nextgen_holiday (nextgen_holiday) wrote in marvel_nextgen,
@ 2011-10-31 13:20:00

Entry tags:

alex bowmaster, antaeus, anya stark, buck rogers, crosshairs, hajime, holiday, iron dragon, jenny woolverton, kalypso, kayura yagyu, mason jeffries, misha loganovich, nicholas salem, sylvia mccoy, tsunami, vincent vernard

All Hallow's Eve
All Hallow's Eve, or Halloween as it has been come to be called, is a popular holiday with children and adults alike. It is a holiday that had its roots in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain or Summer's End. Samhain celebrated the end of the "lighter half" of the year and the beginning of the "darker half".

On this evening the barriers between this world and the Otherworld were believed to be thin and the spirits, good and bad, of the dead could pass through. The spirits of the family's ancestors were welcomed in while evil and bad spirits were warded off by the wearing of masks and costumes. The costumes and masks disguised one as a harmful spirit and avoided harm from others.

It was also a harvest celebration and time to take stock of food stores for the winter. Livestock were slaughtered and the meat prepared for storage. It was the final harvest of the year and the crops were then stored for the winter. Celebrations included bonfires and tales of the family's ancestors.

It was a celebration of the dead and of the harvest.

Today we dress up in scary and not so scary costumes and masks and go door to door for candy or attend costume parties. It is a night for revelry, pranks and fun.

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	irondragon 2011-10-31 03:54 pm UTC (link)
	Rose isn't quite comfortable with the holiday. She will though handle passing out things to any children who visit. Mostly though she'll choose to watch bad horror movies tonight. (Reply to this)(Thread)

vicious_cycle
2011-10-31 04:00 pm UTC (link)

Just like every year, Halloween is not a good night for Nick. He spent a lot of the run up throwing himself into work in the garage, or into lots of whiskey, not very sociable. As the light grows dim, like many public holidays, the Rider is out and fanatically busy, hunting the arsonists, the pedophiles, and all the others who take advantage of the chaos of the holiday or its traditions to make the night a real horror.

There's another bottle of whiskey set out by his bunk in the garage, so he can find it when he gets home at first light. Til then, its going to be a long one.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	perenawska 2011-10-31 04:23 pm UTC (link)
	Irina didn't do Halloween, but she also knew it was Nick's birthday. She left a bottle of forty year old whiskey in his room. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sandcastlegod 2011-10-31 08:50 pm UTC (link)
	Wholesomely spooky sculptures had been pulled up out of the ground around the steps at the place for the trick or treaters to appreciate. Corey had picked out all the candy -- there would be no sun-grown chocolate being distributed from his home! When he has a moment, Corey goes out to bury the apples in the garden like a good Traditionalist. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tabula_rasa 2011-11-01 06:38 am UTC (link)
	With Rose handling the candy, Jenny was at loose ends. YC held down a spot in a window to watch the comings and goings with feline disinterest. She spotted Corey heading to the garden and grew curious at what he was doing. So she followed. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sandcastlegod 2011-11-01 08:00 pm UTC (link)
	Corey looks up and smiles as he starts kneeling inthe garden. "Hi, Jenny." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tabula_rasa 2011-11-02 01:25 am UTC (link)
	"It's kind of late for gardening, isn't it?" Anywhere else she'd say it might be a little chilly, but New Orleans? It wasn't bad at all. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sandcastlegod 2011-11-02 02:59 am UTC (link)
	Corey grins. "It's for religious reasons. Back in Nova Roma, on the cusp between October and November, we bury apples for the spirits. Pomonalia. It's not one of the big ones like Saturnalia that everyone knows about, but aside from the spiritual significance, it can be good for the soil, too, so I'm generally all for it." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tabula_rasa 2011-11-02 03:09 am UTC (link)
	Jenny gave him a small smile. "I see, and I apologize for interrupting your religious service." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sandcastlegod 2011-11-02 03:17 am UTC (link)
	"It's okay," Corey buries the apples, then lets his hands go into 'shrine mode'. "They don't need quiet. They just want apples." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tabula_rasa 2011-11-02 04:26 am UTC (link)
	Jenny had no religious leanings herself, but living with a cat tended to give one perspective on tolerance and respect for another's beliefs, even if that belief concerned salmon and belly scratches on command. "Apples would be better with peanut butter and caramel," she said before she could stop herself. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sandcastlegod 2011-11-02 04:29 am UTC (link)
	Corey's devoutness apparently does not prevent looking over to her with a grin as he pats down the soil. "That's why the spirits get the heavily bruised ones, and the fresh ones are sitting on the kitchen counter. Want to join me?" He rises from his knees. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tabula_rasa 2011-11-02 04:32 am UTC (link)
	"That would be great. The spirits won't know what they missed." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sandcastlegod 2011-11-02 04:34 am UTC (link)
	And Corey will happily go in with her to the kitchen, where indeed there are numorous fresh apples washed and waiting, and other ingredients available. He'll wash his hands. "So how are things?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tabula_rasa 2011-11-02 04:40 am UTC (link)
	Jenny found a seat and settled into it. "Things are fine. No complaints." What complaint could she have? The team members she'd met had been perfectly nice, and the ones she hadn't would either be friendly or not. "Yankee Clipper seems to have taken to being the house cat very quickly." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sandcastlegod 2011-11-02 04:49 am UTC (link)
	"Yeah, he seems to like having the run of the place. And I try to make it up to him for the fact that he can't have my sustainably-fished tuna." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tabula_rasa 2011-11-02 04:32 pm UTC (link)
	"He likes to eat responsibly too," she said with a small laugh. "Or whatever someone else is having if it's tasty and well prepared. I think he was a chef is a former life." "Halloween seems popular among the adult population in New Orleans, but I suspect it's an excuse for a party." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sandcastlegod 2011-11-02 08:13 pm UTC (link)
	Corey grins. "You're getting the hang of the place all right." And the caramel is coming along for the apples to be dunked in. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tabula_rasa 2011-11-05 05:31 am UTC (link)
	Caramel was one of Jenny's big weaknesses. Chocolate was lovely, but the buttery sweet goodness of caramel knocked it out of the park. She dunked a wedge and took a bite. "For a party town, it's really pretty quiet on the villain front." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sandcastlegod 2011-11-05 05:34 am UTC (link)
	"Yeah, pretty much all ordinary criminals and the occasional Dangerous Sudden Threat of the Season. In between..." he shrugs. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tabula_rasa 2011-11-05 10:51 pm UTC (link)
	"Some guy tried to grab my bag over on Royal one evening, but he ran into a group of bikers who didn't like it. They decided to save me." She dunked another apple slice. "I think one of them asked me out." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sandcastlegod 2011-11-05 11:01 pm UTC (link)
	"Oh? Do you think you said yes?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tabula_rasa 2011-11-05 11:40 pm UTC (link)
	"I might have agreed that I'd make an appearance in a bar near there. I think it's called Sanctuary." She grinned. "I'm so used to not being asked out because of the 'don't touch me' vibes my brother swears I send out that it took me by surprise. So the guy either has no sense of self preservation, or he's scarier than I am." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sandcastlegod 2011-11-05 11:43 pm UTC (link)
	"So what was his name?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tabula_rasa 2011-11-05 11:50 pm UTC (link)
	"I don't know," she admitted, "but I'm sure I'll know who he is if I decide to show up. He has a red beard." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)