+ FOURTH WALL EVENT: FOREST PARTY +

[vitaelamorte]

Who: E V E R Y O N E
Where: The Forest!
When: Sept 7th to Sept 10th
Rating: G to PG-13 (please label higher ratings, thank you!)
Summary: Could it be that you (GASP!) don't want to be here? Do you maybe want to make like a tree and... leaf? Then how about you do the next best thing, and come to the woods to party! And don't forget to have a look at the Fourth Wall Master Post for event rules, puzzle clues, and more places to mingle!
The Story:

Beginning on September 7th, colourful ribbons will hang from several trees by the forest. Whoever follows their path will be guided deeper, right to the scene of a forest party.

Wooden benches, swings in all shapes and sizes, tree trunks, and other arrangements give plenty of opportunities to sit together. Tree houses and tents provide shelter, and come nightfall the festivities will light up for you.

Campfires provide additional light and warmth and a great place for ghost stories. Camping coolers store more than smores, and all around you nature twists and turns to give you room to dance to the music, to wander in the quiet, and to simply have a good time!

(...Are you the curiously perceptive, or the perceptively curious sort? If so, then you might also notice the small bird sitting on a branch nearby.)

Comments

[mandrakes]

[He doesn't flinch, exactly, but the flash, click and accompanying call of a foodstuff produced via coagulation of the milk protein casein all combine to produce a very perplexed expression as he turns to the source of all three.]

.. I beg your pardon?

[Regis is genial, friendly enough, but ultimately confused. The technology behind photographs is an alien one to him and one he hasn't yet come across in this place.]

[mypartnerintime]

[Max turns away from the photo she just snatched out of the camera and gives him an amused (if slightly cautious) look.]

You know, uhh, like mozzarella? Or The Notebook. [She smiles at her own joke.] For pictures...? Oh. You're from before photography, aren't you?

[mandrakes]

So it would seem.

[He can take this in his stride. After seeing the technology available in the clinic, nothing should surprise him now. This place has been full of little surprises so far, and it's been an interesting experience for someone who has several centuries behind them and thought he had seen most of what the world had to offer.

Noting the caution in her expression he smiles kindly and gives the camera a glance, then the small square she took from it.]

May I? It has certainly never been in my habits to shun the unfamiliar.

[mypartnerintime]

Uh, sure, I guess? [She holds out the photo for him to take, slightly worried about what he'll think- either about her skills or photography in general.]

It basically... makes an image of you and puts it on a piece of paper. To help save moments in time.

[Ha. Full of witty inside jokes today. She frowns just a bit.]

The first real photographs were taken in the 1800's, using cameras. [She holds up her own camera to emphasize the point, surprised that she actually learned something in photography school.]

[mandrakes]

[He takes the photograph delicately, fingers curled slightly inwards but the sharpness of the nails still visible. Regis is a vampire, and while many classical myths surrounding vampires across the cultures of different worlds do not apply to him, once certainly does - Regis does not have a reflection. Thus, he has never seen what he actually looks like, save for in paintings that he could only partially trust given most artists' penchants for stylising.]

To save moments in time. [Regis repeats, clearly finding the turn of phrase to be a pleasant one. He looks down at the 'photograph', and finds a likeness that he barely recognises locked into the small frame.] How utterly fascinating.

[After a few moments more, he offers the photograph back to her.] Your art, miss.

[mypartnerintime]

That's why I got into it. [She takes the photo back and looks at it briefly, satisfied. There are lots of reasons she got into it, really, most of which she only tells people she's close to.]

Anyway, I'm Max. [ She gives a little smile.] So what year are you from?

[mandrakes]

Regis. [He smiles in turn, successfully hiding just how internally unsettled he is by the photograph. A silly thing to find oneself shaken over, but seeing what you look like after centuries of not knowing is going to disturb anyone.]

Ah.. 1272, though we may come from different worlds entirely. [There are certainly some parallels. His clothing and manner fit that of the 13th century.] A fair indicator is the presence - or lack - of magic.

[mypartnerintime]

Oh. Right. Uhh, we're what you'd call muggles. We're all magically deprived. [Okay wait, she's really got to rein in how she says stuff for the more old-fashioned types.] ...I mean no, we don't have magic.

[She raises an eyebrow at him.] Does that mean you do?

[mandrakes]

I am no sorcerer, though they do exist in my world. As do sorceresses and many magical beings.

[He has his own kinds of powers that one might call magic, but mentioning them would demand an explanation and he has neither the desire nor inclination to frighten her by revealing what he truly is in doing so.]

Attitudes towards it change, but it perseveres.

[mypartnerintime]

[The extent of Max's experience with magic (prior to Wonderland) comes from books and TV. Even then, the potential conflicts and politics involved don't escape her.]

I bet. There's always gonna to be the whole non-magic-person versus magic-person thing going on. Any time that anyone's different, someone has to make a mess about it, right?

[The world is still stuck in high school, really: cliques and bullying.]

[mandrakes]

[She's bright. The delivery leaves something to be desired but he can't say she doesn't have an accurate grasp on the hypothetical situation.]

In unsettled times, perceived differences - both real and imagined - can more easily be twisted into threats. It breeds fear, which serves the ideals of those fighting to keep hold of their own power.

[His smile is small, tight, and the words come from personal experience. Repeated personal experience.]

Cities and nations in which the populations have already turned against one another can be controlled with ease. People will turn in those they once considered friends for the chance of some favour falling upon them.

[mypartnerintime]

[He'd probably have a less favorable opinion if he knew that she learned about stuff like that from video games and anime. But it's easy enough to see, even in real life, that being different gets you in trouble.

She frowns at his comments.]

That sounds like a really scary conspiracy theory. [Though she gets the feeling it's not just theory.] Was that happening where you're from...?

[mandrakes]

[She would have to explain video games and anime to him first, and even then might find him impressed. It isn't the source of knowledge that matters first and foremost, but the understanding of it.

To her question, he nods.] It always has, but rather more so in recent times I dare say. Easier to fear the mage living next door to you than to try and comprehend the foreign horde invading your homeland.

[mypartnerintime]

[Also, hey, video games themselves are pretty impressive! Just take a look at all these recent RPGs like The Witcher or adventure games like Life is Strange!

She huffs.] Sounds a lot like high school. For some reason the most important thing is picking on the one odd kid in your class. Nevermind actually learning something about art. [Bitter? No, she's not bitter!]

[mandrakes]

[Talk to him about The Witcher and see how long it takes for him to realise that's where he comes from.

He smiles, amused by the comparison even if he doesn't quite understand the context. They did have schools and colleges on the Continent, and he could easily infer from that what she might mean.]

An appropriate analogy, if you have been led to believe through preaching and propaganda that the 'odd kid' might inflict disease upon your children or burn your home while you sleep inside it.

[mypartnerintime]

[That... is not what she expected him to say.]

Okay. So it's a very watered-down example. [At least, no one ever accused Kate of being contagious or possessed or something. Not in hearing range of Max, anyway.]

At least you don't believe it. So not everyone's bad, right?