September Event - Guest Appearances

[pumpkinhollow]

GUEST APPEARANCES

Ignition

September 20th is the Autumnal Equinox. Many places across the world of Concorde celebrate the first day of fall. While various nations and regions have their own cultural practices surrounding it, nature is god everywhere. And so the inception of Mother Autumn’s domain is universally recognized, even if the names change from place to place. But on a little island named Marrow, in a little town called Pumpkin Hollow, there is another reason to celebrate.

The birth of Dahlia Leeds is not so important an event that it supersedes Celestine herself, and neither Dahlia nor anyone in town is foolhardy enough to claim as much. In fact, after the events on this very same day last year, one might argue that perhaps her birth at least started out as a bad thing. But she is certainly the wealthiest person in town. It is through the combination of substantial wealth and a generous heart, two things that are very seldom found in the same place, that we end up with a soiree where the birthday girl would rather spoil everyone else on her day than herself.

The doors to Leeds Estate, which presides proudly over the town upon its throne at the crest of Founder’s Hill, are flung wide open. Large sums of Brass are paid to caterers, florists, and seamstresses to make sure this place is decorated to the nines. Some businesses labor all year, just to prepare for the handsome payoff they’ll get from this event alone. And you, dear neighbor, are invited. Not only are you invited, but you are dressed for the event in whatever your heart desires, completely at the birthday girl’s expense. Dahlia ensures no cost nor conflict stands in between anyone in town and a much-needed break. She is determined for this birthday of hers to be a good night.

Or else.

Incipience

{ The timeframe between ignition and the peak of burning, where a small, contained fire spreads and grows gradually into an established flame. All it takes is a spark. }

The whole town is abuzz as preparations for the gala begin. From the moment people begin to wake up for the day, the air throughout Pumpkin Hollow just feels electric with excitement. After August, people have been needing this lift in morale, and after how last year’s gala went… well, there’s a lot riding on this one. And Dahlia seems much more in control now.

Speaking of being in control, the whole lead-up process has been incredibly organized. You wake up to a delivery--- your outfit, perfectly tailored and completely paid for. Accessories are included. She truly thought of everything.

It’s noteworthy that Dahlia’s invitations this time included another name beneath her own. “Suzanne Marie Dyneax,” it said. Most people don’t know the name, but gossip gets around in a small town like this. It’s not hard to pick up on the fact that this probably refers to Susie, one of the teenagers that Dahlia recently moved into her home, whose own birthday was ruined by Seemingly’s attack. Gift baskets have been delivered to others whose days were in proximity to the disaster--- Zivia, Capochin, even CT. Wine, fruit, and sweets, along with a birthday card. Dahlia has said in the past, “my birthday is your birthday,” but never has that felt more true.

With businesses mostly closed for the celebration, you are left with the majority of the day to prepare in relative peace. For many of the women in Dahlia’s inner circle, there is even a pre-party group dressing room set up on the third floor of her home. Only those who received her special invitation (Susie, Noelle, Fever, Cassandra, Anya, Alice, Patty, Melanie, Basira, Elsie) are permitted to join, but any friends or partners are gladly invited to wait at the bottom of the stairs for the girls to make their grand entrance.

The food is laid out, flowers placed, dresses laced and buttoned. The clock strikes 6pm, and the fun begins.

FLASHOVER

{ The moment when a blaze reaches its maximum size and heat, and the radiant heat in the space is such that all combustible materials ignite at once, allowing the flame to steadily and freely burn for the rest of the night. }

By the time it reaches 6:15, the ballroom is already flooded with eager dancers and hungry dinner guests. After all, the whole town is invited, and everyone’s excited to see Dahlia’s beautiful new ballroom and take a load off.

The music is elegant, played by a rotating cast of musicians who join the party when their act is over. The food is extravagant--- Dahlia and two of her partners are some of the biggest foodies in town, so this is expected. There is talking and laughing and the swirling of ballgowns, and all is well.

But there is a guest you do not recognize in the corner of the ballroom. An older man with white hair, strong features, and a dour expression. You can see Dahlia eyeing him, then flitting over to him, then talking to him. Her expression shifts from anxious, to annoyed, to resigned, before at last she sighs heavily and leaves him to it. Whatever it is that’s going on, clearly it’s something Dahlia is willing to begrudgingly tolerate in order to get back to having fun.

The reason for the disturbance becomes clear in short order, but by the grace of Celestine (and perhaps Eligos), it isn’t a reality bending nightmare or an attack by some monstrous beings. It is simply more guests.

