【 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.
( the near nudity is, undeniably, a little jarring, but the least of his concerns in the face of everything else he's learned thus far. and if nothing else, he's gotten very good at maintaining his composure in the wake of absolute chaos and directing his gaze to where it needs to go.
which, right now, is level with sylvain's face. )
A pleasure to meet you, Mister Gautier.
( and, despite all the chaos this place has dragged him into thus far, he does mean it this time beyond more than just a trite greeting. this sylvain must be an interesting fellow indeed, especially if wriothesley's seen fit to confide in him. )
My condolences that you also have been kept here this long. ( is he to be the next victim? how sobering. ) Do you also at least have the comfort of having friends from home here with you?
[ What a gentleman. It's okay. You can look, if you like. He won't mind.
He can't help but chuckle at Neuvillette's condolences, though. ]
Condolences aren't really necessary. Believe it or not, finding myself here was a vast improvement over the mess I was mired in back home. [ One he's also in no hurry to return to. ] There are a few friends here from my home here, yes. And more distant acquaintances [ he means enemies ] as well.
having experienced little-to-none of all the resort has to offer, the admittance of enjoyment comes as a surprise. still, the more he thinks upon it, the more it makes sense; not everyone carries or enjoys such heavy responsibilities as his, and there are plenty in dire straits that would find this resort to be a veritable paradise.
none of that changes the discomfort still lodged in his chest, though it's easy enough to ignore in favor of focusing on his companion. )
Were things truly so bad at the time of your departure?
[ Those sure are gonna be in for a shock around here, sorry man.
Sylvain waves a hand dismissively at the question of his homeworld, though, his nose wrinkling a little ]
They certainly weren't great. My country was tangled in a war it didn't want to be fighting, but were left with little choice. Although I suspect the same can be said of many wars. It... wasn't going well.
[ Although Dimitri's return, along with Byleth, had at least given them a fighting chance. Before that... it had mostly been he and Felix delaying the inevitable. ]
( a war....not an uncommon occurrence in many nations. indeed, he recalls the nation of natlan and their constant skirmishes against the abyss. it is no easy task for anyone involved, full of hardship and suffering. it certainly isn't something worthy of being romanticized.
and yet he finds himself curious about this man's answer, so blase and casual. )
So you would leave your friends and allies to fight alone?
( he doesn't mean to ask such a pointed question. there is no shame in wishing to prioritize one's safety and continued existence in the world. and yet... )
[ He doesn't hold it against the other man, instead offering him a crooked, rueful smile. ]
Well. Not quite. This place... it messes with time somehow. There are others here, from my world. From what would be considered my future. [ He spreads his hand in a shrug, treating it lightly and not with the more complex grief and guilt he'd been dealing with for the better part of a year. ] Apparently, if this place hadn't kidnapped me when it did... I wouldn't have walked off the battlefield that day anyway.
[ Alternate timelines were confusing as hell. And he hasn't even figured out how that works yet. But he did believe his old classmate wouldn't have lied about that. ]
( how...confusing, to say the least. he's had to grapple with missing memories of his own but never anything as widespread as difference between the memories of multiple people. but then again, wriotheley had mentioned something along the lines of not being entirely present during the final days of the prophecy in fontaine, so there's clearly some greater power at play here.
even more to think about during his time here. )
I see.
( his voice is grave, sobered by the talk of conflict. he doesn't see, not quite yet, but the cogs in his head are turning. not unlike the gears of all the clockwork meka that patrol the streets of fontaine. )
I am glad to hear that you are still in possession of your life. I only hope that you and your allies and your nation find the peace you are so ardently fighting for.
( in this, he is sincere. but enough about that. )
But since you are here, what do you enjoy best about this place?
I hope so, too. [ Even if he doesn't sound all that optimistic about it. Fodlan had been a mess. But Byleth had always been a wildcard in their past, and it seems that she was still. Even if he didn't understand how or why.
As for that question, he gives a thoughtful hum, because it's a good question. ]
Well, this might not make sense without context, but... I enjoy the fact that no one knows who I am. It doesn't matter who I am. I don't have a reputation preceding me, or a title that defines me. Traps me, honestly. I'm just one among many other "guests" here, and my position, my rank, my reputation - it's gained or lost through my efforts. What I want to define myself as.
It may sound silly to some, saying the thing I appreciate most is just being no one special, someone ordinary here, but... it's something I never got to enjoy back home. It's a sort of freedom all its own.
