out…? [ a soft, small laugh ] Maybe…! One of them is pretty lazy though, hehe. Although…

[ She tilts her head. ]

There is someone here I know… not a friend, exactly. Or… maybe he could be? [ there’s a thread of uncertain hope in her voice. ]

[selfreliar]

Oh?

[Normally, he'd prompt her with something like, 'A classmate?' But an assumption of regular school days doesn't seem safe to make for a... dead... doll girl.]

You sound like you'd like him to be.

[ceded]

[ … ]

I think I would. He’s very special.

[ …… ]

Hey, Aqua? [ Xion sips her cocoa as she glances at him. ]

What do you see … when you look at me?

[selfreliar]

[??

Puzzled, he gives her a good, long look before answering.]

A teenage girl with black hair and blue eyes. Maybe... fourteen, fifteen years old?

[...Certainly too young to be projecting that kind of sadness, the one that speaks of giving up on one's dreams.]

[ceded]

[ Her whole face crinkles into a soft, sweet smile. ]

Then… that means you’re seeing the real me. I’m so glad…

[ She sips her cocoa, gazing into the fire. ]

If you see him… if you see Sora, I might look like him to you. He’s the one… the one I was created to replicate. I have … his memories. That’s why I exist.

[selfreliar]

[...Explaining Kingdom Hearts to Aqua would just give him a headache.]

I can't say I get it, but... if he's the one you want to be friends with, then maybe you have some common ground...?

[ceded]

[ that wins a quiet giggle. ]

I guess so. He’s really nice! [ She perks up a little. ] You should say hi, if you see him! Sora is a wonderful person. I admire him…

[ sip. ]

It feels strange to tell someone about all this… I didn’t really mean to. I just felt like it, somehow… thank you, Aqua.

[selfreliar]

--Ah. You're welcome, but... it might be one of the effects of being here. I've found myself opening up to others more than intended, too.

[Oops. Should've warned her earlier.]

[ceded]

Huh? The effects? What do you mean?

[selfreliar]

As you may have already noticed, I'm not the most expressive person. I don't like to talk about myself.

[To understate it to the extreme.]

But after I ate some food from the festival market stalls when I first arrived, I loosened up enough to tell a complete stranger my plans for the future. That's not something I'd do normally. Various things here seem to affect people like that.

[ceded]

[ A wave of mortification sweeps across her face. Self-consciously, she sets down her cocoa, then nudges it a little further away, staring at it with pronounced distrust. ]

We can be … influenced? But that’s so scary! My thoughts, my feelings… I didn’t really want to talk about home, but something about sitting here kind of made me want to. That’s awful!

[selfreliar]

I don't like it, either, but until someone discovers how it works, it's hard to avoid.

[Sighing, he leans forward and props his chin on his hand.]

It's tiring, constantly monitoring how I feel for signs that something's weird. And annoying. But it's better to know about it than not.

[ceded]

[ the look on her face morphs into sympathy ]

Are you okay, Aqua? That must have been frightening, admitting something you didn’t want to.

[selfreliar]

[Eh? Aqua blinks at her, then quickly reviews his behavior for anything that would have insinuated he was afraid. The mental catalog comes up with nothing, so... is that just something she's sensitive to, the idea of others' fear?]

...No, I didn't think much of it then. I only noticed later, after someone brought up that people were acting strange at the festival. However these influences work, they may not be strong enough to make you act completely out of character.

Anyway, I'm fine. I imagine it's scarier for you, learning all this for the first time.

[ceded]

[ It’s his natural reticence that stirred her concern; if he’s not forthcoming to begin with, how must it have felt to blurt it out without really meaning, much less wanting, to? ]

I’m not scared… I just don’t like it. The idea of being controlled like that, somehow… it makes me feel a little sick. [ Her wan smile reflects her sentiments. ]

But Aqua, didn’t you say you’ve only been here a week? You weren’t scared when you got here, huh?

[selfreliar]

I was definitely surprised. This kind of thing isn't possible where I'm from.

[Scared, though? Hmmmmnh. Maybe it's male pride talking, but he doesn't think he was.]

I don't know if scared is the word. More like... incredulous.

[ceded]

"This kind of thing"? Do you mean magic? That's everywhere, where I come from. Being here wouldn't be so strange, if I hadn't ... died.

[ As her tension leaves her, she relaxes, uncurling and letting her feet touch the floor, hands folded in her lap. ]

You were ... just incredulous? [ a sweet giggle ] That's really all? You must have nerves of steel, Aqua!

[selfreliar]

Okay, incredulous and pissed off. I didn't appreciate being spirited away like that.

[But yeah, hard to care much what happens to him when he has no dreams to live for.]

Magic isn't... Well, I can't say whether the supernatural is real or not in my world. But there's no proof of it.

[ceded]

[ Smiling, Xion lifts a hand. A bloom of green light bursts into being around her hand, glowing strands of magic intertwining with her fingers. ]

See?

[ She lowers her hand again. ]

I don’t blame you for being mad. I’m not happy to be here, either. It was my choice to go away, after all.

[selfreliar]

[Wow. Her magic looks so like the stage effect they employed in Tokyo Blade for Princess Saya's scabbard, Aqua assumes it's a healing spell without any other context. And it's real. That's incredible.

But what Xion says is... something different. After a beat, Aqua speaks in a lower, gentler tone.]

'Going away' is... a particular way to put it, Xion.

[ceded]

[ Xion sits up a little straighter, surprised both by his tone and his use of her name. Then her expression folds into a sad smile. ]

I guess … it is. Even if I’d wanted to stay… [ her chin dips ] In the end, I had to. To protect everyone I love. It’s okay. [ She lifts her head and, with some effort, beams. ]

It was my choice.

[selfreliar]

[Oh, Aqua hates that.

It's not just the resignation in her words and voice. It's her smile. A smile like that, even at its most sincere, is a lie--the lie that it's okay for someone like her to suffer such an unjust destiny.

She's a girl. A child. Like Sarina-chan. Whatever world she's from must have failed her, like his world failed Ai.

Aqua holds his tongue until he's sure his answer will be even and non-judgmental. At least, not judgmental enough to put her on the defensive.]

I doubt the conditions pushing you towards that choice were fair.

[He doesn't go further than that. The idea that it was her choice, that it protected people she cared about, is probably all the comfort she has. Amamiya Gorou would have argued. He would have tried to change her mind. Aqua... has his own understanding.

Some lies really are an unmatchable kind of love.

He turns his head slightly, and once more, his hair screens his eyes like a silken curtain.]

Either way, though... I hope it grows on you. This second chance to do what you want, instead of what others want from you.

[ceded]

… whether it was fair or not … isn’t for me to say. I had to go away, or everyone would have been hurt. Sora worst of all.

[ But his pushback against her fate means a lot to her, even if it changes nothing. Her smile is very sweet and very touched. ]

Me, too. This is the first time I’ve ever had cocoa, you know. It’s good! Even if I don’t trust it. [ She laughs nervously ]

[selfreliar]

[It isn't fair to Sora, but Aqua now auto-hates him a little bit. Sorry, bud.]

Yeah? It might be safe if you make it yourself. You can buy cocoa packets in supermarkets, particularly at this time of year.

[ceded]

I need money for that, don’t I? I probably missed that too… I didn’t read the scroll they gave me because I didn’t think I’d be staying. [ a soft laugh ] Gosh, I feel silly. I really should have paid more attention…