riverviewlogs | monthly mingle: FLOWER FESTIVAL

Entry tags:

monthly mingle: FLOWER FESTIVAL

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: monthly mingle: flower festival
when: The month of April.
where: Anywhere around the city.
warnings: please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

flower festival

In the days leading up to April 1st, residents new and old will notice preparations beginning, a flurry of activity getting the city ready for the upcoming celebration: The Flower Festival. Celebrating springtime, beauty, joy, and togetherness, the festival heavily features floral themes and dancing. The advertising mentions that on April 9th, a paid holiday, there will be a Blossom Picnic, as well as lists of various public dances at clubs or other open venues, the River Spirit Procession, and Flower Exchange.

a celebration of spring

The Flower Festival's main event is the Blossom Picnic on April 9th, 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 9th. 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 and dances

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)!

As for the Flower Festival dances, they're pretty straightforward - 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.

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!

iii. flower exchange

During this year, there's been an influx of people from a dying reality consisting mostly of living plant people, and they've really taken the Flower Festival as a great opportunity to introduce one of their most honored traditions to the people of their new adopted world. The tradition involves sharing various types of flowers with strangers, with each type of flower having a different meaning and effect on both the giver and receiver - the bond of the exchange can spark emotion as well as physical responses that function in a unique way that affects almost everyone that participates, whether animal, plant, or even android.

Any characters exchanging the flowers with other characters, whether friends or strangers, will experience emotional/psychological effects, physical effects, or both once the exchange is complete. Effects can last for as short or long a time as the players involved want, and are as follows:

● Baby Blue Eyes - Trust/Healing the Inner Child
Emotional Effect: Either an inexplicable trust in the person the flower was exchanged with, or a generalized paranoia.
Physical Effect: De-aging. Characters can become a younger version of themselves, physically, mentally, or both. Whether or not their normal selves are of age, de-aged characters may not participate in adult prompts unless they're de-aged to something above 18.

● Chamomile - Peace & Harmony/Animal Support
Emotional Effect: A desire to make peace with one's enemies, or an inexplicable urge to push away loved ones.
Physical Effect: Both participants in the exchange will wake up the next morning with an animal companion that represents their soul/personality. Whether the companion can speak is up to player discretion.
NOTE: Animal companions from this event can be kept for a total of 300 Points. If you wish to keep them, just submit a request under your name on the Activity Bonus Rewards Page. For new players ONLY (players apping/reapping their first character in April) who wish to keep the animal companion but do not yet have points, feel free to submit and I will credit 300 points to be submitted once you have them.

● Rose - Friendship/Beauty
Emotional Effect: Openness and a desire to make new friends, or excessive competitiveness.
Physical Effect: A temporary glamor that makes both participants in the exchange appear as the most beautiful possible version of themselves, and improves their charisma.

● Crepe Myrtle: - Inspiration/Enduring Partnerships
Emotional Effect: New and creative ideas to solve life issues, or finding oneself averse to change.
Physical Effect: As soon as the exchange is complete, the two characters involved will be bound by an invisible tether that keeps them within three feet of each other. The tether won't affect anyone but the characters involved (no, you can't clothesline your enemies with it).

● Valerian: - Relaxation/Heart-Opening
Emotional Effect: A near-complete erasure of anxiety and stress, or a dramatic inexplicable increase in it.
Physical Effect: Forced honesty. Both affected characters become incapable of lying. Whether they're compelled to blurt the truth or if they can keep their mouths shut or talk around the truth is up to player discretion.

[Flower meanings used in this prompt come from this site.]

iv. river spirit procession

The River Spirit Procession is a yearly tradition in the Quarantine where a (usually small) contingent of people walk along the edges of the river carrying candles and dressed as river spirits, and offer sweets and blossoms or petals by tossing them into the river. The offerings are intended to appease the river spirits and guarantee safety from flooding, storms, and to ensure a good growing season. With the flooding that's still affecting the river, the turn out this year is much greater than usual, with a large number of residents entering the processions that happen throughout the month, usually on weekends.

During the processions, residents dress as river spirits, which is a relatively broad description and can be taken in a wide variety of ways and leaves a lot up to interpretation. They enter the procession at the place where the river enters the walls and follow the banks of it carrying candles, and often whispering or quietly speaking their gratitude for the river's plenty and their wishes for the year to come. Many residents also bring baskets of young blossoms or petals from flowers, and small sweets such as candy or tiny pastries and throw them into the river to appease the spirits. They carry along the river for as long as they wish to.

