They might not have been billionairs, but a succesful popstar and a world leader could drum up quite an impressive budget together. The community center itself was transformed, to such an extent you wouldn't recognize it when you entered.

Unlike the white wedding, the colors were pleasantly dark, soft blacks and dark blues dominating the floor, the ceiling, the walls. The lighting implied the ambiance of a sort of upper class rave, with pops of color penetrating the darkness, and tasteful flowering plants lining the walls.

There was a dusting of glitter, a gentle mix of red and white, that blew across the floors and reflected the light at strange angles. The food served at the tables in the far corner - tastefully separated from the rest of the room with dividers that mimicked some of Van Gogh's darker flower paintings - was the work of the Hegemony's own kitchen; fancy finger foods fit for world leaders.

There was a dance floor. There was an expensive DJ, flown in from Milan. Envy's wasn't the only music being played, but it was in heavy rotation.

Welcome, Fandom. Come get your free food.

[[ party open to everybody! ]]

whenshewasnice

The day was finally here.

Fandom appeared to be cooperating: all the evidence of Friday's paint rain had gone away overnight. Envy's team had of course had a plan B about what to do to alter the theming of the wedding ceremony if they hadn't, but they'd been glad to put away the paint cans and just follow plan A instead, as -- well, planned.

So now the inside of Fandom's little church was decked in tasteful white flowers in extravagant numbers, with little bits of greenery to make them really pop. Whichever direction anyone happened to point a camera lens towards, they would always find the background pleasing and elegant. And they should appreciate that, because one person on the team had spent the past two weeks engineering and planning just that.

There was also a string quartet, playing something classical and light as people entered and found their seats.

And, of course, there was a smattering of music reporters sitting in the back, while one of Envy's assistants explained to them with endless patience and a soft, hushed tone that yes, their exclusives were still exclusive and not in conflict with each other when each of them were from a different universe entirely.

Everything was just about ready for the Adams-Wiggin wedding.

[ooc: Open!]

glacial_queen

"It's time to goo~ooo!" Karla's voice singsonged through the lowest hallway of the Toybox, where only the worst of the deviant toys were kept. As such, that was where everyone who'd gotten caught in the island's machinery had been taken, shoved way below ground where there was only flickering florescent lights in bare fixtures and no fresh air.

Hey, they'd be getting all the fresh air they needed on the long walk to the Junkyard. Their last walk anywhere.

Green army men gathered all the traitors up, shoving them into a rough line, jump ropes turning them into a chain gang together.

"Isn't it exciting?" Karla said, doing a little dance as they got lined up. "This time, instead of cutting out at the gate, the Toymaker has decreed the island will watch you get fed to the machines. After you lot, there won't ever be traitors again."

[OCD up, have at, everybody except Kimera WHO IS NOW EVEN MORE GROUNDED THAN ME.]

so_hawkward

For someone who was such a good toy, Clint was finding it a little hard to have fun right now. The reports on the radio were getting more terrible every day, more and more toys were turning out to be bad, and Kitty... no, Kitty was a good toy who had a wonderfully fun reason for not coming home last night, and she'd surely tell him and Lexi all about it when she came home tonight.

Lexi, of course, was being the best baby doll ever while Clint organized all the little plastic weights back into their rightful places. Staying focused on work would help him stay happy, and making sure the good toys had a place to exercise all their moveable parts really was fun!

[Open if anyone wants to come by!]

glacial_queen

It was early morning when every screen on Fandom turned on of their own accord. Not just the big screens that dotted the island and were posted around streets and in the wilderness - every screen. TV screens, computer screens, phone screens, even the screens that were just a bit of illustrated plastic stuck to the front of a clunky plastic box. They all glowed bright as they turned on, had a few seconds of digital snow, and then Karla's face appeared. She was fuming, breathing heavily, her painted cheeks bright red and little rosebud mouth pinched.

"How dare you," she shrilled. "How dare any of you? That some of you reprobates would go so far as to try and attack our beloved island! Digging deep down to try to - what? Was your plan to bury a bomb? Poison the water? Something worse?! Well, it didn't work!" She laughed, a mad cackle, and dragged a chained Liam in front of the cameras. He was looking a little worse for wear, his plastic scuffed and paint worn away. "We caught your precious little strike team," she hissed. "And you know what? They're all going to die. Starting with your Sheriff and going on and on until every single traitor has been fed to the Junkyard. Say your goodbyes today, Fandom. Because tomorrow drums aren't the only things that will roll."

The cameras focused on Liam's exhausted expression one last time before they cut out, turning black all at once.

[FB, Liam modded with permission!]

texted3times

Nothing said "terror of the night" like being a plastic potato in a derby hat, and Eric was going to be super pissed about this some other time, but for now he was behind the bar, his angry eyes tucked up his back for emergencies, drinking a V-8, the choice of vegetarian vampires everywhere.

The DJ was playing extremely upbeat music (of course) and Tiny...well, no one asked about Tiny these days.

[OOC: Blatantly stealing Natalie's idea. Team Baddies4Lyfe can meet up here! Shanie is to blame for the amazing V-8 joke.]

throughaphase

Kitty had never been angrier in her whole life, and she'd started a lot of fights in her life! But this time they'd messsed with her kid and do it was entirely possible she would try to murder whoever caused it this week!

But for now, she looked like a happy little plastic Kitty in her bar, which looked more like a kitchen-type play house, with cabinets were you could pull out teacups and pieces of plastic snack food.

The fact that Tino was a finger puppet? Not gonna touch that right now. Or ever.

But since she knew of at least one other person who thought this was weird, she'd set up a tea party in the back room, along with a "NO SQUIRRELS CLUB" sign to discourage spying.

[I've decided to offer up Caritas as a meeting place for anyone who might want to find people who broke off the brainwashing, and in case anyone wants a safe place to plot.

