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wake up

You open your eyes. And then immediately squeeze them shut as a cloud of chalk dust gets clapped in your face, the student next to you looking surprised— but the sort of surprised as if they're faking it, barely suppressing a laugh. "What're you dozing off for, transfer student?" they ask, going back to wiping clean the chalkboard you two are standing in front of. "The sooner we get everything cleaned up, the sooner we can go home!" Another classmate tosses a wet rag at the side of your face, laughing as if a joke— if it weren't strangely warm to the touch, with dark red stains smelling strongly of iron.

All characters open their eyes and wake up in one of the classrooms around school. Whatever they remember last, it's lost in a thick, sleepy fog, the drowsiness still wearing off and making it difficult to reconcile the fact that they've never seen this classroom or these people in their lives, but somehow, it feels like they've been here forever. The other students all act familiar towards you, calling you by name and encouraging you to help clean the classrooms as part of observing the Vernal Equinox. Buckets of soapy water are set on the desks around the classrooms, light pink suds spilling over the sides, and both students and faculty can be seen hard of work scrubbing dark, stubborn stains out of the walls and floors. "It must be absolutely spotless," they murmur under their breaths. "All evidence must be erased."

You don't have to stay and clean. You could throw the rag back into a bucket and flip these strangers the bird and exit the classroom. But those who don't help clean even a little will find that they leave sticky red footprints wherever they walk, creating more work for everybody else and becoming very easy to track down and """accidentally""" knock over the backside of the head with a mop handle. Besides, it's not like you can walk out of the school and get back to whatever you were doing before. Your feet may bring you to the front door on autopilot, but the doors do not open for you, and neither do any of the windows no matter how hard you try to pry them open or kick them in.

Careful, though. On some windowsills, particularly on the third and fourth floors, rests a stack of five flat stones one on top of another: a gorinto to those who recognize such a thing, a pile of rocks to those who do not. The stones are all damp with water, topped with a scattering of wisteria flowers, and flanked by cheap packaged snacks. Whether on accident or on purpose, the moment you touch any of it—-

wake up

You open your eyes. The last thing you remember is touching a wet stone or trying to swipe the rice cracker beside it, and in the next moment, you're somewhere else inside the school. Characters who touch the gorinto or its offerings will find themselves pulled into a memory of high school life, one that feels like theirs, although they recognize that that's impossible. There's the feeling of being classmates with the other characters- perhaps two characters are seat partners, or best friends, or rivals, or club members- but despite the familiarity, do not know each other's names or recall ever seeing their faces before. Essentially, live your pre-established cr high school au dreams.

The memories fade in and out of different scenarios, but they all start off the same: You open your eyes.

You open your eyes and the inside of your left wrist is stinging; you stop scratching, pulling your other hand away before the angry red lines on your skin splits and bleeds. Somebody calls your name, just as you see a pan slide off the stovetop out of the corner of your eye, and the stinging on your wrist flares to a searing burn, hot oil splattering you and the person next to you.

You open your eyes. You're flat on your back in a room that smells of paint thinner, your chest is heavy, and it's so hard to breathe. Something is crushing your throat- a fluffy white cat with golden eyes, purring and kneading away, but then somebody calls your name and its fluff puffs twice its size in surprise, claws sinking into your throat, hooking and tearing as the cat scampers away.

You open your eyes. A kendo shinai comes down hard on your head, the one in your hand failing to come up quick enough to guard, your classmates groaning in sympathy all around you. Your head is spinning, you feel sick.

You open your eyes. You and a friend are seated side by side in the clock tower, back to the walls and feeling the resounding toll of the bell fill your entire being as the count reaches ten, eleven, twelve. The world turns to silence. Your friend opens their mouth to speak, but you cannot hear them. You cannot hear anything.

(tw: implied suicide) You open your eyes. Your classmate sits on the other side of your desk, a spread of sandwiches and juice boxes between you and the window to your side providing a clear view of the upper branches of the wisteria tree in full bloom. And the strangled look on an upperclassman's face as they fall headfirst from the sky on the other side of the glass, hurtling towards the pavement of the courtyard below.

You open your eyes—-

You're standing in front of a window, cold fingers wrapped around your wrist and pulling it away from the pile of stones. Perhaps another character has come to your rescue, or else one student in particular who shakes his head, whispers "don't," and walks away.

wake up

You open your eyes and wipe a bit of drool off the corner of your mouth. There's really no shame, when half the students sitting around you in the auditorium are half asleep as well. As if coming out of a dream, the characters don't remember getting here, just that they are now- sitting in uncomfortably hard plastic chairs in the back rows in the auditorium, the school principal's flat, droning voice reverberating oddly off the walls of the large room. No matter how hard you try, you cannot get up out of your seat.

"...and now, let us congratulate the graduating class," the principal says, stepping back from the podium. A single student rises to her feet and meets the principal at the center of the stage, her long dark hair falling across her face as she bows and receives her diploma. "Congratulations, graduate. May your life be full and prosperous. Please, if you would say a few words..."

