introductory mingle: HARVEST FESTIVAL

[riverviewmod]

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: Introductory Log and Harvest Festival celebration
when: The month of November.
where: Anywhere around the city.
warnings: please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

harvest festival

In the days leading up to November 1st, residents new and old will notice preparations beginning, a flurry of activity getting the city ready for the upcoming celebration: The Harvest Festival. This holiday is in celebration of the harvest season and autumn, as the moon transitions into its winter period, and is characterized by indulging in the plenty that comes with the harvest season with loved ones, cleaning house figuratively and literally, and making sure that those in need don't suffer during the winter. Celebrations tend to focus around food and charity, with citizens enjoying and sharing cultural meals and sharing stories, or participating in any of the wide range of charity projects and events going on during this season.

a celebration of sharing

The biggest traditions of the Harvest Festival are centered around giving and sharing. Charity is central, and the each year the city sets up a large open tent with warm places to rest for anyone who might be homeless and a table capable of sitting over 50 people at any given time, with a round-the-clock catered feast for anyone who wants to sit and have a meal with anyone else who's dropped by. Besides this, there are a wide variety of events benefiting charities in the city, including a karaoke concert, stray animal round up, and the annual "stuff swap" where residents clean their homes and donate anything they don't need to those who might be lacking. There is also a tradition of writing down repressed or bottled up thoughts, feelings, regrets, sins, and other troubles and tossing them into a bonfire to go into winter with a clean soul.

i. harvest feast & stuff swap

For the first few days of November, anyone dropping by the city center will notice a large tent structure being put into place - by November 3rd, as the last of October's ghosts fade into nonexistence, a veritable banquet hall will have been sent up. For a week following the setup, anyone who drops by the hall and steps inside will see a large table laden with food. Bread, stew, fruits and vegetables, soups, roasted meat, and almost anything else one can think of will be on the table, along with plates, silverware, and cups. Anyone is free to take a plate, settle down at the table, and help themselves to a meal.

The Feast is staffed entirely by volunteers, who do the cooking, cleaning, and tidy up the dishes and area afterwards, keeping the constant stream of food coming. Whether your character is heading in to sit beside a stranger and strike up a conversation, or volunteering their time, energy, or cooking skills to the hall, they're more than welcome.

One corner of the hall is entirely dedicated to the yearly "stuff swap." There's a long-standing tradition of fall cleaning in Riverview Quarantine, where residents will thoroughly clean their homes and rid themselves of excess in preparation for the winter. The extra things that aren't needed can be dropped off at the city center where the Feast is set up, and anyone who is in need of a particular item that has been donated can take it free of charge. This is an honor system, so please be kind to others! (Or don't.)

ii. charity karaoke

On the weekend of November 10th and 11th, while the Feast will be cleared away, the tent is being repurposed for a new event - a Karaoke Concert for the needy! Set up as a makeshift bar and lounge area, the space will be fronted by a large stage where singles or groups of people can choose a song and karaoke their hearts out to a crowd of spectators. There's a by-donation cover fee, and guests are encouraged to reward the best (or most hilariously bad) renditions of beloved songs from across the multiverse with digital "tips" that are transferred to the karaoke performer's charity of choice.

Whether you're a spectator tipping a performer, or a performer who's singing their heart out on the stage to benefit a variety of charities from the homeless to the animal shelter to children in need (and almost anything else you can think of), the Karaoke Concert is both hilarious and heartwarming.

iii. stray animal roundup

One of the main charity events that seems to happen every year is the stray roundup. As the seasons turn and it gets colder and colder at night, many residents who have a soft spot for animals band together to round up as many stray animals as possible and take them to shelters where they can be rehabilitated, given a warm bath, fed, and have a safe place to sleep. Volunteers take to the streets with crates and nets or restraining poles as well as generous bags of treats of food to entice the strays with, and capture them safely to be brought back to the various animal shelters around the Quarantine. Any animal who's caught is put up for adoption, and volunteers are encouraged to take home any strays that they bond particularly well with, or are invited to foster animals in their homes.

