songerein | { flower fest 2024 }

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{ flower fest 2024 }

FLOWER FESTIVAL 2024

It's the third annual Flower Festival! While the majority of the event is focused on the actual festival portion, we do have a part two featuring Nahida's Dreamscape that is creating a time loop for the third day of the festival. A separate log will be posted on the 17th and it is part of the TDM so those who are TDMing can also participate on both logs.

More details on everything can be found here and here. As a reminder, events double as our TDMs and information can be found here. Any outside characters participating in the log are canonly logged as appearing in Songerein in April and will remain in Songerein from the IC date of April 12th, a few days before the Festival begins. TDM only characters can only thread within this log. Anyone who apps in and is accepted will have their character count April as their first time in the game without any disruption, so all content will carry over. Those who do not apply will disappear which should not seem too unusual, however players in game can choose to retcon and pretend a character was never there to begin with if it would be easier; or even think their presence was just a dream.

IMPORTANT! All outside characters MUST have "TDM" in their subject line, even if you might not app. This will help people differentiate those who are already in the game and those who are not.

TDM threads are required for samples. Refer to the Game Info for general information and feel free to toss any questions here. Reserves will open April 24th and Applications will open on May 1st. Our application cycles are bi-monthly so the next cycle after won't be until July.

TDM Toplevel Link Directory (click to view)

TO BE ADDED

We will request any thread submissions for certain prompts during AC and TDM threads will count. For more information, refer to the Game Notes.

I. THE FESTIVAL

II. FINAL DAY(S)

COMMENTS

I. THE FESTIVAL

Another year, another festival to usher in the beautiful season of spring. This year, the festival will have an Alice in Wonderland theme, with the flowers more lively, giant mushrooms available to sit and rest under, and a very whimsical atmosphere all around. While many will be taking the opportunity to pursue more romantic endeavors, the festival encourages all kinds of relationship building.

A. POLLEN PROBLEMS. It's as if the trees themselves are doing this as the pollen is thick and heavy when the Festival comes around. Coming in different colors, it is everywhere, even blanketing surfaces with a thin coat of it. Those who get an unfortunate whiff will find themselves in a bit of a sneeze attack, and at the end of it a random effect will occur. From changing hair colors, to sneezing bubbles or glitter, to gaining a shining, flowery aura—the possibilities are endless and the effect will last for a few minutes before it goes away. While ultimately harmless, those with allergies are having a worse time, so efforts are being made to try and wash away any heavily affected areas.

B. PRANKS. There's a lot of mischief going on during the festival, caused both by devious pixies and people who just enjoy messing with others. Some even try to use these pranks to help bolster "relationships," but whether they succeed is another matter.

🌷 Flower Curse. Some flower pixies are having a lot of fun this year by turning random people into different flowers. Fortunately, it's quite obvious when someone is cursed since the flower itself is still very large and has the person's facial features in the center. Totally not creepy. It will wear off after ten minutes, but to help free the cursed individual faster, they just need to pour honey water over them.
🌸 Cherry Blossom Flood. Somehow or another, there is an enormous amount of cherry blossom petals flooding the streets, and in some places it's thick enough that it seems to flow and move like a small stream. While some find it entertaining and even try swimming through it, others would rather have it cleaned up.
🔫 Flower Showers. Careful while walking past certain orchids as they will suddenly spray water. Fortunately it's just a light spray and not a full hosing, but if enough of them decide to work together…
🌼 Flower for Your Thoughts. There are special daisies that will sing whatever thought or idea passersby may have, and they have quite a sizable radius. Can't keep any secrets around these!

C. ACTIVITIES. There are numerous different games and activities available around town, most of them flower themed, but traditional festival game booths are around for those who may want a break from the flowers.

🪢 Red Rose String of Fate. When it's least expected, a special ring with a small red rose will appear on the ring finger with a red string attached. Following it will reveal another person on the other end. Could it be their fated partner!? Well, sort of—while it could have romantic undertones, it can also be platonic as ultimately this string is to connect people to just go around the festival with! They must participate in at least one festival activity for it to fall off.
💐 Bouquets. Make some cute floral bouquets and arrangements! Could be for a gift or to take home for yourself. All flowers will have positive dreamotion effects, making anyone who sniffs them feel light and happy. However, be careful as some pranksters have slipped in some of the silly prank flowers (water spraying, singing thoughts).
🪷 Flower Terrarium. Participants can hand pick special flowers from a designated garden to design their own unique terrarium. Miniature figures and decorations can also be used, and it is said that if made with a significant other, the terrarium will grow and change to reflect their relationship.
👑 Flower Crowns. A fun tradition of making beautiful flower crowns to wear around the festival. This year the butterflies will be attracted to them, so don't be surprised if they flutter around.
👒 Flower Hats. For those who may want a bit more shade from the sun, hats are an option to make instead. One can either use a normal hat to adorn and decorate with various flowers, or actually try to weave their own basket hat.
🌺 Flower Charms. There is a special station set up for anyone who would like to craft their own flower charms to keep. Using positive dreamotion, crystallize the flower petals, paint and decorate the charms with beads, and who knows, maybe these charms will come in handy! For example, clovers will grant extra luck, roses will attract people to the bearer, gladiolus petals will grant a bout of strength and courage. How people use these is up to them!
🖼️ Petal Pictionary. Who doesn't love a fun game of Pictionary? Participants must pull a prompt from a hat and draw it using only dreamotion and flower petals. Good luck!

