County Fair Week 3 - Pumpkin Carving

[ghosty]

PUMPKIN CARVING

You are an artist, a knife, your paintbrush. Your canvas is a… pumpkin?! Welcome to the pumpkin carving competition, where both the creativity and knife skills of competitors are tested to the limit to impress! Don't forget, the judges are looking for complexity and execution, so give your all and keep your hand steady.

Rolls:
First, decide the difficulty of your design. This will affect your overall score and the execution so choose carefully! Roll the first dice given for your difficulty to decide how impressed the judges are from your design, then the second for your execution. Add the results together and that's your overall score!

Easy - [*roll range="1-6"] [*roll range="5-10"]
Medium - [*roll range="1-10"] [*roll range="3-10"]
Hard - [*roll range="1-15"] [*roll range="1-10"]

And lastly: may the best carver win!

Participants:
Arrows - Charlotte Fel
Python - Saori Nara
Frankel - Hector Izar
Kaplan - Fly O’Malley
Birdie - Alex Pepperwood
Kiah - Lilith Rhodes
Arc - Marcellus Rhodes
Rave - Haze Rose-Izar
Arx - Crispin Wedgwood
Arx - Bailey Martell
Nyte - Ceres Chase
Cato - Manwe Rhodes
WT - Ezra Siat
Zori - Vasco Izar
Kaitlin - Lina Rose
Bailee - Sammy Pepperwood
Ems - Vera Rhodes
Griffin - Mateo Izar
Lyss - Eleven O'Malley

Please note that an IC post with a minimum of 100 words must be included or you will be disqualified!

If there's any questions, feel free to message ✨ zozo. or ghosty .

Standings:
Arc - Marcellus Rhodes - 19
Zori - Vasco Izar - 18
Kaitlin - Lina Rose - 15
Cato - Manwe Rhodes - 14
Birdie - Alex Pepperwood - 14
Kaplan - Fly O’Malley - 14
Lyss - Eleven O'Malley - 12
Ems - Vera Rhodes - 9
Bailee - Sammy Pepperwood - 8

[bailee]

sammy pepperwood

I am not artistic. Why am I participating in pumpkin carving?

Well... mom and dad weren't too fond of me entering the knife-throwing contest, what with my track record around sharp objects. The hay bale toss was out of the question. Even though I had the muscles of a farm boy, puberty had yet to bless me with a growth spurt and god, it was so unfair! I looked so small compared to Thad and Larry and Harmon...

At least I had Alex, he made my scrawniness not look so bad.

Before the competition began, I spotted the familiar curls of my older brother... next to an all too familiar head of flaming red hair (seriously, what was it with all the gingers around the county fair)?

I waved vigorously to Alex. "Hi Alex! Are you doing pumpkin carving? Who's your friend? Ouu, are you on a date?"

As much as I wanted to be more mature, in the end I was still the annoying little brother.

sammy chooses easy mode
impression on judges
RcwWX6yyYC1-6

execution
5-10
total score 8

Turns out maybe I should stick to pie-eating.

We were runnin' onto somethin'
And we didn't say "forever, " but it's all we wanted
You were so in love with simple things
And now we're searchin' for the fire, drippin' kerosene

1-6·5-10

[d9 kristof parks {ems}]

Vera

Having fun is important. Mom and dad always told her to simply do the best she can in everything, and if something is interesting or catches her attention, go for it. That is exactly what Vera is doing today. Having the chance to carve a pumpkin and get the pumpkin guts all over her hands brings a smile to her face. Of course, she wants to throw them at her brother if she can, but she knows that might get her into trouble.

She's always been one to bend the rules into her favor, especially when she's rough housing with her siblings. Being the oldest is hard sometimes. For a couple years, all the attention was on her, yet it changed in the blink of an eye. None of that matters, though, because right now she wants to impress everyone watching to show what she's capable of.

Vera picks up a pumpkin after looking through them, and takes it to a table pondering a design for a moment. Easy can go a long way, but it might not win against a hard one, but going for the harder ones could set her up for failure. Why go for the easy way out? Giving this everything she has, Vera knows the only way to give it her all, is to go for the hardest one she can find. With a smile on her face, she begins to carve hoping it pays off.

HARD
eO|tCxqt8O1-15

1-10
1-15·1-10

[Noah Vau - D2 (Cato)]

Manwe Rhodes

I just want to do better than my sister. It's the only reason I even signed up for this event. Sometimes I just want a little sibling rivalry going on even though I know dad doesn't approve of it. Me and Vera bicker a lot, and if I can find a way to show her that I did better than her, I can come out on top for once! I watch her grab a pumpkin, and I search for one that is better than hers. I watch her find something to carve into it, and I want one that will make hers look like it's nothing. I go sit down at the table, and I start carving the pumpkin. I just want to do better than Vera, and if that happens, I will walk away happily.

