Action: Come one, come all!

[ofthebeast]

Characters: ALL THE PEOPLE
Open? Yes.
Where: The Palace
When: The night of the 3RD
What: A masquerade ball and a very deep sleep.
Warnings: Part of a comm-wide plot!

The Prince Sif has felled an unknown beast, and presented its stuffed head to the King. This would be reason enough for a ball, but there are victories to celebrate. More heroes arrive every day. The kingdom was aptly defended when the forest wall fell. No one has tried to assassinate the king in several days.

All told, a good night for a party. The theme of the ball is a masquerade, and shops in town have been surprisingly (almost suspiciously) able to provide gowns and masks in ready supply.

The palace has been opened to heroes and townspeople alike, provided they can present themselves appropriately. The heroes have been strongly encouraged to attend, and those who do not come voluntarily may well be greeted with royal retainers at their doorstep, outfit and dance card in hand. Expect a very full dance card, heroes.

The banquet table is stacked full of food – roasts and cheeses, summer fruits and vegetables, rivers of wine and more ornate desserts than should be permitted in a time or war. This evening is about success – best to enjoy it.

In the center of the ball sits the beast’s head. A scaly, purple thing. Its eyes have been taken out and replaced with rubies, its mouth twisted in the same sort of anguished look on its face as when Sif killed it. There has never been a beast like this in Schwanheim before – if you like, come closer and take a look. The king is very generous with his gifts.

[ooc: The party is a LIE. Well. No, it isn’t! Enjoy the party. Your characters will be expected to wear full masquerade gear, or they will be shunted aside and dressed properly.

After the attendees go home, they will be plagued with dreams more tangible than they have ever felt. More information here]

Comments

[wanderwonder]

[ She hadn't intended on attending.

Welp.

The last (and first) time she'd gone to a masquerade, she'd 'dueled' over the last piece of cake and the host of the party had been murdered. She'd been dressed as a unicorn that time, ha ha, unaware that she was actually one, but here? Not so.

She'd gotten as simple a mask as the townsgirls would let her, gibbering on about heroes and having to look the part. They'd conveniently ignored her comment that not looking the part was the point of a masquerade, or so she had thought. What she absolutely would not back down on was a dress she could actually move in, that didn't trail on the ground lest she have a repeat of Myron's ball. Eventually, they let her go in a very simple gold and white dress.

Right now, she's more or less parked near the banquet table, her small plate filled with nothing but fruits and vegetables. She looks to the stuffed head, then moves her gaze elsewhere. Don't want to lose her appetite... ]

...dude, that is not a simple mask. Olindra got ripped off.

[consultmybooks]

I, um, I take it that you didn't appear for a better look at the thing, then.

[Said as Giles flashes into sight next to her. Her plate gets a glance, a slightly sad glance, and then Giles' gaze ticks back up towards Olindra's face, hidden as it is behind her glittering mask. His own is a wooden mask, done up to resemble a brown owl, although it's as ghostly as he is.]

yes 8')

[wanderwonder]

[ She jumps (just a bit!) when he flashes in. ]

Oh. Ah...

There are ghost masks, too?

[ MANNERS??? ]

Mwahaha. Poor girl.

[consultmybooks]

[She asks about the nature of being a ghost, he goes invisible and reappears without warning. It balances out.]

I, um, I think it might be more accurate to call them, um, "ghosts of masks". But, um, yes. A few got destroyed in a shop brawl and, um, I managed to pull this one out of the rubble.

[He gestures at the rest of his outfit, which is the same as its always been.]

Thought I, um, m-might as well make what effort I could.

[wanderwonder]

... Non-living items have ghosts?

[ Whoa. Whooaaa.

She looks at her carrot stick, then at Giles. ]

This, too?

[consultmybooks]

[Giles looks down at her carrot stick, and then back at Olindra.]

What?

[Back down at the vegetable, and then he gets it.]

What, the, um...the carrot? Possibly. But it would, um, probably be located inside your stomach, i-if it was anywhere.

sorry, giles

[wanderwonder]

Oh. Yes.

