Castle Prom 2020

[indigo_league]

After arriving in Cerulean City and riding in one of a fleet of Cerulean Cape Shuckle Shuttle buses for an hour or so, the trees break and the road snakes along sea cliffs. In the distance, all can see a grand building rising up into sight, and excitement bubbles up within each and every heart as this year's mysterious, grandiose Prom location draws ever closer...




Welcome to the castle!

Their duo of hosts stand ready to welcome the characters when they arrive, assuring them that their luggage will be taken care of, and inviting them for a special tour of the castle, or would they rather first see their rooms, or perhaps even have a bite to eat? The choice is up to them.

THE CASTLE SIGHTS The Outer Courtyard For those wishing to get a breath of fresh air or looking for a place to perhaps engage in a little battling, look no further than the courtyard. Nestled safely within castle walls, the courtyard has been given a thorough renovation. The stones gleam like they have never gleamed before; a large fountain (certainly too new to have belonged to the original castle) stands at the center of the courtyard, the water gently cascading down over the marble figures of two nondescript and crowned humans, one holding a sword, the other a shield; wide-open doors welcome characters further into the castle. The Stables To the west lie the stables. Anyone interested in taking a ride along the cliff trails (or guests who just wants to see the horse Pokemon) is welcome to enter. The comforting smell of hay and wood hangs in the air, though any persons expecting to find familiar faces like Rapidash, Mudbray or Zebstrika is going to come off rather surprised. Instead what they will find are snow-white, proud-looking equines. Their long, pastel-colored manes and tails have been brushed to perfection, occasionally adorned with braids and white flowers. Long, violet colored horns jut out from their foreheads, a spiralling pure white groove running along their length. Long fetlocks drift along the ground, rather like delicate pink clouds, almost giving the Pokemon the appearance of being stabled on air rather than something so common as hay. Yes, anyone who has not yet had the pleasure of being able to admire the beauty and grace of the Galar Rapidash can look and ride their fill here. While the stable hands cannot allow anyone to actually keep one of the magnificent horses themselves no matter how much a guest is willing to pay, whenever their bosses aren’t looking, they certainly prove willing to provide characters with a Galarian Ponyta egg for a small price. (Limited to one per character) The Kitchens To the east lie the kitchens, and what kitchens they are! At all hours, characters will be able to smell the delicious aroma of a variety of sumptuous meals being prepared. In the mornings, the scent of fresh bread and breakfast fills the air, changing to the scent of pastries and later on more filling dishes as the day continues on, and fresh pots of tea are always on hand. Officially, the guests are asked not to enter the kitchen, as to not to disturb the many cooks working there. Unofficially, there are not exactly any guards, so if you really wanted to sneak in, you probably won’t get stopped. The Dining Room Adjacent to the kitchens awaits a large dining room. Tables have been set up in long rows with plenty of room for all with some to spare, and once someone sits down, almost as if by magic, they will soon find one of the waitstaff at their side, presenting them with an extensive menu. Order as much (or as little) as you like! The chefs will have it ready for you in a flash. The Ball Room The old castle ballroom has been done up to the nines, reflecting nothing but glory and splendor. Some delicate little tables and chairs stand at the sides of the room, for anyone who needs a quick break for their feet, but most of the polished marble floor is intended for dancing. There is a small chamber orchestra playing in a corner to provide everybody with only the classiest of tunes (though they do take requests for more modern music) and neatly dressed waitstaff with an uncanny ability to tell who is and isn't underaged flit through the crowd like black butterflies, making sure no glass goes unfilled. The Inner Courtyard The doors of the ballroom open wide onto a second, smaller courtyard at the back of the castle. Unlike the Outer courtyard, which was all stone, this smaller, Inner Courtyard is dominated by plants. The gardeners have done their very best to dress up the inner courtyard with plants and flowers of any kind - so many plants, in fact, that there is no room for battling out here. But if you wanted to take a breath of fresh air, wander around and look at the plants, or perhaps even try and find some of the small, secluded