The Taste of ℭøℓøяis a roleplay that follows the lives of two individuals that come from rather different upbringings as they try to live their lives, in a society that has become determined to run people to ruin. The economy is doing poorly, the minimum wage isn't enough to live on for full-time employees, let alone part-timers, and insurance is getting harder and harder to get. Employers are finding every way to over-work their under-paid employees, landlords are finding ways to run poorer folks from their homes, and society, as a whole, is looking for ways to give undeserved hate to those who are simply different.
These two are fighting against the odds to try and make their lives as fair as possible, but what life throws back keeps getting harder and harder to cope with. Being a minority in a large city, being female in a male-dominated community, and the disability of one of the main protagonists are only the beginning of an unfair fight between the over-powered and the powerless.
When the two are faced with the choice to "go big, or go home" it becomes an even grater struggle as the two strangers try to befriend one-another, and learn to communicate as their own landlords, a cruel man with more than a few scandalous habits, and a man who refuses to fully cooperate with "defective people," treat each of them poorly. While one is fighting against harassment, the other is having her own problems simply navigating her own home, let alone dealing with the outside world.
↝Themes↜
Furry↭Slice of Life↭Friendship↭Fighting the Odds↭Dealing with Hate-Bias↭Leaving Home
Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2014 3:29 pm
Let's start with the "No's":
⇝No posting unless you are part of this roleplay! ⇝No private messages asking to join this roleplay (it is a full one-on-one) ⇝No means "no!!!" Do not not try to make someone else's character do something that is against their persona! Do not force someone else's character into acts that go against Gaia's ToS! And DO NOT (by any means) pass Go and collect $200!
And now the "Go's":
⇝Go ahead and private message any questions (aside from requests to join) you may have! ⇝Go ahead and read the roleplay! A good roleplay is literally writing a story with the help of others! Don't want to read it post for post? See next "go!" ⇝Go ahead and request a copy/pasted version of the RP in one journal post! I have no problem putting it into "story format" (if I can even call it that) for those who don't want to bother with clicking "next page" repeatedly, and so on! ⇝Go ahead and let us know if you want to borrow our characters for art, a fanfiction, etc. The characters we've created belong to us and are thus a part of us! It's fine if you want to include "us" in something, but it's much appreciated if you ask first! ⇝Go ahead and pass Go. You've earned $200 now!
This is a modern day, slice of life roleplay that takes place on an earth-like planet called Euphoria. On Euphoria, the only areas that need to be explained are the capital city (identical to New York City, New York in the United states), Matriarch City (pronounced "May-tree-ark"), and the hometowns of the main protagonists (to be revealed later).
There's a great variety of species and races living on Euphoria! Technology is like that of Earth's (cellphones, inaccurate weather detection, internet, etc.), but the availability of such technology is a whole other story. Not everyone has a cellphone, tablet, laptop computer, or even a pager. Many people (especially those living in apartments) don't have internet, or cable: in fact, many apartment-dwelling individuals have a land-line phone, electricity, and running water (basic necessities for those who are running on the bare-minimum of technology). They rely on the library for all their research and internet related things (90's throwback much?), and when it comes to job hunting? News papers are the only place to look without stopping by every store in the city, with the hopes of getting called back. For the richer few, technology is readily available at their fingertips (literally): they tend to live in no less than a luxury condo, have all the "needs" plus wireless internet, cable television, security systems, cellular phones, tablets, laptops, gaming systems, and so on. Those fortunate enough to have been brought up in better circumstances are also the most likely to be spoiled and biased. Why? Because they have everything they could ever want, including the right (and the money) to get away with just about anything within the limits of the law.
