leave her behind with the kids —

[happyheartsstaff]

THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT

Does anything in this hotel ever stay put? Those who go looking for the gym, the hotel spa, or the nightclub are out of luck one day, as they're simply no longer there. The hallways themselves go topsy-turvy, only staying put when one looks directly at them. For those who've been here long enough to have seen the last time the hotel shifted like this and remember how unhelpful the hotel staff were — it seems little there has changed. The only difference is the manner in which they are useless. They will acknowledge the shifting hallways, of course, and even provide direction back to the lobby, but profess they are much too busy to provide an escort.

Eventually, the hallways settle. Gone are The Caucus-Race, the Pearls Within, and the Rabbit Hole in favor of new amenities. Where once there was a gym, there's now an indoor playground. The nightclub has been replaced with an arcade, and the spa is now a massive movie theater. Were there always quite so many kids items on the restaurant menus? When did This Elegant Thimble get such a large children's section?

If asked, the hotel staff will shrug. Some will insist things have been this way for as long as they've been working there. Others will state that, like their wonderful Queen, the hotel will always know what's needed for any occasion and make suitable preparations.

ARCADE

9/11 - 9/23

The arcade, if possible, seems even larger than the nightclub that once stood in its place. There are rows of pinball, action games, shooting games, driving games. An entire room of air hockey, and another of dancing games. Clusters of skee-ball, whack-a-mole, and claw machines. The floors seem to be eternally sticky with spilled soda, and the smell of pizza and sugar permeates the air. No matter how many patrons are within sight, the sound of laughter and excited shrieking somehow seems to echo throughout the arcade.

Token dispensers are scattered amongst the games. Hotel staff will be stationed at the snack bar and the prize counter, ready to hand out tokens or trade tickets won from the games for small prizes.

Occasionally, one of the games will spark and short out. If asked, hotel staff will say it's out of order and put up a sign proclaiming it so. They don't seem all that concerned about fixing it. Soon enough, it will seem to fix itself and switch back on. It will still spark every so often, and something about the music will seem off. Anyone who decides to play one of these games anyway will find themselves feeling slightly dizzy. Is the arcade spinning around them, or is that just them?

When the spinning stops, they will no longer be where they were before. They will find themselves in the middle of the game they had previously been playing, regardless of what it was. Welcome to the other side of the arcade — where the game play is more realistic than ever! Hopefully they had a partner brought in with them, or someone else comes along to try to play who can help them win the game to get back out.

MOVIE NIGHT

9/11 - 9/23

The entrance to the movie theater is lined with concession stands. Snacks and drinks of every kind can be picked up here before going into one of the theater's two auditoriums. Films will be playing round the clock in both, a different one on each screen. Oysters may find the same movies they would have seen on their own world, movies one might find on modern day Earth, or even movies about old folktales or traditional stories that might have been told where they were from. The only thing that will not be showing is any version of Alice in Wonderland, or any story set in Wonderland itself.

At times, particular showings may be billed as interactive. These will be of all genres: musicals, adventures, mysteries, romance, comedies, even horror. Oysters who attend these will be encouraged to dress up, and will even be shown to a dressing room with a selection of suitable clothes. It will only be after they've been seated and the film starts that what is meant by interactive will become clear.

The musicals will have sing alongs, with people from the audience being pulled up to participate in the dance numbers. The adventures and mysteries will have characters on the screen turn to the audience as though they are part of the story, inviting them along in the investigation or interrogating them as a suspect. Protagonists and antagonists alike will walk off the screen of horror movies, seeking help from or looking to torment the audience until their story is completed and they are sent back to their film world. Comedies and romances will find those in the audience being pulled up to act out parts of the story — and may find themselves transported into the setting until they do.

DAYCARE AND PLAYGROUND

9/11 - 9/23

The front of the daycare is small, with a place to check in and drop off or pick up kids. This is the only area that Oysters who are not either helping out at the daycare or being dropped off themselves will be able to easily access. Behind this are sectioned off areas for quieter activities, with materials such as books, art supplies, toys, etc. There's a small kitchen that will be off limits to the kids, and an area for snack time and nap time. Hotel staff are very present and interactive in these areas — reading to children, making crafts with them, telling stories, fixing snacks. Some will be taking a quiet break for themselves in the kitchen, and may be willing to talk to Oysters helping out at the daycare.

