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AUGUST EVENT PT 1
premise ⬥ taken ⬥ faq ⬥ navigation
→ 8/3-8/4 School Cultural Festival
Good morning!! The crows start cawing at the crack of dawn and they're really noisy, but while they're usually a nuisance on the best of days, perhaps the wake-up call will be appreciated this weekend, as the school gates are open over the weekend for the annual cultural festival the students have been hard at work on for the past few weeks. It's an open event for family and friends to come enjoy themselves, or perhaps get dragged into helping out in a booth or two, as some of the students have called in sick or can't be reached at all. Either way, the general commotion centered around the school is probably even loud enough to be heard all the way over in Castle Ouma if you're quiet enough. I don't know how else to get you guys who still live in the castle ruins over here... Hopefully you've been hearing people talking about it all of last month? Or maybe you're a newcomer who's just woken up in the castle ruins, spent ten seconds with Kokichi, and decided to leave the forest and never return, that's also very plausible.
Involving the elementary, middle, and high school buildings on their shared campus, all the typical sorts of booths can be found, including a school play performed by the elementary school students in the auditorium in the morning, and various concerts or performances held throughout the day. In the classrooms, food stalls and cafes are common, along with haunted houses for the braver souls. Rumors say that sometimes people who enter the haunted houses never come out the other side... but never mind that. It's fine. Sports clubs hold friendly competitions outside on the field, and many cultural clubs have displays of their work to show off in their club rooms, so there's plenty to do and see and eat all around campus. Despite all the preparation, however, some of the stalls appear to be empty, others with students frantic about not having enough people to keep things rolling smoothly. Looks like the strange illness going around town last month hasn't completely resolved yet, but maybe it's best for those who are ill to stay home in a crowded place like this.
For those seeking something quieter, tucked away in a corner of the high school building next to a struggling yakisoba stand is a fortune telling tent which doesn't seem to be getting many customers. The line is short and there's no fee, so why not give it a shot? Inside, a hooded figure sits, head bowed and face completely obscured in shadow aside from their chin, illuminated by a cheap looking crystal ball placed in the center of the table. A stack of cards lays on their left, a bag of something smelling faintly sweet and spicy sitting on their right. Without prompting, the fortune teller speaks in a low soft voice, greeting you by name. Weird. Weirder yet, they go on to address you by the arcana on your omamori, be it The Fool or The Hermit or what have you, and rather than answering any questions you may have about your future, the fortune teller instead offers one of two messages:
『To return to where you hailed, you must return to where you arrived. Take with you that which bears the name of the being you have banded together to defeat, and restore what once was.』
or
『When the moon's face shines full and bright, at the cusp of night and day, return to the place of beginnings. Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai must be played, to return two lost souls to this world.』
Huh... Before you can ask any questions, however, your time is up and the next person in line is already pushing you out the seat to the exit. You can always return to the end of the line to have another go, but... curiously, when you enter the tent any subsequent times, a high schooler in uniform greets you, bright and chipper. Home? Souls?? She has no idea what you're talking about if you repeat the messages from before, but never mind that! She can read your fortune!! Maybe you'll let her show off some palmistry and— oh... your life line is rather short... Unfortunate. Never mind, we'll try tarot instead and- hm. That sure is The Tower. Oh well, time's up, next person please!
On Sunday evening as the festivities wind down, a bonfire has been set up in the middle of the field, adding to the unnaturally hot summer night. It's still pretty, though, with the sky dark and bright stars starting to peek out, blankets laid out across the grass and sweet potatoes being passed around to be roasted by the fire. Take the time to relax and breathe... because it's un/fortunately a festival month and the villagers are hype about their festivals.
