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ph_logs2024-06-08 10:59 pm
pumpkinhollow) wrote in ph_logs2024-06-08 10:59 pm
June Event - Cukey-Scary [The Cucumber Festival]
**Plain text version here.
Almost as abundant as the attendees are, the stalls and booths set up with cucumber-centric meals are easily found. much of it is cheap, even free in many cases, and scattered with them are other booths peddling artisan goods.
The Whirling Wyvern is a ride that stands shortly behind a neat arrangement of picnic tables. Rope fences wind around the ride, giving it a safe distance from any bystanders, and the surrounding area is littered with flour bags, densely stuffed to offer padding.
Watching it even briefly makes it very clear why the padding is needed: the platform, raised about two feet off the ground in the middle, begins to spin its seated riders, rotating faster and faster until they topple, roll, and fall off the sides, into the padding below. People can often be heard nearby making bets with friends to see who can stay on the longest. (It's not a recommended ride for anyone who's been drinking!)
Bumpermobiles is another ride, operating on enchantment instead of electricity and a switch, that may look familiar to some of Pumpkin Hollow's residents from more modern times! Though they lack the distinctive roofed building in favor of a section of paved road closed off with wooden beams, the small carts of the bumpermobiles resemble automobiles of the current time, outfitted with wide-edges to brace the impact they'll inevitably have on one-another! Each one seats two, but are able to be driven on their own, if you'd prefer to focus your conversations on heckling your fellow driver.
Hot Air Balloons are set up not on the Green, but just outside of it, taking a spot just off to the side that's unoccupied by booths or frequent foot-traffic. Each ride carries a maximum of three, not counting the operator, and gives any rider an impressive view of marrow isle for thirty minutes.
The Carousel stands in the center of the Festival Green, chiming cheerful music from the pillar in the center. Horses are joined by the addition of shimmering unicorns, beaked pegasi, and colorfully painted pony-drawn carts (which are crafted to be seats, for those who cannot climb on one of the other mounts).
The Wheel of Chance is a vertical wheel, perched between artisan's booths, offering low-stake prizes for a small payment! 5 Brass allows you to spin the wheel, offering one of ten available prizes:
The Cucumber Festival's Raffle is one of the most coveted opportunities to spend a small sum of brass and win one of the many prizes donated by the community, with all contributions going into community services and upkeep.
Each ticket costs 20 Brass, and each person may purchase up to 5 tickets. There will be three drawings total, granting a small prize, a medium prize, and a grand prize to each winner. One person cannot win more than one prize; if the same person draws a second prize after their first, it will be re-rolled.
To purchase a raffle ticket, please reply to the Pumpkin Hollow mod account comment with RAFFLE TICKETS as the title, also linked here, stating how many tickets your character will be buying. On JUNE 14TH, ticket purchasing will be closed, and the prizes will be rolled!
The prizes are as follows:
The Cucumber Growing Competition is a celebration of the farmers who made all this possible, as well as a flexing of gardening prowess. Each cucumber is measured in weight, length, and color! The prize for the best cucumber in show is simply a ribbon, but among the Pumpkin Hollow farmers, it's quite a statement to have. Career farmers, hobby gardeners, and onlookers alike gather to see the town's farmers' handiwork!
The Cooking Competition follows directly after the Cucumber Growing Competition. While the larger of the vegetables don't make for very good foods, sacrificing flavor for size, the rest of the entries are cut up and used for a variety of dishes. Chefs of all varieties are encouraged to participate to show their culinary prowess!
The Great Turnip Smash-Off is a cheeky jab at the prior year's failed festival. Wielding any tools they like, including but not limited to one's hands themselves, each contestant is allotted three minutes to destroy as many turnips as they possibly can. The prize for the cucumber festival's first annual turnip slayer is a small trophy for bragging rights!
The Water Walk is a fun sport for all ages! Lined up in rows with metal spoons full of water, the participants must walk carefully to the end of the "racetrack" to a small glass of water, with a line denoted on the side at the middle. The first person to fill their glass to or above that mark wins!
The Variety Show occurs throughout the week, offering the stage to many people of assorted talents. The first day is booked up for magicians (sleight of hand, specifically - mages are politely requested to refrain from participation), and on the following Monday, a "feat of strength" competition will showcase the might of those strongest in Pumpkin Hollow! The other days are yet to be filled, and several festival attendants are waiting with clipboards to accept submissions. Many newcomers have talents they've never seen before, so new submissions of the musical, magical, or other remarkable talent alike are not only welcome, but strongly encouraged!
CUKEY-SCARY
Come one, come all!
