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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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Okay, I'll show him what I got!
[ she's very pumped up now. she can do this!! she has to do this so she can live with neechan and t-chan!! aaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAA ]
Will I wear a nice uniform like yours?
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They have a lot of great outfits! But they're all maid and butler uniforms. I'm sure they'll have one in your size.
[ He'll make sure she gets a knee-length one or even longer.............. ]
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Oh, do you think neechan can work there too? If we all work together in the same place, that'd be really nice as well!
[ lmfao kido as a maid.......... ]
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...
He's very torn about feeling "wow Kido would look so cute!!" and "wow Kido would sure kill me if she ever knew I even thought about her in a maid outfit". Duality is suffering. ]
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[ what are you doing? why did you stop walking and talking? what kind of thoughts are you having, you weirdo ]
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[ ... ]
After all, she only decided to eat there because I was working there.
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[ she deflates. so much for her dream of working in the same place and living in the same place. ]
Why doesn't she like it?
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[ Like damn... he noticed the mood instantly soured when he had to call her "mistress". ]
We kinda have to though... since it's a part of our job. I doubt Kido would be able to call other people that too.
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[ at least rei gets a free pass to refer to kido as neechan. ]
Well, at least I can work with T-chan and that'll still make me happy. I can see you a lot more often this way.
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An arrow through his heart!! ughhhhhhhhhh ]
Thanks, Rei. That really means a lot to me! I'll do my best to help you have the best work experience.
[ Now he's actually pumped up!! Wow. Kimochi warui.
Anyway. Biggest grilled squids on a stick, finally delivered! Terry hands one over to Rei while lifting his arm up since she's still sitting on his shoulders. ]
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Mmm, it's delicio--!
[ but okay, we gotta be realistic here. she can't eat squid without choking so she starts to cough. squid is harder to chew and swallow in record time :( ]
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[ HE HEARS THAT COUGHING. HE'S IMMENSELY WORRIED NOW. Terry quickly holds Rei by the sides and immediately puts her down on the ground gently. ]
Rei! Are you okay?!
[ KIDO CHOKED ON A CANDIED GRAPE AND NOW REI IS CHOKING ON GRILLED SQUID
WHY IS EVERYONE CHOKING ]
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At least he learned the alternative to the Heimlich Maneuver. Thanks, Jace. ]
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[ that seems to do the trick because rei just spits out the gross piece of squid that was lodged in her throat. she slowly stands back up straight, but she has the saddest face right now. ]
That hurt...
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[ Terry still feels immensely bad about it though, so he'll start to rub Rei's back in an attempt to comfort her. ]
Let's try chewing on the squid a little more this time, okay?
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[ she sounds like a little defeated child :( the back rubs do help. ]
Dried squid never betrayed me like that before.
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Just imagine it like a squid-flavored gum! Actually, I can ask the stall owner if I can cut it up so you can eat it that way too. Do you want that?
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[ ... yeah. at least this improved her mood considerably. ]
I'd love to try that!
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[ At least the store owner obliges this request. Terry is the one that pays for it this time. ]
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Do you want some too? Squid-flavoured gum sounds really good!
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Sure, I don't see why not.
[ He knows it won't be as squishy as gum, but as long as Rei chews on her food, he'll take it, honestly. He orders another grilled squid in the same cut up way too. The first batch comes out and Terry takes it to hand the container over to Rei. ]
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[ anyway, squid gum! nice! she'll take the container with a "thanks" and begin to chew on one of the pieces. mmm ]
Hmm, what should we do now?
[ rei asking terry what to do across two threads, laughs, i'm sorry, haki. rei never takes initiative unless it's about food. ]
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The fireworks are over, so that must mean the festival is pretty much done, isn't it?
[ Terry finally gets his own cut up squid pieces. He has finished the one on the stick just yet, so he'll just... save that one for later and eat the cut up ones first lol. ]
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Yeah... [ she sounds a little disappointed. ] But I heard that there'd be another festival next week so that should be fun!
[ though it's the obon festival and she doesn't really know much about it and it's about dead people :') ]
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