acatalepsy_logs | SUMMER FESTIVAL: TEMPLE OF BEGINNINGS

It’s something like summer here at the Temple of Beginnings, or close enough to it. The weather’s been rainy and hazy for the past little while, but that doesn’t mean we can’t find some way to enjoy ourselves, right?

The day dawns cloudy and drizzly, but people seem determined to carry on anyway. The space slowly takes recognizable shape as a festival, even if a small one. There are tents set up outside, some of which are transformed into game opportunities, complete with prizes (some of an...interesting nature), surprisingly sophisticated target shooting games, ring toss, and other activities of skill and chance. A few more become stations for the food and drink that had been prepared, and the rest consist of chairs under canopies for people to sit and talk in case the rain continues.

Luckily, as the day goes on, the rain stops and the clouds move on, until the blue of the sky is visible once again. By early afternoon, there are only a few scattered clouds still remaining, and it seems likely that the weather will hold true for the evening. Strings of paper lanterns and other decorations are brought out and hung between the different stalls, around the makeshift stage, and placed at the tables. Some pots of bamboo are brought out and set in two clusters at either end of the line of tents. Each cluster has a corresponding table with strips of colorful paper and pens laid out carefully on a table and weighted down with rocks to prevent them from flying off.

A handful of figures come out and inspect the set-up, focusing especially on a shallow ditch that had been dug earlier, now drained and lined with weighted down tarp and rocks, running parallel to the tents and curving to end abruptly just beyond the fire pit and the stage at both ends. After some discussion between them, there is a flash of flame, as though something were burning, and then the strangest thing happens. The ditch fills with fresh, clear water. Even after a few hours, the water doesn't drain away or grow stagnant, still flowing somehow despite having nowhere to come from or go to.

The sunset that day is a brilliant, auspicious red, and evening sets in with a cooling breeze refreshing everyone outside. As the first stars appear, the lanterns are set alight, the music starts, and the first performer steps out onto the stage, surrounded by floating light.

SUMMER FESTIVAL
Welcome to the summer(ish) festival for Astoria’s Circle! We hope you have a wonderful time.

Layout
Even from the buildings that are actually being lived in, the lights of the festival are visible. If you strain your ears just a bit, you may even hear some music being played in the distance, muffled by the stone walls. Why don’t you come join in?

Once arriving at the festival itself, you may be struck first by how bright it is. Light seems to be a theme, from the bonfire set up in one of the firepits closest to the rest of the complex, the lanterns strung up between the tents and stalls that are set up in a line leading from the other buildings towards the gated sparring area that you may already have availed yourself of. Just in front of that area is a makeshift stage, little more than a raised platform of wood and stone, also lit up well by additional lanterns.

Opposite the tents is the river.

It might not seem that exciting at first. It’s hardly a river, really, just a shallow trench of water about seven feet wide and one foot deep, lined with rocks along the bank closest to the tents, stretching in a not quite parallel path opposite the stalls and tents that have been set up, beginning at the stage and ending near the bonfire. The water is crystal clear and clean, and murmurs as if it is flowing from some unseen source, but it’s not clear where it is coming from at all. As the night goes on, and more people take the opportunity to make floating paper lanterns at the station located close by, the little stream itself lights up, the water reflecting the lights, and just beyond, the stars in the sky.

EVENTS:

Sign-in
While definitely not mandatory, in the direct path from the living quarters to the festival itself, there’s a table set up with sheets of paper and writing utensils where you can sign-in. Let us know (ICly!) who you are. Maybe add a fun fact about yourself. Or draw doodles all over the pages. Whatever floats your boat.

Wishes

As is traditional in the home countries of some members of the Circle, there are some bamboo trees in pots set up on either side of the little river, and tables close by with colored strips on loops of string and pens. Write down a wish, or anything you’d like, really, and hang it from the bamboo. Or, browse the bamboo yourself and see if you find anything interesting. Later on after midnight, they’ll be burned for luck!

Games
You’ll find the usual games in the various stalls, some with a decidedly cobbled together look, using what materials were available at the temple, and some with a little more sophistication, thanks to the particular gifts of those within the Circle. Try your hand at shooting a target, a game of chance, or take over a stall yourself and introduce your fellow Circle members to something you used to play at home. There may or may not be prizes involved, depending on which stall you find yourself at.

