LATE SUMMER FAIR (NSFW DESSERTS)

[spoofer]

Characters: Ensemble cast, any/all characters of Xistentia!
Summary: The slow transition from summer leads to a fair, complete with whacky treats and activities from other holidays and festivals from around the Multiverse.
Date(s): August 26-September 2
Warnings/Notes: None, please mark your subject headers with content.

Late Summer Fair

I play my part and you play your game

Welcome to Xistentia's first fair, F.A.T.E.S.' excuse to mingle. The setup appears overnight on the edge of town, a nonsensical mash of themes and places from the multiverse. Haunted house and circus tent, facepainting, ferris wheel and carousel, game stands that seem to self-operate, dozens of empty shopfronts, self-regenerating popcorn stands. Pretty soon, however, the people start to come, bringing their own goods and wares. The population of Xistentia is 333, which is more than enough people to fill a fair.

As far as fair food goes, there are penis-shaped waffles^[NSFW] in various flavors, two-sticked popsicles for sharing with a partner, turkey legs, fried dough, cookies as big as your head, fried fish, fried lizards, glutinous fruits, and lembas.

And let's not forget, there is an abundance of alcohol everywhere. Beer, wine, you name it.

But of course, let's not forget the games. Many of them are low-key and prizes vary from the ability to change your daemon's color to any other natural hue, to free food, horrible writing pens, and stuffed animals. Games vary from whack-a-mole to bobbing for apples. Everything is free to eat, drink, and play, barring some excuses for barter with some of your friendly neighborhood natives.

Some games, however, are less casual if not necessarily more costly. The contests of finesse and strength come with special prizes from F.A.T.E.S. and...

THE WINNERS ARE

Note that the "prizes" do not stack. Runner-up winners will not get multiple of the same type of prize, and those who experience a critical failure won't suffer particularly severe consequences. If your character receives a dream or a "unique item," you will receive a reply to your comment on the mod announcement with more information.

Contests of Finesse

DARTS
First Place	Vanyel Greyjoy	The ability to "say just the right thing" once this week
Still Good	Era, Alec, Nico, Vex, Rosie, Aymeric, Jace, Amanda, Zeke, Kavinsky, Janus	Emotional intuition boost
Yikes	Magnus, Barclay	Daemons totally lose filter and start saying the most awkward shit
RING TOSS
First Place	Jace Wayland and Magnus Lightwood-Bane	The ability to "say just the right thing" once this week
Still Good	Era, Alec, Nico, Vex, Rosie, Vanyel, Rafaello, Amanda, Zeke, Barclay, and Janus	Emotional intuition boost
Yikes	Aymeric and Kavinsky	Daemons totally lose filter and start saying the most awkward shit
ARCHERY
First Place	Alec Lightwood-Bane	The ability to "say just the right thing" once this week
Still Good	Nico, Vex, Aymeric, Zeke, Magnus, Kavinsky, and Janus	Unique items
Yikes	Rosie and Barclay	Uncooperative powers (very minor, non-dangerous incidents) and accurate memory of silly dreams
SPARRING
First Place	Kavinsky	The ability to "say just the right thing" once this week
Still Good	Era, Nico, Vex, Rosie, Aymeric, Rafaello, Zeke, Barclay and Janus	Emotional intuition boost
Yikes	Alec, Vanyel, Jace, and Magnus	Daemons totally lose filter and start saying the most awkward shit

Contests of Strength

ARM WRESTLING
First Place	Ezekiel	Precognitive dream later that night
Still Good	Era, Alec, Nico, Rosie, Aymeric, Vanyel, Rafaello, Magnus, Kavinsky and Janus	Unique items
Yikes	Vex and Jace	Uncooperative powers (very minor, non-dangerous incidents) and accurate memory of silly dreams
HIGH STRIKE
First Place	Era	Precognitive dream later that night
Still Good	Alec, Nico, Vex, Jace, Zeke, Magnus, Kavinsky and Janus	Unique items
Yikes	Rosie and Aymeric	Uncooperative powers (very minor, non-dangerous incidents) and accurate memory of silly dreams

See also detailed dice roll information for: darts, ring toss, arm wrestling, high strike, and archery.

