♥ January (Lasra) Event Log

[hugtopiamods]

January (Lasra) Event Log
Are you feeling free of last year's burdens, offworlders? The natives certainly are after spending the final month of the year at Rawna's temples. Now it's time for a new beginning even as the cold deepens, leaving snow drifts piled along Havenwell's streets. Industrious robots are hard at work keeping the city clean and removing any ice from the stone roads, leaving only beautiful winter scenery behind. The city sparkles under the snow and the silvery white decor brings out of their temples the priests not only for Rawna, but all of the gods.

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❥ PROMPT I: The Temple Celebrations

As noted in the Intro Log, the residents of Havenwell have been invited to help with the decorations in order to incorporate your worlds' cultures with their own, and to assist in celebrating the new year's coming. Residents are encouraged to visit any temple at their convenience or pleasure and join in the design process. There are craft tables, ranging from basic (for the younger or less skilled, such as kites or papercraft) to intricate and advanced designs (like glass lanterns or embroidery). Those less creatively-inclined are welcome to use their various skills, magics, or just ladder-balancing talents to help with the decoration installations around town. Many hands make light the work, after all.

Each temple has music playing and all of them have their associated animals not inside the temple like normal, but spread all over the temple grounds and surrounding areas. They aren't lost for once, but seem to be beckoning people toward their respective homes which are bedecked with holograms of dark green leafy boughs, ribbons, and ornaments all in the temple's colors. Diacht has red and white striped ornaments, Ohma has blue and gold, and Ainea is bringing up the cute factor with pink and purple. But Rawna is looking especially resplendent with rainbow sheened silver ornaments hung in the air, mixed in with real ones that are suspended from wires so thin they look as if they're hanging in midair. The dragonlings fly through the air, trailing silver ribbons behind them that make the temple really seem to shine this month. At each temple, simply by showing up, you can receive a small gift from the priests regardless of whether or not you're an adherent. And they invite you to play the temple games or dance along to the festive music playing from speakers. Each temple has something different to offer, so grab a friend and make your first visit of the year a special one!

• Ainea:
Ainea's temple offers a soft fluffy pink and purple-swirled scarf that's long enough for you and a friend to wear at the same time if you so wish. The temple's game is called "The Best Of." You and a partner step upon a small silver platform and each pull a card from a pile. Tell your partner about the prompt on the card in order to clear it. Only honest answers count and you'll know when the other person is being honest because the platform sings a little jingle and counts a point for your pair. The more cards you can get through, the higher your points! Some examples of the prompts are things like: the most embarrassing moment of the last year, most exciting moment of the last year, hardest you laughed last year, most beautiful thing you saw last year, most memorable trip from the last year, favorite song of the year, etc.

• Rawna:
Rawna's temple has an offering of beautiful gloves, threaded with rainbow thread at the wrists in an intricate and abstract pattern that somewhat resembles dragons in flight. Their game is one of flying kites. For a small Dora donation, priests will give you a thin slip of paper to write a wish upon. Tie your wish, or wishes if you're here with someone else, to your kite and get help from someone to make it fly the highest in the hopes that the gods will hear and answer you. As you deepen your relationship with the person you're flying your kite with by talking or sharing the meaning of your wishes, the kite seems to fly higher and higher.

• Ohma:
Ohma's offering is a tasteful blue, wide-brimmed hat with a gold ribbon and flower accents. Their game is a card matching one. For those read up on Havenwell's poets, try your hand at this game where you match the beginning of the poem with the next line. A robot judge reads the first line and then you have to find the corresponding card among a field of brightly colored cards. Grab the card first and win points! For those not familiar with Havenwell's poetry, you can try the game with more simple themes like colors and fruits (not that they make much sense - why is an apple blue??) or facts about the other people in Havenwell. ....when did that game become so popular?

• Diacht:
Diacht's offering is a white and red feather pendant necklace on a thin white-gold chain. Their game seems to be something like Earth's game of badminton, but minus a net. Grab a pair of large white and red wooden paddles and a multicolored shuttlecock and try batting away the year's bad luck by keeping the shuttlecock aloft. If you're the one to drop it, your opponent gets to draw on your face with a special ink-brush that has the ink contained in its handle. For the non-athletically inclined, you can watch the professionals play the game as the robotic natives most renowned for the art of this game are trying to break a Havenwell record for a single continuous game: 22 days.

