As the blustery winds and steady snows of January give way to the cool breezes of February, the city begins to notice strange trends amongst its volunteer citizenry: an uptick of online searches for things like flower shops and cheap romantic meals, a surprising increase in chocolate purchases (though, perhaps more surprising, no increases in consumption), and a report from the local pharmacies regarding a sudden shortage in contraceptives, of all things! Consider the administration officially flummoxed — that is, until the city's favorite and only volunteer coordinators begin to investigate further.
You see, Valentine's Day isn't quite the thing in Cadelle. Here, St Valentine never led couples in matrimony under Roman rule, and so, no time-honored capitalist dream could be established. However, the date of February the 14th is still a special one in the city — it's the day that many honor as St Trifon's Day, or "Winemaker's Day". It's a day of celebrating the first pour of the prior year's winemaking, with the first bottle of each vintage reserved for drinking with one's special someone... preferably privately, where post-drink merriment may commence uninterrupted. (Scandalous.)
Not wanting to leave out any of their volunteers from the city's special day, the volunteer coordinators have arranged a collection of meeting locations, each perfect for getting to know a potential special somebody in advance of the big day. To help people get acquainted, they've partnered with that reclusive (and anonymous) mogul behind okCuddle to add a limited time special feature for the season — that's right, a matchmaker!
Simply press the bright red button on your app's home screen to be enrolled in a Match Meeting. There are five unique locations, each offering a different experience to appeal to those who might find true love or common ground in its midst, and each location will host a different couple each day to ensure everyone has an opportunity to meet their one-and-only... or maybe just their one-night-only. (We won't judge.)
▸ Any opportunity to incite a little romantic feeling would be remiss if it didn't include the time-honored date experience: a candlelit steakhouse dinner at the city's best dining experience, DeWolfe's. Whether you're hungering for a porterhouse medium rare or a more demure airline chicken breast, the wait staff here will be more than happy to attend to any needs you may have, and delighted to disappear shortly after, providing plenty of privacy for quiet conversation and those ever-important lingering glances. Feel free to extend your night with a walk through DeWolfe's famed gardens out back, or perhaps a nightcap... the only question left, then, is their place or yours?
▸ Let The Good Times Roll offers those who enjoy athleticism and coordination an evening of nostalgic fun under twinkling lights — courtesy, of course, of the disco ball hung prominently in the center of the risk, a perfect match for the classic jams that are piped out from the speakers on each wall. Strap on a pair of rental skates, and when the lights get low, be sure to hold your honey's hand tight for that all-important couple's skate. When you're done zooming around the linoleum, be sure to try a bite of the rink's famous pizza and popsicles meal, the perfect treat for summer campers and kids at heart alike! Groovy!
▸ The Vinery, while not necessarily a classic first-date location, offers a bit of non-traditional romance with its gorgeous hill country views and a seemingly endless assortment of local blends to sample. Visitors paired up for a Match Meeting here will have the opportunity to enjoy a rarely experienced grape-stomping session, during which they'll become bonafide vinters (winemakers, for the uninitiated) and the proud recipients of a complimentary bottle of the Vinery's own St Trifon's Day special blend — the perfect reason to ask for a second date, no? (And if you don't want to wait, there's always the cover of a gazebo or the fields nearby...)
▸ Animal aficionados, fear not: the expansive nature reserve at Nahtazu offers an opportunity to get up-close and personal with your favorite wild beasts — no, not the ones in your pants — and one of the reserve's most knowledgeable guides to show you the way. Of course, since it's an hour away aboard the local trains, the city has arranged a private compartment for two, where Match Meeting attendees will enjoy a catered lunch, the perfect way to fuel for a long day of hiking, climbing, and maybe even a few jungle swings. On the way back, feel free to enjoy the plush seats for a little post-adventure cuddling... or more, we won't tell!
▸ At The Worm Hole, nerds and geeks and casual gamers alike will find plenty to shoot and score on over pints of everything from sweet ciders to dark ales. There's no shortage of games here, so if your idea of a great night out involves beating your date at Super Smush Brothers — and no, that's not a typo — you'll definitely enjoy your time here. To help set the mood, a special booth has been set aside for Match Meetings in the far corner of the room: get cozy, play some Pong, and maybe make things interesting. Strip Marco Kart, anyone?
Of course, those that opted not to sign up for the city's version of eHarmony won't be left out of all the fun! In preparation for the big day, Flora and Cornelius have put together what they're affectionally calling the single mingle: a weeklong invitation to enjoy the best in everything but romantic films and features at the local theatre. Feel free to come alone or bring a pal or two, and enjoy complimentary admission and select snacks each night — just don't let them catch you getting frisky! That's what the drive in is for!
Surprise! It's a Valentine's event that's almost not about Valentine's Day! For those of you that participated in our survey, you should have received a private message from our moderator journal with information regarding your character's match assignment by now. If you did not receive one, please let us know!
