DECEMBER 2020 EVENT - PART 1

CHAPTER ONE, PART 1: A HOLLY JOLLY HOLIDAY

Do you hear what I hear?

DECEMBER 5th | A MYSTERIOUS VILLAGE | THE MAYOR HAS INVITED YOU...

DECEMBER 5th

Don’t you hate to be the last to know? Out of the windows of your brand new homes, you spot families trotting along in their happy, nuclear units. Stores and restaurants have closed early—on main street, where jingle bells hang from every door, the only souls to be seen are heading toward the town hall, where wreaths hang around the stone lions’ necks. A stage, awash in string lighting, has been erected with three chairs sitting empty behind a podium. Policemen with their smiles and baby-blues stand guard before it; they too are not allowed beyond the velvet ropes. Twenty feet tall—near to reaching the tip-top of the clock tower—a mass is hidden by black tarps. This is the most guarded of all, ringed by no less than twelve junior policemen standing vigil around the clock. At sundown, you start to see what’s to come. As the crowd swells, bundled in their coats and scarves, the ladies with silk scarves drawn around their perfectly coiffed hairstyles, three figures take to the stage:
Chief of Police, Dale Harding, who must constantly slip away and bend his ear to listen to one of his boys, giving orders with long sighs, firm words, and grumbles as he takes his seat again. Occasionally one sees a flash of silver moving from his lapel up to his lips, but surely that must only be his policeman’s badge that he kisses, because he loves his town so very, very much! The Happy Homes Association—or at least, their junior representative. Her bright and shining pin of office sits hidden behind the tremendous fruit basket poised upon her lap, where green and scarlet cellophane cannot quite hide the fruitcake inside the way it does her name. How does she keep her teeth so white and her lipstick so clean and red? Subscribe to their newsletter and read Cathy’s Cosmetic Can-Dos! column to find out!
Mayor Phillip Clarke—well, Phil to his friends. He takes his place at the podium, his top hat inky black, leather gloves oiled and bright, and draws all the town’s breathless attention. He taps the microphone. Once—the crowd inhales—twice—their eyes shine as they look up—three times— “Gooooood evening, Santa Rosita!” The crowd goes wild as Clarke bellows. Eventually, he raises both arms and gestures for them to quiet down. “I want to thank each and every one of you for coming out, especially on a school night!” Like the admonishing parent, he wags a knowing finger at several teens in the crowd. “Believe you me, on a night like this, I know how tempting it is to stay home and curl up on the couch with a good book. And,” he adds with a wink to a woman in the front of the crowd, “maybe some of Margie's famous hot chocolate.” Laughter ripples through the crowd. Again, Clarke patiently waits until they’re finished before continuing, “But that's exactly what makes our little town so special. No matter the time, every day of the week there's always someone out there who will sacrifice something for the better of the community. Be it the energy to get this terrific tree set up—” he gestures to the tree, “—the patience to string twenty yards of lights up—which, I might add, have been generously donated by our pals at Honeybees—or even just time.” Clarke’s tone turns solemn, but his face remains fixed in a winning smile. “Santa Rosita isn't just a town. It's a family. Each and every one of you out here tonight is a valued member. Even all you new faces out there!” He points to several newcomers in the crowd in what might almost be an accusatory manner if not for the smile on his face. “Don't think I can't see you! Tonight, you have become part of that family. Santa Rosita is your home now. It's through our traditions that we endure, and it's my sincerest wish that you, all of you, will join together with us and help us keep them alive for years to come.” The crowd applauds, everyone turning to face the new families. As Harding takes a swig from a flask he pulls out of his pocket and the HHA representative continues to beam at the audience with her too-white smile, Clarke fully turns to the tree and pumps his fist in the air, riling the crowd back up. “And now, without further ado, let's RING. IN. THE HOLIDAYS!”

As his words come to a close, at last the tarp is pulled away—revealing twenty feet of pure, polished, brilliant...

...aluminium christmas tree.

Quick as the busy bees they are, the Happy Homes Association is there to announce that you can buy both table-sized and home-use duplicates for your own homes! The cost is $8 for the little ones and $18.50 for the big trees—get your wallets ready!

As the crowd stampedes toward their own tiny and/or six-foot silver replicas, the three figures on the stage are hurried away. The HHA representative presents their gift basket to the Mayor. He kisses her on both cheeks, rubbing his belly in anticipation of the deliciousness to come, and hurries on. Chief Harding takes the rear, casting back a sour look, and before you have a chance to see if the three could answer any questions, the stage is empty again.

