I PUT THEM TO BED, NOW THEY ARE DREAMS, AND WE GO --

[maskormods]

T E S T D R I V E M E M E

Considering apping into MASK OR MENACE? Want to dip your toes into the setting and get a feel of whether your character will fit into it? Or maybe you're just cruising and want to play around? Then you've come to the right place!

Pick any of the following scenarios below or feel free to make up your own, but don't be afraid to throw yourself at someone else's thread, either!

And remember there's only one rule in Test Drive Meme Club: HAVE FUN ON THE TEST DRIVE MEME!

01. The city of Heropa is what one might expect from a small, bright and cheery place, where locals are friendly enough and local shop owners might offer a free drink to welcome you to their fair city. Many of the locals might thank you for always lending your service to the nation and their local troubles, while others might not say anything -- but if you have something nasty to say, better not say anything at all, right? That's just the Heropan way.

But despite the relatively small size and mostly easy-going population, this here is not a city immune to the urbane ways of the world. And Heropa, like the rest of the world, adheres to the calendar of this universe. You, fine imPort, have just happened to land squarely on SING LIKE YOU'RE IN A MUSICAL DAY! Wowee! Locals and tourist natives alike will conspire to cajole you into singing your GREATEST WISHES and CLOSING ACT songs. And, oh, you don't feel like singing? Then BEWARE of anyone spritzing a sweet-smelling yellow perfume at you -- that's a lasting vestige from the crumbled HEAVEN SCENT corporation, still on the market, and it will COMPEL YOU TO SING. Even if it's for a few minutes, you'll be singing a few bars. It's nothing personal, the locals just want you to feel like you belong.

Happy Sing Like You're In A Musical Day!

02. De Chima, Virginia, is a large city with a healthy economy, and though it's quieter than Heropa, there are still large numbers of citizens to be awed at your very presence. Look at you! Organic wonder! Those words have meaning here. Science and technology are the lifeblood of this city, so you're likely to come across a good many locals taking your picture with the newest of devices or recently published PLoS papers. The imPort craze remains high here, and you may find yourself cornered by overzealous imPort fans, media wannabes and opportunists alike, shoving cameras in your face. Some of them MAY ask if you personally know the De Chima Ambassador, Sam Merlotte. Beware if you answer in the affirmative; anything from personal questions about romantic chances to bedroom habits to dietary queries might come up!

If you wander the clean streets beneath those chrome and glass skyscrapers, you'll come upon the limited greenery clearing that De Chima possesses. You'll see a live demonstration in the middle of small Newton Park. A live demonstration! Of what, you ask! Of the start-up company DeCRYPTO CANINE! You'll find a fenced little area in the park fitted for a low-rise stage. On that stage are lots of dogs -- terriers, labradors, dachshunds, huskies, even a great dane or two. Around the collar of every one of these dogs is a glowing blue band encapsulated in a silver framing. When the demonstration begins (at the push of a big red button on a remote control), the glowing blue changes to yellow, to green, or to red -- all depending on the dog.

"Communication with our good canine buds!" Says the woman on the stage with the microphone and the remote. "DeCRYPTO CANINE translates blood pressure and adrenaline into mood, and mood into limited speech! At long last!"

Who let the dogs out? This woman, because she opened the fencing floodgates and these dogs ran to greet the waiting audience. Wagging tails -- green! And a computerized voice says "YOU ARE NEW HELLO I SMELL YOUR BUTT NOW WE ARE FRIENDS".

Whimpering, lowered tails -- yellow! Concern! "YOUR CROTCH SMELLS BAD. ARE YOU SICK."

Tense shoulders, hunched posture -- red! "BAD MAN BAD MAN BAD MAN!"

What will these dogs reveal about you?

03. Maurtia Falls, Pennsylvania has carried a reputation for ups and downs ever since imPorts began reappearing again, just those few years prior. Several imPort heroes have put focused efforts into cleaning up the streets of this somewhat infamous city, while a handful of others had swooped in to help the criminal industry thrive. More so here than the streets of any other imPort city, the battle between good and evil looks more like a war of escalation than a heroic tale -- but that war waging is taking a turning tide thanks to the order and regulation established by Ambassador Petyr Baelish. Locals know him best for his library and his hardline on containing the criminal element. Trustworthy guy, they'll tell you. But one man's leadership isn't enough to clean up a troubled city in a year's time; everything from the classic bank heist to brutal bloodbaths can happen around the corner. You have to keep your eyes open and your mind sharp when you live in Maurtia Falls.

Case in point: the two cars screeching down the bust, bustling streets of this noir-styled city. A green car and a red car, both sedan styled, dodging and weaving through midday traffic like they had learned to drive at a bumper car rally. Not too far behind is the wail of several police sirens. You know that the police are too far away, that these speeding vehicles might make it to the off-ramp freeway and get home-free -- what do you do about it? Huh, hero? What do you do?

NOTHING
Just go about your business. Crazy day, huh?

