Speed Dating

[selfhelp]

Who: Anyone who wants/is forced to come
What: Speed Dating!
When: Saturday at a vaguely-afternoonish time period
Where: The Rec Center
Summary: Details here, Roster here!
Rating: PG/13/T/R/god I don't know there's too many people



[The rec center today is colourfully decorated, with posters and directing signs here and there to make this whole process easier. The main floor is peppered with a bunch of tables and chairs pilfered from various locations (primarily the school) with two chairs facing each other per table. There's a couple of bigger tables off to the side, one for food (carrying drinks and various snacks, including Teddy and Ororo's homemade rainbow cookies), and the other with a few chairs and piles of paper everywhere. And a checklist. The checklist is important.

The desk is Billy's, and he's handing sheets of paper out to anyone who comes in and was signed up for the speed dating. Give your name, get a sheet and a name tag, go to the first desk or mingle until it starts- that's what people will be told when they arrive. Teddy's not far from the desk or the door depending on where he's needed, directing people to follow the signs, get comfortable, try some snacks- whatever they want.

Finally a lounge area has been set up with cushy chairs, couches, and the rec center's supply of games and whatnot in the corner. There is a sign for the area that says, "If you find yourself on a turn without a date, come hang out!" It's also got a picture of a weird-looking potato man hanging out, but never mind that.

When everything is ready and people are good to go, Teddy steps up and calls for attention, with Billy sitting on top of the table behind him for moral support (and unhelpful interruptions).]

Hey, guys – Hey! Can everyone hear me? Everyone? [...] Great!

I'm sure everyone knows why they're here. Or, you know, not, since a few of these sign-ups look a little suspicious... [He raises an eyebrow at that, but his smile remains good-natured, and his brow smooths over soon enough.] On behalf of Alliance, welcome to Luceti's very first -

-We think.

- speed dating event! [Though Teddy glances at Billy for that interruption, he'd paused as if he expected it to come.] I'm Teddy, and this is Billy, and we're your hosts today. I'll try to be brief for those of you who just want to get this started already, but let's go over the rules and regulations first.

If you happened to get dragged into this without knowing what you're getting yourself into, it's basically exactly as it sounds. You might remember one of us handing you a list of numbers. Well, when Billy gives the signal, everyone will head to the table with the first number on their list, which will pair you off with someone in the room you just might not have met before! You'll have five minutes to talk to them and get to know them, just enough time for a good – or bad – first impression. After that, one of us will blow the whistle, and you'll go to the next numbered table. And on and on, until it's all over! By then, you might have found someone you're interested in, either as a friend, a potential love interest, or even just someone you really don't want to see again.

To keep track of it all, there's a space beside the number to write down the name of the person you're talking to and anything else you might have learned about them. And maybe by the end, you can write down a no, a yes, or an oh yes.

Try not to be too vague about it and we'll give you your matches at some point in the future.

[Teddy grins after that, a happy and excited one.] Remember, this is all about having fun and meeting new people! If you want to take a break, get bored, or don't have a partner, refreshments are on that side of the room [He gestures to the side, showing off the assorted foods and the cookies that he and Ororo spent a good part of the night baking.], or you can come up and talk to us! We're just the supervisors here, after all.

[He takes a step back after that, his attention going to Billy, his way of telling him to give the signal.] Billy?

[Billy gives a small wave, remaining on his table. Teddy did the hard part, after all.] There's a lounge, too, if we're not interesting enough. You might meet somebody there you're not paired with and find a new friend, so give it a shot.

That's pretty much it, so everyone can go on and head to your first table, and we'll blow the whistle in one minute. Thanks for coming, and try to have fun!


(( ooc: directions are as follows:

1) check your roster
2) make a top thread for your character with their name in the subject line
3) tag and be tagged
4) THERE IS NO QUESTION MARK ONLY PROFIT ))

Comments

[neverplaysfair]

It would have gone much better if he didn't immediately spend an hour and a half trying to wash it out in the shower, hee hee. But the colors tended to run together at the edges even before that point.

[blessingone]

Oh, so this wasn't being done as a favour for the friend, huh? [She would be furious if someone tried that on her, but as a hypothetical prank? She sounds highly amused.]

I guess I didn't get around to introducing myself yet. My name is Fenimore. It'll be nice to meet you as long as you don't try to dye my wings while I'm not paying attention. [Her tone suggests that she means it as a joke, though it's probably true that it would no longer be considered nice to meet him if he did try to dye her wings strange colours.]

[neverplaysfair]

Joshua. A pleasure to meet you. [ He eyes her wings. ] I suppose you should make sure to pay attention around Halloween, then. But otherwise you're likely safe. Orange doesn't take to other colors well.

[blessingone]

Well, that's useful for me, I guess. [ She grins a little. It's not really something she's worried about. ] So, Halloween is a time for pulling pranks on other people? I guess that explains those ghosts from last year -- though I guess whether you know what I'm talking about depends on if you were here at the time. How long have you been in Luceti?

[neverplaysfair]

Three and a half years.