ACTION PROMPT: This year, with the flooding, the monsters, and the heavy turnout, the river spirit procession is a little more dangerous an undertaking than usual. After the first procession on April 1st resulted in several residents being swept away in the rising flood waters, and several others being attacked by a loose crocodile, the trouble becomes painfully evident. The Perimeter Guard will be sending out extra detachments and calling in reserve members to help keep the processions safe, and any extra hands to protect those who choose to participate will be more than welcome.

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 Flower Festival, feel free to write it up!

visual inspiration

click on thumbnails for larger view

Credit: image i: unknown, found on pinterest; image ii: Steven Kent Lomtong; iii: Ryan Talbot; iv: Toru Nishimura

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[ Probs good for all parties involved that Ren is Ben right now t b h. Poe isn't drinking away his sorrows--he made that mistake already, and it was John who scraped him up off the floor. Getting drunk after breaking things off would be too... Ironic. Too something.

It would suck. It would just fucking suck, and he's not gonna do it. He will, however, pick fights with people. He has been picking fights with people. He has the bruises on his cheekbone and around one eye to prove that he's been picking fights, along with an odd half-dozen other bruises, scrapes, and a bandaged stab wound.

At least he doesn't have a broken arm yet I'm saving that for right before he bumps into Holdo.

THIS TIME, THO, HE'S BUMPING INTO A MOP-HEADED KID who came thundering around the corner and slammed into him. Tall, mop-headed kid with vaguely familiar features.

BB-8 whistles insults at the boy and Poe nudges the droid with his foot. ] Easy, Bee. [ To the kid: ] You okay?

Edited 2018-04-02 21:18 (UTC)

[ Ben lets out a curse (don't tell his mom) as he crashes into a man lands right on his ass. Well, that's what he gets for running around unsupervised. Literally running around. He has a lot of energy and places to be, okay! Wincing, he rubs his palms, one after the other. Yeah, they're definitely scraped.

ANYWAY THE RUDE DROID CATCHES HIS ATTENTION BEFORE HE CAN APOLOGIZE TO THE MAN. And even if it's insulting him, he can't help but widen his eyes excitedly. ]

That's a BB unit! [ They're so cool and cutting edge in 20 ABY. I decided. Just now.

Oh wait, the man asked him a question. He looks up and grins, somewhat chagrined but trying not to show it. ]

Yeah. Sorry. [ Gasp, an apology.

He scrambles to his feet, movements a bit clumsy, as if he's only recently reached his current height and still doesn't fully know how to move around in his body. Also, congrats, Poe, this will be the only time you're taller than Kylo Ren.

By like, an inch or two. ]

You're a pilot. [ RIGHT??? It's said with a hint of excitement. ]

Edited 2018-04-02 21:42 (UTC)

[ OH GREAT, NOW THIS PLACE IS BRINGING IN KIDS FROM THEIR UNIVERSE. Somehow that's even worse than how many adults have been dragged here.

Geez, how many of the kids here are kidnapped from their own realities? He never considered that before. He knew that John had one in his--

Okay, not thinking about John. ]

Yeah, I am. [ He can't help smiling at the kid, even if he's quietly furious at the thought of him being pulled away from home. ] Poe Dameron.

[ He offers his hand. ] What's your name?

[ It's okay, Poe, he's usually a displaced adult. And his mom's here, anyway! All things considered, these are about as ideal as conditions can get for a kid's presence here.

But anyway, he shakes Poe's hand eagerly, beaming with excitement. ]

My dad's a pilot, too. [ Kylo hardly ever talks about his father. When he does, he tries to speak without sentimentality, tries not to reveal his lingering, frustrating love for his family. But Ben, he speaks with the pride of a kid whose dad is their greatest hero. ] His ship's one of the fastest in the galaxy! [ Though everyone says it's a piece of junk. Ben, of course, disagrees. He knows what the Falcon's capable of. He's heard the stories. ]

I'm Ben.

Edited 2018-04-08 19:27 (UTC)

[ Poe smiles. He can't help it. He probably said the exact same thing about his mom's A-wing when he was younger.

