introductory mingle: FLOWER FESTIVAL

[riverviewmod]

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!

navigation

Comments

Mae Borowski / ota

[trashmammal]

i; been caught stealin

[This feels wrong.

It's supposed to be this big, fun thing, she knows. Get all the new people relaxed with food and music and flowers and dammit Mae you are supposed to be having fun what the hell is wrong with you? It's not her fault for not trying, but all this just reminds her of stuff from home, the old spring parade and Mallard P. Bloomingro in all his beaky glory. That, combined with the fact that she's in a big space full of people she's never met, means she is just not in a good way, and there are only a few things to help with this kind of mood.

Shoplifting just happens to be one of them.

She's been cruising around the market stalls for a few minutes now, waiting for an opening, until one of the cashiers is busy chatting up a customer. Sensing an opportunity, Mae leans in with all the grace and subtlty of a blind man looking for a light switch and snags a fake-ass tacky flower necklace from the side of the stall.]

Yoink!

[Hell. Yes. Flawless, absolutely flawless. She is truly a queen of thieves. Mae backs away, trying her best to disappear into the crowd before anybody notices this incredibly minor act of larceny.]

iii; dance like everybody's watching

[Screw it. Screw it! She is here and she is going to have fun, no matter what her stupid brain has to say about it. Take that, you wrinkly grey loser.]

Wooooo! Yeah!

[As much as it might look that way (and as tempting as it is), Mae hasn't actually had anything to drink yet. This is hells of uncomfortable, sure, but not enough to where she'd start putting a booze in her. Still, the lack of alchohol doesn't stop her from just absolutely dancing her freaking brains out. I mean, if you wanna call whatever she's doing with her arms "dancing". If you happen to get caught by her flailing limbs or accidentally booty-bumped out of nowhere, then that's your own fault.]

v; floormates

[Mae hasn't really gotten around to introducing herself to anyone yet. Really, the idea of shared housing is super weird, even after the tremendous nightmare that was college. So, anyone residing on the third floor (and probably on the adjacent floors too) would be understandably surprised by the sounds of obnoxiously loud doom metal being blared at hour-long intervals.

Anyone who bothers to track the noise down to its source will find Mae, laying facedown in bed and just generally looking like roadkill. She won't even notice anyone come in, remaining stationary the whole time and occasionally sitting up to fiddle with her laptop until someone actually bugs her.]

i.

[batbullets]

[The voice comes seemingly out of nowhere, right behind her.]

What is it with cats and stealing things?

[Sure, it was a completely small, innocent sort of thing to take, and Jason's definitely no boy scout himself, but still. They were in a new place, and he figures that some sort of order is important, right? It's not as though any place can actually become as bad as Gotham City was, because that would take a couple of centuries of corruption, but it's best to nip it in the bud now, right?]

Is it a species thing? Although, seriously? Kinda expected something a little more valuable.

[trashmammal]

Shit!

[That's all that slips out of Mae's mouth before she immediately bolts, fast as her legs can carry her. She doesn't even turn around to assert that she is not, in fact, a cat and why the hell do people keep making that connection anyway. No point in sticking around to get caught.]

Oh God oh God oh God oh God.

[It's panicked, but there's a laugh in her voice as she weaves clumsily through a forest of legs and waists, the plastic necklace still clutched tight in her hand. It's scary as hell, but in a fun sorta way, and she can't help herself.]

[batbullets]

[He grins as she starts to run. Didn't turn around to see who was talking to her or anything. Jason smirks to himself and takes off behind her, ducking and weaving through the crowd while keeping a track of the thief. Having lived in Gotham City for all of his life, reading the crowd to see how they're moving is a fairly easy feat, and he's able to weave through the crowd with minor incident.]

I can keep this up all afternoon, you know.

[trashmammal]

Nuh uh! You're never gonna catch me, copper!

[God, that was so lame. "Copper", really? Still, she can't really find it in herself to care. He's still right behind her, which is would be terrifying if she'd actually stolen anything that mattered. The crowd starts to thin out, enough that Mae can really pick up speed, and she takes a sharp left into a nearby alleyway, crappy leather boots skidding on the pavement.]

Aaaaahahaha!

[Okay now she actually is laughing, but can you blame her? It's so exciting!]

i.