The back of the daycare is an expansive indoor playground. Here, the children are mostly left to their own devices. There are some hotel staff out there to keep an eye on the children as they play, but they tend to cluster together for conversation. Oysters helping out at the daycare will be somewhat warily included in this if they approach. These hotel staff will mostly be dismissive of any children coming to them unless they are injured or crying. There are multiple parts of the playground that can be used to sneak in and out to the hotel area at large, if one is looking carefully! Any children who are not supposed to be there have a low risk of being caught unless they draw attention to themselves or try to enter the other area of the daycare.

The other children in the daycare fall mostly between the ages of 6-11, with three or four outliers who appear to be toddlers or in the 12-13 age range. Astute Oysters likely to observe the behavior of the children will notice that there are clear social groups among them, as though they have known each other long enough to have friends they're accustomed to playing with. There are some who seem friendly and popular, some who seem to keep to themselves, some who seem to have good relationships with the hotel staff and others who seem determined to cause trouble, those who are bullies and those who are picked on. Their willingness to play with or answer questions from Oyster children or adults is equally as varied.

There will be a posted list of Oysters banned from helping out at the daycare. It will not be easily seen from the front of the daycare, but hotel staff will identify who is on it if asked. It will include the below names:

• Lan Wangji (novel)
• Wu Xie
• Wei Wuxian (novel)
• Crowley
• Commander Shepard
• Matthew Murdock
• Lan Wangji (TV)
• Sam Wilson

Characters on this list who have been de-aged will also find that hotel staff are reluctant to accept them into the daycare. They will be allowed only if someone not on the list vouches for them, and otherwise will have to sneak in through the playground.

If you have any questions, please leave them over here! For those interested in asking questions or interacting with the daycare staff, please reply to the first comment on this page, and the second comment for the other children!

PREMISE RULES FAQ TAKEN RESERVES APPLICATION MOD CONTACT HIATUS & DROPS WORLD INFO NPCS CALENDAR AC REWARDS PLAYER CONTACT

© tessisamess

Comments

[billowing]

He can't find the courage to tell Wei Ying directly how he feels. What is he supposed to say? I like you? I think about you all the time, I dream about you, I'll drive myself mad trying to remember exactly how it felt to kiss you?

He gathers his thoughts to put to words when Wei Ying, always as he does, continues before he can take a breath, and--

--And that's. Not. The direction he thought this conversation was going. Surely he couldn't be jealous of the other boy, perhaps he was just jealous in general and wanted someone - anyone to cherish him. Anyone else. A girl. But hadn't - hadn't Wei Ying figured it out by now? Isn't that why he left, that he couldn't stand to be thought of in such a way? My heart can't take it, he'd said.

He lets Wei Ying pull his hand away, but in a blessed moment of silence, he heaves a puff of breath. "Wei Ying." He looks up into his eyes from the floor, because he wants him to know he's being honest, even if it physically pains him to have to meet Wei Ying in the eyes. "I was thinking about you."

Then he lets go entirely, and takes one step back, so he can give Wei Ying some space. He might have messed this whole thing up, but Wei Ying doesn't deserve this anger, these frustrations.

[sadflutenoises]

He's ready to take whatever consequence comes of his admission, so long as it isn't pity. The last thing he wants is Lan Zhan feeling bad for daring to have feelings for someone, when it's the first real emotion outside of irritation he's seen from the other boy.

Instead the soft rejection he's expecting, his breath hitches again, hearing Lan Zhan suggest that he was thinking about Wei Wuxian. It's a struggle, to wrap his head around it.

"But that... you said the boy you like, he's- he's all those great things," he replies weakly, a nervous laugh in his tone, "and I'm pretty sure all I do is annoy you."

He's only just pulled his hand away, but watching Lan Zhan retreat, Wei Wuxian can feel his stomach drop into his feet.

