Test Drive: April 2019

[faetan]

Test Drive Meme

Winter

Want to see if your character is a good fit for the setting? Not sure which character concept you want to go for? Or maybe you just want to play around in a meme with no commitment? It's all good! Feel free to use one of the winter-themed prompts below, or write up one of your own with no restrictions!

Blizzard!
The winter storm is a bad one, where it's not safe to be outside for more than a few minutes. The winds are fierce and destructive, the snow is blinding, and it's easy to get lost when everything around you looks exactly the same. Will you stay inside where it's warm and keep your friend company? Or are there too many tasks that can't be ignored just because the weather's a little chilly?

Fun in the Snow
The countryside looks beautiful in winter, with every house and fence and tree cloaked in glittering white snow. It's the perfect kind of day for a real honest-to-goodness sleigh ride. Or maybe you'd prefer to build a snowman. Or maybe that dude over there needs a snowball glued to his face right now and only you can make that happen.

Food Storage Looters
Fall is the season to gather food and prepare for winter. Winter is the season for rest and bonding with friends and family. But not everyone has that kind of foresight. Goblins, for example, get their food by raiding farms and orchards and stealing chickens. The fields are barren and the coops are locked up to keep the chickens nice and warm, so is it really any surprise that the lock to the town food stores is broken, and there's sounds of squabbling and munching and belching coming up from the cellar?

Starry Night
The holiest of all Vallaress holidays. It's a time of feasting and exchanging gifts as anticipation for spring begins to escalate. It's also the most popular time for marriage proposals and weddings! Are you planning to get hitched? Or maybe you're attending the ceremony between two villagers just about to be wed when something interrupts? This is also the one day of the year where monsters are pretty much guaranteed not to attack anyone as they're all struck with a terrible weakness and apathy.

Blighted Snowmen!
Yesterday everyone competed to build the best snow creations. Along with the traditional snowmen, people also made snow bunnies, snow buffalos, and even a snow castle. But a blight sorcerer can't stand the sight of fun, and cast a terrible enchantment that animated each and every one of those snow creatures to come to life! Watch out! Rabid snow castle is lumbering your way!

Magic Lessons: Fire
Almost everyone wants to learn some sort of fire magic during the winter season, whether it's because they ran out of firewood, or because they need a magic flame that won't dim or sputter out when setting up camp during a long journey. Are you a student? A teacher? Or maybe you're just trying to figure out how to cast a self-taught fireball, because there's no way that could end poorly.

Comments

Goblin Slayer - OTA

[whatsanogre]

House Call

[It's always a busy time, the winter month. The shorter days and longer nights mean that monsters are more active to begin with and the lower availability of food means more raids on crops and food stores. There's no shortage of quests going up asking for assistance in dealing with these creatures.

He's a fairly regular sight in this season, moving from one end of town to the other, always in his customary armor and helmet, always armed. This day it brings him here, a simple quest complaining of raided food stores and stolen livestock. He makes his way to the front door, knocking purposefully and doesn't waste time when the door is answered. Holding up a posted quest card and speaking simply, voice echoing slightly in his helmet.]

I'm here to respond this this quest. Show me where the raids are taking place.

Be Vewy Vewy Quiet

[See that setup up there? Same idea but this time he's on the job. He's got a lead on some goblin raiders and plotted out the most likely route they're taking to get to it.

Now he's staking the place out. Hidden around the corner and keeping a close watch on the cellar doors with a crossbow across his lap. Almost perfectly still. The only sign he hasn't already frozen to death being the small puffs of breath escaping his ever-present faceplate.

His client? A town guard? Some random person? Either way, the town weirdo is crouching in the snow near sundown and showing no sign of moving any time soon.]

Wild Card

[Open to anything else with this goblin-obsessed weirdo. He's a workaholic so he'll probably be heading out to clear snow during and after a blizzard. Feel free to fling a snowball at him if you want things to escalate quickly. He won't necessarily hunt down possessed snow sculptures but he'll damn well finish a fight if they start one.

I'm open to it all. Feel free to assume any CR with him as well.]

