week one | match ceremony

[marriagebroker]

Today's Match Ceremony starts the moment the sun goes down. They will be led to a courtyard on the estate, filled to the brim with lanterns of all kinds and plush couches and chairs for them to sit on. The place is lit bright by the lanterns and the vibe is very cozy. There will be a few camera crews lingering around, ready to catch sight of the contestants as they settle in and get comfortable. There is also food and beverages, some alcohol, some non-alcoholic, for everyone to partake in.

In the center of the courtyard is a stage, hanging above it are eight lanterns, none of which are lit up. Wei Wuxian stands in the middle, dressed to impress for tonight's festivities. In one hand, he has his flute, in another, a cup of huangjiu. He lifts it merrily, giving a laugh before knocking back the alcohol and tossing the cup away. (A staff member nearby catches it, thank god.)

"Welcome, everyone! To your first match ceremony! I am your humble host and we're here to see if chemistry can happen, even under duress~!"

A staff member nearby grimaces at that. It might be the same staff member who caught the cup. It's fine, the producers won't punish him. Probably.

But characters will notice that there is a podium next to the stage for them to lock in their answers.

"For those who are new to this, let's talk about how this works. First, I will call up one of the members of Team Suibian and they will go to the podium over here, make a choice of who they think their match is, and together you will press your hands to the podium to lock it in."

He gives a hum, twirling the flute in his hand a few times before grasping it by the end and using it to point at the contestants.

"As a result of your choices, the lanterns above me will light up with however many perfect matches you've chosen. It is your job to figure out which of the choices made tonight are indeed perfect matches. If you aren't able to get any of them right, you will get a black out. Which means, someone will lose their wish. Don't do that!"

He'll let his warning hang for a moment before smiling, tapping his shoulder lazily with the flute and then grinning broadly.

"With that, let's get started."

——

Each character of Team Suibian will be called in random order, under the selections top level. Feel free to react there!

After the matches, the results top level will reveal how many are right!

Otherwise, feel free to use this log for any reactions, catherding, whatever you want for the match ceremony.

Comments

[crimsin]

I could not help but notice your lovely eyes turning my way. If I recall, Verso and I were both on your list of possible choices, non?

[ Despite what it sounds like, this is not a "we spotted you from across the bar and like your vibes" talk. ]

[gamboler]

[ Caught in 4k... ]

Well, that's hardly surprising, is it? Two handsome men I admire dressed to the nines in each other's company? Anyone's attention would be drawn to the jackpot.

[crimsin]

We are very lovely to look at, I do agree.

[ He leans over to bump his shoulder lightly against Aventurine's. ]

Besides that, tell me how you are feeling.

[gamboler]

[ Ah, right, feelings talk...perhaps a bit easier to broach with Nico after what Nico tasted in his blood the other night, but this is still...uncharted territory for him. ]

Satisfied, I'd say. Three out of eight pairs isn't bad for our first swing, even if this may make things a little more tricky in the coming weeks.

[ A blackout would have told them a lot, too... ]

[crimsin]

[ Yeah, he figures, which is why he's not surprised when Aventurine doesn't quite answer the question. ]

It is a decent number. Not so low or high that we are completely lost in terms of strategy. But that is not what I meant.

[gamboler]

[ He knows what he means, yet the urge to be purposefully obtuse remains.

A beat, as Aventurine's glance drifts off elsewhere to the others still chatting and milling about, avoidant. ]

Many think yourself and Mister Verso are likely matched. We may need to prepare to say farewell to the pair of you after next week. It's a shame, really! I've been enjoying your company.

[ Well. Obviously. ]

[crimsin]

[ Sweet Aventurine. Nico would hate to leave him behind, though it's clear that he and Verso aren't the only ones who have caught his eye. Maya would be good for him too, he thinks. A bright light to fill the void in him. ]

I would miss you too.

Truth be told, knowing it is my turn to pick next week, yourself and Verso are at the top of my list. I would not say no to a bit of guidance from the booth, if the consensus is to send us there.

[gamboler]

A nudge in the right direction, so to speak...

[ I would miss you, too. That he can say that so easily after tasting the emotions that run like a foul muck in his heart...but what is he getting worked up about, anyway? He hasn't known these people even a full week yet, and they certainly don't know him. If they did...