The girl straightens and pushes her hair out of her face with one hand— she has no other hand, the entire sleeve of her right rolled all the way up to the shoulder and pinned flat. She forgoes the podium and the microphone, but somehow, her voice rings out clearly and reaches all the way to the back of the room: "Keep your eyes open."

With that parting message, she steps off the stage, disappearing into the mass of students who stand and fill the room with applause, drawing the graduation ceremony to a close. Characters find that they can now get up and move, which is a good thing because the other students are all pushing and shoving to get out of the auditorium and out the front doors, phasing right through the closed doors. Like a sieve, the school empties out, leaving behind the dregs.

wake up

Your eyes are open and the school is quiet. None of the students or faculty remain in the school, and all the staff— the principal, faculty, nurse, and counselor's— offices are locked. A skinny black cat flicks its tail from where it sits on top one of the lockers, where characters can find a copy of the school calendar showing the next two weeks to be spring vacation, with the school being closed for the holiday.

At least, with school vacated, it's clear from those left who's in the same boat and allows the chance for exploration away from prying eyes of the other students and staff. Introductions are probably in order, a discussion of what the fuck is going on, maybe also a plan of attack— or a plan for survival, at the very least, because there is no way out of this school. What ingredients are left in the home economics kitchen is going to have to last everybody the next two weeks. The student store is already empty. The water runs pink. The vending machines don't respond to jostling or being kicked over and brought to the ground, only the last dozen "merit points" on your PDA that you can't earn any more of, with class out of session. The snack you've been hiding in your locker should probably be saved as a last resort. The cats are starting to look tasty.

Hang in there. School will be starting again real soon.

OOC

✽ Characters experience the recurring feeling of drifting in (school life) and out (canon life) of sleep up until the graduation ceremony, after which they will have full awareness and come to their senses. Pre-established cr is possible to some extent, as a varying degree of familiarity may remain, but all characters will be strangers to one another unless they know each other in canon. All npcs will know the characters' names, but characters will not know each other's names until introduced.

✽ The second prompt occurs upon a character touching a gorinto or any of the offerings surrounding it. While touching it, characters fall into a trance and experience different scenes of high school life, with examples given in the prompt but players are free to play out any aspect of normal school life taking place at any time during the school year.

✽ stopit is an npc and will be available for threading in his toplevel during the vernal equinox and graduation day, but not during spring break. After the game opens, he will be available as a student for threading on the npc contact page. The graduating student will not be available for threading in this TDM.

✽ During spring break, all npc students and faculty will be absent from the school, with exception of one white cat and one black cat. For this TDM, in addition to the areas greyed out and inaccessible on the locations page, the faculty office and nurse's office are locked and unavailable, as there is no staff. The library and club rooms remain open, but supplies will not replenish themselves.

✽ As a reminder, all doors and windows leading outside are locked and cannot be broken. From midnight until 6AM, all sound disappears from the world. Characters are free to use their PDA as a network, but it is text (and shitty touchpad art) only and all threads are public.

✽ TDM threads may be used for bonus activity after April AC is submitted.

Comments

[futurebullets]

[It's not often that Hinata finds many people taller than him, thus with longer strides, so he does fall behind for just a second before catching up again.]

That's true... I guess it's only the natural course of things, to find more to explore as you live. It feels more frustrating in a situation like this, but...

[Especially since he's had to do it before, and he is extremely over it.

But.]

...You're right, though. Unless we know what to look for, we can't find out what's the truth.

[For some reason... something about going up the stairs causes a shiver all over Hinata, and he almost slows down for a second. But he tries to bury it, keep his expression nice and calm. Hopefully Norton won't notice?]

[nortonnnn]

( yeah. this guy gets it. norton will nod along in understanding; there's hesitation before the agreement comes, but frankly, that's fair. a situation like this, it's only natural to have a pessimistic outlook as you walk into things. that doesn't mean not trying though and, even if it feels like spinning their wheels, it's certain that the effort they put into these things will eventually be rewarded.

that's how the world works, right?

anyway, if norton notices the uncertainty in hinata's steps, he doesn't say anything about it. focused on the matter at hand, with an occasional glance to the other, the only comment he makes is when they reach the next landing of the stairs. )

You said the belongings might help us, so... I guess the classrooms would be the place to look?

[futurebullets]

Yeah, the classrooms sound like a good start. [His voice is a little unsteady, but quickly gains strength as he talks, climbing the stairs steadily. Having Norton there helps to distract him from... other thoughts.] There might turn out to be nothing, but it could give us some clues too. At least one of the students seemed to know that something wasn't quite right here.

[And that's the other thing Hinata doesn't want to think about - what she must've gone through to lose that arm, so he's going to just. Keep heading up the stairs swiftly, but not so fast that he becomes separated.

Once they've reached the top of the stairs, Hinata's expression shifts into something a little more sheepish.]

It still feels a little invasive to go through other people's desks... But it's for the greater good, I guess.

[nortonnnn]

It's fine—it's not as if we'll be taking anything with us.