CHASE THE GREEN CAR
Going 79 MPH in a 35 MPH zone, that'll be some chase. Careful about the other vehicles, parked cars, pedestrians. But when you catch up to the fleeing vehicle, beware: the lady in the passenger side is armed. The lady in the driver's seat is armed. The guy tied up in the trunk is not armed. These sunglass-wearing bounty hunters will fire at you, they are armed and dangerous. They are mean. They will not humor your shit. And they are hauling tail trying to...

CATCH THE RED CAR
If you pursue the red car first, you will find a very angry Bonnie and Clyde type couple with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of diamonds and jewels in their backseat. They have a bazooka.

04. Nonah, North Carolina, has its own unique rhythm; it is loud, busy and there's some kind of energy in the air that gets everyone buzzing with excitement. To be American is to be part of a melting pot, and that there's more money to be made by the thriving local industries hardly hurts. Natives may gather around new arrivals and ask both personal and broad questions about life as an imPort, what they are looking forward to, what their favorite article of underwear is. They probably already think they know what Ambassador Miles' favorite article of underwear is -- and it's probably a kinky assumption. Whoops!

If you prefer to dodge the unsavory bustle, take a walk downtown into the heartbeat district. There you can find the throbbing nightclubs and dazzling haute bars. And as a newly arrived imPort, you're invited to the VIP lounge of the hautest bar in town: THE TIPPING POINT. It is a very fancy affair, however, so if you're not dressed to the nines, you WILL be taken care of and given a designer suit or cocktail dress to borrow for the evening. All you have to do in return is smile for the cameras! And there WILL be cameras, along with B-List celebrities hobbing at your elbows. Lucky night for you if you're JUST at the legal drinking age, but not quite there -- this lounge doesn't card. So sit down, take your gin and tonic, and smile.

Comments

[cigarbribery]

[It does, a little. He relaxes slightly, even tries to give Elektra a reassuring smile. It falls flat, because—well, they don't know, do they? If Matt might ever come here. If he'll even be their Matt, the one who dragged Foggy out of Landman & Zack and into a tiny little law firm to help the helpless, stand up for the little guy, all that jazz. Who's Daredevil, at the same time.

His smile slips a little, just slightly, at the thought, though he manages to keep it there. He can't really tell Elektra that part, he's sure. If Matt had kept him and Karen in the dark about the ninja flipping and enhanced senses, he probably did the same to his old girlfriends too. (What little he knows.)]

He only told me the good stuff, promise. The rest I had to infer from the break-up. [Because Matt didn't say much about how he and Elektra broke up either, but that's fine, who wants to talk about breaking up with someone they really liked?]

And, great, I was worried he told you about some of the embarrassing stuff. [A pause, then:] If there was anything embarrassing to talk about, and there isn't any. [Liar.]

[contradict]

[ if matthew was anything, it was honest — to an extent, of course. elektra had gleaned he hadn't been overly honest with his friends about his other identity, and for reasons she may never quite fully understand. having people to lose is a new concept for her, given she thinks there's a possibility she could lose matthew on that rooftop … ]

[ if she's here, then that must mean they're both safe from the hand. perhaps he had brought her here, whisking her away from his city, unable to truly leave it behind without tying up those pesky loose ends. ]

There were only ever kind words. Nothing too embarrassing, I can assure you. [ elektra doesn't quite know why she feels the genuine need to reassure him, but with a smile to match, soft and compassionate even if it's a part of her attempts to be someone else, she feels it. she wants matthew's friend to feel a little at ease, even though she has no clue how to actually create such an environment. ]

[ she looks behind him, watching the dog that had bothered her take to the stick, and then wander for a little, enjoying his freedom. it's the same as her, walking around, thinking, for just a moment, she won't ever have to look over her shoulder again. ]

[ a naive belief, but one that she wishes was true. ]

He spoke highly of you the last I saw him. [ a little tiny lie … matthew had been so adamant to keep a very straight division between daredevil and his upbringing, and with the life he had now, but elektra isn't stupid. she knows how highly he values foggy nelson, enough to keep his two lives separate, endangering his friend and saving him all at once. ] I think working with you has been good for him. [ smile widening, elektra looks almost mischievous as she jokes, ] Hopefully you've been putting him to work.

[cigarbribery]

[Foggy huffs out a brief chuckle, shakes his head slightly as if he personally thinks she's just lying to be nice to him. Which he does, a little, and it's a surprise to him too that she's trying to be reassuring and compassionate, trying to put him at ease. He doesn't know why, but he won't look this gift horse in the mouth for now.

The weight of Matt's secret sits in Foggy's stomach like lead. They've been doing good work as lawyers, he knows, but he also knows that it isn't always enough. That gap had spurred Matt on to donning the mask and walking that thin line between being a lawyer and being a vigilante, and sometimes Foggy can't help but wonder how Matt does it, wonder if one day he'll fall into the gap.

There aren't very many happy endings for vigilantes and martyrs, after all.

But Elektra doesn't know any of that, as far as Foggy knows, so he grins and jokes back.]

Yeah, I have—we barely get any nights off, what with all the people walking through our doors. [He's exaggerating. They don't get that many clients, and even if they do, he's got a feeling they wouldn't be enough to pay off their bills.] Coming here's the first vacation I've had since we started up the firm.

