【 Thank you for choosing the Golden Peacock, 5-star resort and casino. You are currently registered as a WILDCARD in our system.
Due to a high volume of check-ins, temporary accommodations have been made in our parking garage for all new arrivals. We aim to have all guests moved into their reserved rooms as soon as possible. We deeply apologize for any inconvenience!
All are invited to There Is No Tomorrow, a Phoenix Casino soiree to celebrate our beloved guests. The festivities will begin at 1800 hours on January 20th and end at 1800 hours on January 27th. Please look forward to 168 hours of delight.
In an effort to raise happiness and encourage better guest relationships, attendance is required. The house will assist guests that are too shy to appear of their own accord. Please note that black tie attire is mandatory. As always, we hope you enjoy your stay! 】
PARKING GARAGE
ANY CAR IN A STORM
PHOENIX CASINO HALL
WELCOME TO THE NEXT 168 HOURS
Phoenix Casino is a-flutter with activity and packed to the beak with guests. As a famously ever-changing space, the staff would be remiss if they didn't deck the crown jewel of the Golden Peacock out. The casino glitters from top to bottom, shining brighter than diamonds, rubies, sapphires, opals! Party-goers are shiny and glamorous with picture perfect makeup, fluttering gowns, and sharp suits. Card tables are packed and the slot machines are a-ringing as guests play, play, play! Prizes, luxury, booze, attractive people, it's the place that everyone wants to be at.
Those people being dragged inside by some invisible force...? Silly, they were so excited to come that their bodies moved before they realized what was happening. Those are struggles of joy and definitely not the casino's infamous ghost hands dragging unwilling guests to the party at the behest of the house. Look, they're literally hurling their bodies at the card tables with unrestrained glee!
All clocks indicating day hours and night hours have been removed from the casino. Once a guest has entered, their Watch will jam, making it impossible to keep track of the time. You don't need to worry about that tonight.
▶ All characters on the TDM are WILDCARDS, which means they have not yet been assigned a card value. Suits will not manifest until characters are accepted into the game.
▶ All TDMs are game canon. This TDM acts as the game's January event.
▶ Current characters may top level on the TDM. Any current characters posting to the TDM should note they are current in their subject header.
▶ The top level directory is for new characters only. We want to make sure new characters are prioritized and receive attention! If you would be interested in a game invitation, you can note that in your comment header. This month we also have an ongoing ATP / EMP where players can connect. Please feel free to utilize this for all of your peafowl needs!
▶ If you aren't satisfied with these prompts, please feel free to check out our LOCATIONS to explore more of the resort!
▶ Smut threads that take place on this TDM can be used for rewards. If both parties in the smut thread join the game, you may retroactively apply the character's initial card values to your 52 bank. If one character does not join the game the thread will not be applicable toward rewards (as that character would not have a card value). The character that does join would still receive a small payout for the encounter. Hopefully it was a fun thread regardless!
▶ We ask you to kindly add content warnings to your threads as appropriate.
▶ If you do not currently have permissions and kinks listed in your character’s journal we suggest leaving a note in your top level of any limits or boundaries for other players to reference.
[It's a good answer. Direct but not specific, and it forces him to be a little more aggressive with his wording. He's never... enjoyed that. As necessary as it could be in the enforcement of Order, it always felt — wrong. Making a piece fit that didn't belong there.]
So, the lower your rank is the more you are motivated to participate. And those who already exist at the top — often there's a reason they've made it there. They've learned to play the game, or... they were lucky.
[How did Miss Topaz become an Ace? He doesn't ask outright.]
You don't seem happy with the system in place here.
[ the silken slowness of a restful morning slip away silverfish-quick, but the laughter left in the wake rises out of him suspiciously fast. Genya's grip on the pillow comes from swatting down justice to meanly, inexorably linked by Getou's own hand — ]
[ and as he pounces, sending them both pitching onto the mattress, that pillow becomes the only thing separating two bare, beating chests, and the inequal angles they're stretched in the only thing keeping their hips apart. Getou smiles with a low hum, bleary-eyed gaze a hungry half-lid full of warmth, ignorant of the few tiny tucks of explosively-soft down feather hooked on threads of his hair. ]
Shi- Shina~azugawa-kun. [ what could be a struggle to remember reveals itself as a less personal slight: his breath and tongue are well-liquored. ] Hi. Did you miss me?
