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Test Drive - 004

TEST DRIVE 004

Welcome to Aterat!

Here is our forth Test Drive Meme! There are a lot of areas of the city to explore, so please have a look around! In case you need a little help getting started, I've included a few prompts below, or feel free to start your own! Exploration and player initiative are the names of the game here!

Helpful Links to Get Started

Arrival & General Information | Locations & Bestiary | Residences & Housing Info | Businesses | Rules & FAQ (ask questions here!)

A. Crash into Me

Not exactly, but close enough. You have just arrived and received a strange satchel from a tiny, strange little man and are left more or less to your own devices (more information on what to expect upon arrival can be found here)! Follow directions to the north and check out the housing, or maybe have a look around the Historium and try to get some information from that giant glowing ball, see what you can waste your meager starter coin on in the Market District, or maybe just meet the neighbors.

B. A Winter's Ball

What brand new ballroom would be complete without a fancy new winter's ball to break it in? Things are a little strange at the ballroom (check the prompts) with mistletoe that traps you for a kiss with a random passerby, strange gray meringue that makes you willing to overshare, not to mention the fact that one of your strange possible overlords funded the whole thing. What's the worst that could happen?

C. We're all hanging out at the park, right?

The park near the Complex has become a glittering expanse of show! Children ~~and adults alike~~ build snowmen and even sled down some of the higher hills in the area. There are stands around the park selling hot chocolate, coffee, tea, and cider, as well as sweets and wrapped snacks for the day in the park. Speckling the park at regular intervals are standing fire pits designed to ward away the cold and allow for gatherings and conversation.

The pond in the park has frozen over as well, affording the abilities to ice skate as the ever-industrious Raimon is renting skates, and maybe even challenge people to a hockey game. How hard could it be to find some makeshift pucks and other accoutrements in order to play a game?

Tell Phone

The Tell Phones everyone are provided when they arrive are capable of voice transmission and texting as well and photo texts!

NAVIGATION

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Coins for small change. Nida starts to open his mouth to explain something only to pause for half a second. Siren shuddered in his mind and her music swelled in his mind with that momentary awareness. There was magic in this boy.

Interesting.

"Well, here unfortunately we use coins for most things." He reaches out to shake the boy's hand and yeah, there was that spark of power. His own magic rose at the sense of it, as if holding it's breath. Paramagic didn't tend to do that. No, that wasn't true. It had just wasn't something Nida felt before. Because he'd never been near a Sorceress back home, and it too high levels of power for this to happen. High potential.

"Nice to meet you Billy. So, let's talk coins. Here, I'll show you with mine."

He pulls a small pouch from his side, the one he left out where a thief might go for it and so it served as bait. He didn't keep much there, just enough (and usually marked in some minute manner) to be tempting. He shakes out a few coins, spreading them over his palm.

"Alright. I don't know what money is like for you back home. But each coin here, people refer to them as bronzes. People that come here, we start with two hundred. A meal for a guy my size at an inn or tavern here? About ten to fifteen."

Damn, Nida needed to talk to Ignis. That kid, Mono, how was he paying for food? What about this kid? Fucking Aspects.

His head tilts at that pause, unsure what's prompted it, but soon enough it's forgotten, watching carefully as Nida gives his lesson.

Billy tries to do a bit of mental math, not entirely confident of his accuracy, but he thinks that's maybe...thirteen meals worth of coins then? Which broken down like that feels a bit daunting. He swallows anxiously and nods, "How do I make more?" Because he's definitely going to need more, even if he tries to make them stretch. He's smaller than Nida, that might make things last a bit longer.

Yeah, the math wasn't exciting there. But, he supposed, there were answers. There had to be some other outsiders who would give Billy some money for small jobs. But for now...

"Well, if nothing else, my fiance will yell at me very rightfully if I don't let you know that you'll always be welcome at our door for dinners. It's okay, he usually makes more than we need anyway. And if you like, there are small jobs around town to be taken, like someone who takes messages to people, or the flower shop might want more help, and I know the guard can always use help from smart kids. The good news is that you've got a home all your own here. That's the key in your bag."

Again, he needed to message his distance, badly.

"But the good news is that as a guardsman, part of my job is to make sure that kids like you are safe. And I'm very good at my job."

He laughs softly, and smiles at Nida, head tilting, "Yeah?" he asks, feeling sure he can trust the man.

"I can help, yeah, I could- Wait, like a whole house?" Billy looks impressed and curious like only a young boy can when presented with those kinds of possibilities.

"I'll try not to get into too much trouble."

"Not a house," Nida lets him know. "An apartment. But it's going to be pretty big for you."

Not get into trouble? Not likely.