The long-awaited festival to enjoy vegetables and welcome in the summer months has finally arrived - and this time, completely uninhibited by curses!
Pumpkin Hollow's streets are bright and bustling, adorned with green ribbons, baskets of flowers, and freshly arranged shop stalls to market their goods to the festival-goers as they mill about the streets surrounding the Festival Green. Cheering crowds watch performers perched upon stages, jaunty music played by thoroughly energized bands fills the air, and the smell of freshly-cut cucumbers is carried on the breeze.
Welcome to the Cucumber Festival, a sorely-missed holiday held exclusively on Marrow Isle. It is a festival begun at the town's inception to encourage the newly-established farming community, which was rapidly embraced from then on. Many smaller-scale gardeners dedicate vast amounts of energy in joining farmers to make the festival possible, and this year is more abundant than ever, thanks to the efforts of the new arrivals taking up the farming mantles. The merriment sprawls all over the Festival Green, and even further into the town.
One question yet remains: where to begin?
Pumpkin Hollow's streets are bright and bustling, adorned with green ribbons, baskets of flowers, and freshly arranged shop stalls to market their goods to the festival-goers as they mill about the streets surrounding the Festival Green. Cheering crowds watch performers perched upon stages, jaunty music played by thoroughly energized bands fills the air, and the smell of freshly-cut cucumbers is carried on the breeze.
Welcome to the Cucumber Festival, a sorely-missed holiday held exclusively on Marrow Isle. It is a festival begun at the town's inception to encourage the newly-established farming community, which was rapidly embraced from then on. Many smaller-scale gardeners dedicate vast amounts of energy in joining farmers to make the festival possible, and this year is more abundant than ever, thanks to the efforts of the new arrivals taking up the farming mantles. The merriment sprawls all over the Festival Green, and even further into the town.
One question yet remains: where to begin?
Cucumber Celebrations Commence!
Copious Cucumber Cuisine
With the cucumber harvest more bountiful this year than it'd ever been, the booths have a wide assortment of offerings - cucumber chips, fried pickles, bowls of salad, breads with chunks of vegetable in them, fritters, among the wide tide of other culinary delights. If you can make it with a cucumber, these people have!Almost as abundant as the attendees are, the stalls and booths set up with cucumber-centric meals are easily found. much of it is cheap, even free in many cases, and scattered with them are other booths peddling artisan goods.
Challenges of Chance and Cheer
As much as Hollowites enjoy their food, there's rarely an opportunity that they pass up to incorporate games or rides into festivities, and the Cucumber Festival has an extremely wide variety to offer!The Whirling Wyvern is a ride that stands shortly behind a neat arrangement of picnic tables. Rope fences wind around the ride, giving it a safe distance from any bystanders, and the surrounding area is littered with flour bags, densely stuffed to offer padding.
Watching it even briefly makes it very clear why the padding is needed: the platform, raised about two feet off the ground in the middle, begins to spin its seated riders, rotating faster and faster until they topple, roll, and fall off the sides, into the padding below. People can often be heard nearby making bets with friends to see who can stay on the longest. (It's not a recommended ride for anyone who's been drinking!)
Bumpermobiles is another ride, operating on enchantment instead of electricity and a switch, that may look familiar to some of Pumpkin Hollow's residents from more modern times! Though they lack the distinctive roofed building in favor of a section of paved road closed off with wooden beams, the small carts of the bumpermobiles resemble automobiles of the current time, outfitted with wide-edges to brace the impact they'll inevitably have on one-another! Each one seats two, but are able to be driven on their own, if you'd prefer to focus your conversations on heckling your fellow driver.
Hot Air Balloons are set up not on the Green, but just outside of it, taking a spot just off to the side that's unoccupied by booths or frequent foot-traffic. Each ride carries a maximum of three, not counting the operator, and gives any rider an impressive view of marrow isle for thirty minutes.
The Carousel stands in the center of the Festival Green, chiming cheerful music from the pillar in the center. Horses are joined by the addition of shimmering unicorns, beaked pegasi, and colorfully painted pony-drawn carts (which are crafted to be seats, for those who cannot climb on one of the other mounts).
The Wheel of Chance is a vertical wheel, perched between artisan's booths, offering low-stake prizes for a small payment! 5 Brass allows you to spin the wheel, offering one of ten available prizes:
- a cucumber, covered in batter and fried, on a stick.
- a goldfish in a decorative bowl.
- a pair of pants, with several varieties to choose from.
- a deck of playing cards.
- a fine leather-bound notebook.
- a set of six shot glasses.
- a bottle of wine.
- a basket of assorted fruits.
- a glass-blown animal native to Marrow Isle, palm-sized, in assorted species and colors.