Whether your character is a die-hard animal lover, looking for a new pet, or just wants some wacky hijinks trying to chase a wily critter around the streets, they'll be suited up with supplies by other volunteers and released into the fray. The most common animals to be found are cats, dogs, and small domesticated foxes, but feel free to assume that your character is rounding up a reptile, rodent, bird, or a domesticated alien critter. Playing a thread with this prompt is a great opportunity to get a cute alien pet for your character without spending AP.

iv. letting go

On the evening of November 15th, a series of large bonfires will be set up all along the beaches of the river, and as the night falls, people begin migrating to the beaches from all over the city carrying slips of paper in a wide variety of colors with words written on them in a wide variety of languages, and throwing them into the fires. This is a way of psychologically and emotionally cleaning house for the residents of the Quarantine, because the papers they bring contain the stories of their pain, poems written about the feelings they bottle up, a venting of their anger and fear and resentment, all to be eaten up by the flames and washed away by the river with the next rain.

No matter where a person comes from, they carry pain and suffering and hurts that they must hide. This is a welcome opportunity for characters to write out their thoughts and feelings and release them. And if the symbolism of burning them isn't enough, there are always other people around the fires who are willing to listen, to hear all those things that people keep locked up inside. Share a story willingly, listen to someone's story, or just get caught holding your deepest darkest secrets on a really vulnerable piece of paper...it's up to you.

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 the mod-posted prompt to create a Communal Housing floor mingle. Or, if you have an idea for a prompt that isn't in this list, set during the Harvest Festival, feel free to write it up!

visual inspiration

click on thumbnails for larger view

Credit: image i & iii: Bastien Grivet; image ii & iv: unknown (stock/hobbiton)

navigation

Comments

Chase Collins | OTA

[bastardofipswich]

iii. every witch needs a familiar

[ Chase has a secret. It's a pretty lame one, which means he definitely doesn't want his enemies knowing it (even though, at the moment, he's only got one enemy in this entire quarantine), but here goes:

He likes animals. A lot. And he's never even had a pet before! His adoptive parents weren't exactly animal people, and the possibility of getting a dog or a cat or even a freaking hamster became even more remote once he reached boarding school age. Their reasoning was: what was the point in getting a pet for him if he wasn't even going to be home for months on end?

Whatever. They're six feet under now, and he's on some alien moon, getting a second chance at life after thoroughly fucking up his first go at it. So when the time comes that help is needed for some stray critter round-up, Chase does his part and volunteers. It works on two levels: one, he gets to play up the 'I'm just a helpful, upstanding teenager' act (which always worked well enough at school), and two, he might finally get a pet out of this.

Plus, it's easy to catch some critters when you've got magic on your side. A little bit of telekinesis goes a long way. So what if it's cheating? It's all for the sake of helping homeless animals! And maybe he's keeping an eye out for a dog or cat (or kickass raven or something) that'll make a good familiar. One that's equal parts badass and smart... ]

iv. better than tv

[ This whole sappy ritual is a complete joke to Chase. But that doesn't mean he won't show up at the bonfires-- not to let go of any deep, dark tragedy he's nursing (please), but for the sheer potential for entertainment.

Of course, he's got a 'nice' act he's trying to maintain (to varying degrees of success), so he can't openly laugh or anything. But he does like to listen to the sob stories of anyone willing to chat, and he'll even pretend to share some vulnerable crap of his own. For the sake of appearance. His own paper just has some junk about being sad that he was adopted (he's not, really-- at least, not in the way people might assume), and if he's feeling particularly inspired, he'll out and out make up a story to share with others. ]

v. wildcard

[ For now, Chase is on his best behavior, because he'd reaaaaally rather not make a bunch of enemies right out the gate. So go ahead and find him at home-- the second floor of the communal housing building-- or at work at the magical research facility, or elsewhere around the Quarantine, getting to know the place. As a witch, he may show off his magic here and there, but he... sort of attempts to be subtle about it. Sort of. ]

III

[ragnarsson]

[Ivar is currently coaxing a...well, he's not entirely sure what this little creature is. But it's small, timid, and cute with its big ear fins, so he's trying to get it to come to him. The little alien creature has currently hidden itself underneath a dumpster and won't come out, looking up at Ivar with big, fearful yellow eyes.