❥ PROMPT II: Your Yearly (Mis)Fortunes

At each temple along all the other celebrations and games, you can also find a separate booth that has a strange and unreadable Aellyn script on it. The robot sitting behind the booth has their face covered with a strip of fabric that obscures it completely, but it calls out to you when you walk by. It offers you an ancient-looking wooden container with a single small hole at the top. If you take it, it mimes shaking the container and tipping it over. Do as they say and a wooden stick pops out of the top with that same strange script on it. The robot takes a look at what you got and takes the container back, passing you a single strip of paper with reverence. "Keep your fortune close or learn to let it go," it says, and then looks to find another patron. Turn your paper over and discover what your fortune holds for you.

• Big Luck:
"The world shall become your limitless bounty, until you choose to rely on others." After reading your fortune, the world does indeed seem limitless. Or maybe it's just large? Everything around you has suddenly gained in size. The fortune-teller's booth seems like a mountain. The stones under your feet like a massive raft. Has the world suddenly grown? Nope, you've just shrunk down to about 5 to 6 inches tall. Everything you were holding and on your person is also proportional to your new size. Hopefully you can find someone to carry you around for a bit because only by being carried will you return to your natural size. As an option, this can happen to you again randomly at any time during the month so long as you keep the paper fortune on you.

• Medium Luck:
"All that glitters is gold for you until another helps you out." After reading your fortune, nothing much seems to have overtly changed. And you probably won't notice anything until the next time you try to eat something. Any time your hands touch any food or anything that can be used to feed yourself, it explodes into glitter and your communicator rings as a deposit of Dora is made into your bank account. This seems pretty awesome at first, until you realize you can't eat anything and you're getting hungry. You may need to get someone else to feed you your next meal, after which the curse seems to have been broken. However, you have the option to have this effect happen again randomly at any time during the month so long as you keep the paper fortune on you.

• Small Luck:
"The smallest things can bring the biggest rewards." After reading your fortune, nothing much seems to have changed until you return home and find all of your pillows, blankets, and bedding have turned much, much too small for you. If you're an adult, the bedding is now the size suitable for a baby. If you are a child, you're looking at something small enough for a large doll. Any bedding you try to borrow changes its size as well, and it seems the only thing that can change them back is to share your bed or a blanket with someone else for a night. When you wake up from your nap or your slumber, everything will be back to normal. As an option, you can have this effect happen again randomly any time during the month so long as you keep the paper fortune on you.

• Bad Luck:
"The love of an animal is almost as strong as the love of your fellow people." After reading this fortune, all the temple animals turn and look at you in unison. They seem to be drawn toward you, literally, as they begin to converge and run toward you like a tidal hoard in an attempt to cuddle you. You best run or they threaten to bury you under their mass, and they'll keep chasing you until you find comfort in the arms of another - whether that's climbing on top of them to get away or jumping into their arms to avoid the tidal wave of mice - as soon as you cling to someone else, the animals seem to lose interest. You can optionally have this effect activate again at any time during the month so long as you keep the paper fortune on you, creating a new stampede of animals of any variety that try to love you just a liiiittle too much.

• Terrible Luck:
"Even bad luck can be the beginning of a beautiful friendship." After reading this fortune, you don't immediately feel any different. In fact, nothing much seems to have changed at all. You decide to walk away from the booth though, and that's when it hits you - or rather you hit it. You're overcome with a clumsy streak the size of a meteor belt as you bump, trip, and fall into just about everything in your path be it inanimate or animate. If it's inanimate, hopefully you don't mind a few bruises. If they're another person, maybe they'll catch you because only by being caught by someone can you break your clumsy streak. As an option, you can have this effect come back at any time so long as you keep the paper fortune on you.

OOC: If you wish to roll for a random fortune, leave an comment with your character's name in the Request Thread. The mods will randomize for you and give you your fortune. Your character can only claim 1 fortune, no matter how many times they attempt the fortune-teller's game. Feel free to choose your own fortune instead, if you would prefer a set result.

