riverviewlogs | player-suggested mini-event: A STRANGER'S BED

Entry tags:

player-suggested mini-event: A STRANGER'S BED

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: Player-Suggested Mini-Event
when: August 26th - August 31st
warnings: please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

a stranger's bed

As a lead in to September, Riverview's ♥ Month of Romance, this is a completely optional mingle that will cause affected characters to end up in each other's beds. There are various options for both established and new CR. While it's easiest for characters still living in Communal Housing, anyone who has moved to their own homes can be affected and end up finding their way to Communal Housing, or within their own housing.

Residents of the Quarantine may notice that various businesses selling food and drink - cafés, diners, bakeries, restaurants, and other such establishments - are heavily advertising a new flavor that's supposed to be the biggest thing since pumpkin spice. A flavor additive that's said to subtly change the flavor of whatever the diner is eating or drinking to optimize the dish, drink, dessert, or any other food item it is added to for each person's individual taste, it's been selling like wildfire and is the latest trend.

After the cause of the rash of amnesia was revealed to be plant-related, sellers are keeping the origin of the secret ingredient very close to their chests, since it is a derivative of a recently-discovered plant dubbed chameleonis. Depending on the method of ingestion, this additive can have a variety of unexpected side effects, but only once the person who has ingested it becomes sleepy. Methods of ingestion include:

● Ingestion: Beverage: When ingested as a flavor shot to drinks ranging from sodas to coffee to alcoholic beverages, it can cause a desire for closeness to a particular other person. Affected characters end up crawling into bed with that specific other character when they become sleepy.

● Ingestion: Food: When ingested as a flavoring added to a baked good or other meal, it can cause an intense desire for body heat when the character becomes drowsy. It won't matter to an affected character who is providing the body heat, so long as it's someone, and they will end up sleepily crawling into someone else's bed for warmth.

● Inhalation: When inhaled ether from a steaming hot beverage or soup, or as an essential oil or aroma from a bakery, it can cause disorientation when a character becomes sleepy. Affected characters either aren't sure which bed is theirs and simply crawl into the closest one, occupied or not, or become convinced that another character's bed is their own.

Feel free to post up a top-level for your own character either affected and invading a random bed or unaffected but open to having their bed invaded by affected characters, or tag around to other people's top-levels.

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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

IN TOWN →

[ most of the time, when nico's not working, he keeps to himself. he's been doing that a lot lately since regaining his memories. not wanting to think about how his sister is dead, how he'd been in love with a boy who would never love him back, and how he'd walked through the deepest pits of hell only to be captured by monsters... it's all enough to drive nico to look for a distraction. he soon finds it in a café where he orders himself a cup of coffee. not wanting to worry about sleep, he quickly downs it and orders another, not even thinking about how it might later affect him... ]

This is the worst coffee ever. Is it decaf?

IN YOUR BED →

[ it starts as his nightmares normally start: with misery, the goddess akhlys, laughing in his face. then come the arai, cackling as they insist he would suffer. the black pits of the surface of tartarus open up before him, and he keeps walking, pausing only to take sips of the burning fire river next to him. but of course, it eventually shifts.

now it's a boy with dark hair and eyes like the sea, glaring at nico as he tells him to leave. inside, nico's heart is breaking and he can't breathe. but that's not the worst of the dream. it's the way the walls around him begin to shrink until he's trapped in a bronze jar barely big enough to contain his crouched form. time is running out; there are marks on the wall of the jar. the walls continue to close around him until it seems he can breathe no more.

that's when he wakes with a strangled scream, bolting upright in bed. sorry to the person he's sharing with. this is why he avoids sleeping in the communal area as much as he can. ]

Edited 2017-08-28 06:06 (UTC)

[Marco barely remembers crawling into the bed. He'd eaten something with that popular new flavour in it around lunchtime, thought it was overrated, and then went on with his day without much thought. He had it together enough to realize when he started feeling drowsy and that drowsiness came with an intense wave of feeling cold and wanting to snuggle up with another person, that it probably has something to do with the weird ingredient.

Unfortunately, knowing that doesn't really change anything. He's still cold, and still overwhelmed with the urge to crawl into bed with someone else, and he's still disoriented enough that he ends up on the wrong floor. At least when he climbs into a bed, he takes a moment to make sure it's with someone he knows.

