MARCH POCKET PARTY!

[peckishmods]

pocket's galaxy express party!

what's up?

Pocket is throwing a party tonight and you’re invited! There’s about an hour after dinner to get ready for the big event, enough time for today’s steady rain to peter out and a thick, dense fog to settle in. It’s a surprisingly warm night, but students attending the party still have to trudge through mud to get to the cave behind the falls.

In groups and pairs, students pass beneath the mist enveloped falls and into the caves behind. Here, the fog is even denser than outside, thick billowing white clouds that swirl as students move through them. A great blaring horn rings out, and a robotic voice calls, “All aboard!”

Emerging from the mists and fog, students find themselves on a gunmetal gray platform, standing before a massive, strange steam engine train. The walls beyond the train are glass, overlooking a starry night sky. A shiny chrome robotic conductor rolls by, “Tickets please! Have your tickets ready, folks! We don’t want to delay departure.”

visuals!

Any regular text goes here.

how this works!

⬥ Welcome to Pocket’s party! Pocket always wants to hang out with the students of Peckenpaugh, and she uses her unusual magic to give them fantastic new places to play with her. This is Pocket’s domain, and she’ll block or (safely) eject anyone who is dangerously disruptive or threatens the safety or secrecy of the party.

⬥ Pocket Parties are pretty much old hat for Peckenpaugh's students, provided you've been here for a year. What's not old hat is the party itself. Pocket's parties are always reliably wild and imaginative, bending the limits of magic and reality!

⬥ The party starts at 8PM and stretches on indistinctly. Tonight, however something strange happens. After several hours of fun, the party ends abruptly, depositing students in the dark Elflock Falls caves, soaking wet. See the End of the Night section for more details.

⬥ The theme of the evening is Galactic Express, combining cowboys with space travel. Fittingly students arrive on the station platform in space cowboy attire. In addition to the slick new duds, you may find you’ve arrived as a robot or alien.

⬥ We didn’t roll matches for stb or 7mih this time but you’re welcome to post opens and scene under the kissing games header.

⬥ We have an RNG minigame where you can fight bandits on the roof of the train! Fill out the form and post it to the "PEW PEW" header to get a roll.

<b>NAME:</b> What's your name? <b>COWBOY NAME:</b> What your cool cowboy name? <b>NICE SHOOTING, TEX:</b> How awesome are you at shooting bad dudes in this weird fantasy world? <b>ANYTHING ELSE?:</b>

locations!

⬦ ALL ABOARD!: From a misty cave to a transgalactic railway platform! A massive steam engine ⁠— far, far bigger than a normal train ⁠— greets students as they emerge into this strange new world, each of them dressed in duds befitting a space aged wild west. Each of the (number) cars hooked to the engine combines the sleek shine of science fiction with the classic look of an old fashioned train. Faceless folks mill about, and a robot conductor stands ready to usher students aboard. How’re you feeling? What’s your look for tonight? Are you even still human? Hope you’ve got a six shooter handy in case the train is beset by bandits, but maybe leave the assless chaps at home. (This space replaces our typical WHAT’S UP section, filling the same purpose while also providing a space to scene on the train platform.)

⬦ PRIVATE CABINS: Students board onto a long and somewhat narrow hallway lined with sliding doors. Each one opens into a cozy private space that’ll comfortably fit six teenagers, but can certainly squeeze in a few more. Each private cabin has a single large window on the far side of the room for you to watch the Milky Way streak by. Two comfortable sofas sit on either side of the little room and a center table divides them. If you’re up for climbing and cramped spaces, above each couch is a bed tucked away. These spaces are perfect for having your own private party.

⬦ THE BRIDGE: Near to the Private Cabins, the bridge is the most plainly futuristic car on the train. Glowing holographic screens shine from sleek black surfaces, delivering maps and information in an alien language that looks a bit like Appalachian Mushkin. A faceless crew of humans, aliens and androids mills about, speaking in the mumbled language of dreams ⁠— you understand, even if you can’t quite hear. Something always seems to be happening up here, with frequent jumps to warp bringing the train into the orbit of gas giants, or dipping down into the atmosphere of sparkling ocean planets. Occasionally, a comm will open and a strange alien will speak about something or another. Here, every touch surface and screen is interactive, producing lights and sound with each press and swipe. It’s fun to punch out a tune.

