synflux | OPEN💗 LATE VALENTINE'S DAY PARTY

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OPEN💗 LATE VALENTINE'S DAY PARTY

WHO: Newbies, oldbies, everyone is welcome!
WHAT: A Late Valentine’s Party mingle, since Valentines’ Day was over Kaiju month…
WHERE: “MANTRA”, an underground, alternative club in Neo Toyko
WHEN: March 10th
WARNINGS: Romance and shippy things, alcohol, hookah, suggestive things. Anything NSFW is to be appropriately labelled.

Around the 10th of March, Outsiders will receive a message in their ocular inbox from Kabru, the Outsider also known as @ rasgulla. The message reads:

“To my dearest friends and teammates,

If we haven’t met before, call me Kabru. When not on missions as an Outsider, I work as a freelance event planner for various businesses and private organizations within Neo Tokyo.

Valentines’ Day is a popular holiday in Japan that was sadly interrupted last month by the kaiju. My current client is holding a belated Valentines’ Day event and they would really like the Outsiders to come. There will be plenty of food and things to do. Even if you're not looking for a romantic time, I'd encourage you to come!

Please wear something comfortable. Looking forward to seeing you there!

Yours sincerely,

Kabru.”

A location pin comes attached with the invitation. It looks like Kabru’s become more adept at technology over the months.

Follow the location pin and you’ll find yourself in front of ‘Mantra’ in metro Tokyo, an underground, alternative club making waves for its uniqueness in the club scene. Outsiders will all be allowed in without much fuss. The owner of the club is a gentle woman who kindly requests that all guests take their shoes off and leave them at the side. There is a lingering scent of incense and the people hanging out in the club look remarkably calm as they relax; cuddling and enjoying each other’s company. What kind of Valentine’s day party is this? A New Age, alternative kind, apparently. The owner of the club wants to be promoting togetherness in a completely different way.

Thankfully, finger foods and alcohol appear to be abundant, even if Kabru would really like you to be mingling with the people! There is a bar with free flowing wines and spirits, and a table with hors d'oeuvres and small desserts as accompaniment. These can include sushi rolls, small sandwiches, crab cake bites, small skewers, chocolates, little cakes and tarts. Food aside, there is live music playing and guests are highly encouraged to dance.

Naturally, couples are also coupling up, but anything too raunchy is of course cordoned off to a private room. Also, ignore the people smoking electronic hookah at the side…

What can you do besides eat and drink?

1. DANCING 💗

The DJ mostly plays trance and synth pop music in the background but he’s happy to take requests. On the dancefloor,there’s always a group of tipsy guests dancing their hearts out, some dancing alone and others dancing as a couple. There’s no right or wrong way to dance and most people will not cast judgement. Give it a try? Better hurry, before some of the overeager guests try to drag you in.

2. CUDDLE PILE 💗
Numerous cushions are set out around the venue for guests to lounge in and cuddle. It’s highly encouraged, in fact! Especially after a vigorous dance session. There are people lying together in larger groups, and couples choosing to spend their time lounging and enjoying each other’s company. Finding it difficult to relax? The owner might give you a whiff of her special perfume that’s guaranteed to put you in a state of complete calm. It might even make you more open about lying together with someone else.

3. SPEED DATING 💗

There’s a speed dating round going on in one side of the club. Guests are numbered and paired up randomly, then given a short amount of time to get to know each other on a speedy little date. Don’t know what to say? A list of questions will flow in through the oculars to give you a prompt. (Please refer to here and here for some examples or make up your own!)

4. MAKE SWEET TREATS 💗

In the spirit of Valentines’ Day, the owner of the club is hosting a quick desserts-making workshop at the event. Guests will be provided with ingredients and taught to make chocolate or cupcakes, and they will get the chance to decorate it however they like. It’s highly encouraged to make something to give to your sweetheart or the person you admire. Do you really want to be the person eating their own chocolate on Valentines’ Day?

