pumpkinhollow: (Default)
pumpkinhollow ([personal profile] pumpkinhollow) wrote2024-07-21 01:43 pm

July Mini Event - Seaside Sway

Pumpkin Hollow Community Bulletin
It’s the end of July. Summer is peaking, hitting its stride. In the forest, frogs sing and fireflies dance through the night, and dragonflies go about their business in the sun. In town, farmers roll up their sleeves and young ladies swap out their many layers for breezy floral gowns. And on the beach, swimmers take to the sea for water at its warmest and young crabs climb up from the sun-drenched sand. Kora’s glory at its finest!

For about a week now, a flier has been up on the community bulletin board. :
Midsummer Beach Festival!
Join us on July 21st and 22nd for our annual beach bash!

Organized by the Temple of Sacred Roots in tandem with Town Hall, all townsfolk are invited to join in for seaside festivities in honor of the height of summer. Activities will include:
  • Live music (Sign-ups for performers will be available at Empty Pockets Music Bar)
  • Locally made strawberry wine from last summer’s strawberries
  • Beach pit barbecues for lunch on both days
  • A hot food banquet for dinner on the 21st
  • A fish fry breakfast on the 22nd
  • Paper lantern float
  • Beach games
  • Tents and bed rolls for beach camping
We look forward to seeing you there!



And, as promised, the festival opens up on the afternoon of July 21st, where the smell of barbecue rises up from Tawny Beach. Tables sit on wooden plinths to avoid sinking in the sand, bearing fresh summer fruit and drinks. Pork, fish, and lamb roast in a sand pit. Enchanted barrels covered in magic frost keep frozen treats like orange juice shaved ice and strawberry sorbet cold. A station for assembling little wood-and-paper floating lanterns can be seen off in the distance and Cormac and the Banshees are setting up for their opening set. Tents and bed rolls have been set up toward the Marina. Literally everything is decorated with thin golden coins on strands of twine, sea shells, and sea glass. In the center of it all, stones have been laid into the shape of a massive compass rose, whose center houses the makings of a bonfire.

Those who were here last year will recognize that this festival is much larger than last year’s, and was not preceded with desperate pleas from Town Hall for help providing food and decor. It speaks plainly to the health of the town now. Even with all that has been going on, the growing population and renewed sense of community and purpose have improved matters around the island considerably.

Near the tent area, a family of crabs (one red, one blue, and three purple) can be observed. The small purple ones are poking each other with sticks. The Limoncello has made port, and Royal and his crew are splitting helper duty with the staff of Town Hall, and are dancing and partying the rest of the time. All is as it should be. For once, there is no dangerous surprise lurking in the shadows.

So, what’s on your agenda? During the day, volleyball, swimming, and a game that involves throwing small fabric sacks of dry lentils into wooden hoops in the sand can be enjoyed, alongside a plethora of frozen treats. At night, food and wine and lemonade are served at the banquet tables and lively music plays on the temporary wooden stage for dancing by firelight. There is also the lantern float, which encourages participants to send a glowing lantern out on the water in honor of the lost and the distant, ending the first night in a moment of peaceful sobriety. You may also notice a charming stranger milling around, cozying up to Royal, and drinking after nightfall--- a woman with dark olive skin, raven hair that soaks up the firelight, and rum brown eyes who wears a billowing blue dress and (whenever she hasn’t placed it onto someone else’s head for fun) a wide-brimmed black hat.

Then, at night, camp on the beach under the stars or head home by additional lantern light. The festivities will continue until the following afternoon! Feel free to share your beach fit in the fashion show thread below, as well. Enjoy!
ss_buttcrack: (eye roll)

Sunset

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-07-25 09:57 pm (UTC)(link)
Oh look, it's his favorite person standing directly over him, isn't that wonderful to wake up to?

"Hey, are you okay dude? You look like someone used some fancy moves on you."
xiaoxiuya: made by mdzspring (Default)

cw: hyperbolic references to self-harm and sexual assault

[personal profile] xiaoxiuya 2024-07-26 08:31 am (UTC)(link)
For a moment Shen Qingqiu gives serious consideration to rolling over and letting the waves take him.

Of course he doesn't really do that. But he does cross his arms and adopt a cooler more in control face -- yes, while still lying in the surf -- and says, "Oh, you know. Just got a little mind-raped by an elder god, no big deal. Business as usual, really."
ss_buttcrack: (reckoning)

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-07-26 02:05 pm (UTC)(link)
If he's paying close enough attention, Shen Qingqiu will see the exact moment Crichton's smile drops off his face to be replaced by one of serious concern. Crichton squats down so he'll be eye level with the man in the surf.

"Do you need help getting home?"
xiaoxiuya: made by reedflavor (fan protect me)

[personal profile] xiaoxiuya 2024-07-26 06:25 pm (UTC)(link)
Eh???

Shen Qingqiu stares up at Crichton like he just started speaking a foreign language. Isn't this guy supposed to be the kind of irreverent joker that never takes anything seriously? So what's with the sudden change in attitude, huh??

