nebulochaotic | (no subject)

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WHO: OTA
WHAT: Eglaf Annual Earth Day Extravaganza
WHEN: Friday, April 17, 2020 - Sunday, April 19, 2020
WHERE: All over Historical Downtown Eglaf
WARNINGS: The whole premise of Friday's event is dub-con, so...you know. There's that. If you feel your thread should have content warnings on it, please say so in the soonest possible comment subject line.

Don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got til it's gone?

Every year, the weekend before Earth Day, the city of Egalf has a three-day festival to celebrate centered largely in Historical Downtown. Eglaf was one of the first cities in Florida to pass Go Green laws and they're proud of their attempts as a city to reduce their carbon footprint. Each year, the line-up of events is about the same.

Friday night is a fundraising theme costume party, usually attended by any and all, featuring local celebrities and registered Displaced Supers along with raffles, meet and greets, autograph sessions, photo ops with Displaced Supers, local vendors, and more, located in Downtown Pride Hotel's ballrooms. This year's theme is "Getting In Touch with Nature." Party-goers will be turned away at the door if they're not in costume. No exceptions. Tickets can be purchased all week at the hotel or at the door. General admittance is $10 and admittance with dinner reservations is $25 per person. Group discounts are available; please call the front desk at Downtown Pride Hotel for details.

NOTE:This event is where things might get a little hinky this year. The portal being reawakened in January has been causing little issues around town, but the government mostly has this on lockdown. Unfortunately, it would appear that something new has made its way through. Earlier in the week, a small group of playful and mischievous fairies slipped through the portal. Learning of the Earth Day celebration and wanting very much to carry on its message, on Friday morning, locals and Supers alike might notice a sort of shimmer in the air. Spoiler alert: it's their version of fairy dust. Exposure to said fairy dust will have residents of Eglaf under the fairies' spell. They'll feel compelled to reduce, reuse, recycle, and be at the Earth Day fundraiser with bells on.

When the clock strikes eleven, though, that's when they'll decide to have a little more fun. Anyone still in their costume and within a five-mile radius of the hotel will believe themselves to actually be their costume or, in some cases, they will become their costume. So, if someone comes to the party dressed as a tree, they should be prepared to stand very still and be very silent while swaying in the wind for the hour during which the spell will take hold. This spell will last anywhere from 1 to 24 hours.

Saturday, there will be a parade featuring giant balloons, floats built by local businesses, and Displaced Super appearances. The parade will begin at 10:00 am and will follow the usual path down all of Main Street from Historical Downtown up to the upper east side before returning back to Historical Downtown. Typically, this parade runs two to three hours in its entirety. Then, Saturday evening will kick off the Earth Day Film Festival, where locals and Displaced Supers alike are invited to the Downtown Green, weather permitting (or the Oakdale Theater, if not) where the stage will be hidden behind a giant screen onto which Eglaf Community College short films will start things off at 7:00 pm and, by 9:00 pm, everything from nature documentaries to summer blockbuster films will be played back to back until the last movie is scheduled to end around 11:30 pm on Sunday night.

All concessions purchased at official events this weekend will go toward furthering technological advances toward making Eglaf run on clean energy.

Come one, come all! Have a great time!

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Like a ridiculous fool, Klaus gives Derek a thumbs-up and winks, “No problem, man. I'm pretty good when it comes to guessing.” From many games of charades and Pictionary, doubtlessly, no matter how long ago that had been. So far, he's kept up with the sobriety, though it's not easy; they're at a party, meaning everywhere he turns, someone and their friend stumble by with drinks in hand. He knows one wouldn't hurt anything, however, Klaus doesn't trust himself to stop at just the one. Better to forgo it altogether rather than tempt fate.

“Aw, shucks,” with feigned humbleness because what is shame when it comes to Klaus? But he pulls it off rather well, considering his sheepish expression. Some people went all out whenever it came to their costumes, for sure, while others went more... simply. Less intricately? Klaus's outfit is pretty damn extra, okay! Moving on now though and hearing Derek say he prefers getting to know someone instead of listening to what other people say about them is fairly reassuring. “Well, hey, that's courteous of you. Immediately defending myself because someone heard something about me before I've even gotten a chance to know them sucks.” Although, naturally, it's nothing new for Klaus. Oh, but when it comes to Leonard? He and Derek are one-hundred-percent in agreement there: fuck that guy so much.

