merry merry christmas, and I want you to know

[mansionstaff]

Who: YOU
What: KISSLETOES
When: December 14th - January 1st
Where: Everywhere
Warnings: Sloppy makeouts.

SUDDENLY, AND WITHOUT WARNING...



The entire school has become covered in mistletoe overnight. It grows out of the walls! The ceilings! Everywhere you least expect it? HOW CAN THIS BE??

It's probably best not to think about it. Attempts to uproot the plants or burn them away only makes the plants grow back faster. For the time being, it seems the school must live with it.

[OOC INSTRUCTIONS:
+ Post dudes, get kisses!
+ Some (NOT ALL) plants are cursed. If you manage to step under a cursed plant, you will exchange a memory when or if you exchange a kiss. The memories will be first-person and very vivid, and characters will feel like they are experiencing the memory in real time, though in reality the transfer is instantaneous. Memories can be as short, long, happy, sad, or traumatic as you like.
+ If you'd like to participate, we highly suggest making a list of a few memories (with accompanying links/descriptions) that are up for grabs, and linking or posting the list in your top-level comment. Memory exchange is COMPLETELY OPTIONAL. When in doubt, OOC communication!
+ PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE TAG YOUR CHARACTERS
+ That's it, we love you.]

Comments

Samus (Scrooge McGrinch) Aran

[icequeen_aran]

This is not Samus's favorite time of the year for amany areason, unless you considered the devious plants target practice in which case Samus was taking to the holiday with gusto. Pew pew pew!

Necessary gusto, as she crept around the hallways paralyzer gun in hand, but she'd been doing this long enough to know exactly how the wily plants could be. To her merit, she eluded their wiles for a very long time before she inevitably got stuck under one. Or above one; probably somewhere really obscure, like in the parking lot because a mistletoe was growing up through a crack in the asphalt, or found sanctuary somewhere on her motorcycle itself.

She was not thrilled about that. Not at all.

MEMORIES:
- That time watching a space dragon murder your parents right in front of you. Or exploded planet. Or exploded space station. Or someone important to her died. There are a lot of those times and a lot of important dead people.
- That time she almost died from parasitic infection.
- Positive romantic moments as those are significant for someone like her who sorely lacks them otherwise in her life.
- WILDCARD! First time having sex. Most of Samus's memories are tragic and sad, but she's got a few nice ones in there, especially some Smash-related.

[tank_rockarms]

::Congratulations, you've just won one (1) Medium-Strength Bropunch to your shoulder from one Maximilian Justice Powers.::

Warren (asshole ghost cat)

[nyamask]

If Warren were a ghost of any other type, he'd probably have the great misfortune of not having memories of what these mistletoe do exactly. Good thing remembered damn well what these mistletoe do exactly, and good thing he was now a ghost whom could pass through walls and things of that sort with ease.

He was kind of being a dirty cheater this year, feigning being trapped or not depending on who's company he wanted to keep. If said company was unfavorable, he wasn't above and beyond simply fading into the ether to leave them hanging indefinitely, but for now, you might see the pseudo-blonde traipsing around the hallways, smiling pleasantly and looking for victims.

If the plants were going to have one last laugh though, it would be whatever new memories he might acquire from this escapade anyway.

MEMORIES:
- His first Pokemon-to-Human transformation while being stuck in a Team Rocket science lab: body horror ahoy.
- That one time he silenced Rhys. Or ate Bulba's plants. Or shared nice times with Viole. Or threw Mary off the roof.
- That time he injected Shadow Bugs in his body and exploded after fighting Eggman on a rooftop.
- WILDCARD! He certainly has a lot of "oh my god that was actually you" kinds of memories from his time in Smash I would love to have exposed.

=

[tank_rockarms]

::Please accept this low-level bropunch to your shoulder, stranger.::

::Unless it's just phased through your upper body, then I guess you're not being bropunched, but it's more of a brotransition::

Blood (WHY WOULD YOU EVEN) Falcon

[bloodvile]

Guess who is really bad at avoiding the plants. Did you guess the big homicidal 6-foot something coach-look-alike race car driver with fangs and a bad attitude?

You don't have to guess, it's as obvious as the I-hate-cheer-and-smiles skull on his helmet.

Just as obvious will be his complete (read: angry, violent if give a chance) obstinance to obliging what the little plants want.

