vivarium | CALHOUN HOUR

Yet another day, yet another Calhoun Hour where characters find themselves waking up in a new and unfamiliar area. The first thing characters will notice that it's dusty and dark. With almost no lighting whatsoever, characters will be unable to see anything in front of them. Are they with someone else or did they wake up alone? That's something they will have to figure out after Calhoun's announcement.

"Ahem, ahem. Testing, one two three, testing. Well, gooooood evening, test subjects! Yes, you have really been knocked out for that long, but it only fits the mood of today's game."

He snickers then continues.

"How many of you like the horror genre? I bet half of you do, but I hate it! Cheap and cheesy effects with lame jump scares, and what is this, The Human Centipede? "100% medically accurate"? Just ugh, that's not even horror. That's just an insult to science and medicine."

"Anyway, I thought I'd put my own twist to trying out this horror business, so welcome to my little haunted school! Now, all of you should find yourselves a nice little camera and pocket flashlight. I want you all to do me a little favour and take a nice photo of at least five different of my best friends down there. I'm not asking for breathtaking photos, but at least put some effort into it, test subjects. Do that and, you know what, I'm feeling generous, I'll give you whatever you want in the shop and I guess a memory or something, whatever, we'll talk later, test subjects!"

And with that, it goes silent...

BASIC INFO ✖ BEGIN THE HUNT ✖ POST-EVENT MINGLE ✖ TURN-IN

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"You sure you should be touching that? Heiji asked, shining his light on it. "What if it's got a trap tucked into it?"

And anyway, it was super creepy. He turned to check another locker when the doll let out a little laugh.

*Oh that wasn't good. Snake placed the doll down and listened to Heiji inspect the other lockers. It would be just like Calhoun to have a creepy doll make noise to unnerve them.*

*It didn't occur to him the doll might move. He heard the small body shift and jump into the air, giggling all the while.*

*Snake palmed the knife in his jacket pocket, the same knife he'd kept with him since the very beginning of the game. Only because the creepy little doll kept making sound was he able to track it.*

Heiji! *He struck the doll with the knife and his momentum threw it into the lockers with a loud bang.*

It struck the inside of the locker and banged at the door, though with increasingly less force. Perhaps the damage Snake had done to it had taken its toll. In any case, it was clear that they couldn't just sit with their backs to this locker for however long they were going to be here.

"Here, let me. I'll peek and see how much damage you did."

*Snake put the knife back in his jacket pocket and pulled out his camera. He might as well take a picture of it and hope for the best.* Then I'll stun it with this. On three?

"One... two.. three!" Heiji opened the door, not quite enough for the doll to escape, but enough to see what was going on. It didn't move. It looked as though Snake had cut rather deeply across its torso, exposing some of the mechanisms inside; Heiji said as much.

"Guess it was a trap after all..."

*Snake took a picture of it to be safe, pointing his camera hopefully in the right direction.*

I guess. That was stupidly lucky that I hit it. If it hadn't been making all that noise, I wouldn't have been able to track it at all. *Snake reached over to pat Heiji on the shoulder.* You are all right, aren't you?

Heiji nudged the edge of Snake's lens a bit to get him a better shot, then took a photo of its own.

"I'm fine." But that wasn't going to stop him from touching Snake and quickly checking him over to be sure that he was unhurt as well. "You sure are lucky, you dummy. I thought I poked my way into trouble a lot; quit goin' around and touching creepy dolls, will ya?"

The creepiness was lost on me until it made a sound. *He briefly brushed his forehead against Heiji's in reassurance.* I promise to keep my hands to myself as long as we're together.

"Well... maybe you don't have to keep them entirely to yourself..." Was Heiji hitting on Snake just after they were attacked by a creepy doll?

...Maybe. "Did you get the knife from the infirmary?"

*Who knew brushes with danger were a turn on for Heiji? Snake made a mental note.*

*Although the levity was quickly quashed by the mention of the knife.* I did. Would you rather I not have it?

He shook his head. "No, that's not it. I think it's a good idea for you to have something to defend yourself with. That's why I gave ya that one knife in the first place. It's just..."

It was just that Snake hadn't used it for self-defense. Heiji looked away. "...I don't want anything to happen to you."

*Well, he'd been a different person then and the two of them hadn't been anywhere near close as they were now. Snake wasn't the type to feel guilt over actions he felt justified in...but he'd certainly handle the situation better if it happened now.*

I'm reasonably certain you can take care of yourself but...I'd rather you stay in one piece as well.

Besides, I think I'd listen to you more before I considered any rash actions.

"If I'd know what you were planning, I would've helped you come up with somethin' else," said Heiji.

"...I was really worried about you." Though he didn't dwell on it often, he still remembered that night he spent looking after Snake. Maybe if he hadn't been so employed, he might have been able to do something about Akiko's death. Perhaps if he'd gone a little more out of his way to probe into what Snake was thinking instead of letting it go...

Though of course it wasn't healthy dwelling on those lines of thought.

*His dangerous ploy did reveal one key thing that Snake kept in mind: True danger and ways to drive wedges into people were what Calhoun enjoyed.*

I didn't appreciate that sentiment at the time, Heiji. *He wrapped both of his arms around his boyfriend's waist, holding him close for a moment.* Now I do.

Heiji flushed a little when he found himself suddenly much closer to Snake than he had been just a few seconds ago. For a moment, he was simply at odds with what do do. Then he ducked his gaze briefly, placed his hands on his boyfriend's shoulders, and brushed his lips against Snake's.

He pulled away only a little, so their faces remained quite close together.

This is charming and all, but I think it might be best we keep going before we get eaten by a grue or somesuch. We can curl up together when this is done, if you'd like.

*Snake let Heiji go to stand at his side.*

Heiji turned away, a bit miffed; after all, it was Snake who'd started it. "Fine. There's a row of classrooms I haven't been in yet."

He headed out from the lockers and toward the gym door... though he did look a bit wistfully at the gym. If the floor was a bit more polished, it might have made a good location to practice.

CALHOUN HOUR - HUNTERS

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject