With the official end to the Magekiller early in the season, the tense atmosphere over the city dissipates as Lhavitians begin to make amends with each other, and trust is rebuilt. The hot weather is abruptly changed for snow a week into the season, something that surprises everyone within the city; whether it is good or bad, or if it signals Morwen's return, nobody knows, but people make the best of it even when the weather turns nasty.
Overview of Season Events
☼ Daytime Event - ☾ Nighttime Event
☆ Moderated/Prompted Event
☆ Moderated/Prompted Event
1st: The Watchtowers flare blue, announcing the arrival of winter.
8th: The season started off hot as the heat from autumn transferred through into another Morwen-less winter...until the morning of the 8th when the air takes on a chill and it begins to snow. Confusion and elation alike spread through the city; some people take it as a bad sign, some people take it as a good sign. Some say that Morwen has finally returned, while others say that the cause is something else. It will continue to snow on and off throughout the remainder of the season on the peaks of the city, and within a 5 mile radius of the city; outside of that, the snow abruptly stops and the weather is as it was previously.
22nd: Volunteers set up a makeshift skating rink in the Surya Plaza; all are welcome, and skates are offered to be rented. People mill around with a few firepits set up offering mulled wine, hot cocoa, and tea at no cost. It becomes a popular spot for socializing over the course of the season.
☼ 31st: Snowball fight! A group of teenagers begin a snowball fight in Springwater Square, and it quickly escalates when a snowball accidentally hits an old man in the back; not to be outdone by youngsters, he joins in, and before anyone realizes people young and old of all races across the Shinyama Peak are engaged in an all-out snowball war; even some on duty Shinya join in. The snowball fight lasts most of the day, picking up between rests, before finally winding down around the evening.
35th: A far cry from their normal fare, the Mhakula Teahouse begins offering a special hot cocoa for the season; at 1 kina per mug, it's not cheap, but it quickly becomes a city favourite all the same.
☾ 46th: The Midwinter Festival is held once the sun goes down; celebrations are even more frenzied than in recent years with the arrival of snow. Over the peaks, some people make an effort to find those who have nobody to celebrate with in order to invite them to their own celebrations; nobody should be left alone out in the cold on such a night.
50th: The weather takes a sharp turn from pleasantly chilly and fluffy snowfall to freezing and harsh; the temperature plummets overnight, and even within the city where it is usually warm, it is freezing cold with sharp winds and heavy snowfall. This weather continues on and off until the end of the season; citizens make a mad dash to prepare for the sudden weather.
53rd: A particularly intense blizzard overtakes the city beginning in the morning and lasting until the 55th; anyone who values their lives will bundle up and stay at home until it blows over, which is exactly what most people do.
55th: The blizzard finally comes to a halt. When people finally begin emerging, it is still bitterly cold, but the snowfall has lessened. There are several feet of snow piled up over the various peaks of the city, and the Constellations and Shinya work overtime to clear important paths and streets.
56th: Those who work for the city are still valiantly struggling to clear the streets, and many houses are still blocked off entirely. Different groups come together across the peaks in an attempt to help dig people out of their houses while the main streets are still being cleared. It becomes somewhat of a social event, with people taking shifts and other volunteers bringing hot drinks and blankets; a few performers even set up and sing or play their instruments to keep spirits up during the work.
60th: Just in time for Aviakittis, it seems that the most used streets of the city are cleared and that everyone who was previously trapped by the blizzard is now free; the day is spent with volunteers combing over the peaks for any houses that were missed.
61st: Aviakittis is celebrated all throughout the day and into the night; while just as lavish as any other festival, this day of celebration is more relaxed as Lhavitians honour their extra 'stolen' time in winter. All businesses except for bathhouses and restaurants are closed as people take time to relax and treat themselves and their loved ones. It is a much needed day of rest and relaxation for many people in the city.
75th: The Surya Plaza finds itself the impromptu site of a snowman building competition; a trio of Constellations stop by to judge the competition. Snowmen range from the classic to the bizarre, and everyone from children to adults participates. There is no real prize except for a sense of pride and accomplishment at the end of it, but everyone has fun nonetheless.
88th: The Azure Festival takes place, beginning in the morning and lasting well into dawn of the next day; the temples are flooded with people during the day, and once the sun sets, the same crowds don their masquerade outfits, ready to dance and drink the night away. Cold weather and snow won't keep Lhavitians from a party, but make sure to bundle up and keep warm!
92nd: Celebrations begin to welcome the New Year in, and the snow begins to melt; by the time midnight hits and the new season and year arrive, all of it has melted and the weather has warmed considerably, leaving people to discard their warm clothing and deal with sudden flooding.
Theme of the Season: Friendship
I was inspired by a comment that Gossamer made in chat about themes to try a bit of a different approach to the calendar this season. There are still events for you all to take part in (no modded events this season as I continue to wrap things up, but as always feel free to request a modded thread from me via PM or through my office), but I wanted to give this season a theme and also make it a challenge to motivate you all to actually write about that theme.
After the panic and distrust of past seasons with the Magekiller on the loose, the theme of this season is friendship. Kind of kitschy? Maybe, but I think you all can make it work! This season will be all about helping others, earning and giving trust, and making friends. Think of this season as one big challenge under the theme of 'friendship'...it's like a weekend challenge but longer! Of course, as with any challenge, there will be prizes if you complete it. There are also still the normal seasonal challenges which you will find below and can complete to earn Lhavit's medal if you haven't yet.
Like weekend or weekly challenges, I expect you all to stick to the theme when it comes to threads you will be writing for this themed seasonal calendar challenge. Threads that count towards this can absolutely include the normal seasonal challenges as well, as you will note many of them share the same theme of friendship and have to do with the calendar events. (Wordcounts for these challenges to earn the medal will still apply!)
