OPENING LOG.

[enjoyers]

Characters: Everyone!
Date: August 11th
Rating/Warnings: Nothing as of yet. Mark anything that qualifies a warning in your subject line!
Summary: Arrivals.
You want happiness. A company called RECOVERjoy has offered it to you, so you've signed up with them. Gaining happiness can't hurt, right?

Suddenly you're in a room, an apartment, with three other beds and unfamiliar faces. This is your assigned room, and it's quite crowded. You don't get much of a chance to think as your phone beeps--it's not your phone, maybe you've never had a phone, but there's one in your hand so you check it. It's a smart phone, nothing special about it, but now you've received a text from RECOVERjoy.

Welcome to Joywick! We're so happy to have you!

You've arrived in your assigned room, we hope you like it! Don't worry, you can move out once you've collected enough joypoints. Speaking of, if you'd like to check your balance, there's a special application that tracks it for you right on your phone! Handy, right?

... Did you check? If you did, you'll notice you have no joypoints. But don't despair! We're giving you a special mission. Make three (3) friends and get 200 joypoints! Gee, that's easy! Of course, we can't put a level on something like friendship, so just get to know people. Don't miss out on these easy points! We'll give you more information about joypoints once you're done.

Wishing you happiness,
RECOVERjoy : )

You're in this for 1 million joypoints, aren't you? Might as well get started.

(AFTER THE MISSION HAS BEEN ACCOMPLISHED OR ONCE 24 HOURS HAVE PASSED)

You receive another text from RECOVERjoy.

Great job on the mission! Or not so great job for those who didn't do it. : (

Well, you probably want more joypoints either way. Here's how! Look for another person. I bet they look fairly happy, right? Why are they happier than you? Because they've got the joypoints you need! The only way to get those joypoints is to steal theirs. How? Take their happiness away. It's easy! Maybe a rumor here, an injury there... but if you want the big points, be creative!
You want to be happy, don't you?

Wishing you happiness,
RECOVERjoy : )

... Not quite what you expected when you signed up. You can't leave, though, you still owe RECOVERjoy 500 joypoints and, well, you came here for a reason.

Comments

PARK

[accelerates]

[Where does Dave want to go? Easy. Pretty much every place he's passed by so far-- the Electronics Store, the Weapons Store, the Abilities Store, etc. There's nothing he'd enjoy more than wandering those shops' aisles, picking and choosing a laptop here, some more time powers there. But he's got to focus on the task at hand with wicked efficency. Troubled as he is at this 'friendship' thing (especially in person, god fuck why is this being done in person?), he needs to go where the people are.

And where are a bunch of broke-ass, out of their element strangers going to converge?

A park. That sounds about right. So here's Dave, glad he's got his shades to block out any excess light and his hood to pull down over his face if someone he doesn't want to be bugged by can't take a hint.

Things are going to be rough from here on out. He's determined to take the easy quests while he can, even if they aren't in his favor.]

[balzams]

[Wandering around a completely new city was usually a little tiring with all the new things to take in. This seemed to be on a whole other level though. On top of having to meet new people it felt like there was too much swimming around in his brain.

The day had left him exhausted and as the sun was starting to set he barely paid attention as he shambled on. Latvia was awake enough to take note of the other people, but not awake enough to have any kind of spacial awareness. As he passed by he accidentally knocked shoulders with a boy who couldn't look that much older than him]

Ah! Excuse me!

[accelerates]

[Dave's thing would always be time, not space, and shades make judging distance a lil' more difficult than it ought to be. He means to avoid the wandering wastrel, but no such lock. Their shoulders collide-- not too jarring-- and he's stopped in his tracks. Whatever. He'd meant to meet people anyway, right? That was the whole point of this stupid exercise?]

Chill, bro. No harm, no foul.

[How deliciously and ironically 90s. Anyway.]

What's your friend count?

[Down to business.]

[balzams]

[What little relief he would have felt from the boy's easygoing attitude was suddenly displaced by the all too direct question]

E-excuse me?

[Latvia mithered over it for a moment. Logically he was probably given the same message. His total was probably a little lacking too, although...]

Uh, to be perfectly honest I'm not too sure... maybe one or two?