Ivar would try to feed it, but he's not even sure what sort of food it eats, so he's just hoping it'll come out so he can get a loop leash on it. He scans the area, calling out to the first person he sees.]

Hey, can you give me a hand with this?

[There's something about Chase that makes Ivar take in a second glance. Hmmm, he looks just a touch familiar, as if Ivar's seen him before but he chalks it up to a feeling of deja vu. It doesn't matter to him as long as he helps him get this little beast out. It has no fur besides the tuft on its tail and Ivar would feel awful if it ended up frozen on a cold winter's night.]

[bastardofipswich]

[ Chase is so not looking the part of the fearsome witch right now, what with the little snoozing bundle of fluff he's carrying in his arms, despite the empty pet carrier he's got slung over his shoulder. It's just... look, the puppy started crying every time he put it in, and it was super annoying, okay?

Right.

Anyway.

He's about ready to take it to the shelter (it failed the "Chase Collins's Familiar" test by being way too cute, and not even the tiniest bit fearsome), but his trek is interrupted when somebody calls to him for assistance. ]

Yeah?

[ He's got no interest in getting up close and personal with a dumpster, and that alone would normally be enough to have Chase laughing off the request and walking off, buuuut... He's new here, and he's trying to make out like he's just a nice, upstanding guy. So he shrugs and heads over, crouching down beside the guy. He starts to put the puppy in the carrier-- can't have it running off while they try to do... whatever here. ]

What's up?

[ragnarsson]

I need help getting this little whatever-it-is out from underneath here.

[The little alien critter sticks its snout out, but clearly has no interest in actually leaving its dumpster sanctuary. Ivar turns towards it and it stares up at him with its big, big eyes.]

I'm going to make a grab for it and chase it out from underneath there. You just be ready to get that leash on it.

[He hands the leash over to Chase, slipping out of his wheelchair so that he can crouch down and try to make a swipe underneath the dumpster.]

Ready?

[bastardofipswich]

[ With the puppy-- which definitely isn't his puppy-- secured in its carrier, Chase peers under the dumpster to get a look at the-- oh, hello there. ]

What is that... [ Chase glances at the other kid, who... obviously wouldn't have the answer to that, since he's also got no name for it. Taking the leash, he moves to get in a better position. Hell, if this dude can't catch it (which, to be honest, Chase is betting against him, since he needs a wheelchair and the little alien doesn't), he can always use a little bit of magic to stop it from getting away. So, he flashes a grin, confident as ever. ]

Yeah, man. Ready.

[ragnarsson]

[Ivar makes a swipe for the little creature, trying to catch it, or at least scare it out from underneath there. Fortunately, the little beast is more interested in flight rather than fight, and with a high pitched squeak, it runs out from under the dumpster.

It stands there, hesitating for a moment, flapping its big ear fins and lashing its tufted tail. It's the perfect opportunity to get the leash on it.]

[bastardofipswich]

[ Never one to hesitate, Chase takes the opportunity to ambush the little creature with the leash.

Or he tries to, anyway. Its reflexes are quick enough that it seems to cotton on to his movement just before he can get the loop over its giant ears. The teen witch lets out a curse as the alien starts to dart away. Screw that. No. His eyes flash black for a moment, just long enough to pull the creature back towards him and keep it in place for him to crouch down and get the leash on it. If Ivar notices, or if he thinks the critter just sort of stumbled of its own accord, Chase doesn't seem to care either way. ]

There. Mission accomplished.

