[EVENT] THE SHANGPAR RACE

[ironwood]

Characters: ALL!
Date: January 20th to January 24th
Location: Various.
Situation: It’s time for the Shangpar Race!
Warnings/Rating: Add warnings as needed.

The day is here, the day is here, the day is here! Though not every shop is closed and not every kedan is on the streets, it’s a near thing. The race is slated to begin early in the morning, and the city rises for the occasion. Shops open late and workplaces allow for a late start to the day to give everyone an opportunity to watch the starting festivities.

It begins with something almost like a parade. The riders -- there are fifty-five of them, thanks to negotiations during the forum -- are escorted from the shangpari holding pens to the starting line just outside the city, using the most circuitous route available in order to take the riders through every sector.

The starting-line is located just outside a set of the city’s gates, while the finishing-line is at the set on the opposite end. It leads off away from the city, traversing through several of the shell’s terrains, from burgeoning woodland, across a ‘river’, to an area of wasteland leading into mountains, and then down to the shores of the shell’s edge.

While the usual daily processes continue during the race, there are runners at supply checkpoints who, thanks to the efforts of Stark Industries and a handful of Foreigners, are able to report the race statistics via audio directly to the consoles. Groups of children hired as criers run from place to place without access to consoles to carry those reports to the rest of the city. In this time the kedan already begin preparations for the feast which follows it, regardless of who the actual winner might be.

The winners begin trickling in on day four to a crowd already prepared. Thanks to the runners, the residents of Keeliai already know who’s in the lead and when, roughly, they will arrive.

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LINKS
Parade | Betting booths | Starting line | Finish line | Feast

OOC
In the related forum thread the family leaders were open to the idea of Foreigners participating in the race as long as they possessed no abilities that would provide an unfair advantage and were able to front the cost of 500 juulan. If your character has no such abilities and would have wanted to participate, and you feel you have reasoning for their being able to finance their entry, please PM the mod journal so we can work out the details.

No Foreigner who enters will be able to OOCly apply to win the race -- this event is about the cultural experience, not the winning or losing! More details regarding the race are available on the itinerary here.

Please also do remember that IC actions will have IC consequences. This is a huge, huge cultural event for the kedan; disrupting it in any way will cause a negative reaction. That's not to say don't do it -- but do be prepared for the consequences.

Comments

[whitelotustile]

Iroh nudged his way over to Wan. "I'm really happy he's doing this. It was a wonderful idea."

[raavashing]

Wan's face lit up as Iroh got within earshot, "I am, too. He was so excited when he heard about the races. And he's worked himself to near exhaustion the last couple weeks to get the money together."

He shook his head, but laughed, "At least he had the sense to rest the last two days so he was in shape to actually race."

[whitelotustile]

"Ah, good. And he can rest once he's finished, as it will be a long four days," Iroh noted. "I hope the kedan will see that we just want to be part of the community." Iroh knew that the gesture could be seen as trying to take the glory, but if the foreigners weren't trying to win as much as show they were a part of city life...

[raavashing]

"He asked me what I thought about it, and I told him I think that no foreigner should come in first," Wan replied honestly. "We need to show the kedan we appreciate their culture and want to learn about it and be a part of the community. That we want to make Keeliai our home while we're here. Coming inf first could be seen as us trying to take over their traditions, not honor them. Not that I'll be upset if he comes in first, just that he should be ready to act humbly if there's a bad reaction. I think it would be great if Zuko came in second, though. And I hope he places high in the ranking."

He leaned in to keep his voice down, "Do you think it would be rude to greet him with a kiss after he crosses the finish line? Would it be too public? Would just a hug be better?"

[whitelotustile]

"I agree about the matter of coming first, though he should still race his best." Because Iroh was pretty sure that throwing the race would be disrespectful to the level of skill and preparation required.

Iroh considered this. "Well, you could always hug him and see how he takes it," he said. Back home, he would know the answer. For that matter, back home, the answer would be different between Zuko, the nephew of the tea merchant and Firelord Zuko, though an Avatar could probably get away with hugging whoever he wanted.

It was harder to pin down with the kedan, though.

[raavashing]

Wan agreed to the first part with a nod, "Yeah, I told him not to worry about where he placed. If he wins, then he wins and we'll deal with it as best we can. I don't want him doing less than his best, either."

At the advice, Wan actually frowned, "I don't want to embarrass him. I know he'll let me kiss him, we've kissed while out shopping before, but that wasn't the same. With so many people around and actively watching. I... I'm just not sure what's appropriate. He's my first anything close to a boyfriend."

[whitelotustile]

"And he does get flustered so easily," Iroh said. "Or he used to. He's matured a great deal. Perhaps you should let him make the first move here. He is the one who will be finishing the race, after all. One can expect someone to be exuberant."

[raavashing]

Wan gave that some thought and ended up smiling softly and blushing a little, "That could be nice, too. I figured I'd have to be the one to... you know... show affection. But if he does... do you really think he might?"

