MOVE-IN DAY
Welcome to Cadelle, cuddlers! The city is — for the most part, at least — very happy with the first wave of volunteers who have chosen to spend time here! To help everyone get settled a little easier, Mayor Drake and her team have put together a series of helpful booths, each staffed by friendly citizen volunteers who are more than ready to answer any questions characters may have.
▸ First things first: visitors will need to visit City Hall to officially enroll as a Cadelle citizen. Once complete, they'll receive their Welcome Packet, which will include all of the most important items for settling in. Characters will find keys to their apartment and associated mail box, their housing assignment, and their pre-activated CuddleCard, ready to go. In addition, the volunteer coordinators have included a newly printed map of the city, as well as contact information for various city-run organizations, just in case!
▸ Due to the influx of energy from all of the new visitors, the city’s computer systems have been experiencing some "minor hiccups". While this is nothing to be concerned about, characters may find themselves mildly inconvenienced — they may have received keys that don’t work in their door, or been issued someone else's room assignment unknowingly!
▸ If they've arrived during regular business hours, characters are, of course, able to visit the maintenance office on the first floor of each building for help switching out their mismatched keys or determining their correct assignment. However, getting settled after hours will require a little extra creative problem solving — like asking a new friend if sharing a bed for the night seems reasonable, sleeping on the couches in the public lounges downstairs, or maybe even roughing it for the night outdoors. (Of course, there's always the frowned-upon methods of breaking and entering... not that you heard it from us!)
▸ As with any move-in day, there’s bound to be lots to see and do. Characters may need help carrying their things, or even just help finding their way around. If they're lucky enough to find their room without problem, they may not be so lucky in their assignment. They may find themselves living underneath someone who's got to be part elephant (who stomps that much at 6 AM?!) or just above someone who insists on burning every batch of popcorn they make! Get out there, meet the neighbors, and see what this city has to offer!
CITY SCAVENGER HUNT
A few days after the big move-in weekend, characters will find an unread message on their CuddlePhone, encouraging them to check out the CuddleTalk network for a very special message from two very special guests. When they do, they’ll find a cute (but admittedly very cheesy) video message from Cadelle’s volunteer coordinators, Flora and Cornelius. The video highlights a few of the most popular destinations in the city — Blaze Pizza, for example, the home of the ninety-second wood-fired pizza, or Dinah’s, where you can enjoy a literal bucket of fries perfect for sharing.
At the end of the video, a link will come up for characters to click if they are so inclined. They’ll be directed to a sign-up page for a city-wide scavenger hunt, with a grand prize promised for the first team to complete the challenge.
Want to participate?
▸ Characters will be able to sign up for the scavenger hunt either on their own or with a friend. (The prizes remain the same regardless of the size of the team, so if your character wants all the money for themselves, they'll either want to race it alone or pick a very generous teammate!)
▸ Among the many delicious dining destinations around Cadelle, characters will discover three venues that the volunteer coordinators have tapped as their current favorites. Somewhere in those three venues, characters will find a beautiful framed photo of Flora and Cornelius.
▸ When characters find the photo, they'll be instructed to take their best selfie, being sure to capture themselves, the framed snapshot, and their teammate (if they chose to bring one along) in the shot.
▸ The first group to send in all three selfies will win the grand prize — one month's stipend worth of extra CuddleBucks! However, all competitors who complete the challenge will be rewarded with a token of appreciation — one week's stipend worth of CuddleBucks, just for playing along!
▸ While characters explore the city, they just might find some "bonus" surprises along the way. Keep your eyes peeled!
Helpful Hint: To find the secret locations (and any hidden bonuses along the way), check out our CITY DIRECTORY for all the amazing destinations your character can explore! Feel free to sort by category on the left, and click your way through your first big adventure in the big city!
Mod Note: For fairness, the "grand prize" winner will be determined by RNG in a drawing on August 4 at 3:00 PM. If your character would like to be eligible to win the grand prize, please be sure to leave us a comment so we can include them in the drawing!
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cuddlemods) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
cuddlecity2017-08-01 12:00 pm
i wanna have sex on the bea- wait what no one said anything
Kate's run for as long as she can remember. It always felt right, always gave her the chance to burn off the energy that seemed to course through her endlessly. When there's wind in her hair and scenery blurring in the corners of her eyes, there's no space to think about anything beyond where her foot will next hit, or the burn of muscle as she tires. It's easier to understand the physical, to listen to her body rather than her mind. Give herself over to the next step, the immediate future rather than the nebulous one.
But then, she hasn't had a goal for the future for so long. Just taken on Marc's. Worked one step at a time to keep him safe when their parents no longer could, because that's the kind of goal that doesn't just end. Not when these cities are giving her the chance to correct that selfish failure of a decision.
