FEBRUARY 2021 EVENT: PART ONE

[robbies]

 

CHAPTER TWO, PART 1: A LIGHT LUNCH

Good times, great olives, Uliveto's.

INVITES AND INSISTENCES | BISQUE AND BREADSTICKS | FONTINA AND FOCACCIA | MUNDANITY AND MISHAPS

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INVITES AND INSISTENCES

After a fairly low-key January, you start hearing the buzz on February 1st: The Happy Homes Association is inviting you to a luncheon on Friday! Stylishly dressed women in coats and hats are inviting everyone they know in the neighborhood, coming up and knocking on your door to invite you personally to come along. “Noon on Friday at Uliveto’s,” one of them tells you with a bright smile. “There’ll be food and drinks, and the whole community can get together and mingle a bit!”

Whether you’re home to answer the door or not, you’ll receive a small card advertising the event — it’s a fundraiser, after all, and they need your help! Pay just $3 and your food and as much as you’d like to drink are covered.

But some of the HHA members are a little more insistent, roving the neighborhood in search of anyone who’s just moved to Santa Rosita in the past few months. Their almost too-wide smiles and slightly-vacant eyes are a dead giveaway that these neighbors aren’t all at home, and they aren’t willing to take anything less than a “Yes” when they ask you if you’re coming. You’ve got to wash your hair? They know a hairdresser over at the salon on Main Street who can fit you in today. Groceries? Why, their daughter can take care of that for you in a jiffy! No excuse will fly with these Robbies; they’ve always got an answer and a way for you to make an appearance.

It won’t end once you’ve agreed, either (even if you just agree to get them off your back!). With the promise of another guest at the luncheon, the Robbies are quick to suggest that you should help them! There are so many people in the town, after all, and with more people volunteering to spread the word, they can make this the most successful fundraiser ever! (Or, well, at least the most successful since last year’s Little League candy sales!) Look, there’s another of your new neighbors over there — why don’t you go and invite them now? Your new friends from the HHA will be right here to support you and help you out!

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BISQUE AND BREADSTICKS

On Friday, February 5th, Uliveto’s is easy to find — just follow the train of cars headed to North Santa Rosita, where the restaurant sits just off of Main Street with a parking lot that’s packed full. Hopefully you’re willing to walk, because it looks like the luncheon is in full swing! But as you get closer, you see that the ladies of the HHA have things down to a science as they welcome neighbors, invite them to join one of the many tables set up in the half of the restaurant they’ve taken over, and integrate newcomers into conversation.

“Oh, hello!” one of the ladies gushes as she spots you. “I’m so glad you could make it! It’s a little cold today, but you should try the tomato bisque — it always warms me right up! Come with me and Betty can get you all set up with your meal voucher; have you ever been to Uliveto’s before? It’s just divine; the salad and breadsticks are all you can eat and the pasta — golly, my mother never even tried to outdo it. We’d just come here instead!”

Before you know it, you’ve paid your entrance and have been shown to one of the large party tables (or maybe they’re multiple tables pushed together? What restaurant normally has tables that seat 20 people?), a waitress offering you the drinks menu and asking if you’d like to start with a glass of (nonalcoholic, of course!) wine. Once she’s gone, you’ll finally get a chance to look around the interior of the restaurant. The walls are a warm yellowed beige, and fluted columns break up the space with clinging ivy and grapes hanging from planters near the top. A mural is painted on the far wall of a terrace looking out over rolling hills and vineyards, and the soft music of an accordion reaches your ears…

“You all right, hon?”

One of the ladies at your table is looking at you expectantly. Don’t forget, you’re here to mingle and socialize! Time to break out that small talk!