District Eleven

[googlefont="Oswald:400"]

0teyOvCY8q1-15

1-101-15·1-10

[Deleted]

I spent way too long getting ready to just carve some pumpkins. If my parents didn't know I had a date today before, they definitely did now with how long I spent getting ready. I even tried to do my hair today! It's hard to tell, but it's the thought that counts right? Besides, I'm wearing one of my nice shirts today. Fly is just going to fly into my heart. Get it?

When I went to pick her up from the Campgrounds, I was grateful when I didn't see any other redheads around. If I remember right, there's like a hundred of them - give or take a few. And I was never the best at talking to girls, let alone girls' families. During the walk to the contest, it was mainly filled with small talk. And at one point I held her hand.

Prior to the contest, we were sitting and chit chatting - waiting for the announcers to begin the contest. And that's when I saw Sammy out of the corner of my eye. Fuck. I pretended I didn't see him, hoping he wouldn't notice me or that he'd take a hint. But of course, he didn't. He still just had to bother me. Sammy? More like Bammy because my fist is going to go "BAM!" when I beat him up after this.

I mean, I probably wouldn't actually beat him up. Maybe I'd wrestle him at home tonight or yell at him a little, but it's all in good fun. Even if he gets way too sensitive about it. But, I needed to make a good impression on Fly so I gave him a glare, but I couldn't yell at him quite yet. Though after this? He better be prepared to catch because I'll throw hands.

"Sammy... go away please."

I wanted to impress Fly, even if I didn't impress the judges. This wasn't about winning or even having a better score than her, this was about surprising her. But like in a good way, a pleasant surprise. I took a deep breath before I started on my design. Pleading to Ripred or God or Silksharp or whatever may be out there.

design: hard

impression:
7JzMtTVwSn1-15

execution:
1-10

total: 14 points

1-15·1-10

[kap]

F L Y
O ' M A L L E Y

.

Alex made my heart flutter. It was strange, feeling that after barely having known someone, but maybe that was how having a crush on somebody worked. I'd never really had crushes on people in the past, but with Alex, it was immediate. I knew I liked him, and I didn't just like him. I like liked him. He was so nice and he was so cute. He overall just seemed like a great guy.

We were going to be going on a date to the pumpkin carving event, and Alex surprised me by picking me up from my cabin in the campground area. Since he came to get me, we headed over to the event area together.

"Thanks for coming to get me, Alex!" I said excitedly, a smile on my face when he arrived.

When we got to the pumpkin carving event, I heard a voice speaking to Alex, and turned to look. The boy was teasing Alex about being on a date, so I assumed that he was his brother. Had to be. I wouldn't have been surprised if my siblings would've reacted similarly if they were here.

If they were here, I though. Then, I realized that Eleven was here.

My face went red when I saw him. I tried to look away from Eleven, avoiding his gaze so that maybe he wouldn't realize I was here on a date. I looked back to Alex and lowered my voice.

"My brother's here too," I said to Alex quietly. "Sorry our date isn't as private as I expected."

Maybe I could at least do a decent job at this event to make up for the fact that our siblings had crashed our date.

~


"And though I'm told I'll never fly
That doesn't mean that I won't try"

lyrics: "Superhero" by Tim McMorris

Difficulty Medium

Impression:

x2|NyhsGAn1-10

Execution:

3-10

total: 14

1-10·3-10

[gamemaker tallis 🧚🏽‍♂️kaitlin.]

lina rose.

She never knows better.

And she's starting to think she shouldn't.

Lina has spent years, decades really now, doing everything in her power not to let that family anywhere near her baby girl. She can still remember sitting on that log out by the creek, waiting for Elias to come and meet her by the water. They had been good at that, finding secret places to keep between each other.

But telling Elias about Celestine hadn't been a secret she wanted to share.

And she's paying for it now, she knows. Even if her daughter is still being kind, still speaking to her, Lina can feels the tiny waves of resentment in her, the little threads of thoughts she knows her daughter won't indulge in but Lina feels guilty about all the same. She doesn't regret her choices, not really, would have kept her away over and over again if she got to make the choice herself, but she doesn't get to. Her daughter makes her own choices.

And if the family that can't stop getting reaped is the family that she wants, then Lina will show up to the fair and she will carve pumpkins and she will avoid eye contact with Laurel Izar at every single waking opportunity. And she'll do it with her daughter, hand in hand.

Like always.

Because she's never going to not be there for Celestine. No matter how much she hates this choice.