[ a rhetorical question, his grin hiding behind a head dropped to chest, nuzzling his cheek into well-scarred skin, their shapes not incomparable. he's closing in, sighing into the heat of his body as one would a hot bath to sore muscles after a hard day's training. ]
Don't go, you're so warm. [ and he can't remember the last time he felt warm. ]
[Being next to Sylvain along with having a drink in his hand helped Ashe calm down a little from all the bright lights and sounds. He did remember the last time he was in the resort that hadn't gone away, but he hadn't realized how it sounded when he told him. He took a few sips of his drink before he answered.]
Oh I remember the resort! I just don't know what to call this place with all this lights and sounds. I don't remember having anything like this back home. Oh it's called a casino? [Ashe looked around and took another sip of his drink.] It's a very interesting place.
[Empathy. The word alone shouldn't put uneasiness in him — it is innocuous, even in the context of the dangerous scenario Wei Wuxian describes. He has never heard of it as applied ghosts, but as a skill... being able to resonate with emotions is something he can do as well, though he's never tried with a creature of such seeming malevolent nature. It sounds comparable but not the same.
After all, the dead is a territory he's never trespassed, and Wei Wuxian confirms that quickly.]
That's true. It might be better to be cautious, then. I apologize for my impatience — perhaps we should try another time.
[He can't be making demands of someone who has only just woken up, even if it was... in bed with him. Even if they're sitting across a breakfast table from each other.]
I don't want to put you at risk. [Sometimes, I fear that I've forgotten — his mind closes on the thought.] You've been genuine with me, and you're enduring the reality of this place all the same. Though perhaps you're handling certain aspects of it... better than I. It doesn't matter. You can have the room, after we've finished eating.
[ And so it is. Midnight eases back, slips his finger from his partner, and grabs a handkerchief, wiping lube from first his partner, then his own fingers. He does keep an eye out to make sure the lad gets up on his own — he won't help there, he should be fine — but he will offer a hand to help his acquaintance off the table. Regardless of how the offer is taken, Midnight will settle back in his seat, slide the dice over, and settle back, eyes looking over carefully. ]
[His gaze doesn't visit the sight of his sister long, but it's enough to burn the image onto the backs of his eyelids — like the light leftover by sunset, searing the distant horizon honey-gold until dusk turns it a cold blue. Robin's shoulders are bare, pale skin sloping up to the bowtie at her throat. It covers a scar: well-healed, long old, but one he could trace in the dark even if he's only seen it once. When she lay there in bed asleep, healing, during those first crucial days of recovery. She didn't know he was in the room so it felt permissible in that moment to look. All he did was look, and that was enough, because it proved she was alive in front of him. She was safe.
Robin's hair is black, which he thinks is all wrong, and he wants to say he doesn't like it. The absurd thought doesn't come from that ideal version of himself whose footsteps he had followed in his goodbye to Penacony. It is something else, some other part of him transformed by the union of those two pieces of his identity. It wants to say it doesn't like the black hair because she's more beautiful as herself. It hates the fake wings, the torn nylon, the cheap fishnets. And yet... he can see nothing else but the sight of her in all of those things, resplendent and gleaming, perfectly without flaw.
Confronted with what she asks, he's realizing how absolutely out of control he is in this situation. And how it just — isn't fair. He worked so hard for so many years to provide a paradise for her, and he failed. What now? What will he do now?]
Don't worry.
[Oblivious to the fact of her concern for him, Sunday sees this only as a way to reassure his sister of her own well-being.]
If you need anything, you should come to me. I have enough chips for the both of us. [The lie tastes ashen; he tells himself it's a temporary mistruth.] You don't have to work that job you picked up, so please don't feel forced to. There are... other options available here. You could perform, if you'd like — I've seen other musicians in the numerous lounges and restaurants.
[He still hasn't moved from where he's standing. He hasn't shed the disguise. It's almost like he's become frozen in this spot, chiseled out of stone, staring at the crossroads ahead and paralyzed by the choice.]
I'll... help you advertise, and if it gets to that point, I know how to manage your appointments.
[ Troy would have replied to her audacious words in kind, but seeing her pain getting the better of her makes him stop. He raises his hand to signal a time out just in time for hotel staff to wheel in the provided breakfast and hangover medicine bag. ]
Stop. As fun as it is to watch you get all theatrical, it's best if you stay calm.