House Call

[flamescout]

[The person who answers the door is a young lady, probably no older than sixteen. Given that she's wearing a heavy cloak and armed with a bow fashioned of black oak with a quiver of red-feathered arrows, she was just planning to step outside herself.]

[She looks up at the visor of his helmet, then the quest.]

There's some mistake. We didn't post any quests like that...

[But as she takes a closer look at the flyer, she recognizes the handwriting almost right away.]

Rrgh, grandpa... I told him I could handle this without any help. Sorry, but we don't need protection. What reward did he promise you? I'll give you that much at least.

[She steps outside with a huff, closing the door behind her.]

[whatsanogre]

[He doesn't show much reaction when the girl raises her objections to her presence. Only lowering the quest sheet once she's had the chance to look it over.

So her grandfather had posted the quest... likely not wanting her to do exactly what it seems she's planning to do. A wise choice. She's armed well but no armor, arrows that would stand out quite sharply against the snow.]

There is.

[He steps back out of her way politely when she emrges from the house, setting the quest sheet back into a pouch. Apparently not interested in the free money offered him.]

I didn't come here to to protect you. I came here to kill goblins for you.

Quiet/Wild Card Mix

[yokeye]

[It's almost dark, and Toki is on his way back to the castle. The streets are quiet and empty for the most part. He doesn't like it. However, he is lucky this evening, as he's come across Goblin Slayer. Crouched in the snow and keeping watch, waiting for the right time to strike, or for an appearance of a goblin to make sure he has the right place; whatever, he's doing something boring.

Toki scoops up some snow and makes a few snowballs, as many as he can hold with one arm. He keeps one in his right hand, ready to strike with. He calls out loudly, and with much feigned hysterics.]

A goblin! Right there! This is just dreadful! He's eaten all my vegetables! Whatever shall I do!?

[He's intending to pelt Goblin Slayer with snowballs to the face- well, helmet, as soon as he turns around.]

[whatsanogre]

[Now Goblin Slayer is a seasoned and trained adventurer and killer of monsters. Certainly not somebody who would fall for such an obvious and childish prank such as this.

Hint: None of the above is apparently true.]

Goblin?

[And he obligingly turns his head, wondering to himself how one of the creatures had gotten past him or perhaps if he'd figured the approach of their attacks incorrectly....]

Annie | Story of Seasons | Not sure if OU or AU, but OTA!

[anniegetyourbun]

Blizzard

[Adjusting to the new farm has honestly been a lot easier than Annie expected it to be. There don't seem to be any seeds in stock that will grow during this season, which is a shame -- she'd love to plant some broccoli at least. And without crops to grow, there are no profits, so buying an animal is out of the question. For now all she can do is chop firewood and break up stones, and get to know the other villagers.]

[So it's a shame the bad weather is keeping her firmly cooped up at home, but at least she has all she needs to weather out the storm. She's still got the bread she brought yesterday from the bakery, and a jar of preserves and fresh butter. When she can afford to install a kitchen, she can do her own baking, but what she has now is delicious and filling.]

[The old house...which is honestly more of a shack at this point than a proper house...creaks and groans in the fierce winds that blow outside, and there's a draft that sings in the rafters. But the little shack-house is sturdy, and the crackling fire is nice and warm. She huddles close to it with a blanket spread out on the floor, happy and content, idly leafing through the farming guides and manuals she borrowed from the mayor to get to know how farming worked in this world. It doesn't seem too different from what she knows, but she wants to make sure she gets this right. The stakes are a lot higher, what with this blight stuff and all!]

[OOC: Weary travelers and visitors will be welcomed with open arms. But she can also get restless enough that she'd head out in the storm to check on people she worries about. Which could be absolutely anyone.]

------

Farmer For Hire

[The tough part about starting a new home and life in winter is that there's no food storage, and no farming to grant Annie any kind of starting income. Even so, she's a plucky gal and a hard worker at heart, so she's constantly seen running around town and checking the bulletin board to see if there's anything she can do in exchange for money, tools, seeds...anything at all helps at this point! Honestly she'll help people out for free too, in which case, these folks will at least feed her.]

