introductory mingle: carnivale

[riverviewmod]

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: Introductory Log and Carnivale Celebration
when: July 1st - July 9th
where: Anywhere around the city.
warnings: please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

carnivale

In the days leading up to July 1st, residents new and old will notice preparations beginning, a flurry of activity getting the city ready for the upcoming celebration: Carnivale. This holiday is in celebration of music, and the onset of summer and warmer weather. The celebrations are marked by street parties, an extensive program of live musical performances, with a large parade (and paid holiday!) capping it off on July 8th.

celebrating music, and summer

After a couple of months of low-key or even solemn celebrations, it's time for Riverview Quarantine to throw a good, old-fashioned party. Carnivale is a city-wide festival that pretty much everyone gets into, and many residents take the entire week off so they can enjoy all the festivities. With events ranging from impromptu street parties, free live musical performances, food stands, themed club nights, adult lounges with kink shows, and topped off with a massive party parade, the holiday has a lot to offer for anyone who likes to sing, dance, and show some skin!

i. street parties and food

One of the staples of the Carnivale festival is the spontaneous street parties and food trucks and carts. It's not unusual during the holiday to turn a corner and run into a group of people dressed in bright colors and sequins having an impromptu party with a few drinks, and then be invited to join right in! Carnivale is a celebration of music as well as summer, so most shops and stalls will be blasting danceable music into the streets to facilitate these little street parties - it's considered a sign of good luck for the owner of a business if an impromptu Carnivale celebration starts up in front of their door.

Considering the proliferation of street parties and people out and about to celebrate the warmer weather, local business owners also take to the streets. Food carts, stands, and trucks pop up on almost every street corner offering a wide variety of food from savory treats to sweet desserts. Many of the carts are offering one free item to anyone dressed up for Carnivale - anything shimmery, shiny, or brightly colored will do!

ii. live musical performances

One of the major roads in the city center has been completely roped off for the entire week, and all along this street, various temporary stages have been set up, each with a nice hefty sound system. Volunteers hand out printed flyers, and digital boards are set up here and there with schedules of various performances that are all free to attend, ranging from well-known popular music artists to new up-and-comers or independent artists who are looking to make a name for themselves. This event is very widely advertised around the city, and is accepting entries until the very last minute.

At couple of the acts might be familiar faces to some of the residents.

Eichi Tenshouin has signed up himself and his friend Tsumugi Aoba into the music festival as a first-time appearing idol unit called "Higanbana." Dressed in all white with splashes of color (blue, largely, with only their headsets being a red spider lily), they carry a very commanding and angelic image together. They'll have a routine that emphasizes their great harmony with each other, taking turns doing solo lines and joining together to show off each of their talents. Singing and dancing, they interact heavily with the audience and will encourage a lot of involvement with speaking between songs and gestures, winks, and so on. Basically, they intend to make this Riverview's very first prominent "idol performance".

For his performance, Otabek Altin will start with rock remixes of a few popular pop songs. He wants to make sure that it starts off with recognizable pieces for some people, and he certainly thinks it is something that could get people excited even if they don't know it. Then, it shifts into a few original songs. They are upbeat, rock songs that he put together with the intention to make people dance and move, since he is a DJ. He'll end his set with a slower piece he put together that is also an original. Through the entire performance, he's focused and quiet, though he may occasionally try and excite the crowd with a few words.

Any other player-characters who are musically inclined are more than welcome to assume their character was fit in for a performance, and can post up a top-level with a rundown of their performance to get bonus Activity Points for posting a mingle!

iii. carnivale parade

The other main attraction of Carnivale week comes on July 8th, which is a paid holiday for everyone in the city. The Carnivale Parade will be starting out by City Hall and winding through downtown in a lazy pattern so everyone in the city has a chance to see it. There will be all sorts of floats, dancers, marching bands, with all sorts of clubs, businesses, and other organizations represented. The theme is theatrical, big and showy, bright and colorful, sparkly and shiny, with loud music and lots of glitz and glamour. Observers can expect great music, excellent dancing and marching shows, neat vehicles provided by classic car clubs, the fire, police, and Perimeter Guard. They can also expect a lot of party favors, whether it's a sparkly plastic beaded necklace, a fan to take the edge off the heat, candy, popsicles, a temporary tattoo, or any number of other little treats or toys to be tossed into the crowd - some of them fit for kids and teens, others of a more 'adult' nature handed out a bit more discreetly to anyone who looks the part.

