B-8, I-19, N-24... ota!

[eyestitch]

WHO: Nui + Willing Participants, Definitely Not Victims. (I'll add closed prompts in the comments as necessary!)
WHERE: Downtown Recolle, the beach, a fast food restaurant, etc.
WHEN: The month of July! From the 7th or so onward.
WHAT: You know what this is. Specifically trying to hit some of the things in my find-a-partner!
WARNINGS: Nui--meaning probably some PG-13 suggestive talk, general annoyances, no sense of physical boundaries, etc.

A-1: volunteer at the animal shelter or community center;

[Before committing to her volunteer work, Nui can be found pacing around looking for information. Finding former volunteers on foot is just about impossible, however, so she falls back on Restrospec, as well as some other short-form social media apps like Twitter and whatever Recolle has in place of YikYak.]

hey, who here has volunteered at the animal shelter before? 🐶 🐱 🐭 🐹 🐰

what's the scoop? did you like it? who should i watch out for? what's the shedding-clothing ratio? tell me allllll about your experience! i really want to make sure our furry friends are being well cared for! 💖 meet me at the tea house nearby and tell me your story in person if you want!

[True to her word, she is reachable both in person and by the phone.]

A-2: volunteer at the animal shelter or community center;

Hi there! [Nui's voice comes out of nowhere, surprising any otherwise occupied shoppers who happen to be in the Tisse shop vicinity.

It looks like her volunteer position worked out after all, and she's hanging out at a summer adoption special event near some of the shops, targeted at hot and sentimental shoppers who might feel like spending just a little more money to sponsor or bring home a new furry friend.]

You look like you could use a break! We have free water! [Nui's holding a puppy, which, to her credit, doesn't look like it wants to escape or die yet...Even when she holds it up and "waves" one of its paws in greeting.

Take the bait? Y/N]

B: yoga in a fast food restaurant;

[All yoga pants and strappy tank-top, Nui is taking her time in Fry & Flurry (please don't sue us, Steak and Shake!), sitting with her weight distributed across an entire booth bench and slugging down what remains of her extra-large shake.

When the cup is all but rattling, she thunks it down on the table with an empty bang, whips off her sunglasses, and stands up from the booth with a stretch. Then, she retrieves a rolled up toga mat, undoes the strap, and hurls it down on a clean(ish) looking place on the floor near the kids' room. Stepping onto the mat, she bends forward once, then pops back up to look around her feverishly.]

Oh, no, I hope no one notices me doing something so embarrassing! [She claps a hand over her mouth in (mock) horror.]

C: challenge a stranger to a duel of your choice;

[Bingo never sleeps, and it seems like Nui might be putting sleep on hold this weekend, too. She's hanging out at one of the less stringent clubs in town on a ladies' night, flying under the radar thanks to the 18+ cover. When the night is in full swing and everyone's started to enjoy themselves, she saunters up to the bar and picks someone fairly lonely-looking out of the lineup.]

You! I love your [insert appropriate accessory or clothing item here]! You're definitely going to walk out of here with a lot of numbers tonight! But...just how many? Hey, can we play a little game? Pretty please?

D: build a human pyramid with at least 2 other people;

[Somehow, Nui has gotten into the lifeguard chair. Either the guard is off duty right now, or she weaseled her way up there when no one was looking, or she convinced the lifeguard in a moment of successful cuteness and charm. Right now, she's up there wobbling on the seat.]

Oh, and she has the megaphone.]

Attention, please! The beach is beautiful today, right? [Nui holds the megaphone away from her mouth and up to her ear exaggeratedly, as if listening for an answer.] Right! I love spending time with you guys! How many people do you think we could stack into a pyramid? [Super, super strong applicants required to form the base! And who will be at the top? Well, that should be obvious.]

[After this debacle, people will be able to find her hanging at the beach in general for any beach-related prompts, or general threads you would like to do!]

E: wildcard;

[You know what this is for! Feel free to utilize squares from my plotting comment or bring stuff of your own! She also has to spread a rumor to a few other people so lmk if you wanna hear some GOSSIP in your inbox. Action and text threads welcome, and I will match prose/bracket format or take stuff to inboxes if necessary. As always, I'm here: antiquating.]

Comments

wildcard! "steal retrospec item," "breakdancing"

[appraiser]

[ also sort of prompt c, in that Ryoji is certainly looking lonely sitting up there at the bar by himself, nursing a glass of sprite that's more than half ice cubes, waiting for the right song to come along, waiting for the right person—

He brightens up immediately when he sees Nui, turning on the bar stool to face her properly. ]

Good evening. Would you care to dance with me?

[eyestitch]

[Doesn't he know? It's always been her dream to be someone's right person! How flattering! Nui smiles, her eyes closing to hide their expression.]