"I- but, if you- I mean-" he steps forward, into Lan Zhan's space, "It's okay, if you don't, but I... I like you, or... whatever. And I liked kissing you, um... a lot."

[billowing]

Lan Wangji is ready to leave, and let Wei Ying think by himself, and decide if he can forgive this, if he can still feel comfortable being friends with Lan Wangji. But then - he comes forward, and he opens his mouth, and he... he confesses?

This is not how he thought this would go. Wei Ying likes girls! Wei Ying is always talking about how they should go to Yunmeng to look at beautiful girls!

"Wei Ying. You are creative. Compassionate. Strong. Clever. Every day, you challenge me to be better than I am. I like you, or, whatever." He steps the remainder of the way into Wei Ying's space, and takes his hand again, looking at him, eyes locked onto his, as he tilts his head, and shifts his gaze to his mouth.

[sadflutenoises]

Wei Wuxian's face immediately colors, and he's sure his entire face must be red when Lan Zhan starts praising him again. It's a very different feeling, knowing the words are meant for him, and he barely has the strength to hear it. His hands scramble forward, covering Lan Zhan's mouth before he can say more. No one has ever, ever spoken to him like that, and quite frankly, he isn't sure how to handle it. He can take insults, he knows what to do with those, but honest praise?

"Too much, it's too much," he insists, "what did I say Lan Zhan? My heart can't take so much, it'll burst if you keep talking like that!"

It's a moment before he realizes he's probably been pretty rude, and starts to take his hands back, still struggling to keep eye-contact for more than brief moments. He understands the struggle though, to get the words out, to be understood, and he doesn't want Lan Zhan to be hurt because he's said anything careless, so-

His hands drop nervously to rest on Lan Zhan's shoulders, and he leans forward, pressing a light peck against Lan Zhan's lips.

[billowing]

Wei Ying continues to confuse him by placing a hand over his mouth. Had he not wanted to kiss after all? Was Lan Wangji being presumptuous?

But then he explains, and.

Hadn't he also wanted to be praised, to be desired?

"I will say no more, if Wei Ying wishes," he responds, blinking twice as he is not entirely sure what it is Wei Ying wants, but he is able to follow a direct request.

He did offer a kiss, and he had said he likes the kissing, so he stays in Wei Ying's space and gently offers another one, this time full on the mouth, but not anything like it had been earlier. This one is just a press of lips, a meeting of two people in the middle.

[sadflutenoises]

"You can say them, just..." he concedes, still a little flustered, "not all at once."

He hasn't moved back, and it does feel kinda weird to be having a conversation this close, but he can't make himself dwell on it for more than a moment. Lan Zhan is kissing him again and it's- soft this time, not hungry, more the sort of reserved and shy quality he'd thought might come from someone like Lan Wangji. It gives him a sort of nervous flutter in his chest and he wonders if it's possible to wake that wilder side in him again, like he'd kissed at the theater.

"Lan Zhan?" he teases, "all that practice and you only want to kiss me like this?"

[billowing]

He will remember that, that Wei Ying only wishes to be given compliments a little at a time, because of some sort of heart condition that Lan Wangji is pretty sure he is just making up.

Honestly, he'd like to kiss Wei Ying again the way he did in the theater, but he is still feeling a bit shy. Wei Ying teases him and he soon figures out that this is all part of how he flirts, the silly boy.

"Come up to my room," he whispers against Wei Ying's mouth. "We shouldn't kiss like that here."

[sadflutenoises]

Damn, every time Wei Wuxian thinks he can raise the bar with his shameless flirting, Lan Zhan says something that leaves him struggling for a retort. They'd only just kissed and Lan Zhan wanted to-

His room?

Flashes of their impromptu sparring match the other day flashed through his mind and that really wasn't helping.

"Your... oh," he manages, letting teenage hormones take the wheel, "okay."

[billowing]

Lan Wangji isn't going to bother asking twice and takes Wei Ying by the wrist, marching him upstairs, hair flapping behind him as if he has a built-in wind machine.

