fablecottage | TDM #3

Entry tags:

!tdm

TDM #3

fable test drive meme #3

// away with the fairies

In your land, there may be stories of the Fae taking people away. Perhaps you haven't heard of the Fae at all, or perhaps you are more familiar with them than others. No matter how well acquainted you are with the Fae, everyone around you has experienced the same fate tonight: Being taken by them. Partially, at least. For they did not want to kidnap anyone from their home and take them away from the life they knew. In a small jar of fairy dust, part of your soul was taken in the night and brought to a magical village by the name of Fable.

On arrival, the Fae release you from the jar before waving their magic wands, and materialise this taken little part of you into a brand new you. From here onwards, your new life begins, shared among all sorts of magical creatures. Here, you will be allowed to grow, thrive and enjoy the bounties provided to you by these mysterious and wonderful creatures. In exchange, they ask for a share of the magical fruit that you grow in your garden, donated to their dragon overseer in exchange for rewards. After a briefing on your new life, you understand things as best as you possibly can. Now, it's time to settle into a brand new cottagecore life.

Welcome to Fable.

// arrival

Now that you are a resident of Fable, you have a brand new cottage, a garden, and a few tools to use! There's not an awful lot in your cottage, though: Just a cardboard box, a lamp, a cassette tape and a single bed. Fear not, though! By participating in friendly tasks, your cottage will look great in no time.

Something sparkly catches your attention before you realise it's a message board, advertising an array of tasks for bonus fruit. Did this thing appear out of nowhere just now? That must be the case, since you can swear it wasn't there a second ago. The board may inspire you to go out there and mingle. It seems that the monthly tasks are geared towards friendliness to welcome this new season!

picnic party

// spring fling

At long last, the snow covering Fable has finally melted! While Spring hasn't made its full appearance yet, there are definitely tell-tale signs of its approach thanks to the greener grass and the days feeling longer. Some of the anthropomorphic animals who live in the neighbouring region of Limerick - such as rabbits, birds, sheep, fawns, mice and squirrels - have gathered in Fable to introduce an incredibly sweet welcome to the warmer weather.

The woodland animals, who work together like you would imagine them doing in a Disney movie, have arranged a picnic! They've got plenty of baskets, cups, blankets, plates and cutlery to give out - not to mention food created by both themselves and their Faerie friends! (They wash their paws, promise.) Just be careful on which you choose to eat, because consuming fairy dust can do strange things to Fable residents.

// let's have a picnic!

There's an incredible flow of magic in the air that fills you with the urge to get out there and enjoy the sun with some company. It's a beautiful day for a picnic! Fable has an assortment of hills and fields to lay down a blanket and relax on. Some of the more quiet spots can found be down by the river or under the willow trees. Inside of the basket gifted to you by the animals, you will find plates, cups, cutlery and freshly picked flowers!

There's plenty of food to go around for all dietary requirements! The animals and fairies have certainly gone all-out - so there's no need to feel guilty for stacking your plate high. The food prepared by the animals cause zero effects, but the food prepared by the Fae is cooked with magic and fairy dust which might cause some interesting changes to happen! Choose wisely!

// springtime celebrations

Across Fable while the weather is beautiful and bright, there are assorted outdoor activities available to participate in, especially while the picnics are on!

Near the areas where people are dining and socialising, there are swinging seats that fit two people, an assortment of musical instruments laid out for people to play, outdoor grills and ovens in case anyone wants to cook or bake some goodies for their picnics, and arts and crafts supplies!

For participating in any of these tasks, you will receive flowers or shrubs for your garden and pieces of outdoor furniture for your cottage! Feel free to leave a comment here to redeem these once you've written 5 tags in your thread! Since our TDMs are considered game canon, if you choose to app, these rewards will cross over with you when you join the game! Woohoo!

If you choose to partake in some Faerie food, you may find yourself feeling quite interesting!

The flower cupcakes look rather nice, don't they? The icing is in the shape of a flower! These sweet treats will make you feel extremely brave and sociable! You can't recall ever wanting to talk and mingle so much!

The flower punch is being served in several flavours, topped off with flowers floating in your drink for decoration. With every sip you take, no matter the flavour, you will want to share happy thoughts and feelings! Be warned, though: If you drink too many glasses, you'll feel a lot of sad feelings come to surface - ones you that might be trying to fend off or forget about. Comfort from another person is the remedy, however!

A slice of fruit pie still carries that warm feeling over from Winter! With all sorts of fruit flavours to try, there are pie slices for all tastes. Eating one will inspire you to compliment someone! That warmth from within is flowing right out, so much that you can't resist saying all these nice words.

A slice of cake will overwhelm you with the incredible taste of perfectly balanced vanilla extract and lemon zest! It will also make you incredibly affectionate. Depending on how big the slice is that you eat, it might make you feel very affectionate indeed. (Winky emoji.)

flittens

// purrfect gardening

The sunny weather looks so nice and refreshing that you may feel inclined to go out of your cottage and visit your garden. Except ... your garden is looking pretty barren at the moment, isn't it? You have your fruit trees, plenty of soil plots and fresh green grass, but no flowers.