5. PARTY GAMES 💗

What’s a party without party games? Throughout the night, people will be getting drunk and playing local drinking games such as the King’s Game. Eventually, other games from the West get introduced by other people. These games include Truth or Dare, Spin the Bottle and 7 Minutes in Heaven.

6. TAKE SOMEONE HOME 💗

If it looks like you're having a pretty good time with someone else, a helpful robot will approach you and provide you both with a key to a private room. Some of these private rooms are normal and some are themed, similar to a love hotel. There's no need to actually do anything raunchy of course. You could just cuddle up and enjoy the warmth of the digital fireplace! Everything one might need for a nice time together (condoms, lubricant etc) will be readily available.

As the event planner, Kabru will be buzzing around and making sure everything runs smoothly, but he can be stopped for questions or concerns (pls be nice to him he has anxiety). Characters can sit out of anything they want, but drunk and overeager guests might decide to drag them in.

[ OOC: I put this up so everyone can enjoy a chill mingle after the chaos of last month! And also because we didn’t get the opportunity to have do much for Valentines’ Day given the timing. Naturally, please label any NSFW, add your content warnings appropriately, and state your boundaries and preferences in terms of shipping/gen/being tagged by younger/older characters. ]

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( Vash pauses, the cogs of his brain clearly whirring away. Blame the ( several ) cocktails, please. He's usually far more clever. But then his face does a spasming thing like he's just stepped out onto a mine, only the mine is insulting someone -. )

Fuck.

( And then a desperate little sound. ) No, not because you're a vampire! That's fine! I didn't think you existed, but I don't think a lot of things exist and then I come here and boom, gods! Vampires! Shaved ice! Kaiju smut! But I didn't mean - I thought you meant Transylvania! I was a vampire because of Translyvania. It was really hard. I bit my best friend and it made things super weird. ( HELP. ) But if you're already one then that's ...

( Okay? )

I'm a plant! ( Panicky. ) So I'm something else too.

[Astarion's expression changes with nearly every knew bit of information Vash babbles out. Shaved ice? Kaiju smut? Confused. Bit his friend and made it weird? Intrigued. Then, finally, his last declaration a return to confusion--only moreso. He gives him a look from head to toe, and asks:]

Like you're a leaf?

Um.

( Is he? )

Not really. Not like you'd think. I'm just not human. I have different things going on, a new vibe. ( Vash, pls. ) But really I just look human. I guess to most people here a plant is an alien? And I was born on a spaceship, so. Technically right.

I see . . .

[He doesn't really. He knows somewhat what he means by spaceship and all, if he thinks of it in terms of things like mind flyer nautiluses that can traverse realms and the firmament and such.]

So if you were cut do you still bleed? When you cry is it still water?

Oh yeah, trust me. I do both a lot. It just looks like normal, but there's other stuff I do that humans don't. I need less food, less sleep, I'm stronger, faster sometimes too.

( Also there's the power, but Vash does not want to go near that. )

But really, I just see myself as a normal guy. And you're a normal guy too. So I really didn't mean to imply anything!

[He smirks at his earnestness. This fellow must be an exceptionally kind man, even when not sloshed.]

Sounds as if we're rather alike. I do not need to eat, as an elf I don't rest as long as humans and other races in the first place, and I can be stronger and faster if I have a good "meal" in me.

Do not fret, you haven't offended me. In fact, let me introduce myself. I'm Astarion.

( An elf? Shit, those are some pointy ears.

What does he know about elves? Next to nothing. He only knows about vampires due to Transylvania. And people telling him at Halloween. )

Astarion! That's a real nice name, I like it. I'm Vash.

( He sticks out his hand, polite and eager. Go on, shake his metal palm. )

Though man, no booze? I am so sorry. What do you get to do for fun if alcohol and food is off the table?

Thank you. I'm rather particular to it, too.

[He takes his hand, and gives it one shake as he also does a short bow.]

Pleasure.

[Standing and releasing his hand, he puts his on his chin as if in thought.]

Oh, you know... Reading, hunting, sex.

[Did he put a stress on the last one to see Vash's reaction? Yes, he did.]