Kissing Booth

And what would a fair be, without a kissing booth?

Just like the rest of the fair, the odd thing is that there is of course no payment required.

Instead, a large and lovely lantern hangs behind the booth. It seems to glow a little brighter every time a kiss is transacted. It's hard to know exactly what this means, but considering that emotional intimacy lights the streets of the city, one might guess that F.A.T.E.S. is saving up this particular energy for something special.

But until then, it's a good excuse to make out.

Comments

Era Ra ☘ OTA

[astralera]

☘ FAIR FOOD

It isn't a widely-known fact that Era is somewhat of a glutton, but for someone so tiny she certainly manages it. When a tart or a boiled egg before a fight can mean the difference between life or death, one tends to develop an even greater appreciation for food no matter how strange it may seem.

Many of the fair foods aren't altogether unfamiliar to her - she loves cookies, and the ones she finds here look the same as the ones back home. Except they are bigger than her face and it is wonderful. Two are quickly placed into her inventory (a tiny bag that has no right being able to hold even a portion of those cookies let alone two) while the other Era picks apart and eats as she moves to the next food stall.

It is her personal goal to try at least one of everything by the end of the night (except beverages), and stow away extras of the best ones while she does so.

☘ GAMES

Perhaps she shouldn't have eaten quite so much before participating in these games, but they are just that - games - and so she doesn't care if she performs at her best or not. A stomach full of delicious food is more than worth the possibility of a slower reaction time when her life is not on the line.

Though her luck tonight does seem to be quite horrible irregardless of her appetite; the odd strangely balanced dart, the rings she tosses suddenly going off course, or her bowstring coming loose after a good start. It makes things more challenging which is always welcome fun to her, but in the heat of the moment had been rather frustrating. Era does a good job of making up the differences her bad luck caused though, which she'll count as a personal victory.

Era is not one to talk much and so offers polite smiles and nods at all of her fellow competitors, and quiet congratulations to the other victors. It was likely as much of a surprise to the other participants as it was to her that she won the High Strike challenge. There were others who had a great deal more physical strength than her (as she experience during the arm wrestling and sparring) after all, and she was the smallest of them by far in stature.

It was enjoyable overall, and she liked seeing the other competitors' skills. The one who claimed victory in archery was quite good. Aymeric also did very well... Maybe she'll ask him to train with her the next time she works on her archery? She has been so focused on magic that she has let her physical skills suffer over the past few moons.

In any case, there is much more to do at the fair before the night is done.

☘ RIDES/WILDCARD

[ gotta try all the rides. need for speed. and carousels. and those spinny death trap things. and ferris wheels. and haunted houses. and a circus?! let's go. idk what to prose for this section starter so this is all you get. ]

{{froakie / Era Ra#4916}}

kaz brekker

[ex_stony881]

a. arrival.
Kaz had been under the impression that there was some level of urgency — he had just been snatched from the jaws of catastrophe, after all, and is sharp with the need to get on with saving the world. Or, certain people from one certain world. The specifics are still a little lost on him, 'restore points' and 'data systems' all foreign concepts, but he doesn't understand how anybody can be making the time to play.

The tip of his cane digs into the dirt, pressed with the weight of both gloved hands as he surveys the fair with barely concealed scorn rippling beneath the pale mask of his face, radiating from his amber eyes. He ignores the gem-bright crow that perches on his shoulder, though it's been useful enough so far that he continues to allow its presence. Overall he cuts a fine figure — a far cry from the sodden, shivering wreck who had crawled up the warm golden sand stricken by grief the same way a much younger Kaz had once clawed his way from Ketterdam harbour. Despite the chaos of apocalypse and the absolute ludicrous dragon ride culminating in an impromptu dip, he refuses to let himself seem anything other than in control.

(That doing so meant avoiding contact with anyone but his daemon while his clothes dried upon the rocks — well, nobody has to know.)