[accelerates]

So you need at least one more.

[Spelling things out for people is tough work, but someone's going to be the bigger douchebag man and do it. He doesn't hold out his hand or switch his body language to something more friendly. Nah. He's in this for the mission complete stamp on his invisible checklist.]

Dave Strider.

[Small nod of his head.]

[balzams]

[Latvia can pick up on that much at least. The guidelines for friends seemed pretty loose. He gives a short nod of his own, although it seems more like an abridged bow]

Raivis Galante. It's nice to meet you.

[accelerates]

[Dave doesn't know if it's rude or not to ask people their reasons for joining the game. As far as he can tell, their motivations can be anything from a personal need for happiness (or crushing others') to something big, like his. Too many variables.

Time to blab about nothing.]

Could this park get any lamer? It's like Sunday in the park with boredom. Fuckin' picturesque every day landscape. The hell? All it needs is a crowd of pigeons and an old man with nothing left to live for spreading bird seed and stale cheerios.

[You agree, right, Raivis?

Right?]

[balzams]

Uh...

[He tries to look everywhere but at Dave. He's just a kid, he wouldn't lynch him for disagreeing with him about parks]

I don't know, I kind of like it. I mean, parks are best when they're nice and peaceful aren't they?

[accelerates]

[Not literally, no.]

I guess.

[Slightly put out here. Dave is not much of a 'peaceful' sort. This is him attempting friendliness.]

If you like...

[Looking around.]

Stuff.

[balzams]

I... do?

[Latvia's not sure he understands it but maybe he's just a bit too old]

I guess someone like you would prefer something more lively. Maybe like a skate park or an outside pool.

1/2

[partnered]

[ Dammit, this making friends mission is turning out to be a total fiasco. And Neku's starting to become painfully aware of the fact that the clock is ticking down steadily; he's losing time and momentum with every single creepy weirdo that comes crawling out of the woodwork to harass him, and he's starting to feel a little... desperate, here. There's no way he can let himself lose the very first mission, especially when it's such a (relatively) easy way to grab a handful of points.

-- So when he spots one of his roommates wandering around the park, Neku figures (hopes?) that this will be relatively painless. If he can't even make nice with the people he's smashed together in close quarters with, then it seems kind of hard to believe that he'll have any more luck with anyone else. He's... even decided to ignore the fact that the guy is wandering around dressed like the Unabomber, okay. He really needs a positive tally mark on his friend record. ]

[partnered]

[ So now he's kind of... awkwardly stepping into Dave's path, cutting him off from advancing any further. ]

Uh.

[ Damn, he probably should have... rehearsed something ??? ] ... you're one of my roommates. Right?

[accelerates]

[Either this is the weirdest mugging Dave's ever witnessed, let alone been a part of, or this guy is really desperate with the mission of the hour. Whichever it is, it's more interesting than walking right around him, so Dave stays put. Casual as you please, he draws back his god tier hood, shrugging both shoulders up in practiced tandem.]

Yeah. 'Sup?

[partnered]

[ Stick 'em up, Dave, this is a friendship mugging.

But okay, so far, so good. His roommate hasn't done anything extraordinarily weird yet, so some of the tension relaxes its way out of Neku's shoulders. This whole thing is still pretty awkward -- not to mention stupid -- but he's smart enough to realize that it's better to score the easy points now. ]

... yeah, okay. Then let's just agree to be friends or whatever, all right? We both need the points.

[accelerates]

Who said I need the points?

[No, Dave. This is the opposite of what your plan was. This guy is more or less throwing himself at your feet, ready to go along with the whole mission and making it easy on the both of you.

Except, therein is the whole problem. Way too easy if he just accepts. Then he starts looking friend-desperate, like he couldn't befriend everyone here right now if he, you know. Wanted to.

Life would be so much easier if Dave could stop metaphorically stabbing himself in the neck.]

1/2

[partnered]

[ Dammit, why does everyone insist on making this harder than it has to be?

Instantly, Neku's posture shifts to a bristle; he folds his arms over his chest and tenses his shoulders, eyes narrowing slightly. ] Sorry, guess I assumed you weren't just here for the vacation.