Food
You’ll find your usual fair fare, though with a decidedly cosmopolitan flair. The foods themselves are somewhat limited by what was easily obtainable within the Temple itself (or improvised), and some Circle members may have contributed decidedly experimental dishes. It really is a potluck, so take a look and see what interests you! Strike up a conversation with your fellow diners as you pick up your food and then find a table to sit at, but keep in mind that most of these are home made by others here, so the cook may be close by, listening…

Performance
What’s a festival without any entertainment? In addition to the music being played on speakers in the background by our very capable DJ, there is also a stage where you can show off your gifts. In addition to singing or other traditional performances, this is an opportunity to demonstrate any interesting abilities or gifts you might have, including new ones you may have gained upon arriving at the Temple! There is an additional sign-up sheet near the stage, so write your name down and what you plan to perform, and we look forward to seeing what you can do.

Bonfire

It’s a really big fire. Enough said (hopefully). Sit and relax, or chat with those around you. If you’re lucky, there may even be some additional entertainment. At a little after midnight, the bamboo bearing the wishes will be burned here and the festival closed for the night.

Lanterns
If you’d like to give it a try, there’s a small station set up where you can make your own lantern out of paper! You can choose from one that floats in the air or on the water (or both, no one’s policing this). Make your own design, and let it fly aloft or float on the water with the other lanterns, chat with others who are working, or just settle down by the water and watch the lanterns and the stars.

**If your character (even if you were just accepted!) would like to participate in the set-up for the impromptu festival at any point, or just wander around and ask what’s going on, please feel free! All the set-up would have been occurring in the space between the TDM and this post. If your character would like to handwave having helped set up, this post is also an option!

(( Set Up: Outdoors ✧ Set Up: Indoors ✧ Sign-In ✧ Bamboo Wishes ✧ Games ✧ Food ✧ Tables ✧ Performances ✧ Bonfire ✧ Lanterns ✧ Clean-Up ✧ or your own!))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Only Pidge? [ curious, but good to know. even if it is only to repair and maintain the castle, which is, obviously, important. ] Unfortunate, but I imagine not a surprise. It's a language that hasn't been spoken regularly in quite some time.

[ he pauses for a moment before offering allura a faint smile. ]

I also can't imagine that many of you have time to teach grammar lessons when you've volunteered to save our universe.

As far as I know. [No one else seems to have taken any lessons besides her, and...considering there is a common language among all of them ~~somehow....~~ the idea of lessons in Altean literacy haven't seemed necessary.

But Pidge...of course she'd be the only one to learn. Of all the paladins, she has been the most practical and logical of the bunch.

She returns Lotor's offered smile with a small one of her own, laughing a bit. She brings her pointer finger up to her mouth to quell it.]

No...there has never really been much time for peace and quiet ever since we were together. Everyone has their own personal matters to tend to when we did manage to find ourselves with some downtime.

[She sighs, eyes darting back to where her own wish hangs. A strange language among the more familiar, more used.]

I hadn't really thought about it. Everything I've read in Altean has been from the past, written by those long gone... [she thinks to all the logs on the Castle-ship, the logs they found in Haggar's lair...] It must seem silly.

Of course not; it's the opposite of that.

[ he's quick to say, and he seems to genuinely mean it, reaching out to catch a free hand of hers, squeezing allura's fingers gently. reassuring, understanding. ]

You've been without a semblance of your world for so long . . . I couldn't imagine waking up and not knowing, or understanding, what the universe has become. Familiarity is something that I think is all too dismissed as not worth exploring; a piece of home is essential, even if your home is no longer here. I've had the ability, and the time, to immerse myself in that; you haven't.

[ he pauses, at that, allowing it to hang in the air for a long moment. ]

But even with all of that knowledge, I had no real understanding of one-half of who I am until I met you.

[Despite herself, her heart rate picks up the moment he takes her hand in his, and her fingers curl slightly against his at the reassuring pressure he offers. She turns to face him, looking up at him, eyes wide. There's a warm comfort in what he says, reaching out and speaking to her in a way that no one else has ever since she's woken from her slumber.

