riverviewlogs | monthly mingle: PRIJATA

Entry tags:

monthly mingle: PRIJATA

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: monthly mingle: prijata
when: the month of june
where: anywhere around the city
warnings: please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

prijata

In the days leading up to June 1st, residents new and old will notice preparations beginning, a flurry of activity getting the city ready for the upcoming celebration: Prijata. Riverview Quarantine has a strong culture of love, and they celebrate all types - Prijata is a special celebration of platonic love and building community through friendship. Prijata traditions include gift exchanges between friends, sharing meals cooked together by friend groups, and a variety of events and services aimed at making friends.

a celebration of platonic love

Prijata is a relatively relaxed holiday, focused mainly on friendship and platonic love - dedicated to appreciating the friends already in one's life, and opening oneself up to making new friends. Besides the private giving of gifts between friends, there is also a city-wide government-sponsored gift fountain that is open throughout the entire month. Included in the wide variety of events catered to finding new friends, are 'speed friending' and a large open exhibition where all the specialized clubs in Riverview can recruit for new members - and residents new or old can create a club and recruit.

i. gift fountain

While Prijata gift exchanges between friends are generally a quiet affair, done at friend-group dinners or parties, the element of gift giving does extend outward - community-wide, in fact. Throughout the course of the month, anyone living in Riverview Quarantine can drop by the huge fountain in the City Center, in front of the City Hall. They will find that the fountain is chock full of floating gift boxes in a wide variety of colors, patterns, and different shapes - though none larger than a shoe box. There are signs put up around the fountain stating that the boxes are magic and will only seek and open for their rightful owners. Characters will find that, upon touching the water, a box will float over to them, and when they pick it up, the top will unfurl like flower petals, displaying the gift inside. Sometimes, the box won't appear on the first try, since there's only so much space in the fountain at any given time, but if at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Every person in the city (including new arrivals) will receive one gift by the end of the month.

Gift fountain boxes will contain one small item from each character's home dimension (or, for CRAUs, from their previous game), similar to the "items from home" bonus reward, but without needing to spend points. The item should be small enough to fit in a shoebox, sentimental, and cannot be something intended for another person's character. If you can't think of an item like this that would work for your character, something of similar size and quality to what's described above that would make the character very happy can be substituted.

This prompt can also be used for gift exchanges and for characters to receive the Government-given gifts that were suggested in the Prijata Pregaming post on the meme community. Any newly apped character is welcome to post on the meme entry as soon as they're accepted, and will be linked to it in this month's acceptance notification, so to all you pre-existing players please keep looking at the Prijata Pregame meme throughout app week and afterward to help give new arrivals a warm friendly welcome!

ii. speed-friending

This is pretty much what it says on the tin! Much like speed-dating setups, many bars, coffee shops, and other places that people might gather are holding speed-friending! It's your standard setup - characters enter and fill out a quick questionnaire about themselves, and flit from table to table looking for someone with great friend chemistry. Not all of them are general and open to anyone who walks in, though, with many being specialized to people who are invested in certain hobbies, occupations, or with specific sets of interests. With specialized speed-friending setups ranging from horror movie buffs to members of the Perimeter Guard to fashionistas to sports or martial arts to video games, no matter what your character is into, they're likely to be able to sign up for a special event where they can go looking for a friend who's into the same things they are!

For this prompt, you can put up a list of hobbies or interests your character has, and compatible characters can hit them up for a speed-friending thread, like the IC equivalent of the CR meme!

iii. club exhibition

Speed-friending is all well and good, but not everyone is outgoing or open enough to know if they have friend chemistry in only a few minutes. For anyone looking to find groups of like-minded individuals they can spend more than a few minutes with before committing to something as daunting as a friendship, there is a month-long club exhibition happening in the Town Square in the City Center. Table after table and booth after booth are occupied by existing clubs in the city, with an incredibly broad scope of focus interests and hobbies - enough that any character should be able to find a club with their niche interest represented.

And if it isn't? Characters are welcome to start their own clubs - much like a business, a character-run club can have space set aside in the city for meetings and event mingles that are eligible for Activity Point Bonuses for the organizer.

iv. amusement park & waterfight

Remember the Amusement Park that citizens of the city were working together to clean up and power up a couple of months ago? Well, the endeavor has proven to be a success, and after a lot of hard work and technical expertise, the amusement park is up and running! For the first two weeks of June, admission will be free to honor those who helped make the park usable.

