Halloween 2023

[indigo_league]

The last few hours before dusk sees you all arriving at a large, stately home just outside of Lavender Town.

Unlike previous years, where Halloween had you visiting dilapidated castles, this manor home is in perfect condition. Age hasn't crumbled the walls or worn away the dark roof, but rather it sits on the manor like a heavy, proud crown, a testament to the many long years it has stood here while everything around it changed but it stayed forever the same. Candlelight flickers in its many windows, while it casts a dark shadow against the slowly setting sun. The gravel crunches under your feet as you make it up the long drive and a cold wind chills you to your very bones, even through the layers of whatever costume you've chosen to wear.

Then the manor's large double doors fling up. Two long shadows stretch down across the driveway towards you, light spilling around two silhouettes standing in the opened door, beckoning, inviting. Soy doffs his hat, while Riegfried bows deep, his hare ears nearly brushing the ground.

"Welcome to our Halloween Feast."




Inside the Manor

Not all of the Manor is available for you to explore. In fact, it's really just the ground floor that has been decorated and made available for your use. And even then, what rooms are available to you depends on the time of evening.

Contest portion

Early in the evening, several large rooms on the left of the Manor are open to your character.

The largest of these rooms has a stage and chairs set up, clearly where the contest will be held. Soy can be found in this room, in case you need to discuss some things with him ahead of your performance like lighting cues or other things you might need.

In addition to this, a dressing and prop room have also been made available. Need some last-minute adjustments on your costume? Desperate to find one final prop to really make your performance shine? Why not peruse the items Riegfried and Soy have brought with them for you to use? This is also a good place to have a chat with some others -- perhaps you like to scope out the competition before the performances start, or you are a newbie looking for some advice. Either way, this is the best place to find it!


Haunted Ball

Once the contest has concluded, and night has well and truly fallen, characters will be able to enter the large room on the right of the Manor.

The Ball Room has been decked out in enough black lace and dark velvet to make any classical vampire quite jealous. The ceiling has been decorated with spider silk that sways ever so slightly, casting flicking shadows on the walls in the candlelight. And while there are some seats and benches along the edges of the room, most of it is left free for people to dance and mingle. On a small podium in the corner of the room, a band of ghouls and zombies (costumes, we hope!) plays the kind of spooky tunes that are still, somehow, upbeat enough to dance to.

As folks dance and make merry and the evening carries on, one might note a spectral shape gliding around the dance floor, observing, before finally nudging its ghostly nose against a hand here and there and suddenly the ballroom floor is a lot more crowded.

More details about this part of the event can be found here

Outside the Manor


If you run out of interesting things to do inside (or you need some fresh air), why not visit the sprawling yard behind the Manor? It too has been decorated for the occasion -- carved pumpkins sit everywhere, candles burning merrily inside and on top of them. As night falls, a trained flock of zubat swoop low over the garden, adding that extra hint of spookiness to the air. Don't worry, they've been trained not to get caught in anyone's hair!

Food

The garden is clearly where Riegfried and Soy have put the less formal Halloween Activities, starting with a fair few food stalls. There is a stand where you can get drinks, offering things like tea and coffee, hot chocolate for the kids (or the young at heart) and mulled cider for the adults. No one shall go parched tonight!

Food is also available in various flavours, from various sorts of candy (cotton and otherwise) to more hearty snacks. No need to worry if your character isn't into all of this sweet stuff! There is piping hot soup and other common festival foods available as well for those seeking a break from all the sugar.

One stand in particular draws attention though, not for the food on offer --though those Candied Apples do look mighty tasty!-- but rather for the unusual pokemon that sits both proudly on the booth itself as well as the sign above the stand. Rumour has it that if you feed one of these Syrupy Apples to your Applin, you might just see something amazing!


Maze

A large corn maze has been grown towards the back of the sprawling yard. Riegfried and Soy have made sure to make it a little more exciting than your average maze though.

A small warp pad will transport you to the middle of the maze, from where you'll have to find your way out, guided only by lantern light (please remember to pick one of the lanterns before warping in!). And as if that isn't spooky enough, the maze has been stocked full of Pokemon ready to give you a little fright. Try not to run towards that dead end now!

The pokemon in the maze are available for capture. In fact, Riegfried and Soy encourage you to make a new friend or two in their haunted maze.

Available Pokemon: Zubat, Gastly, Murkrow, Misdreavus, Shuppet, Duskull, Drifloon, Yamask, Galarian Yamask, Litwick, Phantump, Pumpkaboo, Sinistea, Impidimp, Greavard, Gimmighoul

Bonfire

Set a bit away from the food stalls, and very safely away from the maze, is a large bonfire. October nights, after all, can get quite cold, and it will be nice to warm yourself up next to the fire. And maybe put all manner of things on a stick and roast them above the fire.

