metamods: (Default)
meta moderators ([personal profile] metamods) wrote in [community profile] metalogs2022-02-04 08:36 pm

LOVE POTION #9





LOVE POTION #9
LOVE IS... not in the air! The reintroduction of Confluences into this world has left it rocked, so the season of love is not quite as lovey-dovey as it usually is. People are stressed and anxious. Valentine's events are being cancelled left, right, and center in fear that a Confluence may catch young lovers unawares.

Unbeknownst to mortals, the God of Love really can't afford his month to be ruined by a few little dimensional catastrophes. This is his month! ... And for whatever reason, he seems to be stranded on the Earthly plane.

Surely he can fix things. Push it along a little. Though Gods don't usually meddle in mortal affairs, this is a personal catastrophe. All it takes is a few drops of love potion on a token of affection, and voila! Instant-connection.

(This event has a blanket warning for dubious consent of the love spell variety. To opt out completely, characters can simply not be in Sunset Falls at the time of the event, which runs through Valentine's Day.)


WHITE HEARTS FESTIVAL
Welcome to Sunset Falls, the most magical place in all of America! Literally. The streets are charged with magical energies, and while it won't be spinning your words into spells, it will give anyone who is magically inclined a comfortable little buzz. Maybe it's the boost you need to get a spell working, or maybe it's just a pep in your step. Confluence-displaced metas who take the Guilds up on their offer to tour the new housing will arrive just in time to witness the an annual tradition: The White Hearts Festival, a festival dedicated to all forms of love - familial, friendship, and romantic.

The whole town is decked out in pinks, golds and reds. Town square has been overtaken by food booths peddling elaborate meals and desserts with various magical effects. (It's probably better not to ask why some of the cookies being handed out are in the shape of anatomical hearts.)

  • Eat an emoji cookie and find yourself sprouting heart-eyes, or gaining a flurry of hearts above your head.

  • The Bolder Biscuit - by far and above the densest thing you've ever tried to eat - makes you bold. It compels you to march right up to someone and tell them what you think, good or bad.

  • And there's also the Firework Delight cake, which makes you shoot off literal fireworks the moment you touch that special someone that makes your life complete... but honestly, they go off when you touch anyone. Sorry if you end up giving off the wrong impression!

In addition, pop-up craft stands sell trinkets that guarantee you'll be together with your people forever and ever. The most popular item on sale this year appears to be the Eternal Bond - which is just an enchanted finger-trap that refuses to let go unless you tell someone a deep dark secret.

There is an altar at the town park where you can make your offering and give prayers to the God of Love in hopes he will smile favorable upon you. Lay your chocolate heart at its base and offer up a prayer to the God so that your life will be full of love and connection.

Truthfully, when it started it wasn't as cutesy as it is now. It became a lot more wholesome when people began to offer only chocolate hearts to the God of Love. Now it's fun for the whole family! ... So long as you don't veer into the woods. Some people still practice the old ways, and there are (what you hope to be) animal hearts nailed to trees. This is Sunset Falls, after all. Weird often goes hand in hand with terror.


LONELY HEARTS

For those of you who don't yet have those special people, lonely hearts still single can collect white rose enamel pins from the festival committee. They're expected to pick someone to give it out to as a declaration of their attraction by the end of the festival. However... there seems to be an issue this year. There's more pins here than there are people in town. Committee members start handing them out to anyone, single or not, and from there that's where things start to get a little weird...

You clip the pin onto your shirt and at once, your life has suddenly become a romcom. Everything is just a little brighter, the sounds a little more musical (sometimes literally), and you're suddenly compelled to reach out and find connection.

And the universe is conspiring to bring it your way! Cliches won't stop happening around you. Suddenly people are determined to give you a makeover so you can catch the eye of an admirer. Your friends are betting on your romantic future. A complex love triangle is springing out of previously platonic friendships.

You're not not limited to one partner, and that partner doesn't need to be romantic. It could be a best friend, or a nemesis that you're compelled to fight over and over again for the joy of it. What matters is the connection and the way the world seems to stop at nothing to give you that perfect three act structure: You Meet, You Lose, You Get.

Reach the end of your romcom's little arc and you'll find yourself freed from the spell... and probably will have some choice words for its caster.


HEARTS ON FIRE
Regardless of how you participate in the festival, everyone is at risk when the town itself falls under a love spell.