"Oh no, I'm fine," he insists, not moving from his position lying prone in the surf. "Actually the water is helping a lot. Salt water has great purification properties, did you know that?"
ss_buttcrack: (reckoning)

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-07-26 09:03 pm (UTC)(link)
Welcome to the John Crichton experience. It usually takes longer for the clown mask to fall off but if there's one thing Crichton takes very seriously, it's people getting their heads messed with.

"Did that really happen? Did that thing actually get inside your head?"
xiaoxiuya: (eyes over fan)

[personal profile] xiaoxiuya 2024-07-26 09:35 pm (UTC)(link)
Shen Qingqiu groans and lets his arm fall over his face with a wet smack of soaked linen. "I let the bastard in, all right? I got too full of myself and thought I could steal useful information from him via mental contact. Instead I spent I don't even know how long having some kind of mental break while my golden core wrestled my mind back into a functional shape. Seriously, how long has it been? A week? Longer? And I still have the grandmaster of all headaches."
ss_buttcrack: (you kidding me)

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-07-27 08:26 pm (UTC)(link)
"If you didn't let him in it might not have mattered; you might have gotten it worse. I've been there." If an evil asshole wants into your brain bad enough, they'll rip you open if they have to.

"Since that night? Closer to a month, I think... Damn, you got scrambled worse than a Grand Slam at Denny's at three a.m. Maybe I should be taking you to a doctor instead."
xiaoxiuya: made by reedflavor (fan protect me)

[personal profile] xiaoxiuya 2024-07-29 03:58 am (UTC)(link)
"A month??" Shen Qingqiu raises his arm so he can look at Crichton directly, checking for any signs that he's being messed with. Crichton still looks disturbingly sincere. "Where the fuck have I been all that time? Did I die or --"

He starts to sit up. "I need to tell someone -- something --"
ss_buttcrack: (you kidding me)

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-07-31 09:15 pm (UTC)(link)
"Give or take, yeah." Crichton's dead serious. Scarily so.

"We all died that night, and then everyone but you showed up as a ghost after, all clustered in the woods. I'm told the ghost thing is normal." That part was a strange new experience for Crichton.

"Hey, hey, whoa, not so fast there, buckaroo." Crichton puts a hand on Shen Qingqiu's shoulder to try and stop him from getting up too fast. "I'm serious. I think we need to get you looked at by a doctor. If you need to give someone a message that bad, why not use a sending stone?"
xiaoxiuya: (tiny fuck)

[personal profile] xiaoxiuya 2024-08-01 05:52 pm (UTC)(link)
"I...forgot they exist." Shen Qingqiu rubs his forehead. "I remember being a ghost...I remember walking through the trees, walking and walking, for what felt like years...it felt like my head was going to split apart..." He winces, clutching his head hard enough to leave red marks where his fingertips rested.

"I've never felt pain like that before in my life," he finally sighs. "I'm lucky my golden core didn't crack right in half. Such a stupid move on my part...Hubris, your name is Shen Yuan."
ss_buttcrack: skeptical look (are u mad)

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-08-06 09:20 pm (UTC)(link)
It's like their roles have been reversed, now Crichton feels like the disappointed mom chastising an idiot teen in front of him.

"You really are damn lucky, dude. Gotta give it to ya, you're tough. Most people don't come out the other side of the spin cycle with their marbles still all in one bag." This is spoken with a surprising amount of confidence, almost like he has some experience.

"If you don't have your stone on you, I'll lend ya mine, but I'm not letting you go off on your own yet, Shen Yuan."
xiaoxiuya: (exasperated fan)

[personal profile] xiaoxiuya 2024-08-07 09:31 pm (UTC)(link)
"H- hey now." Shen Qingqiu gives Crichton a disapproving look. "Using my own deadname to make fun of myself is one thing, but I don't remember giving you permission to join in. It's 'Shen Qingqiu' now, thank you."

He finally pushes himself to his feet, by long habit trying to brush off his clothes before realizing the futility; they are, after all, soaked with sea water. "Why am I in my underwear?" he wonders out loud, too confused and -- to be honest -- sore to be embarrassed.

It's worth mentioning that what he's calling 'underwear' is still a double layer of ankle-length white robes, with loosely-fitted trousers on underneath. Xianxia has its own ideas about modesty.
ss_buttcrack: (eyebrows up)

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-08-14 01:06 am (UTC)(link)
"Sure you don't want me to go back to calling you 'Mom' instead?" Trick question, he's still gonna do that.

"That's only your underwear? How long does it take you to get dressed in the morning, dude?"
xiaoxiuya: (exasperated fan)

[personal profile] xiaoxiuya 2024-08-17 12:31 pm (UTC)(link)
"I'm a good person," Shen Qingqiu laments. "I've always tried to work hard and behave properly, so how'd I get saddled with a brat like you?"

He gives Crichton an arch look and holds out his hand, saying, "If you're my son, then be a good boy and help your poor mother find someplace to sit down close to the fire, won't you? My head is killing me."