"Estrella?" she most asks herself, absently, the little Spanish name she has for her favorite daughter slipping off her tongue—and don't talk to her about having only the one; Celestine is her favorite, period. When Lina finally spots her, she waves at her with a big smile and walks over. "A cider for us to sip while we carve," Lina says excitedly, putting the cup down as she sits. "Oh, and!" she exclaims as she reaches for her bag and, to her extreme pleasure and pride, pulls out a wrapped up little napkin with food inside. "Two cider donuts to match."

She puts them on the table between them then picks up her carving knife to begin.

hard difficulty!

fM79L9QYRm1-15
1-10

total = 15

1-15·1-10

[thompson harvard - d2b - arc]

You know, the dog wasn't a bad idea after all. She gave my mom a reason to not be as nervous about the damn fruit. Yes, she's slowly selling it off, but the new pup gives her something to look forward to. It also allowed me to finally get out of the barn for a little bit! Mom was upset at me when I first brought her in, just because of the whole "you don't know how big she'll get", or "how will we feed her?" But she wouldn't let me leave the barn the day after I arrived with a puppy. Didn't trust me to arrive with another furry friend. What about it? They can help fend off animals from the farm. If we actually used our land more than we did.

Besides, who would say no to puppydog eyes?

Today was the pumpkin carve. We grew pumpkins for a while back at home, but I've never heard of carving them. Maybe it'll fun. I think it requires some sort of skill with a knife, which may prove helpful in the future. There's multiple levels of difficulty for the pumpkins, but I came to win, so let's go for the hard one. Knife in hand and a medal on my mind, I got to work.


hard
7j5rg67WAP1-15
1-10

1-15·1-10

[lyss]

e   l   e   v   e   n  
o   '  m   a   l   l   e   y

Eleven was honestly excited for the pumpkin carving contest, although he wouldn’t admit it to anybody. He was in a need of a creative outlet with all of the emotional turmoil going on inside of him. He had no idea if he’d be any good at carving a pumpkin, but hey, at least it wouldn’t make him as sick as the pie-eating contest had.

He knew Fly had signed up for the event too, but she was nowhere to be seen that day. In fact, he wasn’t sure he had seen Fly at all since they arrived in Ten. He was hoping they’d head over to the event together, so he was a little disappointed to walk over in silence. Eleven was one of the last to arrive, and he found himself spotting a surprising amount of familiar faces, including the boy he met earlier in the week, Sammy. He went over to say hey and caught him talking to a boy who must’ve been his brother.

”Who's your friend? Ouu, are you on a date?”

Out of the corner of his eye, Eleven spotted a head of fiery curls that could only belong to his sister.

“Fly? You’re on a date?”

Things at this fair just kept getting weirder.

Eleven goes for medium difficulty.
Impression
ZK0RhMYHnN1-10
Execution
3-10

elegant

1-10·3-10

[marguerite harvard d2a (zori)]

v a s c o

I lift my eyes up to the hills
This my evening song
Where my help comes from

Yani and I had decided to join in on the pumpkin carving as soon as we saw it on the list of events. She and I had been enjoying what the county fair had to offer – visiting the animal showcase, watching the knife throw, and the hay bale tossing – she’d told me how good it was to see everyone working together, even if some of the events were competitive. It hadn’t hurt that we’d managed to get a donkey in the auction, either. Yani was already thinking up names, and had suggested Zorion, calling the stubborn little thing Zori as she had tugged at its lead when we’d had the chance to lead him around the stable. He’d flicked his ears and turned this way and that at her commands, preferring to toddle along at his own pace. He’d nuzzled her when she’d put her face to his neck, which was enough to make think we’d made the right choice.

We sat at the long end of tables with familiar faces at our sides. Some of the Rhodes clan alongside the red headed O’Malley’s. Everyone was scratching away at their pumpkins, some intricate with fine lines across the top, while others were a mess of seeds and pulp. I turned to my own little knife and started by cutting off the top. I reached in to scoop out the seeds and strings of innards. We didn’t waste much in eleven, and pumpkins were never a part of our displays in autumn, but dulce de calabaza came now and again. My mother liked to candy the pumpkin in spiced syrup as a treat.

I etched across the front of my pumpkin and thought about the gentle smell that used to waft from my mother’s kitchen.

“The key’s gentle, slow carving. We may finish after everyone else, but hopefully ours turns out all right.” I said to Yani, who kept her knife steady as we went along.

Difficulty: Hard!
Y8jq||56d41-15

1-10

We set down our carving knives and I grinned. Together we'd made a nice little design, and maybe after all of this, we'd take the tradition back to eleven. 

elegant

1-15·1-10