This may be unlike anything you've known before. Perhaps it's the first stumbling steps of puppy love. You want to be with this person all the time. Hold their hands and work up the courage for a kiss. Or perhaps this is something fierce and passionate. You want to be kissing them always, pursuing these passions heedless of consequences.

This doesn't need to be a romantic love. It can be strong and familial. Perhaps the sort you've always desired but never had. You could fall into a family unit with others affected by the spell. Compelled to hug each other and say words of encouragement or praise. Perhaps you, while living your own love story, are the best friend in someone else's - offering up the speech that tells them they deserve more than they think they do.

Whatever your flavor of love may be, you're prone to dramatic declarations. Confessions at the drop of a hat. It's go big or go home, and since nobody's going home right now, you might as well go as big as you can. Perhaps you're arranging for Flash Mobs to declare your feelings! Or making plans to move in together despite only having met a few hours ago.

This is all fine and well at first, but it may become clear pretty quickly that characters who try to hold their burning passions are likely to burn themselves! If you're the repressed type and you try to resist the compulsions that the love spell puts on you, you might just burst into flames, and someone will need to put you out. Don't worry — move quick enough, and there won't be any lasting damage, and if there is, the Guilds' healers can help you out.


MEET CUTE-PID
For those paying attention to that sort of thing, one constant of all these wild declarations can be spotted in the background. A tall man with curly blonde hair and an all too charming smile never seems to be far from the romance.

Those who are curious enough to follow will find he retreats to a lavish mansion on the outskirts of town. The mansion has the gaudy and abundant decor of a honeymoon suite on the Las Vegas Strip, with lights attuned to music and a massive twirling heart above the roof of the building. Peer inside and you will see hundreds of tiny viewing windows, each depicting a different romantic story unfolding outside of town. The door to the mansion appears to be locked tight and the windows are magically sealed, but some quick thinking may get you inside.

If anyone wants to engage him, HERE is a top level where we will summarize encounters. The more PCs involved in an encounter, the bigger its outcome will be. We will determine the impact on the god of love on Valentine's Day, so get your comments in by end of day on the 13th! You may also use this top level to ask event-specific questions about the effects on this page! (Please refer general questions about the setting to the FAQ, and refer any player plots to the PLOTTING page.)
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-09 12:51 am (UTC)(link)
"Oh trust me, they will," David laughs, accepting the hug. "Come on, help me find a place to settle down and start working."
kid_flash_found: (Default)

[personal profile] kid_flash_found 2022-02-09 12:55 am (UTC)(link)
"If I start running now, how long will it take you to track me down and drag me back?" he asks, teasingly. It won't happen, but he might be a little intimidated by all of this. "So I guess I'll just have to close my eyes and wait to see what happens. I just don't want to be a cad like Prince Charming in Into the Woods."
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-09 12:59 am (UTC)(link)
"If you want out, you can absolutely get out," David answered.But he knows that Bart won't go. He can't explain how he knows it, but he knows it.

"Okay, Prince Charming was too focused on himself. You'll be more beautiful than both of the Princes Charming and you'll care about people so you're the whole package."
kid_flash_found: (Default)

[personal profile] kid_flash_found 2022-02-09 01:05 am (UTC)(link)
"Technically, the role name of the other prince is just that. The Other Prince. Gotta love minor credits," Bart said, chuckling a little.

"Sometimes I wonder what it might be like to be the person who makes you happy. You deserve that, too."
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-09 01:12 am (UTC)(link)
"Ah, but I'm a fan of the non-movie," David counters, smirking. Though he's left flustered for a moment over what Bart says.

"Let's not talk about me. This is about you, Bart."
kid_flash_found: (Default)

[personal profile] kid_flash_found 2022-02-09 01:15 am (UTC)(link)
"Fine, but if the prince of my dreams doesn't show up, you at least owe me a dance."

He finds a place where they can sit an continue this makeover montage, and he doesn't really notice their musical accompaniment as he leans back to let David start with what might be the hardest thing he has to tame and style. The boy has a lot of hair.
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-09 01:25 am (UTC)(link)
"Promise," David assures him. "And we'll find you your prince, sooner or later. You deserves it, Bart. All my friends deserve that love."