[So she's doing just fine.]

[She should be freezing standing outside as the snow comes drifting down from the pearly gray skies, but as she swings her ax and chops up branches, she's actually sweating, and has to pause and wipe her brow now and again. There's a high demand for firewood in winter, and there's plenty of fallen branches around town that she can break, chope, and bundle up to sell to people who need it.]

[And for those who don't, she appears before them, rosy-cheeked and cheerful.]

Hi! I'm looking for part-time work, anything you need help with?

-----

Wild Card

[OOC: Feel free to set up any scenario you like! She's not much of a fighter, but she can swing her hoe around if she needs to, so action prompts and town living prompts are both welcome.]

Blizzard

[courageunforgotten]

Link... open your eyes....

[It's the only thing he remembers. The voice pulling him out of his slumber in that cave. That voice... and nothing else. He's not even certain the name it spoke was even his, but it's all he has to go on.

At least there'd been some kind of plain, tattered clothes there. It isn't much, but it's at least something. A very little something when he'd ventured out only for the storm to hit. Harsh winds and snow buffeting him as he half staggers through the storm, doing his best to shield himself from the elements to little avail. For as little as he knows or remembers, the thought that he needs to find shelter is still clear in his head.

It's a hope that becomes a little clearer when he spots the lights through the snow, and catches the faint scent of a fire burning. There's a moment's consideration but no hesitation lasts for very long before he makes his way to the door.

It's a short trip from where he first sees the small house before he makes his way to it, soaked and ruffled, and reaches out to knock at the door.]

[anniegetyourbun]

[What was that...? The blizzard is so loud that Annie nearly writes off the sound as another branch hitting her house, but isn't the rhythm too perfect to be something like that? It's worth checking out in any case. She sets her book aside and rolls up to her hip, padding across the creaky wooden floor in her clunky work shoes.]

[The door opens, and standing there is a shivering young man with no coat or cloak, on the verge of turning as blue as his eyes.]

EEK!

[She jerks back in surprise -- not at seeing a stranger, but at seeing a stranger so poorly equipped to handle this storm. Most might hesitate before letting a strange person into their house for at least a moment, but Annie doesn't think twice. She grabs his arm to give him a good yank before sprinting behind him to herd him quickly to the fire. Once he's stumbling that way on his own, Annie throws her shoulder against the door to force it closed against the wind.]

Sit down and bundle up! I'll get you a towel!

[Not that she has far to go, since her home doesn't have a bath -- the entirety of the home is twenty feet by twenty feet. The towel is neatly folded on the dresser, but no more! Now it is being draped over Link's head as Annie kneels before him, gently scrubbing at his hair to get out as much melted snow as she can.]

Where did you come from? Don't think I ever saw you around town before.

[Her thumb brushes over the point of one of his ears, and she blinks, surprised, before lifting one edge of the towel. Tapered ears...? Annie's head tilts to the side, curious.]

Definitely from out of town! Well that's all right, you can wait out the storm right here.

Raye Hino | AU, OTA

[flamescout]

Pre-Blizzard

[There's a lot to do before the storm rolls in, and Raye definitely knows it's coming thanks to her strong bond with the spirits of nature. That means putting out extra feed for the chickens and cleaning the straw in their coop at the end of the day, gathering the eggs and taking them to town to sell or trade for food and supplies, and most importantly, posting a big warning to the bulletin board as well as informing everyone she passes that there'll be a nasty blizzard tomorrow that will last through the day. Normally she gives a weather forecast for the next day in exchange for a small offering at the shrine, but with something like this, she's not charging a single copper.]

[So she spends the day hustling through town, carrying things back and forth from the town to the pretty little shrine at the hillside just outside of Rendezvous with all of the cherry trees (currently barren of everything but thick clumps of snow). If she seems a little tired by the end of the day, it's because she is. But she can rest once the storm hits. For now, there's a lot to be done and Raye isn't going to stop until her work is finished.]

------------

Blighted Snowmen

Back off, you frosty creep!

