MISTLEGLOW: a kissing meme

[riverviewmod]

mistleglow: a kissing meme

Some residents may remember that back in September, a love-drunk and confusion-spell-addled newlywed mage from Gramarye Magic Research let loose some pretty little fairy lights that trapped people in the city in little invisible bubbles until they kissed (and any kind of kiss would do). Well, the same slightly-less-newlywed but no less romantically-inclined mage happens to really, really enjoy the winter season, and thinks it's totally romantic. That particular sentiment is pretty common in the Quarantine - while Hygge is the celebration of familial love, the residents of the Quarantine all agree that that family often includes partners and lovers. Besides that, the folklore of mistletoe as being representative of love and friendship is something that the Quarantine has in common with the universes many residents inhabit.

So, as the last week and a half of December rolls around, residents around the Quarantine will see the result of the resident romantic trying to share a bit of Hygge love - small, glowing sprigs of mistletoe will be floating around the Quarantine, ready to trap people up and make them share a bit of affection.

how it works

● Two or more characters walking under one of these glowing, floating sprigs will get stuck for one hour, trapped inside an invisible enclosure with an approximate three foot radius. The only options are to either wait out the hour, or to kiss! Characters will know they're meant to kiss, because part of the magic spell is the sudden and intense knowledge that they should kiss in order to break free. There is no compulsion to kiss, just the knowledge that that's how to get free. This time, instead of any kind of kiss working, there will be different types of kisses that will work to release the trapped residents depending on the color of mistleglow:

RED: MOUTH ● ORANGE: NECK ● YELLOW: CHEEK
GREEN: FOREHEAD ● BLUE: HAND ● VIOLET: BUTTERFLY

Trapped residents will not know what kind of kiss will work for each color and may have to experiment before finding the right one.

● Post up a top-level for your character with the types of kisses you're interested in threading out, and then go forth and have your character kiss (or refuse to kiss) others!
● This meme is for characters already accepted into the game to play with the mistleglow prompt from this month's test drive meme. If your character is not yet accepted into the game, please use the TDM post!
● This meme is GAME CANON, so any threads played out in this meme can be carried through into the actual canon of the game.
● Much like the TDM, threads on this meme can count for Activity Points, but not the monthly Activity Check.

header image is from santa's factory by Clement Danveau

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Comments

thank you rngods

[antietam]

[ Adam takes a subtle step back, but they are definitely trapped. Trapped unless they kiss, which means they're going to be trapped for an entire hour.

For what it's worth, he doesn't seem to be afraid. Ivar can probably smell fear, so Adam refuses to let him have that satisfaction. He's pretty sure if Ivar was going to kill him, he would have. ]

I don't know, you seem like you make enemies easily enough that this won't be the last time. There has to be someone worse than me.

[ragnarsson]

[Ivar watches Adam carefully. It's true, the Viking's looking for signs of fear.]

A few. But none of them pointed a gun at me and are still breathing.

[Yeah, he's still holding a grudge over that. It's not the actual act that angered him, it was the show of disrespect. Ivar's got a prickly sort of pride and he doesn't stand for people who don't respect him.]

[antietam]

[ He crosses his arms, doing his best to look nonchalant. ]

It wasn't personal. Just that, you know, you were watching Ronan get maimed without doing anything until I showed up. [ It sounds a little personal. ]

I would do that to anyone who was about to let Ronan die.

[ragnarsson]

I wasn't going to let him die.

[Ivar huffs, trying to mask the tones in his voice that he knows will give away how much he actually cares about Ronan. He also doesn't believe Adam when he says it wasn't personal. He knows exactly what he'd do to anyone who just stood by while someone he cared about, like Marco or Rey, was in danger.]

But I was mad at him. He'd said some things that to me that I was having trouble letting go of.

[Namely, he had been a dolt at trying to figure out just why Ivar acted the way he did around him. Spoiler: it was because Ivar had feelings for him that just about anyone but Ronan himself could actually see.]

[antietam]

Oh, sure. I forgot being mad was a reasonable excuse for letting someone get attacked by monsters. [ Maybe for Ivar it was, but Adam didn't have the patience to be culturally sensitive right now. Hurting Ronan was the worst thing someone could do, in Adam's mind. ]

I guess it shouldn't matter that if you actually did something earlier, he probably wouldn't have had to go to the hospital at all.

[ He doesn't think Ivar really cares about any of this. Everything he's done and said have convinced Adam that Ivar feels nothing at all, and any sign of friendship toward Ronan is a trick. ]

I'm sure you had your fun with him. Will you leave him alone now?

[ragnarsson]

Maybe if the two of you learned how to defend yourselves like any proper man should, I wouldn't have had to be there at all.

[For Vikings, not being able to fight made a person lower than man, woman, and child. They might as well have been a slave or beast of burden for all the use they had to contributing anything useful.

As far as for leaving Ronan alone, Ivar's face was impassive and might as well have been set in stone.]

No. I'm teaching him to fight so he doesn't die if I don't happen to be around next time.

[antietam]

[ Adam raises an eyebrow, but he isn't very insulted by that comment. ] You're in a place with giant monsters and gods and you think fighting is going to do you any good? There are better ways to get what you want without wasting your energy.