The point is, he's angry, at first. Angry to see the scarce population occupying itself with a common fairground when there is so much else at stake.


b. kissing booth.
It's not much. It's just a moment, really. Kaz is on his way to some other part of the fair, but he passes by the lamplit booth, and catches the sly smile as someone leans across for a lascivious kiss. The giver's bare hand in the other's hair. The way the so-called client melts for it.

Kaz goes still, staring longer than is polite, but barely seeing the kiss, his gaze distant. He's frozen, thoughts stuttering, hands a claw on the silver crow's head of his cane. And then he tears his gaze away, tries to pull himself together.

Maybe he needs a drink.


c. games.
Games of chance and skill have never given Kaz the same thrill they did, say, Jesper. He didn't lose himself in them. But it's still a pleasant distraction, to study the game, see how it works, the best way to win. Some are very nearly unwinnable, unless he wants to endeavor a greater scheme involving a heavier duplicate of a ball that would better knock down the — but no, no, that's unnecessary. Especially when he can earn the same terrible prizes by memorizing the whackamole pattern, smacking the strength test pad in exactly the right spot to register a greater weight, or just some casual sleight of hand to take his pick of the prizes.

Kaz prefers to be the grifter rather than the grifted.

Of course, the resulting accouterments mean nothing to him. Remembering what his daemon said about the importance of forming bonds with others, he simply approaches the nearest person with an armful of stuffed toys and squiggly straws and toffee apples. "Want any of these?"


d. choose your own adventure.

( since two thirds of these are just 'kaz has an emotion' i'm open to assuming he's somewhere he needs to be to start a thread. also, action brackets are fine. )

nico di angelo ▪ open

[deathkid]

𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗼𝗱 ➨

[ having come to the fair with his boyfriend will, nico breaks off from him at some point to explore the food. there's a plethora of it and nico's never really been to a fair. he's got enough money to try a few different things and eventually gets to the penis waffle stand where he inspects the food with mild indifference. okay, so they're penis shaped. this is up there with percy's love of blue food ( the thought of percy pangs his heart, but he quickly shoves the feelings aside because he has will and will is all he needs ), and nico isn't sure what the draw is. perversion, he suspects, and is sure someone like vex would enjoy something like this.

figuring he'll give it a try, he forks over the money for one and looks it over. he feels a bit dirty, eating something like this, but it probably tastes good, regardless of how it looks. like the farturas of portugal. eventually, he takes a deep breath and then glancing around to see if anyone is watching, nibbles at the tip. it's surprisingly not bad and soon enough, he's chomping the rest down, unconscious of how it looks. ]

𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗿 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 ➨

[ now this is what nico thinks he'll excel at. seventy years in the arcade of the lotus hotel has prepped him for it. and to his surprise, he does marginally well. join him at the ring toss or the dart throws and he'll challenge you to a game. ]

This is actually pretty fun!

𝗸𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝘁𝗵 ➨

[ when it comes to the appointed time, nico heads over to the kissing booth. he's not entirely sure why he signed up for it, but given the nature of his stay in eudio, he's not entirely uncomfortable. in fact, he's sure will and a few others he's kissed before will show up and he's looking forward to that. for the time being, he waits at the booth, elbows on the counter with his chin in his palms. maybe this'll actually be fun.

come give him a smooch? ]

𝗮𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗹𝘀𝗲 ➨

[ want something else? hit me up at alkahestic ]

c;

[hasitsthorns]

"Hm?" is all she hums in response at first. She'd been sufficiently distracted by watching other people play at the fair games. Not necessarily anything analytical, but more appreciative of the competitive spirit. Then she actually looks over at Kaz and immediately thinks it was silly to be so caught up in that when there's instead an awfully cute boy offering her things from an armful of fair winnings.

All her attention shifts in an instant to him and she smiles bright as possible. Boys (handsome brunettes, especially) always immediately shoot to the top of her priority list. Even when maybe they shouldn't. A crown of flowers adorn her head, colorful streamers dangling off it intertwining with the golden threads of her hair. The very picture of a campy, carefree fair goer and she wears it rather well. "Are you honestly telling me you don't want this cutie?" From the stuffed toys, she plucks out what can only be assumed to be a giraffe. Good try, F.A.T.E.S., but not quite. Still, it does have a certain charm to it the longer she looks at it.