And make sure you wear your waterproof mascara - Carnivale floats have a tendency of spraying or spritzing water, both in an unspoken competition to see who can make the biggest water-refraction rainbow in the air, and to keep observers cool in the new summer heat.

iv. adult: lounges and kink exhibition

Thanks to the Carnivale tradition of showing as much skin as possible, some event organizers' minds have turned to topics of a more adult nature. In the evenings, residents may see clubs doing "lounge nights"; these adults-only events have bouncers IDing everyone at the door to ensure they're 18+. The themes may vary, from very specific niche themes like 'golden age superheroes' to broad themes like 'rainbows,' and each event is clearly marked as what it is - all-nude or clothing-optional, and can host events ranging from amateur to professional exotic dancing, food served off of nude bodies, anonymous masked hookups, or just provide a comfortable space where casual sex is encouraged with whoever happens to be around. Various legal substances can be found at these lounges, but nothing that would cause violation of consent, and every substance would be clearly labeled and have warnings to ensure that no one partakes unless they choose to. Please be sure to warn in the subject line for sexual content or drug use (since some mild party drugs are legal in Riverview).

For the weekend from July 7th-9th, there will be a kink exhibition in one of the large exhibition centers downtown, limited to characters 18+. The exhibition is a sexy adult informational convention featuring various kinks and fetishes. Whether you're into leather, latex, lace, or anything else, you'll be able to find the clothes, toys, guides, books, erotica, fiction, and a wide variety of other interesting stuff to explore. While the atmosphere is sex-positive and there are private and public (for the voyeurs and exhibitionists in the room) venues for having sex, it's definitely focused on exploration and information about different stuff to try.

v. roommates or wildcard

Feel free to use this prompt to meet new roommates, for the purpose of getting to know each other, or hit up one of the mod-posted prompts for each Communal Floor. Or if you have an idea for a prompt that isn't in this list, set during Carnivale, feel free to write it up!

visual inspiration

click on thumbnails for larger view

Credit: image i: Roger Patterson Jr.; image ii: Syd Mead; image iii: screencap from the movie Paprika; image iv: siamon89

navigation

Comments

otabek altin; open

[bringbackgold]

i ; parties & food

[ At times when he's not performing - Rather than dressing in his typical black and greys, Otabek is wearing something a little bit more color. He has deep purple pants on. They have several details in the stitching of them. He's also sporting a tank with a colorful pattern coming up to his shoulder. It feels warmer, so he doesn't want to dress too dark or too heavy. Also, he understood that the outfits should be showy, but this was about as showy as he'd get. He's never been a fan for standing in a large crowd of people, but he's making his way through them, checking out the treats and listening to the music.

He is a fan of the music. Several times, he stops moving, takes in it the environment every so often. He won't dance, though. Not unless someone pretty forcibly drags him into it. He doesn't consider himself a good dancer. He would at least need alcohol in his system before trying. Every once in awhile, when a treat looks appealing, he stops, buys treat, and tries it. He is careful to pace himself about it, as he doesn't want to fill himself up on street food nor does he want to spend what he's budgeted out for this entirely on street food, either.

Still, he's pretty impressed by the food. A lot of it is new to him, after all. ]



ii ; performance - can snag him at any point before or after

[ While some nerves are present, Otabek definitely doesn't suffer from any form of stage freight. He's performed in front of large crowds for a chunk of his life, and he's chosen to be a performer. He definitely wouldn't have done this if he had thought that it would terrify him, after all. Still, despite it, before the show he's going through the set in his head. He's drumming out the beats with his fingers on his thigh, and going over each and every one of his carefully planned pieces. He had been working on some of the pieces since his time at home, and had to start over when he got here - but he feels they are better than his first tries.

