[closed-ish] Signs of love overshadowed by dreams

[pseudonyms]

Who: Everyone who signed up for speed-dating/speed-friending! (and maybe some people who just wander in?)
When: IC Date: 6/9
Where: A large booth at the CERES Academy cultural festival
What: Rise's holding a special event to help bring people together at the cultural festival! This may be chaotic
Rating/Warning: N/A thus far! Rise with a megaphone might be a warning though...


[The cultural festival at the school has been in full-on planning mode for a few weeks. Rise is no exception to the planning and included in the flyers that have gone up is a notice printed on bright pink paper and bold lettering for a very special event.

The booth itself has been set up with a small cluster of tables to accommodate for the amount of people who have been signed up and even for a few last-minute sign-ups. The tables themselves have been decorated with special candles and a tray containing two bowls, two spoons, and a a tray with all the ingredients needed for an ice cream sundae.

At the front of the booth is a collection of heart-shaped name tags with all of the names of each individual whose signed up, along with a number attached. Rise will smile at each person, handing both the name tag and a small envelope to them with instructions not to open it until she says so.

It’s only when everyone has arrived and is crowded inside the booth that she pulls out a megaphone (and really, who gave her that?) and she turns it on.]

Hello ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the Cerealia School Speed-Matching event! Meeting people can be really hard here, but don’t worry, we’re making it easy! You’ll see that the tables all have numbers assigned to them. On my count, open your envelopes and see who you’re starting with. When the bell rings, switch partners! Seems pretty simple, huh?

[Nobody gets to get a say in this apparently, but they may see one Yu Narukami who’s sitting on the table behind Rise just watching everyone casual as can be. Why is he wearing glasses? Who knows.]

Okie dokie! Let’s get this show on the road! On your mark…get set…open!

[Hope you’re ready, colonists. Inside each envelope is a starter number for the first match, and also a list of starter questions for asking people about themselves. Some people have lists corresponding with the speed dating route, while others are for the “friends only” route. But wait…what’s that? Some of those lists are crosswired? Your character would try to mingle with everybody and flirt anyway? Well hey. At least people will be talking and mingling.

Oh, and don’t mind the people who may wander in and out of the event. Rise will try to moderator the event to her best ability but hey, she’s pretty social herself. Some people are bound to slip in and out under her watch. Have fun! And remember, beware of the bell! (Or Rise announcing "SWITCH" in a loud voice via megaphone, same thing.)]

[ooc: Hello everyone, welcome to the speed-friending/dating event! Thank you to everyone who signed up; above you’ll see a list of people and numbers for you to pick from! Pick your number and your friend/date by visiting the number generator to randomly pick a number to match your character with! Feel free to post top-levels inviting others to just tag in or tag around, too, without using the RNG. Any questions, please hit me via PM or on plurk at alternatively]

Comments

William Twining

[notsolomon]

[How did William get signed up for this? He doesn't know and he would have refused to go, period, not caring if that skewed their numbers. The very suggestion implicit in signing him up for such a thing is utterly insulting. He doesn't need friends! He already has plenty! And could easily get more if he so choose.

But well, he was slightly curious at the same time and is now staying because of the possibility of ice cream. So he's going to try and tolerate this with an open mind. As much as is possible for him.]

So we just introduce ourselves, correct? I am William Twining. It's a pleasure.

[At least he is able to not sound too awkward. Normally he's pretty good when it comes to such pithy socializing, like most men of his class. But, the strange etiquette is throwing him a bit.]

[adornmental]

Same, same! My name's Kashuu Kiyomitsu.

[And like William, Kashuu may or may not be marginally more interested in the ice cream right now... He's not a big sweets fan himself, but he's also never seen a build-your-own-sundae setup before! It's pretty exciting.

That said, since he's totally eschewing both lists in favor of winging it, he'll start off the question party.]

How long've you been around here?

[notsolomon]

[Good, most of the questions were really stupid, so an opener like this makes more sense.]

About half a year now I think, or nearing it. It was January when I came in. Though it doesn't feel like it.

What about you?

[adornmental]

I think a little over that. I showed up before all the weird Christmas stuff started happening, back when that Natalia person threw a party. It was really nice, though! Way better than the virtual game stuff the new guys have to deal with now.

[He shakes his head a little, looking mildly sympathetic. No one wants to go on blind dates with VR Eldritch abominations...]

[notsolomon]

Weird Christmas stuff?

