fortiscor | TDM #1

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TDM #1

"Well, good morning, Sleepy Head,"

The voice was sweet and pleasant on the ears. You open your eyes to find a smiling face looking down at you. A face that looks human enough. Two eyes, a nose and a mouth, all in the right places. But something feels off about it... "We've been waiting for you to wake. It's about time!" The nurse, for now that she's moved away you realise that she is indeed dressed how you would imagine a nurse would be dressed, continues to talk and fuss about the room. In doing this, she explains:

❝You've been asleep for such a long time! Several years ago there was an Event that caused many people to fall into deep, deep sleeps. Some woke within days or weeks of their fall, but there were some, like yourself, who have been asleep for so much longer. It's hard to tell just how long you have slept, and I fear the world you remember is very different now, but we are here to help you through your transition from Dream World to the Waking World.❞

The nurse leaves and you are left alone. You will find that even though you have been in a coma for years, you are as physically fit as you remember. Any injuries you believed you had are gone now, as if they were never there. At the foot of the bed are clothes and any items you own. Take them. Go. The urge will take you. Once you leave, you will find you can not enter the hospital again, nor can you quite remember how you got out in the first place. All you can remember is the strangely haunting nurse and her words...

Welcome to Williamsburg!

The town before you is a hodgepodge of colour and style. No two houses are exactly the same. Some made of wood, or brick or even strange metals. Some are no more than holes in the ground. But all are warm and welcoming inside and not many are inhabited. In fact you'll find that the town itself isn't that populated at all. The busiest place is Main Street. Here you will find all the shops you need.

From food to beauty and fashion and furnishings for home and garden, there is a café selling the most delicious of sweets and a pub that never closes. The Main Street is the place to be, if there is something you are lacking. And it is only a hop, skip and a jump from the Hospital and around the corner from everywhere else.

● [The Nowhere Inn] is the local watering hole where you can come and share a drink with a friend. Or, if just passing through, spend the night. Here you will be greeted by Bert, the owner and bartender. A seven foot tall bear of a man with a magnificent beard and a loud, booming voice! And a desire to one day create a cocktail that will take the world by storm. It's just a shame that not all of his little experiments hit the mark... Newcomers to the town will be offered a drink on the house. Choose wisely, as some of these drinks can often come with side effects, both good and bad.
✦ Apricot Smash: A refreshing glass of fruit squash. Made from the concentrated juice of a sour and sweet type of apricot, this is a simple and thirst quenching kind of drink. If asked nicely, this can also be made into a slushie! Anyone who tries this deliciously fruity drink will find themselves enjoying a chance to dance and/or sing at any given opportunity. (Side effect: It can cause insomnia.)
✦ Lemongrass Twilight: Made from spicy and sour lemongrass syrup, this mildly alcoholic drink is served in a tall glass with round, purple coloured balls of ice. The drink is a swirling green, yellow and purple colour. Those who try this drink will find themselves feeling very mellow and warm and more inclined to feelings of affection. (Side effect: It can cause headaches.)
✦ Mint Blast: Pale blue-green with light swirls and served in a wine glass. The drink is heavy on the mint and light on the alcohol, with even a little sprig of it resting on the rim of the glass. Drinking this will leave you feeling a chilled and shivery. A nice cuddle should soothe those chills away. (Side effect: It causes sleepiness in the drinker.)
✦ Blue Smooch: This drink is a deep blue with white, creamy foam atop. The drink smells like chocolate and tastes wonderful. It leaves the drinker feeling happy and optimistic, almost childlike. (Side effect: It is rumoured to cause truthfulness in the drinker.)
✦ Burning Wine: Pale gold with yellow-orange swirls, this mulled wine is served in a clear glass mug and tastes like cinnamon and oranges, with a hint of chili. It has a nice, warming burn as it goes down. This drink will put a fire in your belly and keep you toasty and warm through the cold nights. It may also make drinkers a little more amorous than usual. (Side effect: It can sometimes cause tingling and numbness in the extremities.)
✦ Frosted Starlight: Sapphire with silver flecks and glittering sugar around the rim of the glass. This is an intoxicating alcoholic drink that is only served in the evening and at night. The drink itself smells like coconut yet there is no coconut within the drink. The taste is almost floral, with a slight hint of grape. Those who have tried this drink often find themselves with the brief ability to touch another and see their surface thoughts. (Side effect: It can cause blackouts.)

