ph_logs | June Event - Cukey-Scary [The Cucumber Festival]

June Event - Cukey-Scary [The Cucumber Festival]

**Plain text version here.

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?

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!

(For any concerned about the wellbeing of the fish: the person operating the wheel assures the health of these goldfish, and that the bowls are simply for festival distribution. They do note, however, that you'll be on the hook, no pun intended, to provide the new home for the fish.)

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.

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. |

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He puts a hand on her arm to steady her. "We're underground. The train will come out of that tunnel over there."

As if on cue, the alarm for an arriving train starts to sound. Two pinpricks of light come out of the tunnel first, followed rapidly by a hulking beast of metal and glass in a loud rush of air. The breaks hiss as the car settles in its tracks and the doors slide open.

"There she is," he says reassuringly. "Come on, we don't want to miss it."

It's a good thing he's keeping her stable, or she would have jumped at the sight of the train. The one above ground in the town is strange enough, but this one makes noises like a great beast. Hissing, snarling - but Crichton says its fine, so it must be. All right, then.

"We just sit down and wait?"

She'll sit next to him, when he does, looking around curiously.

"Yep. Shouldn't be too long, it's just going to the next stop." He grabs a seat near the door because it's not like anyone else is going to be here to yell at him about priority seating. He figures she'll feel better if she can see the exit clearly.

"This is a mode of transportation for a lot of people on my Earth. On a busy day, during rush hour, it wouldn't be uncommon to see hundreds of people using trains just like these. Can you picture it?"

She falls into a bit of contemplation, inwardly grateful that they can see the doors in case anything decides to try to leap out at the time. Hundreds of people, all in trains like this...

"Where were they all going? Everywhere?"

Rush hour. That's a phrase she hadn't run across in her reading.

"Work, mostly, or school. A lot of people all had to be at work at about the same time every day so they'd all end up rushing onto the same trains." Hence the rush hour.

"I always swore I wouldn't end up in that nine to five rat race. Now? Kinda lookin' like maybe I will. But I hear they give you a horse if you join the enforcers. Can you picture me as a cowboy?"

"I've no idea what a cowboy is, to be honest. But...ugh, don't go into the enforcers. How am I supposed to talk you into questionable adventures if you're off being a man of the law?"

How does she keep getting friends who want to take this up, really.

"Bein' a cowboy is a way of life. Gettin' into gun duels at high noon, drinking in the saloon, running all the miscreants outta town and then ridin' into the sunset on the back of your horse, and doing it all in style with matching boots and a cowboy hat." Someone watched a few too many westerns growing up and it shows.

"Now, Fever, you're looking at it all wrong. Who do you think is going to bail you out when you run across the law on your questionable adventure, hm?"

"Will you? And swing me away on the back of your horse away from those who don't understand that truly, they ought to let me work and commit whatever deeds I want because it's all going to work out just fine in the end?"

She doesn't understand half of what he said about being a cowboy, but the horse part she can understand.

He grins in utter delight at the mental image of sweeping her away on the back of his horse. (that he still doesn't know how to ride yet hardly matters, right?)

"Well, I don't know if I can countermand a direct order from my superiors if they're standing right in front of me, but I might be prone to developing a sudden blind eye if I happen to glance in the direction of you doing something... off the books."

"What a remarkably specific condition. Nothing you need to worry with a doctor for, though, it's not deadly."

She makes herself chuckle, but then looks up at the rest of the subway car.

"I'm just thinking about how much walking a contraption like this can save you. Going miles and miles, and it's still the same day outside."

"Exactly. Now you're getting it."

He follows her gaze, nodding along with her observation. "Trains revolutionized my world's history for just that reason. All of a sudden people and goods could travel long distances easily and in days instead of months. The whole economy changed practically overnight. The Wild West opened up like never before."

Their train starts to slow, screeching as the breaks engage. Crichton motions for her to stay sitting until it comes to one last jerking stop. Then he stands.

"I think this next room should be it. Would you like to lead the way?"