⬦ PARTY GAMES: Ordinarily it might be odd to see a bunch of teenagers milling about a starship bridge, but this is Pocket's world, baby! Nothing's stopping you from giving the faceless crew a hard time, and a group of kids have done just that, setting up shop in the middle of the room. They're spinning a bottle, playing kissing games, much to the chagrin of the crew. Pocket, in the captain seat, seems amused, though. If you want to get a round of 7 Minutes in Heaven in, there's an elevator to nowhere that'll carry you up and then back down in a journey that takes exactly seven minutes. Convenient.

⬦ DINING CAR: Exit the far side of the private cabins to arrive in the Dining Car. Spacious and richly decorated, this car is equal parts high class honky tonk saloon and Enterprise mess hall. The warm dark wood is accented in greens, a nod, perhaps, to the upcoming St. Patrick’s Day holiday. The room’s large windows look out into the void and it’s easy to lose yourself in watching stars and comets whir by. From here, it seems the train is traveling through a cluster of rocks, and there’s plenty to look at outside. Pleasant music fills the room, all danceable pop hits from the last thirty years rendered on a player piano. There’s ample places to sit, both at large round tables and the bar. A robot with a handlebar mustache literally made from handlebars is mixing drinks, all of which are served in squat saloon glasses and garnished with a ton of lucky charms marshmallows, because Pocket is pretty sure St. Patrick’s Day is a celebration of the Lucky Charms mascot. All the food is really bizarre, strange shapes and colors, definitely alien.

⬦ WHY DOES IT ALWAYS HAVE TO BE SNAKES?: There’s hay on the floor of this dimly lit car, which contains two large crates, both just brimming with snakes. Looks like someone saw Last Crusade.

⬦ OBSERVATION DECK: Getting past the snakes brings partygoers to their next challenge. The first step into this strange room finds no ground. Here, it’s as though you’re stepping out into space, but upon closer inspection this car is simply a massive orb of glass. There’s no gravity here, and you float freely. A rope extends the length of the room, allowing easier passage from one side to the other. This car may as well be its own miniature galaxy, full of little glowing stars, planets and moons in orbit. There’s a tiny replica of the train rocketing around, as well as comets and little flying saucers. Every once in a while, an asteroid hits a planet with a loud pop, or a star explodes in a bright flash of light and … pop corn? Closer to the edges of the room, there are bars to anchor onto, so you can stare out into the actual void. On these edges, it’s quite romantic. A good place to cozy up and share a quiet moment.

⬦ TOP OF THE TRAIN: Access the roof of the train by climbing up a ladder and through a hatch in the caboose. Somehow, despite being in the void, you can still breathe here. It’s quite the view out here, but there’s not much time to enjoy it. What’s more, it seems the train itself is under siege! Bandits are running across the cars. Grab a laser gun and help fight them off!

⬦ END OF THE NIGHT: It feels like the party has stretched on for hours, but where usually students are able to leave at their own pace, tonight things end with a bang. Wherever you’re standing, whatever you’re doing, everything flickers, blurs and pulls long. A glitch like a brownout that shakes this fake reality Pocket’s built. Things dim and snap back three times total, before everything abruptly melts, transforming into water and soaking everyone. It’s 10:45PM and students are left standing in the Elflock Falls caves with a confused-looking Pocket, who insists this must be a bit of bad luck, given the date. Pocket bids everyone goodnight, and they’re left to head back to their Houses.

⬦ OOC - QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS!

Comments

WHY DOES IT ALWAYS HAVE TO BE SNAKES?

[peckishmods]

WHY DOES IT ALWAYS HAVE TO BE A QUACKENBUSH? (open+++)

[circuitree]

There is, somehow, at least a dozen snakes curled up in Cedar's ten gallon hat. They took it off long enough to fix their hair and now this is their life.

