cuddlecity | EVENT: THE FIRE IS SO DELIGHTFUL.

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EVENT: THE FIRE IS SO DELIGHTFUL.

It's the most wonderful time of the year — whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, or even the classic "festivus for the rest of us", this time of year is the holly jolliest all over the world. That's right, cuddlers, it's officially winter in Cadelle, and with no time to spare!

The Energy Festival takes place in time with the changing of the seasons — a time when energy is high in the air, released after a long (and hopefully bountiful) harvest; it's a time-honored tradition in the city where citizens gather together and welcome in the new year and reflect on the old. It's a little solemn, a little hopeful, and sometimes a little bit of both. Strap on your trapper hat, lace up your snow shoes, and be sure to grab your mittens — it may be a little cold outside, baby, but it's definitely warm in our hearts. (Awww.)

Over the month of December, you may have noticed the city's administration and volunteer corps gathering twigs, branches, and fallen trees from the forests, piling them high along the beach in a wide circle. On the evening of the twenty-second, once the sun has dipped beneath the horizon to leave the sky milky black, the collected woods are gathered up and finally put to purpose: a merrily roaring bonfire, tended with care to ensure the flames survive overnight and throughout the duration of the three-day-long festival.

▸ Feeling particularly peckish? Much like your everyday Boy Scout campfire, there are plenty of snacks and sweets best enjoyed with good company around the dancing flames. S'mores kits are available for a small donation to the city's charitable organizations, and options like popcorn packs and roasted sausages can be purchased for those in the mood for more savory staples. Of course, there's always the allure of hot cocoa and marshmallows, available at no charge whether or not you choose to indulge in the rest of the concession stand's menu selections.

▸ Once you're settled and cozy, be sure to keep an eye out for your favorite volunteer coordinators, Flora & Cornelius. They've volunteered to host this year's sharing circles, a tradition particularly well-loved in Cadelle at this most austere time of year. Surrounded by friends new and old and even those you haven't met yet, the sharing circle is an opportunity to grow closer with others by sharing of yourself — feel free to tell a beloved memory from home, or perhaps offer up a confession from your days here. Surely there's something you'd like to get off your chest before the new year begins.

▸ As the night draws to a close and sleep begins to call you home, consider taking with you one of the offered ceremonial torches. As any mother in the city might tell her child, it is said that carrying the light of the bonfire home will help to cleanse the air of any lingering negativity that may have accumulated over the previous year. Allowing the torch to spark your own fire — safely, of course, in your fireplace — is said to provide warmth, light, and hope for the new year to come.

For those that prefer a more festive winter experience, rejoin the city administration and all your fellow citizens within the familiar halls of the Ballroom Hotel. Here, the decor is once again bright and beautiful, with silver and gold throughout the room creating a sparkling winter wonderland perfect for ringing in the season. Even the grouchiest of Grinches will be sure to find something to smile about within these hallowed halls, between the dancing and drinks and delicious delicacies available around every corner.

Should you opt to venture beyond the pretty decorations, however, you might find yourself drawn to a pair of ornately decorated double doors near the end of a dimly lit hall. Push through, and you just might find yourself within the quiet of Chalice Hall. As the name might suggest, the room is simply decorated: all that can be seen is a large silver goblet resting atop a pedestal, lit only by the bright, unnaturally blue flame dancing within its bowl.

Strange as it might seem, you may feel a distinct urge to touch. As your hand inches forward into the goblet's roaring blue flame, you might be surprised to note just how pleasurable it feels. It's fire, so it's reasonable to assume it might hurt, but nothing quite prepares for how nice the sensation of the flames trailing a path along your arms feels. It's a warmth, like sinking into a hot bath on a cold day, and even as you step away from the fire, it lingers still.

Touch fingertips to the center of the fire, and be greeted with the chalice's reply: a thin scroll of parchment, somehow impervious to the appetite of the flames, upon which a simple instruction is written. This, brave visitor, is your sacred task. The city hopes you will attend to it well.

In the spirit of the season, your task is to give — not of material goods, but of yourself, giving but the purest of gifts in the coming days. Your task is to find YOUR RECIPIENT. Once found, you must give the gift assigned; tarry not, for this gift must be given sincerely.

Well, don't delay! The city administration, having gotten word of the goblet's reawakening this season, strongly recommends entering the provided address to your recipient's home (or perhaps their workplace, depending on your assignment) to find them and begin the giving season! Should you look on the back of your scroll, though, you may note:

NO REFUNDS. NO EXCHANGES. NO COMPLAINTS.
Hopefully that won't be a problem.