...well, get in line! You want those trees too, don’t you?

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A MYSTERIOUS VILLAGE

The days are getting colder and the entire town seems to be getting into the holiday spirit, between the tree lighting ceremony and the decorations your neighbors are putting up. But something seems to want you to get into the Christmas spirit as well—you haven’t done anything out of the ordinary, but when you open the door, you’re met by a burst of frigid air carrying the scents of gingerbread and peppermint on it.

Stepping through the door, you are not in Santa Rosita any more.

Well, technically, you are; you’re just down by Rose Garden Park, before the Old Growth starts. But it’s not where you thought you were going, and it doesn’t resemble the normal streets of suburbia now. You’ve stepped into a charming Christmas village, packed with all sorts of fun winter activities and sights to see! The ground is covered in pure white snow that never seems to melt into slush, and the sounds of high, sweet jingle bells fill the air as a team of reindeer haul a sleigh past. Maybe that’s Santa’s sleigh they’re pulling?

As you walk into the village, a red pole demands your attention, placed in such a way that no one can miss it. A letter is attached to it:

’Twas the month before Christmas and all through the town
The people were smiling; there was nary a frown!
They entered my village, all brimming with cheer
And knew that quite soon, old St. Nick would be here
There's skating and snowmen and light shows galore
There's even a place to make wreaths for your door!
But somewhere inside there's a mailbox to find
And Santa may bring you what's most on your mind…
As the letter suggests, the village is full of hustle and bustle. Santa’s elves—Robbies decked out in red and green costumes with matching tights and jingle bell boots—are everywhere, making sure that there’s always plenty of holiday treats available for visitors to eat and drink. The nearby pond is iced over and the elf manning the ice skate exchange station seems to be able to guess your perfect size with a glance, while reindeer racing courses have been set up encircling the village. All of the buildings and many of the trees have been lined with lights, warm and bright, and there are stations set up where visitors can make garlands or wreaths to take back with them to the real world.

The real world? Yes, of course—that boring place with work and school and vacuuming! Though the door you initially walked through may have turned into a station for making gingerbread houses, you can hoof it back to your home in Shadyside at any time. The public library is just that way, past the baseball diamond! Any time you open a door, however, you run a risk of finding that it leads back to the village, where the elves are waiting to ensure you enjoy your visit. You can try to close the door and open it again, but who knows if your luck has changed?

The organizers of the village seem to be most insistent that you come and enjoy yourself—flyers are all around town, stuffed in your mailbox, and pinned on bulletin boards. Though some signs on lampposts seem as though they’ve been torn down in a huff, you still can spot them on Main Street: “Visit Santa Rosita’s Very Own Christmas Village!”

And visit it you will.

While the elves are happy to welcome visitors to their village, they also have to work. Christmas toys don’t build themselves, you know! The elves will point out Santa’s Workshop to you, where you can buy freshly made candy canes, charming ornaments for your new aluminum Christmas trees (you did buy one from the Happy Homes Association, didn’t you?), and other sundries and stocking stuffers. There’s even a German-style bar in the back serving hot chocolate and mulled wine—non-alcoholic, of course; this is a family event. Just outside of the workshop’s entrance is a mailbox, its post swirled red and white and wrapped in garlands. A small desk sits next to the mailbox with a stack of stationery, envelopes pre-addressed to Santa Claus at the North Pole, and pens on top.

At the top of the stationery, beside cutesy illustrations of hippos and children missing their front teeth, are the words, “What I want most for Christmas is…”

Why not write Santa a letter? What have you got to lose?

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THE MAYOR HAS INVITED YOU...

...to the annual Christmas gala, beginning at 4:00 pm sharp at Santa Rosita’s stately town hall! The invitation appears in your mailbox with just enough time for you to gather all your family and go shopping, because you certainly want to look your best. You simply must. The who’s who of the town will be there, all wearing their finest velvet dresses and shined black shoes. Be warned that the dress code will be strictly enforced by the Happy Home Association—only red and green allowed, or else it simply isn’t festive. Men in bright red or green suits - women sporting taffeta skirts in complementing shades - pinned corsages and matching handbags - no detail left untouched!

You wouldn’t want to be caught standing out from the crowd, would you? In the Mayor’s presence?

That might be a bad idea.