When a scream wakes him up halfway through the night, he sits up, gasping, dark eyes going wide. Marco's always been a light sleeper, but it was only during his time as an Animorph that 'light sleeper' started to come with a side of 'immediately alert and ready to fight.' It takes a few moments to re-orient himself, to remember where he is and that he's not about to be attacked, and then he's turning, blinking blearily down at the guy he's sharing a bed with. Nico. It's Nico.]

Nico...hey man, you okay?

[Reaching out, he places a hand on Nico's shoulder and rubs a bit, careful, his voice bleary and a little muzzy.]

You're safe. It was just a dream.

[ it takes a moment for nico to reorient himself, to realize where he is, which is made harder when he's not in the bed he went to sleep in. on most nights, he camps out in the forest, wanting to avoid waking anyone on his communal floor. but last night, he'd gone to bed on floor five, too tired to make the jump to his usual spot in the forest. now, however, he's somewhere else. but at least there's a voice in his ear telling him things are okay.

it takes a few more seconds for him to believe it, itching to reach for his sword. but as the voice keeps talking, he realizes he is safe and that it had all been another nightmare. one he'd awoken his bedmate with.

speaking of, bedmate... when he turns to see marco, his ears immediately feel like they're on fire. his face flushes, not only because he's been caught in bed with someone else ( a cute boy, at that ), but because he's woken him up with a nightmare too. ]

Sorry... [ it's a murmur as he shakes his head and then drags his fingers through his bedraggled hair. ] Sorry, I didn't mean to- Um... why are you here?

[It's funny, because Marco's not in his own bed either, but he, at least, remembers falling asleep in this one, and he's not surprised at having a bedmate. So he just sits quietly and rubs Nico's back, up and down and then in circles, staring into the dark in case Nico hates pity as much as he does, not wanting to put too much attention on the fear manifested through Nico's gasping and shaking. So he completely misses the blush, at least until Nico says sorry and Marco looks back at him.

Oh. The blushing. It takes a moment to place why Nico might be blushing, and then Marco is glancing away again, smiling to himself. Considering the situation, it's weird to think, but that's cute.]

I think whatever they're making that flavor shot thing from is making people weird when they're sleepy. Or at least me. Maybe it's an allergy. I dunno. But I was really cold and wanted to be in bed with someone else, it was too hard to fight when I was so sleepy, so I opted for someone I knew, at least. You know?

[ realizing how tense he is ( it's obvious given he's not wearing a shirt; the scars on his lithe but strong muscles stand out, even in the gloom ), nico takes a deep breath and tries to relax. the soothing feeling of a hand rubbing his back helps, though he's normally opposed to touch. it's surprisingly comfortable and soon enough he feels his heart rate slow. ]

So you chose me?

[ it doesn't seem like a strange question to him because he still doesn't know marco that well ( not that he doesn't want to; in fact, he'd like to know marco very well ), but nico tries not to think too much into it. he's still haunted by his dream and he's not sure how to explain. ]

Seems like you chose the wrong person. Sorry about that.

[Once Nico seems to calm down a bit, Marco drops his hand and leans back on his own hands, shoulders a bit hunched, looking at the other boy. He notices the scars, but doesn't really think much of them - morphing might take care of Marco's scars, physically, but that doesn't mean he hasn't got any.]

Yeah, I did.

[He shrugs, then blinks.]

Choose you, I mean. Not choose the wrong person. Man, this is not the first time I've been woken up by someone screaming.

[ it's so strange, nico thinks, that anyone would pick him to sleep with, even if it's as innocent as could be. he knows he's often cold to the touch and his general aura tends to creep people out. but marco isn't bothered by either, it seems, and nico can feel heat creeping up his neck to settle in his cheeks. ]

I've never really shared a bed with someone. Why did you choose me?

[ he wants to know because he knows how easy it is to fall into a crush and he's falling now, especially given they're still sitting in the bed together. it's the most intimate thing nico's ever experienced and part of him wants to escape while another part wants to stay exactly where he is. ]

I have a few times. Mostly with my best friend Jake, a long time ago. But I've slept around other people a lot, and most of them had nightmares just like I do.

[Shrugging a bit, he lifts his hand to rub at an eye, still a bit groggy. When Nico asks why he picked him, Marco shrugs a bit.]

I know you, and I liked hanging out with you. I didn't think you'd mind or feel weird about me just, you know, being here.

[Glancing up at Nico, he offers a little smile.]

Hope I was right.

[ at the words "slept around", nico's ears turn a bit red. but he tries to keep his embarrassment under wraps as marco continues speaking. the little smile he receives as marco looks up at him makes something squeeze in his chest and he clears his throat. ]

Yeah, I guess it's fine. I mean- I don't mind. It's... kind of nice.