Open!]

vrajna_kralis

Another day dawned bright and sunny over Fandom Island today. The golden sun lit up the fields of felted grass, and a preserve of plastic trees. It followed the road made of connected puzzle pieces past the town made of wooden blocks and Lego pieces, all the way up to the fairy castle that dominated the isle. Clockwork birds whistled snatches of song and windup creatures scuttled through the plush underbrush. It was a fantasy land made of toys, carefully crafted to make any child lucky enough to see it clap their hands with joy.

But for all that Fandom looked joyful, was meant to be joyful, a pall hung over the quiet town. For a long moment, the only thing that moved was a tall action figure, his cloak billowing in the breeze, surrounded by a phalanx of green army men, as they walked down the long puzzle piece road. No toys came out to watch. With a walk like this, there was only one destination.

Though, not long after the group passed into the town, the large screens the dominated the skylines flickered to life. A marionette tumbled from the ceiling, blonde hair curling under her crown, a big gem catching the light. "Hello!" Karla said cheerily, her voice echoing up and down the island, blaring out from a hundred screens. A string pulled and now she was waving to the crowds that did not exist. "Wow, what a sad day, isn't it?" she asked, though her voice stayed perky and her painted smile remained bright. "Today we say goodbye to our old friend Anakin Skywalker. He was found guilty of treason and sedition and plain old being a bad toy! And you know what happens to bad toys, don't you? They get thrown in the Junkyard!"

The screens cut to the Erector-set gates swinging open, with two large, hulking machines in the background. Only their silhouettes were visible, blocky and sharp, and not like toys at all. The screens cut back to Karla, who's smile had turned upside down and two blue tears were rolling down her face.

"It's a sad thing for the Toymaker to do. He loves every one of us, his beloved creations! But sometimes, toys just go bad. And when that happens, he has no choice." Her head drooped for a second and her shoulders slumped before her strings pulled her right back up again. "But we can't be sad! No! We have to remain ever vigilant. We're the Toymaker's best and that means we have a duty to keep Fandom Island a happy, healthy, educational place to be! We don't have room for secrets and lies and whispers! Just laughter and good times, like all the very best toys do! So don't forget, we all gotta keep an eye on each other, our friends and neighbors and loved ones! If you see something dangerous or suspicious, don't hesitate to tell someone! Where there's one traitor, there's always more, so make sure to comply with our Army Police force who are just doing their jobs. If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear, right?"

The screens panned to the group as they arrived at the now-open gates. "Time to say goodbye, Skywalker!" Karla singsonged with malicious glee.

Anakin threw his head up, looking directly at the cameras. "We have everything we need," he said.

And then he was dragged inside the gates, which slammed shut behind him.

A few minutes later, the loud grinding noise of the Junkyard Biter split the air like a scream.

[Welcome to your BDE folks! Monday folks can start waking up anytime now. Anakin modded with

sith_happens' gleeful permission].

glacial_queen

So, all the faucets at the estate had started pouring black water this morning, causing great consternation among her staff. It was only after Nommy had declared 'it's sweet! And fizzy!' and Karla had chastised him for drinking black water that she discovered it was actually Coca-Cola.

There was only one force in the multiverse that could replace the water in the pipes with Coke and Karla took that as a message from the island that she hadn't visited in too long. And so after sending a message to Warren, who was taking his turn in Ebon Rih, Karla left the children with their older siblings and headed off to Fandom for a visit.

She'd be pissed in any other circumstance to receive what amounted to a summons of her presence, but you couldn't really argue with a sentient island made of whimsy and magic, now could you? Which was why she was sending out a text message across every social media account she had. (including several that were defunct at this point, keep up, Karla). At the Perk. Old people reunion?

[Inspired by

vdistinctive sending me this pic. Open!]

furnaceface

So, graduation yesterday had been... nice? Mostly nice. The scorpions notwithstanding, of course. But those were to be expected, Jonothon supposed, as he settled in behind the counter at the Groovy Tunes and started going through a few CDs that had been left at the counter on Thursday by customers who had been unable to pay for them, for some reason. Did nobody on the island pay with debit or credit anymore?

Around here anything was possible, granted.

Feeling vaguely lazy today, Jono pulled out his phone and sent a text around to a few of his friends.

When did high school graduates start getting so young?

There. Even if business was slow while the new grads entertained their guests, at least he could spend his day texting back and forth with Jubilee about feeling old. His day was set.

[OOC: Open! If you want to also have gotten Jono's text, by all means!]

glacial_queen

After getting Hannibal's message about having a new child show up on the island, Karla had wasted no time chartering a portal to get to Fandom. Portalocity, however, had managed to waste plenty of her time, accidentally sending her through a portal with both a half-day layover and the wrong destination. While the dimension of blue had a very lovely Fandom, that was most definitely not the Fandom Karla had been aiming for. After yet more time arguing with customer service about whether or not this was the Fandom she'd intended all along and then a very long, personal groveling session when they realized which account they'd messed up, Karla was finally where she'd meant to be...two days late.

Back home, Warren was already pitching a fit in his polite and soft-spoken-yet-somehow-terrifying manner that involved a level of businesspeak and legalese that Karla didn't entirely understand yet generally made corporations roll over and show their stomachs. It was impressive and normally, Karla would have loved to watch. But she apparently had a daughter to meet.

Coffee anyone? she sent in a mass text to whomever she thought might be around.

[Open for fellow parents and small children alike! Pings to be picked up after I wake up, though SP through the workday.]

hollowed-queen.livejournal.com

Karla was in a Mood. A bad one. First, that little snack Alluka had brought for her had gotten away. Now, something was happening around the island and, whatever it was, she didn't like it. She was hungry, all the lovely fog was going away, and she just wanted to bite something until it bled and screamed and died. The bodies of several hollows littered her cavern. She hadn't even eaten most of them, she'd just wanted to murder something and they'd been handy.

Ugh, where was one of those obnoxious Fandom heroes now? She'd show them what a real apex predator looked like.

