May Mini Event - You Just Missed Him

[pumpkinhollow]

Concept and majority writing for primary event provided by Nimbus. Please shower them your praise and adulation for their work! Thank you!

Pumpkin Hollow Community Bulletin

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Yorick whistles pleasantly as he hangs up a new main announcement on the central bulletin board in town. There is an advertisement posted, bearing bold lettering. It reads:

For Health's Sake!

To ensure that proper care continues to be available for all in our growing community, we are pleased to announce a drive to increase supplies for medical use. No contribution is too small, and anything is appreciated. If you want to contribute but are not sure how, ask! Additionally, please see an attached list of dates and times at which various courses on first aid will be available. CPR is a highly valuable skill--- save lives! Please direct all inquiries to Cpt. Johnathan Tuttle.

The signature of one Captain Tuttle emblazes the bottom of the flier, along with that of Mayor Poe to indicate her approval of the project. There is also a date and time listed.

When did the ferry come? Why hasn’t this Tuttle gentleman been at any other events, like the job fair? (Wait, was he at the job fair? Suddenly you’re not sure.) If you ask Mayor Poe, she’ll tell you she can’t remember when she signed the paper but she remembers it happening, and she remembers that “John” (a surprising amount of familiarity from Hellen) stopped by a few days ago with it. What did he look like? What do you mean, what does he look like? Everyone knows what he looks like. But if you somehow managed to miss him, he’s a tall, fair-skinned man with auburn hair who looks like a soldier.

The rest of the people around town will all say the same. Dahlia, Neil, Degas, Yorick, Ambrose, Juniper, Dottie down at Empty Pockets, even Mr. Pennyburrow--- they all met him at one point and describe him the same way. He evidently came by recently, but you just missed him.

If you need something signed by the Captain, leave it with Dahlia. It will be signed in a timely manner, always just a bit before you come to pick it up. Anywhere you’re told you can find him, he just left. Oftentimes the reason he’s missing is to address an emergency, and the victims of said emergencies always recall the exact same man described by Mayor Poe having rescued them. You begin to feel like you probably have seen him, and your mind is just playing tricks. Surely you must have, right?

And of course, right as the drive is set to begin, all medical personnel in town (including the retired Agnes Winterbottom, the folks working at the apothecary, and even Anders, the local veterinarian) will wake up with a gift basket. They’re simple things containing mostly fruit and wrapped pastries, perhaps a book or candle or other small, pleasant item, each one incredibly thoughtful as if he knows the recipient personally. There is a signed thank you card in each one, with the same signature.

Captain Tuttle. Who is he? You must know, lest you go mad. Spend the days leading up to the charity drive investigating, or confront him at the drive itself--- surely there’s some way to see him!

Bonus Activities!

Speed Dating

Looking for love? On one of the days leading up to the healthcare charity drive, town square is set up with tables for a speed dating event! Entry costs 10 Brass per person, and all proceeds go to help the charity drive.

When you sit down with your partner, you will have 10 minutes to each discuss one icebreaker question of your choice. Here’s a list of ideas:

1. What is the best gift you’ve ever received? What did you love about it?
2. What is something that you’ve tried once but will never do again? Do you regret doing it?
3. Do you find it more fulfilling to create things that are practical or things that are beautiful?
4. What is the strongest animal or monster that you think you could defeat in unarmed combat?
5. Do you have any pet peeves?
6. Describe your dream home.
7. What is your most prized possession that you have ever owned? Do you still have it?
8. How do you prefer to spend a rainy day?
9. How would you describe your clothing preferences?
10. What is the dumbest thing you’ve ever spent money on?
11. How long do you think it would take you to realize that you were permanently cured of hiccups and would never have them again?
12. What is something that you wish you could be good at immediately?
13. If you could have a magical item that performs one function that is customized specifically to your needs, what would it do?
14. If you suddenly had infinite money, what’s the first thing you would do with it?
15. Between the two, would you prefer to go to a black tie formal party or a silly costume party?
You can also pick your own topic, if you have one! To participate, please reply to the speed dating toplevel below and tag out to at least one other speed dater. You are strongly encouraged to seek out those with fewer tags to keep things even. You may tag out as many times as you would like. Please include your age and preferred age range in your comment title and speed date appropriately. Have fun!

