riverviewlogs | introductory mingle: FLOWER FESTIVAL

Entry tags:

introductory mingle: FLOWER FESTIVAL

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: Introductory Log and Flower Festival Celebration
when: April 2nd - April 15th
where: In several different locations in the downtown area of the Inhabited City.
warnings: please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

flower festival

In the days leading up to April 2nd, residents new and old may notice advertising around the city, everywhere from digital screens to paper flyers pasted on blank walls, all advertising an upcoming holiday: The Flower Festival. Celebrating springtime, beauty, joy, and togetherness, the festival heavily features floral themes and dancing. The advertising mentions that on April 10th, a paid holiday, there will be a Blossom Picnic, as well as lists of various public dances at clubs or other open venues, and adult raves.

a celebration of spring

The Flower Festival's main event is the Blossom Picnic on April 10th, but it also features traditions of sharing food and drink, and dancing that span over the course of the whole two weeks. There are a large variety of events going on throughout the city, from dancing lessons in any wide variety of traditional dances, to old-fashioned sock hops, to adult raves complete with mild party drugs. Feel free to use the prompts below or create your own event at any point during the festival, and if your character creates an event and hosts it in a top-level, you can submit that thread for extra bonus points.

i. blossom picnic

The main event that kicks off the second week of the Flower Festival is the Blossom Picnic on April 10th. A relaxed and low-key event, it draws several thousand people every year to the spacious Riverview Central Park, where there is a generous lawn lined with various blossoming trees, and families, found families, lovers, and groups of friends are encouraged to lay out a picnic blanket and share food. There will be live bands playing (but not loudly enough to distract from conversation and peacefully watching the petals flutter in the wind), a variety of demonstrations of traditional cultural dances from many different realities and planets, and a ton of ice cream vendors. This is an excellent festival not only for celebrating togetherness with the people who are already important, but for mingling and making new friends.

Characters may either pack their own lunches or they can purchase pre-packed Blossom Festival lunches. Stores and street markets are carrying a wide variety of specialty food that is only available at this time of year - predominantly pastries, an assortment of types of candies, and ice cream treats all in various floral flavors, as well as a sort of ambrosia salad based around a sweet rose-flavored cream and a native fruit that is bright green and tastes like a combination of peach and citrus.

ii. dancing lessons

Starting on April 2nd, there will be dancing lessons offered almost everywhere you look! From partner dances to group dances to line dances; sexy and sensual or innocent and childlike - almost any type of dance you can imagine is represented, from any reality or planet that has people in Riverview Quarantine.

Additionally, the Riverview Central Community Center has multiple rooms blocked off so anyone who knows a dance from home can teach it to others in their community - sharing is caring, after all. Characters are welcome to block off one of these rooms and offer lessons in any dance they happen to know from home (and these sorts of thread starters would be eligible for the mingle AC Point bonus)!

iii. flower festival dancing

This is pretty simply what it says on the tin - in almost every club, community center, or other public space, there will be dancing at almost all hours of the day or night, formal and informal. Musicians bring out their instruments and play in the street for demonstrations of cultural dances and music at the same time as clubs are offering VIP cover charges for exclusive dances, and you can find anything in between.

There are also many low-cover-charge raves that allow under-18s so younger characters can stay up all night and dance like crazy. The legal drinking age in Riverview Quarantine is 14, and so anyone over 14 can enter and indulge in a few drinks, dancing, and playing tag with a non-intoxicating version of the colored powder featured at the adult raves. There is copious amounts of security on site to ensure that everyone is safe, as well as nurses and off-duty police officers to offer advice or care for anyone who overindulges out of lack of experience.

Grab a partner, a group of friends, or just cruise and mingle the various dancing events.

Characters may also notice that most of the street markets and clothing shops are offering clothing that features floral patterns, flowers as accessories, and that show a lot of skin - for men, women, and anyone in between!

iv. adult raves

Advertised on flyers and digital screens around the city, made to pop as if they were under blacklight, is a series of adult raves that are happening in various large empty warehouse spaces around the city, including one that is listed as the danger rave and hosted in an abandoned factory outside the inhabited city walls. With bouncers at the door to ensure that anyone entering is 18+, the raves are comfortably adult in nature. Clothing is optional, showing skin is encouraged, and there are a lot of neatly tucked away spaces for attendees to get some time alone with one or more than one person, as well as spaces intended for orgies. The atmosphere is sex-positive and non-judgemental, open to any orientation or preference, with various forms of protection available for free, however, to ensure that everyone plays safe there are sober security teams out en masse at all premises to oversee the events.

(CW: DRUG USE) In each location, there is one specific room where attendees can enter, and dance or play tag with brightly colored powder that contains small amounts of a legal party drug commonly available in Riverview, which is absorbed through the skin. Not much more intoxicating than having a few beers, the effects of the drug are a pleasant low-key buzzing euphoria, positive sensitivity to touch, a heightening of desires for intimacy, and a mild lowering of inhibitions. Once a character has been hit with the powder, the color lingers on the skin so other attendees can know who has partaken, but once the powder makes contact with a surface it deactivates, meaning that partakers can safely dance with non-partakers without sharing the intoxicating effects.

