PUMPKIN CARVING PARTY

[colemoss]

PUMPKIN CARVING PARTY

Working in collaboration, the Event Committee and the Crafting Club have arranged for an event this evening! After classes are over for the day, the atrium is cleared so the groups can do some setting up and it seems like there's a lot going on in there. Just what are these kids up to??? When the other students return, there are some drastic changes...

The atrium is now decorated for the season with artificial spiderwebs and floating black candles and other dark touches. In the center of the room, there now stands a large, gnarled, leafless tree crafted from paper mache and magic! It's quite spooky and atmospheric and, upon closer inspection, becomes even spookier because the contours of the bark suggest three strange faces and the branches will bend and creak and occasionally reach for a passerby, especially those on the second floor. When Susana Velasquez tries glibly talking to one of the faces, it responds in a deep, rasping voice like autumn leaves. Madison Ives, unprepared for this revelation, shrieks! But after it becomes clear that this was done by design, other students discover that the tree has stories and costume ideas and even little treats (or tricks!) to share. If one is brave enough to reach up and into the tree's small knothole, that is! Pumpkins are scattered around the base of the tree and the reason for that is readily apparent!

Around the tree, forming a loose daimond, there are four large tables dramatically draped in the colors of the four houses. On each, there's an assortment of pumpkin carving tools, sample patterns, and simple instructions which cover both safety tips and basic techniques. That's right: the Pumpkin Carving Contest is back! This year, though, students will be competing by house and year, so find your team and get to work! [Volunteer C] wants to do one spectacular pumpkin rather than a set of coordinated pumpkins or one normal-sized pumpkin with their teammates and uses Engorgio to make one of the pumpkins appropriately grandiose! Unfortunately...poor aim leads them to enlarge one of [Volunteer D]'s belongings on the first attempt instead. Oops? Hopefully [Volunteer C] knows the reverse spell too.

While the students work, they'll also have plenty of time to socialize, play, eat (cider and pumpkin spice cupcakes, along with vegan alternatives, are supplied), and get into the spirit!

HOW THIS WORKS: PUMPKIN CARVING!

The rules of the contest are:

• All entries this year are on a team basis. Teams are divided by house and year. Teams may carve up to ten pumpkins.
• Individuals within a team may carve whatever they like; however, points are being rewarded for a cohesive team presentation.
• It is not required for everyone to carve a pumpkin, but they should be clearly participating in some other way to earn points for their team.
• Teams will be given until 9:00PM to finish their creations and then it's time to clean up and vote!
• Teams may not use magic for anything except lighting their pumpkins.
• Mr. Hightower is supervising and reserves the right to tell teams if anything they're doing is too dangerous.
• Gentle Ribbonfin-style trashtalk is allowed, but no sabotage!

The winning team will be determined by a combination of IC participation, RNG, and voting:

• Teams that plan ICly will receive bonus points. Since this event is happening late in the day ICly and I am enjoying reading these conversations, these points will continue to be up for grabs through the end of today, Tuesday October 17. :)
• Characters may comment on entries they are particularly fond of to vote for them and earn that team some bonus points.
• A winner will be determined by 10:00PM EST on Wednesday October 18.
• The winning team's entry will be displayed in the atrium alongside the Halloween Tree throughout the rest of the month.
<b>Character Name:</b> <b>Year & House:</b> <b>Did their team plan ahead?:</b> If your team talked about their pumpkin plans, link the conversation for some bonus points! :) (The conversation only needs to be linked once.) <b>What is their contribution?:</b> Describe what your character is doing to help out their team, be it actual carving, digging out pumpkin guts, or just resisting the urge to grouse every 30 seconds. Photos are fun, but absolutely not required. Feel free to paint a word picture instead. ;) <b>How hard are they trying?:</b> Are they dialing it in, making a decent effort, or have they been practicing their carving technique all month? <b>Anything else?:</b>

HOW THIS WORKS: HALLOWEEN TREE!

By talking to the faces on the Halloween tree, characters can:

• Trick-or-Treat! Say trick-or-treat to one fo the faces and the tree will give the character a treat (a piece of candy, a small toy, or some other pleasant trinket) or a trick! To get their prize, the character must reach into the tree's knothole. Only the tallest characters would be able to look into the knothole; most will just have to put their hand in and see what's there!
  <b>Character Name</b>: Character Name <b>Approach</b>: Are you feeling lucky (punk)? How does your character approach the tree? Are they hoping for a trick or a treat? How do they reach into the knothole (or will they force someone else to do it for them)? <b>Anything else?</b>: Anything else!