At the bonfire, you'll also find Riegfried. You've only ever seen him in his role as a contest or prom host, but today he's here to show you he's got one more hidden talent. Yes, by the light of the bonfire, Riegfried will be telling ghost stories. Why not sit for a spell, drink some hot choco and listen to the frightening tale of man door hand hook car door.

(Of course, Riegfried cannot be there the whole night. He still has contest duties to attend to too, so whenever he is absent, why not try your hand at telling a spooky story yourself? Tell people what goes bump in the night back in your home world)

Contest submissions | Shiny draw | Witches' judgement | Greavard event info

Comments

[phoenixwiz]

Oh gee, thanks. It was not easy trying to deal with the fact of how Halloween was connected to my parents’ untimely demise or trying to not be held back by those memories from enjoying it as much as everyone else but I’m pretty in awe by the fact that I didn’t fell into despair or remain bitter for a long time.

(Lily couldn’t agree more as she gives the both of them a relieved nod while Grimmy the ghost candle dog woofs cheerfully with his tail wagging energetically.)

[crystalmaster]

Yeah, seriously. I'm sure some people would just want nothing to do with Halloween ever.

[phoenixwiz]

Oh I agree with that as well. I honestly can’t blame them if they don’t want to do anything with Halloween out of personal reasons.

Everyone has different ways of coping with the grief and pain related to specific holidays after all, as I have come to learn, what works for one person may not work for others.

[crystalmaster]

Same here.

[He nods.]

That applies in general too, for how different people cope with their grief and pain. I started finding that out back home when I started taking people under my wing.

[phoenixwiz]

True, everyone will have different ways of dealing with grief. No two people will have the same ways to cope and deal with it.

A recent major event in my world before I came here had so many people lost their lives and it hit many folks, including several of my friends, pretty hard. I have a feeling that how they will deal with the loss will be different from how we deal with it.

(While he is still uncertain about mentioning the battle in Hogwarts by name just yet, he had seen several people greiving for their loved ones during the temporary armistice while he quietly slipped away to the Forbidden Forest.

Understandably Grimmy barks in agreement, sensing that grief is a common theme that lingers among the otherworlders, regardless of where they are from and what caused them in the first place.)

[crystalmaster]

That's horrible.

[Radley frowns. He thinks he remembers Harry briefly mentioning coming from something bad, but hadn't detailed it.]

Did you lose anyone special to you in that?

[phoenixwiz]

I did lose some of my close friends in there. That also includes the last remaining friend of my dad who had taught me a lot of things in spite of his condition of being a werewolf. He was one of the few parent figures I could count reliably along with my godfather, my friend’s parents, and the professor in charge of my school house.

(He didn’t mention Peter at all, knowing what he had done onto James, Lily, Sirius, and to some extent even him. Friends shouldn’t sell out their friends like what he did if even you were coaxed into doing it.)

One of my best friends lost a brother in there too and he almost lost his sister if their mother didn’t step in to save her. Even a professor I had a uneasy relation with had died while being a spy for our side: it was, as you pointed out, very horrible. The whole event did trashed the entire school to bits.

[crystalmaster]

[Radley doesn't even know what to say. He can't imagine a young boy going through so much.]

I'm so sorry.

[His Pokemon all look horrified and saddened too.

Radley might have complex feelings about the Peter situation, since his friends left him out of fear when he fell to their rival's brother.]

Do you want to talk about it or switch to something happier?

[He's willing to talk, but doesn't want to encourage it if it will bring the pain back more to talk.]

[phoenixwiz]

Oh yes. We can switch topics right now. Even if it has been a year, I’m still trying to deal with the effects it still have on me. It is going to take a long time for me to fully move on from it.

(Grimmy agrees with a very empathetic Woof, and so does Lily who understandably acknowledges the unfortunate long lasting effects wars had on people, even on the youth, and how Peter’s actions cost/hurt plenty of lives in some form.)

Even our ghost dog friend knows that we could change things to something a little more cheerful too.

[crystalmaster]

[Radley nods. He still hasn't recovered from the cruelty that happened to him back home and isn't sure if or when he will.]

I understand. Yeah, let's find something nice.

[Evie warbles and stands on two legs to look cute. Radley chuckles.]

[phoenixwiz]

Okay then. Maybe we might as well talk about any current plans we have at the moment. I’m on my way to Violet City to start on my Gym Battle journey: I should get to at least 2-3 badges before the end of the year. If I’m lucky to take on Whitney’s infamous Miltank, I might get four badges.

