gooseberryhigh | AMNESIA BUG

Entry tags:

! ic/ooc

AMNESIA BUG

AMNESIA BUG

It's a somewhat dreary morning, with a light, misty rain all across campus. It's business as usual, though, except... some students are acting particularly forgetful today.

HOW THIS WORKS

Full symptoms will have set in by 11:30 AM. You can decide exactly when and how quickly your character is hit with the amnesia bug, i.e. from the time they wake up, or later in the morning.

Your characters have two brief windows in which to do amnesia things around campus: 7 AM-12 PM, before Mufferaw is certain what's happening, and 5:00-5:45 PM when there's a brief breakout.

Teachers are on high alert to make sure that none of the affected students are hurt or otherwise taken advantage of. They'll break up any canoodling that's not between people they know are a couple, and there will be no opportunities to have sex. Please just use this as your blanket OOC safety net: Staff will save your character from doing anything you don't want them to do.

Characters will be allowed to keep their journals while in quarantine.

They'll all be given a cure before bed.

Everyone affected is spending the night in the lodge.

In the morning, they'll wake up with all of their memories intact, including memories of what they did Saturday.

Memory loss is entirely defined by you. You do what works best for your character. It does not need to be consistent across characters.

However, the bug does not create new memories. Your character will not think they're a different person unless some outside influence successfully convinces them. And they'd need to be, like, ridiculously gullible.

Similarly, it does not take away skills, although your character may forget they have them. For instance, they might forget they can speak another language, but they still have the ability. No one will forget how to walk, talk, etc.

If you have any questions or are uncertain about something you want to do,
just ask the mods!

THE INFECTED

Ferdinand Ayers
Cameron Carney
Avery Davenport
Clem Decourt
Bianca Dubois
Calvin Evercreech
Dimi Evercreech
Marilyn Fairchild
Leonardo Fiori
Henrietta Gray
Ennis Harper
Ryan Hertz
Cecil Honeychurch
Casper Kim
Levi Kramer
Iliya Krum
Sebastien Lacroix
Jesse McBride
Diego Morales
Fern Mufferaw
Antonia Papadakis
Casey Patterson
Veronica Powers
Christopher Park
Cricket Quayle
Ulysses Quayle
Rafael Ramirez
Riley Stamper
Rosy Stoker
Sylvester Stoker
Ivy Templeton
Laurel Templeton
Susana Velasquez
Jonathan Wilde
Solomon Webb
Oscar Zabinsky

» symptoms set in: When the infected wake up, they feel a little off. Forgetful. Small details escape them. Their short and long term memories are spotty. By 11:30 AM it's clear it's yet another plague, and everyone is going to enjoy another classic Gooseberry Quarantine.

» the lodge: quarantine: It's not long before all the infected students are gathered up by staff, and everyone's in quarantine by 12 PM. Because the infection is really more of a mild magical curse, it's easy to tell who's got it and who doesn't with a quick detection spell.

» the lodge: the infirmary: This is where Mufferaw would prefer you all be so he can keep an eye on you, but he can't entertain dozens of energetic teenagers in here.

» the lodge: the atrium: A portion of the atrium has been cordoned off, and the amnesiacs can access the Wii, the TV and the ping-pong table. Their friends can come visit them, but there's always a teacher on guard to make sure no one picks on the forgetful kids.

» breakout: After several hours locked in the lodge, Rafael "Definitely Not a Prefect" Ramirez gets impatient enough to stage a breakout. He waits until Healer Mufferaw takes a break and is replaced by Ms. Whittle, and then sends a freshmen to go ask her what Star Trek is. After that, he leads a number of interested students to the sole balcony they have access to, and reveals there's a rarely used fire escape that leads down to the shore.

If your character escapes: You have about 45 minutes of freedom before the teachers track everyone down again. Because no one's in their right mind, they won't give detention, but oh my god you're all so difficult.

For our sanity and everyone's comfort, if you plan on having anything uniquely bad happen to your character, please privately run it by the mods first. And let's just say everyone's too busy scattering and running to get up to any accidental amnesia cheating, hm?

» the next morning: remembering: Everyone wakes up Sunday morning feeling a little bleary. All of their memories are back, as well as the memories of how they behaved yesterday.

» OOC - What's going on with your character: If you want, briefly describe OOC the state your character's in and what they forgot.

