when the moon hits your eye... [Valentine's Day Date Night]

[ayes]

Who: You Watanabe (ayes) & lots of folks!
What: Valentine's Day Matchmaking: DATE NIGHT
When: The evening of February 14!
Where: Olympia
Warning(s): Some mild druglike effects, and probably some NSFW stuff in threads?

Earlier in the week-- about the night of February 12 or so-- you received a letter in the mail. Upon opening it, you found an invitation, hand-written in a sort of looping script.

Hello [YOUR NAME HERE]!
You're invited to a really great night!
On the evening of February 14, please come join us in Olympia for a special surprise!

Your friend,
You

P.S. "You" is my name. I'm not saying it's from you!

She's drawn a little smiley face on the invitation, and you may remember her from her earlier post to the network. For some of you, this invitation isn't surprising. You signed up for her party, after all. For others, though, this may come as a surprise.

[I: The Message & The Arrival]

Nevertheless, you decide to go anyway. She's listed an address in Olympia, and the night of the event, when you show up, it's a decent-sized dining hall. There are pink and red ribbons and balloons and lacy heart shapes everywhere.

You may catch sight of the young woman scurrying around, looking a little harried. Or you may just find other people who seem confused to be here. Did your name wind up in the drawing list? Did theirs? What's going on?

[II: Dinner...]

Be it as it may, you go inside. Inside, you can find more of those ribbons, and balloons, and hearts, as well as dozens of small, round tables for two, each covered in a white tablecloth and with a pair of candlesticks. Approaching the tables, you find that each seat has a small nametag, written in that same looping handwriting. They're names you may recognize: Reinhardt Wilhelm, Isabela, Mikazuki Augus, and more.

One of these names is yours. And across from you is another name. Maybe you recognize them, maybe you don't.

Either way, it's not long before someone comes by to light the candles and take your food order. You've got a date.

[III: ...and a show!]

Maybe half an hour after your meal order is taken and has been served (it's delicious, by the way) a spotlight cuts through the dim light, illuminating a small raised stage off on the side of the room. The young woman, You, is standing there, wearing a short dress that almost looks like that of a ballet dancer, her hair pinned up. She has to reach up to bring the microphone down. She's not very tall.

"Ah... um, hello? Is it on? Hi!" she says, her voice fast and a little nervous. "I'm You Watanabe, and... happy Valentine's Day! I hope you're all having a wonderful time, and maybe the person you're meeting tonight, um, I don't know, something could come out of it, I hope!"

She pauses, like she's not sure what to say. "Anyway, uh, I thought I'd perform some songs while you're eating, so listen if you want!"

You takes a breath and then steps back before gesturing to someone in the darkness, presumably who then starts a music track. She begins to sing and dance, performing a number of different songs. Some of them are sweet and slow, others a little more upbeat, and there's even one that's kind of... sensual in a rockin' way? Still, while her dance moves are well practiced and her voice pretty and clear, you get the sense that these song and dance routines were meant to be performed with way more than just one person. There should be harmonies or other parts there that are missing.

Still, there's an empty dance floor in front of the stage, and there's something catchy and almost strangely inspiring about the girl's singing-- even if this genre of music isn't your particular favorite, it's somehow encouraging. Why not ask your partner to dance?

[IV: Sin and Sweetness]

Eventually, You leaves the stage, thanking everyone, and the night continues uneventfully. As your dinner wears down, you may be drawn to a cart off to the side, piled high with desserts, pastries of all types and color. Eventually, a pair of waiters begins pushing it around from table to table. Do you want some dessert, they ask.

These pastries have been baked by your hostess, You herself, based off a book of recipes she'd found in some of the... seedier parts of the Entertainment District. There's another one of those handwritten notes in that looping script, written on thick card stock folded in two to make a simple sign:

Tonight's a night of excitement!
If you want a little help feeling romantic, try the pastries!
They'll definitely spice things up! (๑˃ᴗ˂)ﻭ

The various pastries themselves have similarly handwritten signs on them, notifying you (if a little obliquely) of some potentially interesting effects...

• Strudel: "Find beauty in the world!" (For whatever reason, other people look a little more attractive.)
• Baklava: "To tell them how you really feel!" (You'll feel more likely to be honest, if not overshare.)
• Cannoli: "Because love needs laughter!" (Everything other people say is somehow funnier than usual.)
• Cinnamon Roll: "The nose knows!" (The first person you look at smells oddly like your favorite smell.)
• Blueberry Scone: "For a bit of courage!" (This will make you feel bolder, intensifying emotions you already feel.)
• Mooncake: "To feel like falling in love!" (Every time you look at the first person you see, your heart beats a little faster.)
• Taiyaki: "Try to see someone else differently!" (Every time you look at the first person you see, there are little sparkles around them.)

