A summer fête ! [Mingle]

[ourearth]

Date: 11-08-2018
Characters: Everyone!

---

It's a way too hot day what did we do to deserve this beautiful hot summer's day. The very crispy brown Greens bustle with activity. Volunteers, artisans and some professionals are setting up the town's largest summer fête, nicknamed Triple-F ("Faith Full Fête") due to the organisers being all the local religious communities working together for this special occasion. More or less. Until we discuss which church, mosque, or other congregation is selling the best food. At that point things might become a bit more tense because obviously ours is better, laddie, but don't say that too loud because those poor sods two stalls down from us really think their samosas are better than our scones and we don't want to crush their dreams...

Even before things are fully set up, visitors are starting to trickle in, and there will be more and more over the day until it gets very busy around mid-afternoon, only starting to thin out again once the little ones have to go to bed.

And there's a lot to do besides buying and eating food (though that isn't to be scoffed at)! The official main attraction is obviously the cake judging and award ceremony for the best cake. Small visitors can enjoy a bouncy castle, a craft tent, a Punch and Judy show, face painting, and a storyteller.

Athletics start around mid-afternoon, are mostly split between age group and gender and come with a small reward. The only exception is the tug-o-war where in addition to the usual men-against-women tug there's also a congregation-against-congregation single-elimination tournament. There also used to be a tournament between the various towns/villages in the Mossgate Council, but that was banned a while ago because of the various incidents during the Folkton vs. Moss Manor matches. Other athletics include a three-legged-race, egg-and-spoon-race, sack race, various runs ("mums run", "dads run", "kids run", "grandpas run", "queens run", etc.) and a relay race.

After the athletics there is a pet show with the categories being "large dogs", "small dogs" and "various other pets". Awards go to the fluffiest pet, the one with the waggiest tail, and so on, but there also is an obstacle course and a prize for the best in show.

All throughout the afternoon and early evening, people can enjoy tombolas, raffles, coconut shies, a bat a rat stall and white elephant stalls along with the stalls of the local artisans and some local shops. In addition, there is a live band that seems to play more and more ABBA the later it gets. There is also a BBQ running the entire day, the proceeds of which all go to charity.

And of course there is cotton candy and donuts. And instead of just one ice cream van, this year the council has managed to engage a fleet of them. Make sure you eat your ice cream before it melts and the wasps eat YOU.

Comments

[saveournpcs]

"Very crisp. Well stewed to just the reddest tones." She nods, a very careful kind of nod, slow and precise. Perhaps her joints or her balance aren't as good any more as they used to be.

[dragoonrouge]

"Oh I see, I've never had lobster. Maybe I should try it..."

Sadie continues to browse, slowly being drawn to the pillows. "Um, excuse me. Did you make all of this stuff, the dormouse theme is adorable?"

[saveournpcs]

"We did, we did. It is a most relevant theme." She nods slowly, her voice sounding very pleased and having dropped in cadence a little bit. "Always very relevant."

She raises a hand to run it over a couple of cups where the tail makes up the handle. "How do you like these?"

[dragoonrouge]

"Oh?" Sadie is properly intrigued now. "Would you be able to tell me more about the dormouse theme, why it's always relevant I mean?"

The comment about the teacups easily pulls Sadie away from the pillows with a delighted gasp. "How pretty! How much are they?"

[saveournpcs]

"The small ones are 11 pound, the larger ones are 14.

And why, don't you think that taking a good, long nap is eternally relevant?" She sounds very earnest and quite pleased with herself at her explanation.

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie nods at the given prices as she gently picks up one of the smaller cups. The quality was very good and that made the price more than reasonable.

"I'd like to buy some cups, how much would a matching teapot be?" She was going to be leaving this store with the entire tea set and she wouldn't be regretting it.

She giggles at the old woman's answer, "You have a very good point there, naps are really good!"

[saveournpcs]

"They are most excellent.

And the matching teapot for this one would be fifty pound, over here." It's teapot that has two Doormice painted on it with their tails meeting and forming the handle together. "There's one that goes with more of a leaf theme for forty... somewhere around here." She bustles about, and eventually lifts one up that has mostly autumn leaves painted on it, and a Dormouse sleeping under the pile of leaves in the lower half on one side.

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie gasps as soon as the shopkeep shows her the autumn dormouse. "That one!" She blurts out. "It's adorable, I can't not buy it!"

Her bank account was going to hurt but it would be worth it. "Please, may I have that and two of the large cups with saucers?" She pauses. "Erm, do you take card or is it cash only?"

[saveournpcs]

"Cash only, dear, I'm afraid.

Those cards and their readers are so difficult to handle and organise." She sounds a bit miffed at that. Cards, amirite?

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie sighs and stares longingly at the teapot. "Would you be able to put it and the cups away for me for a little bit? There's a cash point not too far away that I could nip to and I really, really love the set!"

[saveournpcs]

"Most certainly, most certainly." She fishes out a cardboard box from below a table and puts it on the one free surface in the place, which is a chair. "Simply put everything you want in here, and I will keep it there for up to an hour."

[dragoonrouge]

"Thank you!" Sadie sets about gently putting the teapot and the four cups into the box and carries it over to the counter for the older woman.

With another thank you, Sadie is ducking out of the shop and jogging towards the nearest cash machine, located on the other side of the Fete to the shop. It takes a bit of ducking and weaving around the crowds and a bit of a queue at the machine itself, most of the stalls were cash-only and so notes were in high demand. All in all, about twenty minutes after she left, Sadie returns.

"I'm back, thank you for putting the tea set aside for me. I should have the right amount now."

[saveournpcs]

In the meantime, she has packed up the items in a box with some of the most intricate ribbons tied around it to hold it closed and make it pretty.

"It's no problem at all, dear." The stall owner holds up the box with slightly unsteady hands for Sadie to take it.

[dragoonrouge]

Sadie places the cash on the counter and carefully takes the box with a delighted gasp.

"It looks lovely! Thank you so much! I hope you sell lots today it's all such wonderful stuff!"

[saveournpcs]

"Hopefully," the woman responds, and then in a slightly higher pitch continues: "Have a nice day and don't stand in the sun too much."