» OOC - Questions, comments, concerns!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Since she was already in the Atrium when the symptoms started hitting, that's where she stays. She sits on a couch and does not actively seem to want to interact with anyone BUT she will talk to whoever walks up to her! She's also really freakin hung over and looks it.

This has been a very strange day, already. He remembers being guided in here. Wherever here is. A big open room.He's been told to stay here until informed otherwise. Right now, he has no reason to leave. He'll have to evaluate the situation later. His name is Leonardo Fiori. He plays a sport called probably Quidditch. He's good at it. He gets the distinct impression he's good at a lot of things. There's a place called the grotto, where they serve punch. He can speak another language, and sometimes does, when he doesn't mean to.

It's a strange time and a stranger place to be alive.

Leo has in his possession too many notebooks, and he has them spread out over a table in the Atrium. It's how he's trying to learn his surroundings. Unfortunately, while the notebooks outline in possibly exhaustive detail the Quidditch faults and strengths of an entire team, they do not let him know where he is or why he's there. It's somehow a comforting ritual, to read through these anyway, instinctively snapping the notebooks shut whenever anyone comes near. This extensive information is probably not meant for anyone's eyes. He's pretty sure.

As the day wore on, Rafael came to better understand that things were wrong, and to what degree. Whenever he stopped to consider the context for anything, it was an empty void. What happened yesterday? How did he meet these people? What is he doing here? Where is he from?

So it's alarming to look at the serious young man sitting at a table in the atrium, and then immediately feel an overwhelming wave of adoration. This is Leonardo. Rafael knows without question he's in love with him. They're... together? Possibly? The idea that they might not be twists his heart.

He's cautious as he approaches, letting his fingertips rest lightly on the edge of the table. "Hello."

The boy Leo looks up to see is incredibly good looking. He's painfully familiar and not recognizable, because nobody is, and nothing is. Leo doesn't know his name. But his face knows to relax into a smile, and his heart seems to open a little, like a weight's been lifted.

"Hey." He starts, searching every corner of his brain in order to place this boy. Leo loves him. He knows that, because every instinct is telling him as much. He is very important. A piece seemed to click in Leo's mind as soon as he saw him. He just can't label it. There's still no name, and everything else is blank. It's frustrating, and Leo's mouth twitches to show it. He lets his fingers touch the table, just next to this boy's, anyway, taking that much of a chance. "I'm sure I know you."

Maybe this sounds more charming than idiotic, but Leo's not hopeful.

Edited 2017-04-09 04:35 (UTC)

The smile, small as it is, makes Rafael's pulse quicken. Leonardo is handsome, with his sharp features and dark curls. Rafael runs a hand back through his own messy hair, almost self-consciously.

"You do," he agrees. "I think we are close, but I... do not want to assume things."

Something about the way he moves is endearing. Graceful. Leo is drawn closer, because he doesn't want to miss a clue, if one shows up. He nods, eager for the confirmation. It's somehow a relief. "You're right, I think. I don't remember for sure. I'm sorry. I know my name's Leonardo." It's maybe the one thing he can confirm, for sure. But he wants this boy to know it too.

Well, dang! LARP was cancelled because of this amnesia thing and he didn't remember who Bianca was, but apparently he had a date with her last night. And what he could remember through the alcohol, it was a good date, right? But he couldn't remember who the girl was at all, just her name because Reece - the guy he couldn't visualize walking him back to the cabin, either, had told him. He had absolutely all his memories but he couldn't remember any of the people in them. Their names resonated something, but everything was impossible to place.

So he was super bummed about LARP and sitting in the atrium which was far more entertaining than the infirmary, which he had been in more than enough times to last him for his whole life. Lounging on one of the couches, lazily watching whatever educational bull they put on the television. His journal lay open on his lap, and he keeps side-eyeing everyone kind of suspiciously. Were they Bianca? Was that guy Reece? Who was Casey Patterson? He apparently thought that guy was kinda hot. At least, he definitely remembered saying that.

Oh well. Aside from some grumbling and moping about LARP and his lost connections, Oscar is a fine patient and does not do anything out of the ordinary.

Cameron should probably be bothered, but in truth, this is all sort of fascinating. It's a mystery to be investigated! The healer has assured everyone, in his gruff way, that he'll get them sorted out, and even though Cameron can't remember him, he gets the sense that if he says it, he can do it. That had alleviated any niggling worry that they might all be stuck with permanent memory gaps.

