riverviewlogs | introductory mingle: DRAGOSTA

Entry tags:

introductory mingle: DRAGOSTA

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

dragosta

In the days leading up to September 1st, residents new and old will notice preparations beginning, a flurry of activity getting the city ready for the upcoming celebration: Dragosta. This holiday is in celebration of romantic love, and seen as a time of the year for Quarantine residents to try to find someone special to cuddle up with in preparation for the cold winter months. Romantic love is highly valued in Riverview Quarantine, as it can foster an incredible sense of wellness and belonging, and is often the cornerstone of found families as well as biological ones. While there are no official city-sponsored parties, there are various holiday traditions and a paid day off on September 8th so anyone who wants to indulge in them with their loved one can do so.

a celebration of romantic love

Rather than anything structured and organized by the city, Dragosta is a celebration usually left up to the citizens of the city to organize for themselves - there are a few traditions that many businesses (obviously) capitalize on, mainly the tradition of special date nights with small gifts exchanged for people who've already matched up or want to. There are also various singles dances intended to help people without partners find someone to share the special holiday with, and a tradition among the various magic users in the city of preparing soul mate potions and spells intended to help people find the person they're meant to be with.

i. soulmates

Almost as soon as it hits midnight on August 31st, booths and street corner vendors are popping up all around the city offering various magical potions and spells in little rows of bottles. The number of types are overwhelming, with a different concoction available for every type of magic that exists across thousands of different worlds. But the purpose of every single bottle and its contents is exactly the same: to help you find love. Specifically, these are the traditional magics that promise to give anyone who uses them the ability to find or identify their soulmate.

These little bits of magic can have various effects on the person using them (reminiscent of the soulmate trope in fiction), depending on the type of magic and the person who prepared them, and the options are almost endless. There are a few comfortable standbys, though, that pop up pretty much every year:

● Rainbow Potion: Tiny bottles of a soft rainbow-colored potion that affects the vision. Once drunk, the potion will remove the partaker's ability to see in color until the first time they meet their soulmate after ingestion, then all the colors will come flooding back.
● Time Spell: Purchasing a time spell will get you a little vial of liquid with a tiny hourglass inside. Pouring out the liquid and turning the tiny hourglass will result in the appearance of a timer counting down on the partaker's skin somewhere - like a moving tattoo, it will count down the days, hours, minutes, and even seconds until the person will meet their soulmate for the first time after the spell is initiated.
● Red Thread: Some residents might've heard of the legend of the red thread of fate, a red thread that is tied between the ankles or little fingers of two people destined to fall in love. Tiny jars with a delicate red thread attached to a note (the contents of which are unreadable) are sold to invoke this legend. Once opened, the user should tie the red thread around their smallest finger on the left side and a red thread only that person and their soulmate can see will appear, tying them together. It may stretch or tangle, but will never break.
● Ink Potion: Small vials of a mysterious black liquid are one of the more common offerings - this liquid, once carefully spread on a portion of the partaker's skin, will result in a tattoo-like marking in a particular shape, that matches the marking that magically appeared on their soulmate!

While these are the most common types, there are almost infinite numbers of other types of potions, spells, and magics intended to help people find their soulmates, of varying type and quality.

A Few OOC Guidelines:
● Soulmate potions/spells can be used multiple times with different partners, and the effect can last as long (or as briefly) as you want it to.
● Since there is a wide variation of different types of potions/spells, they can vary in effectiveness. Feel free to use this prompt for either serious shipping or silly pairings for comedic effect.
● There is no compulsion involved in this prompt. The potions/spells will only show the character who their supposed soulmate is, not compel them to fall in love with the other character.
● Because there is no compulsion or alteration of behavior involved, and all effects are temporary and mildly annoying at most, characters ARE allowed to use them on other characters without asking. If your character wouldn't take one of the potions/spells, one of their friends can definitely spike their drink with a potion or use a spell on their behalf. Also, only one party has to use the potion/spell in order for it to work, both parties do not have to partake, though it is up to player discretion how heavily affected the person who did not partake is.
● A long list of trope ideas and variations can be found here. I've only included specific potions/spells for the most common ones I've seen, but please go as wild as you'd like with the types of potions and effects they have, so long as everyone involved is on the same page.
● Mod questions and plotting regarding this prompt can be found here.