[For one and for epic SP]

raven-unhollow.livejournal.com

Raven prowled through the streets of Fandom, keeping a wary eye out for any villagers foolish enough to be out by themselves (herself excluded, of course) or those who had gone hollow. She was also looking for any of these new visitors to the island she'd both sensed and heard about. Some of them felt...familiar in a way, though she couldn't really explain how -- due either to her empathy being turned down by choice or tiny fragments of her memory drifting away. If they were friend, she'd direct them to the village and safety. If they were not, well, she'd deal with that, too.

She didn't want to get her hopes up that it was help. Hope had long since evaporated, the last traces of it gone after she'd lost Karla. Now it was just protection and survival.

[Open to any villagers, transplantees, hollows, monsters, whomever!]

hollowed-queen.livejournal.com

Karla could sense new people on the island; new minds brimming with life and vitality. Slow, stupid minds that hadn't yet grasped the horrors that were waiting for them in the dark. What a pity. Soon so many of them would die, prey for the predators on the island. As one of those predators, Karla smiled--with her real face, not the soft, fleshy one she put on for company.

And then started getting ready for company. So many scrambling new people, frightened and disturbed by the dark, dreariness around them. And so she set new webs, tangled ones, making her section of the woods seem less grim, just a shade brighter. Not too much, or the trap would be obvious, but the kind of thing that would make people move towards her without thinking about it, shift left instead of right, head down instead of up. The kind of decision that seemed random but was influenced by hundreds of subconscious factors. And beyond those webs, she laid her real ones, the thick and fibrous ones, sticky, the kind that clung and wrapped and held until she decided to come out and relieve her pantry of its burden.

Come to her, little insects. Karla was hungry.

hollowed-queen.livejournal.com

Anyone hiking through this patch of woods throughout the day would notice something distinctly...odd. Normally, it was a simple stand of trees surrounding what appeared to be a small cave, bare for the winter, but otherwise unremarkable. Sometimes, though, there would be a moment and things would...shift. A flicker, a blink, and for the barest instant, the trees would seem darker, the air colder, the cave a little more foreboding. From time to time, there'd be a soft skittering noise from inside the cave and, when the light caught the trees just right, long strands of white could be seen tangling around the trees.

Usually, the illusion spells around her lair gave off feelings of warmth and comfort, exuded a sense of welcome or a spate of curiosity, like something exciting could be found within if one bothered to look. Right now, however, reality flickered in and out too quickly for the illusions to take. They'd come back, though, once this reality had bled into the new one and cemented its hold. Most of the residents were wary enough not to trust anything that seemed so friendly, but there were always a few idiots who were naive enough to fall for it. And in a new world, well, who knew what delightful creatures would come exploring through and discover her home?

Come into her parlor, little flies. Karla would be ever so happy to see you.

[Mostly establishy, but if people want to ping in during one of the longer reality blinks, that's cool, too!]

glacial_queen

Yesterday, Karla had made a very important promise. She'd promised Val a day at the playground and there was no way she was going to renege on that. Thus, Thursday afternoon found Kayla swinging on the swings in the park, while Karla sat on a nearby bench, holding Nommy, and pushing Kayla's swing with Craft. At her feet was a sizable picnic basket, filled with sandwiches, juice in both sippy cups and bottles, Kayla's 'spinkles,' a small island's worth of bananas, and even a bit of ice cream wrapped in cooling spells. Karla had packed extra just in case; she figured Ender had probably gotten all the sandwiches he needed during his class (yes, she remembered), but there was always the chance that Ben would join them. Or other people would wander by. It wasn't like Fandom lacked for hungry kids of varying ages even on normal weekends.

"Mommy, push me higher!" Kayla called. "Pleeeeeeeeease!"

"Nope!" Karla called back, nets of Craft still invisibly hovering in the air to either side of Kayla's swing. "You tried to jump off the swing last time. Now you have to stay low until I'm sure you won't do it again."

"But I was gonna flyyyyy!" Kayla's tiny wings fluttered on her back, trying to increase the height of the swing.

"And this is why the answer is still no," Karla said with a sigh. Looking down at the infant in her arms, Karla shook her head. "I can't wait till your wings come in and I get to chase both of you," she told her sleeping son. "Maybe I'll just borrow an entire herd of Scelties from Khary and let them take turns sitting on you till you're grown."

vdistinctive

Eliot wasn't entirely certain if the cooking classroom had always been in the community center, or if the building had just happened to grow one when he decided to teach a cooking class here this summer. He was reasonably certain he was in the same place he'd taken that psychics class, but he didn't remember it having a selection of full sized electric ovens, refrigerators, and ranges. He'd've preferred gas, but around here, with the sort of class he was teaching, that was probably asking for a leak and either natural gas poisoning or an explosion.

When the students arrived, they'd find a series of tables set up in the center of the room, and enough small kitchen sets for everyone to use, so long as they didn't mind pairing off. Eliot himself was at the front of the class, his hair held back with a black bandana, an apron covering his usual t-shirt-and-jeans. The table in front of him had a set of frying pans, a bouquet of spatulas and whisks, several egg cartons, and a variety of vegetables, both pre-packaged and fresh.

( In which Eliot doesn't give a crap what your names are )

vdistinctive

Eliot's dreams last night hadn't been anywhere near as awful as they'd been the night before, just the usual anxieties about ferret!Parker getting trampled or Hardison deciding he couldn't be with a man he didn't trust, a "damn killer", and leaving. Eliot had a blissful few moments after waking of imagining that yesterday had been a one day thing -- and then he'd seen his mother's dead body draped over the couch, just like she'd been when he was fifteen.

After that -- and a listen to the radio to catch up on all the other crap that had gone down yesterday -- he grabbed Val (who Parker was having apparently a glorious time riding around like a little ferret cavalry officer) and his sword, gave Hardison strict orders not to get himself stuck in another coffin while Eliot was gone -- or, you know, ever -- and then headed for the diner to make sure the place was secure and his staff hadn't gotten themselves killed.

A wave of terror hit him as he entered, making him balk for a moment, but he was pretty used to pushing that down and he drew his sword, keeping Val and Parker behind him as he entered -- to find his staff cowering behind the lunch counter while an extraordinarily large spider climbed up on one of the booths.