Still, he's trapped in quarantine, and if he has any homework that needs doing, he certainly can't remember it. After sniffing around the atrium for a while, he eventually comes across a beat up chess set. He sets it up on a table, hoping someone will join him.

Cameron won't have to wait long. Ulysses, freed of any insecurities about his perceived maturity, has been happily sticking lock-step close to the people he sees as friends — first his cabinmates, then Clementine, then his sister. He'd spent some time alone in the infirmary, but soon, boredom had set in, and Ulysses — never overly abstemious on a good day, let alone one where he has no reason to ignore his whims — had hopped up to go explore.

Which is what brought him to the atrium. And ~~CCC~~ Cameron's chess set. His eyes light up. "You want to play?"

"Well, hey!" Cameron says, eyes lighting up at the sight of one of the most familiar people today, if only because he was there when he woke up. He's made a habit today of not calling anyone by name. What if they have a nickname they prefer? What if he has them confused, seeing as he has only learned any names within the past few hours? What if he was misinformed by some of the people who, he feels, have tried to use the confusion to be mischievous? Better not to risk it.

"Of course!" Cameron replies with an easy smile. "Not real sure how good I am at chess, but I'm pretty sure I do know how to play. Can't remember my parents' names but I know chess. Funny, ain't it?"

"You have anterograde amnesia." It's what she'd written down in her journal at the top of a fresh page. The note was time stamped 12:15pm, 4/9.

"This sucks every type of ass. 12:17pm." Appeared immediately beneath that. The notes continued like that, filling the page. One or two sentences describing a thought worth remembering or an important name followed by a time stamp.

Nia doesn't remember writing any of that, but there it was. And here she is. In the atrium. Quarantined (12:01pm, on the previous page). She knows that any minute things might slip away from her again, so she doesn't want to waste any time being pissed about it. Maybe she can trick herself into not forgetting by doing a continuous repetitive action. She looks around for some sort of distraction and spots a ping pong table across the room. Okay. Let's do this.

She makes it to the table without forgetting anything and picks up two paddles. Looking around for a playing partner, she spots a young man who seems very familiar. Ebonhide. Prefect. Junior. Her co-prefect. Shit, what is his name?

"Hey, uh," Nia points at him and starts snapping her finger, "Hey, Charlie. Chrysanthos. Chase. Carlton. Hey."

He's not looking. She raises her voice a little. "Hey, sad boy with the nice hair. Come play ping pong with me... please."

Casper, who's sprawled on a nearby sofa reading a paperback and who's pretty sure is name isn't Charilie (or Chrysanthos or Chase or Carlton), doesn't look up as Nia tries to get his attention. Even the description doesn't prompt him to lift his head until he hears that exasperated please at the end of her sentence. And, even then, it's only because he's starting to wonder if the girl attached to that voice is going to work herself into a fit. He doesn't think of himself as 'a sad boy with nice hair'. Even if he does have nice hair, he supposes.

When he discovers that she's looking directly at him his eyebrows raise and he idly brushes back his long hair before he asks, "Are you talking to me? Because it's 'Casper'." Then he registers the rest of what she'd said, that she was trying to invite him to play some sort of game with her, and he shuts the book. It's boring as fuck anyway. "And do you remember the rules? Because I don't remember the rules." He doesn't remember Nia either, but the longer he looks at her, the more he gets that same...sense of her that he'd had of his roommates. That she's a friend or something like a friend. And probably worth playing 'ping pong' with.

Casper. That's it. She thinks about taking out her notebook and writing that down, but her hands are full.

"Of course I know how to play ping pong." She huffs, momentarily flustered, but it passes and she holds one of the paddles out toward him. "I'll walk you through it. The basics: Hit the ball with the paddle, back and forth until someone misses it. That's a point. Don't hit the net. One bounce per side. Yadda yadda." She waves the paddles in the air and then holds the one she was offering to Casper before back out to him, "Ping pong."

After a second's pause, she adds sincerely, "Thank you."

Dropping the book on the sofa, Casper climbs to his feet and walks over to Nia and accepts the paddle. The rules seem simple enough and, based on her indignance at the question, are probably something he should've known. But he's accustomed to that feeling by now and it doesn't bother him. He nods brusquely. "Sure. Thanks for asking me. I'm getting restless just sitting around anyway."