Speaking of laws: if no one gets physically hurt: it's within the law. The laws and regulations on most of Euphoria are pretty relaxed, especially in Matriarch City. This can be, and is, an issue for those who are victim of political crimes fueled by biased opinions and are comprised of discriminatory acts in general. In short: if someone hires a panda-anthro to work for them, but the district manager says "no pandas allowed;" the panda will be fired. If a landlord has a preference toward men, he may charge men half as much as women for rent. There are few cities that are "fair and balanced," but those fortunate enough to have come from such places generally have more than those from the bottom of the barrel that is Euphoria, in all its raw, poorly interpreted glory.
It was a clear morning toward the end of April... The skies were freckled with the occasional clouds, and the breeze was soothing as it rolled in with the waves, dancing through the buildings of Matriarch City. It wasn't late enough for the crowds to be intense, yet it was plenty late enough for the night-owls to be sleeping, or ready to sleep. As for those working the afternoon shift, they were late if they were just leaving.
But that was life in Matriarch City. Rush, rush, rush! Rest and relaxation was always short lived, and for those fortunate enough to live and run on their own schedules: it was probably glorious.
RosemaryTeatree
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RosemaryTeatree
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Posted: Fri Aug 01, 2014 6:59 pm
Maroo was lazily swinging her leg back and forth off the edge of her loft bed, her ears twitching every so often as the constant bustle of the city kept her alert. Her heart would occasionally race as sounds jerked her away from her hazy "near sleep" state.
The smell of her run-down apartment was beginning to bother her as the humidity, caused by a showering neighbor, stirred up a fresh wave of mildew-stench. Maroo wrinkled her nose and pulled one of her thinner blankets up, attempting to protect herself from the nasal-assault. "This is the worst..." she calmly spoke to the walls. "I'm over-paying for this place, and it has an obvious mold problem. Not to mention..." A loud screech was heard from outside, causing an intense shudder to run down the red-panda's spine. "Too close to the road..."
Posted: Sat Aug 02, 2014 4:59 am
Chari was sleeping soundly tucked deep into her covers. Her tail alone was peeking out in the sunlight, draped over the edge of the bed and stirring up dust swirls as she dreamt. Languidly, she stretched, coming slowly out of her slumber. She casually checked her alarm clock.
"This can't be right...," she murmured sleepily. Realization dawned on her, and she flung herself out of bed, rubbing her eyes hastily. She'd only been working at the bookstore a few weeks, short enough time to still be the newest staff member, and she was already setting herself up to have a reputation of tardiness. In a flash, Chari had donned her uniform and ubiquitous hoodie. She shot out the door, forgoing breakfast. It was going to be a long day.
Maroo eventually gave up on her quest for sleep and half-rolled out of her bed. She blindly, as usual, felt around for the rungs of the ladder, holding onto the rails across the bed to prevent from falling. Her patience wearing thin, Maroo gave up on that too, finally letting go in hopes that the floor was close. A sigh of thankful relief echoed through the near-empty apartment as she was almost immediately on her feet.
"The question is..." she began talking to herself once more. "Am I feeling dangerously adventurous? Or do I just want to go for a little walk?"
She padded over to the closet, her large tail sweeping the floor as she went. Feeling each hanger as she "sorted" through her small collection of clothes, Maroo finally settled on her usual gray sundress, simply trading it out for her sleep-shirt before she locked up and left.
Her ears twitched rapidly for a few moments before she nodded and continued to speak to the emptiness around her. "Dangerous adventure it is!"
The choice finally made: she wandered out of her building and into the morning sun, smiling as warmth flooded over her. After basking in the beauty she could only feel, she settled on making her way down the street. "Maybe I'll find a good cafe..."
Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2014 4:13 pm
Chari half jogged to work, ignoring the day around her in her haste. She pushed open the employee door to the bookstore and stepped into store room where there was a small bank of lockers and a grimy mini fridge for the employees personal items and lunches. Chari peeled off her hoodie, feeling a nervous fluttering in her stomach as she did so, and stuffed it into her assigned locker. She always felt name without her hoodie, open to prying eyes and unprotected, but it was against store policy to wear it while she worked.
