introductory mingle: DRAGOSTA

[riverviewmod]

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

navigation

Comments

[hardedged]

[ god, he's good. better than she initially gave him credit for; jess can't help but chuckle to herself, relishing in how this feels. although she's innately sexual, her experience isn't vast. her morose demeanor drives away most men, which has never bothered her. the last person she slept with was stephen strange — another impulsive mistake on her part, just like now.

and before that, there was luke cage. she misses him, more than words can convey, and she still wonders how he's doing. where he is, if he thinks of her at all. likely not, though she's never tried contacting him either. she doesn't deserve to, considering what happened. a piece of shit like her should stay out of his life, as much as possible.

the memory hinders her enthusiasm, and she's forced to actively repress the guilt. her fingers roam down, finding matthew's head and brushing through short strands of hair. as soon as his wet tongue meets the apex of her thighs, she groans aloud, encouraging him to continue. her toes curl, and her legs tighten around him slightly, yet not to the point of pain. ]

[fogwells]

[ It's encouragement that almost surprises him. Every relationship functions on the basis of a constant push-and-pull, with Jessica routinely resorting to the former. There were moments, admittedly, fleeting as they are, where they connected, where they were more than just two snarky voices combating with one another.

He doesn't forget the night he'd lost his memories where Jessica Jones had come in without any sort of hesitance, with clear and honest motive to help him as he screamed and screamed on his apartment floor, experiencing the sudden loss of sight all over again. It was one night, barely a few minutes, and yet the heat of her hands on his cheeks never left him — he almost feels them now, even if those fingers rest instead in his hair, where they hardly keep still in one place.

Her own eagerness makes him crave, fighting the urge to run a palm over his pants where he feels a slight press.

Instead his fingers slide against the sharp line of her pelvis, venturing on the plains of her skin until his thumb finds that soft nub. He rubs gently, experimental almost as he takes note of every response, every reflex she offers, as a curling tongue coaxes more of her intoxicating taste. ]

[hardedged]

[ she's witnessed him at his worst — a moment of weakness and vulnerability, now complemented by one of wonder and euphoria. as much as jess would like to believe that she doesn't care about him, at least slightly, it would be a fib to claim otherwise. they're not close, no. barely more than neighbors. still, there's something there. a spark of intrigue that isn't fueled by attraction alone. ]

God.

[ the word slips out before she can stop it, soft and strained. her fingers continue comb lazily through his hair, back pressed against the mattress as his talented tongue and hands do all the work. her legs tremble a bit, closing in on him. although on impulse she applies pressure around his head, she stops her thighs from clenching around and crushing him. her strength is always a concern she keeps in the back of her mind, with anyone she invites into the bedroom, and it's no different now. ]

[fogwells]

[ God. It vibrates from her mouth between a demand and a prayer, to which Matt makes to grant either. A palm spreads wide across her belly, heat escalating between the glide of skin against skin. Her panting breaths come as a steady hush, and with his eyes shut, Matt believes that even now, he can see her more than he ever had before.

God, she says, and he remembers he's never heard his own name off of her tongue.

The quiver of her legs roll over his shoulders and signal the ascent of his mouth. With a tongue's tip, he circles the delicate perimeter of her clit before wrapping his lips around it, sucking lightly as the firm press of two fingers stroke below in a lustful tease. ]

[hardedged]

[ jessica jones is far from religious, or even spiritual. nevertheless, it's a prayer straight from her lips. matthew continues to surprise her; as his tongue playfully swirls around the sensitive nub of flesh above her entrance, the heat only rises in the pit of her stomach. she moans, rough and satisfied, as her chest heaves gently. lifting her head, she stares down at him. the visual of his face between her thighs heightens the sensation that washes over her.

his fingers and tongue form a dangerous combination. she gasps aloud at the rush of pleasure coursing through her veins. one hand leaves his hair to grip the sheets of the bed, threatening to rip apart the fabric. her legs thrash a bit against him, seeking release from his fingers, but then she starts to relax as he continues to tease her clit. ]

[fogwells]

[ She moans and he hungers for more of it, for hearing her respond to every caress, every suckling kiss. From her belly, his hand slips beneath the hem of a tanktop, fingers fighting to sneak beneath the fabric of a bra until it's bare flesh against his warm palm, stroking her breast in rhythm with his persistent tongue.

His shoulders lean in closer, encouraging her legs to spread apart as he tilts his head to one side. Lips remain pressed, tender kisses kept consistent on her clit, but with the guidance of her moans, he slips a finger inside.

Hot, damp, he resists his own moan, the throbbing ache of his cock trying to draw away his attention. Instead, he maintains his focus, adding in a second finger to aid the stretch, thrusting slow but deep. ]

[hardedged]

Faster.

[ she insists, widening her legs to grant him more access. matthew inserts another digit, two fingers pumping slowly inside her. but to jessica, it's far from enough. she yearns for more, wants the pleasure to build even higher. with every passing second, he's taking her closer to the edge. her tongue runs over her bottom lip, as she tries not to succumb completely to the sensation.

his other hand slips beneath her top, and to help him, her own fingers drift upwards to tear the shirt apart. fumbling with her bra, jess lifts it to expose both breasts. then, her hands cover the one already on her chest, encouraging him to caress her skin as she brushes over his knuckles. ]

Harder. I won't break, Murdock.

[fogwells]

[ Her shirt tears apart and when her fingers clamp over his, he can't resist parting his mouth away to look up at her. Practically breathless, he takes the briefest pause to look upon smooth skin over squirming hips and a panting chest. Her breasts rise and fall with her own breathing as he massages one under the scope of her touch, thumb rubbing recurrently over a pointed nipple.

With a lick to his lips, he manages a swift smirk of his mouth at her demands before he leans back in to nip his teeth against her inner thigh, guiding his kisses back home to a swelled clit.

Faster, she says. Harder. As his tongue laps over the nub, his fingers thrust into a quickened pace, damp walls making it slick and easy for him to meet her requests. Her words provide plenty of motivation for him to work, wanting more of those shaky moans, and desiring the eager satisfaction of making her come. ]

[hardedged]

[ ( to be continued ) ]