XOXO ❅ VALENTINE'S EVENT

[nightmods]

XOXO

One major problem with being the group that's responsible for solving all kinds of problems in the myth world is other myths can kind of be dicks about it. That's why, on Valentine's Day, Cupid shows up, quickly offloads his kid (the toddler Baby Cupid), and runs off to take care of spreading love on his holiday, with barely a how'd you do. He doesn't even say thank you.

To be fair, you can't fault him too much for only trusting the Guardians to babysit his kid in these dangerous and uncertain times, especially when children at risk against the fearlings.

Still, that means there's a giggling toddler, about 2-years-old in appearance, but maybe with the mental age of a 4 or 5 (he is definitely old enough to understand he's being naughty and deserving of a time out) flitting around the Pole causing all kinds of Valentine's related problems. Fortunately, the toddler has learned that he's not quite old enough to know the right times to help people fall in love (Adult Cupid just helps things along when they're already falling, or when they need help falling back in love, of course).

Instead, Baby C is doing what his father taught him to do and causing all kinds of tricks to try to get people to admit feelings that already exist or manufacturing ways for them to become closer to each other.

HONESTY ARROWS ♥ Baby Cupid isn't shooting magic arrows that cause anyone to develop feelings for each other but he sure is trying to make sure people talk about whatever feelings they have. Anyone hit will be compelled to blurt out various truths about themselves, their personal history, and their feelings to whoever is around them and will have difficulty stopping or drawing themselves away. In fact, if someone walks away they'll feel compelled to find someone else to confess to. The effect wears off anywhere between 5 minutes to a half hour.

TATTLETALE ROSES ♥ Vines of roses are now growing all over the Workshop. For those who are in love, they take the form of the face of the person they're in love with. The more they try to hide it or deny it from someone they're talking to, the more of them bloom with the person's face.

THORNY VINES OF CLOSENESS ♥ The rose vines have their own annoying purpose: bonding! For people that clearly need to become friends, fall in love, or fall deeper in love, thorny vines will wrap around both people, forcing them into a little cage together. The thorns fortunately won't poke them - they seem to be maneuvered in a way to just make sure there are no gaps to escape through. The vines are magically reinforced and can't be opened with any physical or magical means. After that, one of two things will happen:

1) A card will fall from the ceiling of the cage saying: Tell each other how you really feel about each other!!! This will happen if the cage thinks they need to affirm the status of their relationship, whether they need to admit they're in love, admit they've been bitten by the friend bug if they're reluctant to, or really need to talk about how much they mean to each other as friends. Only then will they be let out of the feelings shame corner.

2) If the two don't know each other, or both people could afford to get to know each other better multiple cards will drop from the ceiling with icebreaker questions, as if they're a bunch of new hires at an orientation.

How many will they have to answer before they're released? Who knows! But they have to answer them honestly or the cage won't open.

CANDY LONELY HEARTS ♥ People who are on the lonelier side and in need of support might find a candy heart on a random surface. The messages on them are on the platonic side (Like "You rock!" or "Shine on!") They'll feel compelled to eat them (even if they're on the floor). When they do, a glowing red thread will appear and tie itself around their finger. Briefly, in the air, the glowing string will form into letters that tell the person what they need to do to be release, whether it's telling someone they're lonely, asking for some kind of support, or admitting a vulnerability.

Then it'll whip out and grab someone else nearby, wrapping around their finger as well. Sometimes, two people might eat a candy at the same time and each have a string appear and they'll tie in the middle.

The strings are unbreakable, and they won't be set free until whoever ate a candy talks about their loneliness or vulnerable feelings - regardless of whether or not the other person is an eager listener.

OOC DETAILS
❅ Starters: You can make up your own wildcard effects, feel free! If you do, please consider posting it to the Wildcard comment below so others might be able to pick up the same effect as well if they like them.

❅ Multiple effects: Feel free to have characters slammed by as many of Baby C's traps in the same thread as you want. No reason someone can't have the worst luck and trip three Cupid traps at once or several of them in a row.

Comments

[boldboimler]

"Space doesn't have an overall up or down so gravity brings things closer to the ground, wherever that ground is. It's more about attaching things to a surface but a surface is a surface, regardless of the shape it's on."

It takes his brain a little bit to catch up to the question.

"And as far as I can tell, yes. I've looked over everything online about NASA, about space exploration here, tons of available data from radio telescopes, footage of Earth from space, footage from the moon landings... it's all the same as back home."

He goes on, "And back home, where most of the history of space exploration is the same as it is here - the same so far, anyway - I've taken shuttles from the ground to the atmosphere of planets. Lots of times."

He nods.

"I've seen it. When you get high enough up, higher even than Mt. Everest, the view curves. And when you get even higher, even far enough away, it's a sphere. Every planet I've ever been to is a sphere. You can fly right around them and see it out of the viewscreen."

[mild conspiracy theories]

[hallelujahjunction]

Dan bites down on gravity doesn't go sideways, because he knows better than to argue with faith. Boimler believes the objectively loopy idea that gravity doesn't pull things downwards, and Dan doesn't believe that any amount of logic can penetrate a sincerely-held, spiritual misconception. Boimler's convinced. He's a convert.

But Dan's looked at the horizon and he is well-aware that it's flat. He's been in tall buildings and on boats on the ocean and on vistas in the Rockies, and the horizon has always been flat. It's been one of the few comforting constants wherever Dan's gone, like the sun rising each day. The horizon is always flat.

(He can't wait to gossip about this with Bunny, who will definitely agree with him that the Earth isn't a weird ball with magic powers that pulls things sideways and upside down.)

"Where I'm from, they only pretended to go on the moon. Pretty sure it was a scam to get folks to give their tax dollars to another government money-laundering agency. Nassuh*, I think. It must could be different on your world."

*Dan isn't aware NASA is an acronym. Or what an acronym is. Or what NASA is.