A bit more guarded: ] You may be giving those producers and their algorithm a bit too much credit.

[crimsin]

[ A curious tilt of his head. ]

How do you mean? It is not so wrong to see if what they want happens to line up with what I want, is it?

[gamboler]

It's —

[ It won't be him. He doesn't take gambles he's sure he'll lose. ]

Just...let me save us all some tiresome trouble. If you choosing who to endorse to go with you...don't pick me.

[crimsin]

[ His brows knit together, lips tugging into a frown instantly. ]

Aventurine... if you think the show does not think we fit together, then that is fine. I am not so foolish as to put our wishes on the line.

But if you are saying this because you do not think you deserve it, then I must tell you that you are wrong.

[gamboler]

[ It is, and yet it isn't. That cloying feeling of walls enclosing in around him scratches at his insides, and he hates it, because it isn't fair to Nico, either. He's glimpsed the long shadows in his soul, and is still here, worried about his feelings, of all things. How long until all the gold is scrubbed away, leaving only ordinary copper coins behind?

It isn't that he doesn't deserve it. It's that people like Nico and Maya deserve better. ]

...Truthfully, I don't know what they think. But I know what our friends think, and it'd be...a poor wager, to send a pair that wasn't together at the match ceremony today. That's all.

[ It isn't, but he's not a big enough person to say more. ]

[crimsin]

[ Nico has a unique window into what Aventurine must be going through at the moment, caught somewhere between wishing that cloying loneliness would go away and not knowing if it's okay if it does. ]

I do not think that is all, mon étoile. What is wrong?

[gamboler]

[ That's just the rub, isn't it? He doesn't...know, exactly. The words for it aren't kept in his vocabulary of honeyed fineries meant to spin himself up into something he isn't. ]

It's...nothing you need to worry yourself with. [ Please. ] I'm still shuffling my deck, and need some time to...adapt.

[ He won't be the one to darken Nico's natural light. ]

[crimsin]

Forgive me if I worry anyway.

[ Sorry Aventurine, but when Nico's decided he cares about someone, there's no escaping his desire to help, or at the very least to listen. ]

Your happiness matters just as much as anyone else's. Please try to remember that.

[gamboler]

[ There's a weak, ugly part of himself might have laughed at that, but this is supposed to be a happy occasion. They should be celebrating, not rooting around in the depths of his sickly heart. ]

Kind of you to say, but I'm not all too preoccupied with finding happiness. [ ...A beat, before he adds: ] I think you realize as well as anyone here that that ship sailed for me a long time ago.

[ Shoko has seen it, too. The two of them are much the same in that regard. ]

[crimsin]

It took me nearly a full millennia to learn to seek my own joy, and to realize that it was okay for me to do so.

[ He reaches out, wanting to – trying to – catch Aventurine’s hand to twine their fingers together, if Aventurine will let him. ]

It is never too late.

[gamboler]

[ A look of genuine surprise flashes over his features. Once again, this would be so hard to believe, considering the kind of person that Nico is now, but he's just so sincere about it. Bewildered, his fingers weave with Nico's, the feeling of another person's hand taking his own outside the confines of a bedroom still so unusual. Misguided though Nico's affections might be, Aventurine is still too selfish of a person to refuse it. ]

You...really? But it's so hard to imagine you as anyone other than the brightest light in the room.

[ It's that genuine nature that drew Aventurine to him in the first place. That was something he chose for himself, too, and still holds to, even now. How much tragedy did Nico have to endure before he reached that point? ]

[crimsin]

[ He’s glad, at least, that Aventurine hasn’t pushed him away completely. He smiles at him, though there’s something a little melancholy in the expression. He’s spoken briefly of his past and his banishment with others, but not the full scope of it.

He wonders if perhaps his tale might help, even if Aventurine might think him a monster for it. ]

I have gone through a lot to be who I am today. Perhaps when next we get a moment alone, I will tell you about it.

[gamboler]

[ He'd like to hear about it. Maybe that too is selfish of him, but it's...reassuring, in a sad, twisted way, to hear that even someone with as much vivacity as Nico has shadows in his long past. If he can still speak of it and wear such a warm smile... ]

...If you're willing, I'd gladly listen. [ A gentle squeeze of Nico's hand. ] Just say the word.

[ A small smile. He's a much better listener in such regards, anyway. ]