ii. singles dances

All around the city, various businesses are hosting and sponsoring singles dances. These dances are an ancient tradition of Dragosta, originating from the reality of a very early group of displaced arrivals. Observed since the founding of Riverview Quarantine, the events have grown and changed with the times, still serving the interests of the modern citizen. The dances will be advertised throughout the city and range in quality, size, and tone, but they will always have the same objective and methodology: to match people up based on chemistry on the dance floor.

All singles or polyamorous pairings/groups looking to add additional members will sign in at the dance of their choice, and attach nametags or stickers to their clothing - pink, blue, or purple to indicate their preferences in partner (female, male, or any), and a "P" or "D" for "poly" or "duo" to indicate their preference for a polyamorous match-up or only one partner. Once they've indicated these preferences, they head out onto the dance floor, where they can either seek out someone they're interested in or wait for someone to come to them. As the dance goes on, and one person approaches another (or a group or pair), the person (or people) approached can either accept or reject the advances, and after finding someone with chemistry, the happy couple (or triad, etc.) can leave the floor together.

Every person who attends and participates will receive vouchers for free dinners and discounts or gift cards for various places in the city to have a nice dinner and get a present for a new paramour, or two or three...!

iii. date nights

This one is pretty simple: restaurants, clubs, hotels, movie theatres, and anything else in the city that might even vaguely be construed as a date location will be offering romantic date night packages, discounts, and other promotions to the lovebirds of the city. There are a few highly-anticipated special events that crop up every year, though.

One of the most popular are the movies in the park, hosted on almost every night of the month, these are romantic comedies and other good date movies from dozens of realities featuring romantic stories in a multitude of different configurations. Lovers are encouraged to bring a picnic blanket and settle on the grass for a nice relaxed show, or tickets can be bought for special experiences such as the mini-deck, with romantic table settings, wine, and catering with a waiter, or the cuddlebug, where a comfortable couch is set up with popcorn and blankets for the lucky lovebirds to curl up on together. The variations are endless!

Another popular option is a retro-futuristic drive-in experience, where any type of vehicle can be driven up to a temporary drive-in diner for a meal, and then pull up to a temporary outdoor theatre. Once parked, the lovebirds can "park" - that is, cuddle and neck in the car to their hearts' content, probably instead of actually watching the movie.

For this prompt, any type of date night discount is cool to assume, or make a mingle top-level with a special event of your own imagining and earn bonus activity points!

iv. kiss and tell

Something a little different is happening during Dragosta this year - one of the magic researchers at Gramarye, who was recently married and only just returned from her honeymoon, got hit with a confusion spell by accident. A little muddled and love-drunk, she acted on her intense desire to make everyone in the city feel just as happy as her, and shared the love by whipping up a potent spell to do so. As a result, residents will see bright little glowing 'fairy lights' floating around the city throughout the entire month of September. What do the fairy lights do, though?

Two or more characters walking under one of these glowing, floating lights will get stuck for one hour, trapped inside an invisible enclosure with an approximate three foot radius. The only options are to either wait out the hour, or to kiss! Characters will know they're meant to kiss, because part of the magic spell is the sudden and intense knowledge that they should kiss in order to break free. There is no compulsion to kiss, just the knowledge that that's how to get free. What the characters won't immediately know is that any kind of kiss will work - a hand, forehead, cheek, or butterfly kiss will work just as well as a kiss on the mouth, but that will require some experimentation to find out.

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 Dragosta, feel free to write it up!

visual inspiration

click on thumbnails for larger view

Credit: image i: Anya Goo; image ii & iv: unknown; image iii: Raphael Grimm

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Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Ronan's emotions ruled him. He might as well let Adam's have an influence.

He slipped his hand back into Adam's. "Three. Want more?" Ronan smirked, confident that any more would have the same result. If it was crap magic, whoever was behind it had the decency to keep him linked to Adam. Three times.