Please be sure to warn in subject lines for any threads involving drug use. And remember, there is always security to intervene and make sure everyone is safe.

v. roommates or wildcard

Feel free to use this prompt to set up headers for a communal floor, or threads open to roommates for the purpose of getting to know each other. Or if you have an idea for a prompt that isn't in this list, set at the Flower Festival, feel free to write it up!

visual inspiration

click on thumbnails for larger view

Credit: third image by Steve Goad; other images found on uncredited on Pinterest or Google images - please let the mod know if you find credit!

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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Jim has much the same plan in mind as Kaneki. Well, he does get his face stuffed in all the delicious food the stands here have to offer first, but after a while of walking around, chatting and watching people, he makes his way towards the same tree where Kaneki's settled himself, taking a seat a small distance from him, leaning back against the trunk as he opens up his own book.

Eventually curiosity has him glancing over, peering into the pages of Kaneki's book, but at least he has the decency to look apologetic when the guy realizes he's staring and looks back at him. ]

Sorry. Didn't mean to pry.

[ kaneki doesn't notice Jim at first, but when there is a presence nearby for a bit longer than just someone passing by, he lifts his eye (one of them is covered by an eyepatch) from the book to look at the man.

With a smile, he shakes his head ]

it's alright.

It's a book about plants. [ he shows him the cover ] I grabbed it without knowing what it was about, though.

I do that too, sometimes. Makes for an exciting surprise.

[ Not always, granted, but often enough for Jim to keep doing it. Besides, even the more boring books are still books and he loves them.

He turns his own towards Kaneki, showing him the cover. ] Poetry. How are you liking yours?

[ it's a good thing Kaneki likes all sort of books too. That means no matter what he picks he ends up enjoying it. ]

It's... strange. A lot of these plants are alien and I've never even heard of them. [ naturally ] I hope your poetry book is less puzzling.

Is it good?

At least you're learning about something new. Sounds pretty interesting to me.

[ Jim's pretty much the same, though. He likes all kinds of books so it would take a lot for him to get disappointed when he picks something at random. ]

It is, yes. Not an author I've heard about before, so it makes for a pretty interesting read. And a good opportunity to learn about other races and worlds' literary creations.

That's true. Everyone has to start somewhere. [ learning. Kaneki wishes he didn't have to, but he realizes that he might be staying here for a while and it's important to get to know the place and everything in it properly. ]

I work at the library so I'll look up poetry after. It also seems like a good place to start.

[ and with a polite nod, Kaneki finally introduces himself ] I'm Kaneki. I've just arrived, a few days ago.

[ Even if they don't end up staying here that long, Jim still thinks it's important to learn as much as he can about the place. Then again, that is part of his job as a Starfleet officer. Exploring strange new worlds— he's pretty sure a colony on a moon in an alternate reality counts as both strange and new. ]

Me too. I'm Jim. [ Since Kaneki doesn't offer a hand, he figures he's not the kind and doesn't do it either. ]

Well, if you work at the library we should see plenty of each other. [ He leans in a bit like he's sharing some kind of secret. ] I've got a thing for books, and they're practically nonexistent where I come from.

[ hand shaking is really something Kaneki doesn't know if he should do here. There are many people from many different places and worlds, a lot of cultural clashing, and he doesn't want to look like an idiot assuming a handshake is normal.

But book talk seems to be something they share in common and listening there are no books where Jim is from leaves Kaneki a bit surprised ] Really? Why?

I think books are important - very! How come your world doesn't make them?

[ Pretty much the same assumption Jim is trying to avoid here. He's had people asking outright if he's a handshaker, but for the most part people either offer their hand or they don't, and Jim responds accordingly.

Either way, the guy seems nice enough, so it's a wholly unnecessary step Jim doesn't mind skipping in the least. ]

Oh, we do have publications, they're just not printed onto paper. Electronic books, exclusively. Printed books are extremely rare, and they either come from other planets or they're at least a couple decades old. Sometimes both.

Ah- [ he nods softly ] We have the eBooks, which are electronic. We also have audio books, which is basically someone reading the book to us. [ with a tiny smile, Kaneki shakes his head ]

I don't think it's the same. There's something about holding a book in your hand and the act of physically turning a page that, for me at least, can't be matched with with a screen. It's nostalgic, and it's like having artwork by one of my favorite artists on the wall.

[ Kaneki has Feelings about books.

And he realizes that. With a tiny awkward smile, he shakes his head ] Not everyone agrees, I just love them. The weight and the smell, and flipping the pages.

Oh, yeah. We have that, too. Not quite as popular as eBooks.

[ Jim smiles at the description, though, nodding slowly and waiting for Kaneki to finish before speaking up. ]

I do, for what it's worth. Agree with you. Practical though they may be, they're not the same. Nothing can compare to holding an actual book when you're reading, touching an actual page. The texture of the printed letters... and God, that old book smell. I love it.