Another fang-filled grin on his end too then he shrugs, upturns tattooed palms with the gesture. “Appearing in some random Floridian city is—” how to put it gently? “—weird, but the room and board's great. They just. Gave me a job like no big deal.” And while he's registered, he gets the stipend, which Klaus'll keep to himself for the moment. Never know who might confront him about that kinda information, after all.

"Believe it or not, I know. That's why I don't form my opinions based on the opinions of others. I know how it feels to be on the receiving end of that." In Derek's case, though, being on the receiving end of that could mean certain death by way of werewolf hunter. They thought they knew that werewolves were dangerous and needed to be put down like rabid dogs, but the fact of the matter was that werewolves, as a general group, were no more or less dangerous than humans. Just like with humans, there were werewolves who could protect you and love you and be your best friend...and there were werewolves who would murder you because they liked how it felt to take a life. If there was one thing they had most in common with humans, it was in fact, that spectrum.

He grins and nods. "Yeah, it definitely could've been worse, from what I've heard. The last place I was in like this gave me a job and a place to stay, too, only I had four roommates instead of two, so that sucked. Plus, I'll take this place and it's mild shenanigans to be with my sister again over that place and its fucking apocalypse any day, even if I do miss my friends."

Eyebrows life with interest then. "What'd you end up doing?" he wonders. He doesn't know what the Klaus that was here before used to do or if he even bothered to do it. He doesn't think he ever knew what that Klaus did for a living, if anything, in the cities, either, or hell, even which city he lived in — did he live in the house in Nonah or was he like Vanya and had gone off on his own? — because weirdly, Derek only knew incredibly intimate details about that Klaus. He's actually kind of relieved to start anew with this one. "Do you like it, at least?"

“I can believe it.” Wouldn't be difficult to imagine someone forming opinions out of their own volition, after all. “Sorry that's happened to you, though. Some people are terrible and don't know when to quit... or when to shut their mouths?” Word usually spreads that way and given what they were talking about before, how else would Derek have known him? Klaus isn't upset with his siblings, not when he doesn't blame them for at least warning people about him. (Because it hasn't occurred that Derek might've met the ‘other’ him.) And wow, if he knew anything about the werewolf stuff, he'd do everything in his power to make sure Derek's treated properly. They really aren't any different in either of those aspects.

Wait, did he say—? “Apocalypse?” Surely not the same one he and his siblings were experiencing, that'd be far too coincidental. From his peripheral, a waiter happens by and Klaus momentarily reaches, catches a waterbottle with his fingertips, yoinks it straight out of the ice-bucket then returns to the conversation with, “Completely understandable. That's a lot of roommates and being anywhere your siblings are is... you know, but yeah, I'm sure they miss you, too.”

Following the crack of his water, Klaus gestures toward nothing in particular with cap in hand. “Okay, get this: they gave me a librarian job. Do I look like a librarian?” No, he doesn't, though maybe that's the appeal. Does he like it? Well— “It's chill, I don't mind it. Gets a little boring sometimes? Some monotony never hurt anyone.”

Derek's eyebrows lift and he sighs. Yeah. That's putting it lightly, but he'd really rather not go down that road. People are terrible and don't know when to quit. Isn't that the truth? It's a dark subject Derek doesn't really want to delve into at the moment, though. So when Klaus moves on to the apocalypse comment, Derek nods. "Yeah, the last place I was in there was damn near an apocalyptic meltdown but I guess some people figured out how to appease the gods or whoever the hell was doing it because it ended. There was a lot of damage, but..."

Yeah, Derek could've done without that. It was exhausting fighting that fight for the week, even if he did get to fight beside Jane and Carol and Diego. Alone would've been exponentially worse but even with the help, it was a lot.

Klaus sharing his job makes Derek bark out a surprised laugh. "No. No, man, I really can't," he replies and then apologizes. "Sorry, just...yeah I can't picture that at all. They made me a dog trainer. Hilarious," he deadpans, "but I actually do like it. I'm not at the job anymore, I'm just doing it on the side, but..." he shrugs. "Make the werewolf a puppy trainer. Cute."

Didn't someone else tell him about an apocalypse recently? Well, not about his own, but one they'd experienced as well? Yeah, it was Scott. Right, right, his cute little roommate mentioned it. Talked about people he knew not surviving. Okay, let's not do that— “Damn, sounds like the apocalypse is the most popular way to end the world,” a beat then, “But at least it was stopped? People can recover from damage.” One way or another.

Teamwork makes the dreamwork and all, right? Klaus'd be delighted (and surprised) to hear Derek fought alongside Diego though because then that meant Diego had been wherever Derek was before they were here.

