cuckoo nest

[auborn]

Cuckoo Nest: The premise of the Cuckoo Nest plot is that a character is convinced that they are in an insane asylum (a Bedlam House is a popular choice), where they are told that the events of the series are actually hallucinations. -tvtropes

Post in with your character name, canon, etc., along with a brief description of how your character would end up committed and any diagnoses.

The Hospital

1. Your first time "waking up". How do you react to it? Firm denial? Or does it maybe make a little too much sense?

2. Time to meet your friends. Or are they? Are these really the people you know and love, or are they just the templates you used to imagine your friends?

3. Time to go exploring. That huge corporation that's been haunting your every move? Yeah, that's the cafeteria. Fortress of Solitude? Blanket fort. At least it's still pretty kickass.

4. Time to talk to your doctor! Maybe, between the two of you, you can work out a solution for your, er, problems.

5. Time to see your loved ones. Is someone dead in your reality but alive here? Maybe that person you've always had your eye on but never reciprocated is actually your spouse? Every Cuckoo Nest needs a Lotus-Eater Machine thrown in.

Reality(?)

6. Well, you're back. Everything's fine, right? But it's a little hard to shake that feeling that maybe this isn't quite.... real.

7. Your friends are starting to notice you're acting detached, weird. How are you going to explain this?

8. Maybe you should go do a little soul-searching, try to figure things out. No one will mind if you disappear from your responsibilities without explanation, right?

In-Between

9. You're starting to flash between realities now. Talking to friends, talking to your therapist... everything's starting to get muddled. How well are you keeping everything straight? Or are you at all?

10. It's now or never. You have to do something drastic to let go of this reality and make the leap to the really real one. How do you do it? And which one do you choose?

Comments

Thor | MCU | open

[draperies]

[Particularly interested in:

Hospital: 2, 3, 5
Reality: 6, 7
In-between: 9, 10.]

Re: Thor | MCU | open

[incrediblebanner]

[ooc: Want Bryce as a doctor or fellow patient who shares his delusions of being an Avenger?]

Dean Winchester|Supernatural|OTA

[impala_is_my_baby]

[no preferences~]

Bryce Banner | AU!MCU | OTA.

[incrediblebanner]

Bryce Banner. Self-committed 5 years ago after claiming to have blacked out and blindly attacked several unknowns in her path. Suicidal depression, PTSD stemming from childhood trauma, dissociative identity disorder. Claims to turn into a monster she calls "the Hulk" when angry.

[ooc: I just really love this trope okay.]

[shehasheart]

[[Any interest in a 63!Clint? I had a couple of ideas -- either 3 with both of them waking up here and being told the Avengers thing was all a lie; or 2 with one of them already being in the hospital and the other convinced they're superheroes (I'm okay with either of them being either role)? Could also maybe go for 7 with one of them noticing something wrong (also okay with either of them being either role) instead?]]

Gentleman Ghost | Batman BatB

[suaveandspectral]

[The obligatory 'weird thing happening at supposedly normal hospital' entity. May be floating about the halls flickering the lights or haunting you in particular.]

Aden Corso | Stargate SG-1

[adencorso]

Jaime Reyes | DC Comics

[khajidatass]

he's got a potentially-homicidal little voice in his head; he's already canonically closer to the nuthouse than most people

Floyd Lawton, aka "Deadshot" | Pre-nu!52 DCU, after Secret Six #36

[goodbadimthguywiththgun]

((House Party at Arkham Asylum, anyone?

If not, I am up for anything at any old bedlam.))

Claudia Donovan | Warehouse 13

[strippernameserendipity]

Canon had her committed after she claimed her dead brother started dropping by to visit. She's also one of those crazy-genius types who shouldn't be left unsupervised lest she turn a lamp into a taser.

Any scenarios can apply

Reno // FFVII Compilation // OTA

[shinra_dog]

Rossiu Adai | Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

[genreswitch]

[Rossiu Adai was committed by his godfather after his widowed mother disappeared without any explanation or any hint of where she might have gone. The boy, who was very young at the time, claimed that she had been chosen by the gods to ascend because there could be no more than fifty people in his (admittedly very tiny) town.

He's been diagnosed with catatonic schizophrenia and anorexia, since he often fades into catatonic states where he talks about giant robots and deserts and beastmen, and when he 'wakes' from these states, he refuses any medication and will actively avoid eating the food, though he has yet to tell one of his doctors why.]

[oblivious_klutz]

[Colette was brought in by her father after talk of being 'Chosen', needing to go on some Journey once she turned sixteen. Her teacher, Raine, and the priests were the main ones she confided in about it, about the end of said Journey requiring her sacrifice.

As such, most seem to think she is delusional. Making up this life and 'magic' and stories about angels. She claims to not really taste any food and doesn't sleep much. Not eating or resting is obviously taking its toll.

She ends up seated next to Rossiu in the cafeteria one day at lunch, noticing he doesn't seem to be eating either.]

You're not hungry either?

Loki Laufeyson | MCU | no smut

[you_have_heart]

4~ + TL;DR

[bifroster]

[Jane didn’t know what was going on.