[POFF! Raye's broom takes the snowman's head right off of its shoulders with a satisfying explosion of snow lumps. The child it was reaching for has run back to town, screaming for his dad, while the decapitated snow creature fumbles blindly for its missing head.]

[Raye steps back and thrusts her right hand forward, summoning a great gout of fire to liquify the stubborn abomination.]

That's what you get! Who's next?

[She came running at the first sounds of distress, still holding onto the broom she was using to sweep the stone steps and courtyard of the shrine. Too bad for these snow things, fire is her bonded element, and she's been aching for a chance to unleash her magic flames for a while now.]

[Steepling her fingers together, a gust of spiritual energy flows up through the ground, tossing her long black hair wildly as she gathers the energy into a burning sphere of flame to send it crashing toward the lumbering snow castle.]

Fireball ignite! Chew on that!

[OOC: Raye is down to rescue people, be rescued, or team up with a companion!]

blighted snowmen

[parried]

[Drizzt is no mage, but he's hardly defenseless. Of course, he's much better against beings of fire; but his immunity to flame just means he can stay in the thick of things and not worry about stray fireballs. Raye might not be aware of that, so she may find it alarming to see a dark elf armed with two scimitars darting into her flames as the giant snow castle and its snowman friends advance.]

Keep melting them!

[His steel slices easily through snow creatures, but they're so much easier to take down as slush.]

[flamescout]

Wait!

[Startled at the sight of someone rushing straight into her fire momentarily jars her connection to the spirits of fire deep within the earth. Raye isn't hurt when she's casting her magic, but she's definitely not immune to it once it lets loose. She's been singed and burned more than a few times when she was first practicing.]

[But somehow, his pale hair doesn't become a smoking torch, and she doesn't see his dark skin start to blister. He wants her to keep going? Seriously? She's hesitant, but as long as he really is able to withstand the heat...]

Just watch yourself!

[Raye won't aim the fires AT him, but it's nice to know she doesn't have to try and maintain such tight control. She takes a more aggressive stance with her feet spread apart, shoulders hunched as she presses her forefingers together. The link is established once more as the heat roils up through the ground and into her body, focused into her hands. With a savage cry, she unleashes a fireball that spirals through the air, sizzling tiny flakes of snow mid-air as she sends the attack plowing straight into the big guy--that snow castle.]

Chrom | AU

[shepherd_prince]

[OOC: Prince of Barad Mal, leads a small band of fighters in the Holy Order of Steel. Assumed CR is just fine!]

Homecoming

[People who aren't used to the prince's ways probably wouldn't recognize the young man who strides into town, leading his horse through the snowy streets. Though his cloak and armor are certainly fine, they're also very practical, and both have seen long days of travel on the road. His sword, sheathed on his back, is also anything but a pretty bauble. One might think he would make it his priority to go to the castle after journeying through the country for weeks, but he feels the least he can do is reward his companions with a good hot meal and a round of drinks, and knows the majority of them would feel far more comfortable at the Rendezvous inn and tavern rather than the fancy halls of his father's castle.]

[Though, of course, he'll indulge anyone who wants a taste of royal living if that's what they'd prefer.]

[After seeing that his mount is cared for by the stablehand, he taps the snow from his boots before pushing open the door and basking in the wash of heat, noisy conversation, and smells of ale and stew.]

[He greets the barkeep with a smile, ordering a double serving of the hearty vegetable stew with a grilled fish and a large hunk of dark and crusty bread. The prince seats himself at the common table as he waits for his order.]

[OOC: Be one of his travel companions, a server, or just someone he happened to sit next to!]

----------------

Magic Lessons: Fire

Ah... Let me see the incantation one more time.

[Chrom shifts restlessly where he stands, definitely out of his element. Magic has never been one of his talents, and if not for Mazir's gentle insistence, Chrom would have skipped out on lessons entirely to focus on his swordplay. He'd much rather play hero than flick his fingers about and conjure up the elements to do his bidding. He has every respect for mages and spellcasters, but it's never really been his 'thing' so to speak.]