[ For Adam, nothing good can come out of fighting. He refuses to fight or learn how to fight. The gun that he's taken to carrying around is the most he'll bother with. ]

Ronan knows how to fight. And we figured out a way to stop it without fighting. You're not going to get anything out of him.

[ragnarsson]

Truly spoken as someone whose never had to fight a day in his life for anything he wanted. You wouldn't last a day in my world. [His contempt for Adam just continues to grow. For Vikings, fighting came as easily as breathing. There was never a problem so great that pushing back against it couldn't solve it. Even Ivar, clever as he was among his people, couldn't shake that belief, ingrained as it was in him.]

Wrong. Ronan knows how to punch things and that's not going to stop night terrors. I'm teaching him to fight with weapons. [Something clicks in Ivar's head.] He didn't tell you he was seeing me for lessons, did he?

[antietam]

[ Adam's jaw does tighten at that comment. He's not about to tell Ivar what he's gone through and how punching would never solve it, but he's obviously pissed off now. ]

He told me. Ronan doesn't lie. Trying to manipulate him doesn't work when you don't know anything about him. And when you've never had to use your brain to solve your problems for you.

[ragnarsson]

I'm not trying to manipulate him.

[Not on a conscious level anyway. Ivar's just trying to get over these feelings for his friend that won't go away and keep him close at the same time.

However, the comment about not using his brain gets a genuine if contemptuous laugh from Ivar. Adam doesn't know him at all.]

No one has ever accused me of not using my brain before. Do you think I'm an idiot, one of those Vikings that just thinks stabbing someone solves all problems? I work things out in my mind before I ever do anything.

[He's very clever, this angry Viking, much more than anyone ever thinks. He reads people, always being one step ahead of them.]

[antietam]

You just told me you think stabbing someone solves all problems. If you can't imagine a situation where fighting doesn't work, you haven't thought very far.

[ Adam knows he's pushing his luck. If he gets Ivar angry enough, this could turn bad. But he's going to rely on the fact that stabbing Adam wouldn't be a smart move. ]

It's also not very smart to tell everyone who will listen that you don't have a conscience or feel empathy, then try to pretend that you care about someone. That's why your games aren't working very well.

[ragnarsson]

Peace is not an option for Vikings. Someone like you, who's never faced a real struggle, wouldn't understand.

[He doesn't know what Adam's been through, and frankly, he doesn't care. He's just another arrogant SOB to Ivar. Though he's beginning to see what attracted Ronan if Adam is this charming all the time. They're a pair of assholes.]

It doesn't take a conscience to care about someone. [Those words are growled out, for Adam struck a bit of a nerve.] If I'm so transparent, why do you feel so threatened by me?

[antietam]

Well, I guess that's why the Viking Age ended. That strategy must have really worked against every struggle.

[ He rolls his eyes. He still can't quite figure out where Ivar is coming from, but it's best to assume everything he says is a trick. Being suspicious of everyone always works. ]

If I was threatened by every person who kept bothering Ronan, I would've shot you. He doesn't know how to get rid of someone who's outstayed their welcome. [ Surprise, Ronan is the nice one in this relationship. ] It never works out for them.

[ragnarsson]

Keep threatening to shoot me and you're not leaving here alive.

[Ivar's patience has never been great and what little he has right now has already worn thin. They're close enough together that Ivar, quick as a flash, reaches up and grabs ahold of the front of Adam's shirt, dragging him down so he's at eye level with Ivar. He's got that manic look in his eye, the kind that says he might just gut Adam like a fish and be done with it.]

I suggest you get used to having me around because I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. You don't like that? Tough shit. But if you get in my way, or try to turn him against me, not even Ronan is going to be able to save you when I crush you like a bug.

[antietam]

[ Lucky for Adam, he's learned how to keep his face impassive when it comes to physical threats. Inside, there's always a flash of fear and a plan to escape, but none of that is apparent. ]

Oh, don't worry, you'll turn him against you all on your own. [ He shrugs and lightly swats at Ivar's hand to get him to let go. ] You can kill me now, later, or hurt Ronan. I have provisions in place for all of those possibilities if you want to set them in motion.

[ragnarsson]

[Adam's just like everyone else whose underestimated Ivar, the Viking thinks to himself. His greatest skill, the one he never speaks of, lies not just in his ability to make plans for the future, but being able to read people, knowing their intentions, even before they know what they're going to do. He sees Adam clear enough, the fear that comes from being afraid to lose someone he loves, and where that might lead him.]

Only a seer knows the future for certain. You may think you know everything, but I'm sure I'll still surprise you.

[Then before Adam can pull away, Ivar presses the lightest of kisses to his lips. If he stays here another half hour, he's going kill him for certain, damn whatever Ronan would end up thinking about him.]

[antietam]

[ Ivar definitely surprises him. Adam is not at all prepared for a kiss, however brief it is. The antagonism between them made him comfortable with the idea that they had an entire hour to waste, and he didn't consider this possibility.

He pulls back with a disgusted snarl, wiping at his mouth with the back of his hand. He has no idea where Ivar has been.

But when he takes a step back, the barrier is gone. He checks his surroundings, and with a final glare at Ivar, turns to walk away. No thanks for freeing them, but no attempt to get the last word either. Ivar wins this round. ]