nooks created by the plant cover, you are more than welcome. In between the lovely smelling blooms, characters will also be able to find bushes and small trees laden with unfamiliar berries! Small cards in the soil will explain exactly what kinds of berries they are and what effect they have, and characters are invited to pluck a few berries if they want. Just don’t get too greedy! The new available berries are: Apicot, Salac, Ganlon, Petaya, Liechi, Lansat, Custap The Library Situated on the second floor is the castle's splendid library, a welcome respite for those less inclined to dance and frolic. Whatever books originally filled these weighty shelves are long gone, but their hosts have spared no effort in making reading material available to their guests. Among the shelves, guests will be able to find many books on the Galar region's history and myths. Some of these tales are already known over in this region (Who doesn't know the tale of the wise King Arthur and his oval table?) but there are also many more obscure and unknown fables and tales; the truly inquisitive may even be able to find some material on the two crowned fellows depicted in the main courtyard's fountain. It's almost as if Prom's esteemed hosts shipped over their whole personal library. They may, in fact, have shipped over their whole personal library. Pull up one of the plush armchairs, grab a book, and make yourself comfortable by the roaring fire! There's more to read here than you can finish in a lifetime! The Bedrooms Upstairs, guests will find all manner of bedrooms to choose from, from smaller rooms meant for a single person, to large ones for couples, to even larger ones for characters that would like to spend the night with a few friends. One thing holds true for them all: these rooms are seriously extravagant. Decked out in the finest of antique furniture like large canopy beds, solid wooden chairs, tapestries, and rugs, the decor brings to mind bygone centuries. There are even hearths in every room that can be used to light a small fire; while the rooms are all wired for electricity, unfortunately, central heating was a bit outside of the realm of possibility. The Tower Not all of the towers have undergone restoration, but the grandest, largest of them has. It will take some real stamina to climb all these stairs, but if they do, characters will be rewarded with two things: First of all, their two hosts have seen fit to create a small miniature museum inside the Tower’s chambers. Paintings, tapestries, and artefacts have been brought over from the Galar region to be put on display. All the artefacts brought over depict moments from Galar’s rich history, including paintings of ancient kings and queens, an actual knight’s armour, chalices, swords tucked in velvet under lock and key, and richly woven tapestries that for some reason seem to depict knights battling giant Slugma. If you still have energy after the climb to get here, you can continue on to the very top of the tower. From the tower’s high vantage point, it seems the entire Kanto region is on display in the incredible view. The ocean stretches out along the horizon, but closer to home, characters will be able to behold wild forests and cliffs, the green lush routes of Cerulean Cape itself and at night, millions and millions of stars twinkling up overhead. And all the rest... Beyond those sparkling rooms and done up corridors lies... the rest of the castle. The parts of the castle not quite done with their renovations are roped off, but nothing is stopping guests from exploring if they so wish - especially if they are interested in finding those rumored lost treasures or traps. While the rest of the castle shines, these parts of the castle feel almost haunted. Dust and derelict dominates the rooms, old broken furniture covered in dingy white sheets and creaking doors adding to the atmosphere. Did the eyes of that painting just move? Why is there a weird draft coming from that wall? What was that strange ominous creak coming from behind you? Are there any dungeons? Wait, did you just hear someone crying in a far off room? Jeez, no wonder they say this place is haunted. The Rocky Beach The main attraction outside of the castle, besides the hiking and riding paths, is a small stretch of rocky shoreline accessible just outside the main courtyard and down a surprisingly sturdy set of stone stairs. While it's a crummy place to lay out and get some sun, it is littered with bits of detritus from the sea. Shells, whole or broken, peek out between smooth pebbles and the rare piece of sea glass, and at low tide clumps of seaweed lay draped over the craggier outcroppings. Nothing is stopping you from fishing or poking around in the shallows for Pokemon, but you're more likely to find an interesting souvenir than a new friend...