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FONTINA AND FOCACCIA

As the luncheon continues, you may be able to notice some of the HHA volunteers scurrying back and forth, taking turns manning the doors and the small table where Betty’s taking donations and issuing meal vouchers. Watch long enough and you’ll be able to see that all of them are ultimately reporting to three ladies who confer at a smaller table set back from all the mingling, talking amongst themselves and from time to time making notes in a small ledger. At about half past noon, one of the women stands, calling out, “May I have your attention, please?” She has to repeat it a couple times to be heard, but after a minute or two everybody settles down. The woman nods toward all of the guests, then turns back to the table, allowing one of the women to stand and make herself known. Tall, graceful, and neat, she takes a look around the room as she speaks — does her gaze linger a moment on you? Good afternoon, everyone. For those of you who may not know me yet, my name is Rosemary Craven, and I’m the head of our local Happy Homes Association. A small wave of applause breaks out from some of the ladies; Rosemary seems to indulge them for just a moment before she lifts a gloved hand to quell it. Please. I can only manage what I’m given, and the fine women of the association give me plenty to work with. Their efforts to organize this luncheon for all of us today showcase the dedication we should all strive for. Ladies, please stand and be recognized. Today’s fundraiser is to benefit our town as Founder’s Day approaches in April. We’ve got big plans for the funds we raise — who knows? Perhaps we’ll be able to afford some yummy treats for the children. Who doesn’t love an ice cream cake? Your generosity today makes all of this possible. You’ll forgive me for not giving you hard numbers, but I’d hate to be so gauche in such a lovely restaurant. Let me assure you, though, that the Happy Homes Association is here to help you in whatever way we can, whether that’s by helping you redecorate your homes, bringing over home-cooked meals, or teaching you some new skills — and speaking of new skills, I’d like to invite all of our new neighbors to talk with me personally if you think you might be interested in helping us out from time to time. Sewing might not be your forte, but everybody’s got something they’re good at, and we can always use the extra hands. I’ll let you all get back to your meals. If you have any questions for me, please seek me out. I’ll be sitting just over here with Maude.

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MUNDANITY AND MISHAPS

After the luncheon, things in Santa Rosita continue on as normal. The weekend comes and goes, the work week begins, and the cold February wind blows… But when you wake up on February 10th, some of you are missing.

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OOC INFO

Welcome to the first part of February’s event! You can use this entry to top-level for the event, but feel free to utilize the log and network communities as well. Sign-ups to have your character abducted are located here; please fill out the form provided along with any other pertinent details.

You may play with the townsfolk NPCs as necessary in your threads; non-Robbied neighbors will be cordial and happy to make small talk and will try to maintain the pleasant atmosphere. Robbies will, as always, be mindlessly optimistic and complimentary about everything—you may find that most of the Robbies have congregated at their own table and are bubbling with excitement over just about anything.

There will be a top-level posted for Rosemary below. If you would like to have your character interact with her, comment with your starter there. The mods will respond to tags for Rosemary until February 15th.

Any questions can go in our FAQ thread below. Try to check and see if your question has already been answered on the plotting thread first here.

Remember — part 2 of this event is coming February 15th!

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Comments

[freeflight]

Bisque & Breadsticks
[ Every part of this is the most utterly mundane torture imaginable.

Levi makes for a small, sullen figure slouching in his seat at one of the tables pushed together with entirely too many others. He hasn’t a damn clue how to navigate this small talk with the obnoxious people at his table, but they’re sure trying to engage him. Going along with all of this bullshit until they found an advantage is the plan, admittedly, but it was expecting a lot to think he’d know how to talk to his neighbors.

Every once in a while, he shoots a dirty look at one person in particular, though it’s entirely possible a bystander might get caught in the crossfire and think they’re getting the brunt of his bad mood.

But really, what do you say to someone who might be the enemy or brainwashed or some other bullshit trying to talk about the weather? Or, worse yet, sports? Short, increasingly unpleasant responses aren’t doing the trick, and he’s trapped here. At a certain point, he really wouldn't even complain if anyone else engaged him in socially awkward solidarity. ]

Wildcard
[ OOC: Hit me up at dynamicrange and we can put together something specific—before, during, after the luncheon are all good. I just wanted to get an initial top level out there. ]

Bisque and Breadsticks

[prodigalhairess]

[That's a face Rapunzel recognizes! Not very well, mind you, but she's seen Levi in passing as she goes to visit Cass at her and Erwin's house. And he always looks so... serious. Sullen, almost. So it's a little strange that he's here at the party, and while he doesn't seem too eager for conversation, she'll approach anyway.]

Hey. Everything okay?

[freeflight]

[ That's Cassandra's companion, he realizes, though he hasn't had any reason to deal with her directly before. He lifts his head, looking over at her. He's not offering her a friendly expression or anything, but that's really just his face. ]

That's a popular question. [ He glances around towards the people that seem to belong here. ] But who's going to have a complaint?

[ From the sound of it, he actually has several. ]

[prodigalhairess]

[Thankfully, the locals see them chattering and take it as a cue to not butt in with the questions they've been posing to everyone. Whether or not it was Rapunzel's intent to keep them off the back of the man so clearly intent on sulking in the corner is unclear, but. Well. Either way, it seems to be helping.]

You should be allowed to say if there's something you're not enjoying. [With a smile, she takes a seat opposite Levi in his booth.] If you don't wanna say it to them, you can tell me what you might be suspicious about.

[freeflight]

Are you asking me to start bitching about this? [ That's absurd enough that it gets his attention.