You've heard of gay chicken? Well get ready for the latest innovation, straight from this weirdo's twisted brain: MILF roleplay chicken.

"And for the record," he adds, "It only takes a few extra minutes to get dressed, and my clothes are way more comfortable than anything you're used to wearing, I'm sure."
ss_buttcrack: (witty comeback)

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-08-22 08:47 pm (UTC)(link)
Crichton ain't no chicken.

"Whatever you say, Mother Dearest." He's strong enough to lift this prissy brat out of the sand with one hand, but it's damn tempting to just scoop Shen Qingqiu in both arms like the princess he is. Only remembering that deadly touch technique keeps him from doing it. Then they'll both need help up.

"Are you sure? Haven't you ever worn blue jeans before? Can't beat blue jeans and a floral shirt with the buttons open. Oh, hey, wanna see a magic trick?"

Before Shen Qingqiu gets to answer that, Crichton points a finger at a dry log of driftwood twenty feet up the beach, a streak of fire shoots from his finger into the log, instantly setting it aflame. "There's your fire. Happy mother's day."
xiaoxiuya: made by mdzspring (Default)

[personal profile] xiaoxiuya 2024-08-24 06:00 am (UTC)(link)
"Jeans are awful," Shen Qingqiu says with a disdainful little sniff. "They're either too tight or too loose, the material is coarse and stiff, and they're impossible to get tailored. You just like them before you don't know any better, poor thing."

He does raise an eyebrow though, a little impressed by the pyrotechnic display. Just a little. "Such a good boy," he sarcastically gushes, patting Crichton's arm. "So talented. What other tricks have you learned?"
ss_buttcrack: (eye roll)

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-08-27 02:31 am (UTC)(link)
"If you're so sure about that then lend me some of yours and let me feel the difference." And we've moved on to playing Pants Chicken now, great job boys.

"I can shoot lightning from my fingertips too, but I don't think you want me doing that while you're still sopping wet. Besides, it's your turn to show and tell. What did you mean by your 'golden core?'"
xiaoxiuya: made by mdzspring (Default)

[personal profile] xiaoxiuya 2024-08-27 05:29 pm (UTC)(link)
"Maybe I will!" Shen Qingqiu says archly. And just like that, Crichton can look forward to a new set of robes with soft linen trousers this Givingstide. So there.

"My golden core is...it's the seat of my power. You might think of it as a sort of addition organ, here in my lower belly." He pats the general proximity of his navel. "Young cultivators practice techniques to increase their spiritual powers, and they meditate in spots with high concentrations of the stuff to draw more in from the environment. Eventually, if they do it right, it sort of coalesces and solidifies into a...a ball. A golden ball inside the body. And after that it can be used as a battery for greater spellwork."
ss_buttcrack: (looking good)

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-08-27 05:40 pm (UTC)(link)
"Good. I hope you do." Hope Shen Qingqiu realizes Crichton's gonna be asking for help putting those pants on the right way, so it's a gift that will keep on giving.

"Huh. I was expecting something a lot less physical." He doesn't doubt it. He's seen stranger things in his travels, but that kind of name really did sound metaphorical. He didn't think there would be an actual organ involved.

"Would you know for sure if it's been damaged permanently? Is it something you can feel?"
xiaoxiuya: made by mdzspring (Default)

[personal profile] xiaoxiuya 2024-08-27 06:13 pm (UTC)(link)
"I'd known if it was cracked," Shen Qingqiu says immediately. "I'd know it was being drained or siphoned away. This is...neither." He presses a hand to his forehead. "It's all...tied up. Nothing left to give. Like that feeling you get when you pick up something that's just on the right side of your physical strength, but if someone put so much as a feather on top of the load, you'd collapse? It's like that."
ss_buttcrack: (sun bleached  regret)

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-08-27 06:20 pm (UTC)(link)
"Makes about as much sense as anything." Crichton answers with a tight shrug. "So, how do you usually recharge when you get run-down? I mean, you make it sound like you're running on back-up power only right now. Is there some spot you can meditate to, I don't know, replenish?"
xiaoxiuya: made by mdzspring (Default)

wrap?

[personal profile] xiaoxiuya 2024-08-27 07:19 pm (UTC)(link)
"I don't know --" Shen Qingqiu starts to snap, before shutting his eyes tightly and taking a deep breath. "The temple maybe, or if there's some natural spot on the island high in magical energy. But right now I'd very much like to sit down."
ss_buttcrack: (eye roll)

sure!

[personal profile] ss_buttcrack 2024-08-28 08:24 pm (UTC)(link)
"Okay, okay. Come over here and sit by the fire, then, crankypants. I'll save the rest of the interrogation for later. 'Least I'll be able to sleep tonight without wondering if you ended up face down in a field or something."

(The poor fools don't know they're going to end up as neighbors yet. Won't that be a fun new surprise? Plenty of opportunity for Crichton to pester him later~)