Step by step. First she gets through this night, even if she has to run all night to do it, then she gets her apartment sorted. Then.
Who knows.
A job, probably. That'll keep her busy. Make it easier to meet people. Just like Eudio. It's another chance, another slice of normal life - something she hasn't had for so long that it feels surreal. Wrong. Like that time Alicia tried to get her to walk in heels - suddenly throwing all the coordination she has out of balance. What does a person do with a normal life?
But then there's a familiar voice and a reason to stop even if he doesn't try to make her, swallowing saltwater air and stretching out her legs reflexively before walking over. Never skip a warm down, not if you want your legs to keep functioning. )
-- Hey.
( So cool. Such very cool people here, with Kate pushing hair that's sticking to her face away and feeling the burn of trying to run on sand rather than concrete. )
What're you doing here?
sdfjghsdkfljg
Hell if I know.
( an answer that's not very informative, but not completely inaccurate. he's got vague ideas of what brought him here in the first place, but they seem stupid, inconsequential. )
You planning on making a habit of literally running into me every day?
there's no ust here nope
Got a problem with it?
( Her voice, her face, aren't dynamic things. Kate rarely, if ever, radiates anything beyond anger, but there's something softer to her expression as she leans forward a little, head turned towards him. Will makes things feel easier; did even when she met him in Eudio, new and ansty and angry, half-convinced she'd signed up for a scam. It's... nice, having someone here who reminds her that the last place was just as real as this one. )
right there's none and there will definitely be none
he could shoot off a nonchalant, "nah." or maybe he'll just be a little shit about it, ask with a sleepy sort of smirk, ) What do you think?
never
(And, going back to that running comment: how do you think she keeps her legs this good? That shit don't grow on trees.)
Her expression barely shifts, even as her position does. Never staying totally still for too long - one leg crosses over the other, she moves the weight of her body from her hands and back onto them again. Unzips her hoodie and lets it drape loosely around her instead. Conversations from earlier come to mind, but all Kate does is shrug.
Never quite getting there. )
Haven't heard you complain yet.
i'm honestly...... gonna fight them
( no one better ever say that he isn't nice. will says nice things all the time, in his own roundabout way. he takes a pensive drag of his cigarette, turns his head back towards the waves, the sunset which might almost be a little romantic if will felt even a little capable of something like that.
at least the company's significantly improved. )
Which apartment building did they stick you in?
i've been facepalming at each tag tbh
Gamma.
( There's a pause, a frustrated sigh because she isn't getting into her apartment any time soon. )
Least. Whenever I get in.
( She shifts, lifts a hand out of the sand, gesturing vaguely. That? Kind of a block to happy wonderful land and an ordinary life. )
this is gonna go well
except then there's a caveat, because of course there's a caveat with these kinds of places. he'd seen people grumbling and bitching to the way-too-happy looking volunteer people about something, but the only beef will had with his apartment was lugging his shit (read: his backpack and his guitar case) all the way up to the fifth floor via the stairs to avoid the stressful, crowded mess of the elevators.
huh. it gives will a thought. an interesting thought. one that he figures he better say before he changes his mind. )
I mean, you could crash at my apartment. ( a nice gesture for a friend, right? ... right. ) I hear Beta Building's where it's at, anyway.
perfectly
But she isn't expecting the gesture, already resigned herself to spending the night keeping busy until the City Hall opens again. Kate blinks, expression caught with her mouth minutely open. Oh.
That's... more than she expected at all. )
Er. Sure.
( She can take the couch. Just... apologies in advance for how early she wakes up. And, uh- )
There a coffee machine in these places?
( ... Yeah. That's what the most important thing about this is. The coffee. )
spectacularly
sure. not a really the most definitive answer, but it's not a no. the question gets a huff of laughter out of him, though. )
Didn't think to look before I left. ( with a quirked eyebrow, he adds: ) I guess we'll be finding out together.
( and surely the two of them will continue being the bright fucking rays of sunshine that they are if it turns out that there aren't coffee makers provided standard in each apartment. just peachy. )
👌
Together. If that isn't a word that keeps cropping up. The point of this entire mission in the city - get together with people. Closer to them. Something Kate wrote off as so easy when Eudio first approached her, only to realise that it's harder than simply finding anonymous one night stands and there's no easy way to make friends when you don't have a fire to forge friendship.
When's the last time she even got to know someone outside of The Agency's circle? )
C'mon then.