There had to be something to it.

Leave it to Ronan to go overboard on magic. A test trial would have made everything a lot less confusing. He also could have bothered to tell Adam about it.

He didn't seem all that frustrated, though. The annoyance of being distracted at work was outweighed by thoughts of soulmates and true loves. He squeezed his hand, the other reaching up to trace his name on Ronan's arm. It was still embarrassing.

"You must have been pretty sure to try it all those times. Or you knew I was busy and wanted to mess me up, asshole." It didn't have as much of an effect when Ronan could feel the fondness behind it.

Ronan elected not to mention that he'd been the opposite of sure.

He rolled his eyes. For it too, there was only affection to accompany it. Adam's predictableness only frustrated him half of the time. "Oh, sorry I couldn't find a convenient time for you. I'll wait until 3am next time. It's a fucking string, Adam. It's not that bad."

He ignored the emotional link aspect, which would be equally if not more distracting. But he stood by the tattoo, especially when Adam touched it.

He grinned. Leaned in, he slid his hand up Adam's forearm, stopping below his elbow. "I should have put that somewhere else."

Adam was always amazed at Ronan's ability to make simple, courteous tasks sound offensive. Like waiting until a good time to make a magic string appear on someone's hand.

Yet Ronan could get away with it now because Adam couldn't stop feeling pleased about the idea of being Ronan's true love. He was confident in their relationship and trusted Ronan, but it was hard to let go of insecurities that suggested Ronan might find someone better. Maybe they really were perfect for each other.

"You think?" he asked, more meaning that he should have put it where not everyone could see it. "I never thought being branded like livestock was a good look."

Had he been unable to feel Adam's emotions, Ronan would have been a great deal more put out. Since he could feel them, all he did was lean back.

"That is not the Lynch brand." Ronan wasn't about to explain his thought process, however short and simple it was.

1. He was eager to see what would happen.
2. His arm was right there.
3. He had a good reason to cover some of his arm.
4. He didn't mind everyone knowing he had a boyfriend, even if it was a cliche tattoo.

"Seriously," he continued. "Is that how you feel?"

Too many emotions swirled around in his brain. He only processed the broad strokes, missing all of the finer details-- or any details. He just knew it couldn't be that bad, if Adam was secretly pleased.

Adam was not sure what this tentative feeling was. Was Ronan really concerned that Adam didn't want to have his name on his arm? He knew, for various reasons, that he didn't want to upset Ronan. So he shrugged, keeping himself calm and not falling into the trap of annoyance that might come with all of this.

"I mean, I wouldn't actually get a tattoo of your name on my arm. I didn't think you would either." He didn't add that it seemed incredibly lame just in case Ronan actually liked the idea. "But no, it's not really a brand."

He looked down at his own arm and touched the tattoo there. It was a little too similar to a brand for him to feel completely fine with it, but he knew that was not the intent. "It's meant to show you that you're innately connected to someone, in every cell of your body." Embarrassment started to grow from how cheesy that sounded, but this was all Ronan's fault anyway.

"Why are you so... testy about this?"

It was even more useless to lie now, not that it was ever an option.

"I figured you'd think it was pointless, but I didn't think you'd be embarrassed." Ronan was aware that he was the romantic in their relationship. Yes, they'd talked about love and even soulmates, courtesy of the Symposium, but he always felt one step out of sync in this.

The truth was, Ronan found it frustrating to be the only one of his friends for whom it mattered so much. Even Blue was more pragmatic and she grew up with a prophecy confirming the existence of her true love. Guys weren't supposed to want this the way he did, especially not Ronan. With that in mind, he wasn't sure why he'd gotten his hopes up that Adam's first reaction wouldn't be irritation.

God, that embarrassment was getting annoy-- oh. That was him this time.

Ronan looked down at Adam's tattoo. "You've got a point. I didn't think they'd be that big." He still liked his. Bigger was better on his scarred arms.

Now Adam was getting annoyed. Maybe a little because of Ronan's annoyance, but mostly because Ronan kept assuming things based on the fact that he could now feel what Adam was feeling. This was why some things weren't meant to be messed with.