We've had a lot of intense writing going on recently with NaNo and the gratitude challenge that Goss posted; you guys have a bit of a relaxed calendar with some fun events, but I want to keep pushing you to write as much as your fingers can. To that end, I'm going to require that you guys write 18,000 words over the course of this season towards the theme of friendship if you want to earn a prize. That's about 6,000 words a month, or give or take 1,500 words a week over the course of the season; after NaNo, that's nothing! Of course, this challenge will be on top of whatever else you have planned for this season.
Prizes will be of my own making; I may have a list for you to choose or roll from, or I may just come up with each winner's prize at the end of the season. You'll just have to wait and see.
If you write more than the required wordcount, there will be bonuses as well. If you're attempting this challenge, post here to the calendar and keep your post updated with relevant threads; include links and wordcounts!This theme is obviously very broad and open to interpretation, but I encourage you all to try and take it to a deeper level past obvious surface interactions. You'll also notice that most of the seasonal challenges are with another PC; that's because friendship requires others! Obviously you can use NPCs as well throughout the general friendship challenge, but I also wanted to take this season to encourage you all to interact with each other more. Now go out there and make some friends!
The Midwinter Festival
Held halfway through the season on the longest night of winter, the Midwinter Festival is meant to celebrate the balance between night and day, and between Leth and Syna. It is a celebration of renewal and hope, and of the beginning of the longer days to come.
It is largely a festival held with one's family, sometimes in their own homes, with plenty of feasting, drinking, and dancing throughout the night. Those without family of their own often find themselves welcomed to at least one table, and made an honorary family member for the night, so that nobody has to experience the festival alone; this season in particular has a welcome atmosphere, and nobody is left alone if it can be helped.
Aviakittis
Aviakittis is a celebration of the extra day in winter, and is a way to to honour the extra 'stolen' hours. It is a more relaxed festival than most others; almost all Lhavitians take the day off work, though most bathhouses and restaurants remain open.
Lhavitians take this day to relax and pamper themselves and their loved ones; sleeping, eating good food, giving expensive gifts, and attending the spa or a bathhouse are all common activities on this day. Many couples take the time to spend the day together and treat each other, resulting in many children being conceived on this day in particular. This year, the celebration is much needed for those who have tirelessly been working to help with cleaning up snow from the blizzard.
The Azure Festival
An extravagant festival, the Azure Festival extends throughout both the day and night. During the day, people take the time to go to the various temples throughout the city, praying to Syna, Leth, Zintila, and any other deities they might worship.
Gifts are often exchanged during this festival; most popular are baked goods, with restaurants and bakeries selling all sorts of pasties and cookies in the shapes of stars, the sun, and the moon.
Come night, the largest celebration of the festival begins; a masquerade to honour Zintila, people dress up in all sorts of clothes from ridiculous to luxurious when they go out for drinking and dancing. The common theme is that either way, it's over-the-top, and it usually reflects the celestial bodies in some fashion or another. It is also tradition to don a mask of some sort while out celebrating. Despite the weather, Lhavitians venture out to celebrate as normal, braving the cold in their elaborate costumes and keeping warm with plenty of alcohol.
Weather Throughout the Season
The first week or so of the season continues the weather trends of autumn; it is hot, with no sign of relief. Abruptly, on the 8th day of the season, the weather shifts to something chillier, and light snowfall begins on and off throughout the season until about halfway through.
On the 53rd, the city is hit hard with an intense blizzard. Once it passes, the remainder of the season will be freezing cold, with heavy snowfall and bitter, sharp winds. Tall boots, hats, scarves, and mittens are a must, and fur quickly comes into fashion in an attempt for people to try and stay warm.
Nobody knows what caused this abrupt shift in weather; there are plenty of theories, but no proof for any of them. The snow seems to be centered on the city, and does not affect anything outside of a 5 mile radius from it. However, by midnight on the last day of the season, it becomes clear that the weather was not caused by Morwen's return as the snow all quite suddenly melts.
Seasonal Challenges
Complete 6 of these challenges to earn Lhavit's Seasonal Medal. A maximum of 3 challenges can be completed in a single thread, and if doing multiple challenges in a thread each one should consist of at least 800 words; that is, threads containing 2 challenges should be a minimum of 1,600 words, and threads containing 3 challenges should be a minimum of 2,400 words. Single challenge threads should be a minimum of 1,000 words. If you have completed the challenges, then post them to my office with links to the threads.
✧Go skating (With another PC)
✧Take part in the snowball fight (With another PC)
✧Help dig people out of their homes after the blizzard
✧Take part in the snowman building competition (With another PC)
✧Make a new friend (With another PC)
✧Go outside of your comfort zone
✧Celebrate one of the festivals this season (With another PC)
✧Try the new hot cocoa at the Mhakula Teahouse (With another PC)
✧Slip on a patch of ice and crash into somebody (With another PC)
✧Tell a friend one of your darkest secrets, deepest fears, or most private thoughts (With another PC)
✧Take part in the snowball fight (With another PC)
✧Help dig people out of their homes after the blizzard
✧Take part in the snowman building competition (With another PC)
✧Make a new friend (With another PC)
✧Go outside of your comfort zone
✧Celebrate one of the festivals this season (With another PC)
✧Try the new hot cocoa at the Mhakula Teahouse (With another PC)
✧Slip on a patch of ice and crash into somebody (With another PC)
✧Tell a friend one of your darkest secrets, deepest fears, or most private thoughts (With another PC)