After smoothing her uniform shirt, she walked across the store room to a set of doors that opened to the bank of checkout counters. As the doors whisked open, the smells and sounds of the shop front set Chari's whiskers and ears twitching. With a shy smile to her coworker, she took her place behind an empty cash register. Working the register was the worst for her; dealing with the almost constant stream of customers buying their books and pastries from the shop cafe and questions of people that clearly didn't read the numerous signs really took its toll on her. It was much better to be taking inventory or restocking shelves, where she didn't have to interact with many people. Putting aside her nerves, Chari pasted on a smile and prepared to greet customers.
After what seemed like an eternity of walking, Maroo finally decided to keep her ears and nose open for anything that might catch her attention. She heard many door-bells and alarms, but none stood out. Some were, in fact, very annoying. Many of the places she passed she could smell perfumes and air-fresheners , but no food or coffee. Eventually, her ears caught the sound of a little bell, jingling in the distance. The sound was sweet and somewhat out of place; this, in turn, became her goal.
"I don't care what it is, I must find out!" Her ears twitched as she continued to hug the side of the passing buildings, occasionally running her fingers along the brick-work. Every so often, there would be a pause in her route as she waited for the bell to jingle again, guaranteeing she would find the source of the sound.
And eventually she did! She stood just by the door that was making the small bell ring. With each passing person, she would be greeted by the most playful of sounds (from the bell) and a wave of a somewhat familiar scent. Something in the back of Maroo's mind said she'd smelled it before, but she couldn't place what it was. Newsprint? Paper in general? Finally, she gathered the courage to go in herself and ask. Upon opening the door, Maroo was greeted by the small jingling she'd chased down the street. But she inevitably caught the edge of the doorway with her foot, nearly tripping herself as she stepped into the air-conditioned bookstore. She swallowed hard, praying there was someone in front of her as she inched forward and spoke.
"E-Excuse me, but... What kind of store is this?" her ears flattened briefly before perking up again. It was odd taking in the hushed sounds of pages turning and lights buzzing.
Posted: Wed Aug 06, 2014 12:40 am
Despite her late wake-up, Chari was almost lulled into a doze at her register. It was delightfully quiet in the store and few customers had been around in a while. Her coworker had disappeared for a break since there wasn't much to do at the moment, so no one was around to help keep her awake. Her ears twitched at each ringing of the bell, but it wasn't enough to pull her back towards full consciousness from her daydreams. Or at least it wasn't until it was accompanied by a dull thud.
Chari's eyes snapped open. She watched the red panda fumbling near the doorstep, curious as to why she was moving so oddly. As the girl spoke, Chari caught a flash of her silvery eyes.
"Uh, it's a bookstore, 'NovelTea.' We have a cafe also. Can I help you with anything?" Chari answered, remembering belatedly that she was supposed to offer the perky official greeting to each entering customer when it wasn't busy. One ear swiveled backward as she hoped her coworker would come back and help her.
Maroo's ears immediately stood at the word "cafe," a small smile had begun to play on her lips as her excitement grew. "Books! That's the smell!" She let her smile outshine her useless eyes as she continued, "I haven't been around so many books in like... Forever! Normally I come across news-print and magazines here and there, not that they're any use to me. But I don't smell the cafe part in which you speak of."
Tilting her head slightly, Maroo sniffed the air a few more times. "Then again... It might be the smell of printed word that's distracting. I guess people call it 'new book smell'? Or maybe it was 'old'... I don't really pay attention," the red panda admitted. "I would like to know what's on the menu though, if you don't mind!" she waved her hand in front of her face for emphasis. "I decided to go on an adventure, so I might as well take some treasure for the t-trip back!" A yawn escaped her lips at the tail of her sentence, her exhaustion catching up to her. If Maroo wanted to afford rent for the next month, she'd need all the sleep she could get. Then again, it didn't help that she was planning to spend money either.