● [Sugar ‘n Spice Café] is a peculiar place. From the outside it looks like any other store front, but as you enter and the little bell tinkles, you will find the interior to be bright and open. Warm colours and bright lighting, and from somewhere soft music is always playing. A very modern sort of café selling a wide selection of handmade sweets and pastries as well as an espresso machine.
For the next month, if you come in for a hot drink you can have your choice of their specially made, homemade cheesecake free of charge. Subject to availability, of course.
✦ Roasted strawberries and cream cheesecake: Made with a chocolate biscuit base, sumptuous strawberries and homemade cream.
✦ Coconut cheesecake with lime and passionfruit sauce: This zesty citrus cheesecake has a buttery base, creamy coconut filling and fruity lime and passionfruit sauce.
✦ Triple choc upside-down cheesecake: The name may say upside-down, but this cake looks right side up to us! Juicy raspberries give it a fresh bite and for the chocoholics - oozing sauce.
✦ Gingernut cheesecake tart with sticky maple pears: A creamy cheesecake with high visual impact for that special dessert finale to your dinner party.

● For those looking to add a little something extra to their wardrobe, they'd be best heading to [Dreams Come True Boutique]. For the month of April the clothing store will be offering all new arrivals free vouchers for up to three new outfits of their choosing. Within reason, of course. But most all of the clothes here are decently priced with an odd array of fashions from the very old fashioned to near futuristic.

● [Linlae Botanical Gardens] resides not far from Main Street. Part of the gardens are covered, housed within a large green house, but most of the gardens are outside and easily accessed. There is much to see here, from the [Hedgemaze] with the secret gazebo at it's centre, [Hanging Gardens] and the weeping willows reaching into the waters of a large koi pond. If you're lucky you might see a large white carp, said to be 2,000 years old by the name of Etherus. Who knows how long he'd lived in that pond, but they say if you catch sight of him it's a sign of good luck. And if you manage to see him during a full moon, he may grant you a wish.
There are benches all over, places to sit and take in the peace. But don't expect much quiet, the twittering of birds is a near constant companion within these gardens.

● [A Home]. As you explore you will realise that you're going to need somewhere to stay the night. Of course you could always go to The Nowhere Inn and wait until morning, or you could just... open a door.
87% of the houses within the town of Williamsburg is vacant, and well maintained, for many years. These houses wait for someone to come and bring life into them. Inside your pocket you will find a key. If your key doesn't fit the lock, that house is occupied, so find another. When you finally open a door, you'll notice that the key has changed subtly. That key is now unique and can be used only for this house. It is yours.
Some houses come fully furnished, some might need some work. You might even be surprised to find that the house is one that looks vaguely familiar...

A Familiar View

It may have been immediate or it may take days for you to notice, but when you do...

The memories of your Dream World are coming back to you. It doesn't feel much like a dream at all. Those things that happened, those feelings you had, all seemed so real!

And then you find it.

It could be something as simple as a book, or as large as a building. You know this thing. This thing has been pulled directly from your memories, whether those memories are good or bad is entirely up to you. But there it is, as large as life, right in front of your eyes. What does this mean? Which world is real and which isn't? How did these things from that other world make it into this?
This is your chance to explore this new addition to Williamsburg. Maybe you will find the answers you seek? Or maybe you will be left with more questions. Just know that you aren't alone. It seems that almost everything in this world was pulled from another, brought here by 'others', and left here.

Maybe this new landmark, or item, leaves you with a warm feeling and questions are the last thing on your mind? Perhaps you would like to share with your friends, or even a perfect stranger, the joy that this thing brings you? Tell them your story. Share with them it's the history. Or maybe the feelings attached are feelings of anger, of horror and fear? Misery does love company, so don't go through with this trip down memory lane alone.

Down the Rabbit Hole

It starts with something small shifting around you. Maybe it’s a door or window, but as you walk down the street things take a turn for the bizarre. It’s far too late to escape by the time you notice the buildings themselves bleeding into the sky or folding back onto themselves.

You are stuck in The Corridor now.

And you appear to be alone. Or are you? As the buildings creak in protest you seem to hear footsteps. Is that a fellow waylaid traveler?

Before you can determine the direction of the sounds, one thing becomes clear to you: these homes and businesses, all that brick and mortar, seem to be closing in on you…

It is a gradual squeeze but you can tell that if you don’t get out of there you’ll eventually be crushed. As you explore this place where time and gravity seem to have lost all meaning and your senses may even betray you, you search for a way out or an end to this madness and that is when you finally realize that the buildings are taking shape according to your will. The more you panic, the more claustrophobic and chaotic things become. But if you remain calm and focus your attention you find you can tame the buildings back into their original shapes and places. Of course, it helps if you have a partner.