MEMORIES:
- Coming into being and punching his way out of a giant test tube. Memories on this are going to be disjointed and unclear, but there.
- First time meeting Captain Falcon.
- That time he danced around on top of the Blue Falcon.
- WILDCARD! That time he never learned how to read. Maybe even some weird pseudo-hivemind type shared memories from other Blood Falcon clones.

this will end well

[tank_rockarms]

::Hello there, guy who looks like Falcon from the back. Please treasure this Medium-hard bropunch to your shoulder, which is given to you in kindness and fellow-feeling.::

Ike

[welikeike]

Right, he remembered the mistletoe from last year. Nothing bad came from them in his experience, so Ike didn't bother actively avoiding them unless he was in a rush. Getting stuck under a cursed one wasn't on his list of things he wanted to do under any circumstance, anyway.

Despite knowing the consequences, Ike can be easily found walking the halls without apprehension. It gives him plenty of chances to be caught under mistletoe, cursed or not - and equal the amount of chances to come across a poor victim of the cursed mistletoe.

[ Here's some memories and a planning thread. ]

Re: Ike

[tank_rockarms]

::Greetings, fellow blue-haired lifter. Please accept this medium-level bropunch to your shoulder, bro.::

Hajime

[inspirethefire]

Now, we can all readily agree, nobody enjoys the arrival of the parasitic weeds within the campus. They tended to cause a wide array of embarrassing situations, as well as being overall inconvenient to anyone who wished to get from one place to another quickly. In the grand scheme of things, however, the plants were fairly tame in comparison to much of the events around this city: annoying, sure, but harmless.

So, yes, Hajime was doing his very best to dodge his way around the growths, but their craftiness made it only a matter of time. Sure enough, before long someone would find him, stuck in place, face only pink instead of bright red, avoiding eye contact but resigned to fate.

MEMORIES:
- Mundane childhood life of studying, and nothing else. Nothing ever. Just classes and cram school and getting beat up and books. Oh boy.
- His first time meeting Kai Doumeki and the Ouendan
- There was that one time a huge meteor was coming down to destroy the planet. And then the time the will to live from every person on the planet flowed through Hajime's body, turned into a laser, and blew the meteor up. That was sort of memorable.
- Vague half-memories of a subspace apocalypse future, leading a band of refugees surviving in the wreckage of FDC. Includes a lot of death, swordfighting, and having long angsty makeouts talks with Kiyotaka.
- Smash memories? Turning into a lava monster, camping in Pokefrance, getting beat up, etc

time to collect every memory

[forgetbeam]

BUT THEN, A HERO APPEARED ON THE HORIZON.

Actually, it was just the boyfriend coming from down the hall. But whatever worked, right? Come to think of it, with the mistletoe overhead, that technically made it the anniversary of their first kiss or something, didn't it?

There were a lot of important kisses with a few different people last year. Actually, the whole thing left him a little melancholy. But there were definitely things to be happy about this year. Things to look forward to for the future. Maybe, for once, things were looking up and were going to stay that way.

"Oh! Hajime! Are you in need of assistance?"

Madotsuki

[zombnambulist]

Now, she's not the romantic sort, but if there's mysteriously growing plants peeking out of every crack and corner, she's going to fiddle with them. Get right up close and start poking at them, pulling them apart, see how fast they grow back. She doesn't mind being stuck for a little while. She might turn into a stoplight and try and freeze the plants right back. It doesn't seem to have an effect.

MEMORIES:
- She sits in her room, playing NASU. It's dark, and there's a lot of loud shouting and noises on the other side of her door. She makes sure it's locked.
- She crash landed on Mars. The piano player overreacted.
- A large, bulbous something floats casually overhead
- CRAZY DREAM STUFF, MAN, SHE'S GOT LOADS
ps i super promise she won't stab anyone unless actually provoked

[tank_rockarms]

::TINY GIRL ALERT, TINY GIRL ALERT.::

Uh, hey. Do you, uh, want a kiss or you want a shoulder tap? I do shoulder taps instead of kisses if you want them.

Kitty Tacos

[forgetbeam]

Ah. Again. He hoped they would kind of just not show up this year, even though he knew better. At first he busted out last year's map, but quickly found that the safe routes he scouted out back then were not safe at all anymore.

Time to make a new one. He would suck it up and put up with any necessary smooches to free himself without much protest this time around (as long as they were innocent and on the cheek and not from blatantly sick or otherwise unhygienic people), but man. Really? Really? They couldn't wait until winter break started or anything? He couldn't be late for class for this crap...

