trainmasters: (Default)
Aurora Express Mods ([personal profile] trainmasters) wrote in [community profile] auroraexpress2019-02-14 08:01 pm

Love on the Railway!

Who: Everyone
When: Day 12, morning into afternoon
Where: the Aurora

[Morning today comes easily, the early stars of a false sunrise shining in with the same cool softness as usual. Though it remains the eternal darkness of the corrupted jungle, it's a little warmer than it's been so far, as if something somewhere is emitting a comforting heat. If you're outside you can hear a faint ringing like the chime of a bell, off in the direction of the beach. It's a bit far to walk through dangerous jungle, but you could try, if you're determined.

Back at the Aurora, however, things are also awfully... cheery. When you wake up in the morning and leave your carriages, you'll find the hallways and public areas lit with tiny pink, red, and golden hearts, shifting and glowing on the walls with no apparent source. On your Chain is a message that comes without any annoying jingle:
Good morning, heroes! You've had a hard time so far, so here's a little gift from me. Today is the Star Kingdom's most lovey-dovey holiday: Heartbeat Festival Day! First, let me tell you the local legend:

"Once upon a time, a beautiful girl lost her home to war. After wandering the universe for awhile, she noticed that the further she traveled, the more a certain pink constellation began to resemble a heart. With no destination in mind, she followed it until she arrived here, in the Star Kingdom. Stopping to warm her hands with a hot drink, by chance she bumped into a handsome young man at the same stall -- a man who happened to be the newly crowned Star King! Under the light of the Heartbeat constellation, the two fell in love at first sight. Their union was blessed by the universe, and when they had a child, she was born with twinkling stars in her hair and eyes. And that's where the royal line got their sparkles!"

The festival is a celebration of love -- for friends, lovers, family, and the whole universe. It's a time to show your appreciation with gifts, kisses, and a whole lotta drinking! We could use some love right now, so even though my kingdom can't celebrate today, you can do it for us.

To foster some affection, the drinks we've provided will give you a bit of a boost... but it's all harmless, I promise! So cozy up and show some affection. If you're lucky, you might stumble into the most heart-racing kind of love: romance!

In accordance with the message, the dining area in the lounge car has plates of various desserts in chocolate or strawberry flavours, and trays of champagne glasses full of drinks with several different colours of edible shimmer. Each one has a different effect, and is more alcoholic than the last:
☆ Gold: Those who drink this sweet, vanilla-flavoured concoction will find their hand gravitates towards the nearest person's. Once you're holding hands you're glued together, for an hour or until you're both having a good time. The drink has a star-shaped charm around the stem.

★ Pink: Strawberry champagne is valentine's Heartbeat Festival in a glass! Drinking it unfortunately roots you in place, along with the first person you see. You're stuck until you share a kiss -- any kind of kiss will do! This drink has a pursed lips charm around the stem.

☆ Red: A bright raspberry liquor, this drink is berry tasty, and makes your heart flutter. After drinking, you'll find your affection for other people enhanced. It's based on what you already feel, so you won't be attached to someone you dislike, but you'll feel extra adoring towards your friends, and any crush you might have will turn into true love! Effects last anywhere from one to four hours. This drink has a heart-shaped charm around the stem.

★ Brown: Though this drink smells and tastes like hot chocolate, it's actually very potent, both in its alcoholic effects and its nudge towards love. Drinking it enhances your desire for physical affection -- platonic or sexual is a real coin toss. Effects last anywhere from one to four hours. This drink has a rose-shaped charm around the stem.

Drinking multiple drinks will stack effects -- you can have all four at once if you like. This will go on til evening -- where something else magical might just happen!]

[[OOC NOTES: This is a harmless cute Valentine's post! It has the potential for NSFW threads, so please be aware, and remember to put a warning in the subject line or move such threads offcomm.

Placements are tomorrow: and with them comes a major IC update! Please look forward to it!]]
nihilmancy: (Neutral)

[personal profile] nihilmancy 2019-02-15 05:38 am (UTC)(link)
[Hlasoh has spent most of the time since the Prince's Arrival a couple days ago holed up in the Licorice car. The encounters in the tunnels so soon after arriving had been a shock to her system, and she found herself in a dissociative daze in the aftermath, not sure what to make of her new environment.

When she finally makes it into the lounge, it's still with a decidedly gloomy look. She casts a particularly wary eye towards the drinks and desserts, weighing the possibility of poison with the merits of getting drunk.]


He must have arranged this.
ewestmarch: (Default)

[personal profile] ewestmarch 2019-02-15 07:58 pm (UTC)(link)
Hey.

[Awkward, haven't seen you since the tunnel thing.]