And, really, if it cuts down on the bullshit he has to deal with, it's an improvement. ]

[prodigalhairess]

[Rapunzel isn't someone who particularly enjoys negativity, whether it's feeling it herself or seeing others become consumed by it. But she's learned now that you can't just ignore someone's misgivings or frustration on a situation just because they're bad feelings. Sometimes it can help to let it all out, in one way or another. And this place? She absolutely understands why some people don't want to play along.]

If you want to, yeah. [Wait don't just give him free reign-] Um... you're a military man like Erwin, right? Your suspicions might be helpful here.

[apodictic]

[ oh, well. that's a familiar mood. it mirrors his own very well since he'd arrived in this place, he'll recognize that anywhere.

he feels a kind of kinship towards such sentiment, but all angelo can do is raise him his glass slightly in a greeting. ]

I know it's quite the bore, but glaring won't turn this into wine.

[ does he want wine? angelo could care less, it's an opening for small talk and he's free to disagree otherwise. in any case the juice they're being served with could certainly be a bit stronger, if only so that things get a bit more interesting to watch in the luncheon. ] Now that would be a most welcome miracle.

[freeflight]

Can't say I'd care, but I don't disagree. [ Levi's not much for alcohol, and he's operating as if he's on duty as it was. With that thought, he glances in Erwin's direction just to keep tabs. It's brief, but then he's turning his attention back to the kid that had addressed him.

Hell, he'll talk to him if it'll keep any of the creeps around here from acting like he ought to know the first thing about football. ]

If they drank themselves stupid around here, it'd be a different kind of problem.

[apodictic]

[ he watches him curiously. how interesting, that he keeps an eye on someone. someone important? though if he's being honest, he's doing the same for his 'mother'. ]

Perhaps. But it'd be more than interesting.

Pretending to be normal, knowing the reality about this place, makes for an unsettling experience all things considered.

[grice]

[ most of the ladies have been insistently cooing at how dashing falco is from his seat close to cassandra and erwin. they weren't actually his parents, but— he certainly did feel more comfortable sticking close by them now than he did with the other occasional children, know waddled into a group and talking amongst themselves about the raddest baseball card or the newest toy they've managed. boys circle with boys, girls with girls, and when being told he could go have some fun with the kids his age by a chipper and emphatic brunette mother (something about all the adult talk being so boring for him), falco has to decline to stay where he is.

what a grown-up little gentleman. really, he's just uncomfortable, and has at most only taken half a bite of a bread stick. not because it was bad, but . . . it was weird. the HHA? new neighbors should help them? falco can't say he feels absolutely confident in saying the woman was charming. he's a sharp kid. something was off, and he's seen more than one troubled gaze pointed at her direction, some people have even stood from their seats to excuse themselves. it wasn't a coincidence.

even more with levi who was far more likely to be sitting nearby. he watches the soldier's hardened glare toward rosemary for a few moments before clearing his throat. ]

Mister Levi?

[freeflight]

[ The safest bet imaginable is that Levi is nearby wherever Erwin is. That's the whole point. Even if the locals would have hunted him down and hassled him anyway, it's a particular obligation that has him here.

When Rosemary starts in on her speech, his focus is particularly fixed. He doesn't like that look in her eyes, or whatever it is he thinks he saw there when she'd been looking around. Maybe no less dangerous than that drunk pig police chief or the creep mayor, but they'd have to see. Shifting in his chair, arms crossed, he turns his attention to the Falco. "Mister" still sounds damn weird, but he's not going to bitch about it. ]

Hm? There a problem? [ Other than all the obvious shit. ]

[grice]

[ all these glares are troubling. even if she gave off strange vibes and even had her gaze on falco for a second— it was off putting. but why was his main concern, on top of his gut instinct, so, ]

Did she do something before?

[freeflight]

I couldn't say who has done what yet. [ He's on edge, maybe more than is entirely warranted, but this feels like shades of a particularly shitty Christmas party. Like it might be a setup or maybe they're being sized up, and he doesn't like it.

Well, there's that and another suspicion. There wasn't any telling exactly which one of those people had the ability to change their target's behavior, but there'd been at least one incident that pointed to the HHA. For all he knew, all of them had it. He keeps his voice low: ] If anyone suddenly changes how they act after dealing with her, keep track.

[grice]

. . . Yes, sir.

[ that wasn't alarming at all, and subtly— falco tries to keep his gaze going between who talks to her and playing with his food. he's careful not to have eye contact with her again, it's unsettling, and now that he has something to go off on, it's even more so. ]

How do they change?