The performance ends as quickly as it starts. It goes so smoothly, and exactly as he had hoped. He made sure to hit the slides at the right times, and everything was carefully planned. He was meticulous about his work, a careful perfectionist. He moved easily as he performed. Every action intentional. He looks up several times to his audience as he does. But they aren't here really for him he knows, they're here for the music.

After he is getting time to interact with those who might be nearest to the stage. His skills as a performer are far superior to any of his social skills. So he keeps the conversations short, to the point, and answers any questions that may be asked of him. After a few moments, though, this is enough, and he takes steps towards the back of the stage and hops down, making his way away so that he can go out and talk to people instead. ]



iii ; parade

[ He's more there incidentally, than intentionally. This seems to be the place to be at the time. He hangs near the back and sort of watches it. He likes what he sees, really. He never much had time for things like this growing up, so all of this is so new to him. Hanging near the back lets him see a lot of things, but it also keeps him out of the most crowded part where he's stuck shoulder-to-shoulder with someone, so he's comfortable here. He considers finding another place to check out the parade, maybe a place where there weren't so many people taller than him and in the way. He takes a step back and nearly steps into someone ]

I'm sorry.



v; wildcard

[ come at me! Any questions? Message me or on plurk agalio ]

iii

[notasaviour]

[He's honestly more worried about people walking into him than being walked into, and he's been trying to be good about paying attention to people. It's a little difficult when he's also trying to watch the floats.

He's just about quick enough to step back, though, before Otabek walks into him, making a short surprised noise.]

Ah-

[He's just lucky that there's no-one behind him, honestly. But it's busy, and he did expect a few accidents, so he can give a fairly genuine apologetic smile.]

No, it's okay. I should have been paying more attention.

[bringbackgold]

[ He jumps away. His reflexes are fast, so he's able to stop himself from taking that additional step. He turns a little to see who he had bumped into and... looks up. He blinks a little bit. He's not sure why the other is trying to take the blame for this. Clearly Otabek had walked into him... ]

It's not your fault. It was me.

[ He's awkward. He nods down the road. ]

It is pretty crowded, though.

[ Or at least crowded enough that he shouldn't be surprised he walked into someone. ]

[notasaviour]

[He's honestly just used to apologising, especially when people walking into him usually don't find it a very pleasant experience. Even in human form, he doesn't give that much.]

Maybe we can both take half the blame? That way we don't need to keep apologising...

[Even he can tell when a conversation might get a little circular.]

Right? I know I haven't been here that long, but- are there really this many people here?

[bringbackgold]

[ Heh. Awkward. He nods - agreeing to stop apologizing since they're sharing the blame. He nods, taking a look around. ]

It seems like it. It surprises me.

[ He takes a look behind him for a moment, observing the crowd. He's not a huge fan of crowds, but this parade seems to at least be worth the entertainment. ]

I guess everyone comes out for these events.

[ Even...those like himself that would not typically do things like this. ]

[notasaviour]

[Teddy doesn't mind crowds, although he prefers smaller groups of people, where it's much easier to feel part of something. He's actually much less comfortable with the spotlight.]

...It's kind of nice, though, to see everyone want to be part of something.

[He shrugs, a small uncertain gesture he's not even aware he's making.]

At least it's a pretty happy something, too, although I'm not sure about what some of the floats are handing out.

[bringbackgold]

[ On the contrary, Otabek doesn't mind the spotlight. As long as it's for the right reasons. Negative attention was never wanted. Still, this was an interesting time. One could get a lot of people watching done at an event like this. ]

It is nice.

[ He agrees. Everyone does seem to comfortably fit in here. It seems like it's really easy to just fall into the crowd and become a part of it. ]

I'm okay without whatever they're handing out.

[ He's also okay with not getting sprayed by water while in his clothes. ]

Though the floats are interesting enough without the... treats.

