[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

[immortalpoet]

...Hmph.

[That's true. He was told of the strange "party" held before he even arrived. Is it better to have one held by their own instead of their mysterious captors? Debatable. The idea of it still irks him.]

[His lips purse slightly, annoyance almost wafting off of him like smoke.]

You can find common ground without being stupid about it. This is excessive.

[icanfixer]

I shall not deny that, for I intended it to be! Will thee not have a drink or two whilst thou'rt here? The food is most delicious and varied from many a world -- Sir Roland even prepared some from ours, and it curbs the homesickness one feels for the streets.

[ what. homesickness there can be, anyway. don knows better than to touch her color of a manager though, so the most she can do is drop a name and see how it goes. comfy enough to call him by a nickname, but just some guys who worked on a job together... okay. ]

[immortalpoet]

[Vergilius wishes he was clever enough to dodge the (gay) allegations here, but there's a definite shift when he hears that name. A blink or two, and an easing of his expression.]

Roland's here? What did you even do to bully him into being your chef?

[icanfixer]

[ she knew it. there is something interesting. be her far from the type to dig into someone's past willy-nilly (they sort of. have to. given their current missions), but a color's is too juicy...!!!!! ]

I did no such bullying! I merely tasked him, the only one of us who can cook, [ that she wants to ask, ] with bringing out some of our City's flavors! And he complied, because we are... friends!

[ a little clumsy there at the end, but she does want to be friends with him. even if he's got some complicated words about her. don won't mention that roland hadn't intended to comply at first and ended up doing it anyway, the results are what matter not the process. ]

[immortalpoet]

For you, "tasking" and "bullying" are probably the same thing.

[Or being annoying enough to get someone off their ass to do something about it.]

[He is casting his gaze out towards the crowd, as if he can see a big video game arrow pointing to the man in question.]

You could've asked someone else.

[icanfixer]

[ whoa... mean. and absolutely right, when don tells someone they're going to do something she expects them to do it simply because why would they not.

and he's really looking for roland, huh... she's soooooooo curious to know. so curious, she can't help the question: ]

What is thy history?

[immortalpoet]

...Huh?

[Now that gets him to snap back his look at her like a rubber band, eyebrows creasing together so hard they seem to form a heavy outcropping over his eyes.]

Is it any of your business?

[icanfixer]

[ maybe she should've waited a few drinks in. ]

N-Nay! But I cannot help my curiosity, Sir Vergilius! Thou needn't answer in anything less than broad strokes, but it has piqued mine interest! When I pressed, he said that the two of thee had merely met for a single mission... I have no reason to doubt Sir Roland's words, for he has been a trustworthy soul, but prithee pardon me for wanting a like story!

[ that is, confirmation of the same... that really is as much as he told her at least. ]

To work alongside a Color is an honor, after all, yet he acted as if it were nothing! Oh, to be in his place -- even working beneath thee is honorable enough, of course, but if only thy hand would join ours in battle...!

[immortalpoet]

There's no grand story, Don Quixote. We worked together once. That's it.

[He said, like a liar. But of course, her hero worship of Colors is exhausting, to say the least. He offers a sigh in addition to his words. She doesn't seem to act the same way around Roland, so....well. He's not going to break the peace, here. Let him take the heat.]

...It wasn't a big deal. He was right. Nothing to write home about.

[icanfixer]

Hmm... That is most disappointing. I was hoping for something more.

[ but roland's always like that too, saying things weren't all that exciting, that he had no stories to tell after such a lengthy time as a grade 9 fixer -- it feels just off enough that it bothers her a bit, but easy enough to set aside. but that's mostly because of her fixer fixation too. ]

Nonetheless! Let us put that aside, Sir Vergilius, and have a drink or two? It is not every day there is such delicious cocktails to choose from, nor such a buffet of food at our fingertips...!

[ cmon... enjoy the party... ]

[immortalpoet]

Congratulations. Life is disappointing that way.

[You can't always get what you want, after all.]

[He resists looking for Roland again.]

Mmmm. [A LITTLE GROAN.....STOP.......HE'S ALLERGIC TO SOCIALIZATION] Is there alcohol?

[icanfixer]

[ he's not calling you back quit looking for him ]

There is! And plenty of it! [ ... she drank a lot earlier actually... she's not sober, it's just

well, she's not that much different tipsy. it'll show more in her steps leading him (hopefully) though, in that she's being extra careful in that way drunk people are to appear totally normal. ] It is... most delicious as well. There is beer, if thee prefer, but I like the fruity drinks Doctor Daan makes.

[ they are. so good. so sweet. ]

[immortalpoet]

[CAN'T A GUY WISH FOR ANOTHER GUY'S HAPPINESS IN PEACE WITHOUT THESE ALLEGATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!]

Oh, Daan is here too, huh. [No looking for him like with Roland, but he seems unsurprised.] It's true. He's a rather good bartender, even if he happens to be a medic. Nice to have multiple talents, I suppose...

[But he does seem open to a drink or two. Congrats, Don Quixote. You made progress(?).]