"Uhhhhhhh." Their voice is stuck in limbo between a forced calm and unbridled panic. There will be no compromising. As soon as they pick a direction, they will go all in, and it'll probably be panic. "Heeeeeeelp?" Cedar looks around, then up toward the roof. Is there a fight going on up there? A sport game??? Do they need snakes????? "Soooomeooooone???"

WHY DOES ECHO ALWAYS HAVE TO SAVE A QUACKENBUSH?

[empiearr]

Echo knows this is the snake car. She has avoided the snake car because there are snakes in the snake car. In an ideal world, she would continue avoiding the snake car that contains snakes inside.

And yet she cannot ignore the pleas of someone calling for help. Horny for heroism (or just without something better to do) she opens the snake door that leads to the snake car. There are snakes inside. But, more concerningly, a Quackenbush.

"Where are the other two?" she asks, expecting their siblings to reveal they're trapped inside the crates.

WHY DOES ECHO ALWAYS HAVE TO SAVE A QUACKENBUSH?

[circuitree]

Cedar whips around, mouth stretched in perpetual panic, looking for all the world like they expect a giant Stetson-wearing snack to have slithered up just behind them.

Look, it could happen.

"I don't know," they hiss, teeth clenched, a glance toward the hatful of serpents to see if the noise disturbs them. "What if they're on the roof? What if they fell in here?"

Merlin (open+++)

[merlinpletcher]

Merlin has never been scared of snakes. Even before learning to transform into one just a few weeks ago, he'd read a lot about them and he'd handled his fair share in the wild, always approaching them with deep fascination and reasonable caution. Now that he's one of them (...sort of) and because he's still curious to find out for himself whether or not a serpentine Animagus can learn Parseltongue, though, the creatures are especially quick to grab his attention at the party.

Who cares about pretend space and drinking games when there are boxes of snakes?

Sitting cross-legged on the ground a distance away, he observes the creatures thoughtfully and turns his wand around in his hand idly. He doesn't expect that Pocket would leave anything venomous or even particularly dangerous in here with them, but still. One should never be careless. He tries to listen for words in their hisses and furrows his brow, just waiting for a moment of epiphany.

Merlin & Armani look at snakes, but silently for some reason

[teratophilia]

Armani enters the train car with a gleeful little grin. Having heard there's snakes on board, he's excited to go meet them but as soon as he sees Merlin he falls still with his hand still on the door. But he doesn't say a word, not a peep, and eventually (very slowly, very cautiously) closes the door behind him and lowers himself to the ground where he crawls closer to Merlin.

He has no idea what's going on and doesn't ask, but it's something-- maybe-- and he wants to be included. Though he is silent, he's buzzing with excitable energy as he turns his grin on Merlin and takes a seat next to him, crossing his legs to mirror him. There's a hint of expectation as he looks to him, as if to ask, 'What are we doing?' Because this is a two person activity now.

Merlin & Armani look at snakes, but silently for some reason

[merlinpletcher]

While Merlin notices Armani's entrance and the subsequent (inexplicable) crawling in his direction, his focus remains predominantly on the snakes. After all, they're quite a bit more likely to strike out at him than the Thorntrail is. Eventually, though, when the boy is sitting beside him and looking at him expectantly, he acknowledges him with a nod and a small smile.

Armani is often a bit of a mystery to him, but...he's never unhappy to see him.

"...Hey." Apparently, the silent question in the boy's eyes is a little too subtle for him to interpret. "Need something?"

Merlin & Armani look at snakes, but silently for some reason

[teratophilia]

"Hi," he whispers, hunching his shoulders and grinning. It feels like they have a secret. (They don't.) "What are you doing in the snake room?"

Merlin & Armani look at snakes, but silently for some reason

[merlinpletcher]

"...Communing," Merlin answers after a pause, not knowing quite how to put his intentions into words and finding the prospect of doing so a bit embarrassing. He knows how it sounds. He thinks that it makes a certain amount of sense too, though, so he squares his shoulders and continues with all the confident certainty he can muster. "I've been wondering if being a snake Animagus might come with certain...perks," he clarifies, nodding toward the serpents, "Other wizards can understand Parseltongue. So it's worth a shot. So I'm listening."

