Event Log: Party Royale

[hadrielmods]

Who: All characters participating in the event
What: The event log for the Party Royale event
Where: All over the city!
When: September 22nd-29th
Warnings: Paintball, loss of consciousness, and partying!

As is par for the course in Hadriel, at some point throughout the day- waking up, making breakfast, doing laundry- you find an item. This isn't just any item though, it's a tried and true paintball gun, shining and just waiting to be picked up. This gun never runs out of ammunition, never malfunctions, and almost always hits the target that you're aiming at, so say hello to your new best friend for the next week.

Touching or picking up the gun will fill you with a competitive surge, which will likely increase when you find the note that's left with it, saying nothing more than be the last one standing. With instructions like that, how could you lose?

Well, you could lose if someone else shoots you. But never fear, there's a plan for that too! Even if you embrace the throes of unconsciousness, the gods have got your back and will eventually teleport you into a grand party where prizes will be handed out based on how long you survived. Awesome! At this party is also the traditional copious amounts of food and drink, as well as everyone's favorite goddess Delight and everyone's slightly-less-favorite goddess Rage!

Happy paintballing, and may the odds be ever in your favor!

► This log covers September 22nd-29th.
► Feel free to make your own logs as well
► Please tag headers of threads with content warnings where they apply
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!
► If you fall and break your neck or something because you can't die in paintball, please let us know here.

Comments

Michael Munroe | Closed + Open

[aroundthecoroner]

1. 23rd - Closed to Mello

[Michael reads the note before he even considers touching the gun, and the words give him an immediate uneasy feeling. Be the last one standing. That sounds... like something he definitely should not indulge himself in. He throws a towel over the paintball gun and scoots it into the spare room with his shoe. It can live in quarantine with the spider chair. Out of sight, out of mind.

Michael plans to stay inside himself, too, but his dwindling food supply has other plans. After a day, he realizes he's going to have to venture out. He's not exactly being cautious (it's just paintball, right?) because losing a city-wide sports match doesn't bother him. He's not playing, anyway.

But then he starts to realize that the city is even quieter than usual. He doesn't see anyone else, playing or not, and the only sound is the faint report of paintball fire. That's... weird... ??? Just in case, he decides to stick to side-streets, skulking around in the hopes that he'll spot anyone else before they spot him. He's not armed with a gun, but he keeps a hand on the knife in his pocket. He's not sure why he's so tense, but the gods are clearly involved, so something is wrong.

Michael peeks out onto one of the streets in the shopping area, trying to determine if it's safe to move.]

2. It's Party Time - Open!

[Spoiler alert: Michael goes down on the 23rd. He doesn't mind waking up in the colosseum once he realizes it's not full of monsters; beats having to sneak around the city. He's not very fond of parties, though, so he'll mostly be sticking to his room.

However, much like before, he will eventually have to eat. You can find Michael sitting near the food tables with a plate full of whatever spicy stuff he could find. Beside him, given its own chair, is a pot of venus fly traps. What, they've got flowers.

If you're taking a break from dancing or just not that into partying yourself, there's another chair beside the pot you can sit down in.]

party hardy;

[hasitsthorns]

Am I interrupting or-?

[ Rose asks, about the venus flytrap getting its own seat. He'll note that she is sporting a nice new leather jacket; it's a consolation prize, but hey. She's actually not too bothered by the fact, it seems. ]

[aroundthecoroner]

[Michael has just stuffed a huge pepper-covered nacho into his mouth, so it takes him a second to respond, and then there's still some food in the way. Gross.]

No, sorry. I can move it if you want. [He tries to put his plate down but it's hard to balance that much food on a knee.] I just didn't want someone to knock it over or something.

[You know. With all the drunken dancing. He finally manages to get the plate sort of balanced and the nacho swallowed, enough to actually look up at her properly.]

Nice jacket. How far did you make it?

[hasitsthorns]

[ God, she misses nachos. She missses food proper, but- Since she doesn't know what Kite did to her, she can't have Hope fix That Problem. Ah, well. They're probably terrible anyway. (She doesn't believe that for a second.) ]

Yeah, people get pretty wild here whenever we've got a party going. Understandably, there's not a lot of chances to have fun otherwise. [ It'll be good to have Delight back, for a while. She gives a prideful shrug of her shoulders after sinking into the seat next to him. Oh, he noticed her rad new jacket? ]

A few days. Some asshole sniped me or else I would've made it longer.