He pauses, lingering near her for a moment rather than heading to his side of the table. "I'm...going to need you to tell me yours too. Your name. I know I know you, but..." He shrugs.

"Nia Papadakis." She starts to offer her hand for a shake, but then reconsiders. That's totally dumb. "We're co-prefects. That's pretty much the only thing I remember about you. Sorry."

Nia grabs up the little plastic ball and dribbles it against the table with her paddle as she waits for Casper to take his position. "This is shitsville, huh? You seem to be hanging in there, though, even if you can't remember ping pong. Have any good adventures today? Not that I'll remember them in ten minutes. But it's good to make conversation."

"Nia, then." Casper says the name aloud and nods, more for himself than for her, then adds, "Don't worry about it. That's more than I remembered about me." Then he walks around to the opposite side of the small table, turning the paddle easily in his hand. Maybe he plays a lot of ping pong. Maybe he's just dextrous. He really has no idea. Once he's in position, he lifts the paddle and waits for Nia to start the game.

"It's...not bad? Just boring now that we're stuck here," he admits, thinking back on the day and finding relatively little to complain about. He's been confused, but he's also spent most of the day with his friends and with an inexplicable feeling of lightness. Like there's nothing in the world he needs to worry about. Probably because, for all he knows, there isn't. He's at school. He's with his classmates. Apart from some bizarre campuswide magical misfire, everything seems to be fine. Then, to answer her question, he says, "I hung out with my roommates. I wandered around a lot. I talked to a snake. Because I can do that, apparently." He thinks very briefly of Casey Patterson and the accusations of dark magic; it makes him bristle. But he doesn't linger on that. Because it's not dark magic and he hadn't done anything wrong.

Then, along with the first shot the girl sends across the net, he returns, "Would you remember if you'd had any adventures today?"

Nia laughs, scrunching up her nose. "You can talk to snakes? Wish I could talk to snakes."

She returns the ping pong ball with ease. It makes a pleasing 'plok' noise when it hits the table. "Sounds like a nice enough day. I don't remember," She pauses as she reaches to catch the ball with her paddle again. "Hah! But the notes in my journal say I told six different people I'd wait--" Plok. "For them to take me to the infirmary and then wandered back and forth between--" Plok. "Ebonhide and the Ornery Oak for like two hours."

Nia squints. Her head is starting to feel fuzzy, again. Maybe if she keeps talking, she can keep things from getting away from her. "So, did the snake tell you any cool snake secrets?"

"I can talk to snakes," Casper agrees, smiling a little as he knocks the ball back across the net. Plok. Because if Nia wants to be able to do the same, that must mean that she doesn't consider the act dark magic and, even if her memory isn't intact, that's reassuring to him. He doesn't know why he'd been so ready to let Casey get to him. He doesn't know why he'd been so ready to agree with Casey that being a Parselmouth is a bad thing. Fuck that.

Listening to the summary of Nia's afternoon, which sounds far more frustrating than the situation he's found himself in, Casper nods sympathetically. "I'm sorry." Plok. "That's shit. I hope this 'Mufferaw' guy knows what he's doing and can get this sorted out." He catches the expression on the girl's face, frowns slightly and supplies in an attempt to aid her failing memory, "Still Casper. Your co-prefect. We're still the Lodge. You're still pretty solid at ping pong."

Plok. They're both pretty solid at ping pong, really. Though, he is finding that it's a struggle not to hit the ball much harder; his instinct is to the ball harder.

He shakes his head, then has to give it a little toss to get his hair out of his face. "No. She just told me about where she suns herself and that she's worried about people getting so close to her den. It's near one of the trails, so I went and marked it. Hopefully, people will steer clear now. Riley thinks she's lonely. And that's why she was talking to me. But I don't know. Do snakes get lonely?"

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

AMNESIA BUG

THE LODGE: THE ATRIUM

Avery & OPEN!

Leo+ OPEN TO MULTIPLE

Leo & Rafael

Leo & Rafael

Leo & Rafael

Leo & Rafael

Oscar & Open (To Multiple!)

Cameron + Open

Cameron + Ulysses

Re: Cameron + Ulysses

Nia & Casper & Ping Pong

Nia & Casper & Ping Pong

Nia & Casper & Ping Pong

Nia & Casper & Ping Pong

Re: Nia & Casper & Ping Pong

Nia & Casper & Ping Pong

Nia & Casper & Ping Pong

Nia & Casper & Ping Pong