( The sunset is shifting from bright, blazing flecks to a swirling sea of inky blacks, the warmth of the sun giving out to frosty damp air that sends goosebumps along her exposed stomach. And Kate would like to get an idea of what kind of place Cadelle wants them to call home. )
😏
( that's a good enough answer for him.
will pushes himself to his feet with a groan — wow, he's so old, life is suffering, et cetera — as the soles of his shoes dig into the sand, decides very valiantly to try brushing the lingering granules of sand off of his ass, off of the backs of his legs. the picture of attractiveness, always.
the two of them aren't really good at small talk, but honestly, will's a little more than okay with it. it might've been a little awkward at first, that time at the bar (not the meet and greet time — no, not the other time — the irish pub time; it's not his fucking fault that they usually end up drinking) where will had no idea how the fuck to even broach topics that normal people talk about. this is a comfortable kind of silence, as they ditch the beach in favor of paved city streets, slightly weary, lined eyes taking in the sights, the locales.
the walk to the blocks containing cadelle's starter apartment buildings isn't a long one, thankfully. at last: ) Beta building, in all its glory. ( ta da, it's beautiful. the newness of the lobby is disconcerting him a little bit, considering he's been inside of here all of once, but once they're inside and walk a little ways in, he presses the up button for the elevator.
fuck the stairs. )
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Oh wait).Just because it isn't a chatty walk back, doesn't mean it's not okay. Kate's not like Carl or Faith, who like to fill silence and point out any and everything. She used to be, once upon a time, when her hair was still brown and her ambition was still set on Olympic medals. But now she's not nearly normal enough to know what to talk about - hey, what was work like back home? isn't a question she even knows how to answer. - and it's easier to live in silence unless there's a reason to make some deadpan comment, even if part of her always misses people.
But Cadelle, like Eudio, incentivises trying at that part. She'll just... have to figure that out. Try.
Her eyes cast around the lobby and then the lift doors. She would have just taken the stairs, but as long as it's Will's place they're going to, she'll follow him. And it's not that long until they're at his apartment anyway - at least something's efficient in this place.
And, obviously, when there's a couch, you sit on the armrest and test the cushions with your hand instead. )
Least th' couch is comfortable.
( Definitely a better option than staying up all night. )
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oh wait. right. new apartment. empty fridge. goddamnit. he frowns into the light of the fridge and shuts it dejectedly, returning to the living room empty handed.
obviously the next best thing to do is sprawl across the length of the couch, a little too short for his legs to stretch out all the way, one knee bent and the other leg draping off the side. head at the end next to kate, he tilts his chin up to look at her better. ) Not bad. Not as epic as my couch back at home, but it'll do the job.
( you know, the couch that's probably older than even he is, probably reeks of weed and spilled booze, that will occasionally finds himself glued to for months at a time. that one.
oh, you thought you were sleeping on the couch, kate? wrong. )
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Glancing down, Kate leans back, elbow digging into the back of the couch to keep her upright, legs straddling the armrest, one thigh skirting probably a bit too close to Will's head as she gets comfortable above him. )
And where'm I sleeping?
( Cause she had planned the couch. )
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too close? not close enough.will furrows his brow at the question, lets out a huff of incredulous laughter, because — he thought it'd be pretty obvious. ) Well, the bed. ( there's an unspoken duh. she's a guest in his apartment; asshole as he may be, he still knows better than to make someone slum it on a couch. besides, couches are kind of His Thing.
it's fine. everything's fine. ) Lucky for you, they even pre-made the bed and I didn't bother wrecking it yet.
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More to the point, though: )
Want me in your bed?
( Obviously we need to make everything sound a little worse than it is, right? )
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her question brings forth a snort, a small roll of his eyes. but maybe it's a valid question, which the answer to is obviously a resounding yes — considering there's no way in hell he's letting her sleep on the couch.
except maybe there are other implications there, too. maybe there isn't. it's not his fault that they're a few feet from the aforementioned bed; it clouds his judgment. )
Wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, would it?
goes to hell
And there are other thoughts there, ones that flit in and out and have for all too long now, ones that she tried to push away when Eudio announced the closure of its system because it seemed like that was it. She'd never see anyone from there again, and there was no more point entertaining the ideas that came along.
That they're both here, now, stuck in his place for the night... Maybe she's just crazy. Reading too much into it. It's one thing to pick up someone in a bar, or stumble into something with a person you then hated, but she likes Will. Thinks he could be a friend, even. And that's a little different. Everything's in that delicate, glass-on-the-edge stage of could ruin things with one wrong breath.
This could be a mistake. )
Can get in a comfortable position anywhere.