( well, probably, anyway.

in any case, norton takes note of the sheepishness visibly, glancing to hinata and offering him a reassuring smile. he's not about to call out any changes in the other's demeanour, but this much is the least that he can do. the kid makes good points, so there's no need to have such uncertainty weighing him down. with that, norton nods in the direction of one of the nearest classrooms, indicating which one they can head to first. )

It would probably be uncomfortable, but if you were in their position and understood ours, you'd probably be alright with it anyway. Besides, even being able to cross something off a list will bring you closer to what you're searching for.

( some ugly memories that accompany that mindset, though. )

[futurebullets]

True... There shouldn't be any need to, unless it's something that'll help us get out of here.

[The smile helps - Hinata's probably overthinking things too much, which isn't unusual for him. Sometimes it's not a bad thing, but... He does tend to worry to much.

He tries the classroom door that Norton indicated, and it opens easily. Thank goodness.]

It's a good point, though. If the other students and teachers even come back to us- [and they aren't, like, actually ghosts or something] ...If we tell them it was an emergency, they should understand we needed to do whatever we could to get to the bottom of this.

[He looks around the classroom, nothing in particular standing out to search aside from the desks, as he thinks about crossing things off of lists with a bit of a shiver. That feels too close to ruling out evidence, but Hinata's sure Norton didn't mean something along those lines, so he tries to redirect his thoughts.]

You sound pretty used to that line of thinking, though... Did you do a lot of research before you were here?

[Research is probably a stretch, but it's the closest thing Hinata can equate it to.]

[nortonnnn]

Research?

( now that catches him off guard a little bit, raising his brows in surprise as he spares a glance back to hinata. jeez, wouldn't something as cushy as that be nice. )

No, but I'm not the type to give up easily.

( for better or for worse... even in the face of some pretty ugly circumstances, he's just the type to hold out for that slim chance to strike gold. and while there's not much of that to be found in here, perhaps the possibility of digging up a clue could be considered as something like an equivalent in a situation like this. it's thanks to that, that norton doesn't hesitate to make his way over to the desks while hinata glances around the rest of the room. he'll start peeking into one or two for now, not entirely sure what he should be looking for, but continuing absently. )

I guess what I want to say is that we shouldn't write off anything before we've tried it.

[futurebullets]

[Ah, he was off the mark like he thought... But it's fine, because to hear that is encouraging.]

I think that's probably just the thing we need, here. That's good to hear.

[As he sees Norton looking around, Hinata decides to join him in searching through some of the desks. As he speaks, he'll start moving towards the closest one.]

Makes sense, though. If you don't explore all your options, there's a chance of missing something- [Hinata makes a small noise in the back of his throat.] ...important?

[He's surprised, if only because it's his first attempt and he hadn't expected to find anything inside. But his hands close around the object he'd touched, somehow feeling oddly familiar as he pulls it out. What he finds is...

Hinata laughs.]

What's something like this doing in here? [It's a handheld game system, but it's notably worse for the wear - its screen has a giant crack down the middle, and three of the buttons are missing.] It looks just like a Game Girl Advance, though I think the company might be different... I guess somebody left it here since it's broken.

[nortonnnn]

( it's good to hear that the other seems to appreciate his words—while they are in a pretty bleak-seeming situation right now, it's norton's experience that morale counts a lot towards productivity. simply keeping their spirits up, that should be a contribution towards their investigation's progress all its own. though, norton's attention snaps over to the younger immediately as he hears that momentary hitch, and the questioning tone of his voice.

he's already halfway over to hinata's desk by the time the other has explained what he's found. )

Game Girl...? ( norton tilts his head visibly, not even bothering to hide his unfamiliarity with the... he supposes it's some kind of device? )

Looks kind of like a broken one of those, uh...

( he gestures vaguely, before remembering that in his pocket—right, right. he pulls out his PDA. )

[futurebullets]

Ah, sorry... [He rubs at his neck, a little sheepish.] I know not everybody plays video games. It's a handheld system that lets you play wherever you go, but less powerful than a console. Although... [He looks at it a little closer.] It does seem like it might be an older model, now that I'm getting a good look at it, so maybe it's just out of date.

[It does explain why Norton wouldn't recognize it as easily, he thinks- until the man pulls out the PDA for comparison. It almost startles a laugh out of him, but Hinata holds it back, settling for shooting him a bewildered smile.]

That's... interesting, though, I don't think I've ever seen anyone compare a Game Girl to a PDA before... I guess they are pretty similar in shape, at least.

[nortonnnn]

( hm... yeah. video games. he can kind of intuit what they have to do, approximately, from the name itself, but beyond that... he's just going to nod, as if he's got the context hinata is assuming he has. he's quickly figuring out about something here being off, but it really seems best not to label himself an outsider so quickly. with the smile, he's sure he's made a misstep with such a comparison, pocketing the PDA—but at least hinata seems sympathetic enough. norton gives a hmm, a nod of agreement. )

Well, the screens... ( he glances away, then back. you know what, let's not with salvaging this, he decides. )

What do you think, then? ( as in: he doesn't want to dismiss hinata's find, but... is it useful? )