introductory mingle: SAMPREMI

[riverviewmod]

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: Introductory Log and Sampremi Celebration
when: March 8th - March 15th
where: In several different locations in the downtown area of the Inhabited City.
warnings: please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

sampremi celebration

In the days leading up to March 8th, new residents may notice advertising around the city, everywhere from digital screens to paper flyers pasted on blank walls, featuring the name of the spring holiday in celebration of new beginnings, new love, and lust: Sampremi. The advertising mentions that there will be street festivals set up at various locations throughout the week and lists where the market will be set up on each day.

street market

The main draw of the holiday is a roaming street market that features special treats and street food that can only be found during Sampremi, a bustling bargain market with any kind of goods you can think of, and fair games that allow a person to win a prize for that special someone.

i. street food

One of the major draws of the festival is the special street food that can only be obtained this time of year. Almost everything you can buy at the Sampremi Festival is meant to be shared - whether it's one piece of meat on two sticks or desserts baked with a narrow part in the middle for convenient tearing, everything is built in twos. The stalls sell everything from cups of soup, sandwiches, roasted or fried meat, deep-fried vegetables and cakes, dumplings, donuts, bagels, turnovers, and anything else you can think of.

Many of the savory dishes are based on the meat of a particular fowl native to the moon Riverview is situated on that has a taste and texture halfway between chicken and duck, cooked to be spicy (ranging from very mild to throat-burning). Many of the desserts are based around a fruit native to the moon that is spherical, red-orange, and has a light sweet taste that is similar to a combination of mango, pineapple, and strawberry. Both ingredients are considered to be aphrodisiacs. Of course, the foods aren't actually aphrodisiacs and any effect is purely placebo.

ii. fair games

The festival features an entire row of fair games ranging from very high-tech games featuring virtual reality and neon holograms to extremely old-fashioned games with darts and balloons or balls and glasses. The games all have prizes in various shapes and sizes, with the standard stuffed animals, but also with goods and special items donated by any business in the city; ranging from tiny prizes to huge and expensive ones.

Due to the nature of the holiday, many of the stalls are set up to cater to winning a prize for your partner, and due to the nature of the Quarantine, a lot of them involve aiming or other aspects of pretending to fight.

iii. shopping

Originally, the part of the street festival that involved an actual market, with stalls and booths set up with goods, was aimed primarily at romantic trinkets like flowers or jewelry, gifts intended to be purchased for a loved one. As time has gone by, however, this aspect of the market has increased, with many businesses participating, though the emphasis is still on small businesses and anything relating to local culture rather than booths for any of the larger more corporate businesses.

There is still plenty of jewelry to be found, for sure, mostly handmade and artisan, but the scope of the Market has widened immeasurably. The Sampremi Market is an excellent place to find specialty foods, clothing, jewelry, art, or other goods that were originally native to cultures on other planets in this reality, or other realities altogether. Many residents in the city use the market to share their unique cultural goods and traditional dress with others.

iv. adult

In a side alley of the Sampremi Market on any day, one can find an area roped off with a red silken cord, attended by members of the Perimeter Guard in casual dress who will ID anyone entering to make sure they are 18+. Once characters are permitted entry, they will find all of the adult offerings that the market has to offer.

Since Sampremi is, historically, a celebration of lust and physical love, the adult offerings are all set up to cater to two or more people of any sex or gender configuration. One can find an adult or sexualized version of almost anything that's featured in the main market, from fair games to adult goods to street food laced with actual aphrodisiacs (there are always warnings for food spiked in this way to avoid accidental consumption).

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 Sampremi Festival, feel free to write it up!

visual inspiration

click on thumbnails for larger view

Credit (left to right): Theo Prins, andreasrocha @ tumblr, hrormir @ deviantart, nkabuto @ deviantart

navigation

Comments

bryn zethir | open

[inlaid]

→ street food

[Bryn never passes up an opportunity to try new things. She doesn't do it without caution, of course, but she's open to new experiences all the same. Trusting that the food given to the public is safe, trusting that there are no ulterior motives from the people who sell it other than to make a profit, Bryn decides to sample it all. Liberally.