[whitelotustile]

Iroh chuckled. "I don't know, but I like the idea of giving my nephew a chance to surprise me on this. A few years ago, even holding hands in public might have been a big step for him."

[raavashing]

The laugh from Iroh made Wan's cheeks burn harder and for the first time in a very long time, he felt... lighter. Like there wasn't the weight of the world on his shoulders. Like he was just a guy fretting over his boyfriend kissing him in public and there wasn't anything else he needed to worry or care about. He wasn't forgetting his duty and what he needed to get back to, it was just that, for the first time since returning to the turtle, it wasn't actively sitting in the back of his thoughts. It was a very freeing feeling.

"He holds hands with me a lot," Wan admitted. "It seems pretty easy for him, too. So maybe there is a chance he'll decide to kiss me when he places. It's not strange to look forward to that, is it?"

Yes, 'when', not 'if'. Wan had confidence in Zuko.

[whitelotustile]

"For a young person to want a kiss from his sweetheart?" Iroh said. "That's one of the most normal things in the world. I'd say most people your age have that on their list."

[raavashing]

"Zuko's the first human I've had these sorts of feelings for," he said with a sigh and started to move to the back of the crowd now that Zuko had passed their position in the parade. He wanted to follow Zuko's progress forward if he could. "And I never really got to court anyone before I was banished. I was too poor for the matchmakers to consider. I don't really know what's supposed to be normal. So... I'm sorry if I sound a little silly to you."

[whitelotustile]

Iroh shakes his head. "Happy people never sound silly to me. And even if you had seen a matchmaker, it's different when you choose someone yourself."

Being from the upper class of the Fire Nation, Iroh learned to tell who was married only for politics and who loved one another. Even those rare few who started as the former and ended up in the latter. Even when couples were restrained in public, there was affection in their every gesture when they were in love.

[raavashing]

"Life was a little different on the Lion Turtle," he shared softly. Not really nostalgic, but the memories weren't unpleasant. "Everyone there thought we were the only human city. There wasn't any other out there. Our city was the whole of civilization. There was a lot of concern on making sure everyone who married got married to the right person so there was as much fortune for the family as possible and any children born would be good additions to the community. There wasn't a lot of expectation that people would find love on their own and get to be married to that person. Love and good fortune weren't usually compatible."

He gave a shrug, "Not that I gave a lot of thought to finding love, either. But it wasn't the first concern when you learn what courting is for and how it should happen. I didn't give a lot of thought to having a relationship with anyone like that until after I spoke to some people here. It was an... enlightening conversation."

[whitelotustile]

Iroh nodded. "It was not so similar to growing up as part of the nobility of the Fire Nation. Except replace 'good fortune' with political interest. And firebending talent. But, it was to make sure you had children who would carry on your family's proud traditions."

"Spending time outside of that environment might have helped my nephew see that that wasn't the only way at a young enough age that he could pursue it." iroh was a big believer in letting travel broaden the mind; since inevitably humans found many ways of getting their needs met.

[raavashing]

He nodded along. Zuko had spoken of that sort of thing before: the expectation of marriage and such with regards to his former girlfriend Mai. It had been a while though and they had never gotten into the details of the whole political interest and firebending talent part.

"I think it did," Wan agreed, smiling ruefully. "I almost broke up with him before the fight with Malicant. He wouldn't let me."

[whitelotustile]

"Good for him!" Iroh said. It might make things more painful if they ever went home again, but Iroh was a firm believer in leaving later to later. "I assume you didn't want to break up with him, but felt you had no choice in the matter."

[raavashing]

"Oh, no," Wan shook his head, completely comfortable with taking full responsibility. "I mean, I didn't want to break it off, but I made the choice to try. I just made it on a bad assumption about what Zuko would do if I didn't. He had thrown himself in front of Katara during a fight right before they both came here and took a lightning wound for her. And I know they both care very deeply for each other. I assumed that if I went into a fight against Malicant with Zuko, that if my life in was danger, he would try to intercede. And I didn't want him to take a blow that might destroy his soul on my behalf."

He snorted, "But he realized why I was pushing him away and reassured me that he wouldn't get in the way, no matter what. That he knew the kind of risks the Avatar had to take."

[whitelotustile]

"And, I don't think how you felt about him would affect how he felt about you," Iroh said. "But I'm glad you talked to him about your concerns. My nephew can take things very personally."

[raavashing]

"I was trying to push him away, I wanted him to take it personally," he sighed, shaking his head at himself. "It was stupid of me. I know. I'm glad he doesn't give up so easily. I can see how he was able to give Aang and his friends such a hard time before they became friends. He's determined and passionate and very stubborn."

Sorry for the dreamy eyes, Iroh.

[whitelotustile]

"YEs, those are all things Zuko has. I'm glad to see he's been making them his strengths, rather than things that bring him pain." Iroh had to watch Zuko's stubbornness throw him on Ozai's stupid request for years. better to see Zuko working for his friends, rather than a father who would never appreciate him.