The effects themselves aren't designed to be overwhelming or all that powerful, and can be resisted with just a little effort. However, You's recipe only dealt with one effect at a time. Mixing and matching multiple pastries? Who knows what might happen...?

There are also plenty of non-magical desserts, for anyone looking to sate their sweet tooth without chancing an odd experience.

[V: Singles Mingle]

You's spent most of her time arranging the couples event, of course, but if you didn't sign up, there's still a place for you! (Or maybe your date went terribly and you're here early.) There's a bar off to the side where people are welcome to sit and drink and meet other folks.

That said, they're bringing the pastries around here, too...

[VI: Wildcard]

Didn't see a prompt here for you? Write your own! The night has plenty of dancing, food, romantic moonlight, and plenty of places you can sneak off to be alone.

((OOC: As always, please label your threads if they turn NSFW, and make sure your thread partner(s) are okay with whichever pastry effect you're getting!))

Comments

[milesedgelord]

Not at this time, perhaps a raincheck.

I generally don't make it a habit to sleep with people on a first date.

[He was usually too oblivious to know when he was on a date and had only really slept with exactly one person, that event being recent. He didn't feel like sharing that though. So he did the sensible thing and ordered another gin.]

However, I don't really understand how one can be so casual about something so intimate.

[vorrutyer]

Well, it depends on how you approach it, really.

[ Byerly comes across as a lush, to be sure - but an eagle-eyed observer might note that he's drinking his drink rather slowly. Working his way through it. Not that he acts altogether sober - his manner seems just a little too expansive and wry - and yet his argument is plain and logical. (He's taken the measure of Edgeworth, and is trying out tactics to gauge their efficacy in swaying the man.) ]

Some people see it as something painfully intimate. [ He shrugs. ] Others see it as something that's simply rather...fun. A chance to get the heartrate up in a way that's far more pleasant than going for a jog. Stress relief. Really, it's quite an efficient way to relax, so that you can get right back to work.

[milesedgelord]

You're saying that to some people having sex is nothing more than taking a late night run?

[How did anyone live that life so easily? It was obvious that this subject was making him slightly anxious. Miles was not in anyway used to discuss such sensitive things, especially out in public. Even worse, recently he had been busy sorting his feelings on sex and expressing sexuality in general.

In the meantime, a waiter brought them their meals.]

I would think that there is a sense of vulnerability involved in performing sexual acts that one wouldn't have to worry about in other modes of exercise or recreation. Wouldn't sorting out these messy feelings after such get in the way of getting back to work, so to speak?

[vorrutyer]

Only if you allow yourself to acquire those feelings.

[ By tilts his head to the side. ]

After all, it's only social conditioning that equates sex with true love and monogamy and all that nonsense. If you allow yourself to think of it as something else - as something fun that two people do together, like playing tennis or dancing the tango...well. Then you don't have to have any messy feelings at all.

[milesedgelord]

How would one go about and preventing the acquisition of feelings in the first place?


Social conditioning in equating sex with love? Doesn't that sort of perspective ring as a bit of a hollow one? I would think that any such endeavor would require a certain amount of trust. And perhaps a bit more trust involved in a sexual partner than a tennis or a dancing partner.

Every endeavor is one built on mutual trust after all.

[vorrutyer]

Ah.

[ He leans forward, resting his chin on his hand. ]

But so you do admit that it's similar. Just that you need a little more trust for sex.

[milesedgelord]

...

Oh.

[Shit. Byerly certainly had him there.]

I suppose so.

[vorrutyer]

So then it becomes a matter of how much trust you're willing to extend to someone.

What does it take to earn your trust, M'sieur?

[milesedgelord]

[And there it was. The caveat of it. He took a moment to compose himself before answering.]

Now, what would the fun be in just telling you that? You seem the type of person who would enjoy the joy of the chase of his quarry.

And it is already obvious that you have figured out this much about me from our short conversation thus far.

What would your estimation be in that case?

[vorrutyer]

Oh, I'm just a drunken fool. My estimation is hardly worthwhile.

[ But By's lips are lifted in a smile. He clearly wants Edgeworth to press. ]

[milesedgelord]

[And press he did, sipping his drink.]

In my experience, even drunken fools give the vital testimony to win a case. And I must admit I am curious.

What is it?

[vorrutyer]

Well.

[ By takes a sip, sizing Edgeworth up rather ostentatiously. ]

I can't help but notice that you came to this meeting wearing armor.

