Bakers, start your baking!

[indigo_league]

Who: Everybody!
Where: Riegfried and Soy's mansion
When: January 15th; day time for the cooking part, evening for the mingle part.
Summary: Come one, come all to the newest contest hosted by Riegfried and Soy. Today's theme: cooking!








[Daytime - The kitchens]

Throughout the day, the kitchens will be open to all contestants, though any casual onlookers --human, pokemon, or otherwise-- will be shooed out to prevent any cheating.

Each contestant will be directed to a gleaming counter, where they will be able to find everything from your basic whisk and spatula to gleaming kitchen machinery fancy enough to make any cook feel faint with envy. Each counter comes complete with a small fridge (should you need to chill any of your ingredients), an oven, a stove, a microwave -- really, anything you can imagine and it is there. Riegfried and Soy clearly didn't want anyone to run into the issue of not having the right equipment for the job.

At the back of the room are the fridges: tall, imposing fridges made of gleaming metal stocked full of every sort of ingredient you could possibly think of. And next to the fridges, contestants can find rows and rows of shelves, each nearly bowing under the weight of the products placed on them -- from fresh fruit, to spices, to rice and noodles. If you need it, you can find it.

Riegfried and Soy will be flitting around the room like a pair of extravagant Butterfrees, happy to engage contestants in small interviews. Everything for the camera, baby! Because those are also there; they are clearly trying to stay out of everybody's way, but small, Rotom-powered cameras flit around the room for close-ups, while cameramen and women with heavy-duty equipment get the distance shots. Hopefully, you haven't got an issue with stage fright.



[Evening - The show]

And when all is said and done, and the last dishes have been cooked, it's time for the actual show. There is some time between the actual cooking and this part of the evening, during which contestants have a chance to change their clothing and freshen up, but before too long, the mansion's doors open to the guests, who are herded by the cheerful hosts to an enormous hall.

The hall itself is set up with all manner of comforts. There are some small tables and chairs for anyone who wants to sit down for a while. Long tables line the sides of the room, absolutely laden with all manner of refreshments. There is even a special table set aside where the dishes the contestants made (at least the ones that made it to this part of the evening) are displayed and ready for tasting.

The schedule for the night is rather straightforward.

After some meet-and-greet and time for every last guest to arrive, the day's events (cut and edited by a very exhausted camera crew) will be projected onto a huge screen for all to enjoy. The votes will be tallied afterward and awards and prizes will be handed out. The rest of the evening will give the winners a chance to celebrate, the losers a chance to commiserate, and everybody else to clear the buffet of everything edible.

Comments

[nastyboy]

Thank you. It is currently in the midst of a civil war, but...

Well. I have hopes for things afterwards. Which feels strange to say, really... [Dimitri shakes his head.] But those are darker thoughts, and this is a rather joyous celebration.

Although very... [A pause as he watches an exhausted looking cameraman hurry past] Busy.

[paladinlost]

Few things are as sad as a country's citizens turning against each other. May your people lay down their arms soon, to rebuild what has been lost together.

[Those are darker thoughts indeed, Cecil thinks as his eyes follow the cameraman, but he still hopes his wish will come true.]

The ubiquity of Flying-types, along with the teleport pads, make it easy for people to gather for such events, even when transportation is not offered to participants. Rare are the festivities kept local and small, especially when hosted by well-off personalities.

[nastyboy]

I will have to keep that in mind... It seems that the longer I stay here, the more our own group grows.

It's, ah. [Somehow, it almost seems embarrassing to say this out loud, and Dimitri occupies himself by feeding Hob some snacks for herself.] It started as a group of three, and has now become a group of, at its largest, nine.

...Although the children keep wandering off...

[paladinlost]

Nine people? Including children? That sounds delightful.

[This is, perhaps, the most honest and unfiltered thing Cecil has said all night. Dimitri's embarrassment doesn't even register in his mind, because what could possibly cause it?]

It's been ages since I've last been part of such a lively group... Are you all from the same world, or have you met each other here? Arrivals from a specific land often follow each other, I know that well, but nine in a short period of time would be particularly impressive.

[nastyboy]

[It just seems like so much when he says it aloud... Still, Cecil's joy over the circumstances has him smile, and Dimitri starts to scratch behind Hob's ears.]

Not entirely.

I arrived only seconds- [Probably seconds, time is fake, he was on the verge of dissociation] - before a father and his child, who had arrived at the same time together. We decided to stay together all the way to Violet, when, ah.... Strange things started happening?

[One of the infamous 'weird weekends', he means.]

Around that time, a childhood friend of mine, Sylvain, and a man I went to academy with, Claude, both also arrived, so I managed to get them with me to Violet... and Grant took on a youth named Karako, who only honks.

[Don't ask. Don't.... worry about that.]

While we were staying there, another childhood friend of mine, Felix, arrived... So Sylvain fetched him, and he joined our group as well. That is how things stayed until we reached Goldenrod, and Sylvain and Felix transported back to Violet because they had bonded with another pair of youths... One named Razor, and the other a young woman named Jinx, who Felix offered to train.

[Is that everyone? Dimitri thinks that's everyone. Well, up until...]

And as this contest started, Ashe arrived as well, just in time to participate. He is another friend we all met while attending the academy as well, and... I mean, it would be rude to leave him on his own.

[paladinlost]

Even with so many people arriving regularly, you managed to travel as far as Violet in a timely manner?

[Cecil sounds genuinely impressed. He is genuinely impressed; those two months spent in Cherrygrove as they kept going back to fetch more friends left their mark, back in the day.]