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[The kiss has him blinking at Ichigo's back, a hand coming up to rub the spot a little as he waits.

When Ichigo returns, he's laying on his side, propped up on one arm with no regard for the fact that his morning wood is on display.]

Yeah, but what the fuck did you do to me? I was fuckin' hallucinating.

[Or, you know. Dreaming.]

[Ichigo is clearly appreciative as he looks at Grimmjow with lust in his eyes.]

That's called dreaming. It's what happens when you reach a particularly deep state of sleep. It's also good for your brain.

[Coming over, he sits on the bed with a grin.]

Want some food? Or did I waste my time putting my underwear back on?

[Grimmjow stares at Ichigo for a long moment. Dreaming. He knows about it, but he hadn't done it in so long, he forgot what it felt like. After a moment, he huffs and sits himself up, sliding off the bed.]

Yeah, I want some food. That shit's amazing.

[And then he follows Ichigo's example of using the bathroom. When he's done, he goes searching for Ichigo.]

[Ichigo pulls on his pants as well before going downstairs to start rummaging through the kitchen. There's rice, eggs, some vegetables, and a little bit of what looks like chicken in the fridge. So he decides on a quick stir fry. He's washing the rice when Grimmjow comes down.]

Hey, it's your place so I don't wanna make any rules, but you should probably at least put some underwear on before we cook.

[Grimmjow glances down at his naked self, then over at Ichigo. He doesn't know why it matters so much, they'd just had sex, so he growls as if he's going to argue before heading back to the bedroom and pulling on his underwear and pants before coming back.

And coming right up behind Ichigo to spy on what he's making.]

What is it? And why does it matter if I'm naked?

[When Grimmjow comes back down, Ichigo is putting the rice into the rice cooker.]

So this stuff is called rice. I washed it with just water to get the extra starch off. It'll make the grains stick to each other to make them easier to eat with chopsticks. Next, I'll start cutting the vegetables. And wearing at least some underwear means that you're at least a little protected in case of hot oil or anything that can irritate sensitive skin.

[Grimmjow doesn't understand all of that, but he listens carefully anyway, like he's going to be quizzed on it later.]

I got Hierro. If I can withstand Getsuga Tenshou, what's a little oil gonna manage to do? [He snorts softly in the amusement that something as mild as an oil splatter might do anything. Then again, he hasn't experienced it yet.]

That was before. We don't know if the same will hold true now.

[Ichigo shows Grimmjow how he cuts vegetables, and how to avoid cutting himself.]

With the way I'm going to cook them, I'm cutting these into long, thin pieces. Some recipes want them to be cut in other ways, like bigger chunks, or really small pieces.

[Grimmjow lets out a quiet growl that could just be what passes for humming in agreement. He's still nice and relaxed, not-quite-crowding Ichigo as he watches this 'cooking' take place.]

Why're you goin' so slow? Just 'cause that thing can't fight back?

[It's all blade-work to him, but he wonder if it's not like the oil, that somehow because the blade is tiny there are different rules. Maybe it was too weak for faster speeds. He perched his chin on Ichigo's shoulder as he watched.]

Well, with swords you aim for the most damage, right? But with cutting food for cooking, you want to be more precise. Because if all the food is of different sizes, then they won't cook at the same rate and you'll end up with some pieces being burned before others are cooked properly. And some people who cook professionally can get really fast with their cutting skills, but I'm not that good. So I go this speed also to make sure I don't cut myself. Because while you might not mind a little extra blood in your food, I'd be in pain and maybe unable to finish cooking depending on how badly I hurt myself.

[Grimmjow nods to the question, still listening and watching, a little amazed by what Ichigo is saying. People do cooking professionally. Jobs are one of the few human concepts that he actually understands, and the idea that cooking food is a job is wild to him.]

It's 'cause you're human, right? Well I ain't. I can cut it real fast.

[And he's accurate, too, though making such precise cuts might be a challenge. But one he could easily be enticed by. Especially if he got food at the end of it.]

You gotta do more stuff to it once you cut it up, yeah?

Mmhmm.

[Ichigo picks up a strip of red pepper and offers it to Grimmjow.]

Some of these taste okay raw, but they'll taste even better once they've cooked. And I need to cut up the chicken, too. Plus, there are seasonings that can be added to change and improve how things taste.

[Grimmjow takes it with his teeth, then leans back to bite off a piece and inspect the rest. He makes a soft noise after his first bite, chewing the bit of pepper.]