D. TEA PARTY. To fit the theme of the festival, the fae have organized a charming and whimsical tea party for all to gather amidst a garden of flowers, complete with floral-inspired refreshments and delicacies. If you are looking for a place to relax in a quiet place away from the thick of the festival, want to sit and enjoy some food and drink, then you've come to the right place. While normal foods are provided, there are some special ones that should be noted.

💮 Candied Flowers. From flower shaped candies to candied edible flowers, these delectable treats will make anyone feel sweet, though eating too much may give a bit of a candy rush.
🍰 Special Cakes. Eating a bite of the cakes will bring forth good, happy memories and will leave people feeling nostalgic, and at ease with a sense of serenity. However, be wary as the fae can be tricksters, and some cakes are laced with magic that will randomly shrink people down to teacup size.
🍵 Tasty Teas. These sweet teas are quite enjoyable, and will make flowers of all kinds bloom in one's hair when drunk. For those who have been shrunk down to size, the tea is the answer to regaining their rightful size again. Find the correct tea by taste-testing some, but this is just as random as the cakes. You may need some help from a friend, though.
☕ Curious Coffees. A great pair for the cakes, these coffees will spark curiosity in even the most uninterested of people. They will feel more compelled to ask questions and start conversations when they may otherwise not.
💟 Speed Friending. Sometimes, the fae will initiate a fun little game that will get everyone up and moving around to different tables. Each "round" will last about ten minutes, and in that time, they encourage and even expect people to get to know the person they are sitting across from before the timer is up. Ask questions, tell a story, share a cake, make a new friend!

E. TERRARIUM FLOWER MAZE. Everyone loves mazes, and this year there is a new twist to it. That is because when one reaches the location where the maze is, there are only several tables with terrariums on top of them, all of different designs and sizes. The mazes are inside these terrariums, and participants are shrunk down to the size of a small bug, making all the flowers, plants, and structures inside huge despite their original small size. Now they must utilize all their skills and resources to try and make it through the giant flower maze. Fortunately there are friendly caterpillars inside as these terrariums are doubling as a safe place for them to make their cocoons, and will help guide anyone who is really lost. There are also small miniature buildings and bridges that are just the right size for the maze goers, so one can take a small rest or just enjoy the new perspective.

F. ORKILI HOLOPROJECTION. As part of their contribution for the festival, the Orkilins have provided a special stage with a holographic device similar to the one they use in their city to project the sky on the cavern ceilings. The one used for the festival will project whatever scene or thought from those behind the stage and create a unique performance no one will have seen before. Musicians in particular will utilize this technology to throw louder and more energetic concerts than before, dazzling listeners and dancers with the lights and visual effects.

II. FINAL DAY(S)

The winners have been announced and as customary magic descends upon everyone and in the next moment they are in their assigned costumes. Every other guest will find themselves in some kind of chess themed costume. As usual, players can have a lot of creativity so you can make them as normal, silly, sexy, or some kind of combination you feel like tormenting your character with. Those who are white will be part of the "Day" court, and the black pieces will be "Night". a character's movements may be affected by their chess costume. Bishops will have a tendency to to walk diagonally, Knights may want to jump around to move for no reason, and Pawns take small steps. This isn't something that happens all the time, but at random, so have fun with it! And when faced off with an opposite color, a sense of competitiveness will form and people may try to compete or be difficult to let anyone pass by.

A. ROYAL COURT. Those of the Royal Court in particular will be out either enjoying the festival in their new "roles" or trying to help cheer and help entertain with the use of their costumes.
🐇 Animal Roundup. Some animals are on the loose all over town, and those in the animal costumes will have a better time catching them and returning them to their pens. Alternatively, those in the animal costumes may find themselves surrounded by animals and have difficulty moving, so they might need some help.