Because this event runs a little differently than many of our other events, we've opted to tweak our process a little as well. For your character's date, please locate your appropriate date and location in our BLIND DATE THREAD HERE. If it's still empty, your character has beaten their date to the punch (and maybe the free food, too). If there's already a reply, greet your date! (Pretty simple, right?) For all other threads, including pre/post date experiences, feel free to post traditional open top levels as usual!
For example: Flora may have a blind date with Cornelius on Monday at DeWolfe's, so she'll comment to the Monday thread's DeWolfe comment with her starter. This will make it easy for Cornelius to find her thread and reply. However, Flora may also be lingering outside beforehand looking nervous, or shopping in the mall the day before and looking for help in finding an outfit — these prompts can be posted as traditional open top-levels!
If you have any further questions specific to this event, we encourage you to ask away on our QUESTIONS COMMENT here in this post. If you have general questions, or prefer a more private venue, our GENERAL INBOX (and SCREENED INBOX) is always available for you. In addition, if you've got an idea for a future event, feel free to drop us a line at our EVENTS SUGGESTION POST.
Peace out, cuddle scouts! |
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cuddlecity2018-02-01 11:13 am
no subject
Not that he'd expect anything else from a mythological trickster.
"Uh, more often than you might think. I work for the FBI. I don't know if you're familiar with what that is?" He makes it a lilting question to invite an opportunity to explain, if necessary. At the same time, Reid moves another piece on the board.
no subject
Now he looks up, a little more wary now but still perfectly cordial. "Oh, I'm familiar," he says casually, surveying the board in the wake of Reid's move and the little ripples of positioning and predicting that always follow. "SHIELD has taken up the lion's share of my experiences with your various acronymed agencies, but I know of all of them. What is it you do for them?" And now he moves another piece, a sacrifice piece that might be too obvious a sacrifice.
no subject
"I'm part of the Behavioral Analysis Unit, colloquially known as profilers. We specialize in predictive pattern analysis as well as using behavioral clues to lead investigations in anything local law enforcement feels out of their depth on. Commonly, this includes serial killers, child abductions, anything time-sensitive or particularly gruesome."
Reid makes his move, and sits back again. "I'm not familiar with SHIELD."
no subject
"You work to catch the truly dangerous by learning the way they think, then," he says, also paying more attention to the game than to the words. His feint had half-worked, but Reid had countered it in a way he hadn't expected. He moves another piece in a different area, to draw attention away from the half-sprung trap for now. "I cannot imagine they enjoy being so analyzed."
no subject
"Essentially. Some of them enjoy the attention, but mostly they don't know we're doing it." Reid spends some time observing the board. "The way you commit a crime, kill someone, abduct someone, anything, says a lot. Where you place the body can suggest whether you knew them personally, or meant to kill them, or feel remorse." Reid starts to set up his own trap in response, and shoots him a half-smile. "As profilers, we learn not to profile the people around us unless we want to find out things we aren't meant to know."
no subject
"I should think such a skill would be difficult to ignore," he says as he reaches out for a piece, then reconsiders. There's something suspicious, but he can't quite see it yet. With hesitation, Loki moves a piece, to see if he can draw out whatever trap Reid is constructing. "When off the clock, do you not find it a challenge to stop profiling even those around you who have not committed crimes?" Or those who have, but have since committed at least a few acts to save others.
no subject
"It's not that I don't notice you evading answers, but," Reid shrugs one shoulder, awkward in this position, and idly reaches out to take his turn, still subtle, still apparently innocuous, "but I don't see any red flags, and it's not really my business. So the short answer is: boundaries."
no subject
It speaks to Reid's skills that he has identified Loki's quiet hope to begin counting Spencer Reid as a friend. Loki himself had not quite reached that realization. "The story behind them is long," he says quietly as he moves a piece, perhaps not as judiciously as he ought to. "And it is one in which I unquestionably play the villain. Or I had once done."
no subject
"I can't know your personal background, but I could guess from being Loki that there would be something colorful." In a supposed non sequitur, he goes on, "Trickster stories are used in almost every culture, commonly to point out social inequality, internal tension, or as an outlet of greater feeling that wouldn't be permitted within society. They're rarely as straightforward as Beowulf and Grendel. Tricksters are a humanizing representation of complex moral concepts, and are rarely kind."
A beat. "You can tell me the story if you want, but you don't need to. Remorse is one of the hardest things to hide. --Check, by the way." Keeping up three different things at once is about as mentally stimulated as Reid's been since arriving here, and having the emotional engagement to motivate him on top of the strategic layers of the chess game makes him give it his full and complete attention. It's satisfying, in an odd way. Empathy doesn't mean forgiveness; it's more complicated than that. Often, as complicated as chess.
no subject
And solving that little problem has resettled his mind. "Another time," he says quietly, sitting back again. "I would prefer you hear the whole story, and it begins a very long time ago." There was absolutely a time when Loki would have leapt at the chance to tell someone like Reid of the various injustices served him, but with Jotunheim broken and Asgard destroyed, the stakes are lower. He is beginning to see the value in the whole story.
"But rest assured, there are many colorful stories to be told," he adds with a smile that edges toward wicked. A humanizing representation of complex moral concepts? He could get used to that.