Of course, wandering on her own means either make a pig of herself and scarf it all down, or use it as a tool to make new friends while she's exploring the festival. As such, everyone is fair game when it comes to her generosity. With little finesse, she holds out the other half of her snacks, from meat on a stick to sticky buns to sweets, and jerks her chin up toward it.] Here, have you tried this yet? It's good.

→ fair games

[Throughout the festival, she can be found often enough wandering around the game stalls. More often than not she just watches, having no particular desire for most of the prizes. It's more fun to watch other people most the time, seeing their skill level, seeing who goes alone and who approaches the stall in pairs or groups. Seeing who has fun and who gets frustrated with all of it. And if someone seems particularly determined, but struggling all the same, she can be counted on to wander by, to offer her help.

Of course, the people managing the game booths know what they're about. They know that not everyone wants stuffed animals, novelty shirts and gold fish. And despite herself Bryn ends up picking up one of the water pistols at a booth and trying her damnedest to win a particularly eye-catching glass pendant.

Unfortunately, the pistols aren't nearly as accurate as her own, and before long a string of muttered curses escaping her lips.]

Blighting piece of spawncursed trash--work, damn you--

→ adult

[Bryn notices the adult area of the festival on the first day. Her nose practically itches at seeing a roped off area, wondering what might be on the other side. The first day she'd approached it from the side, trying to casually sneak a peek in case it was some sort of members-only area. Of course, upon learning that it was separated from the general population because of it's more adult nature, well, she hadn't wasted more than a minute to fish out her ID.

While not quite as hedonistic as the rest of her people back home, Bryn still has a healthy attitude toward sex and love. Her work occupies much of her time, making it difficult to maintain a relationship, but most of the time there are a few close friends she has who are usually up to engage in something friendly and casual when she's in town. It doesn't fulfill her the way she'd like--she knows from her mother and fathers that there could be so much more for her out there--but it keeps her from getting lonely or feeling too disconnected from others. Keeps her from forgetting that there's more to her life than protecting the people.

She avoids most of the food and drink in this area, expecting it would be nothing but an exercise in frustration to take a true aphrodisiac without any outlet, but the rest of the booths and stalls have more than enough to hold her attention. Without shame, she examines the wares available. There are all manner of sex toys, gimmicky edibles and lingerie. A few booths seem to have items and clothing made of soft leather with even softer lining where necessary. There's literature and paintings, crudely drawn comics, and even one innovative booth full of furniture meant for bedroom use. Too interested by far in everything on offer, especially without the demands of her job, she can't help but indulge herself in looking it all over at least once. Twice. Sometimes even asking questions about this set of restraints or if that robe there comes in her size.]

fair games

[spellslots]

[Taako doesn't particularly care for fair games, his aim is fine when magic is involved, but anything requiring like, physical skill is not in his wheelhouse.

But it's kind of funny watching other people struggle.]

You know those things are rigged, right?

[inlaid]

[Bryn looks over to Taako, momentarily distracted, and a split second later offers him a fleeting, rueful smile.]

Yeah, but it doesn't stop me from thinking my own skill is enough to overcome the way they've rigged it.

[It's just...not going to plan.]

This would be easier if they just let me use my own gun.

[spellslots]

If they let you use your own gun it'd defeat the whole point of them cheating.

[But more importantly, he drops his voice a little, as if conspiratorially.]

But hey, I'm here now, maybe I can help you out. What's the whole, you know, aim of this thing?

[He's been watching people struggle with it but not actually paying attention to the concept.]

[inlaid]

[She grins. He's not wrong. She's paying for the chance to be cheated but at least it's all in good fun. Leaning in as his voice drops in volume, she arches an eyebrow up, wondering how he might plan on helping.]

The goal is to spray water into the mouths of those things--[She gestures with her water pistol to the strange looking monsters with holes carved out of their open mouths.]--and to fill them with enough water that they eventually fall over. Only they move as you hit them and the pistol stream isn't very strong to begin with.

You think you can even the odds?

[spellslots]

[Taako hums thoughtfully, running through a mental list of his spells as he tries to figure out what would be useful for this particular task.]

Buy me a drink and I can guarantee you a win.

[He just likes free booze.]

[inlaid]

[Bryn doesn't need to win that much, but she's curious to see what he'll do to guarantee a win, and she's never opposed to buying someone a drink and learning more about them, given the opportunity.]