But the montage is just what they need. Little light bits of conversation as David works that he won't remember later, music that he won't hear, and shared laughter as he tries to cheer Bart up with the work. Of course he leaves Bart alone for a bit, sans mirror, to go collect makeup, and even comes back to work on that too. It won't be until after that point that their montage would release them, leaving David to finally produce a mirror he didn't remember buying to reveal the final creation to Bart. It's a beautifully complex braid sketching complex patterns set with beads and pins that sparkle like jewels and trapped stars in his hair. His makeup is of course all chosen to accent and highlight his eyes, and even make his features a bit more elegant and mature looking.

And David beams on in pride.

"Imagine what I could do with a few days and access to your wardrobe."
kid_flash_found: (Default)

[personal profile] kid_flash_found 2022-02-09 01:50 am (UTC)(link)
"I hate shopping. Maybe I should hire you to be my regular stylist."
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-09 01:58 am (UTC)(link)
"If you want attention, hire Loki. If you want comfort and looking good, I can give some advice sometimes."
kid_flash_found: (lightning)

[personal profile] kid_flash_found 2022-02-09 04:19 am (UTC)(link)
"I'd rather not have the eye of a god on me. It's usually not good for your health in the long-run, even when they like you," Bart said, seriously.

"So, what goes with all this...glitz?" He's not really sure what to think of the image in the mirror, although the hair doesn't move an inch as he moves, and a part of him wonders if it will stay even at superspeed. If so, that will be new.
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-09 04:22 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah, say that to the guy that hasn't absolutely gotten... awkwardly hot and heavy with the resident one. Life choices were not actively made, but yeah, not good.

"Well, I'd suggest a nice shirt and vest, but I like vests.'
kid_flash_found: (Default)

[personal profile] kid_flash_found 2022-02-13 06:10 pm (UTC)(link)
"Why a vest? If it's open, it'll drag," Bart said, a slight twinkle of amusement in his eyes. Although he didn't really expect anything that wasn't fully thought through. "Although I wouldn't say no. It's not like I'm actually expecting to fight in this."
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-13 06:12 pm (UTC)(link)
"Bart, don't have it open," David rolls his eyes. "And sometimes you've got to take a bit of a hit to look amazing. Your speed can make things billow in beautiful ways you know.
kid_flash_found: (Default)

[personal profile] kid_flash_found 2022-02-13 06:15 pm (UTC)(link)
"Or end up in ribbons. Unlike Kon, I can't control the aura that keeps stuff from ablating if I run too fast. Don't even ask about how many pairs of sneakers I've melted through. I'm not sure I can count that high."

But if he's not really working, he can see that.
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-13 06:29 pm (UTC)(link)
"So you need magic," David answered. Billy used to enchant things for Tommy to keep them safe. "Maybe the guilds can help you with that. Some sort of magic charm?"
kid_flash_found: (Default)

[personal profile] kid_flash_found 2022-02-13 06:30 pm (UTC)(link)
Bart can't help wrinkling his nose a little at that. "Not really a fan of magic. It never seems to go well for me when I get involved with it."
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-13 06:32 pm (UTC)(link)
"Still might be worth looking into," David points out. "To make you look better. Sometimes a little Disney Prince needs to take advantage of what he has."
kid_flash_found: (Default)

[personal profile] kid_flash_found 2022-02-13 06:33 pm (UTC)(link)
"You want me to be even more of a distraction while running? I'd hate to snarl traffic."
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-13 06:37 pm (UTC)(link)
"Bart," David said, reaching to cup the guy's face in his hands. "Sometimes you need to slow down if you expect people to catch you."
kid_flash_found: (Default)

[personal profile] kid_flash_found 2022-02-13 06:38 pm (UTC)(link)
Bart sighs, starting to draw back then stopping. "You're assuming anyone would want to try."
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-14 02:10 am (UTC)(link)
"I truly believe they will," David answers with a smile. "You're beautiful, Bart. And a good person."
kid_flash_found: (team)

[personal profile] kid_flash_found 2022-02-14 02:28 am (UTC)(link)
"Given the company I keep, I might as well be invisible." Yes, David, he includes you in that crowd.
helpdesk_hero: David Alleyne  / Prodigy - From Young Avengers (Default)

[personal profile] helpdesk_hero 2022-02-14 10:39 pm (UTC)(link)
David is so not in that crowd.

"You're visible to me, my friend.'