[MEMORIES! Pick a category or request none at all and I will write a thing for you.
1: Childhood things or otherwise mundane things from his past. There's a whole lot of school and studying and being lonely in here and very little else.
2: School Life of Mutual Killing things. Being trapped in a school and told to kill your classmates makes for long-lasting memories. Ranging from actually really stupid to actually really traumatic, it is a whole grab bag of fun.
3. Really vague, fuzzy memories of a happier school life than the one above. Or else the same kind of vague dreamlike fuzziness of a grimdark post-apocalyptic future. Sexy memories in the real past and potential future.
4. Smash memories. He's been here long enough to make a few. Shadow bug events or Halloween shenanigans or smooches of Christmas past or whatever.]

Marx Pours

[tank_rockarms]

::Oh, young and still-learning lifter, your weight room instructor blesses you this afternoon with a medium-level bropunch to your shoulder to grant you the inspiration to lift heavy and get hyooge.::

Vinnie

[flowerofmtsilver]

Another year, another wave of parasitic plants. God willing, hopefully the worst of this mysterious and disgusting flu was done with already, right? Though, even if it wasn't, Vinnie would be a huge hypocrite if he couldn't handle the idea of being barfed on.

December was always tough on the Venusaur though. No matter how much holiday cheer surrounded him, he was always at least a little on edge for something bad to happen. Maybe... maybe he was just imagining things. Feeling tense and scrutinized when he had no reason to. But it was hard to shake, especially when so much of Christmas was about spending time with your loved ones.

[Here is a memory list and plotting post for your smooching needs.]

it begins

[rivalkidneypunch]

Char was, he sorta thought, feeling better. Better was kind of a subjective term, though. Mistletoe season was here yet again, but it was hard to muster up much enthusiasm for it when his month had been going so wretchedly. For the most part, he chose to ignore the little white berries, avoiding them as best he could.

Still, it was pretty much a holiday time bomb just waiting to go off. Passing through the student kitchens on his way to the RA rooms, he got hit. It was hanging right in the doorway -- he really couldn't have avoided it if he tried, to be fair.

Great. Good. Cool. So now what?

[awakeningwill]

This was robot's first Christmas. Zero pretty much had no idea why these plants had sprouted up, why he kept getting stuck, or how to free himself. His first resort seemed to be equipping the Flame Chip and blasting away at the plants with his buster gun, hoping to burn them away - to little effect. Trying to pluck them with the Z-Knuckle was also a spectacular failure. The constant hindrance pretty much had him on the fast track to being in a sour mood for the whole month.

After the first week or so of constant mistletoe run-ins, he'll have adapted enough to evade them a bit better. Not that it meant they still wouldn't get the drop on him, though.

[Another memory list and plotting post for smooches.]

[forgetbeam]

By now Kiyotaka had plenty of experience with these SHENANIGANS. And so it was that the student would become the master. At least he wasn't the kind of guy to poke fun at cool stoic robots for getting stuck. He was too preoccupied with being dutiful and freeing them.

"Oh! Zero! Are you stuck? Allow me to help!"

Zero knew the song and dance by now, right. Right... Kiyotaka may have been poor about recognizing boundaries but even he knew he should wait for the okay when it came to this.

Prettyboys

[blueburnshotter]

Well, this was certainly... festive. Hayato loved Christmas - back home it was primarily a wonderful time for lovers, but it also brought family together and spread good vibes and beautiful decor all around. But this was a little too much decor, wasn't it? The infestation crossed the line from charming to creepy quite a ways back.

But hey, maybe he'd get offered a few smooches from cute ladies. That was never a bad thing.

What he wasn't expecting was the whole getting stuck thing. The first time, he'd definitely struggle and be just as confused as anyone else. Any time after, he'd gladly flag down anyone and try to charm them into a kiss, trying to look casual about it. Outside was much easier, since it turned out dog kisses counted, and it didn't take much at all to earn a maltese's love. Shame he couldn't carry Melody with him everywhere...

[MEMORIES...
We have stuff like being a rich bratty teenager or being a rich snobby cheerleader. Or stuff like that time the world froze over and he watched his rival die but then THE POWER OF LOVE AND WILLPOWER saved the day. Or something. I will pick a thing. For you. Unless you don't want any.]

Re: Prettyboys

[bluetanker]

::Hey, neighbor. You get a medium-level bropunch because you're his neighbor and you look like you can take it.::

Caim

[bloodycrow]

There were a plethora of older days that came to mind when mistletoe began to creep up. Most of which involved some very awkward kisses. Once he'd been kissed by a guy who enjoyed it way too much. And once he'd kissed his own baby sister and left her somewhere between horrified and delighted.

Those were the kinds of things that always had him thinking and like every year prior, he'd become accustomed to the concept of avoiding the pretty little plants. The only thing that possibly made this year better was that he had a voice and he could finally tell people no.