While contemplating how empty your cottage garden is, you notice something appear beside you.

"Mrrrrrrrp?"

Oh. It's a cat. Actually, wait, it's ... several cats?! Where are they all coming from!? All of them have fairy wings in an assortment of different colours, and it looks as though they're very interested in you for some reason. The cats nuzzle your legs and around your ankles, which inadvertently causes the fairy dust in their fur to rub off on you. The shimmering sparkles coming off the kittens may not give you a second thought, until you move one of your feet to notice that there are flowers growing behind you when you walk!

"Mew! Can you make the flowers grow faster, please?" Did that cat just talk?! Actually, if you've been here for a while, this won't be a surprise at all. These purring kitties are all rubbing by your feet still.

"That Winter lasted for too long ... your gardens are so empty! Please grow some flowers for us to play in ... pretty pleeeeeeease?"

Against your better judgement, you decide to listen to the kitties. They are pretty cute and convincing, after all. But whether you know it or not, there are special qualities to these flowers...!

After a briefing from the Flittens, you understand that all of Fable's cat fairy population have been visiting the Fable residents to request big flowering gardens to play in. It's a win/win situation, though - since your garden will no longer be barren and empty!

The flower that grows is one that matches you entirely! Whether it's the colour of the flower, your personality or the flower's meaning - the flower that grows is an essence of who you are.

The Flittens have a very important requirement for you once you have grown flowers in your own garden: They want you to visit your neighbours and grow flowers in their gardens too! According to the Flittens, it's "boring" to play around in the same type of flower. They want big, colourful gardens to frolic and play in!

Flowers grow when you walk around barefoot on grass, or handle soil with your hands. When you feel happy, they will sprout and grow all around you! Maybe even in your hair if you're feeling extra happy.

The second important thing to note about these flowers is that their pollen has magical properties! When you have a neighbour visit and they grow their flowers in your garden, inhaling the pollen of these flowers will heighten your interest in them! Their flowers you grow smell so sweet - the aroma is very inviting! You're curious to learn more about where they're from, who they are, and you may even feel inclined to invite them to dinner or offer them tea from your cottage. The longer you stay in their presence, the stronger the pollen's effect! Just how much are you going to learn about this person?

After 24 hours, the flower growing magic will be over, but you'll wake up the next day with a bright beautiful garden and hopefully a new friend or two...!?

Welcome to Fable's third TDM!
We're excited to have you here, and hope you enjoy the prompts!
To familiarise yourself with the setting, please take a look at the arrivals & premise page!
We would also appreciate it if you could have a look at the rules as well.
As a general note, the TDMs are considered game canon!
Which means all rewards for fruit & furniture can be used in the game if you apply!

New arrivals have a cottage, a network device, the clothes on their back and a single item from home.
To view the locations, NPCs and more information about the game, please visit our full navigation!

If you have any questions that you have not seen answered in the FAQ, please ask in the FAQ post. Thank you!

(CODE)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

What was that?

[She was far too busy and distracted with eating her cake that she barely heard what he'd said—]

Ah, it's perfect!

[...

Is Ilsa like... A cake version of Cassius... ...She won't get ridiculously round like him will she okay no.

He'll just stare at her a moment more before he finally takes that second bite.]

...Nothing. Glad you like it.

[HE HAS ENOUGH SENSE TO NOT SPEAK HIS MIND.]

[How much of the cake is there left for him to take that second bite of even!? No—she really didn't take that much, and in her defense, it's a very big piece!!!

Still working on her bite, she's already going in for more, scooping a smaller one this time.]

I should ask for the recipe. If you like it, I could try baking it myself.

...You'd actually bake it for me?

[He can't help but look at her a little dubiously... ...But then for some reason the idea doesn't seem...so bad?

...]

...I wouldn't mind it.

[And just quietly taking another piece.]

[She hears that doubt, and zeroes in on that, even with that high compliment.]

Do you think I wouldn't be good at it?

[EXCUSE YOU, she is not Beatrix...... The nerve!]

Besides, it wouldn't all be for you.

I just didn't know you could bake.

[And he's just going to guess that most of it would be for herself—

Well he can take one more bite...and that leaves a sizeable bite left for her so... He'll just take that small scoop with some extra whip cream before holding out the plate for her.]

Here. You can have the rest.

It's been some time since I've tried my hand at it, but I would be willing to again.

[If it meant that she could make a cake of this level of quality. It might take a few experimental attempts, but she's willing to try. And not for Eustace's sake, but for her own—!

And when he offers her the rest, she doesn't even hesitate to happily take it from him and dig in for another bite. (Has she even finished the last one? Who knows...)

Once she's finished, little does she know that she has little dollops of whipped icing at the corners of her lips. Each bite got gradually bigger, and she forgot to grab more napkins. As she sets the empty plate down, clean of its crumbs, she looks at Eustace and snorts out loud.]

