Thanksgiving @ Lundegaard (Forward-Dated to 11/28)

[lineman]

Thanksgiving at Lundegaard

Order of Events

ARRIVALS/VIBES @ 3:30 PM

MINGLING, DRINKS, & APPS @ 4:15 PM

DINNER @ 5:00 PM

LEADERSHIP BINGO @ 7:00 PM

LINE DANCING @ 8:00 PM

Vibes & Playlist

Mismatched furniture, tableware, and cutlery in the B&B, dining hall, and town hall. Wooden carvings of animals hung up with burlap ribbons and hand turkeys made by schoolchildren. Bouquets of dogtooth daisies and boughs of marescent leaves in red, orange, and gold. The smell of freshly baked bread, hay, and woodsmoke. Warm lights from firepits, candles, and dim, flickering fluorescent bulbs.

John played some of these chill tunes.

ON THE MENU

Drinks & Appetizers
🍹 Maggie's Pear Kombucha
🥛 Malted Milk
🍹 Whatever other drinks folks brought
🧀 Charcuterie board

Mains & Sides
🦃 Turkey
🍗 Pan-fried goose in (mostly) huckleberry sauce
🥗 Green and red leaf lettuce salad in lemon vinaigrette
🥬 Mustard greens with salt pork
🥔 Mashed potatoes au gratin
🍞 Sausage hand pies
🍞 Dinner rolls
🍽️ Any other food folks brought

Desserts
🥧 Apple pie
🍮 Baked egg custard
🫐 Wild berries in cream
🍽️ Any other dessert folks brought

VOLUNTEER SLOTS

VOLUNTEER 1 arrives too early and is enlisted to help whip cream by Lundegaard's resident tree whisperer, Alice Samayao. On the bright side, your forearm strength is going to be off the chain once you're done...

After they're released from hwhippin' it, Volunteer 1 sneaks away with some whipped cream to playfully smash it into VOLUNTEER 2's face.

DUTCH and DUKE RATTRAY spy a ladder leaning against the roof of the barn and climb on up. They get a nice view of Lundegaard in the crisp autumnal night. But—whoops—Bill Rhoades takes the ladder away when they're not looking. Dutch and Duke have to jump down (safely) from the roof into a bale of hay. Oof.

VOLUNTEER 5 stuffs themselves on food. Feeling wretched and incredibly sleepy, they knock out in an empty barrel. VOLUNTEER 6 finds them 30 minutes later. You good?

COURT SLAUGHTER makes a daring request during line dancing and gets all the dancers grooving to Rihanna's "S&M" (feat. Britney Spears). Vrow.

GAMES & DANCING

Leadership Bingo
Quaid and John have prepared 3x3 bingo cards using old notebook paper (so... bingo leaves), each randomly populated with the names of community leadership (sans John). The winner gets the honor of being THE BIG TURKEY of the evening and a dozen apple donuts.

Line Dancing
To these classic tunes! Before the outbreak, John spent some time at his local senior citizens center carefully observing line dances and at times participating. So while he claims he can't dance, he is able and willing to help anyone pick up the steps.

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Comments

ARRIVALS/VIBE CHECKS: Arwen

[fixeddown]

Carter notes easily and appreciates Arwen's precision. She's been doing the same thing all night. It shows a measure of respect for each other and this bizarre process they've initiated.

"Monastery chic." She deems it, looking around the room, nodding. "Equal parts Catholic guilt and Protestant work ethic, though.

ARRIVALS/VIBE CHECKS: Arwen

[veryrealnurse]

The glass pauses halfway to Arwen's lips as she lets out the smallest laugh. Carter's assessment is painfully accurate. "You've really summed it up perfectly. ...were you ever religious?"

ARRIVALS/VIBE CHECKS: Arwen

[fixeddown]

"Me? No. Heathen." Carter is quick to correct, "But my grandmother was. I spent a lot of time around her. So I've been to a few churches in my dad. Were you?"

ARRIVALS/VIBE CHECKS: Arwen

[veryrealnurse]

"So not too hard for you to spot their religiously-inspired essence." Arwen finally takes that drink she was going to, thoughtful.

"I was. I used to go to these religious camps in the woods. Survivalist things. But I've slipped into heathen myself, these days."

ARRIVALS/VIBE CHECKS: Arwen

[fixeddown]

Survivalist religious camps in the woods are not exactly normal life experiences. Carter regards Arwen with some new analysis, but doesn't dig much more about it. Sounds like it came in handy. Divine providence one way or another. "Do you like it better?" Is all she asks, in the end.

ARRIVALS/VIBE CHECKS: Arwen

[veryrealnurse]

Even though this is a partial bit of truth, it doesn't feel dangerous to tell Carter given that its one she's shared with others before. Still, it's nice to feel like on some level she's admitting something to the other woman, forging more of a connection.

"Yes and no. Believing there was a purpose and reason for things was comforting. But it's nice to not have the burden of a god's expectations."

ARRIVALS/VIBE CHECKS: Arwen

[fixeddown]

Maybe it's getting too deep into philosophy for a Thursday night where they're standing around watching people do-si-do, but Carter nods rather seriously, regardless. She's had this debate before, long nights in French bars, over more glasses of wine than one carefully split down the middle. This is a little reminiscent.

"I used to wonder that." She admits, "How to balance that comfort. And duty. When it was to someone like a god. Always felt like the world had enough pressure without someone all-seeing, though."

ARRIVALS/VIBE CHECKS: Arwen

[veryrealnurse]

Arwen is enjoying herself some, despite the juxtaposition of their conversation with the merriment around. She takes another sip, mentally measured, before offering the glass back to Carter.

"It's not so hard when things are good, because it feels like the good things are there because you're good. And when things go really wrong... it depends. Honestly this middle ground, now, where things aren't good but aren't so bad, would be the hardest. You can't tell if there's no god, or if you've angered the one you have enough to land you in the middle." This is probably the most she's said in one go to anyone in a long time. She glances to Carter.

"Ultimately I think it's good you didn't have that pressure. There really is enough without having a being judging you."

ARRIVALS/VIBE CHECKS: Arwen

[fixeddown]

That's a more thoughtful and complete answer than she had banked on, and Carter smiles. She takes the wine and measures with one eye how much is left in the glass. How many sips each. They have a while to go.

"That sounds...kind of how I thought it would be. I think. I'd much rather deal with the realities of the world as objective facts, not. I don't know. Some moral failing. It sounds hard to deal with. Glad you found the dark side."

With a little smile, she takes her requisite sip and holds out the glass again.

ARRIVALS/VIBE CHECKS: Arwen

[veryrealnurse]

"Yeah, the idea of moral failings resulting in your suffering and the suffering of others is..." Arwen trails off and gives a one shouldered shrug.

She takes the glass and makes a cheers-ing motion towards Carter. "To being heathens. I do think we're better for it."

ARRIVALS/VIBE CHECKS: Arwen

[fixeddown]

"New world, no gods." Carter toasts her empty hand towards the glass, which is stupid, but she doesn't have another one. "If we're heathens, at least we're in control."