[ikols]

He's noticed it's gone.

[ Arms folded, Loki leans against a wall like he might be engrossed in Netflix rather than the CRIME OF THE CENTURY!!! That's clearly what the feline thinks of it, so why not startle her with a bit of danger to keep things interesting? Even if he's lying, it's hard to see back through the crowd to the right stall. ]

[trashmammal]

[OH GEEZ

Mae jolts pretty visibly at the sound of his voice, but she doesn't run, especially since he doesn't seem all that interested in taking it back. Trying very hard to pretend she didn't nearly crap her pants just then, Mae shoves the necklace into her pocket in an extremely relaxed and cool way.]

And is he ever gonna know who took it? In this crowd? No. That's what makes it the perfect crime.

[ikols]

Unless he sees the picture of you on my phone, red-handed in such devious thievery.

[ Out of his pocket he waggles his Starkphone, slipping it away into secret depths of shadowthread. ]

What can you give me to keep quiet?

[trashmammal]

[She's this close to just laughing it off before the horrible truth dawns on her.]

Oh my God you're serious. [Mae immediately starts patting herself down, looking for something nice to bribe this dude with until she remembers that hey, she's got money now! Not a ton of money but enough to smooth this thing over, right?]

Okay, okay, okay! Iiiii could get you some ice cream! Will that cover it?

v

[smokedout]

[So the thing is? Dodger is on the floor above her, and she's making the floor shake. He's not even directly above her. And while they may share some taste in music, 3 AM is not the time for it.

So Mae gets the treat of him slamming his fist on her door, while he tries very hard to hold back from just breaking the door down and throwing her sound system and maybe Mae herself out of the window.]

[trashmammal]

[Okay so she never actually bothered to lock the door, much less close it, so it goes flying open as soon as fist meets wood. The sound of it probably would've been enough to get Mae's attention if she could actually hear it over the music. As it is, she just kinda keeps laying there, motionless, until she finally rolls over on her side and spots Dodger from across the room.]

Holy shit dude, you wanna try knocking next time. I could've been getting up to some stuff in here.

[Depending on how good is hearing is, Dodger prolly only manages to get like half of that.]

[smokedout]

[He's pretty good at hearing, which is really just making it worse that she's shouting and barely making it over the noise. So instead of trying to argue with her, he walks over and kicks whatever device the music's coming from until it shorts out.]

I'll pay for the expenses. [Or, just barely less than it's worth.] What the fuck are you doing in here?

[trashmammal]

[Aww hell no dude. She scrambles just in time to keep him from stomping the absolute hell out of the mini-speaker attached to her laptop, unplugging it in the process and, thankfully, bringing the volume down to slightly more reasonable levels. that done, she flops the remaining distance out of bed and onto the floor, not even bothering to sit up. Seems like too much effort at this point.] Music therapy. I have to expose myself to filthy bass riffs every 48 hours or I'll die. It's a serious condition

i.

[kuyamu]

[ unfortunately for Mae and her shoplifting nerves, she backs up directly into a hard wall of solid muscle, and a hand comes down on her head in the guise of steadying her balance.

Hanzo hadn't even intended to say anything when he saw her; minor theft is no concern of his, and he's hardly in a position to lecture anyone about bettering themselves in any regard. he would have ignored it and carried on. but. she did walk into him. ]

Are you so penniless?

[ he clearly doesn't mean this as a sincere question. at least he sounds more amused than anything. ]

[trashmammal]

[Her first thought, immediately, is "Oh shit, who put this dang wall here?" But then then the wall starts talking, which is not normally a thing walls do, and there's skin contact and that's enough to make her nearly jump a whole foot into the air from shock.]

Jeez!

[It takes a sec for Mae to collect herself and turn to see who just caught her red-handed. This is clearly a very Serious, No-Nonsense Man, so the best she can do is try and deflect a little.]

I don't think they even have pennies here. Like it's all just computer money. [Said in the most casual tone you can have when holding stolen goods]

[kuyamu]

Mm. [ he is unimpressed for sure. ] And you do not truly think that I meant the word literally.

[ the advantage of always looking severe by appearance alone is that Hanzo doesn't even have to try and be stern. he isn't; if his features weren't so sharp, he doubts this would be convincing at all. but he folds his thick arms and raises his eyebrows expectantly, and he knows full well that's all he has to do to seem intimidating. ]

Why steal a piece of cheap jewellery?