Anger immediately overrode the terror and Eliot noticed the kitchen staff slowly standing up behind the counter as he stalked towards the spider, dodged a swipe of one of its legs, and ran it through, pinning it to the table until the death spasms stopped.

"Alright," he growled. "Which one of you idiots let that damn thing in?"

Today's specials
Take shelter in the freezer with the polar bears

Luke's was open. Ish.

furnaceface

Jonothon had awoken from a nightmare this morning. That much... that was nothing new. Of course he'd awoken from a nightmare. He rarely slept for the nightmares. That had been a constant for nearly as far back as he could remember, several lifetimes over. It was just... that particular nightmare had seemed all too real, the faces of people that he'd wronged, lives he'd destroyed, and even upon blinking a few times in the morning he hadn't quite been able to clear his head of them.

Nightmares, it seemed, were the order of the morning. And while Jono's telepathic walls were generally pretty good, the general feeling of uncertainty that was wafting around the island was still enough to nag at him when the island was in one of her moods.

And so he'd done the one thing that never seemed to fail, when his head was in a fog this way. He'd grabbed a loaf of bread in the hopes that the ducks hadn't all taken off for the winter, and he made his way to the park, to sit on the bench by the duck pond.

Once he cleared his mind again, once he got those walls back up and managed to shake the feeling that something was lingering just a few steps away, waiting to step in and remind him of what he was, he'd head back home. Maybe play with the cat, or play his guitar, or try to figure out his Christmas shopping for the year, or... or something.

Something.

For now, though, he'd settle for feeding the ducks and ignoring the chill in the air.

[OOC: Jono hasn't had a moping post in a while. Open post is open! For passers-by or attacky things or whatever, I'm easy tonight.]

trigons_child

Raven had decided to do some holiday shopping in Fandom, and she had several of her charges in tow, as they had clamored for a chance to go to the island. Karina, Finn, and Tilda had all been in Fandom for Halloween, but this was Jens's first trip.

They'd arrived the night before fairly late, so Raven had gone directly to the hotel. After tucking the children into bed, she'd crawled into her own, and soon ( fell into a restless sleep. )Come morning she was exhausted, but once the children had woken up, she sent a text to Karla to let her know their plans, then took them out to breakfast. And tea for herself, lots and lots of tea. The unease hadn't entirely faded, but she was smiling as she sipped her drink and watched the children try to decide what pastries they wanted.

[Open for all your pastry or Raven needs!]

vdistinctive

"THAT'S TOO MUCH ORANGE ZEST, ARE YOU BLIND?"

"GRAB THE BUTTER, YOU MORON!"

Vincent and the cook were watching the Food Network in the kitchen. Priestly sat on a counter behind them both, taking notes.

Eliot was avoiding the whole thing. And occasionally muttering about backseat chefs. And wondering when this weekend was going to end.

Today's specials
Spicy Orange Zest Beef
Oven roasted potatoes with orange zest
Orange cookies with sweet orange glaze

"The words 'orange zest' have lost all meaning," Priestly noted. Eliot sighed in agreement.

Luke's was open.

[and OCD free, and totally ripped off this, which was brought to my attention by the incomparable

heromaniac.]

bigdamnprincipal

Originally, this was going to be a much smaller event, but then Fandom had to be Fandom and Portalocity had to be Portalocity, and now Zoe was wondering if there would be enough food for everyone or if she'd have to get things from the local restaurants.

For the moment though, everything was set up nicely. There were tables and chairs set up with blue and gold tablecloths, each covered with glitter from years of use. There were balloons, streamers, and other slightly tasteful decorations, also covered in glitter from years of being stored with things that were also covered in glitter. Don't worry, no one had died from a glitter overdose yet.

Once the food was set out and the (non-tainted) punch was ready, it seemed like things were as good to go as they'd ever be. If things got too crowded, hopefully a fire marshal wasn't among the folks who had come back to town.

[We appear to have broken the post, huzzah! Please use these links to get around: Arrive/Mingle | Food/Drink | Dancing | Shadowy Corner | Corner of 2005 | OOC]

glacial_queen

So, originally, the plan had been for Karla, Warren, and all three children to show up at Fandom this weekend and do the whole reunion thing. They'd see old friends, show Nyles and Cora the island, and take a ridiculous number of pictures commemorating things that really didn't need to be commemorated. And then, last night, Cora had come into Karla's parlor before bedtime complaining that she didn't feel good. And then had promptly thrown up. Nyles, who had been a footstep behind her, managed to keep down his dinner, but was flushed and feverish.

Long story short, Cora and Nyles had come down with chicken pox. And as much as Karla would have liked to simply Heal them and be done with it, getting chicken pox now meant they wouldn't get worse illnesses later, and so Warren and Karla reluctantly agreed to let them stick it out. And that clearly meant that at least one parent needed to stay with them. But Kayla, being far too young, needed to be kept away. And so, after a spirited game of Rock, Paper, Scissors, (best two out of three, and no, Warren, she didn't cheat), Karla had ended up being the one who got to take Kayla away to the island for the weekend, while Warren and his healing factor took care of two thoroughly miserable children.

On the other hand, now Karla at least had a good excuse to take a million pictures? Like the ones she was taking now, of Kayla smearing vanilla ice cream all over her face as she attempted to spoon it into her mouth. Thank the Darkness for data plans.

glacial_queen

After a stop at the Perk for a coffee while she sent out a quick Guess who's visiting! text to folks she thought might be around or have time to visit, Karla made her way to the beach for a bit. It was winter back home, almost Winsol in fact, so visiting here in the beginning of summer was a lovely change. She vanished her jacket and shirt, kicked off her shoes, and rolled her pants up to her knees. Just a Queen, wading by the shoreline in her bra and a pair of Court trousers, enjoying the feel of the sun on her skin and giving no fucks about what anybody had to say about it.

You know, until Draca sent for her, this really was the best way to pass the time.