[aroundthecoroner]

[He gives her a commiserating frown.]

That sucks. Somebody tagged me on the second day. I wasn't exactly playing, though. Least I got something cool out of it?

[He moves onto eating something that he... thinks is buffalo chicken. He's not convinced the gods know what that is, though.]

fight for your right to paaaaaaaaaaaarty

[notimpervious]

[Brennan also tires easily of the party, and she must also eat. With a full plate and the knowledge that she cannot leave until the party is over, she walks away from the table, intending to go back to the room she claimed-- until she spots the pot of flowers.

How can you expect her not to be drawn to it, curious.]

Are these yours?

[Hi, Michael. She does not sit yet, but she sure is acting as if their first encounter was pleasant or at least not hostile.]

They're beautiful.

[aroundthecoroner]

[Ah yes. This one. Bone lady. Michael struggles to keep his face neutral. Maybe this time they don't have to argue? She complimented his plants, so that's... positive... for now...]

Yeah, I guess they're my "prize".

[He thinks it's a weird form of consolation, but it's better than the teddy bear. And he was saying how he wanted to get a plant, maybe...]

Always liked these things. Wrote about them a couple times in college.

[Which, in retrospect, is kind of ironic, maybe. Of course he was drawn to carnivorous plants. Of course.]

[notimpervious]

They are a very good prize.

[She seems to not even remember their previous conversation -- that is to say, she does remember it, but it bears no relevance at this moment.]

What did you write about them? They are fascinating plants, native to the Carolinas in North America.

[Hodgins would know much more about them and would be able to have a much more engaging conversation with Michael on the subject, but as it stands, Brennan is content to hear from Michael about them.

Is this a way of extending the metaphorical olive branch? Perhaps. It is hard to tell, but she is definitely not interested in being hostile.]

[aroundthecoroner]

Yeah, they are.

[Congrats, Brennan, you get a gold star. He's not sure if this is a way to make peace, or if she really doesn't think they were ever on bad terms. Either way, she seems genuinely interested, so he'll bite. (Hah.)]

I don't remember everything, it's been a few years, but I think one of the papers was about the evolutionary process behind the trapping mechanism, and the common ancestry between Dionaea muscipula and Aldrovanda vesiculosa. The, uh, waterwheel plant.

[He hopes this isn't coming off as pretentious. He's not normally this much of a plant nerd, but he definitely retained some of his 120 credit hours. Might as well put them to use. And anyway, she asked.]

party!

[toiletseat_girl]

[George lasts a couple of days longer, long enough to get a cool green leather jacket. she's not much into partying even during normal circumstances, so she gets a plate of food and looks for an out of the way place to sit

she plops down into the chair and crosses her legs]

Nice plant.

[aroundthecoroner]

Oh, hey. [Most of the people at the party are still strangers, but he's surprised by how many he does know.]

Thanks. Nice jacket. Did you get anybody?

[toiletseat_girl]

Hey, yourself. [she smiles]

Thanks, I kind of like it myself. And I did, but. He was just a kid, so I feel kind of like an asshole now. How 'bout you?

[aroundthecoroner]

Oh, ouch. Whoops.

[Not much for it now, though. And anyway, everyone woke up, so the kid's fine.]

I didn't get anybody. I tried not to play, but that didn't work out so well.

2

[ghostlocked]

[Harlan spots Michael across the party and two thoughts cross his mind immediately:

One, hell yes, M&M got himself one of the lame prizes too. Harlan feels a little better about being taken out on day one.

Two, fuck you, Michael, how the fuck did you survive longer than him???

He heads over a few minutes later, his teddy bear tucked under his arm. He's got a plate of snacks in one hand and two bottles of beer in the other. He drops himself into the chair next to the plant and hands one to Michael.]

Parties aren't your bag either, huh? [He knows a kindred spirit when he sees one.]

[aroundthecoroner]

[Michael takes the beer kind of awkwardly. He's not much of a drinker but it seems weird to refuse it?]

Yeah, not so much. Not really the "lose yourself in the music" type.

[And then he spots the bear.]

Nice stuffed animal.

