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{ The Parade }

Introduction Splintered Wood Boards

The night before, cool air had descended in a sudden chill upon the town. The condensation it left behind created a luscious and sparkling morning; dewdrops decorated the grass as well as the freshly cut flowers in the festive stalls decorating the streetsides. Glittering most brightly, however, was the Shinganshina canal- one of the rivers which ran through every district.

Both sides of the canal were being cleared into wide margins for the parade. It was going to be especially grand this time around! In celebration of the hundred years of peace humanity had thrived within the walls, the central government assigned a Field Parade Marshal from the Military Police to each district. They were to organize and lead the procession, but also ensure that Utopia's contribution to the festival barges would make it back through Wall Maria unscathed.

And the Field Parade Marshal was already at work, as evidenced by the young man yelling instructions at people from atop horseback. There was no need for a loudspeaker, his theatrical voice was powerful enough. Should anyone actually glance up to look, they often recoil at the sight of he and his mount both decked in gaudy yellow and white attire, complete with silly feathered hats. Costumes for the parade this year were especially... loud.

"Sweep like the wind, fellows! The cobbles must shine for us all just like your radiant smiles in days to come! Splendid, no effort is wasted." Voluminous black ponytail (no doubt many a woman's envy) swaying in time with his horse's, he trotted up to volunteers as well as random pedestrians in turn, startling them. "You there, off from the path with ye, we must make way! And ye! ...And ye!"

-"Uh, Sirrr?..." A voice rose up from next to him, where a military trainee was standing at an extensive, tented booth.
The overeager parade marshal swung around to face her.
"Ahh, a future compatriot! What tidings do you bring me?"
-"You're kinda sorta getting in the way of work," the trainee stated, all too aware that the volunteers were probably wondering if this Sina guy bled blue at the moment.
His babyish, slightly rotund face fell.
"Oh... I see." Laughter returned to his face, and unfortunately, the ear-numbing magnitude of his voice too. "Ha ha ha! Good, good! I admire your dedication. Say, how about you take care of the volunteers? People tend to run away from me, how mysterious! Ha ha!"
He dismounted and handed the horse reigns to the trainee, who took them by reflex with a blank look on her face.
"I suppose it's back to the stamping of supplies forms for this fellow. Hurrah!" He said, anything but excited, and headed to the back of the tented booth.

-"But... I'm already in charge of volunteers... "

How this works:

- Every day that you participate, you get a ticket for the Semi-custom Raffle that will take place at the end of the Parade. You may earn up to three extra tickets for mysterious reasons. ouo

- You may enter with multiple characters if you wish to, be they existing or quest characters. Don't worry, quest characters don't have to be approved to enter! However, no mules!

- When interacting with another persons character, including an NPC, please make sure to quote them.

- PM me with any questions you may have!

- You will usually have at least the whole day to answer each prompt, but the pace picks up a little on the fourth day onwards (because minigames.) Psych!

- Have fun! P.S. you don't need to interact only with members of your own marching band, but if you break formation while marching, the people of Shinganshina will give you looks. O-O

Schedule

*Days end and begin at 12 AM (Midnight) EST. ( 11 PM CST / 9 PM PST )

18th - Regular Signups Open, + Route prep [Casual ORP]
19th - Volunteer Assessment Day [Active RP Session + Casual ORP]
20th - Marching Group Assignments [Prompt Response + Casual ORP]
21st - Regular Signups Closed + Hasty Signups Open + The Parade Begins! [Prompt Response + Casual ORP]
22nd - Hasty Signups Closed, + Event 1 [Prompt Response x Game]
23rd - Event 2 [Prompt Response x Game]
24th - Event 3 [Prompt Response x Game]
25th - The Parade Ends! [Prompt Response + Casual ORP]

Regular Signups

Simply post this form in the thread, and then feel free to roleplay around the scene as you please~

Day 1: Route Prep begins!

On both sides of the canal, volunteers are helping to shoo pedestrians away from the waterside, establish a clear boundary line, and clean the path. To join them, one can head to the Parade Booth and take one's pick of a mop for scrubbing, gloves and a bag for picking up trash, or an armband marking one as volunteer security.

+ The large tented booth for parade planning extended directly from the entrance of an inn, which had been commissioned by the flamboyant field parade marshal, presently occupied. Should you approach its front desk, a seated trainee looks up and smiles at you.

+ "Good morning! ..." The smile just keeps widening in silence, until she hits the palm of her hand in sudden realization. "Oh right, I forgot, how can I help you?"

+Q: "Could you tell me more about the parade?"

+A: "Sure! So, basically..." She doodles quickly on a sheet of paper, turning it around for you to see.

"Riding at the lead there's our field parade marshal, Saga from the Somnis family, carrying the King's Flag.
Then we've got our drummers from the Stationary Guard, three rows each carrying a banner for wall Sina, wall Rose and wall Maria, symbolizing the walls that have protected us for a hundred years.
Trainees form a marching band behind them, representing our future. That's where I'll be.
Then come the ox carts, representing the farmers who feed us all. They're filled to the brim with flower petals, and the people riding them toss those up to shower the rest of the parade in.
Next we've got the dancing troupe, with some musicians mixed in, men and women dancing arm in arm and all that, symbolic for family.
They're followed by the main attraction, the decorated barges. It takes several people on either side of the canal to drag them along in the water without any accidents. If you've got a strong arm, they have need of you.
After which we've got... uhh, dancing costumed people. Literally anyone wearing a costume can just hop in, any time. If you want to join but don't have a costume, I suggest you volunteer and come back tomorrow for assessment, or all the good ones will run out.
Finally there's the Equine Show, where horse breeders show off their make. Most of them are from the Survey Corps around here, they probably have more show horse types up in Utopia."