"I guess you could always win another one. Seems like you're doing pretty well."

[ex_stony881]

Kaz doesn't do anything so childish as wrinkle his nose, but he does look dubiously at the animal (which he has not quite managed to place as a giraffe). Of all the things for her to take— but then, he's trying to get rid of them. Best not to discourage it.

"Positive," Kaz says, and means it. "In fact... here, he comes with a free pen." Gloved hands swiftly come forward to tuck a green pen (that probably doesn't work very well) into the vest sewn onto the giraffe. She looks like the kind of person willing to take a fair amount of this junk.

[hasitsthorns]

"And a pen, too! How generous of you."

She is absolutely that kind of person. If not for her, well- There's suddenly a literal pack of dogs coming up on the two now. Eight of them, if he's inclined to count. One of the canines, a Golden Retriever, looks at Kaz carefully through his digital eyes. Her daemon. All of their tails have a gentle, tentative sway. Hello. New friend?

"Boys," she coos, reaching her free hand down to pet one of the Husky triplets. One dog gives a snuffle towards the stuffed toys Kaz still has in his arms. "Sorry about them," she's quick to say about it. "They're really friendly. Maybe too much? I can make them give you some space."

[healingdork]

[Will doesn't want to be greedy so he lets Nico work the kissing booth for a while or so before he comes sauntering up with a grin on his face like he's up to no good. He leans against the counter, propping his chin up with an arm and quirking an eyebrow playfully at his boyfriend.] So what kind of note did your doctor write you for this? Is kissing supposed to be therapeutic somehow?

Mandy Slade | OTA

[smileslie]

a. food
[Mandy had been a bit hesitant about this whole buisness at first; 'appearing nitely' at dingy bars was so far removed from the world she used to live in that it was, if not comfortable, safe. But the thought of bright lights and carnival glass had given her pause, remembering grand hotel ballrooms and shows that hadn't taken place on the stage.

But in the end, it had actually been more the thought of getting Arthur out that had made her give in to the whole buisness. Just because all the glitter had left her raw didn't mean it had to do the same for him, not yet. Giving him the chance to help her dress up and goading him to go have fun himself, knowing what might be ahead of him, had given her the confidence to at least put on the old mask and not only peruse the stalls but even go in for working one herself. Later.

Right now she'd split off from Arthur, shooing him off to go have fun, and was standing at one of the booths, laughing with true, unreserved delight at the 'waffles'] Oh, jesus. That is fantastic [she beams, taking one of the postiively pornographic treats, and biting into it with deliberate care, looking up when she feels someone looking at her and smiling devilishly at them. That smile might even come easier than it had when she'd been doing it for the whole world]


b. kissing booth
[It's been a depressingly long time since Mandy had put herself out there in anything like this fashion. There were been plenty of boys and the occasional girl in the last ten years, but it wasn't like this. She didn't put on a show; after Brian, she couldn't be bothered. They took what there was or nothing at all. Nothing had been the answer more times than she would ever admit.

But for whatever reason, the idea of dressing up today and selling herself in some sense had sounded...fun, actually. The way getting the boys fabulous for a show used to. It had even had that same slapdash feel to it, pulling a costume together from what amounted to thrift store finds. She wasn't feeling nostalgic, really she wasn't. But anyone besides Arthur who had seen in her in the last few weeks might be squinting to recognize her now, with her cherry red lips and a sparkling blue halter top, and some actually nice jewelry she'd borrowed from Arthur. She'd even pulled her hair away from her face so people could see her eyes, which were actually smiling right along with her mouth as she leaned out towards whoever was passing by. It still felt a bit foreign to really be looking like this, but it was coming back a litte at a time.]

"Well, hello there darling."

