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

[sunborne]

(Daylight cannot hold back his grimace and makes a face when remembering all the fucking gelatin. What is with these people and their obsession with gelatin?)

Before Daylight can launch into yet another rant about jello or gelatin, Huaisang manages to say something that really grabs his attention. At the very least it causes Daylight’s eyebrows shoot up. “Really? That’s interesting to hear. Good to know she’s alright with being approached by others.”

Daylight has been and has also been debating how to address her. Mrs. Craven or Rosemary. He’ll find out if ‘Rosemary’ is allowed or not when he gets the chance to chat with her.

But— Back to the conversation at hand. “What did you guys talk about? Anything pop up to you in mind?”

[fanoperator]

"One has to be approachable, as a community leader. She was very kind. She asked about my husband, who disappeared only a week after we arrived. I found that interesting--everyone else has acted as though he'd never existed." He sucks briefly on his lip, then reaches for his cup, thinking it over for a moment. "We spoke of my hobbies and why drinking is so disapproved around here."

[sunborne]

Daylight’s prick up at the mention of Rosemary acknowledging Huaisang’s missing house buddy. It’s something he noticed when asking around in the past for others he noticed missing. Descriptions or names met with blank, polite stares. Insistences met with laughter and cheery smiles.

Interesting.

Also interesting, hearing how alcohol isn’t liked here. It makes him glad his grandma isn’t here. She would be in a lot of trouble with her love for the spirits. “What’s the reason for drinking beign a big deal here?” He's no drinker himself, a personal thing, but the idea of a townwide dislike is strange. ”Did something happen or...?”

[fanoperator]

"Oh, she explained how..." Huaisang grimaces politely, looking as earnest as ever but with the particular polite veneer he gets when there are local townsfolk around. He's excellent at blending in and being accepted by the robbies, happy to chatter on about benign pleasantries for hours, and he's very wary of being noticed as standing out in any way. "Well, imbibing too much can lead to bad habits, poor lifestyle choices or tragic accidents. About people neglecting their civic duties to drink and then making mistakes. I talked to her about my customs from home, and how offering a drink to a guest is considered a sign of sophistication and generosity, and how strange it is for me that so few people here are drinkers." At least among the locals. Huaisang has met plenty of the 'new neighbors' who are fond of drinking.

//slides in here, apologising for the delay!

[sunborne]

“Huh.” Daylight takes a bite out from the breadstick, looking thoughtful as he ruminates over what he had learned. “She’s passionate about it, that’s for sure.”

If you twisted his arm and asked for his opinion on that, Daylight would say the following: It sounds like a particular dig towards someone, or speaking from experience or knowledge from the world, or simply rooted in something that happened in the past. Maybe a little bit of everything.

“Did she take that well? You talking about your home’s culture and traditions?” Because, judging from this town so far, it seems pretty determined to follow its own way, no matter what. “Gotta admit, I find it interesting too. Back home, alcohol was definitely a sign of class and wealth since making it cost a lot of resources and time.“

[fanoperator]

"I don't know that she is passionate about it." Furrowing his brow for a moment, Huaisang thinks about it, then shakes his head, uncertain of any conclusions. "She did take an interest in my culture and traditions, and even expressed a desire to take part in the tradition of sharing a drink with a guest."

He shakes his head again, brushing off all those questions and putting his bright smile back in place, the one that he uses to make himself seem like he fits in with any of the cheeriest locals. "I'd be happy to tell you more about my home later. For now we should enjoy the lunch, don't you think?"

Too many listening ears, really. Huaisang wants to end any honest conversation and keep it all very surface-level for now. He's sure he'll find future opportunities to speak with Daylight in more depth.

((OOC: ok to wrap there?))

[sunborne]

[ OOC; Yep! We can wrap up here! o7 ]