[ He sighs, feeling his caring side take control. Troy talks to the staffmember outside of the door, accepting the two trays that hold a plate of food and a bag with a red cross printed on the face. He looks over his shoulder, carrying both trays with ease as he walks closer to her, putting one tray down on a counter and one remaining on his hand. ]
Here. Looks like there's hangover meds in this bag, and some food that looks not half-bad.
[ aerith. that's a very nice name, he thinks, for a very nice girl. there's a spark of intelligence and wit behind her eyes, leading him to believe that there is far more to her than meets the eye, but thus far she is being very kind, something he absolutely appreciates here, in this place.
once the door closes, dan heng exhales slowly, as if he'd been holding his breath for minutes before this. ]
Ah, hmm.. plenty, I'm sure, though it's difficult to think of specifics in the moment.
[ after a moment spent shifting his weight, dan heng sits beside her. ]
I don't know how adventurous I may or may not be. I would rather not be restrained in any way, for one.
[ he's already found out a little bit, thus far, but he wouldn't say he's gained nearly enough experience to be able to nail down any "favorites", when it comes to sex. anyway, his brows lift when trow reads his card. ]
You're.. very kind to ask, but I would rather finish the task, if it's all right with you.
[ the sooner this is finished, the sooner he'll get his payout, right? he nods his head. ]
Go on. If it's too much for me to answer, I'll let you know.
[ look, leave him and his horny crisis alone.. it's not easy being so suddenly exposed to your crush's dick!! and everything else that's attached to it. but when jing yuan speaks up, dan heng's eyes snap back upward, his face flushing hot with embarrassment. ]
Help? I - ah.. no, no, I'm -
[ making a fool of himself, is what he's doing. dan heng's throat works as he swallows thickly, jerking his head aside to stare down their breakfast. he feels, in fact, like an absolute fool, especially considering the heat prickling between his thighs. shifting, he bunches the blanket a little more over his lap, then begins to busy himself with a serving of congee, as if everything is perfectly normal. ]
- I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been staring. Please forgive me.
[ surely jing yuan must think he's an absolute creep, now. please, it would be very nice if the ground would open up and swallow him whole into oblivion right about now. ]
[ his judgment is impeccable, thank you very much!! just because you're bad at accepting compliments, sir -
anyway, the little smile eases him, despite how foolish he feels, though dan heng's heart is still racing like a rabbit on the run. propositioning stelle was one thing, he knows her intimately well, but this stranger is an entirely different story, however warm and easygoing he appears to be.
but then that touch brushes his jaw, and dan heng tenses, his eyes snapping to meet sylvain's, and he opens his mouth to reply - then quickly closes it, nodding his head. he's agreed to this, and he is willing, so now it's time to play the game.
after a deep breath, dan heng closes his eyes, exhaling slowly, and shutting out the lights and colors of the casino instantly helps him to relax, a little. enough so that when he feels the brush of sylvain's thumb along his lower lip he shivers, brow cinching, his lips parting just so. that feels.. nice, he thinks. his mouth is very sensitive, especially with his eyes closed. ]
[ How she got to be an Ace is something she's been ordered by the House not to share. And while she is the first to toss out any rules she finds unproductive, it is not in her best interests to break this one.
Because she is lucky in a way: she has a partner willing to help her. What do people who show up here alone do? ]
Essentially, yeah. A low-ranked player can also make friends with guests on higher floors and room with them, but that can be unstable: ranks can shift, suites can merge...
[ It defies logic to the point where she has to rub at a temple. What's the point of working in a system if it can be upended? So annoying. ]
It's unstable and pushes people to do things they don't wanna.
[ The way he relaxes instead of stiffens at her touch is definitely a good sign - and indicative of someone who's used to some level of decorum though now hardly seems the time to think about what that could mean. Naturally tactile by nature, this physical touch in some ways is comforting for her in a lot of ways too.
Because while she's been here long enough where she should be used to things being the way they are, the nerves will always demand to be felt one way or another. But what's the saying? Fake it til you make it?