[Open! If you think you got a text, you did. If you didn't get a text, it's still open!]

glacial_queen

Karla had danced this dance before. After spending the last few days dreaming about her parents, she knew to pack up Kayla and Warren and head to the island this weekend. She'd also invited Cora and Nyles to come along, but neither had seen the appeal of visiting her insane island to meet more adults. Well, that wasn't entirely true; Cora was intrigued by the idea of seeing the place they had met, but as soon as Karla had mentioned that her parents would likely be there, Cora had demurred. She was still very reticent about meeting new members of the Blood. And Nyles had no intentions of going anywhere without Cora, especially if it meant rubbing elbows with yet more aristos, so it was only Warren, Karla, and Kayla who stepped through the portal and into the park.

When she arrived, she sent a small pulse through the Ebon-gray, a kind of announcement of her arrival for anyone who could feel it. Yes, if she wanted to, she could search for her parents' Jewels and go to them, but...it was a beautiful day with her daughter in the park. Karla's parents could come to them. She set out a blanket while Warren cuddled Kayla and prepared to relax. Even if it took them awhile to arrive--as it so often did--Karla was going to enjoy the day with her family.

[Open for other visitors as well!]

vdistinctive

It was lucky Eliot wasn't the sort to drink heavily when he had stuff on his mind, or he'd be on the tail end of a three day bender. Instead he'd managed to teach class without letting Parker know he'd figured out "plan E", then found a few good bar fights on the mainland, replanted half his garden, finished clearing his house out of the last remnants of his cursed trip to crazy-town, found a buyer for seventeen bear traps, stopped a couple muggings on the mainland, nearly gotten his nose broken, definitely broke at least one other guy's nose, anonymously turned in a couple unloaded and stripped guns to the Baltimore police, replanted the other half of his garden, and completely failed to actually read any of the pages of the book he currently had laid out in front of him.

He finally flipped the book closed, took another sip of the coffee he really probably shouldn't be drinking right now, and pulled a notepad out of his bag.

Alright. So. Hardison and Parker had been conning him. Sort of. Really badly. To get him to do something that, once he got past three days of panic, he remembered he actually had wanted to do for a while now, anyway. Two -- or, you know, three -- could play at that game.

He took another sip of his coffee, leaned back, and set the notepad on his knee so he could keep an eye on the door of the Perk while he brainstormed plans. This wasn't really his forte; he'd never pretended to be a mastermind. But he at least needed to get the stupid-ass romantic gestures out of his head before he worked out what he was really going to do. So if he made it through plan double-Q before he worked it out, well. So be it.

[ooc: I've reached the point in my Thursday where I only have a full standard work day left! Most of which will be spent waiting on editors. The Perk is open.]

needfully-yours.livejournal.com

( Jack Sees a Sign )

( Finding a Spot )

( Talking to Fandom )

(Preplayed by the splendiferous

bitten_notshy,

icecoldfrost,

sith_happened,

kenselvren,

glacial_queen,

trigons_child, and

crazy_prepared. (Again, hoping I didn't miss anyone!) Coded by the delightful

fly_so_serious. Next-to-last post, we are NEARLY DONE, but that one is going to wait a couple of hours until I am home from work! NFI, broadcast is fine, OOC is love.)

nuclear_snide

So, everyone had hopefully been notified, and now they were gathered and gathering, and Bob waited as long as he could for them to arrive before he stepped up to the front of the room and set off a burst of golden light to get their attention.

"Thank you all for coming." He projected his voice around the room. "In case you hadn't noticed, there's a lot of bad magic out there," he said dryly. If anyone hadn't noticed, he worried about them. "We've been looking into it, and we've tracked down the source, and if you listened to radio yesterday you know it's Needful Things and Leland Gaunt. He's been selling cursed items, often for the price of special or magical items in turn. What's new is that we've found out how to break his hold."

He paused very briefly ~~for dramatic effect~~ to let that sink in. "In order for someone who's got a cursed item to be free of the curse, they have to destroy the item." He stared around the room seriously. "THEY have to destroy it," he reiterated. "If anyone else breaks it for them, they will wither and die. If they don't break it, they will wither and die."

He leaned forward. "This is a very nasty breed of curse, rather like a poison. It's insidious. It will take them a lot of energy to break it, and it's going to hurt. They'll be weakened. You'll probably want to get them to the clinic. Also, because it operates on a psychic level, their recovery will be influenced by their mood. They'll need positive reinforcement, reassurance. 'Hug it out', as the saying goes."

Whatever. At least he wouldn't have to do that part. "Now, we know of a few people who've been sold cursed items. We've gone through radio broadcasts to get a list of everyone who was spotted entering the store. We'll need help to cover them all and make sure everyone has someone to try to snap them out of it. If you're willing to help, raise your hand and Four here can match you with someone. Any questions?"

[OOC: ~~Just a sec for the OCD!~~ Up! Have at!]

Current Location: Town Hall

glacial_queen

It had been a difficult morning at the Estate. Warren was molting, Kayla was teething, Karla was having nightmares that she couldn't remember upon waking...it was like everything was converging to make sleep a distant, much-missed memory. This morning, after Karla had put Kayla's diaper on backwards twice, she'd decided there was no way she was going to make it through the day without a bucket of coffee with as many espresso shots as the Perk could legally include. Tweaking her portal to open up at the coffeeshop instead of the school was no big deal and from there she could call Jono and have him come and ~~deal with~~ visit his niece for a few hours while Karla enjoyed a bit of a lie-down in her office after class.

Coffee, class, nap. Good plan. Solid plan.

Too bad it didn't last a single step out of the portal.

As soon as Karla put her food down on the sidewalk, she had to bite back a startled scream. She also nearly fell over, catching herself against the wall at the last moment before she went ass over teakettle onto the ground, baby and all. Kayla, started awake just after she'd dozed off, began to wail. Not from being jostled, no. It was colored by fear and pain, her caste reacting to the same stimulus Karla's was.

"Shh, shh, baby, I know, I know, shh," Karla said, holding Kayla close and staggering inside the Perk. All thoughts of coffee were forgotten as Karla sank into a chair and tried to tune out the roiling in her gut. It hadn't been this bad since the first time she'd visited Reno and Elena and felt the damage that had been done to the land for generations.