Sure thing, cutie! [The compliment is sweetly-said and polite, but there's not a lot of power behind it. He's really not her type.] Is this your kinda music?

[appraiser]

[ It's fine. Sometimes dancing with random strangers is fine, even if the only thing to be gotten out of it is a bingo square; the important thing is that she said yes, and Ryoji hops off the stool and in the same motion, takes her by the hand to lead her to the dance floor. ]

I like all sorts of music— it's fun to be able to dance to anything!

[eyestitch]

[Ah, that's really milquetoast, isn't it? people without preferences for anything over the rest are really unbelievably annoying.]

That's the spirit! You never know what life's going to throw at you! [Externally, though, Nui is all smiles and excited voice. If anything, the attention she's been getting from people desperate to fill their bingo cards is...nice, really. Not that she's wanting for it normally, but there's no strings attached with any of this. She takes Ryoji's hand and lets him lead her, ready to engage in some enthusiastic, flirtatious dancing.]

closed to alison

[eyestitch]

((i figured we could do like, bejeweling and then selling at the beach and then seashells?))

[She's always happy to help someone who needs help with a design element. And, given the amount of flannel she's seen bouncing around in that girl's wardrobe, Alison could use all the fashion help she can get.

A real run of "I <3 Retrospec" t-shirts would have to be uniformly produced and designed, printed and packaged cleanly. But this is bingo, not fashion week, and so the batch they're working on together can be as unique as their imaginations! How strange it is that people will buy clothing that's been strategically ripped in advance, right? But she'll give the people what they want.]

Okay! Let's take a look at your design! What did you come up with? [She's terrified.]

closed to tatsuma

[eyestitch]

((Continued from here!))

"Aww, it seems like he likes you! You definitely got the patient, friendly type!"

If Nui's chocobo wants to socialize with her, it doesn't seem like they're going to have the same immediate rapport. Maybe, Nui thinks, Tatsuma got the chocobo they give to little kids.

"Hm..." She pats her own Chocobo on the neck in a brief moment of amusement. It's the stupidest thing she's even done, but it's also kind of silly, isn't it? As a kid, she would have never come to a cheesy place like this.

But that won't stop her from being cruelly competitive once the race starts; if they try hard enough, they'll probably reach speeds of, like, 17.

[strawberrypunch]

"Mm. He looks really kind." It's a she, actually, but while he can tell animal moods pretty well, he's not exactly trained in identifying the differences between the sexes, oops.

The worker, tired as they are, still attempts to put on a brave face as the two prepare for the race that is now their responsibility to oversee. On the count of three, then!

"Three...

Two...

One...

Go!"

And with a kick, Tatsuma's chocobo sets off at a leisurely trot!

she's gonna stop caring in like .12 seconds so he can probably win unless you wanna random.org

[eyestitch]

The speed! The magnificent power!

Nui's chocobo responds to the countdown with a furious KWEH! and...jogs along pretty much right behind Tatsuma's bird. Any wistfulness Nui might have had for a childhood she missed out on is dampened immediately. Of course, only a child would enjoy something like this.

"You'd better watch out, sweetie!" she calls, with a voice that is actually starting to strain under the pressure of how annoying this is, teeth that are smiling so hard they're starting to grind in her jaw. "We're gaining on you!"

She knew this whole setup had to be rigged. Rigged! She gives her steed a little nudge with her heels and is rewarded with a fraction of an increase in speed and her knee drawing even with Tatsuma's saddle. Better get this over with quickly. She could just let him walk away with the win, but...

Rolled Tatsuma anyway, haha

[strawberrypunch]

Tatsuma meanwhile doesn't even appear to notice, giving the chocobo another pat, to which it responds with a happy WARK!! and also increases its speed - if only incrementally. He is now edging ahead even more.

This sure is a nice and slow little race! It sure would be a shame if anyone were to lose their patience.

A-1

[saburai]

I have volunteered there on many an occasion. I highly recommend it, especially if you're a fan of cuddly animals.

Though there *is* quite a bit of shedding. I've noticed that some of the cat fur seems to stay on my clothes no matter how often I wash them.

i'm so happy...peko finally gets to pet cute animals!!

[eyestitch]

really? ah, jeez... well, i'll wear last season's stuff!

and bring a lint roller.

and like, gloves. ...

say! are you due for another round of volunteering? i could use someone with the e x p to show me the ropes!

it truly is a miracle

[saburai]

That... may be a little excessive. I'd think a lint roller would suffice.

[ gloves ruin all the fun of petting fluffy animals, after all... ]

But I'd be more than willing to accompany you and show you around. When were you thinking of volunteering?

i'm so happy for her

[eyestitch]

yeah yeah yeah! i promise i won't get carried away with the precautionary measures.

soonish i guess! those poor lonely furry creatures are probably SO lonely 🙀 and need all the help they can get! mb this coming fri?

b!

