Welcome to CERES' new dating experience -- ABOMIDate (Catchy, huh?). They've found that they're a little concerned with everyone's ability to... connect with denizens of different species, and in a place like Cerealia that is full of aliens, that's a Big Problem! After all, it's pretty clear by now that there are a lot of things about your friendly neighborhood aliens that you just know nothing about. What else do you not know? That the greeting of a Faswwg is face licking? That feathered species require mating dances to woo? That [REDACTED] needs [REDACTED] to [REDACTED]? So clearly, the way to fix this problem is...to practice dating other species!
Namely eldritch abominations! In CERES' experience, eldritch abominations really sum up the full interspecies dating way of life and provide you a variety of different species (and orifices) to enjoy.
So it's time to put on some proper music -- no, not that, that's not right. There, that's better. Anyway, time to put on some sexy background music, and woo the monster of your dreams!
 [ horrifying noises of nightmares and despair ]
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PHASE I [ 8 00 ] Welcome to the new and improved Abominable Dating, CERES’ brand new virtual dating experience! The first thing you will see will be a character select screen, because CERES wants you to get to the dating part right away. Don’t worry, there are a lot of beautiful and handsome candidates to choose from so feel free to jump right in! There’s this fellow, or this dashing lass and even a hidden character who is... not really all that hidden if they’re right there to be picked, but there you go!
You have to pick one. There’s no other option, I’m afraid.
And once you do, you’ll end up in a room with your date, dressed up in beautiful, date-like clothing. Unfortunately, everyone else who picked that date will also be in the room with you, also dressed up and prepared for dating.
This is awkward.
It gets even more awkward when your date decides that you look like a great main course. Watch out for those claws/teeth/limbs/etc! Maybe you can work together to take down your starving date, sad as that sounds.
PHASE II [ 1000 ] No dating game would be complete without stat boosting sessions. Regardless of how you feel about your current date, you’re locked into the game now (and hopefully not while covered in the blood of your date themselves, though they just come back even if you managed to kill them), and the game is picking a stat it thinks you need to work on. Either your intelligence is deplorable, your charisma is totally lacking, or your strength is at noodly-arm levels. That’s pretty bad. (It doesn’t matter what your actual intelligence, charisma or strength are, the game might be making things up at this point.)
Because of this, you’re going to be automatically tossed into a mini-game to increase those stats! This will be fun, absolutely. Nothing but Fun here in ViViD. So regardless of what the game thinks you’re lacking, it’s going to throw you into the same mini-game -- eldritch abomination make-over sessions.
You'll show up at a row of dressing rooms, each marked with a sign above the door reading NO INTELLIGENCE or NO STRENGTH or NO CHARISMA in bright red letters. Choosing the right one (embrace your shame) will reveal your initial date to you. They bat their eyelashes in greeting and growl out a very sultry, Will you help me, senpai?
Time to get to work!
You won’t be able to leave the mini-game until the monster is completely satisfied with its makeover, so it’s time to really tap in to your inner fashion sense. Of course, the fact that you’re all trying to apply makeup to the same monster might make this hard, but you can surely all get along, right?
Right?
PHASE III [ 1800 ] At first, you were on a date. Finally, you, your monster, candelight. Everything was going right until... well, you made a bad dialogue choice. They asked you what your favorite food was, you accidentally picked "Italian" (or maybe picked it on purpose which makes this even worse!) and then things went dark.
When you wake up, you'll find yourself in a cage. The room is dark and dank and there's no light other from the crack of a door somewhere up a flight of stairs. You're in a cage in a basement and there's a key glinting on the table right across the room there. Is it for your cage?
Welcome to the Yandere Route.
You might not actually be alone though. The cage isn't terribly big but there's enough room for someone else and if you shift around a little, you'll bump into them. Maybe you should share some woes of the eldritch horror dating experience. Maybe you should try and find a way out! Who knows? But there's one thing for sure:
You're both extremely naked.
Good luck!
PHASE IV [ 1830 ] You did it. You’ve gotten to the end of the game, or nearly. You’ve earned up enough affection points somehow. Maybe it was through the eldritch abomination following you around to trying to eat you or maybe it really, really, really liked your makeover. Maybe there was that thing and the cage and some weird pictures it took -- who knows! But now it’s time for the inevitable scene.
The confession scene.
Except... well, ViViD can’t do confession scenes very well. You'll find yourself there in the schoolyard, dressed in the appropriate school uniforms but...
For one thing, there’s a heavy shower of rose petals. A heavy shower. They’re everywhere. They might get in your mouth and face, they’re pooling around your knees, it's a rose petal flood and you're about to drown!
For another, the eldritch abomination you chose to romance is getting closer and... closer. And closer. And that sure is a lot of teeth, huh? Is it coming in for a kiss or to eat off your face? It’s... really hard to tell with all the rose petals, isn’t it?
To make matters even worse, you can’t move -- you’re locked into the scene until it comes to its proper conclusion. The game is stuck and you're here, suffering through it all. Well, you're suffering unless someone comes and rescues you, but who in the world would interrupt a touching scene like this to do that?!