[Still, here he is, doing his best. He completes the incantation once more, finishing the casting with the signature snap of his fingers.]

I think I got a spark that time.

[There was no spark. And there will never ever be a spark.]

Princess Daphne | OTA

[save_me]

Fun in the Snow

Save me!

[It's not the first time Daphne has cried out to be rescued, but instead of her high-pitched squeaks of distress, she's giggling, taking refuge behind a hastily packed barrier of snow with a young gap-toothed boy. A flung snowball explodes against the wall, showering the princess and her brave hero with with powder.]

Here, why don't I make your arsenal...

[Her dainty gloved hands scoop up some of the loose snow from the ground as she packs it neatly in her palm and hands it to the boy.]

And you do the tossing! I believe in you, Sir Stephen!

[Another snowball wings overhead, and the two duck instinctively with big smiles on their faces. It had taken some effort and a lot of batted eyelashes to convince her father to allow some of the village children to play in the castle courtyard. There are certainly guards everywhere to ensure that the princess and the kids are safe from intruders. Naturally, Daphne is not above coaxing one of the stoic guardians into playing along...what better way to protect the king's daughter than to be close at hand rather than standing stiffly at a distance?...but she won't push too hard.]

[OOC: Just Daphne having fun with some kids, happy to rope in anyone else who happens by. However, it's also entirely possible that real danger does just so happen to be lurking nearby, in which case...save her!]

----------

Magic Lessons

[Being able to use magic effectively would certainly be a wonderful gift. But when Daphne agreed excitedly for instructions and she was given a scroll that would allow the reader to cast a fireball, the look of joy slowly slid off of her face, and her brow crinkled in dismay. She...supposes...it might be nice to have a means of defending herself if her guards couldn't protect her for some reason.]

[But the illustration of the screaming victim in one panel, which becomes a smoking pile of ash in the second panel, doesn't really sit well with Daphne. Not at all.]

Oooh...

[Daphne shivers. No, she really doesn't have the heart (nor the stomach) to do such a thing. Slowly and carefully she rolls the scroll back up as if it might detonate into a fireball should she mishandle the thing.]

Perhaps I could focus on more constructive magic? Something like healing, or magical protection, might be very nice indeed!

[Because she would very much like to be helpful should the need arise, rather than a victim in dire need of protecting.]

Fun in the Snow

[yokeye]

[Several feet across the courtyard and behind their own wall of snow, Toki hands another snowball to a girl of about ten years old.]

Stephen has terrible aim, hasn't he?

[The girl nods and takes the snowball. She hasn't been hit once by Daphne and Stephen's assault.]

No one can save you from the evil Sorceress Helena!

[At that encouragement, Helena winds another snowball at the Princess with delight.]

[save_me]

Eek!

[Daphne ducks, covering her head with her hands as she ducks. Snow scatters across her mane of blonde curls, but of course she's fine. Toki's protege has wonderful accuracy, but the snowballs don't hit nearly hard enough to hurt.]

As long as I have my noble champion, you can't hope to succeed, o evil and beautiful sorceress!

[Stephen is blushing, but grinning more widely than ever.]

'Yeah! She's got ME to protect her! Eat snow, sorceress!'

[He hucks another snowballs, but he's definitely aiming at Tokidoki just like Daphne said he should if he wants Helena to start liking him.]

[by_the_good]

[Adriel is a newly minted member of the Holy Order of the Sun, with a bright boyish face, skin like rich earth, and deep golden eyes. It wouldn't have taken more than half a bat of Daphne's eyelashes to get him to play along, seeing as how he was likely half a polite bow away from asking Her Highness's permission to join in the fray. His brave soldiers- a couple of sturdy urchins nearly school aged and a rather distracted toddler- had somehow managed to pin the princess's retinue on the other side of the hill, so Adriel hurriedly piled up some snow to make their own cover and waved them over. He kept lobbing the occasional snowball to make sure they didn't lose their advantage, but it would be clear that for the moment, attention had shifted elsewhere.]

Alright, men!