She peers down at the number and up just in time to see the dealer reach beneath the table and hand a box over to them that she assumes contains the vibrator. With a free hand she takes it, more interested in her partner's reaction. And...so far so good? ]
[ Damn straight it takes priority, though Stelle may need a guiding hand if she's ever to abandon the chocolate fountain now that she's found it, because not only is it a grand display of water(chocolate)works that would put even The Golden Hour's nicest fountains to the test, the spread of food that awaits is a feast in its own right. They really know a way to a girl's heart, don't they? ]
Ssssss. [ ...she was going to agree absently, as she shambles towards the chocolate fountain like a zombie, dragging Robin along with her, but then thinks again about her companion's words. ] I've got two hands, don't I?
[ So she's double-fisting it, although before she eats anything...she casts a look about, one corner of her mouth tugging down. ]
They didn't set out glasses or anything? Well, guess I have to do this the old-fashioned way!
[ The old-fashioned way is, apparently, leaning in towards the fountain's flowing streams of chocolate, because she wants to take a drink first. She's parched! ]
Always happy to share intel with the Astral Express.
[ She says that much without hesitation. The explanation will take a little more effort. Sharing a world has the benefit of shared knowledge, so she at least doesn't have to start from scratch. ]
I trust you're familiar with the Imaginary Tree theory from the Data Banks: The branches of possible worlds growing out infinitely in the universe, never touching.
This place and its "Game" bring those branches together. They're after the reaction that comes from that "impossibility."
[ dan heng starts at the sudden movement, watching as the house of cards collapses like a disturbed souffle - and just like that, the game is over, and dan heng is the recipient of many chips. ]
I -
[ he begins, then pauses. it's quite clear what wei wuxian has done, and dan heng can't help but to feel a little grateful, even though he can't help the little thorn of guilt that comes along with it. this man sacrificed a good amount of currency, just so dan heng didn't have to suffer and stutter through an impossible answer - something very kind to do for someone who is ultimately a complete stranger.
his gaze flits briefly down, apologetic, then lifts again. he won't thank wei wuxian out loud, won't draw attention to his ploy, lest it embarrass him, but there gratitude in dan heng's eyes is unmistakable. ]
I see. Well, in that case, perhaps we can find something to eat and continue our conversation.
[ ...Oh. Part of her was expecting him to put up a little more resistance, but that would defeat the purpose of the game, wouldn't it? What's more distracting is how, uh, fit he looks beneath those layers he pushes aside from his chest. She didn't exactly have long to size him up since he sat down, but she recognizes the body of a warrior when she sees one.
She grins, tipping her head back as she gives him an appraising look. ]
What can I say? I like to get to the point. [ Which is why she's rising to her feet, burgeoning with confidence even if her heart races just a little faster. ] Those're some nice pecs you've got there, even if I could live without the body hair.
[ If only because she's thinking in terms of licking, and licking hair is weird? Anyway, she steps forward to loosely drape her arms around his waist, bending down and parting her lips so she can draw the flat of her tongue right along the valley of his sternum. ]
[ Diverting Stelle's eccentric — and dangerous — ideas is a privilege that Dan Heng has had to earn. Sunday isn't there yet, even if she can't really discount what he says. Can a sensible argument make her reconsider her actions?
...No! But his mention of her wellbeing does give her pause. She's reckless, but she also doesn't want to get hit by a rebounding minifridge. Slowly, her grip slackens on the fridge, as she considers her options, only for her features to light up a moment later. ]
Oh — Sunday, you're a genius! Instead, I'll use my bat, so if it's deflected, I can just stop it with a swing! [ Or she could just...you know...use her bat on the window instead, but okay. ] One escape route, comin' right —
[ She holds out her hand, expectant that any moment now, her trusty weapon will materialize in her grasp, and yet...it doesn't. ]
— up...
[ Oh, this is embarrassing. A skill issue??? Couldn't be her. ]
[ He leaves her no choice but to finish it immediately with a setup like that, even if her bravado might be getting ahead of her, just a little bit. Just as with everything, acclimating to this place has been a crash course she threw herself into headlong because it's her way, but that doesn't mean it's easy. So, she holds her breath as she pulls her hand away from her other die, gaze flickering down from his own to see what number the fates have seen fit to give her.
Maybe it'll be something tame, like elbow or knee or —
It says ASS.
...Give her a moment. ]
...Did these dice just call me an ass-licker?!Me?!
[ Like, the dirty dice action is whatever, but she's insulted now! She slams both dice down against the table again, rising to her feet. ]
Alright, turn around and drop your pants, pal! [ ... ] Ugh, but that's like letting the dice win!
