[MINGLE, ESPECIALLY TO NEWCOMERS] ROOFTOP FESTIVITIES!!!

[icanfixer]

WHO: All!
WHAT: Rooftop festivities!
WHERE: On a rooftop of an office building in the second open district!
WHEN: 8/14, evening!
WARNINGS: alcohol, tba as it goes


Banner displayed inside the train station, outside city hall, and on the most used residence buildings.

Follow the arrows.
So you're unaware. Maybe new. Or maybe you just didn't care the first time you saw it. That's fine. Between the banners hanging around key areas, and the flyers quickly drawn up in a similar fashion scattered across the city, it's hard not to know something is going on -- and there's helpful arrows, chalked on building walls and the streets the day of the party, to let people know where to go.

The Rooftop

A splendid scene awaits those who travel heavensward. Fairy lights connect the corners of the roof access building to metal poles at the corners of the building itself, lifted by cylindrical supports where needed, each one held straight by pots filled with well-packed dirty and stone. There's multicolored stars hanging from some of the lights, while various painted flowers hang on others, and what greets the ears first is some royalty free party music played from a CD player off the the side.

There's a long folded out table in the center for those who'd like to share cuisine, just set and serve yourself! Nearby is a space for Daan to do some bartending as well, a man who can make a multitude of cocktails and mocktails for those who want something less alcoholic. Also, pints of various ice cream flavors in a cooler!

Don't worry -- they won't have any odd effects on them, Don verified the lack of them herself. Not all of them are normal. Think loaded baked potato weird.

For those who'd like a quieter space, there's beanbags and a swirly, fuzzy carpet to sit on more away from the center of the party area. This'll be a great time to play some games, such as truth or dare, spin the bottle, and... whatever else you play at parties. Get to know your fellow man and such. Play the violin.

Naturally, no party... hosted... by Don Quixote would be without a space to fight, if one wishes to show off a little! It's also taking place on a swirly fuzzy carpet, just so no one smashes their head in, and there's a neat little banner hanging down from a string of lights that says thus:

WIN THREE MATCHES AND A PRIZE AWAITS THEE!!!!!!!
- NO KILLING
- HANDS ONLY

What the prize is, no one knows. But come find Don Quixote with your battle scars and she'll grant it -- and stick around a while, 'cause this party's gonna end with a bang... that is, with homemade fireworks donated by "a friend" through Junpei.

Anyway, have fun!!! Share words about your worlds!!! The society your characters are from, the cuisine they've brought, how they're working out in the city -- help the new kids along, too. There's more vets here now than there were a few months ago, after all.

Navi: Truth or Dare - Two Truths and a Lie - Hydra Storytelling w/Junpei - Drink Up With Daan - Qixi Festivites

Comments

[matermali]

I could not pick a favorite. Perhaps I have many, in that case.

[ The way he speaks is enough to draw her gaze back to him, the slightest wrinkle to her brow from an open curiosity. What does he know of people's dreams? He doesn't look it, but he must be a scholar. Or a doctor? She's long since learned that appearances are almost always deceiving.

To even think of recording her dreams for anyone else is beyond comprehension, but her dreams are nothing like they should be. She does not dream of Wordsworth. There's no poetry to her dreamscape; there's only pain, until there is nothingness. ]

You study dreams?

[hypnagothic]

[ he really doesn't look like either of those things, none that she's familiar with anyway. he looks more like someone who could play on a stage, beautiful of form and face, if only he looked more vibrant and effusive. or even remotely alive at all. ]

In my way.

[matermali]

[ She sees quite a bit of life in his eyes, which are really all she's looking at for the moment. Strange, really; Vanessa thinks she could almost see stars if she gazed deeply enough.

Abruptly, she turns away and finishes her drink before setting aside the empty glass. From here, she can see quite a bit of the City, but she may as well be gazing straight through it. Its emptiness makes her heart ache. ]

What of nightmares?

[hypnagothic]

[ he turns more towards her at her abrupt movement. ]

Nightmares are also dreams.

[matermali]

[ She could become lost in her waking nightmares now if she wished. So many empty spaces here for them to fill. The thought of it is always a dangerous draw, to be consumed by her melancholy. Is that not why she came to this party, to avoid that? ]

For some, the only kind of dreams they know.

[hypnagothic]

For you?