B. CHESS GAME. There is now a giant holographic chess board, courtesy of another holographic projector provided by the Orkilins. Everyone can act as a chess piece on the board, with fake plastic pieces used for any fill-ins. Try and win against the opposing team—or fall over and end up in a game of musical Twister when the machine glitches.

C. PAINT IT RED. A new game is introduced where those who wish to participate are given special paint brushes and must paint as many things red as possible. Don't worry, the paint isn't permanent and will glisten and shimmer once dried. Of course some will counter this by either washing off the paint or change it to blue. The Queen of Hearts will not like this at all, so fix it quickly!

D. FLAMINGO CROQUET. Another new game has been set up near the Terrarium Flower Maze called "Flamingo Croquet." There are a few differences to this croquet gain. Instead of wooden mallets everyone must use plastic flamingos and the arches to hit the ball through are made of cards. There are also a few new conditions...

🦩 Flamingoed. Whether it's by the Queen of Hearts herself or someone else pretending to be her for the game, if someone is tapped by the "Queen" they will turn into a flamingo. Now the person must use their head or beak to smack the ball through the arches—or have someone pick them up and use them as a mallet. Successfully getting it through three times will return them to normal, or at the end of the round if they fail to do so.
🃏 Substitution. Sometimes the cards will get knocked over and will refuse to stay up. At that point, a random person will be selected to take its place. Either stand there with legs spread open or go on their hands and knees to create an arch. They must stay this way until better cards are provided to replace them or until the end of the round.

E. WILTED. Strangely, some flowers and plants around town show signs of wilting with the tips of their leaves withering. Gardeners speculate that all the activity may have had an adverse effect on the flowers and thus suggest any who are able to try and soothe and help the flowers relax. Sing to it, pour special honey water over them, or even replace the soil to give them some fresh nutrients. Doing so will bear signs of improvement.

F. ON REPEAT. As the festival draws to a close, some will wish they could spend another day with all the fun and good cheer that blossomed over the weekend. And just as everyone starts to return home and awaken the next day… They will start the last day of the festival all over again and are none of the wiser. The Royal Court winners are announced again, the costumes appear once more, and everyone starts the day as if they never experienced it before and without any recollection. And it happens again and again and again… Until the cause of the loop is broken.

While most people will remain unaware, others may notice a few things on subsequent loops: becoming more sluggish and tired, questioning an action while feeling an intense sense of deja vu, all of which increases with each iteration. To break out of the loop, they must notice different details that change, such as a pot of roses that was changed to daises, or the location of a stall moved to another. Perhaps even repeating a series of actions and noticing a different action is taken. Once broken out of the loop, they can go out and search for the cause, which will be Nahida's dreamscape (separate log to be posted later).

I. THE FESTIVAL

II. FINAL DAY(S)

COMMENTS

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Mushrooms

Those who know Najaran might well think that she'd be thrilled at the giant mushrooms. As in that she might attack and eat them. Instead she went almost deathly pale under her usual skin tone and stumbled back. She looked sick and horrified as she stared up at them. "Not again..." she moaned. "Not again...."

Pollen Problems

It wasn't bad enough to have the giant mushrooms, but she had to have a sneezing fit that... launched laughing powder. Why? Why was she living through this again? She knew the answer - or thought she did - to stop the laughing she and her friends had to eat all the mushrooms. She was wrong in this case, but between bouts of laughing, and crying, she was desperately eating. Along with Knight, Gargoyle, Thunderbeak, Living Weapon, Cait Sith, Eidolon and Gremlin.

Living Weapon and Gargoyle were the only ones who didn't seem disgusted by this. But they all ate desperately, as though their lives depended on destroying all the mushrooms. Someone might want to clue her in...

Flower Curse - CW: creepy flower with a face image

"NOT AGAIN!" Najaran wailed. "I didn't call any of the Dryads yummy! I didn't even see any Dryads this time! Yummy looking or otherwise!"

Flower for Your Thoughts - CW: war mentions, PTSD, Survivor's guilt, combat mentions

"Oh! How lovely these flowers are!" Najaran said.

The flowers, however, sang about being hungry. Which didn't help things as she began to drool and get hungrier. Despite the mushrooms. Those still made her sick.

Red Rose String of Fate

"Huh?" Najaran asked, spotting the red flower ring. "What is this?" Could she eat it? She was certainly going to try. Whoever was on the other end might want to stop her...

Flower Crowns

"Oh! This looks like fun!" she said and sat to learn. She summoned Eidolon and Gremlin to learn too, and soon they were all making flower crowns. Those who are observant might notice they were only using edible flowers. And Najaran might be chewing on some of the bruised flowers as she worked...