[The toddler and one of the urchins were girls, but both of the older children immediately straightened up with pride at being addressed in such a way, while the toddler grabbed a dubious handful of snow and shoved it in her mouth.]

We've got them cornered! You've all fought bravely and proven your strength! Now it's time for tactics. Each of you take two snowballs, then sneak around their hill on either side. I'll keep tossing snowballs so they won't dare move. Go quickly, and we'll rout them out and save the Princess in one fell swoop! Ready? Go!

[The kids, hands full of ammunition, dart to each side of the field while Adriel tosses a few better aimed snowballs at the other shelter, making sure to toss them just above head height. But then the toddler finds a stick to chew on and Adriel thinks it might be wise to pry it away, which takes longer than he expects and takes his focus away from the battlefield. If ever there was going to be a chance for the Princess's forces to gain the upper hand, this would be it.]

Tokidoki Rikugou | Amatsuki (AU) | OTA;

[yokeye]

AU background here. Assumed CR is fine.


01. //BLIGHTED SNOWMEN!

[Toki rushes up to the nearest person, perhaps flailing a bit too emphatically, but this is a dire situation.]

Run away! Run away!

[He cannot stress the importance of that suggestion enough. The panic and terror in his voice may indicate there's something absolutely horrible coming, but that is not the case. Or is it? Approaching quickly is an entire herd of... tiny snow rabbits. They may look cute and innocuous, but as they near, large fangs can be seen. A few of them are dripping blood. They've already attacked once; legions (or a holy hand grenade) may be needed to stop them.]


02. //MAGIC LESSONS: FIRE

[After months of practice, Toki finally made it through a juggling performance without dropping anything. In celebration, he's going to add fire to the mix. Really impress everybody during the holiday. Anyone familiar with him would never volunteer to teach him how to conjure fire from nothing, so he's "borrowed" a spell-book from the castle's massive collection. Flipping through the pages, he's found a few potential spells. The first couple promise a more utilitarian and practical flame for heating or cooking and the like. The third, however, describes great blue flames and minimal smoke. He can work with this.

Previous endeavors have shown he's not very adept at magic at all, but there's no harm in trying again. The words are very hard to pronounce, and his first four attempts result in nothing but small sparks and a faint glow on the tip of one of the juggling sticks. The fifth try, he manages to say all the words right and there's a crackling noise as blue flames manifest on the stick ends. Excellent. He might as well practice right here. It's not going too badly, a little awkward avoiding the fire. Until one miscalculation sends the flame too close to his face and jerks involuntarily to avoid it, stick flying out of one hand. It lands on the floor, rolling for a couple feet to settle directly under the drapes by the window and set them on fire; blue curling flames licking their way up.]


03. //WILDCARD

Anything goes.

#1

[flamescout]

What?

[Raye half-scowls, annoyed that his panicked flailing almost made her drop the basket of eggs she was carrying into town, but also confused and concerned at the real fear on his face.]

[Suddenly she feels a twinge jerk at her senses. That sickly, oily taint...! Her face turns serious as she stares past Tokidoki. She can see something moving in the snow, but she's too far to make out any details. Whatever it is, it's a threat.]

[She pushes her basket into his chest.]

Get behind me. And don't drop these!

[Raye interposes herself between the snow...things...and this boy with the mismatched eyes. She spreads out her arms and thrusts her hands down, palms open wide as she calls twin spheres of fire to dance across her fingertips.]

Rayla | The Dragon Prince (OU) - OTA

[narutoruns]

[Blizzard]
[When Rayla was called to this world, she thought, 'maybe it wouldn't be so bad!'

Then the winter hits. Boy, her feelings about the winter change about as fast as the weather does. First the light snow hits, and then the heavy stuff came, not to mention the harsh winds. Never helped that snow was often the worst sort of thing to have around when you're an assassin trying to sneak by.

And it had officially reached the point where she wasn't feeling great staying outside. So, the Moonshadow Elf trudged on through the forest in search of cover, at least until the snow died down.

She spots a cave; an unassuming place, but still better than standing outside and freezing to death. Not many other options to weigh, so she makes her way inside.