"But yes, Ignis is going to insist on feeding you. He likes taking care of people. I mean, he does take care of me, and that's pretty impressive."

"Mm, well that's still pretty cool," he decides. Maybe not as cool as a whole house, but he can work with it.

"Is that your fiance? Ignis?"

"Oh it's really cool. I live one with my fiance and his cat and my peacock cat and our chicobo. But that's not important right now," he said with a smile.

And then the smile widened.

"He is. And he's worlds smarter than me. You'll like whatever he cooks, I promise."

With that Nida stood and offered the boy a hand.

"Let me show you around some shops with people who might take my name as credit for you, okay? If you need it. Emergencies only. They'll know how to find me too. Then I can try and show you where people like us live."

"Peacock cat-?" he murmured curiously.

Normally Billy would insist he was much to old to need to hold hands with anyone, but all alone in this place...maybe he didn't mind quite so much today. He took the hand and easily fell into stride with Nida, looking up at him with an eager smile.

"Thank you, Nida. I promise, I'll figure out a way to earn coins and pay you back."

Yeah, he's got the coolest pets, he knows it. So much better than dogs. But he was allergic to them so whatever.

"First thing first, Billy. I will never ask you to pay me back. And if you do, my rule is no payback until you're sixteen, got it? I want you to focus on you, and being happy. Ignis and I do well for ourselves, the Guard pays me well. So let me be nice, okay?"

Ah, well that...could be a problem. Billy gives an unexpected frown.

"Mom says I'm not allowed to get older..." he explains. Obviously it sounds like the sort of thing any doting parent might say. Strange that Billy should take it so seriously.

"Moms, as nice as they are, can't stop time," Nida counters, shrugging. "It comes for all of us."

SOmething he knew well, given his world was nearly destroyed by a time witch.

"..." That earns a doubtful look, given that well, his Mom can, but that's hard to explain, so he just nods, feeling guilty that if he doesn't age he can't pay Nida back.

"Can I help out with chores or something at least?"

Help out with chores. Well, Ignis will hate it, so Nida likes the idea. He grins.

"Yes. If you come over for dinner you can help me convince Ignis not to do everything by himself by framing it like that. About wanting to help as thanks for the meal. Setting the table, helping clean the dishes, those sorts of things," he answers. Some days it was hard enough to get his love to let him do those things himself.

"Between you and me, Ignis used to work for a Prince, and so he's very used to taking care of other people. He's really not good at letting other people help take care of him."

"An actual Prince?" Oh Billy definitely wants to hear more about that, eyes practically begging, an eager look on his face.

To him that seems like something out of a fairytale, even though he's distantly aware that there are still modern royals.

"Yep, an actual Prince," Nida agreed, grinning widely. Kid seems like he might be able to use a story right now. "They knew each other since they were younger than you I think. They grew up together too. The Prince was his best friend and like a brother to him, but he was also not the best at chores, so Ignis had to learn to do it all himself."

There's so much he can't say, because it's not his to tell, but maybe he can still make the kid smile while he tries to figure out an answer for him.

"That doesn't seem fair," Billy mused with a pointed frown.

Being a twin fairness was very important to him, and poor Ignis haven't to do all the chores didn't seem fair at all. Even if his friend was a Prince.

Doesn't seem fair, Nida absolutely understood that. And agreed. See, Nida liked this kid.

"You're not wrong. But sometimes you love the people you take care of so much that to you it doesn't feel wrong. From what I understand it made him happy. WHich is why I talk him into letting me help."

"Mm, like a Mom?" It was the best analogy Billy had for that sort of behavior, thinking he understood and giving a small nod.

"I guess that makes sense."

Like a mom. On Nida has to laugh at that. Yes. LIke a mother. Oh god, Ignis needs to hear that.

"Yeah, like that. He can definitely be motherly. He takes care of me. So sometimes I have to take care of him.

Billy nodded sagely, thinking he understood that part a little. Mom's needed taking care of sometimes too. And Mom type people. That made sense.

"You sound like my parents."

Nida... paused. He had never known his own family. Not enough to remember him. His heart was aching just a bit to think of that.

"WEll, sounds like your parents are really smart.

"Mm," Billy nodded easily, "Dad's a synthezoid, he's like the smartest person I know."

"What's a synthezoid?" Nida asks as he gets them moving again. Smartest person Nida can accept without hesitation. Either the kid doesn't know a lot of smart people, or his dad really was. No reason to argue with either.

"Kind of like a robot but with flesh and stuff?" Not the most scientific explanation, but probably the best once you'll get out of a ten year old who's actually a week old.

Um, that's... weird. And familiar. Which he brushes off. It makes no sense. But he'll just move on for now.

"Well, that's different from how my world works. But it's really cool."

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Test Drive - 004

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