[The slight hint of an obviously fake British accent still wove in and out of her voice when she spoke, but right now it actually sounded playful instead of tired, so at least it was a fun kind of pretend]

c. wildcard
[want something else? hit me up at keenquing]

[ex_stony881]

The dog tips its nose up, snuffle snuffle snuffle, and the corner of Kaz's mouth quirks. Something softens in his expression that he would be furious if he knew about, and he shifts his armful to extend one black-gloved hand to be sniffed.

"It's fine," he replies, almost absently: his attention is on the dogs now. There really are a lot of them, but it's a reassuring friendly pack of warms and fur and panting. Amicably, he rubs his fingers behind one pair of ears and then another, but doesn't bend for a more thorough patting, because that seems too precarious. He'd rather keep his dignity — for now, anyway.

"I don't think I have any treats in here." He won a pennywhistle, but those can have so many unintentional uses that he's already secreted it away in his overcoat pockets.

[hasitsthorns]

While he might be furious about that slight softness - that she absolutely notices but isn't about to point out - she's charmed. He wins a lot of brownie points for that. Anyone who gets on well with her dogs does. The Akita's tail revs up in speed at that hand offered. It's enthusiastically sniffed, especially interesting perhaps because of the glove. The canines don't often encounter that.

Neither does Rose, actually. At least not in this kind of heat. Gloves are usually reserved for the Winter, in her world, but- Maybe a different time? A different culture? It's plausible. Anything is, really, when people are pulled from so many different universes. So while she might obviously stare just a little too long pondering why he's wearing them, she isn't about to ask. It might be rude. It'd probably be rude. (As if staring isn't in and of itself.)

It's easier to talk about dogs, anyway. "Oh, psht, that's fine. They're spoiled rotten as is, they don't need treats. Besides, they'll probably find- Ah. Yes. There they go." The furry hivemind follows after one of the Huskies who happened to catch the irresistible scent of a hot dog drifting past. Rose can't help but huff a laugh at the understandably confused fair goer suddenly swarmed by dogs all nudging them and making eyes at their food. She turns back to Kaz, giving a little half-shrug as if to say 'oh well.'

"Sorry, uhm. I haven't introduced myself! I'm Rose. Guessing you're new here?" A beat. Maybe she shouldn't, yet- "I probably would've noticed you before, at least." Why not? It's subtle enough that she can maybe get away with it being construed as nothing more than a friendly observation.

[ex_stony881]

Kaz straightens his shoulders and watches, gaze following past her, as the dogs converge on someone else. They approach a total stranger with open desperation and ready friendliness. It's sweet, when he should by rights find it despicably weak. But dogs have freedoms men don't. Kaz turns back to the girl introducing herself as Rose.

Who is flirting with him. He's certain of it, wonders if he should have picked it up before now. For all his watchful eyes are an excellent judge of character, he can have a slight blind spot when it comes to identifying interest in him as anything other than dangerous. His jaw tightens momentarially.

Kaz has built his immunity to his own interests brick by brick, because he couldn't build an immunity to his own stupid weaknesses. Even here, when hehas no status to lose, his eyes shade dark and he stares at her with unencouraging blankness. It's not rude — he doesn't want to dissuade what could prove useful. But it's cold.

Maybe that's why he wears gloves.

"I'm Kaz Brekker." Offers a gloved hand to be shaken, since it's free right now. "You're not wrong, of course. I haven't even really made it into town. I came up from the beach and was distracted by these lively proceedings."

[deathkid]

[ rolling his eyes at the goofiness of his boyfriend, nico can tell that will is up to no good. not that he minds. he's here for a reason and he's glad to see will. he reaches out, grabbing will by his shirt and tugging him closer. ]

He said it's good exercise. C'mere, you get one for free.

d.

[miss_brilliant]

Amanda is, admittedly, far giddier than she often is today. Sure, she didn't do spectacuarly in the games, but she was average at least and while that sort of result in the academic realm would have probably made her cry at some other point in her life--maybe even now--in any arena that involves her body, even if it's just her hands? That, along with the couple drinks she's had, has her nearly skipping around the fair now. In contrast to her and her even more-spritely Eevee, her gray parrot of a daemon is perched still on her shoulder, but even when it's not giving her some sort of information outloud she can feel it buzzing in the part of her brain that had come alive after the prison world, and that's also really nice.