Good golly, it's almost the new year! With the reason for the season fast approproaching, we hope you find joy and good tidings in this most merry of events. From simple winter fun around a bonfire to heartfelt exchanges of stories or secrets, there's plenty for all to see and do during the chilliest weeks of the year. As a reminder: this event is icly scheduled for the 22nd through the 24th of December. We've posted it early to ensure everyone has plenty of time to enjoy the festivities!

For the braver or perhaps simply those willing or able to be dragged along for the adventure, the chalice of charity is a great opportunity for CR both new and old. You'll find that characters have already been assigned a random giftee, and while they may note their "gift" already indicated, feel free to be creative with how your character chooses to provide this gift! Just because the most obvious answer comes to mind doesn't mean that's the only acceptable one — after all, as we tell children when they begin to buy their own holiday presents for the first time, it's the thought that counts!

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.

We hope you have tons of fun out there this month, cuddlers, and we'll see ya on the flip side!

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Bonfire

Magnus has been in Cadelle for almost exactly a month, and he's spent much of that time delighted at how many celebrations and parties this city hosts for its guests. He's never been one to sit at home when the opportunity is there to meet and mingle with new friends and potential new friends, and the bonfire is just another opportunity to do that. But of course he can't simply make s'mores the conventional way, where's the fun in that? Look for him around the edges of the fire, concentration making him frown as he levitates marshmallows into little crannies in the bonfire inaccessible by toasting sticks, but perfect for turning them that crisp brown. Or setting them on fire, if he gets distracted, which is quite prone to doing.

After he's had his fill of marshmallows and chocolate and he's made certain everyone around him has had one or two as well, he quietly joins one of the sharing circles. Casting off burdens at the end of the year is something common to a number of cultures, and he's done it dozens of times, but it's always a comfort. He listens to the other people speaking, some of them telling long stories and some saying very little, and by the time his turn comes around, he's had time to think of the burden he needs to set down. "I know it was the right thing to do," he begins, hands laced around one drawn-up knee, uncharacteristically still as he talks. "But this year I was forced to turn over to the Clave—imprisoned her, for all intents and purposes—someone I...loved, used to love, very much."

Ballroom Hotel

The night of the sharing circle, he'd gone home alone to focus on the hollow feeling of cleansing that always came to him after unburdening himself, but the next night he's dressed to the nines, choosing silver for his hair and accessories to match the decor and the deep blue velvet of his jacket and vest. Magnus is on the lookout for wallflowers lingering at the edges of the dance floor, and it doesn't matter to him whether it's a man or a woman, he'll still approach with a friendly smile and an outstretched hand. "Care to take a turn?"

Chalice Hall: for Kimberly Hart

After the dancing comes exploring, and he's drawn to the stillness of the Chalice Hall. There's magic here that he doesn't know, he can feel it drawing him into the room and to the goblet in the center. He could resist the pull, but nothing in this city has seemed malicious to him, and he's been around long enough to know just how rare that is. Embrace it, he tells himself, and draws a little roll of parchment from the fire.

Kimberly Hart. He knows that name. They'd spoken on the network about the unseasonable rain. Well, Magnus thinks with a smile as he tucks the parchment into his pocket and bypasses the dance to head back outside toward the bonfire, he has a few ideas already.

( the bonfire, for all intents and purposes, draws her more for familiarity's sake than anything else. they're not particularly common back on the wet shorelines of angel grove, but she's sat around one bonfire that stands out in her memory, high in the mountains with four people who had become the closest thing to friends kimberly had had in a long time.

so it's with perhaps a bit of uncharacteristic quietness that kimberly settles into an empty spot in the ring of people seated around the flames, hands draped in her lap as she peers out into the night air. she doesn't recognize the man to her right, at least not yet, but he seems friendly enough. it's more than she can say for the curmudgeon to her left, drawn up tighter than a hermit crab with their head buried in a book. a bit of a weird way to sit down at a sharing circle... )

They haven't started yet, have they?

( she's only seen flora and cornelius in person once, at the halloweentime ball they'd hosted, but she imagines they're not the type to run late. )

[The bonfire is much less formal than the ballroom, and Magnus has toned down his style to black skinny jeans and boots, though he keeps the velvet jacket. It's cold out, after all. He smiles at her reassuringly, noticing that she seems somewhat ill at ease.]