[ He looks over at Ivar and offers the leash to him. ]

It's kind of cute.

iv. better than tv

[wiccecraft]

[ Caleb has a few small pages of paper he's been writing on and folding into paper airplanes to alight themselves into the bonfire. Most of the secrets have been mundane, thus far; he wanted to give himself a chance to see how he felt about it, to be honest.

After three or four simple secrets he does feel better and so he goes about writing something that actually matters.

My father's death is not my fault but it is my responsibility.

He lets the little paper plane fly, only it doesn't go into the bonfire. Nope, it ends up in Chase's hands.

Great. Fan-freaking-tastic. ]

[bastardofipswich]

[ You're damn right Chase has got his hands on Caleb's secret. How could he resist Using juuuust a teensy bit to send that paper plane his way? He figures it'll be some stupid nothing of a problem-- wah, I miss my bros-- but instead of comedy gold, he gets...

Sigh. Chase rolls his eyes. Yeah, he's a real well of sympathy. ]

Do you get off on feeling so tortured all the time?

[ At least... he's not laughing at you, Caleb? ]

[wiccecraft]

Sure, that and being shoved into mirrors so hard they shatter.

[ Eyeroll. If he keeps saying that it'll make it true, right?

Caleb's cat immediately saunters up to Chase and does that thing where a cat stays just out of reach and yet hovers around. Sizing him up, let's be honest. ]

I get that you didn't...care much about your dad, and I get that I probably shouldn't, considering. Doesn't mean I'm thrilled with the way things went down.

You wanna do me a favor and send that on it's way?

[bastardofipswich]

[ Hey. Cat, no. Come closer, cat. Chase wants to pet you!

...Fine, whatever, he didn't really want to pet you... ]

I don't know what you're talking about. I loved my father.

[ lmao bullshit. Anyway, Chase shrugs but does as he's told for once-- well, sort of. He just lets it combust in his hand. ] Your wish is my command. [ lmao bullshit x2 ]

[wiccecraft]

You loved what your father's death gave you?

[ He hears bullshit and he's calling a spade a spade. Thus sofar unnamed cat, however, is now sniffing Chase's ankle delicately.

Caleb doesn't think he's ever rolled his eyes in succession in such a short amount of time. ] Showoff. What are you even doing here, trying to blackmail people?

[bastardofipswich]

[ Ugh. Called out. Chase tilts his head, a thin smile spreading on his face. ] Well. Yeah. [ The smile breaks as he snickers, like it's just soooo funny that Caleb would point it out. ] It's the least the old man could do for me.

[ Considering daddy bailed right when he was born.

He lets out another laugh, arms spreading wide. LOOK AROUND THEM, BRO. ]

Are you serious? How could I not show up? This pathetic display's even funnier than anything on tv right now!

iv.

[krasnaya_vdova]

[Ava catches a glimpse of Chase from across one of the bonfires. She's not a particularly outgoing person, usually not the sort to approach people, but his face is familiar. And it's so impossible, she can't help but shadow him for a little bit, long enough to make sure it's not just some trick of the flickering lights. And she.. doesn't really know what to make of the fact that it's not.

She's quiet, slips out of a shadow with a tilt of her head as she looks him over. He looks like James out of that memory, when he'd been young, trying to teach Steve to dance. And that's so strange she doesn't quite know how to play this. So, she just.. improvises.]

You going to burn your regrets?

[Casual question, but as if she hadn't any intention herself- when the truth was more that a certain jerk had spotted her indecision and stolen them from her fingers. But that hardly matters right now.]

[bastardofipswich]

[ For somebody who's spent some time leading a double life (of sorts), Chase had never been particularly mindful of his surroundings. It's why he's been caught more than once-- back home-- doing a bit of magic. Usually, it was easy enough for him to play dumb until the other person thought whatever they saw was just their imagination. (Magic wasn't real, after all, far as anyone back home knew.) The few times he couldn't convince them to leave well enough alone... That was when things would get messy.