In a word, she's happy. And when she's come down, she'll feel awful about that because she'll remember Nick and the rest of the Destiny's crew and everyone back on Earth, but for now she's letting herself be proud of doing well at a few games and enjoying one of the few things that reminds of her childhood before and doesn't make her sad.

Which is why she's so momentarily distracted in getting a candied apple that she doesn't notice Hedy darting away immediately, and when she turns she sees that while the Eevee isn't running, she is walking curiously up to a man with a cane. Amanda starts walking over as quickly as her slightly tipsy feet will allow--Heddy doesn't usually trip her up anymore, but they know each other.

"Hedy!--Hey, sorry," she grins sheepishy as the pokemon seems to almost huff at being stopped from going to greet a new friend as her owner catches up to her.

[ex_stony881]

Kaz had simply paused for a breath and to reorient himself amongst the flashing lights of the fair, leaning heavily on his cane, but his stance shifts at the approach of the little Pokémon. He doesn't recognize the species at all, and he gently lifts his cane, ready to nudge it away from sniffing at his shoes — or take more serious measures if it proves to be dangerous. It might be small and cute, but he knows better than to judge by appearances.

The owner comes running up soon after, which is a relief; it means the creature, whatever it is, is likely domesticated — and it does resemble a dog of some sort, one of the little handbag creatures wealthy merch women like to pamper. He relaxes a modicum.

"It's no problem." His voice is a deep, smoky rasp. He takes the measure of the woman approaching him in one long sweep of his gaze. Clumsy, or tipsy. Modest. Not particularly a threat. So he allows his curiosity to keep him talking. "Is that animal native to this place?"

[hasitsthorns]

Swing

and a miss. It's sort of strange, in away. Rose spent the better part of a year having almost any advance reciprocated near instantaneously. Even the ones that weren't, she took as a personal challenge. Like Jaden and his playing hard to get, his mixed signals and wanting to keep things causal. The chase is a unique brand of fun.

This isn't a challenge though. This is a cold stone wall; the dark tinge his eyes take have her instincts immediately say that to try and chase down this rabbit hole might be a bad idea. Not that entertaining bad ideas is anything new for her. Still.

His chill is met with warmth. She smiles all the while, not seeming to be put off in the slightest. "Nice to meet you, dude," is said as she takes his hand and gives it a shake. "Even under the weird as a heck circumstances? Guess that'd be a bit of whiplash, actually, going from the beach," from the debris or the portal or however he'd arrived, "to this. At least this is a nicer welcome than last month's."

hanako 'rosalina' nurumi 🌹 ota

[hasitsthorns]

general affairs;

[ Before the competitions, Rose is zipping just about everywhere and trying everything the fair has to offer. She's hard to miss, flower crown adorning her head and loud laughter containing an adorable lilt. For all the shame she doesn't have, the woman still has enough of a shred to not partake in the penis waffles. At least not without a bit more alcohol in her. Ask her again after a few more red solo cups of wine and she'll probably be more inclined.

Find her stuffing her face, crushing it at some of the low-key games available, or maybe she'll approach someone with a (friendly) bat of her eyelashes, ] Feel like winning my boys some toys? They've torn up all the others.

[ If someone can say no to her expectant face, she dares them to try saying no to eight pair of puppy dog eyes staring up at them. ]

kissing booth;

[ Guess what bodacious blond bombshell is currently manning the kissing booth? This one, that's who. No one at all is surprised, she's sure. But she's all smiles and warmth to anyone who might approach. She's leaned over the edge of the booth's counter, giving a wonderful view of her cleavage (she knows, she wore this low-cut shirt for that exact reason) and if she had her tail out it'd definitely be wagging. ]

Kisses for a better cause? [ she asks. ] I'm glad to be able to put my skills to good use. [ Yes, 'skills.' Someone's feeling confident today. ]

wildcard;