- 10 Brass. Double your money!
The Cucumber Festival's Raffle is one of the most coveted opportunities to spend a small sum of brass and win one of the many prizes donated by the community, with all contributions going into community services and upkeep.
Each ticket costs 20 Brass, and each person may purchase up to 5 tickets. There will be three drawings total, granting a small prize, a medium prize, and a grand prize to each winner. One person cannot win more than one prize; if the same person draws a second prize after their first, it will be re-rolled.
To purchase a raffle ticket, please reply to the Pumpkin Hollow mod account comment with RAFFLE TICKETS as the title, also linked here, stating how many tickets your character will be buying. On JUNE 14TH, ticket purchasing will be closed, and the prizes will be rolled!
The prizes are as follows:
- 1st (small): a telescope, with elegant engravings in the metal, donated by Elias Coldwood.
- 2nd (medium): a set of two enchanted tea puppies, one glass and one metal, donated by Neil West.
- 3rd (grand prize): a basket-hilt sword, well-weighted, masterfully crafted, and delightfully ornate, donated by Dahlia Leeds.
Contestants Convene for Competition
Of course, what's a festival without a little bit of friendly competition! Over the week of celebrations, the Cucumber Festival hosts the following activities for any and all participants interested in joining in the fun.The Cucumber Growing Competition is a celebration of the farmers who made all this possible, as well as a flexing of gardening prowess. Each cucumber is measured in weight, length, and color! The prize for the best cucumber in show is simply a ribbon, but among the Pumpkin Hollow farmers, it's quite a statement to have. Career farmers, hobby gardeners, and onlookers alike gather to see the town's farmers' handiwork!
The Cooking Competition follows directly after the Cucumber Growing Competition. While the larger of the vegetables don't make for very good foods, sacrificing flavor for size, the rest of the entries are cut up and used for a variety of dishes. Chefs of all varieties are encouraged to participate to show their culinary prowess!
The Great Turnip Smash-Off is a cheeky jab at the prior year's failed festival. Wielding any tools they like, including but not limited to one's hands themselves, each contestant is allotted three minutes to destroy as many turnips as they possibly can. The prize for the cucumber festival's first annual turnip slayer is a small trophy for bragging rights!
The Water Walk is a fun sport for all ages! Lined up in rows with metal spoons full of water, the participants must walk carefully to the end of the "racetrack" to a small glass of water, with a line denoted on the side at the middle. The first person to fill their glass to or above that mark wins!
The Variety Show occurs throughout the week, offering the stage to many people of assorted talents. The first day is booked up for magicians (sleight of hand, specifically - mages are politely requested to refrain from participation), and on the following Monday, a "feat of strength" competition will showcase the might of those strongest in Pumpkin Hollow! The other days are yet to be filled, and several festival attendants are waiting with clipboards to accept submissions. Many newcomers have talents they've never seen before, so new submissions of the musical, magical, or other remarkable talent alike are not only welcome, but strongly encouraged!
Carnival Complications
Of course, not all things can go entirely peacefully in Pumpkin Hollow's festivities, and the Cucumber Festival has never been exempt from this. Though the prior years' incident was far more disruptive to the festival's celebrations, several things begin to crop up over the span of the week.
The Whack-a-Mole Game, during the first night, becomes the first item to start experiencing a mild haunting. Though the specters only make themselves known when the participant is alone, there's a distinct feeling of guilt that comes with each smack, not unlike stepping on a cat's tail without realizing it. Instead of the triumphant jingle that the machine lets out when the game is complete, a stark silence settles in, as though the entire festival has frozen in time. Only then does a whisper, no louder than a breeze, brush past your ear.
Rolling a D3, the spirits haunting the whack-a-mole machine will tell you the following:
(Mod Note: the information given is always going to be about someone nearby. When tagging into someone's top-level with the Whack-a-Mole Game who's got secrets or gossip, provide a piece of information about your character that the spirits might've said! Additionally, feel free to request a piece of information about an NPC, major or minor. For a lie, anything goes. Have fun with it!)
The Candle-Shooting Game is the next to become haunted, though the haunting is significantly more straightforward. In an act of simple mischief, the flame will occasionally withstand blasts from the water gun that should have surely snuffed it, or the flame will go out just as you line your shot up. These spirits are aiming to ruin this particular game, but not your night.
There is a sign on the double doors that make up the entrance, which reads, "Admission is free, but you must enter in pairs." And true to its word, the doors will not open unless two different people take each door's handle. Otherwise it is definitively locked.
So, choose a companion and go explore! What's the worst that could happen? All you have to do is open the door.