• Ask for Advice!: ...but only about costumes. A character that asks who they should be on Halloween will receive a recommendation from the tree. Don't expect it to be perfect, though. It is just a tree. The tree will not force the character to follow through on this recommendation, but a bet with another peer might!
  <b>Character Name</b>: Character Name <b>Approach</b>: Taking advice from a tree, huh? Well okay! Does your character have any input before leaving this important decision in the barky hands of fate? <b>Anything else?</b>: Anything else!


• Ask for a Story! One of the faces is a bit chatty and it's charmed to tell ~spooky stories~. But only after dark. So gather around, students of Gooseberry, and have a listen! Some of these stories are from Gooseberry's amateur authors (including Zachary Zheng and any members of the Event Committee or Crafting Club that would've contributed) as well as popular campfire tales and short stories. Feel free to take the lead and have the tree tell a spooky story for the characters to react to!

While the pumpkin carving contest will only be going on for one night, the Halloween tree will be up from now until the Halloween dance! Feel free to reference it as needed and desired for treats, tricks, and other shenanigans!

» Pumpkin Carving: Where characters can find their teams and get carving! That's what they're here for, isn't it?

» Halloween Tree: Characters can take a break from carving pumpkins to get tricks or treats or chat with a charmed tree!

» During the Party: Any other character interactions that take place during the event can go here!

» After the Party: Any characters hanging around after the event or walking back to camp together or the like? Put it here!

» OOC - Questions, comments, concerns!

Comments

JUNIOR JAYS / Essie!!!

[bubblewrapped]

Lucas wonders aloud if anyone knows the name of a good cat exorcist. Or even a butt exorcist.

JUNIOR JAYS / Essie!!!

[readingrainbows]

Who knew butt demons were something they'd have to worry about? Man, young adulthood was full of shocking revelations. First puberty and now this? So much innocence, lost.

For the record, Zach is making his own attempt at a cat butt. Great art, it is not. But he's pretty pleased with how it's turning out.

Re: OOC - QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS!

[heathclifflacey]

You got it! ♥

Poor Madison. She gets startled by all the things~

Ree

[badassbeaterbabe]

Character Name: Regan Hobbs
Year & House: Junior Jays <3
Did thier team plan ahead?: Yes, see Essie's entry
What is their contribution?: Ree is super into carving catbutts. She likes pumpkin guts less, but whatever, Essie can have them.
How hard are they trying?: It's a semi-artistic endeavor, and also an absurd one, so Ree's giving it her all.
Anything else?: junior jays are already winning it, i see.

Re: JUNIOR JAYS / Essie!!!

[badassbeaterbabe]

"All art is great art if it's made with passion and truth, Zachary. Anyway, the anus-stem really sells it."

Re: COSTUME ADVICE

[badassbeaterbabe]

Character Name: Regan Hobbs
Approach: "So, Tree- can I call you Tree? Have you got a name you'd rather be called? Anyway, how do I top last year's tiger onesie? I'm stumped. ...HA, I didn't mean that, but you have to admit it's a decent pun."
Anything else?: Nah.

Gabi

[humansunshine]

Character Name: Gabriela Flores
Approach: Gabi is absolutely charmed by the tree. She thinks it is beautiful and, upon realizing that the faces can talk, tells it so. She would very much like a treat but will forgive it if it tricks her.
Anything else?: gabi just likes trees ok

JUNIOR JAYS (Lucas???)

[bubblewrapped]

Character Name: Lucas Kowalski
Year & House: Junior Jays
Did their team plan ahead?: Oui
What is their contribution?: Lucas is pretty big on minimalism. It's a cat butt, alright. He handles the knife gingerly, and quietly frets while his friends do their own carving. He's a much better help with scooping out pumpkin guts.
How hard are they trying?: Lucas is VERY into it but also AFRAID OF CUTTING HIMSELF or SOMEONE ELSE CUTTING THEMSELF. He definitely flicks pumpkin goop on someone, though.
Anything else?:

Riley Mae

[riledup]

Character Name: Riley Stamper
Approach: "Oh my god are you gonna give me candy??" she asks hopefully. She's not very good at being gracious, but she really wants some damn candy.
Anything else?: She might not realize there's a possible "trick" outcome here.

COPPERTERRORTOTS (Nisha)

[godzillabutworse]

Character Name: Nisha Lewis
Year & House: Coppersoph
Did thier team plan ahead?: Yes! No thanks to CHAD.
What is their contribution?: Nisha's carving! She makes the only jack o lantern she knows how! A not-very-good goofy-faced one, except she was sure to give him sad eyebrows and a big mouth so that you really feel how much he hates puking up blood and guts.
How hard are they trying?: EXTREMELY. This is her ART. She has a VISION.
Anything else?: By the end of this, Nisha is covered in red food coloring and semi-dried pumpkin guts and honestly it's sort of fitting in a gnarly kind of way.