( Yeah, if there weren't implications in her voice before, there are now, in the way her tone almost purrs and a smirk flashes across her lips. )
Floor, shower-
( And, just because if she's going to go for this, she may as well go all the way, Kate shifts off the arm of the couch, steps over and straddles Will instead. )
-Couch.
dives into hell after u
except will's not surprised, which is probably the most surprising thing of all.
no, this feels — right. like it was bound to happen eventually. a relief at not having to pussyfoot around the tension will's forced himself to write off as wishful thinking, pretended he wasn't aware of for the sake of this vague friendship between the two of then.
kate settles on top of him with ease, thighs wrapped around his, and his lips quirk up into a lazy smirk, will's hands moving to graze over stretchy fabric, fingers gliding up her thighs and back down again, rhythmic, slow, only a hint of cautiousness. )
I've always dug the couch.
it's so warm and cozy here
Kate inhales sharply, fingertips sliding their way up Will's torso, coming to a light, near-delicate stop at his chest. It'd be easier if there were alcohol involved, where there's a convenient, bottle-shaped excuse for the loss of control and the way her heartbeat jitters, all too light in her chest. But what's done is done, and the thought of taking back the last seconds doesn't even cross her mind. Everything that's been in the air since they met, that invisible weight lying heavy just behind each word and glance, finally feels as though it has a name. Feels tangible when Kate's thighs squeeze around his just a little as she leans forward, hands gliding from chest to neck and jawline when her lips catch Will's in a firm kiss, one ignoring pangs of guilt and all previous uncertainty. Drunk on the mood and the oft-forgotten warmth of another's skin, the velvet caress of lips; sensations all too frequently forgotten in thoughtless, tequila-fueled trysts, ones that set nerves alight down the length of her spine.
Perhaps she doesn't deserve this, but it beckons to her like the call of winding paths and sunrises on the rooftops, impossible to resist. )
i'm drowning in hellfire
but then there's kate's hands smoothing over his worn t-shirt, along the curve of his neck, up along his jaw, and he feels like he's not even fucking breathing for a second. he wants this. wants kate. wants to get the fuck over his shit and live the rest of his damn life. if he was drunk, this would be a hell of a lot easier.
and then, before will knows it, kate kisses him, lips soft and insistent against his and — fuck it. he's not fucking this up. he's not. there's that millisecond of uncertainty, and then will's lips kiss her back with an almost surprising amount of fervor, all hesitancy gone straight to hell, his hands moving to grip her hips, fingers pressing into the stretchy fabric of the waistband of her pants.
this isn't how will ever pictured this going down — if it ever happened, which always felt like some twisted ass wishful thinking — but he doesn't give a shit. if it's wrong of him to want this, to want someone to want him just because, then screw it. he's more than happy to be wrong. )
what a lovely way to go
She doesn't deserve for this to be the way she can stop being a failure, but it's what she's been given. Her feelings on the issue, ultimately, don't matter. Only results.
And right now, she's another step closer to that result, her mind given over to Will's hands on her hips, the press of fabric and fingertips against bones dragging out the roll of her hips down against him, slow and deliberate as her teeth graze his lower lip and her nails - short and un-maintained as they are - run a slow path across his throat. More a tease than anything else, small movements for the purpose of drawing things out even as hunger stirs deep in her belly, hot and heady - something she's wanted for long enough, thought about in drawn out silences when they feel just a bit too heavy, too tense to be normal. Something that almost seems to require savouring as it happens, as though doing otherwise will let it slip through her fingers. )
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will has no real incentive — wish, whatever — here, just some vague desire to not be back at home and stuck planted on his couch. there's nothing that requires any urgency, no dire straits befalling him or anyone he cares about. maybe that's the hardest thing to grapple with, the fact that he's just here to live his life with no real expectations. this is all on him.
the deliberate roll of her hips against his, fingers pressing harder against her, a low sound escaping him, kicks that worry and the rest of them straight to hell.
there's no need to rush this, a moment that's now so clearly something they've both had pent up inside of them for a shitload of time. he thinks he might be content to have her kiss him like this for the rest of the night and then some, but — there's still the part of him that gets a little needy, a little desperate for contact, at times like these. his hand's don't stay still at her hips for very long, grazing up over the exposed skin of her sides beneath the unzipped hoodie that hangs loosely from her body, fingertips bumping against the band of her sports bra as his lips keep chasing more kisses from her. )
i'm so sorry for this garbage fire
(There's something intoxicating in that sort of control, the simple ability to pull noise and movement from another, that she can never quite get enough of.)
Then there's his fingers against the elastic at her ribs, brushing just below the curve of her breast, all too close to the heavy thrum of her heart. And whether it's bad habit or being drunk off the thrill of being wanted, who knows, but Kate finds his wrists with sudden, nearly too-quick, movement and tugs them away, pushing to pin Will's hands down on the couch. )
Ah-
( A smirk playing on her lips as she pulls back enough to look down at him. Not yet. )
Patience.
i love it so... much.........
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🍆🐷
this is completely why and how he got his gf pregnant and ruined his own life 💀
well done, child.
facepalms
Then he put his thingie in my you-know-what and we did it for the first time.
stares into the camera like i'm on the office
smiles at
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