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

i!!

[spellslots]

[It's the cloak that draws his attention, both for the color and the fact that whoever's wearing it is absolutely extra enough to think it's appropriate for the middle of a flower festival. Which really, to Taako, seems like something that Kravitz would do if he'd just shown up in some other dimension.

He catches a glimpse of the white of Gabriel's mask, assumes it's just the white of bone, and that cements it enough for Taako, leading him to actually fucking like, jog his way over, as if he's some sort of idiot who gets excited about seeing people he knows.

At least he's smart enough to do something stupid like barrel into Gabe, especially when he's approaching from behind.]

Someone has really gotta teach you when the whole reaper look is appropriate, my fella.

[hellshot]

[He'll appreciate not being barreled into, just as Taako will appreciate not having a gun pulled on him from the aforementioned edgelord if any sort of unwanted touching were to happen.

But what he does hear is his name, and turning to look at this... Elf...

He's immediately wary about how this person knows his name, and why he's so goddamn friendly with him.

Don't you love miscommunication?]

And someone has to teach you that when speaking with others, you usually adopt more formal speech when it's to strangers.

[spellslots]

[OOPS.

As soon as Gabriel turns around, it's immediately clear that this 110% isn't Kravitz, which could make things awkward, especially when the guy gets some attitude. But Taako just laughs. Apparently the get up and growly voice isn't very intimidating to someone who's met the for real grim reaper and threatened to tentacle his dick.]

Don't get your panties in a twist, bubbale, I thought you were someone else. Not like you've got a trademark on the creepy robe thing.

[This is why most people he meets immediately dislike him, but the bluster and the jokes do a decent job of hiding the small pang of disappointment he feels at that fact this guy isn't Kravitz.]

[hellshot]

[...'Bubbale'? And 'someone else'... who the hell else was stealing his look walking around in an outfit akin to a grim reaper? Now he's the one with the questions. Not that Taako will be able to see the confused look under his mask--but it's there.]

For someone who describes it as 'creepy', you don't seem off-put by it. [Disappointing.]

...Don't tell me there's someone else around like this. [He doesn't want to have to deal with this.]

[spellslots]

Oh, no, I dig this look! All dark and mysterious and probably gonna fuck my shit up, it's great.

[It's hard to tell whether he's being facetious or genuine, but it's probably a little bit of both. He's just a sucker for dramatics, to be honest.]

And you're safe from anyone out spooking you for now, I'm pretty sure Kravitz's is off doing his grim reaper thing somewhere else.

[He's probably dying somewhere for all Taako knows but he's not going to deal with that thought right now, that's for sure.]

[hellshot]

[He's been around Sombra enough to be able to tell between facetious and genuine, so at least Taako's Lucky enough that Reaper won't take him entirely seriously--just fixing him with an irritated huff from under his mask.]

Don't know, and don't particularly care who this Kravitz person is, but some man in a mask isn't about to out-do me in anything.

[Because he considers himself to be a 'Real Grim Reaper' and all--he clearly takes himself far too seriously.]

...Who the hell even are you.

[spellslots]

[Oh, Gabe, that's so funny. Both that this guy takes himself so seriously and the thought of Kravitz running around in a mask.]

My guy doesn't fuck around with masks, that's what gave you away. Pretty sure Krav only puts skin on 'cause it freaks most people out if he doesn't.

[THAT SURE IS A WEIRD SENTENCE.

He grins.]

I'm Taako.

[hellshot]

[....'only puts on skin'....

Alright, now that got his attention. He's met all sorts of weirdos in space, but nothing quite fitting that description. He fixes Taako with a stare.]

Obviously it would freak people out. [Which is WHY he wears a mask.]

You're telling me you know someone who's dead and walking around, then.

[....]

Taako. Right. [Lol, what's introducing yourself, Reaper.]

[spellslots]

[Everyone's got a skull under all the fleshy bits, it's not that weird.

Taako doesn't really care that the introduction wasn't reciprocated, half the time he forgets to ask for names anyway.]

I mean, yeah, he's the grim reaper. I'm pretty sure you gotta be dead to get the job.

[hellshot]

[Sound logic, but most people start to freak out when you show off the 'skull under the fleshy bits'.]

...

Yes, you do. [The Grim Reaper. Even for someone like him, he's pretty... disbelieving, at this point.]

And how exactly did he get reanimated after dying? I'm familiar with being called The Grim Reaper, but you'll find my own circumstances aren't ones that can be easily repeated.

[HOW DARE SOMEONE ELSE STEAL MY GIG.]