[Before he had come here, it had been near Christmas time back home. How strange to think on it now.]

It wasn't always like that with ViViD? A shame. I think I would have much preferred something more mundane. That is not the best way to experience the technology of the current age after all.

[adornmental]

Yeah. Some creepy guy named Santa came and tried to kill everyone with a chainsaw and then the mall was filled with creepy elves and deer.

[Weird Christmas stuff indeed... He waves a hand as if to dismiss the creepy deers though, and then nods in agreement.]

Same, same. I'd take a party over creepy stuff like that any day. Or all that gross stuff they've been doing lately... Like when they dumped us into that garbage heap!

[notsolomon]

[Killer Santa? What the hell people? He might be a Realist, but you didn't make a chainsaw wielding Santa.]

The garbage heap was awful and so was that other place they sent us too, outside the wall. the rust smell just sticks with you for days.

I wonder what they are thinking.

[adornmental]

[It was a long Christmas...]

That dark area? [Kashuu's lips press into a thin line briefly, because that place had ascended beyond his usual "yuck" and into genuinely traumatic.]

Yeah... No one even knows if those guys were responsible for that.

[notsolomon]

Well they do have a responsibility for allowing that to happen...

[There was a lot that William didn't want to remember about that day either.]

I suppose too much of it is still speculation at this point.

[adornmental]

Like always. Pretty annoying, isn't it? Just when we think we've got a solid lead, it's like, surprise! You were being lied to the whole time!

[He's a little salty about that, maybe. Just maybe.]

[notsolomon]

I suppose we should just assume they are all liars who do not have our interests at heart. Otherwise this place would be very different.

[For one, there would be much more transparency involved.]

[adornmental]

I mean, pretty much. [A sloping shrug follows, as if it's no big deal WHEN NO, IT'S A BIG DEAL and Kashuu is pretty miffed about it himself.]

Maybe that'll change someday, though.

[notsolomon]

Hopefully so.

[It is a big deal, but there's only so much that can be achieved by complaining beyond feeling good.]

So what else do you do here, other than what we all suffer through?

[adornmental]

I work at a boutique in the shopping district, design clothes and run a fashion blog! Oh, and I help teach swordsmanship at the dojo my comrades run.

[A busy, busy sword...]

What about you?

[notsolomon]

An all around, huh?

[He looked a little slender for a swordsman though.]

I work at the Library. I am also going to do some accounting for a new place opening up. You might have seen it advertised on the network by Angelo.

[adornmental]

Gotta enjoy as many things as possible while they're here, right?

[A little of this, a little of that - he's happy to sample pretty much anything that turns up his way.]

Mmm, Angelo? I'm not sure. What's the name of the place? What kinda stuff do you guys sell?

[notsolomon]

I think he had settled on calling it Lady Luck by now. It was supposed to be more of a Tavern.

[Really as long as he can be behind the scenes for something like this, he's fine with being attached to something as plebeian as a bar.]

He's still working on getting staff together though.

[adornmental]

[There's a little "oh!" sound, then. Far be it from Kashuu to find something wrong with a tavern.]

Kinda like that place Zoro picked up from Tenka? Nice, nice. I like taverns! They have a nice feel, sometimes.

[Sometimes they're just seedy and weird, though...]

[notsolomon]

I actually do not have too much to do with them, but this seemed like something worthwhile to be involved in. And he promised it would be at least somewhat classy.

[Don't let him down Angelo.]

[adornmental]

Nice, nice! Let me know when you guys open up and I'll see if I can send some business your way, 'kay? A lot of our clientele enjoys classier places to drink, but tons of the better ones are in the pleasure district.

[Which some people just don't want to go to at night...]

[notsolomon]

Gladly. We should all help each other out here after all...

Though I suppose this whole event isn't supposed to be a business meeting.

[Whoops.]

[adornmental]

Then consider it a friend meeting that just happens to involve a little business chat! All the best businesses start out as friendships, anyway.

[Clearly only the truest of truths here.]

[notsolomon]

That is true. It is good to meet someone fairly like minded here.

[Really it is.]

Some people are not so savvy here.

[adornmental]

Eh, I can give 'em a little leeway here since so many come from such different worlds and all.

[A gentle, sloping shrug follows, and he reaches forward for one of the gummy candies.]

[notsolomon]

That is a good point. Is your world terribly different?

[Oh that's right, there's ice cream. Time to start building a sundae.]