"I'm not embarrassed of being your soulmate," he said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. He realized belatedly that was the first time in this conversation they actually acknowledged what this was. "And I don't think it's pointless either." He didn't know how to express how much it meant to him.

"It's just so―open. Like... my feelings are on display. In more ways than one." Ronan had to understand growing up repressed, at home, in Henrietta, and how terrifying it was to feel exposed. "I don't mind people knowing, but I'm not used to it."

In hindsight, that was a huge thing to overlook. It wasn't something he'd do if they had the option at home. But they weren't in Henrietta anymore. As much of a culture shock as it was to have festivals devoted to carnal love or to see a men in drag parading around while people handed out sex toys, the one thing Ronan appeciated about it was that he could hold his boyfriend's had in public without worrying about getting shit for it. When had he gotten so used to this place that he'd forgotten it?

"I didn't think about that," Ronan admitted.

Would Adam feel the same if he were with a girl?

No. Crap, of course he would. This was Adam. Ronan repressed his magical identity. Adam repressed everything.

But--

No. He was done being jealous. He'd been overflowing with excitement moments ago and Adam hadn't been far behind. He had a fucking string on his finger tying them together. It wasn't the best decision but he'd be an idiot not to learn from it.

"I didn't mean that you're embarrassed of me or that you thought soulmates were pointless. I meant-- you know, grand romantic gestures aren't your thing."

Outside of flowers.

~~God damn it, Ronan.~~

Fine. Time to get pratical.

"I'll dream you an armband until it's over. No one else can see these." The red string stretched as Ronan brought his hand up, hovering over his chest. "Better?" Could they just go back to being and feeling happily in love?

Adam couldn't tell what Ronan was thinking, but he knew there was some conflict there. He wasn't sure what to do about it. Mostly he was upset because he felt like he had made a mistake somewhere, even though he thought his reaction was mostly reasonable. How else was he meant to take this? To cheer and swoon in Ronan's arms? That just wasn't him.

"Ronan," he complained, voice laced with exasperation. "If I didn't like grand romantic gestures, I wouldn't be dating you. And I wouldn't have responded with my own." Even if Ronan didn't quite see it that way, Adam thought dream hand lotion and dramatic birthday kisses were grand. And he thought using a magical forest to get Ronan to smile and an even more dramatic birthday kiss equaled that. He was tired of feeling like Ronan thought he was the only one who cared in this relationship.

"I'm not trying to hide anything." His frustration grew until he leaned forward to wrap his arms around Ronan's waist, pulling him in tightly. "I like these. All of it. I'm glad you did it. Maybe I would have had your reaction if I was expecting it."

Ronan leaned into Adam, curling his arm around his torso. He had no idea what they were really fighting about anymore because he was unable to express it.

He didn't doubt that Adam cared about him, only that he cared enough to come back. The one gesture he truly wanted was one he'd never get and would never ask for. At least he had proof now that he wouldn't need it.

"I get the picture." Ronan hadn't meant to sound snappish. Ordinarily, Adam's assurances would have calmed him, but he couldn't get the cooling process to stick. Any time it started, Adam's frustration kicked off Ronan's own. Knowing that he was the cause of it only made it worse.

Ronan rested his head against Adam's neck. He took a deep breath just like everyone always told him to. It felt as futile as ever.

He couldn't indulge in being angry with himself when Adam could feel it.

"Can we agree it isn't the worst decision I've made and forget this?"

Adam brought his hand up to stroke at Ronan's shaved head, enjoying the scratchiness of it on his fingers. He also had no idea why this had turned into something so serious or why Ronan was so upset.

He was working to calm himself at least even though their frustration was feeding into each other's. Being able to hold Ronan like this was more than enough to make him feel better. This was all reassuring, ultimately, because sometimes he wondered that they weren't meant to be together thanks to all of their fighting.

