Tanabata - [Open City Post]

[stringmods]

▼ Evening of the 7th

 

Who: Anyone
Where: The entire city
When: July 7th
Summary: The Star Festival
Warnings: That depends who is there. Remember to mark your titles clearly if any warnings need to be issued!

▼ A tale of two lovers...

 

The bamboo leaves rustle,
shaking away in the eaves.
The stars twinkle
on the gold and silver grains of sand.
The five-colour paper strips
I have already written.
The stars twinkle,
they watch us from heaven.

▼ A festival for a growing city

 

It is perhaps the most classical love story that most of the Hinoto-Ri natives knew about; the story of Orihime, the weaving goddess, and Hikoboshi. Instantly falling in love, the two gods would often forget about their duties to the point of negligence in order to be together, so much so that the other gods forcibly separated them. Crying for each other's comfort, they were allowed to visit each other on the 7th day of the 7th month...as long as it didn't rain.

Today, the sun is high in the air, a small wind making the overall experience not too unpleasant. Clearly it's a time for celebration so the lovers may meet again.

In the Capricorn ward, at the edge of the Central Park of Hinoto-Ri, numerous booths have seemingly sprung up overnight. Colorful banners decorate every single tree, and you can spot the faeries fluttering about, the very same ones who caused the Visitors so much trouble up to just a few days prior, helping out by adding their own personal touches to the festival, be that a good thing or a bad thing. Most of the leaves are filled with perfect droplets of dew, reflecting the sun and giving everything a jewel-like appearance.

Even with the harsh life, Hinoto-Ri knew how to make each celebration special. The booths themselves had everything one could hope in such a festival, from mountains of star candy to spinning top toys to booths selling small bambo and basil plants decorated for the occasion. Booth food, as always, was delicious and fresh, and you could attempt to catch goldfish or even turtles if you had money to spare.

Walk around in the more traditional outfits or in your normal clothing, no one is going to complain in this mixture of demonic heritage and human initiative.

Giant streamers were attached to the largest tree trunks and many large bamboo trees had been brought in, covered in paper cranes and wishing paper, blank sheets nearby so you could add your own. In fact, it is encouraged! What wish did you want to write down today?

At night, entire rows of the city are covered in bright lights and laterns, the festival lasting until early morning, despite the 13th hour. Just be careful where you're going, they set up parameters for this, but it just wouldn't be a star festival without viewing them up in the sky, right?

The giant telescope at the astrology center is made public for all those who wish to see the heavenly lights. Just don't linger too long, as others want to get a glimpse too! It's important to share...

...Especially when the fireworks go off later at night! Not only are they absolutely stunning to watch, but there's an evident bit of magic involved in them, as they take on figures and animals, telling the mythological tale of the two lovers, now found.

During the day and through the night, you can hear sounds of the Taiko drums in the various public squares. There are a few groups, each with their own set giving you a listening experience unlike any other.

[Feel free to start your own threads! The festival is open to everyone, day and night and you can do anything at zombocom at the festival. If you want to get a better understanding of what your characters might see and do, these videos will help.]

Comments

[hanakozy]

"Oh no, don't worry about it."

She shrugs a little, allowing her smile to widen more sincerely as she stops a few paces away from Alcor. It certainly wasn't a language she had ever heard before, nor did it really much sound like a language (or very human), but who was she to be a judge? It might have given her a small start when she wasn't expecting the sound, but it's not like it did her any harm.

"I didn't disturb you, did I? I apologize if I did, I was trying to find where my escort ran off to."

Miyabi pushes some of her hair behind her ear, looking down for a moment as she began to speak before raising her head to make proper eye contact with Alcor.

[viditlibertas]

"Escort...?"

Alcor mulled the word over some, bringing his hand to his face and looking a little sheepish. To take that literally, it could range from a police officer to a "professional companion". Either way, he wasn't sure it was a good idea to...

"Would you like help in searching for this person?"