( Predictably, Vash has already lifted the rest of his drink to his mouth by that last part, immediately starts to choke. He has to pound on his chest with one first, ears pink. )

Ah? Ahahaha. Yeah, reading's pretty fun.

( Help. )

No wonder you came to the party then!

( Double help. )

[An even better reaction than he had hoped for. His grin spreads for that choking cough, then settles back down once it stops.

Innocuously, he asks:]

Isn't something like that why you're here?

Oh. Um. No?

( Drawing out that o. )

I'm friends with Kabru! You have to support a friend even if he's throwing a romantic party, right? And I like meeting people, so as long as the rest isn't a requirement then I'm down. Plus, this tastes like jellybeans.

( His drink. )

So I'm having a great time.

Ah, too bad, I was so hoping for an invitation to that 7 Seconds in Heaven game you had mentioned.

[A playful pout.]

( He doesn't mind being flustered, Astarion's flirty and he's met plenty of coy people before. It's a fun vibe. He's having a good time. Which means he's bubbling with laughter, flapping a hand. )

I still don't even know what the game means, only that hopefully neither of us ends up - ( Miming a slashing motion over his throat, sticking his tongue out, universal childish dead symbolism. ) - I'd probably be really bad at it.

[The man doesn't seem to keen to actually play the game, so Astarion calculates to pull back from that path, but he is enjoying the teasing conversation even without that goal. (Had he even truly wanted to play it in the first place? Not really, but he won't look deep into why he was trying.)

He titters at his pantomime of death, then cocks his head slightly.]

Be really bad at dying? A rather confident thing to say, for how close and intimate a killing would be in a closet.

Edited 2025-03-26 03:04 (UTC)

Well, I mean. Technically I am? Plenty of people have tried and failed! Maybe the closet would too.

( Possibly, knowing Vash's luck, the closet would explode and kill everyone else here leaving only him, intact and bearing the guilt. He knows what the universe has set out for him. )

A genuine question for you, that I hope you would in turn answer honestly for me: Do you think the closet itself would be the killer, rather than the person inside it with you?

( ...

...

... )

The closet?

( Listen, listen. Sometimes you have to believe in people! Sometimes even if it's going to your own detriment. )

Hmmm, I see. Another question, darling: Are you typically this simple-minded, or have you just had too many jelly bean cocktails?

[Perhaps he'll be too drunk to be offended by this question.]

( For a second comes the sharpness of clarity - Vash rarely as drunk as he seems, maybe - a flicker of it across his face, naked understanding. But then he laughs, pink and flushed, waving a hand. )

Oh, I don't know. That's maybe nicer than some other people have said. Suicidal, mostly. Blocks for brains, one time. I just like to think there's not a lot of ill-will here, right? Also why kill someone at a party? There's like, so many onlookers.

( He eyes Astarion up from behind his glasses. )

Also you don't seem the type.

[Oh, he sees that flicker. It startles him enough to blink, and Vash is right back to this laughing buffoon personality so fast Astarion almost wonders if he imagined it.

But that look from over his sunglasses--oh yes, that confirms it. This man isn't what he seems, and if he wasn't actually drunk he was convincing enough it even had strung Astarion along, and that was very interesting. His smirk grows just a bit more keen, and his head tilts just so.]

I don't? I suppose your plonked observation is true. I don't tend to kill without a reason.

( That, at least, has something relaxing in him. Killing with reason is better than killing without, and while Vash would really, really prefer absolutely zero killing in general, he knows there are some things he can't shift about the universe, no matter how hard he might want to try. The slight tension eases, he settles back into himself. )

Also, I'm pretty sure if any of us tried LILITH would explode our brains. Wasn't that a thing? Am I making that up? I might be making that up.

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OPEN💗 LATE VALENTINE'S DAY PARTY

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oh no he mentioned the jellybean taste TWICE i did have deja vu about it

LOL I just figured he was stoked about it

that's true, he would be.

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Legit rolled a nat 20 to see if Astarion picked up on this

amazing i love the commitment to the bit