He doesn't stop until he gets Wei Ying in his room, whereupon he closes the door behind him and grabs him by the back of the head, crushing their mouths together in a searing kiss that definitely is more like the one from their practicing.

This time, he even leaves a bite, which Wei Ying doesn't know is a signature move, but will soon. "Wei Ying," he murmurs against his lips as he breaks away for a moment, eyes on his mouth, hand at the base of his neck. "Why didn't you say anything?"

[sadflutenoises]

The wheels in his mind are still spinning, but doing so as if they've run into a patch of ice. Rotating endlessly without actually going anywhere. He's stuck back where Lan Zhan had said he liked him, or whatever, and while he's yet to get that one to make sense, he follows along wordlessly as Lan Zhan brings him up to his room.

He has all of a second to appreciate the room's aesthetics before Lan Zhan is kissing him roughly. There's something possessive, maybe even controlling in the way he kisses, and Wei Wuxian finds he doesn't mind at all being handled in such a way. He makes a sharp sound when bitten, more in surprise than pain, as he pulls back just a little, his tongue moving over the abused part of his lip.

He blinks, dazedly, as their mouths part, and tries to make sense of the question, "Hm? What do you mean?"

[billowing]

Lan Wangji stays close, watching that tongue dart out to soothe away the pain in his lip, and he longs to feel it against his own, his eyes pinned there, but he focuses for a second.

"I thought you weren't interested. You always talk about girls." His arms encircle around Wei Ying's tiny waist, and his large hands lie flat around the small of his back.

How long had it been? How long had Wei Ying felt this way? How long had the both of them just been circling each other, avoiding saying too much lest the other one cut their relationship off entirely? He tips Wei Ying's face, just so he can look him directly in the eyes.

[sadflutenoises]

How's he supposed to manage a serious answer? With Lan Zhan's hand resting on the curve of his back, the other reaching to tip his face up to look him in the eyes.

"Mm, well yeah, girls are pretty too," he says, perhaps a little too flippantly. Maybe he doesn't flirt with boys in the same way he does with girls, but he's always appreciated good looks, no matter what gender it comes with. And Lan Zhan is definitely the most beautiful of everyone so far.

"I dunno, I didn't actually think about it very much," he adds.

Whether he liked boys or girls, one was definitely more socially acceptable. And what, was he supposed to just assume Lan Zhan liked boys? Families had started fights over less! And hadn't he brought enough anger and frustration to the Jiangs? He'd probably get kicked back out on the street if he started flirting with boys as openly as he did girls. Not that either had ever taken him seriously. He didn't even take it seriously.

[billowing]

He didn't think about it very much? But doesn't he like Lan Wangji? Shouldn't he have thought about this a little bit? Because Lan Wangji has thought about Wei Ying so much, that the look on his face shifts to one of confusion. He likes Wei Ying. He likes Wei Ying, so much, and hadn't Wei Ying just told him he feels the same?

Why is he feeling like they're not on the same page?

He pulls Wei Ying in closer, a hand brushing his cheek, wondering if perhaps they'd rushed this like they do everything. But Wei Ying had asked to be kissed roughly, and Lan Wangji had wanted to. Shouldn't that be enough for him? Why is it so hard for them to just understand each other?

[sadflutenoises]

He has the distinct feeling he's answered wrong, if there's a wrong answer to be had. What could he say? That he'd been grateful just for their friendship? That he hadn't really thought it could be more than that? That it had taken the thought of Lan Zhan being with someone else to even make him realize the feelings he had were more than he'd imagined?

"I just..." he swallows, dark eyes studying Lan Zhan's, "I don't know, I haven't liked anyone like I like you."

Maybe that's enough, maybe it isn't, but Wei Wuxian hardly wants to think harder on it than that. Why wouldn't he say anything? Even if he realized he had feelings sooner, it was still kind of pointless, wasn't it? This was about now, not how impossible it would be to continue in the future.

Rather than say any of that aloud, he pushes forward to kiss Lan Zhan again, his lip tender and red where it's been bitten.