[potentite]

[Jake just wanted to get a shake and a fry but yeah, after she announces it loudly like that? He can't help staring. He was trying not to look but...]

Uhm... Did you lose a bet or is this bingo?

[It's worth asking?]

[eyestitch]

[How are you supposed to pay attention to her if she doesn't announce it loudly? Nui, actually, doesn't put herself into any embarrassing or compromising poses this time. She gives Jake a cheeky grin. At least this time she'll be obviously yanking while she's pulling his leg.]

This is yoga! I think bingo is usually played in firehouses or something.

[USE YOUR BRAIN JAKE]

[potentite]

[That would require Jake to have a brain?? But okay. He's just. Sipping on his shake and staring.]

Is this a tenet of Buddhism?

B

[wordcarvings]

[ He just needed a bite to eat while he was taking a break from work, and now he encounters this. ]

Um, Miss, what are you doing?

[eyestitch]

[Nui bends one knee up and holds it behind her in a runner's hamstring stretch. Maybe not totally appropriate for the situation (nothing is appropriate for the situation), but she just needs to get her muscles all loosened up first, right?]

Well, I was thinking about starting with the child's pose and going into downward facing dog, but do you think that's too much too soon?

[wordcarvings]

[ Well, it’s certainly important to make sure you don’t hurt yourself when you work out.... ]

I don’t really know anything about that so… [ He shakes his head. ] But that’s not really what I meant.

SLIDES IN HERE FINALLY.......... sometime pre-7/16!

[darkinferno]

[You'll have to excuse Dante as he comes up to the table Nui's working at, offering out free water. Dante's been horsing (chocoboing?) around in the fountains with Prompto, the two of them striking off one of the other boy's bingo squares (and probably devolving into some sort of wrestling match in the fountain basin because that's what these boys do). Everything about him screams that he's been swimming recently, from his soaked swim trunks to the towel-mussed hair, but he's focused more on the puppy that she's holding up--at least, until he looks up and realizes that this might be the chance to get one of his bingo squares out of the way.]

Sure, I'll take a--huh?

[Growing up on the touring circuit, Dante's actually a pretty good liar. As he meets her eyes he cuts himself off, eyes widening minutely as he seems to take her in. His brows come down a touch, mouth opening ever-so-slightly, the picture of confusion as he looks her up and down with a flick of his eyes.

And then he relaxes his brow, lips turning up in something of an incredulous smile as he gives a surprised exhalation.]

You're her, aren't you?

HELLO AND WELCOME i have lots of time to bang stuff out this weekend if you wanna push

[eyestitch]

[Nui keeps the puppy in her arms as Dante walks over. She gets a lick on the cheek for her efforts, and for just a second her welcoming smile almost lapses in disgust. More of her teeth show as she strains to maintain it. That's just good customer service, right?

Being stared at by guys doesn't unnerve her in the slightest, though, and she tilts her head (away from the puppy) just enough to look curious.] Hm? What do you mean, "her?" Have you seen some of my designs?

AHAHA.. HA... as made obvious i... did not BUT THE WEEKS ARE USUALLY BETTER FOR ME

[darkinferno]

[If he'd realized that she disliked the puppy so much, Dante would have happily taken him from her hands! But alas, he's too focused on his own deception to pick up on hers quite yet. He shakes his head at her question before his expression changes, a bit more thoughtful.]

Designs... is that what she was doing? What sort of things do you design?

C

[constellates]

[To be honest, Anya is here looking for someone else - she's most certainly not old enough to be out so late in the clubs on her own. Her connections in the bar scene have managed to get her in, thanks to way too many of her family members owning their own establishments in the district, and now she's looking up from her phone when someone addresses her. The compliment makes her smile - though the mention of numbers.... throws her off?]

Ah? Game...?

[Her Russian accent is strong, but she still tries to nod - ]

You would... like to? Then I will try.

[eyestitch]

[Ah, no fair, she didn't realize she was challenging a rising star... But then, star power doesn't always match up to good, old-fashioned charm!

And, Nui thinks to herself, she has the advantage of language. The accent might be different, but the thickness in Anya's voice reminds Nui of her own, years ago, until she and her mother beat it down into a much more manageable "enigmatically ambiguous."

Plus, she doesn't look like a baby! Nui grins at her, eyes scrunching closed.]

Who do you think can come back to this bar with the most phone numbers in...say, an hour?

[constellates]

[NUI PROBABLY DOESN'T EXPECT THE EASY ANSWER OF - ]

You can!

[because anya has never asked for phone numbers in her gosh darn life..... but she gets the feeling that she's still supposed to be more willing than that. so she offers a smile even as she tucks some stray locks of hair behind her ear.]

But Anya will try to make it not easy for you.

[she's not super competitive but she's willing to give it a go??]