Especially the purple woman who had a habit of trying to kiss everyone and run off to catch the next person. He wasn't going to put up with any awkward kisses this year, and that was precisely why he carried his sword on him. Kiss and be impaled.

[Feel free to pick from a list of Caim's memories here. Most of them are none too pleasant and quite a bit graphic, so proceed with caution.]

Re: Caim

[needsmorebiceps]

::YOU GET NOTHING BUT A WORLD OF SCOWLS.::

Eirika

[heartofarapier]

In spite of the days being relatively difficult to handle, the princess of Renais seemed to recall the mistletoe with some idle pleasantries. The year prior she had been caught by one alone, and while good fortune never seemed to last, she wasn't particularly turned off by kisses upon the cheek. In fact, she had given and taken plenty in exchange.

Mistletoe was still a plant for lovers and affection and even in the mess of her own plethora of issues, she didn't outright dislike the plant or what it stood for. In fact, it almost made her want to fix everything she could. If she could. Mistletoe was inspiring when it came down to the sense of things.

She strode carefully beneath the plants, unarmed as she tried to keep herself, but she was constantly eying the ceiling, the walls, and every which way. Just to avoid getting herself stuck on too many things. Who knew how effective that'd be, however, because chances were her trying to avoid a plant probably meant bumping into someone accidentally along the way.

[A list of Eirika's memories can be found here for your convenience. Good and bad memories alike.]

Re: Eirika

[bluetanker]

::You... Max... remembers... but doesn't remember... if you kiss or if you bropunch::

Do you, uh, want a shoulder punch or, uh, peck on the cheek?

Olivia

[stopstaring]

Plants.
Plants everywhere.

It was like going to sleep one night with all of the halls bare, getting up the following day, and almost walking into a jungle. And Olivia didn't even know what a jungle was like, but books talked about all kinds of things and the academy had a whole slew of books with all kinds of tales and information.

A bit uncertain as to where they came from, why they were around, or what they were even doing, Olivia was in a degree of being caught completely unawares. Consequently, she spent most of her time with her dancer's hands carefully fingering the leaves and the berries, not knowing that they had a bad habit of rooting people in place. To her, they were just really pretty plants.

[Olivia has a short and sweet list of memories for you to choose from. HOPEFULLY IN FUTURE EVENTS, SHE WILL HAVE MORE OF A SELECTION.]

[blueburnshotter]

Make that two newbies who didn't know about the mistletoe's annual curse. Hayato had definitely heard a few groans here and there about what a pain in the ass the plants were, but he had yet to experience their true horror. As it was, he figured it was just a case of leaves and berries falling and getting into things. Imagine the sweeping the poor janitor would have to do! Well. He would certainly be there to give the fellow a bit of encouragement when the time came.

For now, however, the plants were thriving and lively, and while Hayato never really dawdled anywhere, he was a little more leisurely while going about his business so he could admire the infestation.

And the people he passed by, too.

"Ho? What a rare and exotic flower I've found."

Henry

[cruelcurse]

Henry has curses down. While others are subject to blind leaps of faith when it comes to roaming the halls and not getting caught by a cursed mistletoe, Henry can easily dance around cursed plants and go on his way.

But he doesn't object to the festivities, and he's certainly not 100% exempt from the cursed plants. Accidents happen. A trip or a miscalculation could easily land him stuck under one of the mistletoe, and they're not as responsive to dispelling them as he'd like. So he'll usually wait around and wave somebody down if he needs help

[ Some memories and a planning thread for your convenience. o7 ]

Re: Henry

[bluetanker]

::You look... frail... you get... the lowest-level bropunch Max can muster.::

Rock

[megabuster]

Rock had a few Christmases under his belt at home, so this was nothing new to him. There was even plenty of mistletoe around! That particular tradition he didn't have much experience with, but still, he knew this was a time of fun!

[Planning and Memories]

Re: Rock

[bluetanker]

::Hello smallish young man, you get a medium-low level bropunch::

Blaze

[vela_nova]

Oh no, not this again. Blaze had spent enough holidays at Smash to know just what was happening now. All the fire in the world wasn't going to protect her. At least so far none of them had been trapping her beneath them... Small miracles at least.

[Planning and Memories]

[mach_n_roll]

"HEY! Someone help me out here!"

That voice bouncing around the corner can only be Sonic's. It looks like no one mentioned the influx of cursed parasitic plants, and the speedy fuzzball has gotten himself snarled and frozen in the hallways between classes.