Sporting just about any amusement park ride you can think of, from kiddie rides, merry-go-rounds, and ferris wheels to high-speed roller coasters and more extreme rides for the thrill-seekers, the park takes it a step further by adding in a lot of different high-tech attractions not available at conventional amusement parks. It has banks and banks of VR simulators that allow park-goers to enjoy a variety of adventures and scenarios, or join shared mutual worlds with other users to explore or take out their aggression with a VR first-person shooter. There are also rows and rows of typical carnival games, some heavily rigged and some not, with prizes ranging from dollar store trinkets to stuffed animals to bits of advanced tech.

For the month of grand opening, though, the amusement park is offering a couple interesting events - a naming contest for the park, and a park-wide water fight.

The water fight is opt-in, with participants signing up and being given a purple or orange flag, tank top, or cap to wear marking them as to which team they're part of. There are buckets of water balloons around the park that are constantly being refilled by staff, and water fighters can participate in special target practice games to win the use of a watergun for the duration of the day - how big your watergun is depends on how well you do in the game! Ultimately, there aren't any real winners or losers, because the point is to get wet in the brand new summer heat, but it's always more fun to cool off with a bit of competition involved, right?

The naming contest is another story. Anyone who visits the park is welcome to think up a name for the park, and all entries will be listed on a large LED board. Every customer who enters the park is invited to vote for their favorite name, and the name with the most votes wins! To submit either an in-character suggestion or a suggestion from yourself as a player, hit up the thread below with a new top-level; whether or not you have a neat idea, place a vote for your favorite! Votes are one per player; suggestions are one per character.

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 during Prijata, feel free to write it up!

visual inspiration

click on thumbnails for larger view

Credit: image i: Odysseas Stamoglou; image ii: Dave Arredondo; image iii: spainforpleasure.com; image iv: mit19237

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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ His gaze falls a little at that, feeling an uncomfortable tightness in his chest. ]

I wouldn't want to leave you, either.

[ And yet, it's... complicated. Staying here would mean abandoning his crew, and it's not something he ever considered before, not even when he was with Bones. But knowing that leaving would mean never seeing Victor again is more painful than he can imagine.

And he can't help the feeling of guilt either. How easily Victor says that he won't leave for as long as he and Lucy are around, while that decision is still a struggle for him. ]

You miss your ship and your crew. [He's just guessing from James's expression and the fact that he brought up this conversation] I know it's not easy for you to be here away from them for so long. I wish I could do something to help you with that.

It's not that. Well, yes, I do miss some of them, but it's... [ He pauses, thinking about the best way to explain it. ]

I have— a purpose, there. A duty. Sure, I love being part of Starfleet, and I miss it, but I would miss you much more than I could ever miss my ship, my chair, or my rank. I want to be with you, but it feels... wrong, not wanting to go back just as much. Like I'm abandoning something.

[ He sighs, reaching for Victor's hands and holding them in his own. ] But if I left then I'd just be abandoning you, which in my heart feels far worse. My point is... well, one day I'll likely be offered the option to leave and I just— I don't know what I should do.

[He squeezes James's hand, listening patiently as the man talks through his thought process. Victor can understand about purpose and duty. It's how he sees being a doctor in Storybrooke. He does make the choice between duty to the job and being with James and Lucy easy, but that's only because Victor would do anything for family-- and did go to extreme lengths for them in the past.

But he does understand that sense of wrongness and worrying about abandoning his patients and his duty to the town]

I can't tell you what to do if that time ever comes, James. I've never actually had that choice on whether to stay in one world or another. [He traces the Starfleet symbol on James's hand] If we were both in your world, there would be no question: you should go back to your ship. But here... I don't know. I wish I had an answer.

No, it's fine. I'm not asking you to tell me what to do. [ And really, if their roles were reversed, Jim would likely tell him to stay. As he had once before. ]

I just... wanted you to know. And understand. You are my family too, but my crew was the closest thing I had to a family for a long time. I never thought I'd get to have this— what I have with you.

[ Victor is excessively understanding, Jim thinks. He's immensely grateful for that, though. The last thing he'd want would be to start a fight over something that's been plaguing his mind for weeks. He appreciates the support infinitely more. ]

[How can he not understand? He has two lives in his head and false memories to connect him to people. He knows how it feels to be divided. And while Starfleet isn't military, it has a similar vibe. Being part of a military family helps him see the loyalty and duty James has there.