What she was feeling didn't make any sense. She'd just been here last week and Fandom had been fine! So what the hell What she was feeling didn't make any sense. She'd just been here last week and Fandom had been fine! So what the hell had happened to the island now, to make it so bad that she and Kayla could both feel it?

myownface

Upon entering the Town Hall tonight, dance attendees might notice a very definite theme tonight! A very definite, very sparkly theme tonight, with enough glitter strewn around the place that there were, in fact, glitterdrifts piling up around the edges of the dance floor. Everything was glittery, or sequiny, or rhinestoney, with a sort of sci-fi punk sensibility about it. Ish.

You'd be surprised how difficult it was to find 'Glitterpunk' as a genre on google for reference.

Welcome to Homecoming 2014
GLITTERPUNK!

glacial_queen

For once, Karla wasn't making tragic faces at all the coffee on display that she was (mostly) not allowed to have. It was fall on the island, which meant caramel apple cider. Her mug was two-thirds cider, the remaining third was the Perk's delicious whipped cream which extended into a high, unsteady mound in the air. Just looking at it made her smile.

Warren was also thrilled that it was cider season, because it meant that he could enjoy an Americano for the first time in...months? Without getting in trouble, even.

It was heaven.

"Did you know that they tried to convince me to add pumpkin spice to my cider?" Karla asked. "You don't know what I had to threaten to convince them to never mention that phrase in my presence again."

not_every_mage

It was Sunday evening. Maybe in other, better cities people were waking up from the naps they took to sleep off Grandma's pot roast dinner after church. Maybe they were riding bikes under streetlights or swinging on suburban porch swings, counting fireflies.

But this was Fandom, and Fandom Sundays were a lot like any other day. Which meant the magic had to keep coming. Anders had an opening shift, which meant he had to sweep up the cigarette butts and wipe the sticky rings of dried hooch off the tables, and check to make sure all the props and sheet music were in order for the night. It was dumb, and dull, and more than a little gross, but it kept him on the owners' good sides and that was where he liked to be.

He fretted as he went through the routine of busywork. The kid, Elsa -- the chatter backstage was that she was up for a couple special jobs. She was way too young for anything like that, but Anders wasn't the type to stick his neck out, not when it would just give somebody like Angelface a perfect chance to slit his throat. Besides, Karla wasn't dumb. If anybody could going to keep Elsa pure, Karla could.

Once the club was in tip-top shape for the night, Anders went backstage to get into costume, chat with the girls, and wait for the show to begin.

angelo_wings

Showtime. Rita couldn't keep the nervous shiver from her spine, every time that curtain went up. The band was warming up, and the tables were starting to fill.

She held her cigarette holder out (in one elegant gloved hand) for the nearest gentleman to light. Her dress was perfect, and so was her hair. She herself didn't take the stage until last, which gave her time to mill about the crowd and mingle.

The bubbly being poured was just soda, unless you knew the right palms to grease, and the lookers on stage were just singers, unless you really knew the right palms to grease.

Welcome to the Magic Box: where the magic happened.

(Wait for the OCD!)

glacial_queen

The Community Center was decorated in Fandom's signature blue and gold, with streamers and flags and the odd Fighting Gremlin banner. There was a tasteful amount of glitter among the decorations, assuming that person in charge of taste was a four year old hyped up on candy and Red Bull while huffing glue made from unicorns.

In short, Fandom's alumni, ex-pats, and current teachers should feel right at home, nostalgia hitting them right in the sinuses.

You're welcome, Fandom alumni. Don't forget to donate to the Alumni Association!

In one place, the invitation had said listed the dresscode as 'casual-formalwear.' In another, it was 'formal-casualwear.' Whatever that meant for clothing, it included a DJ, armed with only his collection of 'Easy Listening', and an open bar, but the food was served buffet style, with everyone helping themselves.

Hoped you still liked 'Kiss from a Rose' after the sixth playing tonight, folks!

[Open to all alumni of the school, including those who still live in town, ex-pats, and teachers/faculty of the school. If you need a reason to show up to the island in time for Noir Weekend, here it is. Even if you don't need a reason--here it is anyway! OCD up, have fun!]

nookiepowered

"No." Bo crossed her arms behind the bar and ignored the balloon Tiny was holding out to her. "I already told you my terms. The whole thing or no deal."

Tiny held up his phone in the other hand, then made a show of putting it away. Bo just shook her head.

"No. I don't care if you record me. I'm just not doing it without the quid pro quo." She reached out and bopped the balloon lightly. "Every. Single. Verse."

Which was why anyone visiting the bar tonight, including the guests at Warren and Karla's birthday party, would find themselves treated to a high-pitched -- and very long -- performance of I Am The Very Model Of A Modern Major-General from the huge guy in the leather vest.

Bo's performance, they'd have to be very good at searching YouTube (or know Tiny's username) to find, and also fast enough to get there before Bo filed the fake DMCA takedown notice. Or the obscenity one. She was still trying to decide which seemed more likely coming from Disney.

[Open! Karla and Warren's birthday party be happenin' in the VIP area; the rest of the joint is open to anyone.]

not_a_moonie

The glitter was relatively modest for the brunch, by Fandom terms -- which still left enough on the statues moved over from the dance and other decorations to blind a small child. Italian opera played softly to match the classical theme, and space heaters had been set up under the tent to fight the late-October chill. It was, overall, a tasteful arrangement -- at least, if you ignored that the classical figures were wearing glitter underwear.

Fandom, enjoy the end of Homecoming 2013.

glacial_queen

Karla was rather wistful as she went through the shop today. It was her last shift here. She hadn't heard from 'Dite in a long while, so she wasn't sure what she was supposed to do with the store--but she couldn't bear to close it, either. It was a good store.

Hmm, maybe she'd call up a few people and see if they'd mind keeping an eye on it for a bit. Just until things got settled back home. Maybe she could hire a manager? Something?