[freeflight]

There's no mistaking it. [ He inclines his head towards one of the tables populated almost exclusively with Robbies. They are fundamentally different in a particularly unsettling way, and he's still not sure what to make of them congregating together. ]

Like there's someone else in control.

[grice]

[ ah. falco's gaze quickly follows and recognizes the odder ones— their smiles were too wide all the time, and so were their eyes, so much so that when they spoke here or drove by school, it was too plastic to be natural. ]

Like them? [ he doesn't point, but after a robbie he's got an eye on specifically turns their head in a mechanical little jerk and HAPPY grin, falco rapidly retreats his gaze to his lap. ] We can start acting like that?

[13thcommander]

[Yes, yes, Levi, how you suffer. Erwin is fully aware of the dirty looks he's getting, and they're making it increasingly difficult to focus on what's going on around them, and if there's anything useful to be gained from by listening in. Erwin eventually caves in and excuses himself from his seat, crossing the relatively short distance over to Levi and resting his hand on his shoulder.]

Would you like to step outside and have a cigarette with me?

[Erwin has, of course, not taken up smoking, any more than Levi has, but it's a decent enough ruse and excuse to leave the luncheon for a few minutes and give Levi some decompression time.]

[freeflight]

[ It’s hardly as if Erwin wasn’t perfectly capable of ignoring him for the sake of his objectives. Going to smoke is a flimsy enough ruse when people did so inside, but he’s grateful for the chance to get out. Looking up at him, not shrugging off the hand on his shoulder, he takes a moment to assess if this is something else. ]

Yeah, I’ll do that. [ He’s not slow to get up out of this seat then. He’s not entirely sure if he’s going to get briefed on something he didn’t catch or further instructions, but he’ll remain attentive when he follows Erwin out. Either way, getting that breathing room is appreciated. ]

[13thcommander]

[Once they're outside, Erwin lets out a deep breath, fogging the air around them.]

Gods, this is boring.

[There hasn't even been any good intel! Just blather about luncheons and future events! And whenever Erwin asks about Founder's Day, he just gets titters and oh-you-knows.]

I'm going to try and speak with Ms Craven when we go back in, but I needed some air first.

[freeflight]

It's like watching pigs at a trough, but there's shit coming out of their mouths instead. [ Renowned wordsmith and philosopher, Captain Levi of the Survey Corps, ladies and gentlemen.

He crosses his arms, stepping in close to Erwin. It's either to give them some added privacy, or maybe just to use him as a windbreak. ]

[13thcommander]

An apt analogy.

[Poet Laurate of the Survey Corps or not, Erwin knows when Levi is using him as a windbreak, and he shifts his shoulders to provide more coverage.]

Have you heard anything useful? It mostly sounds like nonsense to me.

[freeflight]

It is nonsense. Nothing but yapping, but I bet they brought us here to be sized up.

[ It's a purely one-sided information exchange. Bringing the lot of them out there in a big group let their enemy get a feel for them and whatever indiscretions they might get up to, but it was like being faced with a brick wall. ]

After you play nice, you want me to follow up? [ As far as he can tell, no one's tried pushing their luck since seeing that one guy at the holiday party. It'd be risky, though, and he imagines that's why he hasn't gotten any orders to go be his charming self with the HHA. ]

lmk if this is okay!

[weifinder]

( Socially awkward solidarity, or, in passing, stumbling with a bowl of cooled red soup and splashing it into a lap? Because that's what Wei Wuxian ends up doing, mostly on purpose, with with the exact look of horror expected on the face of someone who is terminally klutzy facing down the collateral damage of this truth.

(Which is at heart a lie—Wei Wuxian is not a klutz, but hey, solid...arity... to people who do not look as sold on this experience compared to those who do. Or overdo, as the ceaselessly grinning ones seem.) )

Oh, no! I'm so sorry, let me help with that‐

( Maybe no don't let him, but he's apologising as he snatches one of the offered napkins to try and pat at the mess he's left Levi wearing. )

[freeflight]

[ Levi's reflexes are good enough to see this coming, but it's unavoidable right about at that point. Bad enough he's stuck here, now he's wearing someone's soup. His chair screeches loud against the floor as he shoves it back, and now there's someone in his space with napkins.

Today is a special kind of hell. ] Hey, hey, what the hell are you doing--

[weifinder]

( He's shoving napkins into Levi's hands, at this point, and standing back with an apologetic look. Also a look, to the side, as he gestures up and toward the hall, down which way the restrooms might be found (restrooms are incredible, public, and all over the city, it's quite convenient in his opinion): )

Trying to help! This is way too much, we should wash it off in the restroom, these things aren't doing anything.

( The napkins. What are they called again? His mind's blanking, so it clearly can't matter too much. )