Capricious Crashers
As the festival goes on, it seems that some poltergeists have seen fit to invite themselves to the party. Two games are affected, with varying results.The Whack-a-Mole Game, during the first night, becomes the first item to start experiencing a mild haunting. Though the specters only make themselves known when the participant is alone, there's a distinct feeling of guilt that comes with each smack, not unlike stepping on a cat's tail without realizing it. Instead of the triumphant jingle that the machine lets out when the game is complete, a stark silence settles in, as though the entire festival has frozen in time. Only then does a whisper, no louder than a breeze, brush past your ear.
Rolling a D3, the spirits haunting the whack-a-mole machine will tell you the following:
- a secret that isn't yours to have about someone in town.
- a piece of gossip, a shocking recent happening that may or may not be getting around in whispers.
- a lie, carefully crafted to impact the way you see one of your fellow townsfolk.
(Mod Note: the information given is always going to be about someone nearby. When tagging into someone's top-level with the Whack-a-Mole Game who's got secrets or gossip, provide a piece of information about your character that the spirits might've said! Additionally, feel free to request a piece of information about an NPC, major or minor. For a lie, anything goes. Have fun with it!)
The Candle-Shooting Game is the next to become haunted, though the haunting is significantly more straightforward. In an act of simple mischief, the flame will occasionally withstand blasts from the water gun that should have surely snuffed it, or the flame will go out just as you line your shot up. These spirits are aiming to ruin this particular game, but not your night.
Cards and Consequences
On the outskirts of the festival, there is a strange building set up. Just a small shack, decorated with celestial trappings and a mysterious air. Above the door, a sign painted black with gold lettering says "HOUSE OF CARDS". Is it a funhouse? A fortune teller? No one's sure who set it up. Perhaps another effort of Captain Tuttle or something.There is a sign on the double doors that make up the entrance, which reads, "Admission is free, but you must enter in pairs." And true to its word, the doors will not open unless two different people take each door's handle. Otherwise it is definitively locked.
So, choose a companion and go explore! What's the worst that could happen? All you have to do is open the door.
| CONTENT WARNINGS: mild manipulation, unreality, snakes, possible character death. |
no subject
Then Darcy is very quickly reminded of their lack of game, again, and they sniff to try and regain some composure.
Taking her hand, they kiss her palm at the swell of the base of her thumb, then take a moment to think of what to say.
"Madmoiselle, welcome back to the land of the living. I've waited for you, ma Ulysse, and now you're back with me."
no subject
She draws back only enough to rub at her face with her other hand, trying to clean up some of the tears even as the hand in Darcy's turns to hold.
"There's so much to ask you. So much to sort out, people to meet, places to go, but...it'll all get figured out, I'm sure."
And because she cannot help herself:
"Just make sure that when you introduce me to others, you don't skip ahead and introduce me as your fiancee."
no subject
Darcy coughs a little to clear the choke in their throat, and winces at her last comment, a low rumbling in their ears as the Scream tries to soothe their embarrassment.
"Sorry- it was stupid, I mean it, please just- forget I said anything. I'm not going to mention it to anyone."
no subject
"It....it wasn't stupid, it just...caught me off guard..." Oh, this is nearly as bad as when Darcy was trying to ask to court her. "I...let me say something?"
no subject
"Go ahead."
no subject
She breathes a little easier then, still holding Darcy's hand, and sorts her words into the correct order.
"Darcy, you are someone who feels your emotions passionately. This is a virtue, not a flaw, and it's something I've always known about you. That it leads you to speak sometimes without thought is inevitable, but it is something I have come to expect and understand. It means that if you say something spontaneously, it - I can't just forget it, because you feel it. Or felt it. And I don't wish to cast your thoughts to the side. It's only..."
Oh, how to put this.
"Something like that is something I'm inevitably going to take perhaps more seriously than you meant it. And..." Helena exhales. "It's not something I can joke about. I just can't." She's not doing this right. She isn't, and it's going to be a disaster. "There's...there's steps and things that have to be done and you need to be certain. That's...that's what I wanted to say."
no subject
The protest is quiet and firm.
"It was stupid but. I meant it."
They feel churlish for arguing it, like a bad-tempered animal struggling against being brought to heel. Helena has given a soft no, they ought to take it, as they take all her words.
But.
"I've thought about you every day you weren't here. I don't like anyone better. I can't like anyone better. If there's someone I could like better I don't want to like them better. You're it for me. You could get divorced and remarry and anything and I wouldn't want anyone else. I'm certain, Lena. I am certain as gravity and taxes and death. I've spent months terrified of the idea that I'd never see you again, I can't... please. I know it's stupid and I go too fast and I'm a fucking lot to deal with, but... think about it. Tell me you'll think about it."
no subject
"...I'll think about it. But you need to think about it too. I know we skipped around on the steps somewhat, but...I don't want to skip the ones we don't have to. It matters to me, very much, to know that it's not just your big feelings, but...me."