A lot more, in fact.

Those who were on the island in September of the previous year will recall the Visitor’s Center, which appeared briefly just past the beach and served as temporary living and meeting quarters for visitors from the homeworlds of current residents. It would seem that this is a repeat incident. For the night of the gala, one to two “plus ones” have been invited for the vast majority of offworld residents. Most of them are friends or family who are happy to see their guests--- but this is ultimately a working of Eligos, so naturally, this is not always the case.

At the very least, Eligos seems to have been generous with his own granddaughter. As she turns away from him, she very nearly runs into someone much shorter than her. A dark haired human man with dwarfism. He laughs at the accident, grinning up at her as she stares back at him, utterly baffled. Then, petticoats billowing out, Dahlia sinks to the floor and embraces him as tight as she can, head pressed to his chest with little regard for her carefully-styled hair. Even those across the room can hear her shout his name. ”Jonah!”

Within the hour, the ballroom is packed with nearly double the people originally expected, turning the party livelier than it’s ever been. Tearful reunions, laughter, dancing, mischief, romance, sparring, cruelty, and even proper, righteous violence. Truly, this Leeds Gala will be one for the books!

--------
[ OOC reminders: each apped-in player character is entitled to one or two guests from their homeworld. This can be former selves, family, friends, enemies, and they do not have to be from the character’s exact canonpoint. They can be from the past or the future. You may play them yourself, ask another member player to do it, or recruit a non-member player to do so with moderator approval. Non-member players are permitted to join the Discord server while they’re active in this event! Threads you write for your own guests are eligible for AC for the character they’re there with, and threads you write for someone else’s guest can be used on the AC of a character of your choice. Just make sure to mark them as guest threads. After the gala, guests will be allowed to move freely about town, stay the night on Saturday and go home Sunday, or leave right after the gala if preferred. And last but not least, characters played in the gala can be apped directly from this event, rather than going through the normal arrival process. Let a mod know if you have questions, and have fun! ]

Smoldering

{ The decay of a flame as available heat, oxygen, and burning material gradually diminish. Eventually, the flames will recede entirely into glowing embers, glittering like orange starlight amid the ashes of what once was. }

The party rages well into the night. It’s not typical for residents of Pumpkin Hollow to stay out this late, with everything around here that goes bump in the night, but eventually party-goers begin to find their way out. They move in small groups, huddled around lanterns, may they ever stay lit. Perhaps the surprising bit is that their guests can go with them. There are even reservations made for board overnight at the Oak & Iron, all under the name “E. Rex”.

But alas, these reservations are only booked for one night. And by the time the sun begins to set on the darker half of the year for the first time, an unfamiliar black boat is moored at Jack's Marina. One that the guests will recognize as the vessel on which they arrived. They must leave by the time it becomes dark.

Or must they? Perhaps for a select few, they will fail to feel the call which draws them home. It is unclear why. There are many that Mortanne would have allowed residency for, if she could. But for some reason, all but a small few feel the pull. Perhaps Eligos has simply abandoned them here. (Or maybe none at all end up marooned and everyone goes home? That all depends on you, dear reader.)

When the sky goes dark, the aptly named Heavy Heart shoves off, with only her crimson sails hanging suspended seemingly in midair in the moonlight. The black ship is otherwise consumed by the night. And soon, even those flashes of red vanish into the distance.

Moments recede into memories, like a dying fire settles gently into glowing embers at the bottom of a hearth. The festivities are over, and the guests are gone. Life in Pumpkin Hollow resumes as before. But maybe just a little warmer and brighter.

“My birthday is your birthday,” as Dahlia often says.

Happy birthday.

References to the appearance of Leeds Estate can be found here!

Comments

[xiaoxiuya]

"You --!" Shen Qingqiu whirls, looking at his boyfriend far more sharply than is his usual wont. "You're just trying to get a rise out of me, and I don't appreciate it," he declares, pinching the bridge of his nose. "This is important, Lev-er. I have no idea if that damned System won't re-install itself as soon as I come within grabbing distance of Binghe."

[graphomaniac]

"Ay ay ay, the System," Lev says. He bites his lip. "But like, is it so certainly bound to him and not like, to thee?"

He does stop pacing and comes closer so he can lay a hand on Shen Qingqiu's shoulder, to steady him. But he takes care to ensure that Luo Binghe has not no line on sight on them. He does not take care to ensure nobody sees him looking around nervously.