So you cannot eat anything, then?

[consultmybooks]

"Not a thing."

He could taste, though, if he were possessing someone, but without the threat of death or injury over their head, Giles feels that it's probably impolite to mention as much, especially when Olindra is his only current alternative to Helios. A hasty subject change follows:

"To be honest, I-I'm, um, not entirely certain how the mask turned up at all. That's, um, just my theory. Perhaps this place simply...well, provided."

[wanderwonder]

[ WELL YOU KNOW

if you were really cravin' some mashed potatoes she might just let you do it. No meat, though. ]

The world itself is hell bent on the heroes coming to this ball, too, then? [ A small laugh. ] Their priorities are skewed...

[goldeneyeball]

James had been worrying an orange back and forth between his hands for the past hour when the townsfolk noticed him being a wallflower. With a yelp and a swear, the tall,
skull-masked man was shoved into the unicorn girl's personal circle and it was all he could do to keep from banging his knees on the table. He hissed at them over his shoulder before turning back to her, heavy-headed, and apologizing.

"Sorry. They think we ought to dance or somethin'. Can I just tell 'em you said no?"

[wanderwonder]

Olinda hopped back a step or two, narrowly missing the table's sharp corner. Another antlered man! Or perhaps this was part of his costume.

Or maybe this was the same man.

"Oh! Yes, I think so. It would be for your benefit," she said, smiling sheepishly. "I cannot dance at all."

[goldeneyeball]

"That makes two of us." He turned sharply to face the little knot of girls that were watching them with clasped hands. "SHE SAID NO!"

He snapped his skull's jaws at them before turning and inviting himself to sit down near her. His back was bothering him. "You seem familiar."

[wanderwonder]

She winced at his announcement, but the expression was quickly wiped from her face when he said that.

"Ah..." Olinda started work on a slice of apple to delay her answer. "I believe we have spoken on the orbs, once or twice before?"

And not as a dude and a unicorn in the forest, not at all!!

[goldeneyeball]

He thought about it. He saw a lot through that little crystal but it was hard keeping up with everyone.

"Did we talk about plants? I think I talked with a lady about plants."

[wanderwonder]

She crunched her apple with exaggerated surprise and pointed it at him. "Yes! Yes, I think it was plants! This place has strange ones, and familiar ones, too. I should hope my nose is trusty enough to tell poison from not."

Topic change get?

[goldeneyeball]

"That's right! I did end up findin' those, thanks." He let his gaze wander on passed her to a spot on the wall. "...Think I could sell cigarettes in this place? Did they even have those in the middle ages or wherever the hell we are..?"

He wished he'd paid better attention in school.

[wanderwonder]

Her brows arched in curiosity. "Cigarettes?"

Rang no bells!

[canistricari]

[ An attractive (and tall!) blonde man wearing a strange mask over his hair rather than his eyes approaches her, a charming smile on his face. ]

You look lovely, my dear.

[wanderwonder]

[ In the middle of whittling away a carrot stick, she looks up at him. ]

Oh, thank you. [ TBH her unicorn form was MUCH more stunning!!, but that was just, like, her own opinion. ] How did you manage to get away with that?

[canistricari]

[ Coyote would probably agree. ]

With what, my sweet? [ If she glances away from his mask, she may find that the pattern has shifted a bit when she looks back. ]

[wanderwonder]

[ "A bit" is not enough for Olinda to notice, at least, not right away. ]

Leaving your face exposed. I am jealous. [ Her mask was getting itchy. ]

[canistricari]

[ He pulled the mask down, and his eyes twinkled (almost viciously) from the small holes. ]

I can always oblige, if asked. [ He picked this form so people would be too busy swooning to really bother him. ]

[wanderwonder]

[ Okay it was hard to miss that...

:|a ]

It does not matter to me. [ crunch crunch crunch ] Do your eyes always do that?

[canistricari]

I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about!

[ He pulls the mask up again and appears to be perfectly normal... ]

[wanderwonder]

Oh. Well, your eyes -- they glowed for a bit. It must be your mask.