BIG BEARS (Nia)

[heyitsnia]

Character Name: Antonia Papadakis
Year & House: Ebonhide Seniors
Did their team plan ahead?: They came to a consensus?
What is their contribution?: Well at the very least they settled on sad pumpkins, but Nia is hoping they go with the Assassination of Caesar scene. Either way, she's not much for knife art, so her main contribution is getting elbow deep in them pumpkins and cleaning them out. She's gonna roast some pumpkin seeds later!
How hard are they trying?: Nia's mainly here to have fun and pick on her friends, but since she's Head Girl-ing she is taking this a little more seriously than she might have under other circumstances. So, medium+.
Anything else?: She won't stop making Halloween puns. Someone attack her with a knife.

Re: OOC - QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS!

[stclair]

this avant garde design free to a good home

JUNIOR JAYS/Jeffy!!!

[racingstripe]

Character Name: Jeffy!!
Year & House: Junior Jays!!
Did their team plan ahead?: They sure did.
What is their contribution?: Jeffy isn't, like, an ARTIST. He's marginally better than Notorious Masterpiece Maker Quinn Cunningham. But it's hard to argue with that enthusiasm!! He does a pretty basic cat butt, though these proportions are ALL off, and then turns his pumpkin around and carves a cat face on the front. In case you didn't know what was happening here. Three cat face is too small to go with the butt and the ears are different sizes and who needs more than two whiskers?? But he loves his kitty all the same.
How hard are they trying?: Jeffy is giving precisely 139% today.
Anything else?: i'm free from the auditor because she fucked up her car, god bless bad drivers.

Re: OOC - QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS!

[bubblewrapped]

I might actually make this one irl

RESULTS

[colemoss]

It's a trick! When Gabi puts her hand in the knothole, she finds something small and round. As she takes it out, it gets warm in her hand and when she looks at...it pops with a loud BANG and a small shower of black and orange glitter.

Re: RESULTS

[humansunshine]

Gabi jumps, and then laughs, and then spends some time getting as much of the glitter into her hair as possible.

JUNIOR JAYS / Micah

[stclair]

Character Name: OK SORRY I guess I should post this in a properly entry. MVSC reporting.
Year & House: Junior Jays!!!!
Did thier team plan ahead?: This is a COORDINATED EFFORT.
What is their contribution?: The Maw, which involves Micah very carefully carving off thin layers of pumpkin flesh as he sculpts the jagged cat butt fangs. Boy, that was just lot of terrible words grouped together.
How hard are they trying?: Micah is not only trying very hard at his pumpkin, he will gladly aid his friends in realizing their artistic cat butt dreams.
Anything else?: BEST BOOTIES OF GOOSEBERRY 2014

RESULTS

[colemoss]

It's a treat! When Riley reaches into the knothole she finds a small, plastic shape. It's a pumpkin-shaped bubble blower! The bubbles that it produces are bright orange and oddly resilient and have a sweet smell like candy.

No actual candy, though.

Re: RESULTS

[riledup]

Too late, she's already tried to eat one.

Re: RESULTS

[colemoss]

Despite the sweet smell, the bubble definitely tasted like soap.

Junior Jays / Zach

[readingrainbows]

Character Name: ZACH
Year & House: JUNIOR JAYS
Did thier team plan ahead?: YOU KNOW THIS BY NOW
What is their contribution?: ORGANIC CAT BUTT
How hard are they trying?: Zach always puts in 110%
Anything else?: I finally turned off capslock

RESULTS

[colemoss]

"Gangster," the tree says in its voice like rustling leaves. It doesn't seem to have the capacity to hold more of a conversation with Ree but it does smile at her.

BIG FISH (Ursula)

[cecaelian]

Character Name: Ursula de Luca
Year & House: Big Fish
Did thier team plan ahead?: Oh boy did they.
What is their contribution?: Ursula is going to leave the execution of this particular hellscape to the creative visionaries, but she's definitely doing her part by prepping as many pumpkins as she can and trying really hard not to wrinkle up her nose every time her hand touches pumpkin guts.
How hard are they trying?: Look, she could be making a way more disgusted face if she wasn't trying this hard.
Anything else?: If ten cat butts win this, she is going to lose her mind.

Re: OOC - QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS!

[phin]

yey lil baby ! ♥ ♥

Re: BIG BEARS (Nia)

[iliya]

Iliya has zero artistic ability and is... dubious about handling a knife. However, he will sit himself beside Nia and hand people tools like the scrub tech in an operating room.

No one actually needs this kind of assistance, but... look, please don't make him gut or carve a pumpkin.