(( ooc; hit me up at puddingandpie for plotting or just roll with whatever other idea you might have! ))

closed to vanyel;

[hasitsthorns]

Vannnnnyyeeeellll, [ comes a tipsy whine from his girlfriend. Who is currently sitting in his lap, no less. Speaking of wine, she definitely needs more. Because, because- ]

I can't believe I lost everything! I can't believe Kavinsky beat me at sparring! Can you believe that? I'm stronger than a fledgling, I know I am. It was rigged! Somehow, it was. [ A positively childish pout. ] These fair games always are.

I hate it. [ If he didn't know Rose was the sorest of losers before, he's definitely learning so now. The blond sulks for a brief moment longer before turning big brown doe eyes up at him. ]

Kiss me until I feel better?

closed to jaden;

[hasitsthorns]

[ She lost all the competitions she took part in, she got into a fight with one of her boyfriends during the middle of make out session thanks to her dumb daemon, and now she's half-drunk and upset. And still wants to make out?

Life is so difficult right now. Everything is terrible. Honestly, she's just about to be super dramatic and give up. Go home, maybe, and cry it all out. Then she sees a familiar face among the fair going crowd and perks up immediately. Without hesitation, she's chasing after him- ]

Hey, dude! [ she greets, suddenly at his side. Looking cheerful as can be. If he knew she was upset, he'd know there was drama. Drama that she explicitly told him wouldn't happen. She might be a bit tipsy but she's still clever enough to keep her emotions under wraps. Especially since she's hoping this is a potential make out opportunity. It's a bit of a long shot, she's aware, since Jaden hadn't seemed to want to get involved with her once he knew about her two boyfriends situation, which. That was fair. It's not for everyone.

Yet, they- They have chemistry that she genuinely enjoys. She does like him, even if in this moment she's perhaps grasping at straws and trying to make more out of it than it is. Making a bad choice as a product of too much wine and vulnerability. ]

Having a good time?

Kissing

[bratpack]

[ Wyatt loves fairs. Honestly, Wyatt loves anything like this, anything fun and loud and filled with people. It speaks to him on a deeper level. Or perhaps he doesn't have a deeper level, and just enjoys seeing so many happy people around him.

The kissing booth is it's own kind of fun, and he's pretty sure he's going to take advantage of that later. He wouldn't mind offering up makeouts for the sake of the greater good. That sounds like a sweet deal. But then he sees that the person manning it is Nico, and his eyes light with a more genuine interest. He saunters over, his wolf daemon Hunterd following behind him. Several cuddly prizes have been affixed to Hunterd, pack mule style. Wyatt plucks one off - a weird little alien that looks like it tried to be a dog, but got crossed with some kind of stag. Whatever. He sets it on the booth and leans over, all warm smiles and bright eyes. ]

Hey, Ghost King. Trade you an alien pup for a one-minute kiss?

[ex_stony881]

Even getting to the beach had been an experience to remember: the bright, feathery animal that had wound through the sky (like something from The Never-Ending Story, not that Kaz would know that). He'd been dropped off politely, but was too dizzy to even stand until his daemon found him.

"It was difficult to process," he agrees grimly, tamping down the soft internal wash of anger that threatens to rise like a blood tide. At least that gives him a reason to look icy, rather than simply as a response to her sunniness. So long as she isn't actively flirting, though, he doesn't mind. And even then — well, it's easier to bear if he can turn his own reciprocal flare of interest off. Nina's flirtation had never mattered because it never made him want anything, never felt dangerous.

Anyway. It's possible he's left an inordinately lengthy lapse in the conversation, just glittering obsidian-chip eyes, but he did take his hand back, and he does speak again. "I thought we were here to save the world. This," a loose palm up gesture, "Seems to me like a waste of time."

b!

[hasitsthorns]

[ It isn't her turn to man the kissing booth, but it will be soon enough. So she's scoping it out, seeing what she has to work with. Of course there's going to be someone there. She figures just some random fair goer she doesn't know that will likely be too shy to call her over. Most people did these sort of booths to catch the attention of certain someone.