( once again he's struck by the depth of human tenacity, and their fervent need to steer their fates with their own two hands rather than any outside influence.
he offers sylvain another wan smile, polite and a touch sympathetic. )
I understand. There will always be those that revel under the spotlight and those who prefer to be part of a nameless audience.
( though perhaps the comparison isn't quite apt. being the chief justice is not easy, and even though he has become a point of pride in the daily lives of fontainians now, things weren't always so simple. even if it is a role he would never shirk and has grown quite accustomed to, there are some days where )
Speaking of, what 'rank' are you here?
( mona had taught him a little of the system here. might as well start getting used to the hierarchy. )
[ He chuckles at that, leaning back against the headboard as he settled a little more comfortably. He's still not dressed, but as all he's got keeping him decent is the sheets tucked around his waist, it's probably safer for Neuvillette if he doesn't get out of this bed right now. ]
I just became a 10 of Diamonds - the same is Wriothesley. We both started out as 4's, with our doors across from each other, and we've kept moving up each time together as we had enough points to rank up. Even though he seemed pretty reluctant about it at first. The ranking, not the rest of it. He apparently also has an aversion to the spotlight.
( he can't help but chuckle at the description of familiar habits, a soft exhale of breath that dissipates quickly in the air. )
That he does. I can't recall the last time he agreed to be photographed, either by Sigewinne or the reporters from the Steambird. But I imagine the anonymity suits the needs of his work much better than the spotlight.
( being the warden of the most infamous - and admittedly, only - prison in fontaine while having all his secrets revealed to the world may as well be a death sentence. neuvillette has never been much for secrecy himself, but he can understand the need for it in others. )
[ Sylvain... doesn't really know what a photograph is, but he gets the basic gist of that statement anyway. And yeah, that sounds like Wriothesley, alright.
He chuckles as he shakes his head fondly, then nods in response to that latter question. ]
A bit. The prison, the whole underwater thing. And I've... seen things. From his past. When he was a child. And a teen. This place has strange ways of... dredging things up unexpectedly.
( now that is interesting. also: deeply disturbing and highly invasive, especially for a man who values his privacy as much as wriothesley does. though it would be no less acceptable even for someone open about their feelings and past. )
Is that so?
( any trace of good humor has since vanished, leaving behind only disapproval and unhappiness in the downward curve of his mouth and hard glint in his eyes. )
Is that another one of this resort's tricks to try and 'encourage' us to form closer connections with each other?
[ He grimaces slightly, lifting his shoulders in a shrug. ]
Honestly? I'm not entirely certain. Sometimes whatever game they're trying to play can backfire in ways they don't expect. Or perhaps its more accurate to say it plays out in unanticipated ways. The lower levels got flooded at one point, and something last month happened with our suits that had them all mixed up from what they were meant to be. I honestly don't know if reliving some of our childhood memories was what they intended, although I sort of doubted. Kids aren't all that interested in sex, after all.
Although it did bring us closer, in its own way, I suppose. Nothing brings people closer, I guess, than getting to witness each other's terrible traumatic childhoods. [ His voice is utterly dry, because Wriothesley wasn't the only one who kept his past secretive and deeply buried. Even his prince didn't know most of it. ]
( his own voice is dry, though not so much as sylvain's. wit and humor have never been coping or defense mechanisms he's sought to use often - or at all. )
Well, I am glad to hear the experience did not irreparably damage the relationship between you two. ( his voice softens with the next line. ) Though I am sorry to hear your own your childhood was difficult as well.
( children should be loved and cherished, and provided with safe homes and families to grow and prosper in. )
( it's an easy change of subject, smooth and easy to follow. neuvillette sees nothing wrong answering this particular question. he is not the sort to pry, in any case. though he doesn't answer right away, letting the silence lull between them for a few breaths as he considers what would be most appropriate to say. )
Yes, I have. ( a small nod. ) We have worked together in a professional capacity for many years now, and I had been made aware of his actions in the Fortress of Meropide prior to that due to a mutual friend of ours.
( which sounds a little illicit when phrased like that. )
[ This place has a way of making everything illicit anyway.
But Sylvain’s lips quirk faintly as he nods in understanding. ]
Well, I suppose it’s very reassuring to know he wasn’t your warden. [ Not that it likely would have affected Sylvain’s opinion about him even if he had been.
But he has a feeling Wriothesley will want to know of this new arrival - if he doesn’t already. And Sylvain… is still stuck here naked. ]
…I don’t suppose you see anything down there that might be my pants…?