(Again, he thinks of John, of finding the ship together, the brief time he let himself think they could work on it together. That he could show John how to fly it.)

The name Ben makes him twitch internally. Why that name? Not fair to hold it against a kid, but it's a loaded syllable. ]

What's your dad do? What's he fly for, I mean?

[ It's curious, the way he feels a tiny bit of tension in the Force when he says his name. But Ben doesn't dwell on it; the whole day's been pretty strange, anyway. ]

Racing, mostly. And shipping. [ Some of the brightness in his demeanor fades. ] So he's not home a lot. [ Which is clearly a sore spot for the kid, BUT... Then Ben seems to shrug it off, replacing that sadness with a grin, though it may be a little strained. ] But he used to be a smuggler. And a hero-- he helped take down the Empire!

[ And Ben just hopes he can live a life half as exciting as his dad's. All the adventures he's had, and the places he's been... He looks at Poe with some curiosity. ]

You fly for the Republic, right? [ Or is he, like, independent. A transporter or something. ]

[ There are plenty of hero smugglers out there who helped take down the Empire. There are plenty. The Rebellion had to stay afloat somehow and smugglers were the ones who helped provide.

There are plenty of hero smugglers out there. ]

Yeah. Yeah I do. I did. [ This kid is from before it all happened. Before the First Order, before Hosnian Prime.

He has to ask. He has to know for sure one way or another so he can just fucking relax. ]

What's your dad's name?

[ Ben fidgets, shifts from one foot to the other, watching Poe with a slowly rising feeling of unease. The pilot's been nothing but nice so far, but there are so many feelings swimming around in the Force, it's hard not to find some discomfort in it. He chews on his lip, looking from the pilot, down to the droid, and back again. ]

Han Solo?

[ Pleeeeease don't be one of his dad's many enemies. ]

[ BB-8 lets out a high-pitched wheedle of alarm and pops his arc welder from one of the panels in his side, and Poe instinctively holds a hand out toward the droid, like he has to hold BB-8 back. Like he could if the droid were really set on doing damage.

Fuck.

They're talking to Ben Solo.

This kid, this nervous curly-haired boy grows up to order the slaughter of Tuanul. He grows up to be Kylo Ren. Poe can't breathe. Has he met his older self? He can't have. ]

Easy, Bee. It's.... [ Fine? Ha. He can't even make the lie sound convincing in his own head. ] How long have you been here?

[ Why is the droid going on the defensive? What did he do? Ben takes a step back, just in case everything goes wrong and it turns out this guy and his droid is someone with a grudge against his family. (Or him? But what did he ever do? He's just a kid.) ]

Um. Not long. My mom's here, too. She's-- not far.

[ SO. YOU KNOW. ]

[ God, Leia. How is she dealing with this?

Is this the kid she thinks of when she thinks of Kylo Ren?

For one sickening moment Poe considers the lives saved by doing the unthinkable. For one sickening moment he considers the vulnerability of a Force user not in his prime.

Bee wriggles in place, welder still raised and at the ready. Just try something, Ren. ]

I know your mom. [ Poe can't decide if he's trying to be reassuring or not. The thought of reassuring Kylo Ren makes him feel sick. Except this kid isn't Kylo Ren.

This kid isn't a murderer. He's just a kid. ] Never had the chance to meet your dad.

[ It's hard to feel particularly reassured when the droid's wielding a welder as if it's ready to tase him. ]

They don't really run in the same circles. [ Or fly, as it were. Probably more appropriate. Ben looks at Poe, a little more cautious now, where before he'd been open and vibrant. ] How do you know her?

[ Poe doesn't know what to do. The safest thing, maybe the best thing, would be to just walk away. Leia knows the kid is here. He can take care of himself until he gets back to her.

But Poe also can't see it. He can't see what in this boy became Kylo Ren. He's not sitting in some corner pulling the wings off insects or teasing caged animals or trying to hurt anything. He's a kid running around a strange marketplace for fun. ]

Serve under her. [ He says it without thinking, without considering that it won't make sense (never mind that Leia would need a pilot in her capacity as a Senator--he hadn't thought of that either). ] I know her from....

[ He rubs his forehead. He doesn't want to say I'm from your future. Not when....