Deal. Have at it.

[She half turns toward him, holding the gun part way between him on the off chance that he'll need to do something to it to guarantee her win.]

[spellslots]

[He doesn't need to do anything to the gun, so he just waves in a go ahead gesture.

As soon as she starts firing, he's going to use Telekinesis to ensure the water makes the distance into the monster's mouth, because burning a fifth level spellslot on a fair game is a wicked smart idea.]

Food

[greatcleavage]

Trade you half and half. [Roy offers up his own particular ouerve -- a long bread roll practically oozing melted cheese from a split in the center where it's meant to be separated -- along with a smile.] I think I can live with the smug satisfaction some organizer would get from knowing this whole event worked a little.

food

[barksnark]

[ Bless this festival. The Holts love themselves some food, and there is no better start to being trapped in a different dimension (but William's never known what his dimension feels like, he's been hopping from one to the other since he was born) than filling up your stomach with genuine and delicious delicacies. It helps that everyone else is in and partying in the name of appetite, too. ]

Are you giving it to me?

[inlaid]

[Bryn shoves the meat skewer closer, in as much of an answer as what comes out of her mouth.]

Not in the habit of waving food under people's noses for fun. Here, on me, okay?

[She's got a little more spending money after helping with the monster fighting, after all. She can afford to treat someone the other half of her food.]

I'm Bryn. You?

[barksnark]

[ It's decided: all the people the quarantine holds are excellent. Good friends, good taste. And they share their food, too! Will they turn out to be alien overlords whose end goal is to turn all of mankind into Stepford wives and husbands? This remains to be seen.

Until then, he's gonna get himself some of that meat. ]

Thanks, Bryn. I'm Will.

[ Bite. Chew. ]

I like your hair. I was thinking about getting the same color, but my brother might get jealous.

[inlaid]

[She has a mouthful of food at the moment, but she manages a smile all the same, using her free hand to shift her fingers through her hair.]

Jealous because it's so incredible?

[Finishing chewing, swallowing, she has the grace to look a little sheepish.]

Truth is the pink is the remnants of a color charm that hasn't quite worn off. Short of cutting my hair or dying over it I'm not sure it's going to fade away.

[barksnark]

Obviously.

[ William is too cool for anything that doesn't reach incredible! ]

But why would you want it to? Like, it makes everybody else look so boring. That's the greatest charm in the world.

[inlaid]

[She could explain the part where she's a member of the Council's Agents, a role which is kept secret from all. It wouldn't mean anything to anyone here, likely, but it's better to keep a lid on that for the time being. She doesn't know who else will arrive, and there's something to be said for being underestimated by enemies. Even if she doesn't have any here. Yet.

So she doesn't explain that the hair dye was part of an identity she was working under for the last three weeks, and that it stands out too much in a crowd.]

I like variety, and choice. The charms are supposed to let me choose on any given day, not stick around even after I've removed them.

The old fashioned way might be better in the long run.

↪ fair games

[mrterrific]

[ Curtis is passing by when he catches a few of those more inventive invectives, muttered with so much frustration and anger that he pauses, turns around to see what has annoyed someone just that much. He sees Bryn struggling to fire the water pistol, attempting to hit the target and missing despite her care to take aim. Quickly, furtively, he says: ]

Here, lemme see it?

[ Tampering with the water pistols probably isn't allowed, strictly speaking, but the person running this booth is distracted, attending to someone a little further down the stall, taking their money and getting them set up with a water pistol of their own. So Curtis holds out a hand for the pistol, gesturing that Bryn should hand it to him so he can take a quick look and see what is making the aim so screwy. ]

[inlaid]

[Generally speaking Bryn's minded not to give him the pistol. She's a skilled marksman and this shouldn't be difficult and she hates the idea of handing it off to someone else to win for her.

However, she's also frustrated enough at this point that she'd rather beat the game any way possible than stubbornly keep trying when it's not working. She hands the gun off to Curtis without a word, watching him to see what he'll do.

Maybe he's some sort of whiz at working with fake guns as opposed to real ones?]