( can't believe sylvain is out here insinuating that neuvillette might be so crass as to ever consider breaking the law? inconceivable.
but the innocent question about clothing does prompt neuvillette out of his chair, eyes widening in surprise and cheeks coloring in apology. despite his own disheveled appearance - shirt partially unbuttoned, strands of hair sticking out every which way - his movements as he crouches towards the ground remain graceful nonetheless. )
My apologies for the oversight. Please, allow me.
( to fish out the various clothes scattered on the floor. blame waking up in an unfamiliar room with an unfamiliar person at his side, a first in all the hundreds of years he's been alive.
some sixty seconds later, he pops back up with a shirt dangling off the fingers of one hand and a pair of pants dangling off the other. as for underwear......sylvain will either have to find those himself or simply go without. )
[ Sylvain blinks at the clothes Neuvilette comes up with, confusion flickering over his face at the sight of them. There's no way that short's gonna fit and yet he's pretty sure he could fit two of him in those pants.
Who's room did they end up in??? ]
Uhh. Nope! Please tell me those aren't our only options?
[ Maybe he'll just wear the sheet back... Impromptu toga party? Not like that hasn't happened here before... ]
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peacockstop2025-01-15 09:00 pm
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which, right now, is level with sylvain's face. )
A pleasure to meet you, Mister Gautier.
( and, despite all the chaos this place has dragged him into thus far, he does mean it this time beyond more than just a trite greeting. this sylvain must be an interesting fellow indeed, especially if wriothesley's seen fit to confide in him. )
My condolences that you also have been kept here this long. ( is he to be the next victim? how sobering. ) Do you also at least have the comfort of having friends from home here with you?
no subject
He can't help but chuckle at Neuvillette's condolences, though. ]
Condolences aren't really necessary. Believe it or not, finding myself here was a vast improvement over the mess I was mired in back home. [ One he's also in no hurry to return to. ] There are a few friends here from my home here, yes. And more distant acquaintances [ he means enemies ] as well.
no subject
having experienced little-to-none of all the resort has to offer, the admittance of enjoyment comes as a surprise. still, the more he thinks upon it, the more it makes sense; not everyone carries or enjoys such heavy responsibilities as his, and there are plenty in dire straits that would find this resort to be a veritable paradise.
none of that changes the discomfort still lodged in his chest, though it's easy enough to ignore in favor of focusing on his companion. )
Were things truly so bad at the time of your departure?
no subject
Sylvain waves a hand dismissively at the question of his homeworld, though, his nose wrinkling a little ]
They certainly weren't great. My country was tangled in a war it didn't want to be fighting, but were left with little choice. Although I suspect the same can be said of many wars. It... wasn't going well.
[ Although Dimitri's return, along with Byleth, had at least given them a fighting chance. Before that... it had mostly been he and Felix delaying the inevitable. ]
Let's just say, I'm in no rush to return to that.
no subject
and yet he finds himself curious about this man's answer, so blase and casual. )
So you would leave your friends and allies to fight alone?
( he doesn't mean to ask such a pointed question. there is no shame in wishing to prioritize one's safety and continued existence in the world. and yet... )
no subject
Well. Not quite. This place... it messes with time somehow. There are others here, from my world. From what would be considered my future. [ He spreads his hand in a shrug, treating it lightly and not with the more complex grief and guilt he'd been dealing with for the better part of a year. ] Apparently, if this place hadn't kidnapped me when it did... I wouldn't have walked off the battlefield that day anyway.
[ Alternate timelines were confusing as hell. And he hasn't even figured out how that works yet. But he did believe his old classmate wouldn't have lied about that. ]
no subject
even more to think about during his time here. )
I see.
( his voice is grave, sobered by the talk of conflict. he doesn't see, not quite yet, but the cogs in his head are turning. not unlike the gears of all the clockwork meka that patrol the streets of fontaine. )
I am glad to hear that you are still in possession of your life. I only hope that you and your allies and your nation find the peace you are so ardently fighting for.
( in this, he is sincere. but enough about that. )
But since you are here, what do you enjoy best about this place?
no subject
As for that question, he gives a thoughtful hum, because it's a good question. ]
Well, this might not make sense without context, but... I enjoy the fact that no one knows who I am. It doesn't matter who I am. I don't have a reputation preceding me, or a title that defines me. Traps me, honestly. I'm just one among many other "guests" here, and my position, my rank, my reputation - it's gained or lost through my efforts. What I want to define myself as.