[milesedgelord]

Granted.

I wear armor to most meetings. However, I'll have to concede that I may have been particularly hesitant on this one.

However, I must note that you seem to enjoy attempting to find chinks in it.

[vorrutyer]

[ With a hand pressed to his heart in a wistful sort of salute: ]

And so I do.

[ Then he drops his hand and says: ]

A man does not wear armor unless his flesh is vulnerable. You came into this liaison altogether without passion - there was neither interest nor joy nor anger. Everything concealed behind the wall you built. So that tells me, dear M'sieur, that under that armor is a soft underbelly. I think you trust more easily than you want to. I think you love far more easily than you want to. And so you hold yourself in check - direly in check. I don't think it grows out of cowardice, because you don't seem like a coward. A coward wouldn't have shown up tonight. I think it grows out of - hm - mistrust of the self. You fear the betrayal of your own baser nature. Natural, perhaps, for a man of your history - a man with a history he's ashamed of. You've made mistakes of passion in the past, and you fear now that your passion will lead you astray once more.

[milesedgelord]

...
[He would be more upset at being called out if he hadn't asked for it. He was impressed at how accurate his assessment was overall. Byerly would have done excellently as an investigator and he wished he had a few more detectives with that skill on the police force back home. It certainly would have made his job easier. But that was neither here nor there.]

You are a very astute man, aren't you?

[He took a breath in and allowed his shoulders to relax a bit. What was the point in having his guard up at all, if it was detected so easily? ]

I must admit that your assessment of me is on the nose. A bit too much for my comfort. However, I was the one who had asked.

[He wrung his hands together, slightly before speaking again.]

I've only been intimate with a person twice now, and that being only recently. And to top it off, I have had the unfortunate luck of falling for him. Perhaps I had fallen a long time ago. And the situation is complicated because feelings are stupidly complicated.

I came here guarded because I am at a loss for what to do in my romantic or any romantic situation, much less a sexual one. I hadn't wanted to stand you up either.

But I can see that I've been unfair. I have served you that proverbial plate of shit so to speak. For that, I apologize.

[vorrutyer]

[ By waves his hand casually, dismissing the apology with ease. ]

I told you, dear fellow, I'm someone who's only ever after a good time. The problems of others - romantic and otherwise - are delicious entertainment. You're doing me a kindness. [ And, with a little grin - ] And don't worry about being overly transparent. You'd be surprised at just how good drunken fools like myself are at reading people. It's how we get by.

[ And of course Byerly's training as a high-level surveillance operative for the best spy agency in the entire Nexus had nothing at all to do with his sharp eyes. Of course not. ]

So does your mysterious paramour love you back?

[milesedgelord]

[He gave a small sigh, leaning back into his chair.]

Well yes.

However, that isn't the issue. He has the unfortunate luck of finding himself the apex of a love triangle [He scoffed a little bit at the word] and is a sweet but indecisive man. The very notion of being in a triangle, to begin with, is so very cliche, and somewhat upsetting.

I'm afraid that I am to blame somewhat, I had felt towards him for a very long time and had waited too long to act upon it. And of course the moment I do someone else had seen what a wonderful man he is.

I'm in this sort of limbo, awaiting him to make up his mind. While still going about the normal best-friend things we usually do.

[vorrutyer]

[ Perhaps surprisingly, Byerly's voice isn't mocking or jeering when he speaks. Rather, he's genuinely trying to offer a real suggestion. ]

Could you enter a menage a trois?

[milesedgelord]

[And the flush came back across his face. It must have been such a simple answer.]

H-hadn't actually crossed my mind. I don't know who the other person is either, so if we did have that type of arrangement I would certainly have to meet them first.

H-how would I even go about suggesting such a thing. And wouldn't it make things more complicated rather than less?

[vorrutyer]

[ By grins, but again - not with malice. ]

I could write you a script. And it sounds like the problem isn't the complication - it's the pain. It'll be more complicated, but in a delicious way.

[milesedgelord]

What do you mean by the pain?

[What was he saying? Was this even a viable option???]

I suppose a script could help.

[vorrutyer]

What do you mean, what do I mean? Isn't it painful not to be with the one you love?

[milesedgelord]

I see. Yes. I had thought you were talking about it being a logistical pain. My apologies.

[vorrutyer]

No, emotional. Not all of us are quite so...dispassionate.

[milesedgelord]

Noted.

It is probably something I will need to work on.

It does hurt and I can't say I don't feel a bit jealous of it. On the other hand, it is kind of silly to. I know where I stand with my friend and despite anything, we'll still be that.

Would a menage a trois help or hinder that sense?