With so much to lose, one would think that Chase would be more vigilant about things, but... He hasn't managed to shake that teenage "I'm invincible and nothing will ever have consequences" mentality. And here, where he doesn't even have to keep any huge secrets? He's even less vigilant.

Which is all a roundabout way of explaining why he doesn't notice the redheaded girl, not until she approaches him with her question. Chase glances down at the folded up piece of paper in his hand-- it says nothing more than "I wish I knew my mom" because that's super vague and easy and gives very little about himself away-- then shrugs, giving the girl a lopsided, cocky grin. ]

Regrets? I don't really have any. This is more like... unwanted baggage. [ He tilts his head, looking to see if she has any paper to burn. ] What about you?

v.

[wiccant]

( it's in the communal room on the second floor that billy finds chase. gives a gentle rap of his knuckles against the door before he opens it--years and years of experience being the eldest of three boys has taught him one thing, and that's to never walk into any room that someone else might be occupying without first letting whoever might be in it know. he slides the door open after another moment, takes a few steps inside.

if chase isn't magic sensitive enough to read another witch, billy makes it evident enough; the costume he's yet to buy clothing to replace has been magicked into existence; the black space with the stars isn't printed material, it's actually stars that move and change as he moves. )

Oh--hey. Is this your room, too?

[bastardofipswich]

[ Thankfully, Chase is no stranger to communal housing situations, being a veteran of boarding schools since the 7th grade. (Which, when you think about it, really is the worst time to ship a bunch of tweens off to live together. The horrors...) So he's not in the middle of anything requiring any sort of extra privacy when he hears that quick, courtesy knock on the door.

Rather, he's stretched out on his bed, flat on his stomach, resting his chin on his folded arms as he watches some spiders skitter along the wall. They move in formation, like the creepiest bunch of synchronized swimmers, only to scatter and fade into black mist as the door opens. Nothing to see here! He's a totally normal, definitely not homicidal or power hungry, teenager. Chase turns his head to look at the newcomer, and while magic isn't something he ever really senses in others (active use of it, yeah, but raw potential? Nah, never learned how), the getup alone is enough to pique his interest.

Plus, the new guy's cute and looks to be around the same age as Chase, so... BONUS.

Chase sits up, watching the stars move for a beat, then smiles, cheerful and friendly. ]

Yeah. There's a few of us here already. I'm Chase. [ And, for his part, he gives off a ton of magical power-- at least, if Billy can sense that kind of thing. Raw power, and not particularly under control. ]

[wiccant]

( i'm here and i'm queer and a magical messiah in training.

he is still rather untrained, but there's that itch at the back of his head, the sense that something about this guy's a little. . different. not bad, not off, just different. he feels it in the room, too. the shift of energy that generally means something was going on here. billy is no stranger to all things weird and unusual, so he doesn't think much of it. there's a smile on his lips when chase introduces himself, corners of his lips upturned just enough to be noticeable as he walks into the room and shuts the door behind him, takes in the uh.

rather plain room, really. he supposes it doesn't matter much, a room is just a room. and if billy wanted to, he could fix it well enough. )

Billy. It's nice to meet you. ( it's a few steps more to reach chase, and billy extends a gloved hand, offers it to him. the stars shift as he does--always seeming to stay in place despite billy moving. ) Have you been here long?

[bastardofipswich]

[ It's super boring, Billy. Chase has stubbornly refused to do any decorating, partially because he's bad at it, and partially because he has no intention of staying in a glorified dorm any longer than he has to.

(Honestly, it's just because he's bad at it.)