She's imagining it - speeding along the Coast, going anywhere and everywhere. Maybe she'd finally get to see Amn, or witness the Sunset Vale for herself, or go raise havoc in Waterdeep. All without sacrificing so long spent in the journey, though travel had its own appeals. But the train slowing down pulls her from her daydreams, and they disembark, Fever glad to lead the way ahead.

"Whoa." That's her first reaction upon seeing the room, glittering and beautiful, with an air of intrigue. It's beautiful here, a place she would linger if they had the time. She almost wants to steal the curtains while they're here, but they might not be able to carry everything. Still, she fingers the fabric admiringly.

"I can see why you were eager to get back here."

"Yeah, this place is a marvel. I couldn't get it out of my head."

He notices her admiring the drapes and smiles his crooked up-to-no-good smile. "You know, that rug might get a little unwieldy if we don't have some way to tie it shut. Something like a rope or, I don't know... fabric?" Like curtains?

"Think that would work?"

"And what are you going to do with the curtains after?"

Because if he doesn't have plans, she just might. An impulse taking shape in her mind.

"Probably donate them to a good friend as a thank you for helping me out," he says with a cheeky wink.

"Here's hoping your friend has a good idea on what to do with them."

She grins, and then turns to start moving things off the rug. The wheel itself looks to be the heaviest, so it'll have to be a shared effort, but the podiums can be easily moved aside by one.

"She looks like she does."

He goes to the other side to start clearing the items from there. How many end tables and podiums does one room need? Seriously?

Once everything but the wheel itself is moved, he turns to her and says, "Okay, I'll get that back of this thing if you'll help steady the front."

One thing Crichton hasn't counted on yet in this plan is when they move the wheel it will spin and that's going to be the door they get. Number three, the door with the symbol of the world on it. But first things first, they have to get their goods.

"Got it. Ready, two, three."

It's heavy, she thinks, and the wheel starts to turn - of course it will, when they're moving it, and her arms might be a little sore after. Damn it, she's not built for this. But step by step, they can move it and manage. She'll follow his lead, and thank gods her grip doesn't seem to slip - help from that boon, no doubt.

On his end, Crichton groans and keeps reminding himself to lift with his knees as he struggles the thing backwards. He's going to be sore all over come tomorrow, but he can fix that by doing some stretches on his nice new rug. So help him, he's not giving up.

An excruciating couple of minutes later he finally drops his grip, with the wheel only the barest fraction of an inch away from the rug. No further than it had to go, but far enough that his prize is free.

"There," he groans, wiping sweat off his face. "That's one solid piece of furniture. Thanks for your help. I just... need a minute..." Before he starts packing things up. Just let him catch his breath.

"Huh?"

She's currently dying with her hands on her knees, Crichton. Have mercy.

"I said I just... oh, forget it."

He finally straightens up after getting his breathing back to mostly normal. This is why he keeps up the exercise routine. It isn't just for the ass.

Teasing, now, "You need me to carry you out in the rug?"

"Took the words out of my mouth," she fires back, despite the fact that if she could ever lift him, she'd have to be wearing some form of magic item.

"All right. Let's get this out of here."

Starting from one edge, they can start to roll away. Curtains can be grabbed after the main event, and then she'll follow his lead again to get out of here without the whole graveyard situation.

"Don't have to tell me twice."

Crichton secures the rug with one last tug on the fabric and together with Fever, crams it out the door... and onto a cliffside? Good thing they are further back this time so they don't accidentally drop their spoils over the edge.

"Huh. I guess we won. Oh, we get a wish. Hm... " Now that he's tried it once and found no downsides, he might go for something a little more ambitious.

"I know what I'd wish for if I could, but I'm not sure it would do much for you?"

He goes on to explain that he's still worried about what could happen if Scorpius ever arrives here. Nothing would change. Scorpius would still chase him for the wormhole knowledge in his head. He doesn't necessarily want to have that knowledge taken from him, because it might still be useful. The Ancients gave it to him for a reason. But, if he could have a magic scroll that would erase it later... it wouldn't be the worst thing to keep on hand. Just in case.

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June Event - Cukey-Scary [The Cucumber Festival]

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