Whenever Derek laughs, Klaus grins, “See?” then takes a sip from his water that turns into more of an actual drink than he had been planning. Good thing he stops before Derek mentions being a werewolf or he very well might've had something going down the wrong pipe. “You're a what now?” Oh, he heard him just fine, he's just making certain he didn't hear wrong. “A werewolf?” Odd though it may seem, he sounds more intrigued rather than frightened.

With a mirthless huff of laughter, Derek's eyebrows shoot up and he shakes his head. "Yeah, thank God it's not the most efficient way in addition," he points out. If it were, he knows a lot of people who wouldn't be here, that's for sure. Including Klaus's siblings, save the one that looked like a kid; he hadn't been in the cities. "And I'm sure they did or will. Recover from the damage, I mean."

Klaus's reaction to Derek's species doesn't surprise him, but he stiffens slightly for a second before he realizes that he doesn't hear an uptick in the other man's heartbeat, nor does he smell any chemosignals suggesting any fear. That's a relief, at least.

"Werewolf," Derek confirms. "Not the lose-my-mind-and-turn-into-a-murder-machine-every-full-moon kind, though, don't worry." He offers Klaus a small smile and a shrug. Derek's learned that if he sort of downplays it and acknowledges why other people might be fearful, they tend not to become fearful the more they think about the fact that werewolves are real and now they've met one.

His head bobs with agreement, the slightest smile quirking his own lips. “Thankfully, or I've got a feeling a lot of us might not be here.” They'd be dead, wouldn't they? Sure, that makes sense, but Eglaf has obviously got some crazy strong influence if it can bring people (like his brother, Ben) back from the dead. Had Five not spatial-jumped them, they undoubtedly would've been finished, The Boy aside. Good thing they'd all decided time-traveling and at least trying was better than standing there, waiting for the fire to consume them all. “I have no doubt. People are a lot more resilient than we give them credit for most times.”

Of all the things to be afraid of, why would a werewolf frighten him? Unless they're coming after him, he's got no reason to fret.

“Wasn't too worried about it, but thanks for the reassurance.” He offers a fuller grin this time then briefly diverts his attention, fiddles with the cap on his waterbottle, ultimately glances back up after a few minutes. “So, you can just. Change whenever you want, then? Or how does it work if the full moon isn't involved?”

To say the very least, Derek finds himself thinking as he nods his silent agreement. He smiles a little at the latter sentiment and nods again. "Yeah, they really are," he agrees easily enough. Sometimes for the worse, if you ask Derek, but that's not really the direction in which he cares to take the conversation, so he leaves the sentiment at that.

If Derek looks a little surprised by that, it's because he is. Even having lived in the cities, and now, here, where people are less inclined to be afraid of him, there's still some part of him that just expects discomfort from a human being who isn't entirely aware of werewolves being actual things where they come from. He knows that they're not something, at least, that Diego and Vanya were aware of back home, so he can only assume Klaus hadn't been, either. It's refreshing, though, to have someone smaller and more human than he is, say that he isn't worried about it.

"Good to know and glad to hear it," he replies, looking somehow equal parts impressed, relieved, and surprised. "I mean, I still feel it more on the full moon, but I can change whenever I want, yeah. It took a lot of years of practice; when I was a kid, I was pretty much a stereotypical monster every full moon, but yeah. At this point in my life, I get to decide. It's kind of nice being able to toggle back and forth between me and the me that's socially acceptable, at will."

And that's fine, it's absolutely, one-hundred-percent alright with Klaus if they skip over talking about how resilient people can be. Some are, some aren't, then others are downright indestructible in a way he could never describe. Those are the ones that need to be watched closely in case they decide to put their toughness into action for less than good things.

Werewolves are supernatural beings a lot like himself and his siblings; it's different, yes, but they're all considered anomalous in a sense. He doesn't personally know what being a werewolf entails, just knows that it sounds badass and that he wouldn't mind being one rather than get stuck with mediumship. God, anything would've been better than that. Not that he'd say it aloud, considering some peoples' abilities, keeping in mind there are probably worser things.

He nods with understanding, lifts both hands, presses his fingers against his cheeks in half-surprise when Derek admits the moon still has a hand in his situation. (Does that word work? Klaus doesn't know, but it isn't being said aloud, so it should be alright.) “I mean, it makes sense? The moon has always been a thing when it came to werewolf lore,” a beat then, “Actually, considering there's one standing in front of me, I don't think that works! But you know what I'm getting at, yeah?”

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