[icanfixer]

[ IN THE CITY? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!!!!!!

but holy shit. progress. the guys back home (sinners) are never gonna believe her. especially not her, because it's her. how is she ever to sleep tonight. she's going to puke. no, she's fine. this is the man who borrowed their microwave for cup noodles. he can have a drink or two. don't be weird. don't make it weird. be totally normal. you can do this, don quixote. ]

... Heehee...

[ hhe...heee.... drinking with a color... wow... this is the best thing that's ever happened to her... if she died (again) tomorrow she'll have thought her life well-lived... ]

Mmmm, it is nice to have many things one can enjoy, and fall back on should their life go astray... Those outside our world in particular enjoy such freedom.

[ well. most of the people she's befriended. are sort of. stuck where they are, not unlike them, but still. ]

[immortalpoet]

[Please take deep breaths miss Quixote PLEASE REMEMBER TO BREATHE!!!! THIS IS NORMAL!!! MAYBE NOT SO NORMAL!!!! IT'S OKAY]

Don't be weird.

[This is a tall task for her, but he has to say it anyways, what with that little laugh.]

That seems to be so. How lucky they are, huh. No City bullshit.

[icanfixer]

[ NO ONE'S GONNA BELIEVE HER!!!!!!! NO ONE!!!!!!!! she needs proof of this night somehow note to self that's not weird that's totally normal. she's not commenting on his warning. because she is being soooooooo normal right now. ]

Verily so. Each has their own burden to bear, but at least the majority is able to live as they'd like.

[ what an ideal world. one worth yearning for, worth working towards. ]

Do thee think ours such a lost cause?

[ because she doesn't, naturally, and honestly she should know the answer given his attitude-- but she asks anyway, digging into the cooler for a beer for her boss. this really is. so strange. wow. wow. she'll literally be thinking about this for weeks. ]

[immortalpoet]

[don quixote: omgogmgomgogmgmgogmggggg (hyperventilating)
vergilius with thought bubble of milk spilling on table:]

...

["A lost cause"...]

[He only has to think about it for a few seconds, before letting out a snort.]

Is a plant that's rotten to its roots a lost cause, Don Quixote?

[He doesn't elaborate on that. Does he need to, though?]

[icanfixer]

I do not farm, so I do not know.

[ sorry the metaphor is lost on her. maybe she'll ask netz. he seems like a plant guy (green) ]

However! One does not throw out a piece of food simply because it is molded on a part, do they? They merely take off what they do not wish to eat and consume it thusly!

[ ...

no, don quixote. ]

[immortalpoet]

It's. It's a metaphor.


[IT'S A METAPHOR]

And no, don't do that. By that time the mold has....ugh. Never mind.

[icanfixer]

It tastes no different [ worse ] than usual, so surely it is still fine.

[ and if she's gotten sick that's just coincidence! it's okay. ]

I think if one removes the roots blighted, and planted it elsewhere, then perhaps the plant would have a second chance. A flower may even bloom. Would that not be wonderful, Sir Vergilius?

[ as wonderful as the beer she's settled on for him, as well as a soda bottle for herself. which she uses to crack open her boss's for him like a neat party trick. was it neat. does he think it's neat. it's neat, isn't it? it's totally neat. now she has to open hers on a table but it's fine, she likes doing this at the apartment too.

please drink you know you'll need it. ]

[immortalpoet]

[how is she still alive]

...

[What she says next makes him...pause. Something imperceptible passes through his face, a distant sort of expression that makes him utterly miss the trick.]

[...]

It would be wonderful. But...it's an impossible dream.

[icanfixer]

[ twenty years and counting. wherever she came from, it made her stomach strong.

a travesty about the missed trick, but it means that don misses what she couldn't hope to understand pass over his face too; the follow-up leave it lingering instead, and

impossible, impossible. her favorite word. ]

Do thee truly think so? [ she'd asked dante once, if they had a dream -- in much the same tone, like a match against the fraying edges of fireworks. ] Impossible is not a zero chance of it occurring, Sir Vergilius; it is a word which merely means that it is worth trying, however difficult it may be!

[ however long it takes, however many lives are staked on it -- it isn't unreasonable. ]

That is why it is advantageous we have our Manager Esquire, for we shall never falter at such hardships.

[immortalpoet]

You would think that, huh. Impossible is impossible.

[Her idealism is so saccharine sweet that he feels like he's choking on it. Like this is a candy sea in a rainbow world, and there's no room for a setting sun.]

[He allows himself a mild scoff.]

...Perhaps. But they have a long, long way to go.

[icanfixer]

[ some people find it charming, you know. everyone who isn't from the city. ]

And with thee guiding at their side, I cannot imagine it will seem that long a road! They are already handling us far better than before, are they not? And we, too, are quickly adapting to this style of combat.

[ being used as tools, switched out and cared for, broken yet never replaced... yeah. it's fine. ]

So do not glower so harshly; we shall ensure such a flower will grow.

[immortalpoet]

Ugh.

["With you guiding at their side"? Give him a break. He's not doing this for them.]

[That's how the City works. It's always a means to an end.]

Don't make promises you can't keep, Don Quixote.