[mrterrific]

[ Once he has the pistol in hand, Curtis does not lift it to take a shot of his own. Instead, with only the quickest glance up at the booth's attendant, he starts to examine it, examining the alignment of the parts, fiddling with the trigger to test it's resistance, sloshing the contents to make sure they move like regular water without anything added. Sure enough... ]

Well, no wonder you can't hit the target. This's got something added to it, feel that?

[ He gently squeezes the trigger so a little of the liquid trickles out into his palm, and though it's clear, it doesn't feel quite like water. It's a little too viscous, just faintly sticky. Too heavy, throwing off her shooting. Curtis holds out his hand so she can touch the stuff to confirm before he is shaking his hand dry and combing over the gun again in detail, squinting at it and saying. ]

There's something funny about the nozzle, too. It's not exactly straight along the barrel, look? You can see it kind of shifting around in there, the little tube the "water" is going through? So it's in a different position now- as opposed to now [ He squirts the pistol at the ground once and then twice, pointing to the translucent case of the pistol to show how the internal part has shifted. ]

If I didn't know any better, I'd think this thing was designed to miss.

[ Curtis' voice has a hint of irony in it because, as he's sure they both know, that's probably exactly what happened. ]

[inlaid]

[If he can find that much fascinating about the fair game's pistol, she wonders how he'd respond to the one she carries with her, the one with the barrel that can shift to accommodate all kinds of ammunition.

Eyes sharp, she follows along as he explains how the gun has been rigged, not just in the nozzle but with the water itself as well. She takes the gun back from him with a wry smile, but her gaze is no less intent as she stares at the target in front of her.]

Wouldn't surprise me in the least. I think you've got it right. Now let's see if I can make a few adjustments to work with it's failings...

[She steps forward again, and after a moment reassesses the targets before her. Initially she'd gone for a target higher up, but with the added weight of the liquid something lower seems better. She steps in as close as possible and aims a little bit up to arc the fluid into the hole of her new target. While it's only barely better than she was doing before, it seems to be enough to weigh down something inside, knocking the target over.

Looking over to Curtis, she gives him a little chin lift in acknowledgment.] Why don't you pick a prize?

[She wouldn't have gotten that one without his insight.]

fair games

[snarkbark]

[It's the spawncursed trash that gets his attention. Not that he's particularly offended; he can see, quite clearly, that she's having the falling out with the water gun and hasn't picked him out of a crowd.

Still. It's a funny coincidence. ] Maybe try taking a step back.

[Hands stuffed into his pockets, he is the picture of mild amusement as he settles himself next to her, eyeing a pistol. ] I think, from having my sister try to drown me with one of these, the waters stronger from a distance? Maybe?

[inlaid]

[Having already met Will, she sees nothing strange about being approached by him once more, though it's because she's distracted by the game that she doesn't realize his clothing is different. That he is not, in fact, Will.

Her eyes flick over to him at his suggestion, and while she doubts it will help when the water already feels as week as it does, she tries it.]

And what did you do to earn your sister's ire? [She sounds amused as she asked, a smile breaking her consternation. The water hits the target once more, but the improvement is minimal by Bryn's reckoning. Still, she stands in place all the same, continuing to shoot the blasted thing.] Or was she usually the instigator?

[snarkbark]

She's terrible. [An honest truth, but he at least sounds a little bit fond. And, of course, he takes a moment to watch the water spurt with an amused lift of his brows. ]

There you go. A little better. [Even if water is not the most accurate weapon for winning. ]

[inlaid]

[Bryn is an excellent shot, but you'd never know it seeing her handle this little water gun. The improvement pleases her of course, but not enough to keep her from continuing to swear silently in her head.]

Not good enough. Think I'd be better jumping over the counter and pouring my water bottle out.

[She casts another look over to who she assumes is Will, not Benjamin.] Did you get your sister back?

[snarkbark]

Usually. She's got this convenient trick, though, where she can make you do anything she wants. It's a real bummer.

[He says this with no real indication that it's terrible, even if it technically is pretty terrible. ] Anyway, what if we hit the thing at the same time. Is that cheating?

[inlaid]

[She grins.]

It's not like they can prove we're working together. "Oops, I thought I was supposed to hit that target too!"

[With a lift of her chin, she gestures to the spot next to her, eyes alight with mischief.]

Give it your best shot. [badum-tssh.]