It was all getting so confusing… What was real? What was some sort of twisted illusion? She knew that her name was Jane and she was a clever person—but clever was different from tricky, manipulative, or diabolical. It was very different. So, she was not sure or not if her doctor, Loki, was up to something or not. Even if he were, what would he be planning? What would his motives be? What would the benefits be?

Why would he want to keep her trapped in a never-ending maze of white rooms?

Looking at the clock, she saw that it was a few minutes before he would come in for another session with her. Tick-tock. Taking in a deep breath, she tried to focus. The medicines always made her feel odd and dizzy, and took away much of her concentration. When they wore off, they left her panicking and wanting to get to the outdoors to see the stars. She hoped to convince him to take her off of them. She didn’t need them.

She knew that Thor was real—that there were bridges to other dimensions, and that she could get to them if given enough resources and time to figure out the math and science. She just wasn’t going to say it out loud to the wrong people anymore.

Science is magic explained, Loki would hear her muttering to herself when he came in.]

France || Hetalia || OTA

[voulezvouscoucheravecmoi]

[OMGOMGOMG um-

It's going to take him a LONG time to come to grips with the "fact" that he's not a nation-

Sooo I'm going to say- In Between, 9.

Diagnosis:

Patient Francis Bonnefoy - extreme delusional. Believes that he and people around him personified nations, likely due to believing in stereotypical natures. Frequent bouts of narcissism and egoism. Detailed fabricated memories, responds violently when exposed to the truth.]

Robin | Young Justice | OTA

[unwhelmed]

His was a story that probably couldn't have ended any other way. His parents were brutally killed in a horrible performance accident. He'd been adopted by a man with far more wealth than time for his troubled new charge. It was only natural that the boy would find solace in fantasy. He'd invented an alternate reality, a "bat man" who fought for justice and defeated evil men who would create more orphans. As the fiction grew, so did the boy's immersion in it. He believed himself to be the bat man's sidekick, a child companion who dodged death every night.

Clearly, he'd been driven mad with grief and became horribly disconnected from reality. The poor boy had become a danger to himself and others. He needed to be locked up for the greater good, at least until he could be properly treated.

[OOC: Opener recycled from a previous asylum meme. It could branch out into different directions:
. Maybe Dick is suffering from legitimate mental illness. Can your character help him touch base with the real world?
. Perhaps Batman's secret has been exposed and both Bruce and Dick were dropped into Arkham with the rest of the costumed lunatics. It'll probably make mealtimes with the other inmates terribly awkward...
. Or maybe it's all a lie. Maybe someone's captured superheroes and pumped them with enough sedatives to keep them on the brink of confusion. Can a healthy person be conditioned to believe his reality isn't as real as he thinks it is? And once the doubt is placed, what kind of "real life" will replace it?]

ooc

[creepinacup]

Would you like to play out that last scenario? It is highly possible that Robin and Batman got in Byakuran's way and he is having fun with them instead of just killing them off.

River Song | Doctor Who | OTA

[riverborntorun]

[Angst angst angst.

River will refuse to believe that The Doctor is simply a myth she made up to cope with being kidnapped as a child and held hostage for many years. Her charts will say she was first institutionalized at 17 and has been in and out of the facility for years. They have to keep a hard watch on her, as she's clearly nowhere near "rehabilitation" and will likely try to break out.]

Opposed to an AU!Master? How about a very dubious 2?

[without_thatnoise]

[oh, this one's not buying it, either, and he's been staying as sharp as he possibly can, looking for anyone who might be just as resistant.

River might notice he's been smoothly sleight-of-hand palming his meds for the past week or so. they flush nicely in the WC after breakfast, after all, and it's so very easy to pull one over on some of these attendants.

it doesn't mean he won't still pick at whatever they consider breakfast in this place, though. even if he's still not happy about it.]

Mukuro Rokudo | Katekyo Hitman Reborn | OTA

[serpente]

[ Man, it's been a long time since I posted here, Bakerstreet.

This guy had never been quite right in the head to begin with due to a past of child experimentation. There's lots of potential here with him so I'll list out the 'problems' he could have for this meme:

+ Frequently hallucinates, believes (ironically) that he can make OTHER people see things. Also claims to be able to hear other people's voices in his head. Namely that of a girl called 'Chrome'.

+ Extreme paranoia regarding hospitals and similar environments, possibly due to early childhood trauma that he has somehow adapted into a belief that doctors/nurses are trying to turn him into a human weapon. Not helped by the fact that he's been in the asylum for at least a decade.

+ Believes that he IS a human weapon.

As for reasons why he's in the asylum - most likely he was committed here because he went on a slaughter spree when he was just 15, was eventually captured and detained following the incident, written off as someone needing serious psychiatric treatment, and has since been here for the past 10 years.

Open to pretty much any scenario. Let me know if you want me to set up the scene! ]

[dolleyedeath]

[OOC: I don't know this canon and I don't know if you know Another, but from your description it seems like this character and yours could have some interesting interactions in this meme. How does me starting with the first scenario sound? I'll jump in next comment; I just wanted to make sure this was okay with you or if you had any other ideas!]