It proves pretty effective, and Rayla finally finds the time to shake off some of the snow... until she hears something. Movement. Not to far from inside the cave. Suddenly, two, curved swords are in her hands.]

Who's there? Come out now!

[fun in the snow]
[Snow wasn't all bad. Sure, when it wasn't harshly blowing on you, it could even be fun! A number of people had been out and around, making snow angels, and building impressive snowmen.

But it seems there's someone going around and messing with them. Not in the typical sense of destroying the snowmen, but instead... giving them ears? In fact, there she is now, shoving a couple sticks in a snowman's head and stepping back to admire her handiwork.]

Snowelf.

[Is that your snowman? Not anymore!]

[Blighted]
[This is karma. Has to be. the universe conspired against her to get her in this universe, to this specific point.

The snowelves are attacking.]

Wait! Stop! ...I command you to stop. I'm your creator!

[Sort of? Kind of. But no dice, the lumbering pile of snow and sticks isn't going for it, so she goes with the next best thing, lashing out with her swords.]

Take this! [POOF. Her swords sink into the side of the monster's face. This doesn't seem to... hinder it in any way, in fact, now her swords are stuck in it, and it's within whacking range with its stick arms.]

Ow! Ow! Cut that out, already! How is fighting snow so difficult?

Blighted

[whatsanogre]

[BAF! The head of Rayla's snowelf attacker suddenly bursts apart into a rain of snowy chunks, bashed in from behind by a heavy wooden cudgel. The wielder, a human covered head to toe in armor, doesn't stop there either. He wordlessly raises the club and brings it down again... and again... and again, pummelling the sculpture and ignoring how it pelts the strange pointy-eared girl with snow.

Finally, after its done and Rayla is covered with the snowy gore of what was once her creation he eyes the club thoughtfully.]

Hm... as I thought, blunt weapons work much more effectively against these things.

[Did he even notice her there at all? We may never truly know.]

Fun in the Snow

[anniegetyourbun]

Snolf...?

[Annie's surprised at the sudden addition, but certainly not upset in the slightest. In fact, when Rayla steps back to admire the snowelf, Annie does the same, holding her chin in her hand as her head tips ponderously to the right. Then to the left.]

[...Ah-ha! Now that she's seen Rayla's ears, she understands at last!]

Gotcha! That does look more interesting, doesn't it?

[She settles her hands on her hips and nods her approval.]

How about we give the snolf some weapons and a snow monster to bravely defeat?

Yang Xiao Long | RWBY | AU

[solar_flare]

[OOC: This is what happens when Yang does have her mother around. Raised by brigands, brutish, and give her all your money, nerd. Might be a forest bandit, or a pirate, and/or a henchman for someone a lot more powerful than she is.]

Shakedown

[Winter is the worst. Thirty days of snow and cold that make her feel sluggish and dismal, where all she wants to do is hide under a pile of furs until spring. But winter is also the leanest month for people who make their living plundering the hard work of others, and if she wants to eat, then someone has to get punched in the face.]

[So she waits, crouched down next to a tree in her fur-lined leathers, wild golden hair tucked into the hood of her mottled brown cloak. It's not a perfect disguise when the sun is fully out, but with the shorter days and approaching sunset, she can rely on the dappled shadows of the forest to keep her out of sight from anyone who isn't paying attention.]

[Yang yawns, picking at her teeth with her pinky when she hears the sound of hoofbeats. Well now. Raising her spyglass, she aims it at the trail to see that, sure enough, there's a rider heading her way. Hopefully someone with a wagon, because wagons mean food and supplies, but if it's just someone out for a ride, even better. She's been wanting a horse of her own for a while.]

Heh.

[Tucking the spyglass away, she laces her fingers together and turns them out, then rises to her feet to start striding forward. There's no one else here to join in an ambush, and that means she can do this however she wants. Subtlety was never her style.]

Hey! How's it going?

[She smiles as she walks forward, unclipping her cloak and tossing it aside. The warm clothes are great when she's waiting, but a nuisance in a fight -- she'll heat things up in just a second.]