→ 8/6-8/8 Tanabata Festival
- While the students had been hard at work setting up the school festival, the rest of the town had been preparing for the tanabata festival, with stalls set up encircling the entire lakefront at the center of town. Yukata can be bought or rented, along with traditional hand fans to ward off the heat of the summer, and many of the typical food stalls and carnival games can be found, including stalls where you can test your luck in scooping goldfish/yo-yos/other small plastic toys, shooting targets with cork rifles, attempting the rigged ring toss that's impossible to win without cheating, or playing the lottery with tickets for free food from the stalls as consolation prizes. Maybe your luck sucks and you just want to buy stuff and that's fine too. Come with full wallets and leave with full stomachs filled with yakitori skewers, sweet or savory dango, roasted sweet potato, and the seasonal favorite: shaved ice. It's seasonal because it's summer and summer is so hot. This particular summer feels like hell and halfway through the last day, they run out of syrup, but cups of plain ice are still selling very well, so... yay...
While some of the stalls are already heavy with decoration, others are pretty sparse, with the lack of people running them. Which is fine, or intended, because there are workshops held all around for teaching and encouraging people to make decorations meant to improve different aspects of one's life: paper kimonos for artistic ability, strings of a thousand paper cranes for long and healthy lives, paper purses for wealth, colorful streamers for handicraft, wastebaskets for cleanliness, and of course, tanzaku- paper strips hung up on bamboo trees for a wish to be granted by the gods. Decorations are judged for artistic ability, with a small prize given to the best decoration judged at the end of each night.
In the evenings, stages set out along the lakeside feature folk dance performances, and decorations are collected to be lit on fire and sent off in small boats in the lake, the collection of flames giving off a soft light as the paper burns down and turns to ash, reclaimed by the lake as they sink. A reminder from the townspeople to anybody who stands too close to the lake: please do not touch the water. On the very last evening of the festival, a fireworks show is held, shooting up overhead above the lake and is visible anywhere around town, raining down sparks of gold and red, hell fire from the sky.
...Also hell fire in the woods. It's been windy and dry all month, and a small forest fire has started at the edge of town, be it from arson or by accident. The villagers cut the evening short to go help, as there is no established fire fighting service, so any and all assistance would be appreciated. Somewhere nearby, a child starts to cry, unable to find his mother. With the villagers pulled away, the night ends with the stalls left empty. Nobody comes to clean up the next morning...
→ MOD NOTES
- ⬥ As mentioned in the OOC plotting post, a heat wave befalls the town and NPC villagers start disappearing until the daitengu from last month is defeated. 2 more dungeon threads must be submitted before 8/11 to secure the ofuda. Lockdown continues to occur each midnight, with the school transforming into the dungeon; details can be found on last month's event log.
⬥ For the cultural festival: characters will receive a hint about either 1) how to return home (take the ofuda received after beating the dungeon boss to the castle ruins), or 2) how to summon the Velvet Room attendants (playing Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai at the castle ruins during the full moon), and are highly encouraged to discuss both messages amongst themselves. Characters may learn more about how to play Hyakumonogatari Kaidankai, date of the full moon, etc. by asking around town.
⬥ On 8/12 (ICly dated on 8/15, the night of the full moon), a mini-log will go up encompassing both of these findings.
⬥ For the tanabata festival: each character may claim one small wish pending mod approval at any time this month (comment below) for writing their wish down on a tanzaku, and 3 characters will be randomly chosen on 8/12 as winners for the decoration judging, and will be contacted at that time for the option of receiving an additional wish.
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The middle school performers continue to perform, showing off their nimble movements and precision. It's quite a sight to see, seeing some of them jump from beam to beam with absolute balance, even doing cartwheels on the beams that are skinny as a normal person's arm. You bet Terry's taking mental notes on things he wants to try out some time because it looks really fun to try out. But not today. He just got out of the hospital... ]
If it's anything to do with dodging attacks, wouldn't sidestepping be more efficient?
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[ First of all, don't try this out ever. Secondly, why is that the conclusion Terry comes up with? Maybe his brain is overheating; they should go get more shaved ice after this, for his sake and not the fact that it's just too hot outside no matter what they do. ]
No, it's just... a display of skill, or something. Why would any of this be used for fighting?