[ For lack of a better word. ]

[notasaviour]

[Teddy's accumulated a pocketful of some of the more innocent offerings, and a couple of shiny necklaces just for show. Everyone else seems to be wearing them, so why not, right?]

It's nice to have a couple of souvenirs, though- of the clean stuff, anyway.

[He turns to look at the parade again.]

The floats are pretty cool. Wonder how long it took them to build?

[bringbackgold]

[ He's opted to leave even the clean things alone. Everything seems hectic, and with his luck, he's bound to pick up something not - and he definitely wouldn't want that. He turns towards the floats when Teddy's question is in it. ]

It feels like it should take months to build them, doesn't it?

[ But it probably didn't take that long. They probably devoted all of their time and energy to it over a few weeks. ]

ii.

[porkling]

(It wasn't shocking to think that Yuuri could appreciate music in all forms. He was drawn to where the loudest of the music was coming from and when he looked to the stage, he instinctively froze. He had had a couple shots at this point but was still sober enough to blink his eyes hard and question if he was really seeing correctly.

That was Otabek Altin.

He was almost one hundred percent positive that that was Otabek Altin. He barely knew the guy personally but he knew him well enough professionally. It sparked some hope inside of him and he wedged himself through the crowd to get as close as he could to the stage. He'd wait as long as he had to. This was the first familiar face he had seen and that tangle of nerves he had been trying to swallow around for the past hour suddenly felt a teensy bit smaller.

It isn't until Otabek hops off the stage that Yuuri makes his move. He reaches out quick, not wanting to lose him in the crowd.)

Otabek? Otabek Altin? (His voice was only a little desperate.)

(ooc: Hey there! I figured I'd let you know that I dragged Yuuri in from episode seven before he puts on his routine after his whole break down so he might not be wholly familiar with Otabek as he might be later on in the show.)

[bringbackgold]

[ Otabek heard his voice before he saw him. But it was unmistakable. It was a moment of whiplash for him. He could have sworn that Yuuri had left... He hesitates a moment, and he looks skeptical. His expression shifts from his usual severe expression, and into one of confusion. He steps towards the skater. He didn't think they knew each other well, of course, but it is nice to see him again.

He steps around, gets in closer to Yuri, and nods up towards him. ]

Yuuri?

[ There's confusion in his tone, too. ]

You're here?

[porkling]

I should be saying that to you.

(Especially considering Otabek had just performed. Yuuri was far from stupid. That had to mean that Otabek had been here for long enough that he had set something up for a performance.)

I...just got here. Last night about. (His voice faded out for a moment, a frown resting on his face. While they had answered plenty of his questions, Yuuri was still a bit overwhelmed by all of this. He was trying to not let it show too much.)

Is it just you that's here? (What Yuuri's really asking is if Viktor was here too. But he also would like to know if any of his other friends were around. Phichit. Guang Hong. Even Yuri.)

[bringbackgold]

Just Yuri and I.

[ Wait. He tilts his head, the confusion still there. One eyebrow raises. If he just got here last night - he isn't the Yuuri that Otabek knew from before. This would be something new to get used to from this place. He wasn't sure what he was expecting, but not this. So, after a few moments where he's quiet - he finally asks. ]

What's the last thing you remember?

[ It's a curious question, really. He mostly just wants to know what Yuuri knows. Not that he'd be shy about sharing what he knows, too. ]

[porkling]

Yuri's here. (Yuuri relaxes for all of a nanosecond before it dawns on him what that means. Viktor isn't here. He tries to fight off the frown from growing on his face. It was okay. Everything was fine.

The question surprises him partly and he has to remind himself that this isn't a normal situation.)

Ah. I was just about to perform my free skate during the Cup of China. Why?

[bringbackgold]

Ah. The Finals and Exhibition skates have ended for me.

[ He...leaves it at that. There's a lot to fill in and he feels like even if he tried to explain it, it'd make more sense experiencing it anyway. He considers, for a moment, telling Yuuri how it all ended up, but decides to only tell him if he asks. He might be better off not knowing. ]

Just, I understand it can be different.

[ And that's really why. ]