[ Quick, almost like she was anticipating this apology from him — ]
No, it's okay. The fact that we're nervous is...a good thing, I think.
[ It means that they care about each other, and while this isn't exactly how she imagined her first time happening, it's...okay. In her imagination, she's always caught up in some torrid, sudden affair with a stranger whom she leaves the next morning, playing the part of a femme fatale like something out of an immersia. It doesn't matter how it is, because she'll never see them again, but Dan Heng...
It's his first time, too. She wants it to be as good for him as it for her.
...Give her a moment to dip her head just far enough into the water that she can blow out a stream of bubbles from the breath she's been holding these last few moments. Okay. Okay.
Instead of giving her answer right away, she moves across the length of the hot tub so she's sitting next to him, the tips of her long fingers just grazing the side of his thigh. ]
So...yeah. I want my first...to be you. [ A beat. ] I want you.
[ The subtle (or maybe not-so-subtle depending on the company he chooses to keep) change about him certainly hasn't gone unnoticed. And while she had been intrigued, it would be a lie to say that upon realizing there was something different about him she had been filled with an unexpected sense of satisfaction. It's the sort of thing she's felt before: the feeling of understanding something or someone, that she had been struggling to grasp suddenly made clearer.
There's no time to dwell on what that could potentially mean however.
She tilts her head and crosses her arms, considering. ]
I could probably deal with the crushing guilt depending on how fun your plans are once we get out of here.
[Rude appreciates that even in this situation where he's the one with more knowledge (though not by much), Aerith is the one being decisive and forthcoming with ideas and information. Meanwhile, Rude feels like a bumbling mess on the inside, growing increasingly more nervous as he slowly starts to come to terms with the situation and the pressure he feels.
The hand on his drags him from his distress, though, and he nods in response. Then he clears his throat as he turns his hand over to lace their fingers together for a moment. Turks training is intensive and thorough but this wasn't something they could have ever prepared him for, and his awkwardness shows.]
We'll take our time, and if you change your mind at any point, just let me know. [And just maybe their mysterious voyeur overlords will take pity on them and unlock the doors without the two of them having to go ALL the way. But, in the meantime, Rude pulls Aerith closer by the hand to guide her to settle on his lap. They've definitely never been this close before. He hesitates before settling his hands on her hips an glances away briefly.]
( that brief moment where she thinks to correct him — maybe i'm stronger than you think — is dashed against the ground at his so-called assurance. but then chips... could be gambled for by other means, no? if she rationalizes it. she's seen the spinning wheels, and the slot machines, and the card sharps getting caught with their hands, but she's caught those hands moving bodies, too, not cards... at least before she'd shift her gaze elsewhere, anywhere else, caught in the throes of someone else's indulgence and trying to figure out where it would be safe to look.
that her eyes dart to him is a reflex that stuns her with its immediacy, but they flicker over him, as if she's checking for injury. there's just nothing that she can see outwardly in this stranger's appearance. not in his deep-water gaze. if she tried, would she be able to make out the current of his thoughts? would he let her? even the faint glow of harmony's passive ability tells her that he wouldn't make it easy. there's nothing in his eyes but her own reflection and the direction of his attention.
what did he do? what has been done to him? (would his hair be mussed after three days, feathers unruly, or would he still present so pristine and untouchable as he did when she saw him for the first time after years of unbridgeable distance?) she feels it, suddenly: smaller than she was, broken and unsteady. it's just that she can't read him, that she doesn't really know him, or anything at all.
her fingers twitch where she's still holding onto his sleeve, but the way she turns to face him more fully, her hand slipping down to press into his fingers instead almost shocks her with the speed at which she does it.
she's silent for that suspended moment. not necessarily to look into his face for recognition. but what he actually says after just filters through much more slowly, leaving her little room to question what she wants to most. )
Then... is it possible that we can survive with that kind of work? Although it isn't the most ( a pause, to reach for the right word... ) lucrative way to do it. We could pitch in together.
( but it does do something to her, that faint glimmer in her eyes like a spark. it isn't a duet by any stretch of the imagination, under forced circumstances, but maybe it's the closest thing that she can get.
[ He chuckles at the invitation. He wouldn’t mind jumping in with his clothing intact, as improper as that may be, but since Kaveh’s in much better spirits now, he can’t help but take the opportunity to tease— ]
I’d love to, but I’m afraid I’d be intruding on your companion were I to do so.
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