[ Spoiler: he's a huge nerd. ]

Right? [ oh boy HE IS EXCITED . NERDS UNITE ]

Old books feel so... magical. Like they have so secret inside I can't wait to read. The scent is a plus. [ and the funny thing is that Kaneki just forgot he actually can't smell it anymore. it's still so deep within his memory that it doesn't cross his mind that every book he now picks up smells pretty dull. All he really has is the memory from before. ]

What genres are you into?

Exactly! That's how I feel, too. Every book is a secret for me to unveil. An adventure waiting to happen.

[ Most people don't get it, where he comes from. So it's a really pleasant surprise to meet someone who not only doesn't look at him like he's some weirdo, but also shares this view with him. ]

Oh— anything, really. I love reading about anything. But fiction is great. I have so much fun reading about adventures and fantasy... but, you know, I keep an open mind. [ He lifts his poetry book as if to emphasize that. ] What about you?

[ kaneki nods. He doesn't read much adventure or fantasy, actually. The kind of books he reads are difficult to some, or even just downright incomprehensible at times (Kafka comes to mind, not many understand his style).

But what Kaneki truly and really likes is: ]

Well... psychological thrillers and horror. It's not a style many would call their "favorite", but I enjoy reading what goes through the mind of the characters.

[ Luckily Jim enjoys a lot of genres, so he doesn't wave off Kaneki's pick so easily. He nods a little, looking more interested than anything. ]

I like those, too. I'm not much of a connoisseur, though, admittedly. What are some of your favorite titles?

I like Kafka's works a lot - "Metamorphosis" or his short stories. [ he is an international author, hence why he mentions him first. ]

But my favorite author is called Takatsuki Sen. I love all of her books, but I'm in love with "The Black Goat's egg". [ he wonders if it exists in this place. The library is huge, but would they even have books from other worlds? ]

I know Kafka. I've read his novels, and some of his short stories, too.

[ He doesn't recognize the other name, though, which Kaneki can likely tell from the look on his face alone. ]

I've never heard of Takatsuki Sen, though. Is she very famous where you're from?

[ he nods ] Nationally, at least. Though some of her short stories were also released in some Western countries. [ he thinks for a second ] She is very popular, and she became known very fast because of her talent.

[ he thought she'd be known everywhere, actually ] Maybe I'm just biased because she's my favorite?

Might be so. Or it might just be that I'm from too far into your future.

[ Jim shrugs, though. ] There must be something to her work. If you like it so much, then others probably do too. So she must be talented to some degree, if her books are so captivating.

Oh- what year are you from? [ Kaneki didn't expect people from a future time. Certainly he has heard of aliens and spaceships, but they never spoke dates before ]

But I think she is, yes. Her most famous book is called "The Black Goat's Egg". The story centers around the relationship between a son and a mother, a brutal serial killer known as the "Black Goat". It's very graphic but explores the protagonist's mental state with a very soft and almost gentle approach, so the contrast is made beautifully.[ he is nerding again, oops ]

Maybe I can find it on the library here. It's really huge, and maybe they have books from different worlds.

2263. I'm guessing that's nowhere in the vicinity of the date you come from.

[ Seems to be the norm around here, at least among those that come from Earth or some variation of it. While Jim does have some cultural knowledge from centuries past, some things still slip past him, and some details still throw him for a loop. ]

If you do find it, let me know. No harm in giving it a try, at least.

Wo...woah. [ KANEKI FEELS VERY SMALL NOW ] Uhm... I'm from 2012. [ Kirk, you old ] Wow, I'm surprised, really. That's very far into the future.

[ wait, it's probably NOT kaneki's future, but he can dream ] I wonder if your version of Earth would be our future or something of the sort. [ everything feels very Sci-fi right now, so it's not that strange for him to be thinking how worlds could be connected.

Still, kaneki smiles a little and nods ] I will. It will probably feel very antique to you, though.

[ Technically you're the one who's old, Kaneki. Ancient, actually. ]

250 years, give or take. Could be worse. You could not even know what a cellphone or a computer is, or be boggled by the mere concept of starships.

[ Most people so far seem to understand what Jim's talking about when he mentions deep space travel, though. Even Peggy, who's come from some fifty years before Kaneki himself, could immediately understand him when he mentioned starships. ]

Just a bit. But it's fine, I'm a big fan of antiques. Late 20th and early 21st century culture is a favorite of mine.

[ ~~so far into the future and weebos still exist, it's amazing.~~

Kaneki chuckles a bit amused. yes, it's true, he could be from an even earlier point in time, and that would make things even harder and probably weirder for him. At least he knows enough to figure out how the communicator and life in general work here. ]

I'm right in the middle of that, then-

though culture changes a lot from country to country. [ Jim probably knows that ] Though in this place it'll be like mash-up of everything.

Culture changes a lot from planet to planet, actually. [ A slight adjustment. Kaneki's not wrong, of course— Jim's just used to thinking on a larger scale, is all. ]

Earth is a mash-up of everything too, where I come from. All in all it's pretty nice, though. Not such a bad thing here either.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

introductory mingle: FLOWER FESTIVAL

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