[WORLD ONE] SPEED DATING EXTRAVAGANZA

[spellbindmods]

Who: Participating coven members
Where: The Palai marketplace
When: Day 49
Open/Closed: OTA

[ Any and all who are in the marketplace will find that there is suddenly a mysterious barrier around the marketplace (that may be eerily familiar to some) -- specifically one large portion of the marketplace with a large number of tables and chairs, perhaps purposefully set out for nefarious reasons.

A few Palai are ushering coven members to chairs, and everything seems about normal. As normal as the Palai can be when they're putting on a show anyway. It's not until a sizable portion of the coven members are seated (and also supplied with breadsticks and small shrimp), that things get a bit more bizarre.

Thanks to the power of the Eltos, a small band of energy keeps coven members stuck to the chair (magic can interfere, of course), but that's not the end of it. On each table, next to those delicious smelling breadsticks and shrimp, is a bowl of scraps of papers. Every five minutes, a strip of paper will pop out from the bowl.

If you ask the Palai, they'll be inclined to explain speed dating to you. Asking questions, getting to know a person, then being shimmied off to the next potential mate -- this is made possible by Elto magic yet again, through flying chairs that transport their holder to a new table at standard intervals.

The Palai are extremely invested in this exercise? Will you let them down? ]

[ OOC: In the spirit of speed dating, each character will have a top level. All who want to respond to this top level can with questions from this post, but the threads have to end at 10 comments from each character. After this last tag, the characters can be assumed to have been whisked to a different potential match. You're free to have characters make up their own questions, interact with Palai serving food, etc. ]

Comments

[secrowtary]

I do all my shopping here, actually.

[ He should know by now that he's not meant to answer that question truthfully because that's not the point. Yet, he does. ]

They always have fresh vegetables.

[ Nailed it. ]

Do you?

[talim]

[ jude has to hold back a laugh. honestly, their odd sort of conviviality has made jude quite fond of hibiki. he's never bored when he's talking to him.

if he had to choose someone to be stuck in this awkward situation with... well, he's not exactly complaining. ]

Fresh vegetables. Right.

[ he nods, a mock serious expression on his face. ]

On dates? No. In general? I suppose I do.

Next question... I'm going to pull out one of these slips of paper. Sounds easy enough.

[ so he does, and jude squints when he reads the letters on the page. not because they're difficult to read, but because... ]

If you were a color, what color would you be— what kind of question is this? What benefit is there to even answering this?

[secrowtary]

I recommend the stand in the middle of the marketplace. It's usually pretty crowded.

[ He's not even mocking Jude, he's 100% serious. Best vegetables out there, man. ]

I don't come here on dates... [ This needs to be rectified right away. ] Just shopping.

[ These papers are useless, aren't they. Hibiki raises his brows and eventually glares at the stripes of paper remaining in the bowl.

Can he just destroy them all. Using his powers. Or his hands. Or even both. This question might be tame, but who knows what will the future unfold!! ]

A color? Blue, of course.

[ It's not like he's wearing mostly blue right now. Speaking of benefits, he has absolutely no idea what purpose does this question serve. ]

Yours would be...white, I suppose?

[ Hibiki, give him a chance to answer? ]

[talim]

[ this time, jude does laugh. more of a chuckle, really. ]

White? Why white? Is it just the lab coat?

Blue... I can definitely see it, though— wait, hold on, are we seriously answering these? Really?

[ another laugh, this one of disbelief. jude feels like he's fallen into some sort of bizarre trap. ]

Well, the Palai will be pleased.

[secrowtary]

[ Bingo, it's exactly because of the lab coat. ]

Can't wait for the Palai telling us that blue and white go well together.

[ Hibiki doesn't know how, but they're most likely eavesdropping. They're not the best at this privacy thing, so...it could be the case. ]

What else can we do? Do you want to give it another try?

[talim]

Sure, why not. What else is there to do?

[ jude draws another slip of paper and reads it out loud. ]

What is a misconception others often have about you?

... Well, that one's just a little more thoughtful, huh?

[secrowtary]

A little, definitely.

[ There's no reason to answer truthfully, but well. Coming up with a believable answer is no easy task either. ]

To be quite honest, I've been mistaken for a girl more often than not.

[ Hibiki's trying not to blush, but it's not like he can control it. ]

[talim]

I can see why—

[ ... he's about to finish that sentence right there before realizing that he'd be. contributing to the problem. and also that it'd be rather rude. with a light flush of embarrassment, jude comes up with some way to salvage it and correct himself. ]

... why that would get tiresome, yeah.

[ safe? not safe? ]

[secrowtary]

[ He dodged a bullet here because Hibiki's been watching him carefully, waiting for the final answer.

It's an acceptable one, so they can proceed with their conversation. ]

Did that happen to you as well?

[ Honestly, he's a bit surprised. ]

[talim]

No, I can't say it's ever happened to me. I'd say the biggest misconception about me is that I don't care about much besides work and my studies... Everyone is always teasing and calling me a do-gooder honors student.

[ except he is a total workaholic so that's not exactly 100% untrue. oh jude. ]

How about you try drawing one this time?

[secrowtary]

You care about work and your studies? [ Hibiki's eyes start shining. Literally. He's going to sparkle really soon, at this rate. ] This is a side of you I had no idea about, to be honest. Maybe this speed dating thing isn't entirely useless, after all.

[ This pleases Hibiki so much that he eagerly reaches out for another paper strip. And that's when things go downhill. ]

Are you the big spoon or the little spoon?

[talim]

Of course I do. Is that so strange... ? Although I have to confess to passing out face-first in a textbook every once in awhile.

[ and drooling all over it, but hibiki doesn't need to know that part. there's a slight hint of a flush in response to hibiki's praise, and his face colors a deeper shade of pink when he reads off the next question. oh. ]

Um... I've... I've never...

[ he pointedly looks away before answering, speaking in a very small voice. ]

Little? I guess?

[secrowtary]

It's not, I've just underestimated you, it seems.

[ Should he really be saying that so casually?! Maybe not. But it's still what he does. ]

Little spoons are better anyway.

[ hIBIKI

The thing is...he has no idea what this is about. ]

[talim]

That's a blunt way of putting it.

[ jude just. sort of squints at him. hibiki is just full of surprises... ]

I... think that's enough with the questions.

[ they'll probably get whisked away any minute now, anyway. ]

Dating is exhausting... but you don't seem like you had too terrible a time. Is that good?

[secrowtary]

Maybe just a little.

[ Definitely not just a little, but he doesn't seem to be bothered by Jude pointing it out at all. ]

The real thing might be better. I wonder...and yes, I did. It's always good to find out that someone is actually a hard worker.

[talim]

The real thing might be better?

[ hold up. ]

Are you implying that you wouldn't be opposed to a second date?

[ his tone isn't judgmental or nervous. just curious. ]

[secrowtary]

...

[ Water. Where's the glass of water. Just give him something to cover his face, now bright red. ]

I was just...thinking loud, that's all. Listen, I have work and no time for...

[ Where is your cool now, Hibiki ]

[talim]

[ jude's face is an interesting shade of red, himself, but he's so. endeared? by seeing hibiki so off guard. ]

Right. Sure.

I guess I'll see you around, then?

[ there's a surprisingly coy smile on his face. ]

[secrowtary]

Why are you blushing—

[ Oops, their time ran out. The chair yanking Hibiki away all of a sudden is anything but a friendly reminder of that. ]