"What's goin' on? I can't--NNGH!--Move my feet!"

Daisy

[givemeyouranswerdo]

Mistletoe had never been a particularly harmful thing, at least not in previous years. She knew that the worst that could happen was you'd get stuck under one of them occasionally. But at least it never really got worse than that... She supposed she could live with it, and as a result was not too worried. As long as she didn't get stuck with Bowser.

[Planning and Memories]

It's Bowser

[ihateplumbers]

You're stuck with Bowser.

Jolt

[rivalthunderbolts]

Jolt was free. Finally free of whatever the hell sickness he'd come down with. After spending a solid day eating whatever food he could to make up for lost time, now he was ready for a run. Of course he probably wasn't looking where he was going, a mistake when mistletoe was all over the place.

[Planning and Memories]

Re: Jolt

[tank_rockarms]

::And Max goes in for a medium-low level bropunch::

::Please don't make him get paralyzed, bro.::

R.O.B.

[operatingbuddy]

The holiday season was fast approaching. And as tradition dictated, so did the appearance of mistletoe around campus. R.O.B. knew that here, this harmless holiday symbol tended to cause more harm than good will, and so he was wary, ready to help anyone who needed it.

[Planning and Memories]

Re: R.O.B.

[tank_rockarms]

::Please accept this bropunch of medium intensity and robo-fellow-feeling, R.O.B.::

Shantae

[magicdancer]

It was back. The most sleazy tradition Shantae could recall. Plants that forced people to kiss! She wasn't able to find the source of the offensive flora, but this year she was determined to get to the bottom of this "tradition!"

[Planning and Memories]

Re: Shantae

[tank_rockarms]

::If by 'getting to the bottom of the tradition' you meant 'having a large blue man ask you if you wanted a shoulder punch or a kiss,' then yes, you were getting down to the bottom of this tradition in great style.::

Eggman

[iamtheeggman]

Luckily Eggman had taken precautions against this eventuality. Traps, laser sentries that shot down any plants that appeared near his office... It'd be a cold day in hell when someone snuck a kiss from HIM!

[Planning and Memories]

Re: Eggman

[tank_rockarms]

::It's not a kiss. It's just a baby-level bropunch for a baby-level adult.::

Sonny Moe.

[punchtheflute]

Sonny actually just really, really loves kissletoes. He ain't even trying to avoid the darn things. You can find him pretty much anywhere.

Memories.

[tank_rockarms]

::SONNY MOE, YOU JUST WON YOURSELF A HARD-LEVEL BROPUNCH TO THE SHOULDER, BRO::

[monotreme_101]

....so, here's the thing. While Knuckles may sort of know what the Holidays are, there are a few traditions he has not yet encountered. Mistletoe is one of those traditions. Also, being stuck to the floor and unable to move from that spot isn't something he's used to.

He's less than happy about it, if I'm being honest.

It might take a little explaining to get him to calm down, but eventually he should get with the program!

Memories.

[tank_rockarms]

::Don't worry, bro, Max is here to teach you about the alternate holiday tradition - the annual bropunch, bro. Please accept this medium-hard bropunch, bro. He knows you can take more, but he doesn't want to get you angry with knocking you into a wall or something.::

[jonny_talbain]

Jon is actually fairly adept at avoiding the cursed Mistletoe. Or any mistletoe, actually. He has that uncanny agility and flexibility that comes from years of intense training in Kung Fu and as such, it's going to be an especially wily bit of poisonous kissing plant that captures this wolfman.

...not to say that it WON'T happen.

He's available to help anyone who needs it, should they be stuck in the path of his general day to day wanderings.

Memories.

[tank_rockarms]

::You're not captured. You're more... drawn into the unyielding force that is a medium-hard-level Maximilian Justice Powers bropunch, bro.::

Joel.

[golonghorns]

This is Joel's first holidays at the school and as such, he has not been warned about the Mistletoe tradition of super gluing people to the floor.

It's going to go over about as well as you might expect.

He can be found in various spots around the school, most likely trying to repair damage done by people trying to either free themselves from Mistletoe's embrace, or trying to shoot, burn, punch, rip or blast down the plants.

He's not going to care for this much.

Memories.


((A note about Joel's memories - Many of them are probably disturbing enough to warrant trigger warnings. I'll do my best to be sensitive about stuff like that! Also, he's not going to be at all happy about sharing any of them considering he doesn't like people knowing anything too personal about him. Just a warning.))

Re: Joel.

[tank_rockarms]

::Bro, calm your angry angriness and accept this medium-level bropunch to your shoulder, bro.::