[ there's a slight tilt to his head as he asks that, and his tone is mild, non-accusatory. lightly curious. ]

[matermali]

[ It's far too dreary an admission for such a lively party, even to someone supposedly studied in dreams. Perhaps that's even more the reason why she opts to politey smile instead with a little sideways glance. She has no wish to be studied by a doctor, scholar, or alienist. Quite enough of that, really. ]

I was merely being poetic.

[ 'Merely', once again. ]

Don't you find it more common for people to forget of what they dream?

[hypnagothic]

[ he doesn't push the question, going along with the redirection. ]

That is often true for most creatures, though that is not to say that they are not influenced by those forgotten dreams.

[matermali]

[ That's a curious thought, but she supposes it makes perfect sense. Memories long forgotten may drive Vanessa at times, loathe as she is to admit. ]

Ah, but how would they know if they were?

[hypnagothic]

They may not be conscious of any change in themselves. It could be as if they were inspired by a random thought or simply changed their mind on some subject.

[matermali]

Now you speak as a philosopher would.

[ Truly, what is he? Her senses aren't helping her as much as they normally might, thanks to the City, and even her sharp eye isn't much more assistance. She seems content with the enigma for now, and there would be little point in asking directly.

Vanessa can't say she's ever put quite this much thought into her dreams after recovering from her initial awakening. Perhaps it's because she only wants to forget them, but she should hate to think they would actually influence her without her knowing. For the better or for the worse?

Not that she expects he actually knows... This must all be theorizing, of course. ]

Is that why you study dreams? You think they influence mankind's decisions?

[hypnagothic]

Philosophers are also influenced by their dreams, but they are usually more attuned to such phenomena or, at the very least, open to such possibilities. And I know for certain that they do.

[ he says it with utter certainty, a deep-seated and complete faith in the truth of his words. ]

[matermali]

Speaking from personal experience?

[ She believes him; it's easy for her to believe in such things. She can't help but wonder how his dreams must influence him, then. ]

[hypnagothic]

Yes.

[ again, that bold confidence. ]

Though likely not in the manner you are imagining.

[matermali]

[ Vanessa perks an eyebrow, a teasing lilt to her voice. ]

You may be surprised at what I can imagine.

[hypnagothic]

Then I would ask what you imagine of me.

[matermali]

[ With hands clasped behind her, she leans back against the railing while considering the sight of him. ]

I imagine a man who has studied and experienced more of the world than most people, but perhaps too often viewed through the lenses of another in that you may consider their experiences over your own. I might imagine someone who seems to be everyone at once, but that would hide so much of his true self from others.

[ And so she imagines loneliness, but that will remain implied. Vanessa doesn't need to blatantly offend him, and she could be wrong about it all. More than likely, she tends to project. Her imagination hardly needs to be real, that's the point. ]

Yet, I can't imagine what you might dream of.

[hypnagothic]

[ he doesn't rise to her teasing or mirror it in any way, he keeps still as he has done thus far, half-facing the party rather than turning to face her appraisal. but he's not necessarily closed off either, just not making himself open. his chin lowers slightly when she finishes, a small nod. ]

You are correct in your imaginings then. You are indeed observant.

[matermali]

[ To that, her smile softens to something smaller; something a little sadder. The lonely tend to be observant, after all. ]

A lucky guess. And what might you imagine of me or my dreams?

[hypnagothic]

No guess.

[ a simple and brief declaration. but he tilts his head slightly, and he turns his body more towards her as he didn't do earlier. he doesn't glance over her whole body though, his eyes never leaving hers while he speaks softly and without judgement in his tone. ]

You spoke of nightmares before, alluding that you have them rather than more pleasant dreams. I imagine they haunt your waking hours.

[matermali]

[ A wrinkle to her brow as she gentle shakes her head. Not in denial, but gentle bemusement. He is more than correct. ]

It was not always so. With youth went the sweeter dreams, I suppose. Once one has noticed the shadows miring the light, it's impossible to forget.

[hypnagothic]

That, too, is common, the shifting of age and awareness.

[matermali]

[ There's a subtle shake of her head. There is the brutal truth that turns children into adults, yes, but then there is the source of that truth. Not many look that far. ]

Less common for people to see what lives within and beyond the shadows. Few are able or willing to look so closely.

[hypnagothic]

[ he seems to look at her more sharply then. ]

And do you, lady?

[matermali]

[ Something in his stance gives her pause before she responds, curious to what he sees in the shadows. Can he envision what stirs underneath hers? ]

I can see nothing else.