Emma Swan / OUAT / OTA

[onceuponaswan]

Committed since she was thirteen, Emma Swan had believed her life to be a fairy tale. Living in a world of fantasy, it has been determined that her diagnosis is mental anguish and deterioration. Abandonment, moderate temper, and has a severe allergy to apples.

Lavi-D.gray-man Au

[sparslywritten]

[Well, having 48 or is it 49? Different personalities, though most were just fake IDs really, would probably get someone incarcerated right?

Especially if at least one of those liked being...rough with people and at least one enjoyed being an ass.]

Kain Highwind | Final Fantasy IV / Dissidia 012

[dragoon_pride]

[Committed because of his mental weaknesses, especially his tendency to turn into a "Dark" self, basically an evil personality separate from his own (his repressed desires, etc, usually come out here). Kain is also a victim of mind control/brainwashing, something he's never quite recovered from. I'd be up for taking it to some extreme where these problems just made him totally lose touch with reality/sanity.]

[Especially interested in Hospital prompts!]

Charles Xavier | post-xmfc, dofp | ota

[we_can_coexist]

[ ooc | I soooooo wanna snicker right now but that'd be too terrible of me. erik, this is all your fault, you asshole. ]

Meg Masters | Supernatural | Castmates 2, 3, 5, 8, 10

[putuporshutup]

((OOC: Obviously she's in for being a schizophrenic murdering psychopath who thinks she's possessed by a demon. What else?))

[Meg shuffles slowly into the day room, groggy from her usual cocktail of whatever-the-fuck. Familiar faces dot the room, but she's not really too happy with any of them right now. Or was that a dream? Whatever. She still glares at them as she passes by. Just 'cause, that's why.

Who the hell knows anymore, anyway?

She sits down at a table by herself and rakes her fingers through the dark, wavy mess of bedhead, staring absently out the window.]

2

[ramble_on]

[He's here because he's hunting something.

That's the only explanation. He can't remember what he's hunting (probably because of the drugs, they slow him down, dull his mind, make it hard for him to focus), but knows it's out there. Officially, they have him down as delusional, because he must've talked in his sleep or while they had him heavily medicated — there's no way in hell he'd have brought any of it up otherwise. They won't stop asking him questions about how he "thinks" he's hunting, how he "believes" he has a brother, and they keep telling him he needs to face reality so he can get better.

He has all the exits memorized, has picked out the biggest threats to his planned escape. He's going to get out of here and find Sam the first chance he gets. Until then, he just has to bide his time.

And he's waiting for the perfect moment, until art therapy is canceled one day and instead, they shuffle him in with the day room crowd, where he sees a familiar face.

Of all the demons that could be lurking around here, Dean's a little lucky it's her, but it doesn't stop him from being irritated — why is she playing patient when she can just as easily play doctor and do something?

And where's Sam?

He goes straight to her, and doesn't bother with greetings.]

Ditch the cover. Why the hell are you here if you're not gonna be useful?

Castiel | Supernatural | OTA

[betterthisway]

((ooc: no scenario preferences, anything goes))

Jimmy Novak, mid-thirties, only responds to 'Castiel' or 'Cas'.

Committed because he believes himself to be an angel sent to earth, who has possessed Jimmy Novak (deceased in the mean time) and currently experiences hallucinations of Lucifer, coupled with an ever weakening grip on any level of reality. He thinks demons, angels and other creatures are real, but also loses himself in further delusions that his 'hallucinations' plague him with.

2

[putuporshutup]

[Meg is busy scowling at nothing out the window, lost in her own muddled, muted thoughts. She'd love nothing better to throw half the people in the day room up against the wall and choke the life out of them with her mind, but that was the kind of thought that she had learned to keep to herself. It's their fault she's here. She'd love to, do it, really, she would - she just can't. It's the meds fucking with her. Must be.

When he - goddamn pansy ass fuck-up angel - floats past her like he hasn't got a care in the world, she just glares. It's a lot less menacing with the glazed over look of somebody who's been drugged to hell and back, but the unadulterated rage was there.

It was his fault. She stuck her neck out to watch over him, and what did that get her? A one way ticket into the room next door.

Meanwhile, he's wandering around like the naked guy at the rave, rambling about mundane shit like -- yup, there he goes, again, she can hear him across the room. Always with the goddamn bees. Seriously. Who the fuck even cares.]

For the last time, shut up, Cas.

Jimmy Novak | Supernatural | OTA

[empty_vessel]

[OOC: I'm good with anything, but the Hospital or the In-Between are preferred.]

Trevor Philips ☠ Grand Theft Auto V ☠ OTA

[confidenemini]

[ It'd be easier to list reasons why Trevor wouldn't be committed. ]

Cloud Strife / FFVII(Dissidia-verse)

[losthere]

ota with leaning toward Reality or In-Between.

diagnosis: amnesia, physical and mental trauma, medical phobia, social avoidance

Old Snake | Metal Gear Solid 4

[imthe_shit]

[ Being in the hospital would be pretty interesting. ]