[billowing]

He's confused, and studying Wei Ying's face for any sign of an answer that he isn't saying aloud. And then... he hasn't liked anyone like he's liked Lan Wangji? But he'd always talked about those girls so highly. And yet, here he is, in Lan Wangji's arms, trying to kiss him.

And so, he leans in the rest of the way and claims Wei Ying's lips, helping his wound along by licking where he'd bitten, holding Wei Ying by the back of his head and delving his tongue into his mouth. Where it comes to anything else, Lan Wangji is a proponent of moderation. But here, it seems he doesn't mind the excess.

He pulls away only to draw breath, and immediately afterward dives right back in, as if he can't be parted away for too long, as if the act of breathing is highly inconvenient.

[sadflutenoises]

Unlike Lan Wangji, Wei Wuxian doesn't have any plan to tie himself to another. He knows all too well how easily things can change, and promises of a lifetime rarely last so long. Not to mention the thought of having to run every decision by someone else or compromise on every little thing? Who wants that kind of hassle?

Lan Zhan must be having second thoughts, right? There's no other reason he'd be so reluctant. Maybe he'd just idealized what he thought he wanted from Wei Wuxian, and now that he'd gotten it, he was disappointed? It will hurt less, he thinks, if he knows from the start it's doomed to fail eventually, right?

All the same, it's a relief when Lan Zhan returns the kiss, even if the feeling of his tongue in his mouth is overwhelming. He makes a startled noise against Lan Zhan's lips that eventually turns into a soft and pleased hum. It's hard to remember to breathe, and his hands are gripping the front of Lan Zhan's robes tightly by the time he finally gets a breath.

"Lan Zhan," he pants, catching haphazard breaths between kisses. Wei Wuxian's tongue is curious in response, sliding against one another, feeling his way. He feels clumsy in this new skill, but it's all new, learning as he goes, sucking lightly on tongue and lips, startling when he presses forward too quickly and clicks their teeth together.

"Ah- oh, mm, sorry."

[billowing]

He feels like he's died and gone to heaven; if all wine tasted as sweet as Wei Ying's lips, then he would have broken the rules long ago, been just as much of a miscreant as Wei Ying had been. It probably doesn't help that as soon as Wei Ying moves away, Lan Wangji is pulled forward, and therefore, he's just as much at fault for their teeth colliding.

He shakes his head to reject Wei Ying's apology and then resumes the kisses, little light ones, just a press of lips to lips so they can recover from their rougher ones, from that minor incident, and from their lack of breath.

Eventually, he stands with his forehead nearly pressed against the other boy's, hands on either of his cheeks in pleased disbelief.

His eyes slide open, and he's almost shocked that Wei Ying hasn't disappeared like this were just some vivid dream. There's a smile, miniscule, but genuine, that touches his lips, and warms his entire face.

[sadflutenoises]

Lan Zhan doesn't seem too bothered by the eager bump of teeth, but he's glad to catch his breath amid the softer kisses. When they stop completely, his eyes flutter open, and seeing the smile on Lan Zhan's face is enough to make his breath catch. Those few times he's seen hints of it, he'd always thought how every girl would fall for him, if he just flashed them a smile. Now, he can't help feeling glad this one is for them alone.

"Lan Zhan, I've never seen you smile like that," he gives one of his own in return. Hopefully that means they're doing this kissing thing right.

[billowing]

The smiles are always reserved for Wei Ying, and they will be reserved for Wei Ying in the future. Lan Wangji doesn't even realize that he is still feeling a little self-conscious about his kissing skills. Lan Wangji doesn't think he's much better, and hadn't been expecting too much in the first place, considering that they are both teenagers.

He gently brushes a little bit of Wei Ying's hair off of his face and kisses his temple and forehead. In his mind, this is encouraging, and letting him know that he's interested in doing this again sometime. In fact, he doesn't want Wei Ying to leave. But he does assume his room looks like Yunmeng, and he'll want to return as soon as they're done here.

Biting the inside of his lip, he reaches for Wei Ying's hand, and threads their fingers together. There's a lot more he wants to do with Wei Ying, but they're just boys. They have plenty of time.