And, one last time, she made a sign to put up in the window.

First of May! You know what that means!

Come inside and get prepared for outdoor festivities!

The rest of the afternoon was devoted to putting together picnic baskets full of sexy toys, games, various kinds of prophylactics, and, of course, blankets. No one wanted sand there. No one.

[Link goes to JoCo's First of May lyrics, surprising no one.]

life_inshadow

When Tara got to Fandom Friday night, it had been with plans of a quiet weekend dancing in her head. When she woke up, it was two days later, she was in the park, she was damp from rain, and all she had to show for it was a bunch of strange dreams about being a house. The island's sense of humor sort of sucked.

She went to the Perk to get some chai and wait for her portal back to Sunnydale. Her phone buzzed as she sat down, and she glanced at it to see a text from Willow.

Oz is gone. I only want to be with you. Come home & I'll make everything up to you?

Tara felt warmer from that message than from the tea. And all of a sudden, her portal couldn't come soon enough.

[OOC: Open like a coffee shop!]

wwiii

It was good here, Warren had decided. Whatever this place was, this 'Fandom' that only knew vaguely of the years the island spent under Umbridge's rule, it was... good. A man could order himself a coffee looking the way he did without being questioned for it. Could meet a lovely blonde with a self-assured look in her eye and spend a night with her, and not once feel ashamed when she looked at his body. Here, he wasn't a traitor. Here he was just... a visitor. A pretty face taking the place of a different pretty face, until the island straightened itself out again.

It was enough to make a man never want to leave. Oh, there were certain roadblocks here, absolutely. That red-haired nuisance, Momoko, for one, also seemed to be here. Raven was here as well, though she didn't seem to be the same one. He wasn't thrilled about her presence, but she could be... handled... if she did become problematic again. Tamsin was a charming woman, all curves and blonde hair framing a face that wasn't quite what he was looking for, but she'd be entertaining for a while, if only they had more time, before the novelty would inevitably wear off and he'd have to put her aside and look for another her.

And here, he'd found her. He'd woken up with her in his arms, in fact. No, she wasn't quite the Karla he'd known. She only had the vaguest memories of the things that had happened that had broken his world in two, after all. But she was so, so close. Possibly the closest he'd ever get.

And yet, his time here was limited. The clock was ticking away. And Warren, realizing that everything he needed was right here on this damn island all over again...

... Well, he didn't want to leave. Whatever it was this other-him had... he wanted it for himself.

[OOC: Open Selkie Peak is open, of course, though the guy with the blue skin and razor-wings probably won't be the most pleasant company to keep, this afternoon.]

blondecanary.livejournal.com

"My laugh is an evil laugh... Ha ha ha ha DIE!"

Tamsin twirled, jumped up on a park bench, then jumped off. Yesss, she was drunk. Yes, she was in a good mood.

That meant she was looking for a fight. Just as soon as she was done singing about dinosaurs.

[Violent vivid Valkyrie looking for entertainment. Open to anyone up for thrown words or fists. And maybe Death's Heads.]

shagthis.livejournal.com

The weirdness had, yet again, skipped Jake.

He was honestly at the point where his relief at being skipped over by these things actually looped around full circle until he was worried that this meant Fandom had something big planned for him, eventually.

It's a good thing he worked in a bar, because Jake's method of dealing with this sort of sense of foreboding was to drink. Heavily.

endsthegame

"Just make sure the portal comes first thing in the morning on Monday," Ender sighed. "I don't want to be stuck here any longer than I have to-- yes, I know. I know. I realize there may be any number of layovers before we reach next weekend-- yes, I know. What I'm wondering is why it's possible for us to travel back in time here, when it's impossible to take a portal from Shakespeare to Earth back home--

"What do you mean, my universe has a 'rare philotic web construction'-- so it's a matter of varying temporal physics? ... So if I understand this correctly, my boyfriend is complicated because he's 'starting to thread', whatever that means-- look, just get me the portal Monday morning. Please. I don't care how many layovers it takes-- Yes, thank you."

Ender put down his phone and rubbed at his face. "A fine weekend away this is turning out to be," he muttered.

"Look at it this way. The multiverse at large is proving you right," Jane said merrily. "Going back to Fandom is a terrifically bad idea. Always."

"Thanks," Ender muttered.

[[ open! Jane's comments NFB. ]]

momslilassassin

No trip back to Fandom was ever complete without a stop at the ice cream shop, and Ben was greeted with excited shouts by the staff (and one blank stare by the new girl, but she was quickly brought up to speed). He gave them a truncated version of what he'd been up to the last few years and they insisted on getting him to try some of their new experimental flavors.

After a few gasping wheezes, he advised them to keep working on the wasabi flavored one. Eww.

He sat down with the giant sundae named after him and several spoons and started texting people to let them know where to find him.

Not that it should be a surprise for any of them.

[OOC: So very open. I've missed him on the island! Come bug him!]

Current Mood: full

endsthegame

Ender had purposefully let Ben go off on his own. The man needed some time with his friends, and Ender's presence would just get in the way. After some time spent strolling around the beach, he walked back into town, stole into the Perk, and sat down.

A few minutes later, he had a large steaming cup of coffee sitting in front of him.

He stared out the window, taking the occasional sip. He still wasn't completely comfortable being back here, but he'd deal. At least the coffee was better than the improvised stuff they produced on Shakespeare - he'd have to buy some beans.

[[ open! ]]

furnaceface

Well, this was it. Opening night, and Jono had done about all of the running around that he could manage. His props girl had apparently vanished into the ether, his set was mostly painted in a shade of red-with-glitter that meant that he needed to be extremely careful how he lit the bloody thing, he'd drastically shorted himself on rehearsal time, though it seemed as though his cast had stepped up to the occasion and made up for that oversight, and--

Jono looked like he was going to pass out as he made one last check on the state of the stage before opening the house.

-- And there were occasionally waffles raining down from... apparently the catwalks above the stage.

Lovely.

"The show is going to bloody well go on if it kills me," he growled, and then doubled back to grab a broom before going to open the doors.