Is it supposed to set off water bombs?

[He eyed the rest of the slice with suspicion. If this was a weapon, it was weak as fuck.]

[Ichigo raises an eyebrow as he reaches for the chicken to start cutting it into pieces.]

Water bombs? You mean it's making your mouth water? And these ones are called bell peppers. They're considered pretty sweet, but I find that they taste sweeter when you heat them up.

[Grimmjow glowers.]

I mean when I bite it open it's got water inside, an' it spits it all over in my mouth.

[He pops the rest of the pepper into his mouth and reaches around Ichigo with the intention of plucking up a piece of raw chicken to try.]

Oh, you mean the moisture inside in the pepper itself! Yeah, different vegetables have different water contents. It means how much water they keep inside of them. Some things have more water in them than others.

[Ichigo lightly smacks Grimmjow's hand when he tries to grab the raw chicken.]

Don't eat it raw. I know you're a hollow, but for all we know your digestive system will work differently here than you're used to. Raw meat can contain things that make you sick, which is why you cook it. The heat can kill those things so they aren't a danger anymore. These are called bacteria. They're so small you can't see them without specific tools, and they can make you throw up or shit a lot.

[He growls when his hand is smacked purely out of reflex; it didn't even hurt, but he pulled his hand away anyway.]

That's disgusting. How come the meat can make me sick but the other stuff wouldn't?

[Since there's no chance of additional treats, he puts his chin back on Ichigo's shoulder to watch him work. It's weirdly comfortable, and makes him feel warm in ways he refuses to think about. Everything about this weird little house made him feel safe.

He started purring again.]

Because meat comes from animals. And sometimes fruits and vegetables can carry bacteria on them, but those can usually be washed away. Meat comes from the muscles and internal organs of things like cows, chickens, pigs, and some other domesticated animals.

[The warmth of Grimmjow against his back makes Ichigo happy as he trims the fat from the chicken and slices it neatly.]

Not all domesticated animals are raised for food. Lots are kept as companions, some are even kept for protection. This meat is chicken, particularly the thighs of the birds.

[Grimmjow purrs as he listens, nodding a little as he watches.]

Whenever I eat meat it's lucky if it's dead first.

[He huffs out a dark little chuckle, watching the meat get cut up. It sure was going to be easier to eat that way, if nothing else, and he wondered how different it was going to taste from what he was used to eating.

And he takes note of the names things have, so if he wants them again, he can go find them.]

Here we can buy meat that's already dead. Unless there's somewhere that we can get animals from and raise them.

[Once the chicken is cut, Ichigo goes to wash his hands. As soon as his hands are clean, he gets the wok out and turns the heat on under it.]

And now we start the cooking.

[Grimmjow backs off when Ichigo moves to wash his hands, going to lean against the opposite counter as Ichigo gets everything ready.]

That's weird. Eatin' stuff that somebody else killed. Who gets it's power?

[He moves closer when Ichigo seems to be done moving around.]

Start? If this is cooking what was the knife stuff? Why can't you just do this part?

These things don't contain any reishii, so there's not really any power to consume when it's killed. All the power comes from the chemical reactions in your body when you eat it. Because as you digest the food, your body turns it into energy.

[Ichigo starts with the toughest veggies, knowing they need plenty time.]

Ah, I suppose that's a good point. So cooking as a whole encompasses everything I'm doing, but it can also refer to just the part of the process when you're using heat to basically transform the different ingredients. Because heat can fundamentally change how things taste, their texture, sometimes even the structure of the food because it causes chemical reactions.

[Grimmjow growls softly. He doesn't like the idea of being stranded without a source of food. Sure, he could eat this human stuff, but he had no idea if it would be enough, or if his power would dwindle from not having eaten any other hollows for too long.]

I don't even know if this stuff will work for me... and this cooking stuff is weird.

You haven't puked up that strip of bell pepper yet, so clearly you have some sort of digestive function. And if you start feeling like you're not getting enough because there's no reishii, I'm sure there's a way you can snack on my surplus reiatsu.

[Ichigo had doubts he'd notice one way or another even if Grimmjow gorged himself on it.]

Cooking takes practice, but it's also something I really enjoy. So I can teach you, or cook for you, or both.

[Grimmjow blinks, looking at Ichigo's face for a few long seconds before he drops his chin back to Ichigo's shoulder.]

Why? I'm way weaker than you, an' we're enemies.

[Despite the small mountain of evidence to the contrary, as he keeps purring. This was really nice, and he didn't know how to keep it, but he wanted to.]

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