---

AVAILABLE POKEMON Naturally, this wouldn't be a Pokemon Prom without some Pokemon to catch! All catchable Pokemon range between the levels of 10 to 30. The Pokemon in the castle mostly haunt the unfinished section, but feel free to have the occasional encounter in the renovated sections too! Castle Impidimp; Gastly; Haunter; Litwick; Lampent; Duskull; Shuppet; Sinistea; Misdreavus; Honedge; Doublade**; Dusclops**; Polteageist***; Gengar***; Courtyard Butterfree; Cutiefly; Ribombee; Beautiful; Vivillion; Rocky Shore Binacle; Staryu; Wimpod; Frillish; Krabby; Kingler**; Jellicent**; Slowking***; During the characters' stay, they might suddenly find their room a mess, as if a small tornado went through their luggage. They might even find themselves missing some incidental items or articles of clothing, nothing necessarily valuable or significant, but it sure is weird. This is... probably the work of the castle's Pokemon, right?

---

TREASURE HUNTING While your shuttle bus slowly trundles towards the castle, the driver will regale his riders with local stories and legends, chief among those the legend of the castle itself. You see, the castle was built by a relative of Bill (you know, the Pokemon storage system inventor?), but no one has lived in it for years and years because it is haunted. No, not haunted by Ghost types. That would be rather common and hardly worthy of note, wouldn't it? No, the castle is haunted by the ghost of Bill's great-great-great-uncle, and rumor has it that he is so possessive of the castle and its contents that he will kill all who enter. You see, even when he was alive, this man's enormous hoard of wealth was only outmatched by his enormous amount of paranoia. He was so paranoid that others would come to steal his wealth that he built his castle high upon the cliffs where no one could approach it undetected. But that wasn't enough to settle his fears! He started to hide his multitude of treasures all around the castle, and he built many traps and secret passages to protect them. It's said he was so fiercely protective of his money that he refused to leave the property even after his death, and his spirit still haunts the castle to this day. Many who have tried to find his treasures have disappeared. That is what the rumors say, at least. In any case, feel free to explore those abandoned halls and ruins for these supposed long-lost treasures. Better check for hidden rooms and passages behind old bookcases, trap doors covered by thick dust-riddled carpets, and perhaps even a hidden vault or two in the castle basements. Players are free to go absolutely wild in coming up with secret passages and hidden secrets for their characters to find. Now, as for the treasures characters can find during these explorations, they can broadly be divided up into two categories. The first category of treasures are common treasures. These are small, fairly common items that can be sold after prom for a small amount of Pokedollars each (think 100-200p), or they can be kept as a memento. Generally, these are small items that could easily fit inside a character's pocket and won't necessarily be well hidden. Characters are allowed to find as many of these common treasures as they want. Examples of common treasures would be items like pieces of antique silverware, broken mirrors, small figurines, old books damaged by the passage of time (but perhaps still readable in some places), or parts of worn and threadbare tapestry. The second category of treasures are rare treasures. These are properly hidden items that can either sell for quite a bit of Pokedollars after prom (think 5000-6000p), or can be used in-game. In order to allow of an element of surprise, every character that wants to participate in finding some rare treasure is allowed to comment once to a special RNG comment to find out exactly what they will find. Each treasure will consist out of somewhere between two and four items, the exact number of which will be left up to chance. For any questions, please refer back to the previous OOC post.

Comments

Korra | OTA

[bent_the_world]

A - Ballroom

[Prom time again! Over the years, Korra has grown to really enjoy the little weekend vacation that prom brings. And it's a good excuse to dress up fancy, one she's taken advantage of. She's in high spirits and up for dancing with just about anybody - though slow dances are reserved for Botan.]



B - Shore

[It's impossible to keep Korra away from the water. While water had never been her main element to work with - fire had taken that position - she's always felt a connection to the ocean. She's Water Tribe, how could she not?]

[And while this shoreline is rocky, and it's not exactly all that warm, in the evening when not in the ballroom, Korra can be found at the edge of the ocean with her Tyrantrum. Her shoes are off and her feet are in the sea foam as she pokes around for neat shells and beach detritus not found in the islands. Princess Stomps-a-lot has no reservations about the cold, and is splashing around happily further in the sea.]



C - Treasure Hunting

[Like Korra is going to pass up an opportunity to go poking around a cool old castle. Sure, she's a full grown productive member of society now, with a real job and a house and everything, but that just means she's all the more prepared for adventuring.]

[And she could use a good adventure. So she can be found in the old parts of the castle, eagerly poking into rooms and looking for secret chambers and passageways with her Arcanine and her Furret.]

D - Wildcard

[Feel free to throw anything else at me!]

B

[breakyourlife]

[Bored of the ballroom, Steve's headed out for the beach. It might be cool out here, but at least it's more interesting. His Donphan is trying to keep mostly clear of the water, walking the line where the surf just brushes her feet. She does occasionally suck up a small amount of water to squirt the shiny Clauncher riding her back.

Steve is a little deeper into the water, pants rolled up and sneakers tied together so he can hang them around his neck.]

Woah, dude. Is that your dinosaur?

[bent_the_world]

Hey! Yeah, that's Princess! You should see her surf.