But the holidays do get the better of us sometimes, don’t they? The HHA understands, and if on the day of the party you have found yourself without a red or green garment, they have some loaners to wear. If you’ll simply follow Mrs. Jones down to the coat room, she can show you some options.

For the ladies (and female-presenting), they offer up beautiful green or red dresses as loaner. ”It matches the metal trees!” the coat clerk brightly tells you, her own dress as shimmery as they come.
For the gentlemen(ly presenting among you), fresh off the rack at the local Sears Roebuck department store, these fetching blazers are available, complete with matching trousers.

In front of you in line is someone who very clearly does not have the Christmas spirit flowing through them, judging by how they wish to argue with the HHA about these “loaner garments.” How rude! But don’t worry—when you see the once-irascible individual later by the punch bowl, there’s a glassy smile on their face and they’re decked out in jolly green and poppy red, happy as—well, a kid on Christmas morning.

Tables are laid out with food and drink aplenty. Even the sandwich loaf has made its effort to match the decor, as red poinsettias and holly berries dot the windows (careful children—they’re poisonous) and rich green pines occupy every corner. Move outside of the room and you’ll find nothing more than locked and darkened offices, with the occasional policemen and night guards shaking their fingers at you to go back and enjoy the party. This is a night to be merry and drink some mocktails, not to go through the filing!

Up by the fine wood paneling and brilliant metal tree stands the mayor himself. Looking dashing as Santa Claus, a cluster of parents flock nearby beaming as their child gets their photo taken with Mayor Clarke! That’s certainly going in the Christmas newsletter! Each of them has a little present—perfectly wrapped, just see Grandma’s Gift Wrapping Guide in this month’s HHA newsletter—to give to the Mayor for all his hard work this year.

You didn’t think that stack of presents by Santa’s chair was for him to pass out, did you?

Between music sets (graciously played by the Frederick Loren High School marching band), the Mayor stands—the hall falls silent, all the little cups and plates still in jolly hands. He has a speech to give you all, you fine citizens, faces old and new:

“Ho-ho-hi there, Santa Rosita! And how are we enjoying ourselves tonight? I see some of our new families were able to make it out tonight—is that Richard O’Reilly and the missus?” Using a hand to shade his eyes, Clarke squints into the throng of townspeople. “And Jim Astin with Lucy and little Susie! Wow. Isn’t that something?”

In the back of the room, Chief Harding pours himself a glass of punch, takes a sip, then reaches into his suit jacket for his flask.

“Now, in my house,” Clarke continues, “we have a rule not to open any presents until Christmas Day, but with all the ones I've gotten tonight, it's just too darn tempting.” Reaching down, he takes a box from the pile of gifts at his feet. “I think this one's a tackle box, and I'm pretty sure this—” he reaches down for another smaller box, “—is that electric razor I’ve had my eye on.” He shakes the box, chuckling, as the rest of the crowd joins him.

“But let's get serious for a moment.” Clarke’s expression turns thoughtful. “Although getting a truckload of Christmas presents is swell, do you want to know what the greatest gift you've given me is?” He pauses performatively, waiting for an answer from the crowd that never comes.

“The greatest gift you've all given me... is letting me serve you.”

In the back, Harding ditches the punch cup and just drinks straight from the flask.

“I'm honored to be here with you all tonight,” Clarke continues proudly, “just I am honored to be able to wake up every morning, look in the mirror and tell myself that I... am your mayor. Which is why I want to give something back to you. How many of you have already visited Santa's little village?”

There’s a round of cheering in the front of the audience from the many children in attendance with their parents. Clarke opens his arms wide.

“My idea! I decided that if I can't bring Santa Rosita to the North Pole, I'm going to bring the North Pole to Santa Rosita. Enjoy yourselves! Saint Nick's got a lot of work to do before Christmas. So be good, don’t pout, and for goodness sake—have fun!”

The clapping threatens to take down the garlands hung from chandeliers. ”A fine orator!” “Reminds me of the war, when we heard Churchill over the radio. Why, Clarke gives him a run for his money, ha ha ha!”

A delightful HHA elf comes to replenish the pickle tree on the appetizer table, and the covers of Bing Crosby carry you away into the night.

Remember to stay until 9:00 pm, when the Santa Rosita Children’s Choir will start caroling!

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OOC INFO

Welcome to the first part of the event! You can use this entry to top-level for the event, but feel free to use the log and network communities as well.

A few things to keep in mind: Firstly, there is no return portal back into town once your character is teleported into the Christmas village. They will have to walk back on foot or get lucky and catch a ride from a helpful citizen.