[trashmammal]

Why does anybody do anything? Can you ever really know someone's real motivations? What is the truth, anyway?! [She punctuates this by throwing her arms into the air, eyes wide.

And then immediately lets them back down, necklace still dangling loose in her grip. Goddammit, this isn't working. She could just run, sure, but that wouldn't help either of them. It'd just make her look even more suspicious, which is a feat in itself. Mae sighs and hangs her head low, defeated.]

Promise you won't call the cops if I tell you. [It doesn't cross her might that he might be a cop, because c'mon, just look at him. Unless that's how cops dress here. You can never tell with this dumb city.]

v

[morganknight]

[Actually, Morgan is several floors away routinely -- which may be why when he leans in the door, he's not scowling fiercely. Quite the opposite, as he knocks on the door (despite being halfway through it already) loudly enough to draw attention.]

Hey, hey!

[trashmammal]

[Morgan's lucky enough to catch Mae when she's laying on her side, facing the door, 'cause otherwise she wouldn't have even noticed him. She fixes him with a look of apathy and vague irritation. There may be a strange man in her apartment but that's sure as hell not enough to get her to sit up.

The music hits that period of silence between Lord of this World and Nain's Baptism, which is just long enough for them to talk without having to yell.]

Hey dude. I'm not gonna turn the music down, if that's what you want.

[morganknight]

Hell no.

[Morgan isn't bothered by a talking humanoid cat. He's seen weirder. Much weirder.]

I wanted to see who had good taste in music and if they'd let me listen at the source!

[trashmammal]

Oh! Uh, come on in, I guess. My roommate laid out a buncha weird booby traps, so maybe watch where you step. [She manages to sound way more blase about this than she probably should. Whatever, if he wants to risk it, she's not gonna stop him. Mae rolls over again, onto her stomach, to mess around with her laptop, pushing the volume down ever so slightly. Just enough to where they don't have to scream to be heard.] But yeah, thanks. They're no Witchdagger, but it's still pretty cool.

iii

[oniondaughter]

[Sieglinde isn't dancing.

It's not that she necessarily dislikes dancing. Heavens, she's even been convinced to leave her armor by her bunk, so she could feasibly try to dance without flattening anyone. It's just... Let's just say that, where she comes from, dancing is a lot different than the way people do it here.

So for the most part she's been standing on the sidelines, watching the festivities and partaking in the food. She's got a plastic cup of (disappointing) ale in her hand, as she catches a glimpse of Mae's routine.

She can't help but giggle at the sight of it. Not a malicious giggle, mind you - just an amused one.]

Is that how they dance where you come from? What is it called?

[trashmammal]

[It takes Mae a little bit to realize that a) someone is laughing, and b) it's directed at her. She's mid-arm wiggle when the revelation hits, and her dancing slows to a halt. All of a sudden she's feeling really aware of how all her limbs are positioned.

It's kinda hard to get a look at who she's talking to in this lighting, but it sounds like a girl? Late teens, probably, but still taller than her. Which isn't special, because most people are taller than Mae.]

It's not really called anything? It's just, you know. Dancing.

[oniondaughter]

[Sieglinde feels a little bad when Mae stops dancing - she hadn't really intended to interrupt completely, she was just hoping to learn a little more about the dance she was doing.

The answer isn't exactly what she'd expected, and now she feels doubly bad for interrupting this cat-like stranger's merriment for no reason.]

Oh, er, my apologies. I didn't mean to interrupt you for no reason - it just looked like you were having fun, and the dances in my homeland are nothing like how people dance here...

[trashmammal]

[Mae's kinda thick, but she manages to see that the girl's feeling pretty put off at her reaction, so the feeling is mutual. Now she feels kinda bad for making her feel kinda bad, and it's just one great big daisy chain of negativity. She shuffles a little, shifting her weight from foot to foot, and scratches the back of her neck. God she needs to find a way to salvage this quick.] I mean we have dances where I'm from too. Like they taught us a bunch of that in Girl Scouts, I just don't remember a ton of it. [NO you're making it weird change the subject!] Uuuuh, what kinda dances do you know, though?