[Not false, per se. His smile fades a little, before he asks:] I'm—probably prying here, but what happened between you two? You had a pretty good thing going, I'm almost surprised it didn't last. [Almost. Matt is terrible at keeping girls around.]

[contradict]

[ trying to coerce matthew into killing the man who had been responsible for taking his father's life had put a little damper on their relationship. elektra isn't surprised foggy doesn't know this. matthew has always been a protector, adamant in seeing the good — and only the good — in people. it's what has made her believe there's a sliver of it inside of herself, even if it's only as thin as a piece of thread. ]

[ the question makes her uncomfortable, perhaps not for the reasons it would anyone else. she doesn't know how matthew has threaded this story, and finds she doesn't wish to contradict it. he has done so much for her already, preventing her from killing stick — an act she still isn't quite convinced she would regret — and promising she won't run from the hand alone. ]

[ but she's alone, with his best friend, in a city that doesn't belong on any maps she has poured over in the past. she doesn't know how to navigate this conversation, but she knows she will do her best to tiptoe, to do this one favour for matthew. ]

[ pursing her lips together, elektra hopes to come off like the ex-girlfriend who isn't quite so upset over her decade old breakup. she ducks her head, then brushes her hair out of her face once she lifts it. with a smile, she laces her voice with amusement and gently says, ] I think that may be a story for pie, not avoiding a dog. [ her eyes shift to focus behind him, nodding toward the dog that's beginning to return to them, stick in its mouth. ] Your friend is back.

[cigarbribery]

[Foggy's easy, okay. Say pie or free food and the tiny little part of him that's still a broke-ass college student subsisting on instant ramen and shitty coffee, as well as the significantly larger part of him that's a broke-ass lawyer subsisting on instant ramen and shitty coffee, is instantly in. He sighs, as if in protest, as the dog happily bumps up against his leg and drops the stick at his feet with a friend!!! TREATS NOW???

Oh, boy, Foggy's going to feel real shitty about lying to such a pure little dog, but he gets down to ruffle the dog's fur.]

Treats later, now—

[He picks up the stick again, and throws, as far and as hard as he can. The dog goes off running after it, and immediately Foggy steps closer to nudge Elektra in the side, maybe take her arm and tug her along as fast as possible to avoid attracting any more doggos.]

Come on, while he's distracted—I know a place with really good pies just around the block.

[contradict]

[ unsurprisingly, even the good people have a little bad in them. elektra looks after the dog, but makes no move to chase it or call it back. foggy nelson wants it gone to get to know her, and this little walk to wherever they can find pie will give her enough time to concoct a story that hopefully fits into the character matthew's built for himself. ]

[ letting him take her arm, her own doesn't remain boneless. elektra threads her own with him, hand on his wrist as though to tap him in comfort at any given moment. people like to be touched, finding themselves grounded by human contact that is gentle; elektra has never liked being touched. ]

If he finds us, we'll have to give him pie as an apology. [ she teases lightly. everybody lives pie, don't they? as much as she wouldn't mind using the dog as a distraction from the conversation foggy wishes to have, she instead takes note of him. how long has he been away from matthew? ] How long have you been here? [ she smiles, voice taking on a warmer note, ] Obviously long enough to find the best pies in the city.

[cigarbribery]

[If he notices that Elektra's hand is on his wrist, he doesn't say anything. Instead he just hurries them away from the dogs, throwing one last slightly longing look back before they're off, wondering how to talk to his best friend's ex without making things Awkward. This was never covered in law school, and he thinks it maybe should've been.

But, like, at least there's pie. Maybe pie will make things less awkward and Foggy can help ease her into the "alternate universe" thing better. And if it does get awkward, he'll at least have the option of stuffing his mouth with delicious pastries before he can dig himself into a deep, deep hole.]

A month or so. And I've had a lot of unexpected free time, I had to do something with it. [Five months till he can take the bar exam and be a lawyer again. You'd better believe he's counting them down.] I'm proud to say I've found the best pies in three cities so far, I'm still working on the fourth.

[The bakery he'd found in Maurtia Falls turned out to be a front, so.]

Oh, yeah, just a heads-up—apparently there's a different version of our New York somewhere out there. [Along with a different version of Matt and Foggy and Elektra and the Avengers, which threw Foggy's litmus test into disarray.] So if someone recognizes you but you don't know them? That's probably why.

[contradict]

[ elektra had been content to let foggy roll through those awkward motions, pretending she was also along for the ride. in truth, elektra didn't find this overly awkward; foggy was matthew's friend, someone she knows a little about given how matthew has people in his life. her own caution is where she treads, uncertain of where foggy's own feelings lie. after all, doesn't the best friend often hate the exes who broke their good friend's heart? ]

[ her head perks up at the mention of a different new york. uncaring about the dog possibly following them, she turns to him with a furrow of her brow, still walking and allow him to lead the way. ] A different New York? [ that's … something to think about. elektra has only ever heard of these alternate universes in the movies she's been forced to watch. ]

[ she cracks a smile, and laughs with disbelief, ] How can that be possible? There's only one New York.