Secondly, please be mindful of how your character interacts with the setting. While characters are welcome to explore the town and ask questions, Santa Rosita is still a happy little suburb in the 1960s, where appearances matter and acting too out of line from commonly accepted societal norms can come with their own unique consequences. We do not intend to punish players for their curiosity, but be aware that the townsfolk may not be so understanding of wanton disrespect for their ways!

And thirdly, the NPCs will not be available for interactions. At the party, Harding will leave early and Clarke will leave to handle other business. Santa does have a schedule to keep, after all.

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 December 15th!

▶ NAVIGATION ◀
COMMS	logs \| network \| ooc \| memes
OOC INFO	premise \| rules \| faq \| taken \| applications \| hiatus/drop/canon updates \| activity check \| reserves \| mod contact
SETTING INFO	calendar \| setting \| housing \| npcs \| death and tranquilizing \| event suggestions/engagements

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Tree Lighting

[So that was her first tree lighting ceremony and like a lot of things going on, Kiara's really not sure what to make of all that. That mayor's speech was...well, she's not troubled by it or anything, it's just odd. She really isn't sure how she feels about that talk of tradition and enduring. Though who knows? Maybe that's normal for here? She's a little skeptical about it being normal elsewhere, but she's hardly an expert on these things.

Aside from those thoughts, she's busy waiting in line for one of the trees. She's not sure if her “husband” will be getting one as well, but since the line's huge, this seems like the best chance to make conversation with anyone else, really.]

I had no idea purchasing a Christmas tree was such an...experience.

[That seems as good a way as any to start a conversation if you ask her.]

Christmas Village

[And the new experiences just keep coming as opening a door and suddenly Christmas is definitely one of them. Though she's not really terribly concerned about it. She knows full well that there are way more unusual things to experience. So getting here was a bit strange, but it could be worse! She's sure she'll be fine and has little to worry about with this.

Of particular interest to her are things like ice skating, she's never done that before, so she's definitely curious enough to put on a pair of skates and give it a try. Also the reindeer. She's never seen one in person before (the reindeer man enemies during events back home don't count!)! So she'll take a moment to marvel at them pulling the sleigh. But really, she'll take a look at a lot of the activities whenever she ends up here.

Alternatively, feel free to catch her walking back towards town! She's less happy about that one. Not terribly upset or anything, but really, a return door would've been nice.]

Gala

[She'll be attending this as well, having found a dress in her closet that's the proper colors, sparing her from the loaner ones. Neither really suit her taste in fashion, but that's to be expected really.

The party seems pleasant enough to her, for what it's worth. Not that she has much experience with these sort of things. She's not really a stranger to festivities or anything like that, they're just less formal.]

So the village was his idea? How generous.

[That seems to be her takeaway from the whole thing while she drinks a glass of punch. She seems amused by the idea. It's not like she can really complain about it or anything as she did have fun, but she does wonder if it being his idea includes the odd door situation as well.]

Wildcard

[If none of these work for you, feel free to run into her anywhere during the event really. I'm at

opticblast if you want to work out anything specific.

Definitely a lot more competitive than I thought it would be.

[ daylight was passing by the line, having helped a family load their tree to their car just now, when he hears the comment and can't help himself in adding his own two cents.

while looking over at the impressive line, all for the coveted trees, he adds, ] The most we had back in my hometown were, like, little stands and stuff. Maybe a marker to place gifts. Having a sparkly silvery tree is definitely attention-grabbing.

[Hello, October buddy! She's a little happy to see at least one familiar face from that strange time.]

Then you still have more experience with this than I do. Christmas wasn't something my family celebrated when I was growing up. And while I was working, there either wasn't really much reason to decorate or the decorations had already been there for...well, who knows how long.

[She's not actually sure who decorates Chaldea for the holidays, but the oil rig most likely had stuff that had been there for a while. Leaving to buy a tree and bring it back would be a headache.]

But you're right, these certainly do stand out quite a bit.

[Whether that's a good or bad thing, she's not sure given that she recalls something about holiday decor and zombies.]