[Keith had already woken up once in someone else's bed. He was attempting to be careful now and hopefully not do it again, and had managed to make his back to his own this particular night. He was not expecting someone else to suddenly show up in his. Though, really, he probably should have been.

He wasn't usually a heavy sleeper, but all the strange things between the fire, and the bed switching, and all of that had him unusually tired. So he actually managed to somehow sleep through Nico climbing into bed with him.

However, the scream and the jump of sudden movement next to him definitely woke him up. He sort of tumble, maybe rolled, probably fell out of his bed, but had just enough presence of mind (or muscle memory) to reach out and snag the dagger off his side table as he landed on the floor, yanking off the sheath and immediately shifting it into its sword form with a flash of bluish purple light.]

What- What was that?

[He was breathing hard, being startled awake like that definitely not the best way to be roused from his sleep. But, there was no one there? They weren't under attack? It took a bit for his head to clear and figure out what happened.]

[ nico's still in the thralls of his nightmare, breathing hard when a flash of purple suddenly fills the room. it makes him tense, prepared to fight, especially after the dream he'd had because demigod instincts work that way. but he doesn't have his sword with him, only his fists and he raises them prepared to fight off the supposed intruder.

that is, until he recognizes the voice of the person he'd apparently knocked out of bed. it's keith, he realizes, and though he doesn't know why or how he'd managed to end up in the same bed as keith, nico knows at least he has nothing to fear.

breathing hard and looking around a bit wildly, he spots keith on the floor, sword in hand. immediately he winces because he'd not meant to wake anyone up, especially not a strange bedmate. but here he is, sitting in his shorts and nothing else, staring at keith with a somewhat manic look in his eyes. ]

Gods, I'm so sorry- I didn't mean... It was a nightmare, I didn't-

[ he's rambling, he knows, but his mind is still a bit of a whirl thanks to the nightmare. ]

[Once it clicked that it was just Nico, and that Nico had freaked out over a nightmare, Keith visibly relaxed. He deactivated his blade, and got up off the floor to sit on the side of the bed.]

Hey... it's okay. We all have them.

[Maybe not that bad, but yeah. Keith had his share. Shiro definitely had his share. Nico was allowed to be freaked out and not have to apologize afterwards.]

Don't apologize. It's not something you can control.

Are you okay?

[He didn't want to touch Nico if Nico didn't want to be touched, but Keith did put his hand closer in case the other wanted to grab on for comfort.]

Sometimes I can control it...

[ it's muttered lowly because sometimes he can. when he travels through dreams to see other demigods or to even send messages. sometimes he uses it to navigate to better dreams, but he's not always so lucky. it seems this time, whatever had made him tired enough to land in someone's bed without realizing had ensured he couldn't walk past his nightmares into better memories than he normally would. not that keith would know that, of course.

glancing at the hand on the bed, he watched it idly. it's an attempt, he recognizes, to comfort and though nico is usually uncomfortable with touch, he's tempted to place his hand over keith's. ultimately, he abstains, mostly because it seems too close, too intimate for him. ]

I'll be fine. I just... [ he drags his hand through his hair and sighs. ] Not something I like talking about, usually.

[Keith didn't move his hand, but he didn't seem insulted or anything. He just accepted Nico's choice. It was fine, either way.]

Okay. We don't have to.

[He was curious, though.]

You said you can control it sometimes? What does that involve?

[Maybe that was a better topic? Keith wasn't sure, but if Nico shut that down, too, he wouldn't press.]

[ it's not the best topic, but it's marginally better, helping nico to refocus. his fingers grip the bedding for a few seconds before he sighs. ]

I have the power to travel through dreams. Sometimes I can control what I'm dreaming by traveling.

[Keith looked surprised and definitely impressed. Okay, so add another thing to the list of stuff this guy could do.]

That actually sounds pretty cool. Maaaaybe a little invasive, [he smirked a bit] but pretty cool.

[ opening and closing his mouth a little, he flushes. he's never had anyone tell him his powers are cool, so it's a little embarrassing, but also flattering. ]

Yeah, I don't use it very often 'cause of that. Besides, it works better between demigods.

[ nico relaxes a bit more, conscious that he's still in keith's bed while keith's just sitting on it. it seems a bit unfair, but fortunately their talk is distracting him from the horrors of his nightmare. ]

nico di angelo ▪ open

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