❥ PROMPT III: Memories of the Sun (VR)

This seasonal VR simulation is especially popular with the natives for the fact that it lets them see their world as it used to be. Load into the simulation "Memories of the Sun" and you'll be transported along with all others who are currently logged in to make a pilgrimage up Aellyn's most sacred mountain. Although its peak is rocky and somewhat barren, it has a serene beauty as it reaches up through the cloud layer and you climb upwards through the dark. The path is clearly lit by small lamps embedded into the ground, but you might find it easier to take the climb if you hang onto someone else. Once you reach the peak, whether you're alone or with someone else, you'll be treated to the sight of a gorgeous sunrise peeking over the thinning clouds. It's a sight to remember, and a sight that brings memories. As you watch you're overcome with a very real vision of your home, a place you remember, or people you know. This vision is typically of a better time in your life, something to bring you hope and peace as the new year dawns - but not always. Is this a vision of your past? Your future? Of your present? If you came here with someone else, they can also choose to share in your vision and you in theirs. Are you brave enough to face what the mountain has to show you?

❥ PROMPT IV: All the Ups and Downs

And while the celebrations continue, there seems to be something a little awry with Havenwell. Here and there throughout the month, gravity has gone utterly haywire. You can be walking from temple to temple or going about your everyday life when suddenly you feel yourself lifted off the ground or heavier than you have any right to be. Havenwell's natives aren't immune to this effect either, and you might see a robot go shooting up into the sky suddenly to hover a good five to ten feet in the air. Or they might take a step and suddenly fall flat on their faces, their gears whirring with the strain as they try to pick themselves up. Thankfully the other natives are quick to jump up and grab their companions if they're flying overhead or pull their friends out of the well if they're stuck to the ground. If you find yourself caught up in these gravity wells, you'll need someone's help to do the same. Be sure to pay it forward because you'll never know when it could be you in this awkward position.

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This event will run from January 15 to January 31. Click on each prompt's title to see the text. If you have any questions, feel free to direct them to the FAQ or to the Mod Question thread below.

This post is meant to act as a catch-all for convenience, but feel free to make your own posts if you prefer!

Comments

Kyoko Mogami | Skip Beat! (Rawna) OTA

[daikonrose]

I

[ If you stop by Rawna's temple, Kyoko might help you fly your kite, if you ask. But she's most likely to be huddled over the craft table, busy making more of those same kites. Or sometimes she's sewing curtains or wall hangings. Or trying her hand at crotcheting a fledgling dragon-sized hat and scarf set?? Whatever she's making, though, she's discreetly slipping most of the scraps into her purse. ]

II & IV

[ Terrible Luck. Well, obviously! It's the cute little message that comes with the fortune that really ruins Kyoko's mood, though. What, so the gods are rubbing in how much of a lonely loser she is, avoiding close connections so as to avoid the expectation of touch that seems to come with them here?

Jamming the fortune into her purse, Kyoko turns to snarl at the Rawna statue about how she doesn't need his sass before storming out of the temple and falling down the steps. Okay. So it's gonna be that kind of day.

The kind of day that just doesn't quit, apparently. When it becomes clear that it's not just Kyoko falling down on perfectly even ground, or tripping only to find herself flying up, it's easy to write off all these walls and sign posts and people she keeps bumping into as another aspect of the weirdness happening in Havenwell. ]

II/IV

[unfavorableinstigation]

[Nita is one of those people Kyoko bumps into, though this time she manages to retain her footing.]

O-oof. Are you alright?

[She does recognize Kyoko from the Network, but maybe the teen doesn't want to be recognized right now...]

[daikonrose]

[ People, at least, are softer than most of the other options. But the mortification makes up for the lack of bruising. Almost immediately, Kyoko stumbles back, shaking her head frantically. ]

I should be asking you that! I'm so sorry!

[unfavorableinstigation]

If anything, I think this is the gods' fault.

[Nita offers a hand.]

I'm not mad, but I think it might help if we walk holding hands or something? If what I've seen around so far is any indication, anyway...

[daikonrose]

You think so? Would a little contact really be enough to make them get everything under control?

[ Kyoko frowns, pulling in a lip. Touch isn't always the solution, but it is the most logical one.

A little skeptical still, she she reached out to take the offered hand. If nothing else, she owed it to Nita to try, after crashing into her like that. A few bucks for her bruises? ]

Is there somewhere you were going, though?