Candied Flowers

"Oh! Yummy!" she cried. She started eating as many as she was allowed. And the result?

"OHWOW! THESEARESUPPERYUMMY! DOYOUTHINKICANFINDAPLACETOBUYTHEMYEARROUND? OH! WHAT'STHATOVERTHERE?!"

Someone was bouncing from area to area, and bouncing up and down, and just... over all bouncing. Someone was having a massive sugar high. And all the while, was using the extra energy to eat the candied flowers even faster...

Special Cakes

"OH! THESE ARE SUPER YUMMY TOO!" she shouted, tasting one. The power of the cakes was taking the edge off the sugar high, bit by bit. But then on her fifth or sixth slice suddenly she was...

Also bit by bit. As in itty bitty. She stared up at the huge slice of cake towering above her, wide eyed. "WHOA!" she said. "If I'm this small..." she summoned Knight, Gargoyle, Thunderbeak, Living Weapon, Cait Sith, Eidolon and Gremlin. Sure enough they were smaller too! "LOOK! NOW WE CAN EAT AS MUCH AS WE WANT! THE FOOD IS ALL HUGE!" she said, gleefully. With that, she and her friends dove in to chow down.

And best of all, at this size, she could hardly see the mushrooms as mushrooms!

Tasty Teas

This one might be a bit of a hard sell, because Najaran saw someone else return to their usual size after sipping the tea. So when it was offered to her she stared up at whoever offered it. "Why would I want that? This way I can eat as much as I want and not take away too much food from other people? Being small is the best!"

So long as no one she had to fight showed up, maybe she never wanted to be big again.

Speed Friending

Somehow, someone got her to drink the tea. But that was fine, she snuck some cake into take away containers hidden in her clothes. She was fine. But for now, she got to meet new friends! That was fun! So she dropped into a seat, nibbling on her flower crown. "Hello!" she said, cheerfully.

Costume

Najaran found herself in a weird costume. "Whoa!" she said, spinning around as she tried to see herself. "What is this?" she asked, so confused. Someone has never heard of chess, so this made even less sense to her than it might to other people.

Anya is really struggling with her white Rook costume today. While she is very much grateful for the change in costumes compared to the last two festivals, she does find her current mobility in this particular costume to be very limited. She can’t run or take big steps when she wants to. This is so embarrassing.

While the unlucky Grand Duchess slowly makes her way around town with Pooka and Mashka doing their best to adjust their speed for her, Anya notices Naja trying to figure out what costume did she found herself. Perhaps she will might need to explain to her the interesting game that is chess or maybe not?

Still she does walk to her very slowly, even slower than Pooka at his most sluggish, as she tries to wave at her.

Edited (Formatting error) 2024-04-14 00:36 (UTC)

"Oh! Hello!" she said. She tried to make her way over and found herself jumping sideways. "That... was odd..."

“These costumes sure gave us these strange quirks that we have to deal with for the next several hours. At least they don’t leave glitter pollen all over every surface unlike what happened during the first Flower Festival.”

"I liked the glitter, people gave me food for it!"

“Ah I see. In any case, you would have liked seeing the glitter pollen in the previous festivals when everyone is stuck with floral based costumes. Maybe we could have traded it for anything, including food, for any and all attempts to clean up the town with.”

“Arf, arf!” Pooka barks nervously as he and Madhka see their master to continue walk very very slowly.

“I really do hope that this small step quirk will end at any moment now. It is getting very tricky for me to walk around without the worry of tripping and getting hurt.”

Najaran nodded. "I like how much food is everywhere, but it is hard to eat like this."

“No kidding, I didn’t expect these costumes to be this difficult to wear or get used to. I got to admit, this does remind me similarly of what I had been through in the Realm of Stories before I came here. We had to take on roles in order to restore a story with some twists of our own.”

"Oh, like how I was turned into a character from a book I found after the other week?" She wanted that power back.

“Yeah, it is very likely that it is very similar to my time in the Realm. I mean, anyone can take on a role from fairy tales and legends and make their own version of said tale.”

"Like they could choose?"

“Back in that world, we don’t usually have a choice on which role we get to play as. In most story campaigns as we call the missions in there, you can’t repeat the same roles twice. In one story campaign alone, I had taken on three different character roles. Likely so people can take turns portraying those characters in some fashion.”

"Oh... I just wouldn't mind having that power I had when I was changed into one again. But without losing my other abilities..." Or memories.

Najaran | Culdcept | OTA | CWs: PTSD, angst, survivor's guilt, violence mentions

Costumes

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Candied Flowers

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