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

[trainwrecking]

N...no. No, there aren't bug catching games.

[Sig, you need more hobbies.]

Ahhh... Hinata... the only thing an insect and a reptile like a turtle have in common is that they're animals. [His science nerd is showing.]

But some of the games, they--they do have prizes that are... um, kinda cutesy stuffed animals that look like bugs! There's a ladybug prize, I know.

[robinsegg]

[Sig gives a long, long stare at Hinata. He slowly blinks once before he opens his mouth to say...] Turtles aren't bugs.

[And then he turns towards Otonashi, his attention caught on a ladybug doll.]

I like ladybugs...! I'm going to get one. Is there one for beetle too. I like beetles too.

[Sig likes you for knowing about bugs, Mister Redhead.]

[frequent_flyer]

T-they both have the skeleton on the outside! [No they don't.] So that's kind of..! [He gives up, feeling two pairs of eyes judging him.]

[And then Otonashi was hogging the attention and the glory with his logic!? Damn him...] Rrg... W-where is this ladybug doll anyway!?

[trainwrecking]

[Don't hate the player, Hinata..!]

I don't know if there's a beetle, those aren't exactly popular... maybe you could find a scarab beetle prize, I think people like those.

[He indicates two of the stalls. The, ah, knock over the bottles with the ball game and the cork-gun game both have it...

[robinsegg]

[Sig is determined to get the ladybug doll. So determined that he doesn't respond properly as he immediately heads over to the booths. Knocking over the bottles, or cork-gun game...? He tilts his head to wonder which game to play first.]

Unnn... [He scratches his head, having difficulty to decide.]

[frequent_flyer]

[Hinata throws a glance over at Otonashi, shrugging as Sig wanders off toward one of the stalls with a ladybug doll. Noticing that he appears to be having trouble, he walks up behind Sig, seeing his tough decision.]

Otonashi, you'd be good at the bottle game..! [Just because he was conned into being a pitcher for your baseball team, doesn't mean he's some kind of all-star pitching machine, Hinata...]

[trainwrecking]

[It was then that Otonashi again wondered how Sig had the mental capacity to be alive. It didn't seem like the poor kid even had two brain cells to rub together. Or maybe he did, but those two brain cells were locked in an epic duel to the death at all times, leaving them out of commission until there could be only one.

Point being, Sig is kind of stupid.

Painfully, cripplingly stupid.

And Otonashi is clearly not mentally present anymore until Hinata calls him away from deeply considering things (read: imagining a metaphor for Sig's brain).]

Hah!? W-why me? [Naturally, that ladybug is one of the bigger prizes.] You sure you don't want to try, Hinata? Or maybe Sig wants to play first...

[robinsegg]

[Cripplingly stupid, indeed. If his soul was not split into two, he probably would have been a lot better at conversing and thinking.]

I'll play. [Sig makes a small guts pose, balling his strange red arm into a fist. The doll would be more worthwhile if he won it himself, right?

He gets a ball to throw and takes a good look at the bottles before giving a decent throw, knocking a good chunk of bottles down.]

...Nnn... [He does a small growl as he stares at a couple bottles that were still standing, as if he was trying to will them to topple over. How much does he want that lady bug doll...?]

[frequent_flyer]

You made a pretty good pitcher for my team! Your accuracy was good enough to make up for your lack of athleticism! [Gee, Hinata. Thanks. He'll love hearing that.]

[However, his attempts to once again con Otonashi into throwing projectiles are interrupted as Sig takes the situation in his gigantic red hand and goes for it. Hinata's eyes light up a little as he observes.]

[That arm... it's perfect.]

Sig! [Hinata rushes over, buying him a dozen more tries.] Throw it again, but do it as hard as you can, okay? Don't worry about accuracy right now.

[Hinata... what are you doing.]

1/2

[trainwrecking]

Thanks a lot... Go ask someone more athletic next time, then.

[As if his ego doesn't get beat up enough by the combined forces of Noda, Hizumi, and Yuri.]

2/2

[trainwrecking]

[He'll pointedly ignore Hinata to focus on Sig, who seems to be doing an excellent job. Apparently the only way to motive this particular flavor of idiot is with insects.]

Y-yeah, you were really close..! I'm sure you'll get it this time!

[robinsegg]

[Precisely, Otonashi.

Sig, though, looks over at Hinata with the usual blank look. He looks over at Otonashi, giving the tiniest of the questioning look with his inexpressive face.]

...?