"I never said it was." He kissed at Ronan's ear, then sucked on his lobe for a few seconds. "I don't want to forget that we're soulmates. I'm so lucky." And he did feel that way. He'd never felt shame at all during this, but pride was welling up in him now. He was meant to be with Ronan Lynch, the most handsome guy to ever exist.

The hairs on the back of Ronan's neck rose as a shiver swept down from the back of his head to his spine.

When he found the magic that would bind their emotions, this was what he'd hoped for. The anger bled away. Heat remained, but it no longer felt like an impending explosion. This was from Adam's body, his love, and feelings Ronan hardly ever associated with himself. He recognized it. After all, it was how he felt about Adam. He held on to that emotional thread even as his hand followed the physical one that tied their hands together. Once he reached the string's end, he slipped his fingers through Adam's. Then he pushed the last of his anger back down.

"I mean forget the argument. There's no way I'm letting you forget we're soulmates." Ronan pulled away so he could look at Adam, mouth caught half in a smirk and half in a smile. "So that's how you feel?"

Moodswings were going to be even more of a bitch to deal with, but worth it for this.

God, Ronan was so in love. They both were.

It was incredibly romantic now that he could think of it that way, the string binding them, their emotions tied together. It would become bothersome if it were permanent, but a few days couldn't hurt.

His mood was improved by Ronan's, fairly sure that he could feel their love mingling and combining.

"I guess it must be." He leaned forward to press their lips together, curious about how that would feel. Excitement ran through him as it always did when he was kissing Ronan, but also a certain contentment, a feeling that this was where he wanted to be more than anywhere else.

Ronan leaned into the kiss, parting his lips, pressing his body against Adam's. Touching Adam always shot through him. It was a surge of electricity. The kiss was a spark that burst into flame and spread until all of his world was fire. Somehow, he'd begun to take it for granted. Experiencing it with Adam's feelings melding into his own stripped him of any built up tolerances. It remained familiar but it was so much more.

One hand still firmly held Adam's. The other touched Adam's cheek. His fingers trailed down along his neck, running down a vein. He might have felt its pulse in his mind alone, but thoughts and reality blended when you were Ronan Lynch.

If he were thinking of anything beyond Adam's lips and Adam's tongue and Adam's heart, Ronan would laugh at himself for doubting them days, hours, even minutes before.

He pulled away. His lips brushed Adam's but only barely. He breathed.

"Adam?" Ronan didn't know what the question was or if there even was one.

If it could always be like this, Adam would wish this magic were permanent. Even the least sensible part of his mind knew that was a bad idea, but this was better than anything he could have imagined.

It was as if their pulses were racing together, their lips moving in the exact perfect way, like they knew everything about each other. It made sense to him how they could be meant for each other if this was them at their most connected. He squeezed Ronan's hand as his unoccupied one bunched the back of Ronan's shirt, swiftly pulling him closer.

He couldn't tell how long they had been kissing for, but he knew he hadn't had enough of it when Ronan pulled away. He followed Ronan's lips for more, licking where they parted, only stopping when Ronan spoke.

There was no question but Adam decided to answer anyway. "I love you," he breathed, then he smiled. "This was a good idea."

Still breathless, Ronan's laugh was more of an amused sighed.

"Glad you came around." Ronan kissed him again. "I love you too." And again.

He hiked his hand up Adam's shirt and dragged his fingers over his back. He thought of the tattoo on his own back. Whenever Adam spread his fingers over it, he felt his hands were stitching together a part of him that'd been broken. It was death and life and rebirth, an ouroboros drawn by callused fingertips. The only thing Ronan wanted more was to have his hands on Adam's as he slipped those fingers into his mouth. He wondered what that felt like from Adam's perspective. He ached to find out.

There was no decision involved. Ronan acted on his subconscious, which reminded him that there was the smell of gasoline, grease, and that before Adam had kissed him there had been a car in his peripheral vision. All of his thoughts remained on Adam while his body moved them both back until he'd pinned Adam against that car.

Adam was easily caught up in the lust they shared, the feeling that this was the perfect time to explore everything about each other. He shivered when Ronan pressed him against the cool car, practically pulsating with excitement.