A healthy mix of new friends and old friends, then. Childhood friends, even! That's wonderful to hear. I'm well aware that people from the same world, or people who know each other, often arrive one after the other, but five within a few months is still particularly efficient. You may have to invest in an appartment complex, if you ever wish to settle down yet still live together. The local houses can be large, but perhaps not quite that much.

[Since castles are sadly not an option around here. A nice castle would make housing so much simpler!]

[nastyboy]

We all intended to stay for a while regardless, in order to make money, and to challenge the gym there, so it simply managed to... line up properly, I suppose.

[And, while Dimitri had been kind of spacing out and not understanding why the world went Weird, it had been one of Those Weekends, so the travel time for Sylvain and Claude had least miraculously worked out in their favor.]

[Still, as Cecil mentions an apartment complex, Dimitri falls silent for a moment as he nibbles on some of his food and continues to pet Hob. That reminds him of what he and Felix talked about, the first night they went to Fight Club...]

A friend of mine... has mentioned something like that as well. He wants somewhere a little more - permanent for us all. And he thought that an apartment could be a potential solution.

[It had been rather cute, honestly, not that Dimitri had ever told him that...]

However... Even though I know it is difficult, I would still prefer somewhere that is a little more solidly ours. [A sigh.] I suppose that is rather selfish of me.

[This is because he was actually born in a castle, isn't it.]

[paladinlost]

Managing to 'line up properly' is impressive, especially for Gym challengers. By the time my group managed to reach the city, a few among us had already started to disappear...

[He stops himself abruptly. That thought is far, far too depressing for what is supposed to be a pleasant evening, even if this talk of large parties feels nostalgic. Luckily, discussing potential properties offers an excellent distraction.]

There is nothing selfish about wanting to live somewhere that belongs to you. Somewhere that can be personalized as you wish, when you wish. Somewhere you'll feel safe and home, even in a foreign and sometimes incomprehensible world.

[Or somewhere big enough for a yard with its own pond and for weekly wars with gangs of Grimer. That, too, has its use.]

If you can someday afford to buy a mansion that can house everyone, or perhaps a pair of neighboring homes, you should seize that opportunity without hesitation. However, it'll be both more expensive and more difficult to find.

[nastyboy]

[A few among us had already started to disappear...]

[Even when Cecil stops himself, Dimitri can't help but think about that one simple little sentence. He's only been here a few months, but it feels as though he's only been gaining, not losing: his stability, his ability to enjoy things, company, health, people he thought he had chased away forever...]

[But for this kind of place...]

[Dimitri nods slowly.]

We have been able to live comfortably, thanks to Felix and some of the others having the Payday ability that I told you about over the network. Perhaps we will have to focus on saving up for something...

Although I wonder, instead of saving up for a mansion, it might be easier to pay for something to be built on its own, somewhere quiet. With the help of abilities such as vines, or psychic powers, it might be easier to make such buildings than one might normally be...

[paladinlost]

This world does have excellent builders who integrate Pokémon in their teams! I worked with them to complete the Lunar Gym's construction, and they dealt with its custom elements brilliantly. Building a quiet, personalized home would be child's play for them.

[After all, Cecil strongly doubts Dimitri or his group could request anything worse than a room large enough to fit any Pokémon combination in battle, resistant enough to survive those battles, and did he mention it had to be covered in mirrors protecting some very delicate technology? Please and thank you.

...Considering their absolutely miraculous efforts for his own project, it's no wonder he has a stack of their business cards in one of his pockets, just in case. After a quick search, he offers one to Dimitri.]

Here's their card, should you ever decide to go through with that plan. I've no idea what they charge for residential buildings, however, since Gym construction expenses are covered by the Pokémon League.

[nastyboy]

Oh - thank you so much.

[Dimitri accepts the card with some surprise. He'd been anticipating asking about those builders, of course, but to get an answer so quickly... He stares down at the card, doing his best to memorize everything he can. He doesn't plan on losing this, but the best laid plans of mice and men...]

You really have been kind and generous to my entire group, ever since we first arrived here. We really must repay you one day...

[paladinlost]

There's no need, truly! I keep plenty of cards from each contractor and artisan with whom I deal for this purpose. I could even recommend a painter or a wool dyer, should you ever need one.

[His tone is carefully, deliberately light at first, as giving simple contractor recommendations requires. That does not last very long, and a softer, more genuine voice replaces it.]

Besides, assisting those who've yet to put down roots in this world is both an honor and a pleasure. If I can offer even a hundredth of the help I received when I arrived... That would make every second of my stay worth it.

[nastyboy]

[Painting and wool dying.... None of them have gotten into such things yet, but Karako does have that large sheep... Perhaps Dimitri really will have to keep such a thing in mind.]

[For now... He rubs his thumb along the business card.]

Perhaps... That is what this land is founded on. Passing along the help that is given, in a neverending chain, until you have entire countries of kindness.

Should I stay here long enough to build up such resources... I hope I can do the same.

[paladinlost]

Be it the locals or our fellow visitors... The great majority of the people here are unfailingly generous. Perhaps it is our shared love for our Pokémon that enables such widespread kindness.

[Or maybe it's being in a strange and incomprehensible world, far from everything they knew. His comrades had been kind, too, back then.]

Should the length of your stay permit it, I've no doubt you'll do so. In a land of such plenty, where we all start on equal footing with nothing to our name, helping each other comes naturally. We all remember our early days, after all.

[nastyboy]

A shared love...

[Dimitri considers that, even as he lets go of Hob so that she can scurry off to investigate something new on the tables.]

It would be nice if simply introducing them to a place could help usher in peace, but, alas, I unfortunately know it takes more than that.

For now, I suppose I will simply have to help contribute to the peace here. I can only hope it does not act up so much, although I have to admit some things concern me and my ability to help.