[unfavorableinstigation]

Might be an overexaggeration to say everything everything, but I bet it'll mean you stop hitting things by accident.

[Nita's hand is warm, and she doesn't pull it away.]

I was just heading off to check on the libraries, maybe one or two of the museums. That alright with you?

[There's no hostility in the question, at least not with the tone Nita uses.]

whoops, html fail

[daikonrose]

[ It's a little awkward to be just blatantly touching someone when she pointedly goes without touch most of the time these days, but Kyoko has resolved to not be overly difficult. ]

Ah, yes! Please don't let me reroute you, is what I'm saying. Actually, it's almost time to return the books I checked out anyway.

s'awright

[unfavorableinstigation]

[Ironically enough, would this count as negative reinforcement AND positive punishment? Referring to different matters at hand, of course, but still.]

If you don't have them on you, I don't mind stopping at your place.

[Okay, that strikes Nita, post-utterance, as more than a little awkward, but hey! Books! Books are fun.]

Be interesting to see what you've found, too. No such thing as too many books, if you ask me.

[daikonrose]

Oh, I have them! In here.

[ Kyoko pats her purse; she is absolutely the type of girl to carry around everything she could conceivably need or want at any time in her bag. A couple tablet-books are nothing! And she wouldn't have even mentioned them if it was going to mean making this whole trip longer. ]

I'm working through the DIY section right now, actually. It's not the most exciting, but it's nice to learn about useful things, you know?

[unfavorableinstigation]

[Nita likes this girl. If she'd come with her own backpack, she'd have done the same thing.

Without it, however, and without access to her own claudication, she has to improvise.]

It is neat, yeah!

... What do you mean by 'right now', though? Did you start there, or have you gone through other sections already?

[The walking has commenced by now.]

[daikonrose]

[ Kyoko, in fact, did not arrive with her own bag; the one she's carrying now was hand-sewed during one of her restless all-nighters. Absently adjusting the strap, Kyoko hooks her thumb under it as they set into motion. ]

Oh--it's my personal project, for now. I've read a few individual books from other sections already, but I decided a couple weeks ago to conquer the entire public library system! So I'm going section by section now. DIY is just the first one I decided to defeat.

I

[wannabethehero]

[Kiwi had been flitting back and forth between activities all day, and finally found themselves here in Rawna's temple, where they plop down by the craft table themselves. They're not much of an artist themselves - their art is in their music. But they're not one to say no to the simplicity of a piece of paper and crayons.

But as they wonder what to draw, their eyes wander to the woman busying herself with her own crafts.]

Oh wow, you're really good!

[daikonrose]

[ Head bent over a small mess of silvery yarn, brow furrowed as she tries to negotiate it into neat rows of stitches, Kyoko does hear the words but it takes a couple moments for them to sink in. And then it's another before it occurs to her to wonder if they're for her. Hands pausing, her eyes flick up, and then from side to side.

Huh, it really is just the two of them here, at the moment. ]

O-oh? Does it seem that way? [ She holds up several inches worth of scarf to inspect. ] I guess it's coming out acceptably this time, after all. --I mean, thank you!

[wannabethehero]

I mean it! It's all about practice, right?

[daikonrose]

[ Carefully dropping the scarf down again, she tips her head to one side for a giggle, sheepish but still cheerful enough. ]

Yes! I've had to redo it at least six times before I could even get this far, but I think I'm getting the hang of crocheting now! It's nice when hard work has results~

terrible luck...

[zapdope]

[ Zenitsu had memorized the sounds Kyoko made during their first encounter, and it was pretty hard for him to really disregard the distinctive sound she was making. It made him worried, but at the same time, he wasn't sure how to unravel such a tangled sound inside her.

He hasn't properly asked his friend for any advice, because...well, Tanjiro was never great at explaining things.

Without any proper advice and with his habit of avoiding things, after the initial encounter Zenitsu was starting to get a habit of avoiding her for a while. That is, until this day where he picks up an even more distressed and upset sound coming from Kyoko's direction, shortly before seeing her run into a sign post. He instinctively winces at the impact. Ouch! ]

K-Kyoko-chan! Are you okay?

[ Zenitsu rushes over to where Kyoko is, offering his hand hesitantly. Their last talk was enough for him to know Kyoko was adverse to the concept of contact with another person, so he wasn't sure if he should even offer his hand at all. ]

Does it hurt anywhere?? It looked really painful!