(Seriously Whitney, what sort of stuff has your Miltank been taking and is that why it got the reputation that it has? That is the big question that has eluding him since hearing horror stories of the Miltank defeating many Pokémon. Harry will probably never figure that out nor will he want to learn about it either.)

I wouldn’t lie, I am very nervous about facing Falkner since he will be my first challenge and even Whitney too, but I do hope for the best and get through this alive and well.

[crystalmaster]

That's great! I'm sure you and your Pokemon will do an amazing job. I don't think Falkner should be too hard, especially for someone who's been around a long time.

[He smirks.]

Honestly, I've heard Whitney's Miltank isn't so hard with the right type of Pokemon. Just be prepared for her to bawl like a baby when you win.

((OOC: I don't remember having too much trouble defeating the Miltank. I think I only lost once and then won on the first rematch!))

[phoenixwiz]

(OOC: Oh wow, that is neat. Harry should have enough Fighting types and strong (lady) Pokémon to give Miltank a run for its money.)

Oh gee thanks. I do hope that I can put up a good battle with Falkner and hopefully don’t let Godric accidentally trash his gym. I would hate to make him very upset if it does happen.

(Even with him growing stronger and being mindful with his powers these days, there are still times where the Hisuian Arcanine sometimes loses it on accident and Harry has the right to be very scared of it happening at any moment.)

Oh wow. So fighting her Miltank might not be as hard as people make it out to be as long as I have the right types to face it. Whoa, she cries a lot if I do get to beat her?

[crystalmaster]

((OOC: Yes, it was very pleasing! That was in Pokemon Crystal, I think. Good luck to Harry!))

Oh dear. Does that kind of thing happen a lot?

[He smiles and nods.]

That's what I've heard, at least. And yeah, I really don't know why they don't kick such a crybaby out of the gym league!

[phoenixwiz]

Thankfully not as much compared when he was a Growlithe, but there are a few times when he accidentally went overboard. If, for example, he catches a cold, he might unknowingly sneeze hot flames on the bushes or tree branches. Again, he didn’t mean to give people so much trouble and grief.

Oh dear. I thought that the gym leaders here are supposed to be prepared to lose to any challengers, especially if they win fair and square, and to face those losses with dignity.

(Both Lily and Grimmy are pretty shocked to learn about Whitney’s crybaby tendencies as much as Harry is. The ghost witch facepalms in shock while Grimmy whimpers in concern for her sanity.)

[crystalmaster]

[Radley winces.]

Yikes. Poor everyone, including him.

[He hopes Levi won't ever have such problems.

He laughs.]

Yeah, you'd sure think so.

[He felt like facepalming too, when he first learned of it.]

[phoenixwiz]

Luckily he has been working hard to make sure that it doesn’t happen a lot. So I am very hopeful that Godric can manage it with very little problems bogging him down.

(Now Harry is trying not to laugh right now over the image of Whitney crying over her fainted Miltank if Lily had been the opponent to fight her. As much as he doesn’t want to hurt her feelings, the idea of proving that the Miltank isn’t as invincible as people fear is too hilarious not to ignore.)

Oh yeah. I do hope that she will come to understand that I didn’t show up at her gym to hurt her feelings too hard.

[crystalmaster]

That's great he's trying so hard. I hope he succeeds.

[His Pokemon cheer.

Radley smirks.]

Hopefully she really does understand that even though she acts out like a two-year-old. There was a Duel Monsters prodigy back in my world who would put on a little girl act and cry and have tantrums to catch people off-guard. But she would do that in the middle of the game, not after, and then suddenly sober up and play serious and take out her opponents.

[phoenixwiz]

Wow, that is very sneaky of her to pull it off in front of her opponents to throw them off guard before getting be more serious in duels. The Duel Monsters prodigy, I mean. I never thought that some people can actually make it work when competing with other people.

[crystalmaster]

Yeah, she was something else. I watched some videos of her duels and they were impressive.

[phoenixwiz]

Oh wow. That’s pretty neat. Wish I could see those videos and watch how she manages to outsmart her opponents in duels.

[crystalmaster]

I wish I could show some of them. If I had my cellphone, I have a lot of pictures and videos on it.

[He misses that.]

[phoenixwiz]

Yep, that would be nice if we can watch them on the phone and have a great time seeing her play against a lot of people. What a really clever player she is too.

[crystalmaster]

Yeah.

[Radley sighs.]

I wonder if we'll ever have a chance to get things like that back from home....

[phoenixwiz]

I was also wondering if those things can find their way into this world as well. I still have things from home that I haven’t seen in a long time and I don’t know if there will be a phenomenon that could drop home items off in here either.