It may sound silly to some, saying the thing I appreciate most is just being no one special, someone ordinary here, but... it's something I never got to enjoy back home. It's a sort of freedom all its own.
no subject
he offers sylvain another wan smile, polite and a touch sympathetic. )
I understand. There will always be those that revel under the spotlight and those who prefer to be part of a nameless audience.
( though perhaps the comparison isn't quite apt. being the chief justice is not easy, and even though he has become a point of pride in the daily lives of fontainians now, things weren't always so simple. even if it is a role he would never shirk and has grown quite accustomed to, there are some days where )
Speaking of, what 'rank' are you here?
( mona had taught him a little of the system here. might as well start getting used to the hierarchy. )
no subject
I just became a 10 of Diamonds - the same is Wriothesley. We both started out as 4's, with our doors across from each other, and we've kept moving up each time together as we had enough points to rank up. Even though he seemed pretty reluctant about it at first. The ranking, not the rest of it. He apparently also has an aversion to the spotlight.
no subject
That he does. I can't recall the last time he agreed to be photographed, either by Sigewinne or the reporters from the Steambird. But I imagine the anonymity suits the needs of his work much better than the spotlight.
( being the warden of the most infamous - and admittedly, only - prison in fontaine while having all his secrets revealed to the world may as well be a death sentence. neuvillette has never been much for secrecy himself, but he can understand the need for it in others. )
I take it he has told you about his job?
no subject
He chuckles as he shakes his head fondly, then nods in response to that latter question. ]
A bit. The prison, the whole underwater thing. And I've... seen things. From his past. When he was a child. And a teen. This place has strange ways of... dredging things up unexpectedly.
no subject
Is that so?
( any trace of good humor has since vanished, leaving behind only disapproval and unhappiness in the downward curve of his mouth and hard glint in his eyes. )
Is that another one of this resort's tricks to try and 'encourage' us to form closer connections with each other?
no subject
Honestly? I'm not entirely certain. Sometimes whatever game they're trying to play can backfire in ways they don't expect. Or perhaps its more accurate to say it plays out in unanticipated ways. The lower levels got flooded at one point, and something last month happened with our suits that had them all mixed up from what they were meant to be. I honestly don't know if reliving some of our childhood memories was what they intended, although I sort of doubted. Kids aren't all that interested in sex, after all.
Although it did bring us closer, in its own way, I suppose. Nothing brings people closer, I guess, than getting to witness each other's terrible traumatic childhoods. [ His voice is utterly dry, because Wriothesley wasn't the only one who kept his past secretive and deeply buried. Even his prince didn't know most of it. ]
no subject
( his own voice is dry, though not so much as sylvain's. wit and humor have never been coping or defense mechanisms he's sought to use often - or at all. )
Well, I am glad to hear the experience did not irreparably damage the relationship between you two. ( his voice softens with the next line. ) Though I am sorry to hear your own your childhood was difficult as well.
( children should be loved and cherished, and provided with safe homes and families to grow and prosper in. )
no subject
We all have our difficulties, I suppose. But you must have known Wriothesley a long time ago, then?
no subject
Yes, I have. ( a small nod. ) We have worked together in a professional capacity for many years now, and I had been made aware of his actions in the Fortress of Meropide prior to that due to a mutual friend of ours.
( which sounds a little illicit when phrased like that. )
no subject
But Sylvain’s lips quirk faintly as he nods in understanding. ]
Well, I suppose it’s very reassuring to know he wasn’t your warden. [ Not that it likely would have affected Sylvain’s opinion about him even if he had been.
But he has a feeling Wriothesley will want to know of this new arrival - if he doesn’t already. And Sylvain… is still stuck here naked. ]
…I don’t suppose you see anything down there that might be my pants…?
no subject
but the innocent question about clothing does prompt neuvillette out of his chair, eyes widening in surprise and cheeks coloring in apology. despite his own disheveled appearance - shirt partially unbuttoned, strands of hair sticking out every which way - his movements as he crouches towards the ground remain graceful nonetheless. )
My apologies for the oversight. Please, allow me.
( to fish out the various clothes scattered on the floor. blame waking up in an unfamiliar room with an unfamiliar person at his side, a first in all the hundreds of years he's been alive.
some sixty seconds later, he pops back up with a shirt dangling off the fingers of one hand and a pair of pants dangling off the other. as for underwear......sylvain will either have to find those himself or simply go without. )
Do either of these belong to you?
no subject
Who's room did they end up in??? ]
Uhh. Nope! Please tell me those aren't our only options?
[ Maybe he'll just wear the sheet back... Impromptu toga party? Not like that hasn't happened here before... ]