[daikonrose]

[ Honestly, Kyoko hadn't thought much of the fact that she hadn't run into Zenitsu again since that first encounter. It wasn't like she was Havenwell's biggest social butterfly, herself.

So everything's good. She waves weakly at him as she looks up from the spot she had let herself sink to her knees on after that impact, dazed and angry at her fate. ]

Ah... I didn't hear any bones cracking, so it's all fine....

[ She does take his hand, though; letting people help her up is the one thing Kyoko has finally settled on as way too rude to refuse. Besides, it doesn't feel super important right now. ]

[zapdope]

[ Oh, whew. So accepting help is okay. His hesitation washes away as he helps her up, and keeps holding onto her for a moment, to make sure she won't fall over again. ]

I-it looked like you ran into the post full on... Are you sure you're okay? Is there a doctor here? Maybe we should get you looked at?

[ He frets, trying to make sure she really is okay. Having a girl get hurt and be left unattended is No Good!!!! ]

[daikonrose]

[ Kyoko had intended to let go of his hand right away, but getting to her feet makes her dizzy enough to forget about it for the moment. Her other hand swings out to brace herself on that signpost; she just needs to keep herself steady for a few moments, and then the world will surely stop spinning around her. Yeah. ]

No... if there are any doctors here, I haven't found them yet. It's a miracle they even make painkillers for us, right?

[zapdope]

Ehhh?! There's no doctors?! [ He remembers what Somnus told him, about an attempted invasion that broke through the wall a few months ago. If something like that happens again, who'd look after any possible injuries? ]

What if someone actually does get hurt?! I mean no one would probably be out to hurt someone else on purpose, but accidents aren't completely preventable aren't they?!

[ He takes a step to cling onto the other out of fear, but he stops. Even with the prolonged hand-holding, he doubts she's still okay with it. He looks down at the hand they're still holding, and realizes that they're still holding hands. ]

Ah— S-sorry! [ He quickly lets go and takes a step back, putting his hands close to himself. She seems to be doing better than before, albeit still dizzy. He'll just have to keep a closer eye in case something happens. ]

[daikonrose]

Right? It's irresponsible to the point of being ridiculous. It really is like we're pets purchased on a whim, with no plans to take care of us properly.

[ Kyoko probably wouldn't have noticed the continued handhold for a couple more moments, as it was, but when Zenitsu lets go she blinks, and then gives a grateful, bashful little dip of her head. ]

Ah--no, thank you for worrying about me, Zenitsu-san.

[zapdope]

[ Zenitsu wonders if there's anyone with medical background that were summoned by the natives here. Hopefully there's at least one person who'd be able to be a medic???

He pauses his usual panicking as he hears Kyoko shift. ] N-No worries...!

[ You'd think with 7 previous relationships, Zenitsu would be a lot better at socializing with a girl...

Never mind that, he's gonna keep going with the conversation. ] Where were you going before you hit the sign? I've got nothing else going on right now, I'll tag along!

[ More like he'll watch out for any other signs... Just in case. ]

[daikonrose]

[ Oh no, she's got him worried enough to think he has to babysit her now. Straightening into her usual proper posture as the dizziness finally fades, Kyoko lets go of the signpost to hold up her hands in protest. ]

You really don't have to! I'm just going to Rawna's temple, it won't be exciting at all. And I'm sure seeing the dragons will totally revitalize me!

[zapdope]

No worries about me! If I'm able to keep talking to you, it'd be super fun!

[ He's now acting very giddy. He takes a quick look around his surroundings to figure out where Rawna's temple is, but stays by Kyoko's side so he can be close by. ]

Say, are a lot of people going with Rawna here? [ Shinji seems to be hanging around there a lot, along with his friend Kaito. And now Kyoko too! ]

[daikonrose]

[ Gosh, what an outgoing person. Has anyone ever said anything like that to her before? Zenitsu must be used to making friends wherever he goes, to be so easygoing about it. ]

Well, if you're really free right now anyway, I guess.... [ Waiting for Zenitsu to draw even with her, she leads the way to the temple. ]

A lot? I don't think I'd say that... I guess it's more popular this time of year because of the season, so there are more natives visiting the temple than usual.