[partnered]

[ -- But he's pointedly aware of the fact that time is running out, and he can't afford to let himself get sucked into another stupid, chase-your-tail argument. ]

Whatever. I don't have time for this. [ And then he's starting to stalk his way right past Dave. ]

[accelerates]

[A guy with his eye on the prize. Dave respects it, even if he's not feelin' the attitude. He holds out an arm to block the redhead's path. Would've clotheslined him if he was running, but at walking speed it becomes a less painful obstacle.]

Sure you do. 'Round me, there's nothing but time.

[Hard to tell what Dave's thinking behind those shades. He's keeping his lips in a firm line.]

We can be friends. [...] For the points.

[kingshizuchan]

[A few minutes later, Dave might get the smell of cigarette smoke. Shizuo had decided to walk around the city before having circled back and reached the park. Seeing the fountain was enough to have him think back on things while enjoying a smoke. Good news, he wasn't bothering anyone else (unless they don't like cigarettes.) Cool news, if bartender clothes were cool with blonde hair and sunglasses he was icy cool.]

[accelerates]

[They are, in an extremely ironic (and thus double-plus yes-cool) way. Dave's gaze snaps to the man about as soon as he stops by the fountain, and it's-- well. Bromance at first sight. He's got to talk to this guy (even if he's a lil' old for easy speaks). Or at least stand in companionable almost silence with him. In a matter of seconds, he's sidled up to the fountain, hands in his pockets. Cool as a cucumber that's found another cucumber to chill in the crisper drawer with.]

'Sup?

[kingshizuchan]

[It's a couple of moments before Shizuo's focus actually changed towards the kid. Really he figured that whoever it was, they'd be calling someone out. Except that was silly because they were right next to him, and not really saying things to get another person's attention. Blowing the current drag from the cigarette away from the boy's face, and...]

Hey.

[All the cool people are better at acting like quiet types. In reality, this one was just never good at socializing. Seems like it's time to start though, if all the missions were 'make friends.']

[accelerates]

[It's okay, Shizuo, Dave isn't that cool either.]

Dave Strider.

[An expectant rattling off of his name. By now, it's clear as day that they've all got to make friends, and Dave's missed the bus a few times with less-- uh. Awesome individuals. He's not going to mess up this one. He's already feeling a ridiculous amount of kinship. Look how dapper this asshole is. Beautifully ironic.]

[kingshizuchan]

[He's the most ironic, Dave. Not just the clothes and Crispin Freeman voice, but even the name. He's the coolest man around wearing clothes that his brother gave him as a gift.]

Shizuo Heiwajima.

[Well, this was going better than the last couple of people he ran into.]

keywords are accurate

[cancerousnubs]

[Who said making friends was an easy mission? Karkat would have better luck making friends with the drones when they came a-knockin'. Making friends is the skill Karkat likes to think he has leveled the lowest in, all things considered (he likes to think this because it makes him feel like more of a badass loner than he really is).

So maybe he can make friends. Gradually, and over an instant messaging system. But in person? It's like ninety percent harder. Plus, as far as he knows, he's the only troll in this entire fucking city. At least if there were other trolls, he could look good by comparison. But no.

Even though the sun is starting to set, it's still up, and Karkat has already claimed it as the bane of his existence. He's shielding it from his eyes with his hand as he walks through the park, hoping he'll find some poor sucker that looks like he can handle the amazing friendship he has to give.

Who he finds is Dave Fucking Strider, chilling right up in his way and automatically ruining his day. Why is he here???? Karkat thought he left him behind when he took that offer!]

What in every universe are you doing HERE?

[accelerates]

[If Dave's surprised by the appearance of one Karkat Vantas and he is, a little bit it doesn't show. His pokerface is a brilliantly constructed fortress inside of which all emotions are kept safely hidden. He thought he'd be alone in this, without distraction. Trolls-- other kids-- they'd still be in Sburb, in another game and universe (hopefully taken care of while he got shit done out here). The sudden realization that the offer to play the joypoints game might have been extended to more than one player per universe isn't a kind one. The last thing he wants is distractions.

That's all Karkat can hope to be.]

Winning.

[Keep it simple.]

What about you?

[nbd]