But Halloween also sports the traditional colors of orange and black, which is about all anyone would be able to get out of dye on your wings.

[blessingone]

I've gotten along fine with just orange for my own three and a half years, so I think I'll be fine. I can just stand next to my housemate with black wings if I need to get in the spirit of the holiday.

[neverplaysfair]

Maybe you simply don't know what you're missing.

[ But he's teasing.

... Then again Joshua's default mode is teasing so it might be hard to tell that this in particular is a joke. ]

You could always be lucky and it won't ever matter...

[blessingone]

I should be fine as long as I avoid you if I see you with a bucket.

[ She's joking as well. At least, she hopes he's teasing. ]

So, other than dyeing other people's wings, what sorts of things do you do? Like hobbies, I mean.

[neverplaysfair]

Depending on whether I'm feeling social or antisocial, I either talk to people or I paint. Unfortunately, most of my hobbies from home don't carry over well here, so I've had to make do with those.

And yourself?

[blessingone]

Well...I swim, when I get the chance, or go on walks when I can't. Sometimes, I read books from the library [mostly comic books really] and I do a little beadwork. I'm pretty busy most of the time, though.

What kinds of hobbies did you have at home, that couldn't carry over so well?

[neverplaysfair]

Some instruments. Observing fashion and trends. [ Crushing the hopes of children. ] Social networking, though I suppose I can still do that one to a smaller extent.

Is that enough to keep you busy, or is there something else?

[blessingone]

[ Social networking? What an odd phrase, thinks the girl from a tiny village. ]

There's enough work to do that I haven't needed to find much more to fill up my spare time. Someone I shared a house with left behind her daughter, and I don't think the others staying with me are really the child-rearing sort. Or the housekeeping-sort, either. I mean, they help out, but...there's enough left that it keeps me busy. [ She gives something of a half-smile. ] Well, I've also been learning about self-defence from the Kyoshi Warrior group since I got here, but I'm not sure that really counts as a hobby.

[neverplaysfair]

Ah, yes. Children are good at sucking up one's time, aren't they?

So I take it you are the type to raise one?

[blessingone]

I don't know if I'd put it exactly like that, but...yeah.

[ She hesitates before answering his second question, though. ] It's more that I'm not as bad as the rest of them. I mean, I thought it would happen one day, but...I didn't expect it to be like this.

[ "Get married, raise kids" was basically the assumed life path of everyone back in her village and career options for women were pretty limited. But she kind of figured she'd do the first part before the latter part. Then again, she'd also figured that "die" would come after both, so there you go. ]

[neverplaysfair]

[ Death has a tendency to mess up one's plans in life rather thoroughly. Josh is quite aware of this. ]

Have you asked for help around the village? I wouldn't be too surprised if there were parents here who had left children behind in their own worlds. Though I suppose you might want to know them rather well first.

[blessingone]

Well...I did ask around once or twice for help with babysitting. Some of the people who responded have gone home, but I still have some people I can ask for help when I need a break and my housemates aren't available.

[neverplaysfair]

But no one to take over as primary carer?

[blessingone]

What, you mean, like, adopt her? I couldn't ask someone to do something like that.

[Her answer is immediate. Outside of the occasional wistful thought when she's picking up after Sophie, she's never seriously considered the possibility. Really, she'd never even examined the reasoning for why she took responsibility for Sophie.]

[neverplaysfair]

No, but some might offer on their own.

[blessingone]

[ Honestly, a part of Fenimore would love a chance to offload the work of raising Sophie on someone else, but a part of her is uncomfortable with the idea. She doesn't really feel like examining either of those parts. ]

I'll cross that bridge if I come to it. It'd be harder around here, though. No one could guarantee that they'd be around for long.

[ She shakes her head.] But this doesn't have much to do with this event, does it? It's not that I don't appreciate the advice, but -- I should probably be asking you about yourself, like...like where you come from, or something like that.

[neverplaysfair]

[ Nonsense, giving advice is Joshua's social activity. ]

Shibuya. Tokyo. Japan. Earth. I'm not sure how broad I need to get before it starts meaning anything to you.

[blessingone]

You have a point. I've never heard of Shibuya, but I think you're the -- [ She stops, looking at a hand as she inwardly counts. ] sixth or seventh person I've been matched up with this evening from Japan. [ Her pronounciation of Japan is a little rough, with a slight pause between the syllables. She grins a little. ] I don't know what it was about how I signed up for this that made me so compatable with Japan.

[neverplaysfair]

Mmm... it might just be that there are more people from Japan here. These sort of events are somewhat frequent, at least in the Japan I'm from. The familiarity might have drawn people to it.

[blessingone]

So these sorts of things are common in Japan, huh? [She sounds a bit contemplative.] I guess that makes this a much more normal experience for you, then.

[neverplaysfair]

In a way. I didn't participate myself, since they're usually for adults [ that's totally not the reason why ] but I've seen them in popular media quite often. Still, since not everyone knew what to expect, it means that they don't always do what I would otherwise anticipate. It keeps it interesting.