[Open for all!]

glacial_queen

Karla's mood was decidedly 'blah' today. Rather than do anything productive, she was just going to lounge behind the counter and eat inappropriately-shaped candy today while flipping through her script. That was pretty much all that she had the energy to do.

Okay, and release ladybugs into the air for Nemit to divebomb. That was okay, too.

[No OCD]

glacial_queen

Nemit had spent the weekend divebombing the tank where she kept her psychedelic frogs, which Karla was taking to mean that he was bored being cooped up in her room. So she decided to bring him to 'Dite's with her (after feeding her frogs an extra ration of Jello as an apology) to give her frogs a chance to recover and Nemi a chance to fly around somewhere with more space.

Besides, it was Valentine's week. That meant there was a lot of new stock to move, including chocolates, lingerie, sexy games, and romantic movies for people to enjoy either by themselves or with a special someone.

So while Nemi flew around and burbled, Karla was setting up displays for the holiday.

Get Ready For V-Day: 10% Off Orders of 5 Items or Fewer, 25% off Orders of 6 Items or More!

[All links NSFW]

filleauloup

It wasn't that Éponine had too many reservations about taking advantage of other people's generosity. If there was anything her father had taught her, though, it was to be careful not to end up too beholden to any one person -- which was why, despite having been assured that she could stay as long as she needed, she'd drawn the line at two nights spent on Allie's couch. Never mind that she had absolutely nothing on her except the clothes on her back (and she'd managed to scrounge up a ratty, oversized hoodie from somewhere, so even if she still didn't have shoes she would consider it an improvement warmth-wise) and Cosette's five-franc piece, which for some bizarre inexplicable reason she couldn't quite bring herself to spend, in her pocket.

Other things about which Éponine had few reservations: keeping money she found on the sidewalk. The twenty-dollar bill was the strangest-looking money she'd ever seen, and she chose to believe that was why it wouldn't stretch quite as far as she'd thought it would. Still, she'd found the bakery and gotten herself a cup of coffee and a muffin, then left before the clerk's slightly skeptical expression turned into the familiar look of you've paid, now can you please go somewhere else?

Which was how she ended up sitting on a park bench, nibbling very slowly at the muffin between sips of coffee and watching people go by, or occasionally staring vacantly into space. Admittedly, in part she was sizing up potential targets in case it came down to her needing to, ahem, lighten people's pockets a bit, but that was because in general she was contemplating what on earth to do with herself now. On the one hand, having to fend for herself in a place that perplexed her as much as this one did seemed a bit daunting; on the other hand, trying to find a way home didn't appeal to her much. Imagine that.

[OOC: It's a slow work day and I don't know what to do with myself, so open.]

furnaceface

Well, this was it, then. Rehearsals were finally starting for a production that had been put off for the better part of a year, now. If Jono was a more superstitious person, he'd be shaking people down and demanding to know who had gone around talking about That Scottish Play in the theatre, or something.

Fortunately, he wasn't. He'd just gone and decided that life was a jerk. That was generally the best explanation for most things, after all.

"Good evening, group, and welcome to our first rehearsal for The Consequence of Being Frank. I hope you've all given your scripts a looking over. If not, we're doing a cold reading today anyhow, to get you better acquainted with your roles." A beat, and he found himself looking thoughtfully at the young ladies (and ~~possibly~~ Porthos) gathered there. He'd gone and stepped in problems with cross-casting in the past, he figured now would be the time to bring it up to be sure everyone was on the same page. "And also, I realize that most of you have been cross-cast in order to fill the roles we needed for this production. I understand for some that this might be problematic. If for whatever reason the role you've been assigned makes you uncomfortable, please, talk to me and I'll see what we can do to accommodate."

That said, he lifted his coffee and nodded to the group.

"A cold reading, then. Make yourselves comfortable, don't attempt a British accent while you read this unless you want to make me cry, and we'll work our way through our lines, today. We'll worry about blocking next week."

[Open! Cast list is here, if you missed it on the weekend!]

bitten_notshy

Jack spent Sunday shut in his bedroom with books he'd already read, not wanting to move or act or even think too hard.

Seeing dead people took a lot out of him. Seeing his friends see dead people wasn't much better -- was worse, in some ways, because at least he could tell himself Irina would be dead by 2013 no matter what, which wasn't true of Laura, Lionel or Christian. (And Ashley shouldn't even exist yet.) Time travel could be a decidedly mixed blessing.

But now it was another Monday, and Jack was at the club even before Tiny in an attempt to snap himself out of this -- whatever it was. He settled in with a restaurant equipment catalog and began putting together a fresh order for glassware and bar tools. That was one good thing about his job; there was always something to do.

Fandom High RPG

About the Game

---       Master Game Index
---       Thinking of Joining?
---       IC Community Tags
---       Application Information
---       Existing Character Directory

For Business Owners/Employees

If changes need to be made to the entry for a fictional business your character owns or works at, please drop a comment right to the entry page for that business, and we'll update it for you ASAP!

If your character is a new business owner, please use the New Business Form to give us your information, and we'll create an entry for the business.

---       All Businesses
---       NPC-owned
---       Completely NPC

In-Character Comms

School and Grounds
---       Fandom High School
---       Staff Lounge
---       TA Lounge
---       Student Dorms

Around the Island
---       Fandom Town
---       Fandom Clinic

Communications
---       Radio News Recaps
---       Student Newspaper
---       IC Social Media Posts

Off-Island Travel
---       FH Trips

Once Upon a Time...
---       FH Wishverse AU

Out-of-Character Comms

---       Main OOC Comm
---       Plot Development
---       OOC-but-IC Fun

⚙

Disclaimer

Fandom High is a not-for-profit text-based game/group writing exercise, featuring fictional characters and settings from a variety of creators, used without permission but for entertainment purposes only.

Navigation

Entries tagged with karla

Welcome to Homecoming 2014GLITTERPUNK!

Fandom High RPG

Welcome to Homecoming 2014
GLITTERPUNK!