Town Council Elections

A member of the Pumpkin Hollow Town Council is retiring in a few months. Elections are opening for one new member! Interested in getting in on your local government? Start your campaign here! On the comment below, create a flier (either through formatting or just a narrative description of how it looks) with your information! In the title, put your name, age, and length of residency. The flier itself should discuss your experience, your values, and your ideal policies.

Elections will be held in September. Both PCs and NPCs will vote, so you will need to appeal to the townsfolk in general as well. Good luck!

Comments

Erin Peters | 43? | Wholeass Lesbian, 20+

[crushed_pearls]

Erin's here and she's having a ball even before she's approached by anyone. Something about the event has her energized, and there's a wry, sharp energy about her.

She hopes her girls show up, it'd be a fun sorta date.

[psalmofseasons]

A red-headed woman in a breezy, floor-length skirt, botanical corset, and exceptionally loud shoes plops into the seat across from Erin.

"Hey there, pretty lady!" She has a thick Irish-sounding accent. "I'm Sera. You?"

[crushed_pearls]

Here's the thing about Erin's blindfold: it lets her see people and anything they're wearing, holding, or using. It can be a bit of a trip, actually, being able to see a chef's frying pan but not quite make out what's in it, or the way people forget that she can't see and try to get her to read things not in braille. All of this to say: Erin sees this lass and her Outfit, and is immediately both amused and intrigued.

Erin cradles her chin in a hand, elbow on the table, and flashes a warm grin. The gesture has a practiced look to it, as if it's fake, and that's the bitch of it: it looks fake because Erin has practiced smiling, because some part of her is, you see, intrinsically fake, in the manner of an orchid mimicking a bee...

But it's still genuine.

"Erin Peters, do call me Erin," she returns, her own accent distinctly New England and yet oddly musical, lilting and rhythmic. "Bold of you to bomb your own position with 'pretty lady', Sera."

[psalmofseasons]

"Erin! A beautiful name. Very of-the-earth," Sera replies enthusiastically. It does, after all, literally mean "Ireland." "And hey, I call 'em like I see 'em. You a musician?" She gestures to the tattoos.

[crushed_pearls]

"In a sense," Erin demurs, finding herself reddening at the cheeks for reasons she doesn't understand. "I sing, and I'm pretty good at it, but I don't compose and I never really...trained? It might be nice to, now that I'm here and there's time and actual resources..."

[psalmofseasons]

"I sing too!" Sera leans forward, a bit eager. "I play a few instruments as well. I've got some pan pipes, a couple different drums, an accordion, and a wee harp. You ever seen a miniature harp? Maybe we should make some music sometime!"

[crushed_pearls]

"I'd love to," Erin answers, flustering like she's 19 all over again. "I um." She clears her throat. "...What uh, what brings you here?"

Unspoken but very present is that Erin had been hoping to leave with someone interesting, have a night of fun, and maybe get a friend out of it, but her usual smooth flirtations aren't leaving her throat. She hasn't been on the back foot like this in awhile...

[psalmofseasons]

"People," Sera replies easily, sighing out the word. "Spring air, flowers, pretty girls. Pretty boys. Plus, it's for charity. I'm always looking to support those who heal. What about you?"

[crushed_pearls]

Erin's mouth opens to say something glib, but then she...doesn't. Her voice softens, something vulnerable along the edges: "...Being perfectly honest, aside from my ten Brass going to something decent? I came looking for someone to spend the night with, and maybe be friends with after. I'm still...trying to fit in."