He hops off of his bed as Billy introduces himself, taking his hand in a casual shake. And yeah, his eyes keep drifting back to the outfit. His first assumption, to be honest, is that Billy might be from outer space. Like he's... an alien? A starman, like in the Bowie song. Hell, they're already on a moon, anyway, so it'd be far from weird. ]

Nah. I got here, uh... About a week ago? Maybe longer. [ The first few days are a bit hazy, so who knows how long it's actually been. That's what happens when you're coming down from a huge magic fight, the worst magical high ever, and possible death or near-death or whatever.

It's a whole thing. He's stubbornly refused to process any of it. ]

So, where are you from? And when. Apparently that's a thing here, because like... [ He waves a hand, vaguely. ] timelines or whatever.

[wiccant]

Earth-616, ( he answers easily, as if the whole multiple dimensions thing is entirely normal and everyone's heard of it. which isn't quite true, but--listen: he's been dimension hopping for so long, it a lot more normal to him now than it would have been before. he follows chase's eyes down to his costume, gives a sheepish smile in response as he drops his hand back down to his side. the costume shimmers, blue magic energy covering it as it shifts into something more--normal. a t-shirt and jeans, rather than the billowy cape and stars. ) And 2013? Timelines can definitely get complicated with multidimensional travel, haha.

( trust him, billy's been around the block. more than once. he's been stuck in a few loops too which is never pleasant. and parasitic dimensions, ones full of kree and skrull overlords, ones where there are barely any heroes left. . it's Complicated. )

The room's a little plain, isn't it? How many roommates do we have?

v. post-log and pre-loki-meeting??

[bechdelpls]

[ He's there in their room when Sarah comes back from her first day of classes. It's just orientation, really, since classes themselves won't start for another few weeks. Learning what programs they have, signing up for seminars on basic history.

She's dressed in new clothes, all autumn colors and a slightly baggy sweater. It feels good to wear new clothes--it always gives her a little pick me up. There's no point in wearing something you don't really love, after all. She dumps her stuff on the trunk at the end of her bed and sits down on its edge to pull off her boots, looking anywhere but at Chase Collins.

He's not even doing anything. He's just reading on his bed, one hand petting his dog, and Sarah can't stand it. She can't stand that he's just there, with a pet, like he deserves to be comfortable and relaxed. Like he's not a liar and a wannabe murderer.

Her temper gets the better of her as she pulls off her second boot and--as with the punch--she throws it at his head before she thinks about what she's doing. ]

[bastardofipswich]

[ When the shoe comes flying his way, Chase is torn between laughing and rolling his eyes. This would be a helluva lot more fun if he hadn't made that stupid truce with Caleb. Though, he has to wonder if it even matters, since Sarah's intent on breaking it, anyway...

What he does, instead, is swat the projectile away with a mindless wave of his hand. And then he makes it catch on fire.

...

And now Cujo's barking at the fire. ]

Oh. [ Chase glances over at the flaming boot, as if he's only NOW aware of the fire that he, himself, started. ] Oh no. I hope you've got another pair of shoes here!

[bechdelpls]

[ She doesn't have another pair of shoes. At the moment she doesn't care. She doesn't care that he just set something on fire in front of her, she doesn't care that he could do it to her just as easy, she doesn't care about anything. She's on a pure senseless fury high and she would throw everything she owns at him if she didn't realize on some level that it would all end up ash on the floor. ]

Are you going to kill him?

[bastardofipswich]

[ Chase shrugs, willing the fire away, leaving behind a smouldering something where her boot was. Seemingly, he goes back to reading his book, even if he's still got his attention fixed on Sarah. ]

I haven't decided yet.

[ He might just be answering that way to piss her off. The truth is: he doesn't see anything to gain in killing Caleb right now. The other witch is safe from him for the time being. ]

[bechdelpls]

Would you rather screw him?

[ She takes herself by surprise, first because she said it at all and second because she was vulgar about it. She grips the edge of her bed, braced for whatever response he throws at her. Braced for magic, heart pounding at the thought of seeing something entirely new and seeing it being done at her. But it's too late now, and strangely enough, she's not sorry. ]