To allow them the space to reconsider. To court, like Helena had asked to do. To make so, so sure that Darcy wasn't stepping into a situation they would regret. And it's awkward and difficult to say all of this, but so many people, Darcy included, have nudged her in the direction of speaking her feelings more. Even if they're not pleasant ones.
no subject
But this is what they wanted for her. Being able to speak her mind. To say no to what she doesn't want. Even if it's to this.
"It is you."
It's every part of her. More than Darcy knows they've felt for anyone else. Moments of fluster and longing for strong biceps taught them what it meant to be a lesbian, to want women, but to love Helena has been like the difference between mass and reading the Doctors of the Church. Every new detail is something wrap their mouth around, every preference and idiosyncrasy, every thing she does because that's the way she just does it. Every day they are made more from it, a person they both like and cannot be without her.
Again, softly.
"I'll still be here."
Darcy is stubborn, but worse is their loyalty. Helena could kick them and spur them and never say a kind word again and still, at her heel, there they would be. It is enough to be someone who stays by her side. They were weaned on far less love than this. It will be enough. Even this is more than they ever expected to get.
no subject
"Je t'aime, Darcy."
Even now, she remembers how to say it. She'd worked again and again to make her mouth shift around the unfamiliar vowels, and she's glad of it. For all that she needs Darcy to step back and breathe, she does not love them any less. She wants to be bundled up in their coat, surrounded in them like a shield before she thinks about asking who else may have made it. She wants to hold their hand and let her warmth seep into them.
She suspects, based on a few things, that they are in a graveyard, and wonders why this one feels so calm. Maybe it's just the company.
no subject
"Je t'aime aussi. It sounds good coming from you."
Let her hold the leash. Let Helena set the tempo, let Darcy stay hungry and longing at her heel. So long as they stay close as her shadow. They don't even think about getting up, their world isn't that big again yet.
no subject
"Teach me more, sometime."
She might never be fluent, but if she can tell Darcy her feelings in their own language, it might mean more. Words to braid a tie together between them, given as a gift to Darcy, to meet them where they wait for her.
"But before all that...will you help me figure this place out? You've got months of experience, and I hesitate to go anywhere or be asked to sign myself to anything without someone else there. At least, to begin with."
When she feels less uncertain on the paths, she can travel them by herself. But she'd appreciate her love at her side, given a chance to prove the truth of their words while being reassured that Helena was still right there.
no subject
"I'll help with whatever I can. If you want, I can take a sick day, help you sort out everything. It's not like, a huge process but there's still shit to do."
no subject
The rest of the phrase hangs on her. You don't have to go to all that bother for me, I'll wait until you're free. But, Darcy will see how her features relax some, how she lets that go. She's not newly arrived on the ship, terrified and alone, so used to hiding. She's not in the manor, oppressed by the atmosphere, not wanting to draw the wrong sort of notice.
Helena is here, embraced in strong and safe arms. It's okay. It's okay. Darcy would not say what they don't mean. Not to her.
"...I would greatly appreciate it. They tried to give me a map - I don't think anyone meant anything by it. And they said I could go to a tavern, to stay, though I've never been in one before. And I...would like to find a coat."
She wants other things, too. Some kind of food. A knowledge of how many others made it here. An accounting of everything that has happened. Something that can act as a stylus, and paper, because none of her diaries came with her. It is baffling how much someone can want, though she strikes a balance in herself by not mentioning all of it at once. In time, in time. There has to be time. There must be.
no subject
"Here-" Darcy shrugs out of their coat to hand to Helena, fishing out their keys to put in a different pocket. It smells like Darcy and also weirdly like chicken feathers.
"Borrow mine for now. We'll stop by my work- that's where you'll be staying- and then we can go to that seamstress lady, and sort anything else out. C'mon-" Darcy stands, their hand going to help Helena to her feet, "let me show you around."
no subject
"My cane..."
Where did she drop it? She doesn't know - she'd just been so overcome with the fact that Darcy was truly here, and then caused herself trouble.
no subject
"Do you want to take my arm?"
no subject
Not just for security purposes. To feel close and present again, and to say to this place, this is my knight, and I am their lady. As if she simply stepped off the boat, and Darcy was there to crown her with roses, to say that her place was already prepared. That all who might see them in the early morning light, soft as mist, might know.