Not given everything that means. ]

[ Ben starts to relax, just a little now, since Poe doesn't seem to be lying when he admits that he works for his mother. Not that he's adept enough with the Force to really read the other man's intentions, but... Sometimes it gives him an inkling all on its own. There's no feeling of danger right now, though. ]

Work. [ He supplies with a shrug, accepting it easily. With all the traveling his mother does, he gets it. She needs pilots and escorts, especially when his dad's off doing his own thing.

Which is often. ]

Bet she'd be happy to see you.

[ Work, Ben says, like it's a given, and for the first time Poe has to wonder how Leia made time for a kid. He never really heard about Han Solo being a parent, either. It was always this race or that, General Solo sponsoring another team or helping field the prize for a challenging course.

And here's Ben Solo, running around on his own like it's totally normal, even here.

So his parents were busy, the cold part of Poe says. Boo hoo. ]

Yeah, maybe. [ Poe bites his lip, catches a cut between his teeth and accidentally splits it open again with a wince. ] Your dad isn't here?

No. [ He doesn't know where his dad is, but he thinks he'll never see him again. Or, rather, some part of him knows this for a fact, even though he has no reason to believe it. So the simple 'no' carries an unexpected weight, a sense of finality that he can't even fully understand right now.

He rubs the back of his neck, eyeing Poe somewhat warily. All he can feel right now is tension, flooding through the Force. ]

Are you afraid of me?

[ He just blurts it out, with all the bluntness of an adolescent. And also with all the expectation of someone who's used to it. ]

[ Poe thinks about lying. This kid--this kid isn't Kylo Ren. He's just a boy, with no idea what's in his future.

Is Poe scared of Kylo Ren?

Yeah, yeah he is.

Is he afraid of Ben Solo? ]

No. Not you.

[ Poe sighs, scrubbing a hand through his hair. ] Wired, that's all.

[ The relief is immediate, probably just about palpable, when Poe admits that it isn't Ben he's afraid of. ]

Looks like your droid is, too. [ He smiles, a little hesitant at first, like... he's trying to make a peace offering of some kind? Because Ben Solo's a lot of things, including a very sensitive kid, and it helps him feel at ease if others do. ] But I guess all droids are. [ Wired, he means. IT'S A JOKE. ]

What do you fly? Is your ship here?

[ Poe's lips twitch into the ghost of a smile. He nudges BB-8 again with his foot.

The droid doesn't put his arc welder away immediately. Keeps it out just long enough that Poe knows he's not doing this willingly. Then Bee pops the welder back into his side. ]

X-wing T-70. Custom job. [ One he'll never see again, blown away by First Order fighters along with half his pilots. ]

Not here though. Found my mom's ship, though, out in the jungle. Weird, right?

[ God, he shouldn't be telling this kid any of this. But he finds himself disarmed by Ben Solo's innocence. He finds himself wanting to talk to someone who has no emotional stake in him. Selfish. Stupid. Doesn't stop him, though. ] It's an old RZ-1 A-wing interceptor. She flew it for the Rebellion.

[ His eyes light up, excited energy seeming to spring through his nerves. A custom T-70! It must be something amazing, fast and agile, sleeker than his dad's ship (don't tell Han he thought that for even a moment).

It's a good thing Ben has no idea that he's the one who'll ultimately go and blow it up. ]

You've got an actual RZ-1? From the Rebellion? [ NO, NO, OF COURSE HE DOES, HE JUST SAID IT. Ben's practically bouncing on his heels as he starts lobbing follow-up questions. ] Can it fly? Or does it-- do you need to repair it first? I've never seen an RZ-1 in action before-- I wonder if your mom flew with Uncle Lando or--

[ B R E A T H E ]

[ Poe... actually grins.

The expression is a shock, the kind that sends a ripple through him like cold water being dumped over his head. ]

She flew with General Calrissian during the Battle of Endor, yeah. She was a triple ace, got the Bronze Nova for Conspicuous Gallantry at the Battle of Gorma. My dad was on the ground at Endor with--well, with your dad.

[ God, how strange is this? It's so hard to keep amusement and grief apart. ]

I'm fixing it up, the A-wing. [ He hesitates. ] If your mom says it's okay, I could show it to you.

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monthly mingle: FLOWER FESTIVAL

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