I'm... sorry I killed your illusion.

[seemed like it was the wrong move]
nihilmancy: (Distressed)

[personal profile] nihilmancy 2019-02-15 08:58 pm (UTC)(link)
[She freezes for a moment, feeling nauseous as she recalls the events of a couple days ago- and the events several years ago. Eventually she manages a few words, avoiding eye contact.]

I-It's fine. I don't want to talk about it.
ewestmarch: (tired)

[personal profile] ewestmarch 2019-02-16 03:10 am (UTC)(link)
[She nods and her body language closes off, eyes slip off to somewhere else, not at Tabby. We don't have to bring it up ever again, frankly. Just fine with her.]
nihilmancy: (Neutral 2)

[personal profile] nihilmancy 2019-02-16 06:32 pm (UTC)(link)
So. Are you physically capable of getting drunk. Because it's pretty tempting right about now.
ewestmarch: (stare)

[personal profile] ewestmarch 2019-02-17 12:00 am (UTC)(link)
Yes, but -

[One eyebrow goes up.]

I don't trust 'to foster some affection.' The last drinks turned us colors, I'm positive they're enchanted.
nihilmancy: (Neutral)

[personal profile] nihilmancy 2019-02-17 04:04 am (UTC)(link)
Ugh. But I know what he's trying to do here. He wants to use these to make us feel feelings. Power his train with love and all that.
ewestmarch: (stare)

[personal profile] ewestmarch 2019-02-17 07:37 pm (UTC)(link)
[Emilia's nose wrinkles.]

Love is not the emotion I'll be feeling if I'm magnetized towards someone else for hugs by a drink.

[She has no idea, this is just a pretty dead-on guess.]
nihilmancy: (Neutral 2)

[personal profile] nihilmancy 2019-02-17 07:47 pm (UTC)(link)
I feel that way too, but after having my eyes eaten a couple of days ago, a drink sounds rather nice.
ewestmarch: (stare)

[personal profile] ewestmarch 2019-02-17 08:24 pm (UTC)(link)
[what, ew.

Emilia looks over. The glow makes it hard to tell that it's a side-eye, but it super is.]


When was... this.
nihilmancy: (Curious)

[personal profile] nihilmancy 2019-02-17 09:28 pm (UTC)(link)
Just before I met you.
nihilmancy: (Neutral 2)

[personal profile] nihilmancy 2019-02-18 03:37 am (UTC)(link)
I spent the Sparks to get them back.
ewestmarch: (sly)

[personal profile] ewestmarch 2019-02-18 09:22 pm (UTC)(link)
[Emilia looks... interested. A little relieved, actually. It means you can, actually, heal with sparks - and significant injuries, too.]

I've been thinking about running experiments to make sure those pods worked. I take it they did, good.
nihilmancy: (Neutral 2)

[personal profile] nihilmancy 2019-02-18 09:50 pm (UTC)(link)
We're right to be suspicious of the prince, but I think that he is likely speaking the truth about many matters.
ewestmarch: (hmmm)

[personal profile] ewestmarch 2019-02-18 10:19 pm (UTC)(link)
Which ones besides the pods?
nihilmancy: (Neutral)

[personal profile] nihilmancy 2019-02-19 01:33 am (UTC)(link)
Well, it does seem to be true that power is drawn from emotion. Of course we need not go too far with inductive logic, but he doesn't seem the manipulative sort. Maybe he'd be more competent if he was.
ewestmarch: (stare)

[personal profile] ewestmarch 2019-02-19 10:54 pm (UTC)(link)
You're right. He didn't strike me as... the brightest.

[Not, like actively dumb, but Emilia is very fast to judge who she thinks she could or could not outwit if necessary. Sometimes that assessment is right, sometimes it's not.]

But it doesn't make sense, if this was a danger that was present and they were protecting us in good faith, why not just tell us?

[personal profile] nihilmancy 2019-02-20 12:42 am (UTC)(link)
They didn't want us to become alarmed, I think. Remember, that they are trying to elicit positive emotions from us.
ewestmarch: (Default)

[personal profile] ewestmarch 2019-02-20 12:52 am (UTC)(link)
But before everybody died, I mean. If our worlds were being protected by prisms, why not ... tell us that?
nihilmancy: (Neutral 2)

[personal profile] nihilmancy 2019-02-20 05:07 am (UTC)(link)
I don't think that they can survey and contact every world at once. They said that we were selected through a random process after all. There must be a great number of worlds that were affected.
ewestmarch: (dead)

[personal profile] ewestmarch 2019-02-20 05:22 am (UTC)(link)
It bothers me. We've fought off so many things and the one that gets us is one we didn't even know to be worried about.