[sadflutenoises]

Is it strange that he welcomes the roughness so easily, but the gentle brush of hair, the kiss to his temple, makes his chest feel tight and suddenly it's difficult to speak. It scares him, in a way that no nighthunt monsters or difficult exams can do. He's never struggled to meet anyone's eyes, no matter the challenge, but somehow, when Lan Zhan is looking at him like that, he can barely focus on anything else.

Lan Zhan's hardly said a handful of words since they got up here, and with anyone else he'd be worried about where he stands, worried about the silence, worried that it's too much. Then Lan Zhan links their hands and he can't help wondering how things got to this.

"What about you, Lan Zhan? How was I supposed to guess with all your cryptic hints?" he wants to say the same, why didn't you say anything, but he knows himself well enough to know the answer.

[billowing]

"You were not," he answers, though he'd always thought that Wei Ying was so clever and would see through all his ruses. He'd put up so many defenses that it only ended up hurting them both. "I did not want to lose your friendship. I would not have taken that gamble."

And yet, he did, sort of. But Wei Ying had told him it would be practice, and had assured him that they were friends, and this was the sort of thing that friends do.

"...Please do not offer to practice with anyone else," he says, finally, because he had thought that was a flirtation technique, but then remembered that Wei Ying flirts with everything that moves and some things that do not.

[sadflutenoises]

So, what, Lan Zhan just planned to sit on that information for the rest of his life? Even if he didn't like Lan Zhan, did he really think he would refuse to be his friend anymore after a little kiss? What if this wasn't everything Lan Zhan hoped? What if he changed his mind about all those nice things he'd said. Did he really think all that? And did he think they couldn't be friends anymore if Wei Wuxian didn't like him in the same way?

While he's pondering that answer, Lan Zhan asks him not to...

"Don't what?" he makes a noise that's part nervous laugh, part surprised squeak.

"Oh, you mean the- that was- right, ah, okay, I think I can handle that," he rambles for a moment before remembering to say something reassuring. It's not as if people were lining up to 'practice' anything with Wei Wuxian, so there was little for him to worry about.

"Guess you'll just have to put up with all my flirting then, since I can't practice with anyone else," he teases.

[billowing]

Lan Wangji looks at Wei Ying in the eyes, and all around his face. Does he mean that he wants to flirt with other people? Or that he wants to flirt with Lan Wangji more openly, in front of everyone else?

He supposes that he could let Wei Ying know, once in awhile, in public, that he does like his flirtations, that he reciprocates them, if only in his own way.

"All right." He takes Wei Ying's face, and kisses him on his brow, by his eye. He wouldn't have changed his mind, wouldn't have taken any of it back. Even if it wasn't everything he wanted, he'd want this all the same, because Wei Ying was already perfect. And he'd be willing to work his hardest to be perfect for Wei Ying too.

"Will you let me know? If this is too much?"

[sadflutenoises]

What happened to the Lan Zhan that got upset at his constant teasing? Wei Wuxian didn't know what to do when someone actually answered him so seriously! Treated him so gently. What was he supposed to do with that?

"Too much?" he repeats, eyes glancing down at Lan Zhan's mouth. His kisses were rough, but they were both inexperienced, and he found he didn't exactly dislike rough anyway. It was the soft things that were much harder to bear. Besides, wasn't this supposed to be fun? Not serious? They liked each-other and that was fine, good even, but he really wasn't sure how to handle anything deeper than this flirtatious hand-holding and open-mouthed kisses.

[billowing]

Too much means too much. "I do not want to push Wei Ying away," he resolves, but notices Wei Ying staring at his mouth and proffers him another kiss, warm and hungry as if the first ones had just been an appetizer.

Once he got a taste, there was really no stopping him, and so, he had to remind himself over and over in his head that he had to draw boundaries. He couldn't say things like love, shouldn't ask what he is to Wei Ying, doesn't want to get hurt.

For now, they could hold hands, and flirt, and kiss. That was practically already a marriage proposal in Cloud Recesses, but Wei Ying had also taken his headband, hadn't he? So, in essence, they were already bound together, and if that had been acceptable, then this must also.