There is something magical about the time around the Winter Solstice. Maybe it has to do with the fact that in the darkest of nights suddenly what seems to be a slow march towards eternal darkness the sun makes a come back and the days begin to lengthen once more. Perhaps it has less to do with the lengthening of days, but merely with the continuation of the cycle of the seasons. Maybe there is something about the greater metaphysics of it all and the days leading up to the solstice have some sort of greater significance for some arcane reason beyond the comprehension of mortal kith and kin.
For as long as there has been civilization, humanity has recognized the significance of this time of year and we have celebrated the season. In ancient times the Romans celebrated Saturnalia around this time commemorating, among other things, the Sol Invictus – the undefeated sun. The Celts along with a thousand other northern European cultures held celebrations and rites surround the Yuletide and many other similar holidays of various names. Later these celebrations were adopted by the burgeoning Catholic church and incorporated into what has become the modern Christmas traditions. Additionally the season plays host to other holidays as ancient as Chanukkah and as modern as Kwanza, and, yes, as eclectic as Festivus or Wintereenmas. And that's just considering Europe and the northern Americas.
Whatever it is, all these cultures recognized something fundamental and magical that resides in what is now simply known as “the Holidays.” Or, maybe, there isn't anything especially notable or magical about the season at all. Maybe, just maybe, the magic comes not from the time of year but from the significance that all of humanity – all 7 billion of us – place upon it.
And then there is the shopping. As soon as the Thanksgiving game is over, we throw out the turkey and throw up the trees. Hell, some shops opened for Black Friday as early as 8pm on Thanksgiving Day. 8 in the evening. The freaking pumpkin pie hasn't even made it past our collective stomachs yet and we're out trying to kill each other over Tickle-Me-Elmo dolls – or whatever it is this year the kids simply must have.
Westfield Downtown Plaza was no exception. The Holidays had come in the night, and it hit like a truck. Holly decked every banister, mistletoe was available in every shop (the fake kind, not the poisonous stuff), and Santa was expected to show up any day now to listen to all the little kiddies hopes and dreams.
Still, despite the commercialization and the hype, there was something in the air, and even the every day mortals could feel it. To the Lost, it was almost palpable. Desire in its most material form hung thick in the air with pockets of Wrath as inattentive shoppers cut each other off and Fear that parents won't be able to afford to make this year as special as they want. And under it all a nice sprinkling of sweet and bitter Sorrows of not being able to make it home this year, or the memory of a loved one lost who will never be there on Christmas morning again. In short, Glamour permeated everything.
Yet amongst all of the hullabaloo there were signs that not everything is silver and gold. Outside a man on a soapbox decries the evils of capitalism, pleading with shoppers to give up their materialism and embrace the true meaning of the season. A headline glares out of a nearby newspaper box declaring scandal and corruption and promising to tell all for $1.50. An man in his late 50s sits at a food court table, his expensive clothing looking wrinkled and slept in, his eyes bloodshot and his hair in disarray. He holds his head up with on hand with a half-empty cup of Starbucks coffee and an empty bottle of caffeine pills on the table.
Those signed up in
this thread, please narrate your presence/arrival at the mall and any interactions you might wish to initiate. Please note the following:
1) Any who wish may attempt to bask in and absorb some of the ambient Glamour in the mall. Roll Composure + Empathy, adding successes to your normal starting total for the scene and narrate the effects in your post. Note this is a special case for this scene and this scene only, and in this case you do not need to worry about penalties for multiple characters harvesting the same source.
2) Please include a perception roll in your opening post, I will be using it later so don't worry about narrating it at all.
Any questions can be posted in the Living Room thread for this scene or PM'd to me directly. Have fun!