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[ He just assumed it would be useful like how parkour has been useful to him for a variety of things. Like running along the maze walls and hopping off Shadows like a Super Mario game. ]
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[ It could potentially be used in a variety of things?? Like................. entertaining the kids if she ever needs him to babysit. Yeah. She's not so sure about any other practical application. ]
Sometimes things are just like that. Things don't have to be useful for you to enjoy them.
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Well, yeah, but it looks fun to do...
[ ...
Hm. ]
Hey, Kido. You know those rain doll things? Do you think if I hang them upside down, it'll rain?
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[ The reply is immediate, because she doesn't really believe in that stuff to begin with. But the idea is still there, and she turns her eyes up at the sky thoughtfully. ]
I don't really know what weather conditions make rain... But if we could, like, throw lightning bolts up at the clouds, maybe they'll release the rain?
[ ...This is how rain works, right? Even as she says it, the idea sounds stupider than Terry's. They have all this new, powerful magic right at their fingertips, but they can't even make it rain a little to make the summer a bit cooler, it's really a shame. ]
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[ Terry looks up at the sky, away from where the sun is so he doesn't get blinded. He wonders if he could get Vassago and fly all the way up in the sky.
...
As if to reject such ridiculous thoughts, Vassago ends up disappearing and it's until Terry no longer feels the breeze that he realizes Vassago disappeared. The performance is over too and Terry looks over at Suzume and Hayato. Are they tired yet... ]
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What d—
[ "Kakigori!!" both kids shout in unison, regardless of what Kido was about to ask them. They just want shaved ice in between every other thing they do. ]
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Let's get out of the sun at least.
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...Are you having fun yet? Playing around in this sort of festival where it's so hot and noisy and crowded?
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Oh! You were asking me?
[ He thought she was asking the kids lmao ]
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Kido, though, looks away from Terry when he looks over. ]
Well, yeah, I'm asking you. You said you've never been to one, so... was it worth it?
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[ He's never minded noisy and crowded places. The heat is pretty unbearable, but that's just what Terry does--dealing with things all the time. ]
Of course it's worth it since you're here with me.
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Would you not have fun if I weren't here?
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[ ???
Terry doesn't get what she means by that. ]
I like spending time with you.
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What is she supposed to say about this!! She's going to change the subject. ]
In either case... you really helped out this morning. That gift is a thank you for that.
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I wanna see what it is...
[ He's staring down at it, but he's not making any move to look inside the bag. Kido did tell him to open it later, so that's... what he'll do. ]
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[ For reasons!! that are manifold but have more to do with practicality than being embarrassed by it, thought it also is sort of embarrassing. ]
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Okay. I promise.
[ He looks over to the kids, back down at the bag, and then to Kido. ]
Thanks for going to the festival with me.
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...Yeah. I'm glad you were able to come.
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Terry looks down at the kids again. Are they tired yet... he wonders if this is how some people feel when looking at him when he's the one full of energy. Oh well, he's pretty happy from what Kido said and puts in little effort to hide that from his face. ]
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The kids, rather than being tired, just tug on his hand more urgently, because they need niichan's wallet to get shaved ice- despite the fact that the fact that their parents gave Kido money to pay for the kid's share, the only reason she paid for half the takoyaki...... and none of the shaved ice, now that I think about it, but she's not going to remember that either.
It's fine... Kido doesn't seem to bothered about being pulled along like this. It's like she's given up. ]
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Terry glances over at Kido and considers something. He wants to do something, but his mind is fighting over the pros and cons of it so much that Terry just looks back down at the kids blankly for a second.
...
Okay, yeah. He'll decide against it and then just buy another round of shaved ice for the group again. ]
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It's good... [ She'd opted for a strawberry one this time, with the kids sticking to their preferred flavors and wanting to stay inside the hallway and become a roadblock since it's too hot outside. ]
I wonder if for Tanabata this will be all they sell. I can't imaging cooking anything in the heat outdoors.
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What kind of stuff do they usually cook at a Tanabata? People usually neat heat to cook things anyway, right?
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