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

[ribbonbon]

W-Well...

I'm not sure, to be honest. Like, I feel like I've done more here than I ever did back home, but...What would I do if I went right back to where I left home and remembered two years worth of stuff? I mean, it's not like I could tell anyone, right?

[neverplaysfair]

No. But it might mean you could apply your growth as a person. Two years is a lot of experience.

[ribbonbon]

Oh...Yeah, that's true! But, I wonder if people back home would notice that I was different, though. Well, if I'm even that much different than I was before. I wonder if they would even notice...

What about you, though? ...O-oh, wait, I guess you'd want to remember, right?

[After all, he's been making a pretty good case for it and thinking about it makes Pilouette a little more worried about the possibility of going home and forgetting, though she's doing her best not to show it.]

[neverplaysfair]

If I could, I'd certainly like to. I can't exactly say I'm fond of having my memories changed for me. For all the ups and downs of this place, I've certainly experienced some things I don't want to forget.

[ And if he doesn't forget them, then he doesn't have to inevitably experience them all over again when he returns home. That would be really nice. ]

I'd imagine it's the same for many people. Even the hard times are worth something in your memories.

sdjk I thought I replied to this I'm so sorry

[ribbonbon]

[She nods. He's definitely making a lot of sense. Her memories have been messed with so much in Luceti, she's starting to think that maybe even remembering the bad things would be okay.]

Yeah...I'm starting to think that the bad memories are some of the most important ones. It can be easy to forget the fun everyday stuff, but sometimes the bad stuff like, really sticks with you, you know?

it's alright!

[neverplaysfair]

Anything that leaves a strong impression, good or bad. Of course, usually it's the bad memories that have greater impacts.

But difficult experiences are what make you grow.

[ribbonbon]

[That last bit seems to make a light go off in her brain.]

Yeah, that's true...Now that you mention it, I guess the more difficult something is, the more a person has to work and change to deal with it, huh?

...You know, you really seem to have it all together. It's like, pretty cool, you know?

[neverplaysfair]

Hee hee, why thank you. After all, I'd like to think the years I've spent here were worth something. This place has let me experience a large number of things I'd never be able to experience at home. Isn't it the same for you?

[ribbonbon]

It really is...! A lot of the things I've experienced here are a lot scarier than the things I did back home. Then again back home, I didn't do much. I pretty much just went to school and came home every day.

Still, even if I had done a lot back home, I probably wouldn't have been in a war or seen magic or...or even done something like this! You know? I don't think I would have even thought to go to speed dating at home.

[neverplaysfair]

It's good to take advantage of the opportunities here. While we may be away from our homes our families, everyone and everything we knew, there's nothing to say this can't be its own positive experience.

With all the strange things here, who would even want to go to school? [ ... Plenty of people, Josh... ]

[ribbonbon]

W-Well...I always thought school was kind of important.

[Especially before coming to Luceti. She always thought that going to school is just what kids her age did.]

Besides, the teachers are all from different worlds, too, right? So they might know things that we don't! And it is kind of a nice way to meet other ki...teenagers.

[Even if she hasn't actually become friends with most of her classmates, but...]

[neverplaysfair]

On the other hand, would they be so willing to teach about things specific to their world? It sounds interesting, but schools are meant to be practical. They should be teaching things applicable to all worlds, so you'd have a better chance of learning things you couldn't learn at home by engaging them in one-on-one conversation.

[ribbonbon]

O-Oh...I guess you're right. [She actually was just trying to come with a "school totally is important" argument, but...] I'm not sure how much stuff from other worlds I could really learn, though. It all sounds like, super complicated. Like...like magic! I don't think I could ever get that.

...To be honest, I really go to school here because it would probably feel weird for me not to.

[neverplaysfair]

Do you enjoy school?

[ribbonbon]

H-Huh? Well, of course I do! I mean...I enjoy it just as much as most people do. I mean, class is boring sometimes and some stuff is really hard to remember but it's...it's not bad. I guess.

[She had never thought about whether or not she enjoyed school or not. It was just something she did.]

School is different here than it is back home, though. Now that I think about it, I'm not sure if I enjoyed it more there than I do here.

[neverplaysfair]

Different how?

[ribbonbon]

Well...for one thing, it's just something you do. Like, we don't choose whether to go or not. And there are a lot more people, so there are lots of classes and it's totally normal not to know everyone.

In my case, specifically, well...I went to a private school. Once I started going to school here, it took me a while to get used to not wearing a uniform and being in class with guys again. Plus the scheduling and stuff. Four days a week? I mean, it's just one day less but, it felt sort of...weird, you know?

[neverplaysfair]

[ Meanwhile Joshua over here is used to even public schools having uniforms because that's just what schools are like. ]

But since you've chosen to do it here, on some level that means that you genuinely enjoy it. Any day now you could wake up and decide to stop going, and that would be that. Yet you haven't.

I don't know about where you're from, but given the option I'm sure most people back home would spend their days doing something else instead.

[ribbonbon]

[Pilouette laughs, just a little.]

That's exactly how it is! Back home, even I used to complain about having to go to school all the time.

But...now that you mention it, it's kind of funny. Even with how much I thought I hated school, when I got here, I didn't think twice about going. I guess I like more than I thought! ...To be honest, it kind of makes being here feel a little more normal. Just a little bit.

[neverplaysfair]

So it's not the learning, but the familiarity, perhaps?

[ribbonbon]

Maybe. [A sigh.] I'll be too old for school soon, though. I've got another year left.

[Ideally, she would be home before then, but...]

What about you, though? I mean, I get that you're not into the whole school thing, but what kind of stuff makes this place more like home for you? Or maybe that kind of thing doesn't bother you.

[neverplaysfair]

[ Oh, there's a very real possibility that it bothers him more than anyone else in the village. ]

Well, I was rather fond of social networks back home. So the journals are rather helpful with that.

Otherwise, it's quite different from what I'm used to. I lived in a very big city, after all.

[ribbonbon]

Really? How big? Like, New York City big?

[She leans forward a little, interested.]

[neverplaysfair]

New York City... is smaller, I think.

[ He's not actually entirely sure. ]

If we're talking about the entire city area, the population is at least ten million people. But there's lots of different ways it could be counted.

[ribbonbon]

Even bigger than New York...? Whoa...! Talk about huge! And no matter how many ways you count it, ten million is like, a ton of people! I guess the village is about as different as you can get...

The city I live in isn't anywhere near as big and I've only been to a really big city once for a school trip, so I can't even imagine what actually living in such a huge city must be like...!