-----------

Chillin' Like a Villain

[When there's no one to fight, and no one to rob, Yang is b o r e d. She can only flop around her quarters for a while, sleep in, and shovel food into her face for so long before she starts getting restless. With the boss around, she can't try to provoke any peons fellow minions into a fight, and she's got energy to burn.]

[She wanders around, trying to find someone who will meet her gaze so she can accuse them of challenging her, but people around here know better and keep their heads down when Yang comes around with that lazy saunter and burning crimson stare.]

[Damn them.]

[Eventually she finds herself a nice perch on one of the watch towers, chasing off the guard on duty so she can hang out. She sits with one leg hanging out the window, arms folded, watching the roads and wishing something interesting would actually show up. Nothing ever does -- the guards stationed in the woods tend to make short work of trespassers.]

[Absently she thumbs her lip. Maybe she should do that whole wander quest thing...see if she can figure out who her dad is, and where he's living. She's insisted that it's not really important to her to find out his identity, it's just an idle curiosity. The kind of curiosity that, maybe, kinda sometimes keeps her up at night, or invaded her thoughts when she's got too much idle time on her hands. It doesn't really matter.]

[OOC: Fellow villains are welcome to come hang out, or invaders can discover the camp/fortress/whatever!]

[conner_el]

[Maybe it does matter, maybe it doesn't. Either way, she'll be snapped out of her reverie by a familiar voice from behind her.]

Whatcha thinkin' about?

[When she turns around, she'll find Conner, arms folded, casually leaning against the door frame.]

Chillin' like a villain [Namur is jamjar'd]

[om_nom_namur]

[Something does eventually show up on the road leading into the camp, but whether it's interesting or not is a different question. The figure is massive, clearly more accustomed to sea life, judging by its grey-blue skin, dorsal fin, and general shark like silhouette. An arrow zips out of the cover of trees and embeds itself in the creature's leg, prompting a yelp of pain and a long string of colorful curses as he rips the arrow out and chucks it back into the trees the way it came. The shark man dives into the underbrush himself a moment later, and several moments after that three men fly out, landing in an unceremonious heap in the road. They very clearly need medical attention. The shark seems to have disappeared.

Whatever is a bored Brigand Princess to do?]

Mòrag Ladair | Xenoblade Chronicles 2 | AU

[specialinquisitor]

In From the Storm

[Striding into a tavern on a billowing and blustery day like this, with snow pounding down and heat found in fires and the bottom of tankards may, in fact, be cliche. But this doesn't stop the woman who carries herself more like a soldier than a traveler as she pushes the door open, then appraises those around through the slotted bill of her cap.]

[Whatever she is looking for, she finds it, or perhaps doesn't find what she doesn't wish to see. Either way she places her hand to the door to push it closed against the wind, with more effort than seems worth it. Snow whips past her, but doesn't seem to land on her.]

[In fact, her entire outfit -- hat, cloak, boots, gloves, all of it, had no snow whatsoever. And the keen-eyed might spot a bare trail leading up to the door of the tavern, just barely being refilled by the continuing blizzard, before she shuts it.]

[Nothing strange there, eh?]

Fire Magic

[As a flame dances on the palm of her hand, not so much as blackening her glove, Mòrag looks at her students with calm patience. A gentle instructor despite her rigid spine and steel nerve, she speaks with a brogue that tells of experience far away.]

Fire is dangerous, of course, but the greatest flaw a magic-user may encounter in using it is to overestimate that danger. We use fire in our daily life, after all. Warmth and light. The blacksmith's forge. Cooking. If we were overcautious, these flames would never be lit. The challenge is to find just the right amount of caution to unleash what you desire while constraining what you do not. Or, keep the flames of the oven hot enough to cook without scorching your house, to use a metaphor. Understand?

Blighted Snow

[The snowman lumbers past Mòrag as if it had barely noticed her, stumbling on a few steps ahead before its head tumbles off, finally victim to her twin-bladed strike. As it slumps down and she straightens up, another pair of snow beasts lumbers towards her.]

This is starting to get annoying...