Rose, however, (and maybe Mandy too?) was of the belief you could catch more flies with honey than vinegar. And she was quickly becoming known for just how far she was trying to extend her web. Perhaps not the best reputation to have, but- ]

Well, hello, [ she's quick to greet back, smile immediately on. Not someone she knows, but definitely cuter than she anticipated. She doesn't mind the faux accent either. It's kind of cute almost. ] Doing your good deed for the city and collecting some energy?

[hasitsthorns]

How very kind of of the creature. Rose still remembers emptying the contents of her stomach several times over into the shore from the violent, disorienting ride through space-time via portal. Definitely not a method of arrival she'd recommend even though she knows people don't always get much of a say in how they're plucked from their worlds.

She lets them lapse into silence and her smile finally wanes. Not leave entirely because it almost never does if she can help it but noticeably lose just a little bit of that shine. Morphs into something a little less intense. A little less obvious. She's definitely not making an attempt to flirt any longer. At least not for now, not anymore today. Given some time, maybe, and she might unintentionally make a pass again if only because it's become near second nature after months of flirtatious banter.

"This is how we save the world," even though it doesn't sound like she entirely believes that herself. "Play nice. Get along. Have fun. I've seen it work, a little, but only here. Couldn't tell you if it's actually doing anything for our homes."

[ex_stony881]

Play nice, get along, have fun. Kaz looks mildly incredulous, though it's not that he doesn't believe her. He just still doesn't understand how that can mean anything, help anything.

Still. They aren't impossible concepts, are they? He isn't so broken as all that... is he?

"It's not exactly what I'm used to," he admits with a murmur. It's forthcoming: he's warmed up a degree or two as she's chilled out. "Not since I was a boy." Then, he'd loved to have fun, would have been delighted by this fair. Now it's simultaneously too easy (the prizes in his arms) and too hard (the kissing booth, the girl in front of him.)

But that's quite enough about him; even finding socialization difficult is a kind of weakness he's not ready to own. "I take it you're not a new arrival. Have you been here long?" He throws a glance at the dogs, which seem like something established, a way of putting down roots. Unless: "Did your pets come with you from — home?"

[hasitsthorns]

She wouldn't blame him if he didn't. Before Eudio, she wouldn't have believed her either. But there was an entire city fueled by intimacy, somehow, with a fusion of magic and science. People driven by a promise for anything their heart's desired just so long as they kept the tanks full. So when that world fell, as they all did, as they all are, and F.A.T.E.S. said 'connections' were the key to saving everything, Rose didn't even think twice.

She's about to instinctually say something reassuring like maybe that it'll get easier, maybe she can be childish enough for the both of them. She's good at that, she's told. But then he's already moving on. It's an interesting balance they're striking now between hot and cold. Maybe there'll be a happy medium yet. "Only a couple months, actually." It feels like it's been so much longer, likely in no small part because quite a few faces were familiar upon arrival. People from 'cuddle city', like it was a natural progression for them to be shifted here where they could use that same sort of mindset to be saviors of the multiverse.

It does all sound rather ridiculous, when she thinks about it.

"But no, they followed me from the world I was in before this one. Not my home, uhm- An island called Eudio. Most of these guys I actually inherited from friends who left there. People kind of tended to get what they came for and leave but I planned on staying long-term... so I just ended up being that lady to give your dogs to if you wanted to make sure they went to a good home, I suppose."

[astralera]

Era has never heard of kissing booths before and she is definitely no stranger to fairs. It's not something she's particularly keen on, so she makes to pass it quickly in favour of reaching more food booths instead. With the luck she's been having tonight though it makes sense that Rose would be currently manning the booth and actual engage her in conversation.

She can tackle Primals and Behemoths head-on without hesitation, but right now she is lacking her usual confidence. Which is something she's felt quite often in Xistentia, if she were to reflect on it. Currently she is a mix of uncomfortable and utterly baffled.

"Hello Rose," she offers.