like a big pizza pie [Valentine's Day Date Night]

[ayes]

Who: You Watanabe (ayes) & others!
What: Valentine's matchmaking dinner
When: February 14
Where: Olympia (of the past)
Warning(s): Some mild druglike effects, and probably some NSFW stuff in threads?

On or around February 12, you get a letter in the mail. Upon opening it, you'll find that it's very, very similar to the one you got last year-- if you were here for this last year-- and it's written in that same looping, cheerful script.

Hello [YOUR NAME HERE]!
I know things are a little hard, but that doesn't mean we can't have a really great night together!
On the evening of February 14, please come join us in Olympia (even if it's this past Olympia) for a special surprise!

Your friend,
You

P.S. "You" is still my name.

There's another smiley face drawn on the letter, and an address given in the center of Olympia. Some of you may have been expecting this, since you saw or responded to her post, but perhaps others are caught off guard, since you were entered by pranksters.



[I: Arrival]

If you decide to take the plunge and check it out anyway, you'll find a restaurant that's much smaller than the dining hall she'd rented out last year. Having been thrown into an alternate past timeline of Olympia has tossed a serious wrench into her plans, and with the holiday, You has struggled to find an appropriate venue. But find one she has, and there are pink and red ribbons and balloons and lacy hearts all over the place.

Once again, there's a harried-looking young woman scurrying around, as well as other people who may look just as confused as you do.

[II: Dinner]

Inside, the restaurant is decked out in pinks and reds and hearts. Each table is set out with a white tablecloth and a pair of candlesticks, and has a nametag on it: Mr. Law, Ms. Mikumo, Ms. Janeway, and so on. There's another name tag on the seat across from your own. It looks like you've got a date?

Before long, You is along to take your food order. What are you in the mood for?

[III: Sin and Sweetness]

There's no big musical act this year like there was last year; You is mainly focusing on the event and there's also no stage to sing and dance on. She does, at some point, take a microphone in the corner and sing some cute love songs to entertain you while you eat, but it's not for long, and she's zooming off to the kitchen after three or four songs.

As your dinner wears down, your attention is directed to a cart off to the side piled high with desserts, pastries of all types and shapes. A waiter begins pushing it around from table to table.

If you went to her party last year, you'll recognize these; they seemed to be a big hit so she's done it again. You has baked them off a recipe book she'd found in the entertainment district of Olympia, and there's another handwritten sign:

Let's spice things up again this year! (๑˃ᴗ˂)ﻭ
Try the pastries to feel romantic!

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.)

There are, thankfully, plenty of non-magical desserts for those who just want to indulge their sweet tooth.

((OOC: As always, please label your threads if they turn NSFW, and run any pastry effects by your thread partners!))

Comments

Linneus | OTA

[inaurare]

II

[His "date" has not arrived yet, or if he has, not to the table. Not that Linneus minds... there is comfort in arriving early, more time to get oneself settled, appreciate the decor. You has worked hard again, this year, but oh-- it's strange to see his name set out like that. "Mr Linneus" - he's not a Mr, and never will be, with no last name to attach it to.

It's not a dire mistake by any means, and Linneus is hardly like to kick up a fuss about it anyway, though he does take up the little name card with a fond smile.]

[kikoku]

[Being profoundly out of his depth, Law had dragged his feet arriving. Part of him really wanted to just not show up, but while he's not a social person, he's also not the sort of person who will ever chicken out of anything. He's far too stubborn for that.

He is late, though, arriving after Linneus. He's dressed for the ocassion in his own sort of way, certainly the suit is appropriate but the fact that it's all black save for the gold tie, maybe not to much. At the very least he does remove his hat as he sits down, after some deliberation.

Finally, after frowning minutely at his own nametag (he doesn't really care but he wonders after You not going for "Dr. Law"), he looks up at Linneus.]

So...
[One could argue he's handsome enough, if you're into the dark and brooding types, but he's clearly never been on a blind date before because he's at a loss for words, running a hand through his hair. Finally he settles on just stating the obvious;]

I guess I should apologize ahead of time, I don't really do this sort of thing.

[inaurare]

[oh, he's known a lot of dark and brooding types. There's not much to worry about that, though this is certainly already a departure from his date with Waver last year.

A soft chuckle, setting down the card]

Ah-- I am new to this 'dating' myself. [not to say he is unused to dealing with people. But dates are new] Please don't worry about it.

[gently extending a hand]

My name is Linneus.

[kikoku]

[Law has more in common with Waver than you might think, but that's neither here nor there. After a pause, he takes the hand, at which point Linneus will likely notice some of Law's litany of tattoos. There's a vague symbol on the back of his hand, but more notably is the word DEATH tattooed across his fingers.]