Speaking of...]

Do you think we keep things when we leave this place?

[ He eases a little next to Victor, resting his head briefly on the doctor's shoulder while looking over the city. He feels as though a weight has eased off his chest by just sharing that with Victor. In any case, it's not an immediate concern. It should take a while until going back to his world would even be a remote possibility, and until then he fully intends to build a life here, with Victor.

He huffs slightly at the question. ] I'm not even sure we get to keep our memories, let alone any material things. Why do you ask?

Edited 2018-06-11 00:33 (UTC)

[He pets through James's hair. The wheel starts moving them back down to the ground again]

Well, I got something for you, and it would be nice knowing you always have it with you no matter what happens and what world we end up in. I know this festival is about platonic friends, but I consider you my best friend as well as the man I love, so I think it's still applicable.

[ He tilts his head a little and looks up at Victor, smiling brightly. ]

Yeah, I got you a few gifts too. [ Like hell he'd miss the chance to spoil Victor a little. Not that he needs a reason, of course, but still. ] I guess there's no harm in trying, right? Maybe we do get to keep them. Not that I'm planning on going anywhere anytime soon.

I know you're not, and neither am I. But still, just having something physical means a lot. I, ah.... I got something out of that magical fountain. And I'm glad I have it with me. I just.... wanted to do that for you, so you have something of me with you all the time.

I know what you mean. I'd be happy to always have a little piece of you with me, no matter where I go.

[ He pulls away so he can look at Victor properly, looking admittedly curious. ] What did the fountain get you?

[For answer, he shifts in his seat to take something out of his pocket. When he pulls it out he shows James. It is a military medal]

This belonged to Gerhardt. I was so proud of him, and he acted like it was no big deal, like they gave out medals like this to everyone. I don't have many things from home that are important to me so this... was a very nice surprise.

[ Jim takes the medal from Victor's hand, holding it carefully. His thumb swipes across the shiny surface and the inscriptions on it, a fond look taking over his features. ]

It's... wonderful. We should frame it or something, put it up somewhere at home. What do you think?

That's probably a good idea. I'd hate to lose it by carrying it around in my pocket all the time. [He says right before sticking it back in his pocket]

Find a nice frame for it. We'll clear up some space in the living room and put it up there.

[ It's something nice and meaningful. It shouldn't be stuck in a drawer somewhere, nor kept hidden in a pocket just because. ]

I got something from the fountain, too. It was kind of— unexpected, but nice.

[He nods. He'll find a good frame when next he goes shopping]

Yeah? What was it?

It's a hologram of my parents.

[ He presses his lips a little, shrugging. ]

It's still in the box. I wasn't really sure what I wanted to do with it, but... well, maybe it'd be nice to set it up somewhere at the house, too.

We'll find a good place for them, don't worry.

[And with that, they have reached the bottom of the wheel] You want to ride again or see more of the amusement park?

I know we will.

[ It's just weird, even considering having a picture of his parents in any form. He rather likes the idea of having it up somewhere, though. ]

Let's go see more. Maybe we could find a couple of fun rides to go on. Oh— something like those cheesy 'tunnel of love' types.

You pick. I haven't been on any amusement rides before. Though maybe we can save that tunnel for the end after going on the more thrilling ones.

Well... [ He glances a little to the distance, to the largest ride at the park. ] We could go to the big roller coaster, then one of the water rides next?

[Victor’s eyes follow the coaster tracks up to that very first drop. His brain mentally calculates how fast they’ll be going on the way down]

Like I said, you love anything that lets you be in the sky. I guess I can give it a try.

Mm, mostly I love the rush.

[ He's admittedly curious to see how Victor will do at the roller coaster, most of all. Once the wheel finishes its full circle, they both climb out of their seats, and Jim promptly reaches for Victor's hand, weaving their fingers together as they head towards the next ride. ]

Come on. It'll be fun.

Mmm. I can see the appeal.

[He takes James's hand and even goes along willingly. No dragging required. The biggest rush he's felt before now was jumping into the portal created by Jefferson's hat. This will no doubt be much more of a thrill than that was]

So did you ride a lot of these back in Iowa?

[ He lets out something close to a snort, shaking his head. ] Are you kidding? Riverside never had anything this exciting. I did ride a few roller coasters in San Francisco, though.

[ And he also liked piloting shuttles with the inertial dampeners offline, which was almost the same thing. Except crazier, probably. ]

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