[Korra grins and waves at Steve, and wades over to join him. She's taken a liking to the kid, what can she say? There's something about him that reminds her a little bit of herself in her teen years.]

And you've got a Donphan! I've never seen one of those guys up close before, that's pretty cool.

[breakyourlife]

She can surf?

[Mind you, so can Bessie, and that's not really something you'd expect from a cow.

Ellie smiles widely at the positive attention, stomping her front legs in the shallow surf and waving her trunk. It's probably just as well she's not the biggest fan of water, or else Korra would most likely be finding herself on the receiving end of a friendly headbutt. Definitely not the most fun thing to be getting from such a powerfully built Pokémon.]

Yeah, Ellie's pretty awesome. She's one of my strongest Pokémon. You know we beat Blue's Elite team the other week?

[It's honestly hard to tell which one has their chest puffed out more.]

[bent_the_world]

Yeah, I made her a dino sized surf board and everything. I live down in the islands and I surf all the time, and she wanted to learn.

[Korra grins enthusiastically at Steve's news. He's clearly proud, and he should be.]

I didn't! That's awesome, the Elite teams are really tough to beat. Next time you're down the islands, swing by my place, my girlfriend will bake you something.

[breakyourlife]

Oh, like actual surfing? They can do that?

[He'd figured she meant to move, but that's even more awesome. And speaking of awesome... ]

I guess I could pay you a visit sometime. I haven't actually been to the islands yet. I've been kind of focused on badges.

[bent_the_world]

I think Pokemon are like people. If they really want to do something and set their mind to it...they'll do it! And Princess really wanted to learn how to surf.

[And she isn't half bad, either.]

She really loves the water, which works out great since we live on the beach. And that settles it. Steve, you're officially being invited to come visit the islands. Take a little badge vacation and hang out for a weekend or something. Plus, Botan and I just renovated our house on our own and I want to show it off.

[Previously, Korra's 'house' had been a literal fisherman's shed that she and Botan had cleaned up and painted and decorated inside. But it had still been one room and the smallest, saddest bathroom ever. Now there's four whole rooms and a full bathroom.]

B

[uncutetomboy]

How aren't your feet cold?

[Akane's hanging back a lot further from the edge of the water, which she's eyeing with a degree of trepidation. She still can't swim, after all, and this water feels a lot more... dangerous than what she's used to at a summer beach.]

[bent_the_world]

Because I grew up in the arctic!

[Korra turns with a smile, waving in greeting to the younger woman who's wandered out to the beach.]

I'm pretty used to the cold. Even though I live in a tropical paradise now.

[uncutetomboy]

[Akane blinks. Really looks at the older girl.]

Are you an Eskimo?

[... Akane, that's not what you call Inuit people. Then again, you are from the 80s.]

[bent_the_world]

I have no idea what that is. I'm Southern Water Tribe. I grew up at the South Pole. In an ice compound.

[Which is why she isn't bothered at all by the chill of the sea right now.]

I'm Korra, I live down in the islands.

[uncutetomboy]

Oh. Um, right. They're people in my world who live by the North Pole? They live in round ice houses and I think they have sleds and things. I didn't know that people lived at the South Pole. I thought it was just penguins.

I'm Akane Tendo. I'm on a pokemon journey with my best friend here, Connie. We're mostly just camping a lot.

[bent_the_world]

In my world, people live at both poles. There's nothing like it here, as far as I've ever seen.

[Korra shrugs. There's places where it's always snowy and cold, but she's never found a society of people like her own.]

Yeah, camping is a big part of the Pokemon journey. I'm pretty well done with the journey part. At least it's a nice time of year for it - it sucks camping in the rainy season.

[uncutetomboy]

It's pretty fun! I'm used to camping on training journeys anyway, even though I never went on ones for this long with my dad or my dad and Uncle Saotome and Ranma before. Usually we just did a week or so?

[... if her dad had taken her on multi-year training journeys like Uncle Saotome had taken Ranma, would she be as good as him?]

[bent_the_world]

It's been a long time since I was in any training, but yeah, there were a lot of boring weeks meditating in the middle of nowhere for a while.

[Of course, she'd also lived in a mud hut outside of Mahogany for two years, entirely of her own choice.]

Camping's still fun, though. At least when you've got a place to come home to afterwards.

[uncutetomboy]

Are you another martial artist? [She can't keep the hope out of her voice. She could use another sparring partner, after all--especially if said sparring partner was a girl too.]