Trafalgar Law.
[There's another pause where he considers explaining that he's virtually incapable of not worrying about all possible negative outcomes, it's just how he operates, but that's probably not the sort of thing to bring up with someone he just met, especially in this setting.]

I figured since the world seems closer to ending than not, I aught to try some things I normally wouldn't. [Way to keep the mood light, Law.] ... And besides, I've been wanting to try You-ya's cooking.

[inaurare]

[not everyone shakes hands, so he smiles at having the offered hand taken, a little dip of his head]

Mr Law. It's a pleasure.

[and although he is curious about the tattoos, he will not ask about them. It doesn't seem fair, to quiz Law so instantly. But tattoos have always fascinated him, so the curiosity is there.]

She is a very good cook - and she always works so hard for these events.

[and gently-]

...I tend to prefer not to think about the end of the world. Not that that has been easy, given the circumstances. But at least I have been... occupied, trying to adjust to things here. Now.

[kikoku]

[Luckily he's not missing much of a story, Law's just edgy and weird and also a criminal and that's all there's really to it.]

Just Law's fine, actually.
[Really it should be Mr. Trafalgar if we're being formal but he really doesn't care to offer the correction either way. Regardless, he'll take the redirect;]

But yes, I feel like it's difficult to really acclimate here, since there's always something strange going on, I'd imagine it'd be especially hard to keep up with if you're used to staying in one place.

[inaurare]

[nodding in understanding]

...just Law. I am just Linneus, too. I... have been in Olympia for some time. So the adjustment is...

[a vague gesture, bracelets sliding on his wrists]

I'm not sure how to say. I didn't mind the moving around, when I knew my home was there to return to. That was... an anchor, so to speak. But then I think I find myself in a minority - I was unused to travelling at all, before coming here.

[kikoku]

[Law laughs briefly, a bitter, sharp noise, more sardonic than anything.]

I'm hardly the one to say whether that's normal or not. For me I've found being confined to just this one island... stifling.
[A not-quite-right word said in an uncertain tone. It's more it puts him on edge, since he didn't normally stay one place for long back home, what with being a wanted criminal and all that. But he's trying to avoid coming right out of the gate with the Notorious Pirate business, given how refined Linneus seems. Like a princess or something.]

But I think the reason humans have lasted so long as a species despite being so poorly designed is that we can adjust to anything, given enough time.
[That's his professional medical opinion (tm)]

[inaurare]

Well. We all have our own struggles in our own ways. But we are a resilient set, I think.

[a little smile at the thought of being stuck on an island. He cannot imagine, but can understand how it must be to feel so cramped...]

It must have been wonderful to be able to travel like that... I only ever heard stories, from other people who had travelled.

What is the furthest you have gone? In your own world?

[kikoku]

Furthest? That's a complicated question to answer. In my world, the world is divided into four oceans by the red line, a solid band of dry land, and the grand line, a major series of sea routes.
[He's surprisingly willing to explain all this, indicatin the two perpendicular lines with a knife and fork on his plate.]

I'm from North Blue, this sea here, [Indicating one of the quadrants] and because of the strange currents, the safest place to enter the Grand Line is here at Reverse Mountain, [He says, indicating where the two lines intersect.]

So, the furthest, geographically I've been from North Blue would be Fishman Island here, on the other end of the first leg of the grand line. But the New World, the second half, is only accessible from there, so even though it borders North Blue, where I last was [Indicating another point on the other side of his Grand Line fork.] is still the furthest my crew's gone.

[He pauses for a moment as he concludes his explanation, before mild embarrassment sets in.]
Sorry, that was probably a whole lot of nonsense to you.

[inaurare]

No, no not at all.

[on the contrary, he is leaning forward a little to look over Law's improvised 'map' in interest. He has never sailed, really; he doesn't come from a place where that is so common, either]

There are many islands in your world then? [a gentle gesture toward one of the lines] Or is it more that the land is few but vast? The lands of my world are a little wider, through my own country is smaller - landlocked.

[kikoku]

I’d say other than the Red Line it’s entirely islands. They can vary in size a lot, but I’d say it’s almost unheard of for there to be more than one country on an island. Even before my crew set sail, the sea was never away... I can hardly imagine being landlocked.

[Then he gets a curious look on his face, almost suspicious, as something occurs to him.]
Does that mean you hadn’t seen open water before you came here?

[He wouldn’t be the first Law’s met here, but it still strikes him as strange.]

[inaurare]

Mmm.

[a little nod, sitting back a moment]

The first I ever saw of the sea was in Flona Cove, a little after I first arrived. Until that time, I'd only ever heard of it... but I understood then why people thought it beautiful.

[for someone who has spent so much of his life practically caged... it is always amazing, to him, to see such open space.]

...is that strange? I suppose that must be strange...