No, not at all, you're right on time. I'm Magnus.

( ill at ease is a fair assumption. she's not usually one for baring her soul, but kimberly's been trying to embrace the spirit of the season lately. now that she's grown accustomed to the cold, that is. )

Kimberly. ( hands tug at the sleeves of her coat, drawing black a little snugger to her chest as if to ward off the chill. ) Is this... sort of thing normal for you? The TMI style kumbaya?

Oh, I've had my share of these evenings over the years. In some cultures, it's the done thing, all the time. But it's also the done thing to just listen at first, if that's what's moving you.

[The breeze has picked up and it's blowing from behind them, pushing the warmth of the fire in entirely the wrong direction, so with a few quick, florid gestures, Magnus creates a little shimmery circle of warmth for the two of them.]

That's better.

( she's not sure what's moving her. it's easiest, of course, to simply sit and listen; she could wave a hand and beg exception, sit back and let everyone else get things off their chest or spill truths into the circle, but she's done that before. more importantly, she's regretted it. holding back from those she's supposed to be close to only made her feel like a fraud. so, maybe this time, she should be brave. tell the truth. even if she's not planning on sharing that particularly sordid secret, being honest about her feelings at this time of year is something she could perhaps aspire to be.

but magnus' magic pulls her attention well away from her own battling thoughts; kimberly's eyes go wide with delight as they take in the soft gold shimmers in the air. ) Wow. ( it's almost childlike, the way she peers up at him, soft awe etched onto every feature. )

What was that?

That was magic. This is just a little shield to keep out the chill, and this is a warming charm, both very simple.

[The warming charm is causing the golden glow, the shield would be almost invisible without it, but both spells maintain themselves once he puts them up. Already the air around them is warmer, closer to a crisp autumn day than the middle of a winter night, and now that that's done he sits back, pulling the little slip of parchment from his pocket.]

I got this from a very interesting flaming goblet inside. Do you have any thoughts?

( she's pretty interested in the magic part. the inscription on the parchment? well, maybe not so much. which might explain kimberly's very eloquent reply. )

Uhhhhhh. ( seriously, talk about verbose and well-spoken. way to go, kimberly hart, you're really killing it out there today. ) Um. ( two for two over here, talk about the conversational mvp. ) I... have a boyfriend.

( and then, immediately thereafter, kimberly buries her face into the relative safety of her hands atop her knees, trying desperately to avoid looking anyone — least of all this person next to her — in the eyes.

her voice is muffled as she finally adds on, head lifting only a fraction of an inch, ) Does it have to be, like, pleasure pleasure?

I highly doubt it. This place might run on fun, but even if it does expect pleasure pleasure, you have a boyfriend! I would never.

[He gives the top of her head a reassuring little pat before scooping up a little handful of snow into his palm and beginning to sculpt it with magic. Even he doesn't know exactly what it's going to be, but that's where she comes in, if she's willing to speak to him after this brief mortification.]

Hmm...what's your favorite animal? And color? ...well, I might know the color.

Oh, thank god. ( because as nice — and, clearly, magical — as magnus seems, she's just not really in the mood for city-assigned things like that. ) Fun sounds much better.

( she watches his hands move with unabashed curiosity, laughing despite herself when he quips about her favorite color. yes, she's a little obvious on that. )

My favorite animal? I... guess I like dogs? ( well, more specifically... ) A French bulldog, actually. His name's Napoleon.

Oh, good choice.

[The snow turns pink, and then he narrows his eyes in concentration as he starts in on the detailwork. The little snow-dog sits on his palm and starts to get white markings, and in less than a minute there's a tiny French bulldog sitting on his palm, if French bulldogs were pink and white instead of black and white and also three inches high.

He holds the sculpture out with a proud little smile, and then it stands up and starts pacing back and forth on his palm, eager to get into her hand.]

Un petit Napoleon rose, pour toi. The movement spell won't last long, but he won't melt.

( her palms fold out, and the tiny dog scampers over; its impossibly small feet tickle as they move, and kimberly can't help her squeal of delight. it's just too cute! a little pink and white snow dog, just for her! )

I love him! ( really, she does. there's no cool girl posturing here; kimberly genuinely does adore her gift. ) Oh, my god, he really does look like him.

( one palm cradles the tiny sculpture, but her other hand moves to fish out her phone, where she easily pulls up a picture of the cutest puppy. )

I can't wait to show him.

Oh, how handsome!