He leaned his head back, arching into Ronan's body, doing whatever he could to feel more. When he felt their hips rock together, his eyes fluttered open to the cheap florescent lights of the garage. He was at work.

He was torn then between his desire and his logic, emotions battling it out as he refused to let Ronan go just yet. Soon his rationality won out and he gently pushed Ronan back, simmering with disappointment from the loss of it all.

"Not here. We'll try it out later," he sighed. "Shouldn't you be working?"

Ronan would have dove back in and, as caught up as he was, almost did. But Adam's disappointment brought him back to the present.

They were in a garage. Not a problem. They were in the garage at Adam's work. They both agreed that was a problem. Ronan wanted to be walked in on while with Adam about as much as he wanted to someone to find him dreaming a night horror. But even all the shame in his upbringing did not make this easy.

Still flushed, and a little embarrassed, Ronan forced his eyes away from Adam's neck, hands, or anywhere else he'd been touching a minute ago. He took a breath and a step back. "Look who's paying attention. My work's over. The cows and other freaks have gone home."

Ronan thought about going home with Adam. He hadn't finished with his neck yet, let alone the rest of him.

Adam didn't want Ronan to be embarrassed. They both had the same thought, which maybe they should have been a little shameful of, but he still felt irrationally happy. He also didn't have the self-control to look away from Ronan, so he looked like he was ready to pounce on him at any moment.

"I'm almost done," he promised. "You're the one who decided to start this during work hours." Not that there was ever a time when Adam wasn't doing something. He rolled the string between his fingers and moved off the car to get back to his tools.

"Stay here?"

"I don't have anywhere better to be." Ronan swallowed. If he thought it'd do him any good, he'd will his body to calm. He knew himself too well for that so he put some more distance between them.

He avoided the wall this time. The last time he'd been here, he'd turned into a whole new man while leaning against it. He didn't love himself, but he'd prefer to stay the same person, especially when that person was tied to Adam. He couldn't help but tug on the string as a reminder of that fact.

"We're going to need a garage when we get our place." His mind was alight with possibilities, all of them starting where they'd just left off.

Ronan no longer had to catch the small smile on Adam's lips to know he enjoyed this arrangement. He felt lighter than ever, and he knew it was stupid. He also knew he was in love with his soulmate, and it felt like everything in the world was working out for him.

He glanced over when he thought he could feel Ronan's hesitance, thinking for a moment before remembering what happened before. It calmed him when Ronan decided not to lean against the wall, just in case it had absorbed magical properties.

"What? Neither of us have a car yet," he said with laughter in his voice at the idea of an empty garage. Unfortunately for Ronan, he could not quite link up the idea of their plans for home and a garage.

"If we're getting a house, we're getting a car." And if they weren't getting a house, then Ronan sure as hell needed a car.

He watched Adam work. Patience was a virtue he seldom exercised, saving it for these moments. When Adam was involved, waiting was not putting his life on hold. It just gave him more time to stare. His eyes kept going back to that string and what he could see of the temporary tattoo.

Adam felt light. Ronan felt like a half-drowned man finally pulled above water: relieved, grateful, and stupidly in love with his savior.

"With whose money?" Adam only belatedly realized that was a stupid question to ask someone who could dream things up. Still, he noticed Ronan wasn't entirely keen on messing with the magical energy around here, which he thought was smart.

He was still proud of Ronan, for everything, and thought it was funny how different their emotions about each other were. He glanced over and laughed.

"Okay, I'll just work an extra fifteen minutes next time. Let's get out of here." He was more impatient than Ronan at times.

Ronan grinned. After a few quick steps, he took Adam's hand, easily lacing their fingers together.

"Took your sweet time, didn't you?" There was no hiding the fact that he was entirely too smug about stealing Adam away for the night. Luring his diligent, workaholic boyfriend away served as an excellent ego-boost and one more addition to Ronan's short list of accomplishments.

"I do make money." While he'd gotten better with budgeting, keeping his expectations realistic remained a work in progress. "We can always get some junk piece of shit for you to work on. Shitbox Two."

introductory mingle: DRAGOSTA

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