Everyday it seems as though she needs to bury Altea further and further, getting rid of what is familiar for the sake of a brighter future.]

Lotor... [There's a small catch in her voice, then quiet for a moment as she searches for what to say in response to something so personal. She allows herself to move closer, wrapping her arms around him and pulling herself into a hug, cheek resting against his shoulder as she stands on her tiptoes.] I... [she still cannot find what exactly it is she wants to say.] You have made me feel hopeful in a way I never imagined I could feel.

You brought me to Oriande, brought me closer to my...to our Ancestors in a way I hadn't thought possible. [she rests more easily against him.] I am glad you're here.

[ ah.

there's only the tiniest hesitation before he gently returns the hug, cognizant of the fact that she's now . . . well, weaker. physically, anyway. in all other forms, allura is clearly just as strong as she had been when he saw her last, on the deck of the castle.

there's half a moment of pause, lodged in his throat, because this was never part of the plan. no, the plan was to use voltron as an ends to a mean, in order to achieve the end-goal. he hadn't lied, when he wrote down his wish, though he was being a little trite. lotor has a goal, and he must meet that goal. the universe, truly, depends on it.

but he had never bargained on actually growing to care for allura.

so he returns the hug, in earnest. ]

I am glad you are here, too.

[ quietly, almost into her hair. but he eventually pulls away just a little bit, brushing a piece of hair out of her eyes with half a smile, amused. ]

This place feels like less of a prison, because you are here. At least we can suffer through it together.

[It's strange how easily she feels she fits with him. How, for someone she had thought to be so dangerous, who had frightened her when she was just learning how to pilot the Blue Lion, he feels safe to talk to, to indulge in feeling a certain way she's not quite felt around anyone else.

His voice is calming, his embrace warm, and she's remiss as he pulls away even just a little bit, her arms still remaining looped around him as he looks down at her and she looks up. She blushes even darker as he brushes her hair away, and her own smile is warm. Happy.]

Yes. [She breathes that out, feeling fluttery, light.] At least we are together.

[There's a moment's pause as she remains looking up at him, eyes searching his, and she feels a surge of something that has her tilting her head, rising further up on her tiptoes to beckon him in for a kiss--

And in that moment, she feels the familiar scampering of tiny paws up the leg of her flightsuit, clambouring heavily up her body as Platt situates himself squarely on her shoulder. Allura jumps, unlooping herself from Lotor.

The mouse is tugging on her earring. There's something about being hungry, wanting food.]

Ah. [She laughs. Awkwardly. Disappointingly.] I-I apologize.

[ indeed, it's a certain lack of loneliness that comes with meeting allura. and, for the first time in a long time, his work seems to have purpose. perserving the universe, combating what zarkon has done to it . . . finding someone who doesn't seem to care where he came from, but rather seems him for who he is --

. . . the damn mouse.

there's a slight opening of his mouth, ready to ask allura what was wrong, or to apologize for overstepping his own boundaries, when lotor realizes why she suddenly pulled away. the mouse, tugging on her earring, demanding -- food? was that food? it vaguely sounded like food.

but lotor recovers quickly, with half a laugh, and he (modestly) brings allura's hand to his lips, to kiss her hand. a reassurance. ]

It seems there is food, in the nearby vicinity.

[ easily enough. ]

Shall we?

[His recovery is, admittedly, magnificent, and her awkward laughter at the interruption dissipates the moment he remains holding her hand, offering her reassurance with a kiss. It is...surely a gesture of grace, one she's familiar enough receiving from others of nobility, but from him...

Her cheeks and ears remain dusted with a deep blush, and she swears her heart does in fact skip a beat.]

Is there? [She asks it distractedly, looking down at her hand in his, ignoring the second tug at her earring from Platt. After a tick or so, she remembers herself.] Oh! Of course there is.

[She'll remain holding his hand, giving it an encouraging squeeze.]

I will be delighted to have you join me. [A squeak from Platt.] Us.

SUMMER FESTIVAL: TEMPLE OF BEGINNINGS

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