[spellslots]

I'm gonna go ahead and guess it's godly shit, since works for the Raven Queen.

[Said like this is absolutely enough of an explanation to clear up any confusion.]

What's your deal, if you're so special?

[He doesn't really expect to get an answer, but still.]

[hellshot]

...I don't believe in crap like that.

[Says the dead man. Says the dead man who's seen aliens but doesn't apparently believe in gods.]

Only one like me back where I come from. That's my deal.

A real fucked up one-time incident involving a fire, fucked up science chemicals and nanobiology.

[Try and figure that one out.]

[spellslots]

Alright, well, you're gonna wanna re-adjust that mindset real quick cause even if gods don't exist wherever the hell you're from, they sure do for a lot of folks.

[Taako isn't like, religious, and he doesn't think the gods are all that great most of the time, but they definitely exist. He has met one.

Also he knows at least some of those words; the only one he's missing is nonbiology, but he's not unfamiliar with various kinds of science. One of his friends is a robot inhabited by a ghost.]

So you got resurrected but like, shittily?

[That sums it up, right?]

[hellshot]

...Oh, they 'exist' to a whole lot of folks where I come from too. We won't get into that.

[He delivers that with a grumble and a gripe. He sure doesn't have any time for belief in gods, or religion. But he sure knows about a certain God Program that caused wars back on his world, so...]

Best way I've heard anyone sum that shit up.

Yes.

I got resurrected and she did such a shit job with it, she may as well have created a whole new type of being.

[He gestures to himself, one of his hands swirling as it turns into smoke and then back.]

[spellslots]

This is what you get for not having clerics.

[Like clearly that's the main issue here, although Taako does look pretty impressed by the cool smoke hand.]

I'd offer to fix that shit for you, but I dunno how magic would interfere with the nano-whatevers.

[Also he can't cast the particular spell he's thinking of yet, but give him a couple months and he can raise the dead.]

[hellshot]

...'Magic'. Right.

Nothing to do with magic. Nanobiology and chemical enhancements are all science.

Whatever did this to me is entirely to do with that. You start mixing magic into that already questionable amalgamation?

[He lets out a scoff, holding up two hands. Pass.]

I'd rather die again.

[spellslots]

I mean, that can absolutely also be arranged if you want.

[He isn't exactly sure if he'd want to live life as some kind of half-undead creature, especially if he hadn't agreed to being resurrected in the first place so... might as well offer.]

[hellshot]

Funny.

[He doesn't sound too amused.]

If I really wanted to off myself again, I'd have already done so.

I've got things to finish while whatever keeps me alive still lingers.

[spellslots]

Cool, cool, cool.

[It wasn't all that much of a joke, really, so Reaper's lack of amusement doesn't phase him.

What he says next is a joke, though, because he's a shit.]

Did the attitude come with the nanothings or is that all you?

[hellshot]

.......

[He turns his head to look at Taako. Either this guy is a real joker, or he has absolutely no self-preservation ability at all.]

Good question. Is poking sticks at someone who calls themselves Death something you do on regular, or are you just trying to get a rise out of me.

[Joke not taken well, or taken too well. Taako can decide.]

[spellslots]

[Porque no los dos?]

My dude, if I wasn't intimidated by the actual grim reaper tryna kill me, some spooky science fuck up isn't gonna scare me.

[His grin doesn't fade at all, sorry Gabe, he just can't take the edgelord act seriously.]

[hellshot]

[So many people don't take the act seriously, it turns out. Were Taako part of a small number, he'd probably lash out to 'make the other regret his words', but...


...He's too old and too tired, Taako. Why can't you just conform to an ordinary person's thoughts when faced with a 'spooky science fuck up.'

He turns to shoot the other a glare from under his mask, eyes glowing a little to be seen from underneath the dark hollows of his mask.]

...What is it with you people from other dimensions and your carefree attitudes.

It's becoming extremely irritating.

[spellslots]

[The glare barely even registers; Repear isn't trying to actively hurt him, he's just some dude that's a little grim, so he doesn't see any reason to be scared.]

Is it really that big a deal? Who gives a shit if people aren't scared of you?

[He prefers being underestimated, to be honest.]

[hellshot]

I give a shit.

Because it gives them the idea that I'm interesting enough to talk to.

Which I'd rather avoid.

[Catch his drift?]

[spellslots]

[He catches it, he's just going to ignore it.]

You've got a sweet coat, a cool mask, you do that dramatic smoke shit and you don't want people to find you interesting?

[The trick to being unassuming is to actually look unassuming.]