[ eyyyy. hey there, fellow october buddy. 👈 😎 👈 nice to see there's someone else to be quietly weirded out with what's going down.

seeing he no longer needs to act so cheerful and update, daylight allows some of the exhaustion (and confusion, definitely the confusion) to seep through his slumped shoulders, tentative frown. he stuffs his hands in the pockets of his jacket, huffing a bit while trying to sort out his thoughts. ]

... Definitely matches the intense energy everyone had with Halloween. [ yeah. let's say word it like that. ] Someone mentioned how these trees might be needed to protect us like how the jack-o-lanterns did and urgh. I hope that's not the case.

or, at the very least, he hoped buying the little stands would be enough.

[She'll let him have that moment to kind of relax, she knows how important moments like that are (even if frowning and being exhausted isn't really relaxing), but soon enough she'll respond.]

And here I was hoping I'd imagined the whole thing.

[Not that she really thought that as her imagination doesn't usually cook up things like that. But still, it's nice to speak to someone else who remembers that happening.]

Certainly if the trees are similar, they're worth every penny.

[Or at least she figures most people would think so.]

I hope. Otherwise, these are going to be really expensive decorations.

[ ... which is the point, daylight, but he’s probably still too keyed up by the recollection of the halloween weirdness to really think about it.

he glances over the family that passes him and kiara by, happily chatting away as they haul their large trophy back to the car. the man and woman catch his gaze and flash him big, big smiles, which he's quick to return along with a little wave. ]

On the bright side: This whole tree selling thing is allowing me to get on the good side of the people here. I’ve been offering to help out with picking trees or hauling trees back to cars and stuff. They seem to appreciate it.

[ is the sacrifice of his jacket's appearance worth it, with how it's covered in tinsel and more? hopefully. wouldn’t hurt to try and endear himself to the town, in hopes of getting away with future stuff or learn secret things from them. always plan ahead, as emer or dialup would say. ]

Gotten a chance to know the others yet? My neighbours haven’t been trying to shove gelatin down my throat so I think that’s an improvement.

[ certain individuals attempting to break into his house - twice(?!?) - aside. ]

[She'll smile and wave too. Keeping up appearances really isn't too hard for her, she's had to put way more effort into this before, so it's fine. Not to mention she really does enjoy meeting people, even if she doesn't expect much from the townspeople.]

I certainly have. I don't see any reason why not.

[She hasn't met breaking and entering guy yet, but even if she had, it'd be unlikely to change her opinion.]

Everyone I've met seems friendly enough so far. Though if I may ask a question about meeting people? The person you're living with now, do you remember living with them before?

[Because she sure doesn't, and neither does her new “husband.” So she's curious if anyone else has gotten shuffled around.]

[ daylight is quick to answer with a certain, ] Nope.

I already have a partner and Agatha is, for sure, not him. [ he hates he needs to lower his voice for this bit but... just to be sure they're not jumped on during their conversation, with how quick and insistent they get if you try to get against the narrative, he needs to do so.

thankfully, there seems to be a 'friendly' scuffle over one of the trees nearby so they can talk normally without worries of eavesdroppers. ] Besides, we both quickly learned we're from really different time periods. She's from the 19th century. I'm from the 23rd century.

[ and he's pretty sure he wasn't involved in any time travel shenanigans recently. ]

Forgive me, I don't mean to cause any issues between you and the townspeople. But I felt like I needed to ask.

[She hasn't run into anyone yet who actually knew their new spouse before. So that just adds further confirmation there. And she really doesn't bat an eye at him saying he's from the 23rd century, though she lowers her voice as well. If anything really, it's nice to know that some sort of life will still exist at that point.]

And I can imagine dealing with the time period would be...a bit of an adjustment. I'm from the 21st myself, and my...husband is...well, I'm actually not entirely sure. Still, the 23rd? I have to imagine that whatever difficulties I'm having with adjusting to living here must pale in comparison.

[Where she comes from is a little more advanced than it should be for the time period and that's not really counting things specific to her situation, but still!

And she'll just glance over at the scuffle, it's astounding really. All that for some aluminum and tinsel. Then again if it'll ward anything off, that's great. But seeing that even the weird...kind of robotic townspeople reduced to their baser instincts makes her frown momentarily.

She doesn't stay frowning for too long though, turning her attention back to Daylight and smiling a bit.]

Still, you seem to be handling yourself well. It's commendable really.

CHAPTER ONE, PART 1: A HOLLY JOLLY HOLIDAY

Do you hear what I hear?

DECEMBER 5th

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A MYSTERIOUS VILLAGE

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THE MAYOR HAS INVITED YOU...

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OOC INFO

Kiara Sessyoin | Fate/Grand Order

( tree lighting! )

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Christmas Village

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Christmas Village

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