BONUS [ why o'clock ] You know you have to get dressed up nicely for your date. It's an important one! Third date means third base, after all. So, you’re shoved into a closet, and surrounded by tons and tons of choices to pick from. You're spoiled for choice!
But, well... no matter what you put on, or even if you just elect to stay in your regular clothing, it changes as soon as you step out of the closet to meet your date.
Don’t worry, you look adorable.
It can’t be taken off, of course. So you’d better get comfy, because you’re going to be a pink dinosaur for your third date and... your fourth date. And your fifth. Hell, you might still be a pink dinosaur when it comes time to confess! How... cute.
[ Remember to apply proper warnings on threads with sensitive or inappropriate material and do let a mod know if your thread careens off into maiming or canoodling so we can lock the log. ] |
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Stunned him because, for one, he'd never made it a habit to get used to these things and there's the initial shock of it that makes Neji want to struggle to get away, to claim his space, his distance. It's barely subdued because the next realization is that the hold on him feels entirely solid. Firm. Real. He felt real, in a way that he hadn't the last time his eyes had focused on her and when the image had blurred into the unrecognizable nothingness. Mouth agape, hunched over, he must look like a damn fool and felt like anything but.] Hina--
[Gods, that couldn't be his voice. How out of sorts was he that he hadn't brought his arms up from where they hung limply at his sides to return the embrace yet? Neji does so now. He wraps his arms around whatever portion of his lady's back or shoulders they reach, and he can't be certain he's being gentle. It's the last thing on his mind. And his forehead's resting on the top of her head in a moment, and he tries his luck at rough coherence again.] It's really me, Hinata-sama. I'm here with you again.
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I'm- I'm sorry- [For his death? For crying on him? Hopefully it didn't make him too uncomfortable. That hadn't been her intent but so many emotions were cascading into her at once that she couldn't make sense of it anymore. It was like losing one's sense of up or down.]
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--shock.] Hinata-sama. [Quick, sharp, high. Her warning as he tenses, has to fight to convince himself that straightening up and moving to pry himself from her was the correct thing to do because suddenly distance was a necessity for him. He had to breathe. Cool his head.
Sorry for-- ? For... him? If the ground opened up from under his feet and swallowed him it'd be a relief.] You shouldn't apologize. [There was more to say, more words catching in his throat. But if he babbled, he'd say something wrong. He'd already scolded. Neji couldn't do it. Sorry for-- no, he didn't want to think it. Didn't think he'd ever have to.] It was my decision to make, Hinata-sama. [Fact. Not defensive, but in the neighborhood. Send help, the Hyuga boy was lost.]
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[And trying to explain herself was making her cry less, but still tears poured down her cheeks as she pulled back to look up at him. She hated every moment that came after, seeing Naruto doubt himself while Obito verbally abused him and blamed him for Neji, when he'd only been trying to protect them.]
I-I'm so sorry... [Closing her eyes tightly, she tries to stop how hard her heart is slamming in her chest. Neji was here, alive, and he wouldn't leave again if she had any say about it. She didn't regret moving to protect Naruto. She would die for him gladly, but it had cost her something to feel that way for him. It had cost her someone just as important and dear to her.]
I keep assaulting you with tl;dr orz
He has to look away, his chest seizing with guilt. Neji's gaze lands on a chair in the room. He decides now is a good a time as ever to check back up on the monster, but it's woefully immobile. It brings a wry smirk to his lips because
what is this?
His insides were screaming at him to scream at her. Put her straight again, tell her off, tell her that there were choices, that she didn't hold that much power over him and his life. He could have looked away during the attack the way he is now, because sometimes he doesn't feel like letting brashness make a fool of him. There was no law that said he had to have died then. There was no knife to his throat that made him move to where the wicked wooden senbon would strike. --and they both knew those two statements were lies, but the helplessness of believing them was maddening. Neji's aware enough to know Hinata had gone and closed her eyes by now, so he follows suit. Tilts his chin up. Smiles. It really was difficult to explain, wasn't it?
To put into words something someone born into a different world couldn't possibly understand. He opens his eyes again.] If we didn't share the same fate that day, then I don't regret it. [Voice wavering despite himself, but he's looking at her with that unrivaled fondness. She really was as difficult as that idiot Naruto. Of course she didn't regret protecting that boy. And of course that attack wouldn't have been focused anywhere else but at him. Some things only ever happened because they should. But Neji couldn't possibly tell Hinata that, because he didn't know how to voice the idea that it didn't necessarily mean he'd been robbed.] I only wish you wouldn't, either.
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I want to become stronger...]
We should... we should go, before it wakes up.
[She also wanted to say something else besides more sad things and that was the first thing to pop into her head.]
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Neji smiles gently at her resolve, whether it's to calm her or himself is a mystery. Glances to the walls opposite them attempting to find an easy exit and-- what do you know, CERES had gone and installed one for the level, no doubt trying to herd them into something less sappy and more interesting. Neji moves towards it and waits.]
Yeah, let's hope things get better from here.