[Magnus admires the picture, then touches the little sculpture and adjusts the color just enough that it matches perfectly.]

There, now you have two handsome good boys. [And from her delight, this must fulfill the requirements of the gift of pleasure, with nothing untoward or awkward or embarrassing.]

Is he here, can I meet him? I'm usually more of a cat person, but who could resist Napoleon? ...well, this Napoleon. The original was resistible.

He's my — well, technically he's my boyfriend's dog. ( does anyone care? kimberly doesn't care. napoleon may as well be her dog. ) But he loves a play date.

( with how cute this small snow sculpture is, she's just imagining the fun magic that magnus could share with the real deal. it would absolutely be worth smuggling him out of the apartment. )

He's very cute with Simba.

( the ballroom hotel is beautiful. it's always beautiful, of course, but kara's drawn to the blue and white decor that drapes itself so prettily along the walls and surfaces of the ballroom — it reminds her of ice, and so much of it reminds her of her cousin's special hideaway, that well-named fortress of solitude tucked away as an icy retreat for him alone. or for the two of them, nowadays.

she doesn't feel quite as dressy this time around, fussy caped frock traded in for a getup that makes her feel like she's stepped back into the catco offices, but at least she looks like herself tonight. that's a start. as is the friendly hand extended in her direction just when she settles in to watch the dancers spin on the floor. how can she say no to that? )

I love your jacket, by the way. Is that velvet?

( don't mind her if her free hand skims over the hem of the sleeve, curiosity and delight mixed together. )

[As he'd hoped, the lovely blonde takes him up on his offer and he sweeps her into the dance with a laugh. He's always enjoyed drawing people out of themselves, no matter where or when, but especially at parties like this.]

It is! It's vintage. [Vintage 1876. Looking after clothes is much easier with magic.] You match the decor delightfully, I might add, I love that skirt. Shall we test how it twirls?

[Without waiting for an answer, he twirls her to see how the fabric swirls out.]

Thank you!

( she's surprised by the compliment. perhaps it shows, in the quick flush to her cheek, but she doesn't let it hamper her from following him along.

after all, kara's not much of a trained dancer, but she's always found it easy to move when she's well-led, and magnus certainly doesn't disappoint. he twirls her easily, skirt fanning out around her with each spin; the sounds of her laughter echoes along with the tap of her heels on the dance floor.

it's when they finally slow from twirls and twists that she can breathe out a delighted reply: ) I think it twirls pretty well, don't you!

[He's visibly impressed by the time he straightens her out again, holding them both at arm's length for a beat before pulling her back into an easy dancing pose, one hand resting lightly on her waist.]

I agree entirely, I'm so glad we decided to find out! I'm Magnus, by the way, Magnus Bane.

( as he introduces himself, recognition dawns with a spark in kara's eyes — the name is familiar, though she'd never met the magnus bane behind pandemonium in the last multiverse she'd frequented; she'd heard enough about him and his club, though, to remember the name. suddenly, the panache makes perfect sense. )

I've heard of you! ( a little gasp of surprise tops off her outburst. ) The warlock, right?

( she's a bit giddy with excitement, and it shows in the sudden taps of her heels to the dance floor, energy rolling up and down her slim frame as she thinks out loud. )

Not here — I mean, I'm sure here too, but I was in a place like this one before where there was a different Magnus Bane, he owned a club? ( though, maybe he's not the same version of magnus. maybe it's like barry and the multiple earths scenario, and he's the earth-2 version of the fancy party place-owning warlock. ) Did you own a club? Or, I mean, do you? At home?

My reputation precedes me? It's so exciting when that happens! At least, when it's all the good things.

[That extra energy is going to prompt him to spin her again, and even dip her this time since the rhythm of the music invites that, and when he stands her up again he's grinning just as brightly. He's already decided against opening one here, but he still loves talking about it.]

I am indeed Magnus Bane, the High Warlock of Brooklyn, and I did own a club, a marvelous place. Pandemonium. I was forced to close it, alas, it wasn't safe for my people anymore, but it was a vision. Which the Deviant makes me miss every time I go in. However did you know?

( so apparently this is the same magnus. well, not the same one exactly, or he'd know about the last multiverse already. but a similar one. a very nice one, too. )

There was a Pandemonium. In the last place like this, there was a club called Pandemonium, I mean. It was really popular!

( she never went, though. not really her scene. )

I heard you were really good at magic.

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EVENT: THE FIRE IS SO DELIGHTFUL.

Magnus Bane | OTA

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