[xiaoxiuya]

"...I think so," Shen Qingqiu says quietly, resting the fingertips of one hand lightly over Lev's. He too glances around, desperately annoyed that now, after all these months together, they suddenly have to start sneaking around like a pair of closeted career men...but better that than setting off Luo Binghe's fierce jealousy. "I never heard a peep from it while he was in the Abyss...and it called him its power source. Maybe it needs a heavenly demon's power to sustain itself...or maybe it's because he's a protagonist." He smiles wryly, and jokes, "Good thing I have such high self-esteem, or I might have issues with being relegated to a lowly starter villain-slash-side character."

[graphomaniac]

Lev raises Qingqiu's hand to kiss his knuckles, lightly.

"Thou'rt the protagonist of thine own life, nu?" he says. "And like. Thou'rt certainly not no side-character nor villain by me. Or by Sir."

He pauses, and risks sneaking a glance over at Luo Binghe.

"Though, like. I suspect there are those what hold both Sir and me to be ... nu. Much like thee. Especially after all that business at the palace."

Luo Binghe is awfully pretty. But something about the aura of Chosen Hero about him makes Lev baulk. Even without the jealousy, he'd be sure Luo Binghe would view him as either scenery or an obstacle.

[xiaoxiuya]

Shen Qingqiu grins wryly. "I know what you mean, but...there's just something about a personality like Binghe's. He's like a star, you just can't help but fall into his orbit..." He sighs quietly. "I don't really blame any other version of me that wound up married to him, it's just not something I want for myself. Of course I want him to be happy, but I want my own freedom too. I have you and A-xiong to thank for that."

The smile Shen Qingqiu gives Lev is almost unbearably soppy, but screw it. They're already having a soppy conversation, might as well lean in. "You two are like my...my rocket fuel. You give me the strength to break out of Binghe's orbit and choose for myself."

[graphomaniac]

For a long moment, Lev is farklempt, too touched to want to point out that he has no real understanding of orbits and escape velocities and rocket fuel — Mir has not been a sphere in aeons, and ekranoplans fly across the silver with regular jet fuel. But to point these things out would be churlish, and anyway, it matters not. The metaphor makes sense to his boyfriend, that's the important part.

And there's more, too.

He pulls Qingqiu into a hug.

"He's ... he's a hero, nu?" he says, softly. "The kind with a dazzling smile and a destiny. And I'm ... Sir and I, we are ... we are not of those what get to be heroes. A ... childless bachelor what lived in his youth as Moshe Rabaynee lived in his, and ... feh. A cripple born on the outskirts of exile, of no particular lineage. "

What more needs to be said, of the two of them? He pauses, his voice having cracked a little with emotion.

"But thou chose'st us, in this lifetime, in this world we have."

[xiaoxiuya]

"You chose me first," Shen Qingqiu points out, because that's the kind of person he is. "I might still be in the closet if it weren't for you and A-xiong -- and Sims to give credit where it's due. But...yeah. I'm choosing you. I'm going to keep choosing you, as long you b -- as long as you want me." He smiles awkwardly, resting his cheek on Lev's shoulder. As long as you both live, that was what he'd been about to say. But they haven't had the conversation about expected lifespans yet, even though Lev and Anzu have heard him describe himself as 'immortal' several times. Maybe they're all ignoring the implications. It's not cowardice to set the distant future aside when they've all got more immediate concerns to...be concerned with, he thinks, but he doesn't find himself very convincing.

"In any case," he says quietly, giving Lev a bracing squeeze for both their sakes before stepping back. "If I were the kind of person who cared about what people think, do you think I'd have gotten myself into this situation in the first place? Who needs a hero, when I have you two? 'Behind my humble door, I can live in peace,'" he quotes softly.

[graphomaniac]

Lev bends down a little to kiss Qingqiu's temple. He doesn't trust himself to speak for nearly a minute, overcome with love and gratitude and a strange sadness for the years Qingqiu spent denying himself, and ... well, he's aware it's a good sign regarding his own capacity to care for others, but he still feels a little uncomfortable feeling any kind of sympathy for Luo Binghe. Something about the man sets his teeth on edge. Probably because nobody likes finding a mirror where they expected a window – Luo Binghe's whole problem sounds uncomfortably familiar. Obsession and neediness and an inability to accept rejection.

But he's beyond that, right? He's certain he is.

He smiles at Qingqiu.

"If thou wish'st to confront him ... then like ... I'll back thee up?" he says. "Nu. Like ... there are few villains what actually think it'll do their reputation good to be seen beating up a cripple."