...oh well, the offer was out of his mouth before he could second-guess his concerns. He rose, going from sitting to floating in a standing position rather quickly, glancing down the street. "Though, I may suggest Persephone's abilities may be more useful."

[hanakozy]

"My boyfriend."

She clarifies, hiding her mouth behind her hand as she attempts not to chuckle at his expression; after all, he was a stranger, and that'd be rude.

"I wouldn't want to trouble you--"

Oh, he certainly was floating. While it was unusual, it wasn't quite that unusual given Hinoto-ri. But his next statement makes her face light up with a sort of silent 'ah-ha', and she presses her hands against her cheeks as they begin to redden.

"Oh no, I hadn't even thought of using my Persona, I'm so silly! ...But..." Miyabi's expression then falters somewhat, eyebrows beginning to scrunch with confusion as she further digested what Alcor had just said. "Pardon me, but how did you know my persona's name, or what she could do...?"

[viditlibertas]

Damn, his head isn't in the game tonight at all. Alcor sighed inwardly as she realized his mistake, scrounging up a lie almost too easily. It would be a lot simpler that way, wouldn't it?

"Some people are able-" ...to scan others' personas, but that wouldn't explain how he knew she could use Destiny String, or more importantly, that she was a scanner. Saiduq closed his mouth very suddenly, tilting his head down.

When he started over, his voice was a lot less light. "...I am able to tell. It's something I have been able to do for a long time. I apologize for not thinking."

[hanakozy]

She... couldn't tell if she should feel wary talking to this person or not. The weird language, the abilities, knowing things that he shouldn't know... his hesitation. Not things some people are able to do, things he could do. On top of that, he had no string, meaning he was a native of this world. A demon, perhaps? One that took the shape of a person? That didn't necessarily mean he was worth being alarmed of though, plenty of demons worked in harmony with the humans in Hinoto-Ri. Not to mention he'd done his best to be perfectly polite during the entire length of the conversation thus far, and it would be completely rude of her to make presumptions about him when she didn't even know his name... yet to dismiss the situation so easily would be potentially bad on her part. A careful hesitance, perhaps? It's not like she didn't have a fight in her, nor would the commotion a fight would cause be unseen by Eikichi or the others still loitering about. And with all that said, that was something quite interesting about this man that she couldn't quite ignore...

"I-It's alright, just a touch startling when you're not expecting it. Do you mind if I ask your name?"

[viditlibertas]

His frown only deepened at her comment, and he lifted his head, looking suddenly ten times more tired than he had previously. Maybe drained was a better word for it.

"I am Al Suha. I am a Visitor like you, but I do not...often spend time at festivals like this. I fear I stand out too much." He attempted a chuckle, but his face wasn't in it. "Nonetheless, I am sure you are worried about your boyfriend. I would not want to hold you up."

[hanakozy]

"Visitor...?" Her eyes trail upwards to above his head to where his string would be, but they snap back down to his face; she doesn't seem like she plans on pressing the issue too much despite the confusion written clearly on her face. Either way, she responds to his exhaustion with what she hopes is a reassuring smile, tone soft and a bit playful as she fiddles a little with her geta.

"My name's Miyabi, it's very nice to meet you! I wouldn't think you have much to worry about with standing out, considering the type of people living in this city. I mean, there was an Incubus demon wearing pants running one of the booths, I'm not sure if you can get quite odder than that."

She pauses for a moment.

"Mm, I probably should get going, though; Eikichi isn't exactly the best at staying out of trouble, especially this late at night. I hope we can meet again sometime, though."

[viditlibertas]

"...a Visitor of a different sort, in actuality."

That was all he amended to her obvious confusion, and otherwise listened patiently to her words. That one incubus got a small smile out of the albino, but he quickly returned to frowning when she stated her concerns.

"I hope you find him quickly. I cannot imagine that is comfortable." He motioned to the shoes she was holding, seeming a little curious at the display. Walking barefoot would be...weird, he'd imagine. Walking in socks, weirder. Stockings? He couldn't imagine what a stocking felt like.

and the shining one wouldn't let him wear them anyway hmph