lap eight // day 271 (open) // IT'S PARTY TIME

[amphibian]

Who: EVERYBODY
Open: Open
When: 271
Where: In the empty space around the monument!
What:

PARTY MINGLE GO
Format: DO AS YOU PLEASE AND FOLLOW YOUR HEART
Warnings: If anything comes up, put it in the subject lines!


[As everyone wakes up bright and early this morning, it isn't going to be hard to miss what's changed in the empty space around the monument Just in case, though, signs with indicating arrows line the campground where the Bastion's newest guests are staying, reading, in Ura, "This way to the party!"—wait, party?

Oh yes. Anyone Aoi had managed to grab the day before ought to be prepared for this. A great big banner stretched on two poles over the monument reads "Welcome to the Bastion!", written in Ura again; there's a little variation between the handwriting, since Zanya wrote some and Zahi wrote others.

Every last piece of the area that can have something hanging from it does: Zuko's lanterns hang off all the nearby trees, and her streamers, mostly red and sometimes gold, line absolutely everything, including but not limited to all the chairs and tables Ryu got together and helped arrange. Other things you're apt to find everywhere: flowers. Between the Psiioniic, the Disciple, Ghaleon, and Crona, there are more flowers than anyone could ever figure out what to do with. Aoi's best has been done, though: garlands are hung up around furniture, tied around tree trunks, woven through branches, strung between the branches of adjacent trees, wrapped 'round the monument, and so on and so on. A lot of care has been put into making sure they look good instead of just being thrown every which-way.

A few mismatched vases sitting on the tables have some flowers sticking out of them, too—perhaps exactly enough in each to make a flower crown, hmm? There are no party hats, so some improvising will have to be done.

There's all manner of tasty treats placed on all the tables, of course: a platter of picked donuts is to be expected, given Aoi's hand in all this (and thanks to Naegi, there are plenty to go around and they're arranged almost elaborately), but Rin, Zia, and Mirielle have provided all manner of homemade goodies that aren't just Aoi's favorite desserts. Bon's made a cake that Aoi has proudly placed in the center of one round table and surrounded with the rest of the desserts.

Instead of food, one table has a chalkboard propped up on it instead, with a box of colorful chalk beside it. Aoi's already written a small message in the corner—Thank you, everyone! with a smiley face beside it—and doodled a couple of flowers around the edges. The board's five feet long and there's plenty of chalk to go around, so there's certainly room for collaborating on something!

Not far from all the food sits the enormous stack of Legos Aoi purchased at Ibuki's suggestion. Legos. Please keep your shoes on, for the love of god. Some of them have already been arranged to form half the outside of a floor and a chunk of wall up to Aoi's chest so everyone has an idea of what's supposed to be done with things, but there are more than enough to start new projects. On the other side of the monument, closer to the collection of shop buildings than the gazebo, the soccer nets Otoha and Takamura built out of Skyway scraps have been set up (flowers have been woven in and out of the netting, of course). Aoi's brought out not one, but two of the soccer balls given to her during the festival, just in case of a soccer ball malfunction or if the game gets big enough that everyone decides rules are for losers and the only way to play soccer is with multiple things to kick. In the absence of paint, Aoi has decided to use more streamers as field markers.

At the gazebo not far off (naturally, it's covered in streamers and flowers as well), there's a set of speakers and an amplifier ready for use—Ibuki's, of course, and the little note Aoi's written that reads "For Ibuki-chan!" (with the wrong characters for her name, but points for effort) confirms it. Her equipment from Colin has all been set up, too: the spotlights on the top and bottom of the gazebo will shine in all sorts of colors when Ibuki turns them on, and there are some additional bits and pieces to the sound system to help make everything that much noisier. Aside from hanging decor, the space in front of the gazebo has been left empty so that there's enough room to dance!

To the side of the gazebo and just behind it is the unreasonably long rope Shing somehow managed to scrounge up. Like absolutely everything else, it has a chain of flowers wrapped around it. A streamer's been tied around the very center of it in a bow, and hopefully that makes its intended purpose as a tool of tug-of-war obvious enough.

If Aoi has anything to say about it, this is going to be the best goddamn welcome party ever.

Enjoy the festivities!]

Comments

Re: OTA

[twinked_witch]

[As Zuko works on one of the decorations, she hears a feminine chuckle.]

It's all right, Zuko, the party's going. If something's off, I don't think anyone will be superbly worried by this point.

[daughterofursa]

[Oh no, she's been caught. Zuko freezes, and then lets go of the streamer.]

I've never helped with one of these things before.

[twinked_witch]

Who said you need to help now that it's going? Shouldn't enjoying the party matter more at this point?

[daughterofursa]

Well- I still want everything to go well.

[twinked_witch]

... One of the best things you can do about that, honestly, is pass along the vibe that things are going well.

When people see people worrying, they tend to worry in turn, so...

[daughterofursa]

Oh.

So I should- look like I'm having a good time. [... how does she do that.]

[twinked_witch]

Preferably, of course, by letting yourself relax and do that.

This is often the kind of situation where a little alcohol helps.

[... In Megaera's time, the idea of 'teenagers + alcohol = no' isn't quite a thing...]

[daughterofursa]

[Well, Zuko doesn't have any objections to the age part but.]

I don't think that's a good idea.

[twinked_witch]

Oh? Why not? It's a good way to soothe the nerves.

[Megaera, no. This is a bad idea.]

[daughterofursa]

It's also kind of flammable.

[twinked_witch]

This is true for heavy stuff, but not really lighter beers and such.

[daughterofursa]

I think it's all pretty bad when you're a firebender.

[twinked_witch]

Well, fair enough. It does mean we've gotta find another way to get your mood up, though...

[daughterofursa]

It's not really "down," though.

[Her mood is pretty up right now, for Zuko.]

[twinked_witch]

True, but it isn't you really showing you're into the party and relaxing, either.

We still have much to learn about unwinding, it seems...

[daughterofursa]

Aoi did try to make sure there was plenty to do.

[Maybe they should try doing some of it?]

[twinked_witch]

Indeed. Let's go try some of it.

[daughterofursa]

Do you care which one?

[Because Zuko's never played any of these games.]

[twinked_witch]

I don't know many of them, so I'm not superbly concerned, as long as we can learn the game of course.

[daughterofursa]

The blocks seem pretty straightforward.

[twinked_witch]

Freeform building play, from what I could see. They're definitely interesting in how they hold so easily.

[daughterofursa]

Oh, you tried them already?

[twinked_witch]

A bit earlier, with Kohaku. Didn't do much, though. Too many people to chat with and such. I do wonder what you'd come up with, though.

[daughterofursa]

It probably won't be that impressive.

[But she gives a shrug and starts headed over that way anyhow.]

[twinked_witch]

[Megaera, of course, follows with a smile.]

It doesn't have to be. It's about expressing yourself, even if only a little.