[psalmofseasons]

"That's a funny thing to want in a place like this. Fitting in, I mean. Most people here are from another world entirely. Does anyone fit in?" Sera muses, humming thoughtfully. "But I do understand. And I feel like you're in the right place. Stuff like this, it's a good way to connect quickly. Even if it goes nowhere, you know a few folks now."

[crushed_pearls]

"Yeah, even if it's a terrible place to burst into song." Erin flickers a smile, leans in a little. "But...I don't mean 'fit in' like, being alike exactly. I'm. Not a tame person, my lass Ylva and I have that in common. I mean more...when a fox and a man see each other in the woods, both know the other belongs. Fitting in like that. And not having that feeling is so stressful."

[psalmofseasons]

"You feel like you don't belong? Why's that?" She tilts her head with concern.

[crushed_pearls]

(We are getting off the track of speed dating, Peters.)

Do us both a favor and shut the fuck up.

Erin offers her hand, palm-up; no pressure, but...

...It's easier to say, with someone to hold.

[redlightgreenlight]

Much as this isn't a date for her, she still cares deeply for Erin and when she sees her former love, she can't help but slide into the seat across from her.

"Feeling better?"

Perhaps a dumb question, but she feels more than normal.

[crushed_pearls]

"Better than I was, not as good as this game face looks."

There's a thread of emotion on seeing Valdis; the usual dull pang of regret that's been there since the breakup, yes, but also something Else, a furtive mischief not unlike someone waiting to spring a surprise.

Erin leans back in her chair and sighs. "Having an actual house has been a fucking miracle. There's been so much floor time."

[redlightgreenlight]

For the first time in a very long time, Erin feels...not quite happy, but perhaps happier than she has been. Valdis hopes that she is able to recover and move on from the Eterna just as much as the rest of the,.

"Yes, having space and air and room to breathe has been amazing." She smiles. "I'm glad you have Daisy. She was a bit irritated on your behalf."

[crushed_pearls]

With Exaggerated Slowness, Erin puts her head on the table and groans. "I. Specifically asked her not to start shit, uggghhhhh -"

Ignore the pulse of fond affection there.

[redlightgreenlight]

"She didn't, not really." Valdis gently pats Erin's head, more to make her laugh than anything else. "And she can't help it, it's the wolf in her."

[crushed_pearls]

At first Erin moves her head as if to duck the pat, and then...she doesn't. She goes a bit still, involuntary revulsion at her hair being touched, that same feeling from so long ago when she'd asked Valdis to dye it...but under it is that thread of deep trust that she felt then too.

Still.

"Yeah, it is," Erin murmurs. "That's my sovereign...I gotta drop by more. My own damage, just. Awkward, up in my head, but I'm a big girl and everything I need to act like it."

[redlightgreenlight]

Valdis withdraws her hand. Erin still trusts her, but there's no reason to push her comfort levels.

"You do seem...better, than when you arrived."

[crushed_pearls]

"People here were way more reasonable than I expected about bartending with no eyes. That job has been good for me." Indeed, Erin is significantly alive on the clock. Not more energetic, exactly, more...

Home.

"But what about you? How're you holding up?" She hears the sentence and winces; she said it a lot on the ship, where 'are you good?' was an absurdity.

[redlightgreenlight]

"I'm not in pain anymore."

[crushed_pearls]

"Oh, love..." A flicker of guilt and much more sympathy. The ship had been so awful, and so much of it was unavoidable for Valdis. The memories alone...

[redlightgreenlight]

Valdis shakes her head and manages a smile.

"It's alright. I didn't lose everyone, there is room to breathe here and my abilities aren't as much of a curse with all the people feeling so many different things. It balances more easily. Perhaps I can actually live here instead of just surviving."

[crushed_pearls]

"Ain't that just the mood," Erin murmurs. "...Hey, can I tell you something so it'll get used against me? Tried to on the ship but other things just kept coming up and coming up and coming up and honestly I can't think of anyone else with the right combination of caring about me and pure malice to make sure it gets done. Related to the living thing."