[ghostlocked]

[It takes him a sec, but he snorts.]

I'd love to see you rap. Your plant would appreciate it, I bet. Remember to sing to it.

[Feed it some mom's spaghetti, Michael.]

Shut up. [He rolls his eyes, but he's laughing. This stupid bear is such a giveaway. Delmar needs to hurry up and die already.]

I'm only hanging onto it so I can give it to Delmar. He's taking his sweet time, though. I'm surprised he's not here yet.

2

[hot_mes]

[Law just eases into that open chair without any fanfare or greeting, like he's meant to be there. Thank god he's chosen to like people who share his opinion on parties]

You're up and around.

[aroundthecoroner]

[Michael doesn't mind the sudden appearance. It wasn't too sudden, so he's chill.]

Yeah, I am. Why me specifically, though?

[He's aware he was unconscious for a period of time, but he doesn't know exactly how long, or that he was lying in the street for a while.]

[hot_mes]

I found you. One of the first. [though he doesn't know how long Michael had been down at that point] You were a medical mystery, I couldn't pass up the chance. Sorry I couldn't do anything about it, though.

[he's accepted that people stayed down because the gods wanted it that way, but accepting doesn't mean he likes it]

Party

[imhisaunt]

[After the premature demise of Harlan, Delmar had hoped that at least Michael would make it to the end. He was there the first day, but alas that was about as long as that run of luck lasted because come the second day there was no answer at Michael's door nor on his phone.

Feeling a mixture of sadness, guilt, and fear Delmar leaves a small box of cookies in front of Michael's door for whenever he returns home. The box is somewhat abused thanks to Harlan's kitten that Delmar has been babysitting, but the cookies are intact along with a note that says 'Come Home Soon, Miss You - Delmar'. He hadn't been sure what to write but had thought better of 'Get Well Soon' for a temporarily dead situation.

Then at the party when Delmar spots the familiar quiet figure of Michael, he excitedly hurries his way]

You're back!

[He almost moves to hug him, arms half outstretched, but gets distracted by the flowers on the chair, blinking at them dumbly. He's never seen such a flower before]

[aroundthecoroner]

[Michael would've laughed at the Get Well Soon. As it is, he'll be very pleasantly surprised by the cookies.

He spots Delmar and smiles, standing to greet him, bracing himself when he sees the incoming hug. It's not that he's opposed to the idea, just that it's been a little while, and he's always been awkward about physical contact. But anyway, the hug gets interrupted.

Michael glances down at the plants, following Delmar's gaze.]

Oh, those are venus flytraps. And yeah, I'm back. Or, I guess I've been here most of the time? Hope I didn't worry you or anything.

[imhisaunt]

Of course I was worried

[Delmar, who had been nearly bent over by half in order to look at the flowers more closely, snaps back up, eyes wide and expression ernest.]

I was afraid maybe you wouldn't come back or that perhaps you were hurt and needed help...

[He then remembers what he had been about to do in the first place before getting distracted by the flowers and shyly steps closer and throws his long lanky arms about Michael]

But thats ok now because here you are and you are all in one piece-

[A beat before he steps back and examines Michael more closely]

- You are all in one piece, aren't you?

23rd, after much delay

[torrefied]

[As it turns out, Mello is pretty good at being sneaky, when he wants to be - all that time he spent on the run certainly made for good practice. The year-and-change he's spent in Hadriel did serve as a factor in making him less of a hyper-focused and highly competitive asshole - Near's revelation of liking him all along also helped, to some degree - but god events gotta get their influence on, so he's back to his old tricks again during this whole paintball bonanza. He spots Michael at a distance, from the alley across the street, notes that he's unarmed and considers briefly just how much of a victory it would be to shoot him, but ultimately decides to go for it anyway. He aims the paintball gun in Michael's direction, fires -

- and misses, with a splatter of paint landing on the nearby wall.]

after further delay:

[aroundthecoroner]

[Michael flinches, glances at the paint, then looks back in the direction it came from. He squints and kind of slowly, cautiously draws his knife out of his pocket.]

Was that like, a warning shot?

[Or is his aim just off?]

[torrefied]

[Mello peeks his head around the corner, rolling his eyes as he does so.]

The only thing a warning shot is good for is telling people just how much you don't intend to shoot them.

[So that would be a no.]