Posted: Mon Aug 18, 2014 9:53 pm
"it may be a mix of old and new book smell," Chari responded. "We carry both here, but the dusty old used tomes in the back rarely get any attention." She resigned to handling this customer herself, as her coworker (goof-off, useless golden retrievers, she thought) seemed to be taking an extra long break period. At the panda's waving gesture, Chari was momentarily confused. It took her a second to connect the dots between that and the silvered eyes. Oh! She's blind! We'll now things make a lot more sense. Strangely enough, this fact calmed Chariot's shyness about dealing with strangers. Knowing that there was literally one less pair of eyes on her relaxed her a bit. She waved her tail and stretched over the counter to look back and up at the menu posted to the wall of the cafe, adjacent to the registers she was working,
"Let's see...under munchies, we've got croissants, chocolate croissants, glazed donuts, jelly donuts, chocolate donuts, creme-filled pastries, brownies, and sugar cookies. Cold drinks, we have lemonade and iced tea. Hot drinks, we have hot cocoa, chai tea, Earl Grey tea, and coffee and you can add mocha, caramel, or vanilla flavoring to any hot drink. Can I get you something? Strong coffee maybe?" A cheerful grin snuck onto her face, tugging one side of her mouth up. It was about the only real smile she'd given anyone all day.
"it may be a mix of old and new book smell," Chari responded. "We carry both here, but the dusty old used tomes in the back rarely get any attention." She resigned to handling this customer herself, as her coworker (goof-off, useless golden retrievers, she thought) seemed to be taking an extra long break period. At the panda's waving gesture, Chari was momentarily confused. It took her a second to connect the dots between that and the silvered eyes. Oh! She's blind! Well now things make a lot more sense. Strangely enough, this fact calmed Chariot's shyness about dealing with strangers. Knowing that there was literally one less pair of eyes on her relaxed her a bit. She waved her tail and stretched over the counter to look back and up at the menu posted to the wall of the cafe, adjacent to the registers she was working,
"Let's see...under munchies, we've got croissants, chocolate croissants, glazed donuts, jelly donuts, chocolate donuts, creme-filled pastries, brownies, and sugar cookies. Cold drinks, we have lemonade and iced tea. Hot drinks, we have hot cocoa, chai tea, Earl Grey tea, and coffee and you can add mocha, caramel, or vanilla flavoring to any hot drink. Can I get you something? Strong coffee maybe?" A cheerful grin snuck onto her face, tugging one side of her mouth up. It was about the only real smile she'd given anyone all day.
Maroo thought about it for a few minutes before nodding, taking all the menu items into account. "I suppose..." she started, "I would like chai tea with vanilla! And a chocolate croissant!"
She began to pat her thighs, in search for her wallet, and upon producing it, Maroo gently ran her fingers along each bill and coin. "How much will it be? I should have enough to pay in cash!" Immediately pulling bills from the wallet, she laid them one by one on the counter before her, followed by several "half-bill" coins, in an attempt to be prepared for payment AND tip. After all, it's only fair to tip generously when requesting extra help like she had.
The few moments she waited for a response, Maroo noticed that traffic as a whole had already begun to pick up outside. She could hear the pedestrians rushing by with her sensitive ears. And the engines of vehicles were equally as distracting in her mind. Hopefully... Hopefully I'll be able to make it home in a timely manner...
Posted: Tue Aug 19, 2014 11:00 pm
Chari tapped her chin while ringing up the order, mentally calculating the price. "That should come out to...$3.50." She swept the cash off the counter and deposited it in the register, pushing the extra back over to the red panda. As the register printed a receipt, she crossed over the the cafe side of the front counter and set a styrofoam cup under the chai dispenser, pushed the button, and pulled a fresh chocolate croissant, still warm, from the display case. She added a shot of vanilla to the cup and capped it, then took the order back to the register.
While wrapping the croissant in paper and taping on the receipt, she commented, "Superb choice. Chocolate croissants are my favorite! What kind of an adventure are you on anyway?" Chari slid the finished order over to the customer.