[In a small act of whimsy and while waiting for Ilsa to finish, he has the fork hanging from his mouth... So he just looks over at her with an arch of the brow.]

?

[Though his eyes do take note of the whip cream at her lips.]

[When he turns to look at her... like that... She realizes that in that moment, she's never seen him look so... boyish before.

With a small, amused twitch of her ears, she lets her eyes linger on where he has icing on his lips around the fork he's holding.

...

Wordlessly and without thinking too much of it at first, though not without another giggle, she reaches over to swipe some of it away with her thumb.]

[The act surprises him, enough for him to stiffen at first, his teeth clenching against the fork to make it stand out even more when he feels her touch against his lips. It's....... Strange, very strange. No one had ever dared to do such a thing so the ticklish feeling seems sharper than it should be.

Yet it's also not... So... Bad???

Feeling a little strange, he just reaches out and does the same, deftly swiping at where the whip cream rests at the corner of her lips.]

[She's not even sure what compelled her to do such a thing, because it's only as she pulls back that she realizes that she's done... How intimate that gesture had been, and how maybe she'd overstepped? But for Eustace's part, he doesn't seem to... mind? She was half expecting him to retort at her or to lean away, or to even slap her hand back, but...

Instead, he surprises her by reaching out to do the same, his fingertip wiping away the icing that clung to her lip...

—?

Belatedly, Ilsa realizes that her eyes had fluttered shut when he'd done so, and she's hasty to snap them back open, her face immediately flushing with colour as she mutters...]

You have icing on your face...

[The action had been so impulsive, it truly happened without him fully realizing it. And it's only when he's brought his hand back and sees her flush that he does realize the full ramifications of what he's done.]

Merg—

[He forgets he has the fork in his mouth still when he tries to speak, almost losing it and quickly fumbling to catch it before it really does fall out. Of course since he still had that bit of icing on his fingertip, it just kind of smears on the cuff of his sleeve instead. Clearing his throat, he glances away, feeling really, really strange and awkward right now.]

...Sorry.

Ah... No, it's...

[Ilsa hardly ever finds herself at a loss for words, nor does she ever find herself stammering over the ones that she does have.]

I did it first... I shouldn't...

[She clears her throat again and watches as he lowers his sleeve now covered in icing...]

Here.

[Rather than offer to grab him something to wipe it off, she takes his hand in hers, lifts it, and starts to rub off the icing on his shirt with a disapproving look.]

Don't get it dirty.

[Again be can only stare down at her, eyes a little wide before there's a really strange ticklish feeling. Which is bizarre, he shouldn't feel anything aside from general weirdness.

...]

...I'm not a child...

[Mutter, grumble, looking away a little bit.]

Well. You certainly looked like one when you cleaned it off with your sleeve.

[Eustace, please. Strangely enough, she was fine with getting whatever was left. She just needed a minute to... process... what was going on.]

Edited 2023-04-02 21:57 (UTC)

It wasn't intentional.

[HE WAS TRYING TO CATCH HIS FORK FROM FALLING. But he also isn't really doing much to protest aside from minor complaint.]

[She clicks her tongue... and then breaks her stern look with the smallest laugh.]

I will note not to add too much icing to mine.

...Are you still going to make one?

Hm?

[She cocks a brow.]

Why not? I said I would, didn't I?

[For some reason, she feels even more compelled to do so now, if only to gain his approval on the cake that she ends up making. If the fairies could do it, why couldn't she?

But with that being said, Ilsa gets to her feet and clears her throat. Loudly. Wanting to break the uncomfortable mood.]

We shouldn't hog the swing.

[...Hm. Just a low thoughtful hum, though he's also not sure why he's that interested. Maybe it was just to pose a question for casual conversation........?

...

Anyway, he'll follow her lead, standing after her and moving to start picking up the plates to clean up.]

Heading back?

Mm. It's been a long day, don't you think?

[How long had they even been sitting out here anyway? The sun is already starting to set in the sky, the afternoon blues now turning to oranges and pinks, and she'd rather get back to her house before dark. Who knows what sorts of things happen here at night...?]

I will walk you back, if you'd like.

[A quiet snort as he moves towards the grill to continue cleaning.]

That's not how you say it.

Hm?

[While he cleans the grill, she fixes up the cushions and the blanket on the swing, fluffing them out and folding it up neatly to drape over the back.]

What do you mean, that's not how I say it? I will walk you back.

[She repeats it, confused.]

I don't need an escort. [Just a dry tone as he glances at her.]

So it would be better to say, "I'll walk with you."

[...?

.....

After her initial bout of confusion, Ilsa barks with a laugh, her expression softening a touch once more as she goes back to fluffing up another cushion and sweeping away any crumbs of food that are left behind, though it's not without a light powdering of colour across her cheeks.]

Funny that you thought of it that way. That's what I meant.

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