He exhales a tense breath, puffing out his cheeks for a moment in exasperation before he adds, "...Nothing yet, though."

Merlin & Armani look at snakes, but silently for some reason

[teratophilia]

Armani nods, eyes wide with interest. He knows people were born with the ability, but he's never considered the idea of learning it through Animagus studies. "Do you think it matters if you're listening while you're a snake versus a human?" he offers, "Or if they're real snakes or Pocket Snakes?"

Merlin & Armani look at snakes, but silently for some reason

[merlinpletcher]

Merlin's eyes narrow thoughtfully at this and he peers at the boxes for a moment before shaking his head. "...No idea. But when else am I going to encounter a box of snakes, anyway? Real or not." He allows himself a small smile at this before turning to Armani. He might have a point.

"...You got your wand?" he asks after a pause, "I'll try it. But I'll need you to have my back in case it goes sideways." He's spent enough time as a snake now that getting around pretty quickly and pretty adeptly isn't a problem, but is he prepared for a snake fight? Probably not. Even he's got to acknowledge that. Especially when he'll be far from the biggest serpent of the bunch.

Merlin & Armani look at snakes, but silently for some reason

[teratophilia]

Armani pats the wand holstered on his side like a gun. It's a gamble if he'd actually remember to use it, or just panic and reach his hand into the box of snakes. But either way, he'll get Merlin out of there.

"I got you!"

Merlin & Armani look at snakes, but silently for some reason

[merlinpletcher]

Apparently confident in Armani's ability not to panic and to handle any snakes that might turn surly, Merlin smiles broadly and nods and slips his own wand into the inner pocket of his jacket. There's no reason to put this off anymore.

While it takes a brief pause and a moment of focus, transforming from a boy into a brightly colored bush viper is no longer difficult for him and it appears almost effortless. And cool, he hopes. The snake looks up at Armani and flicks its tongue once before slithering nearer to one of the boxes. He doesn't intend to get too close immediately, though. As before, he's just attempting to listen and understand.

Merlin & Armani look at snakes, but silently for some reason

[teratophilia]

Oh, Armani looks delighted by Merlin's transformation. It's... probably too much to pet a classmate, although he does strategically slide his hand closer toward the bush viper as it passes so that the brush seems accidental.

Snakes are cool.

Armani stills, listening in too in case he very miraculously discovers he's had the gift this entire time. The crate sounds like snakes.

Merlin & Armani look at snakes, but silently for some reason

[merlinpletcher]

The crate continues to sound like snakes...until it doesn't. A large emerald tree boa poking out of the top of one of the boxes looks down on the wizards, flicks its tongue sagely, and asks in perfectly articulate (but West Virginian-accented) English, "Shouldn't you youngins be getting back to the party?"

The serpentine Merlin jerks his head up, uttering a small hiss and somehow managing to look offended. He can tell immediately that that isn't Parseltongue, so apparently it does matter that these are Pocket Snakes. He looks back at Armani, apparently expecting commiseration. Can he believe this guy??

Willow & Adrian

[pageantree]

Some sounds, whether by design or by experience, immediately send the mind into a panic. The Jaws theme. The rattle of a snake's tail. And, in this cause, the loud voice of a ginger sophomore calling out, "HEY! ADRIAN!"

Willow & Adrian

[numerologest]

Adrian is just passing through the snake car when he hears the clarion call. He winces visibly and tries not to be too obvious about locating all his exits. Why is there a snake car on this train, anyway?

"Uh!" he replies, which is in no way a greeting. "Is that you, Willow?" He knows perfectly well who it is.

Willow & Adrian

[pageantree]

"Yeah!" she replies, the epitome of cheerful. "Hold on, I'll come to you." That shouldn't be too difficult — at least, it wouldn't be for anyone who wasn't a Quackenbush. Apparently, though, curses hold even inside dream world parties. Two different crates full of snakes bust open, scattering over the floor. Willow isn't afraid of imaginary snakes, but she still doesn't want to feel the bites or trip over their writhing bodies. "Hold on, gimme a minute to catch up!"