(You don't have to give me tickets Mythee. Since I won at the Banquet, I'd just want alt/civ art but I want everyone to have a chance to get some one!)
Let's March!
Username: leon_a_darkangel
Character: Alec Scott

If it wasn't his doing, it would have been the little red haired girl who bouncing excitedly beside her mother, ooing and awing at everything new was reason enough. Wanting to help, and feeling a sense of pride for the district he'd spent the last 10 years of his life Alec bid his family fair well for now to go wander on his own and find the signup booth. As approached the tent he ducked in greeting the trainee, with a friendly hello.

Alec's handwriting was more than a bit sloppy, but still somewhat legible. Setting the pen down, he quickly scanned over the doodles and information she provided. They had horse back riding? Oh man that would be amazing, but he wasn't a breeder let alone professional rider. Perhaps instead costume wearing! Even if he'd look silly dancing, it would be a lot of fun. Helping drag the barges however did not. The short teen decided then and there the more he heard about the parade, the better it got.

He scanned the list, recognizing a few names already on it. Thanking the girl a bit awkwardly he moved away from the counter to let others come forward. "Alright..there we go." he glanced around, realizing he'd lost site of his mother and sister he sighed a bit. At least he was free to roam around for now.

Let's March!
Username: Blade Kuroda
Character: { Shun Kuroda }

Shun had no uniform or anything yet. Despite this, he had managed to be roped into this parade somehow. Well. At least that was what he had been told as he was ushered over to this area. Whether or not he actually had to do anything remained to be seen. Either way, he wasn't very thrilled about this right now.

He listened to a trainee explaining the details of the parade. It sounded like there were a number of different parts to it.

Was he really going to end up being placed in a marching band of all things? He grunted lightly at the thought. For now, he said nothing. Perhaps he wouldn't have to do that bit seeing how he had no coat. He'd stand out from all the rest. Then again, the other areas didn't sound very promising either. He sure as hell did not want to be putting on a costume and dance or anything like that.

And then there was Danny. Screaming with excitement and enthusiasm. If he did have to go through with this, he sorely hoped he wouldn't be placed next to her.

Let's March!
Username: NaomiNaomi.
Character: Shakuntala Tischendorf.

Danny noticed Shun sign up shortly after her.

"Commander Shun! Commander Shun!" she called with a wave. He saw her, right? He did see her?? YES??

Gods almighty, that girl certainly was enthusiastic. Elliot decided that she seemed sweet enough, but...loud. Definitely loud. Of course, he found that most people were considered loud when compared to him if this festival was anything to go off of.

Except Shun, who had just coincidentally moved up beside him. Gaze flickering over at the man, Elliot was silent for a good minute before he slowly lift his brows. "Commander Shun, huh? Did she just give you that fancy title on a whim?" Or perhaps it was a lingering nickname for other reasons--that was why he had asked in the first place.

Since both he and Danny were present, Elliot assumed that the two of them were planning on joining this parade as well. Danny, he could see, but Shun was...well. That was a little harder to imagine.

...Then again, he never would have seen himself standing here either.

Shakuntala really wasn't quite sure why she was there. For the first time since the start of the festival, her mum allowed her a small rest from her duty as a waitress at their booth. Even though the girl was content with spending her time sitting quietly at the counter and people watching, her mother insisted she take a look around. When the girl protested, a small spat ensued, and Kamla eventually got her way after threatening the short-haired teen with a spoon. Shakuntala fled for the safety of her knuckles and eventually was caught in the ebb and flow of the festival goers in Shiganshina.

She wasn't sure if she wanted to feast (she didn't want to confront someone), play games at the booths (she didn't want to make a fool of herself by losing at any), or wander (there had to be pickpockets about and, despite her modest attire, she carried around a good amount of coin on her always). Standing in place seemed like her best option so, like a puppy waiting patiently for its master, Shakuntala found a corner and stood there with her head turning left and right as if she were searching for something. This wait was brief; eventually, something hooked her attention and drew her from the crowd toward a male in a gaudy costume ordering people around. Further listening caused her to be roped into the festivities for the parade, but Shakuntala didn't mind.

The girl was utterly starstruck at what she saw. And, no, it wasn't the male with a billowing ponytail that stole her heart -- it was his mount. Shakuntala was a sucker for the steeds of the military and would always gaze with both admiration and awe at the beasts of burden. She couldn't fathom why anyone would rope them into such an existence, though it was obvious why; they were the only things that could outrun titans.

"O-Oh my..." the girl gawked; hands clasped beside her cheek and eyes sparkling in wonderment. "W-What a creature... It's so beautiful... So majestic..."

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She would do anything to be near it, even make a fool of herself.