eswareinmal | Action: Come one, come all!

Entry tags:

Action: Come one, come all!

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]

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Hey, if you had the string of dead girlfriends Ryo has, you'd be sounding ominous too. Hanging around him for too long tends to make you a target, and he's painfully aware of that.

So glad that dance was over. So glad. If that lady came back, he was going to be forced to make some sort of horribly undignified retreat, and his dignity suffered enough out on that dance floor. Ryo leaned back against the wall again, looking irritated.

"I haven't enjoyed parties like this for a while now, no." He sighed and shook his head. "Do you?"

Never one to really come out and say his true feelings on the matter Eagle just kind of smiled and focused on the one thing about events like these that he really enjoyed.

"I do have fun meeting everyone one like this. It is more casual than some other occasions have been every one seems so..."

He looked at Ryo again.

"Almost everyone seems so happy just to take a little time to enjoy themselves."

Really the girls clinging onto everyone and dragging their victims off to the dance floor all the time? That was kind of getting on his nerves too. Just ask and then accept the answer you receive with some kind of grace... Instead many of them were just too pushy.

"It's a little too formal for me to be enjoying myself." Not to mention the weird way he'd been forced into attending. "If I wanted to relax, I'd just go swimming." Note to self: find a good spot to go swimming. There had to be one around here somewhere...and the way these townspeople were acting, Ryo figured he'd at least be able to find someone to help the great hero construct a pool.

"But I guess it gives me a chance to get an idea of what sorts of people this place brings in, yeah." Ryo shrugged. He should probably be circulating the room and trying to meet people, but...no. Lines had to be drawn somewhere.

"Swimming is your hobby then? That does sound more relaxing than this party. You should be careful where you decide to swim though. Some of the ponds have magical properties."

The party was a bit political in nature and loud with everyone speaking and laughing all at once. Some one who was a bit reclusive would probably find it restrictive. Ryo had Eagle's sympathy.

"Maybe you could slip out after a while and find some where to 'lay low' until the party is over."

"Yeah, I used to compete..." Here, Ryo just sort of trails off and stares at the incredibly useful advice that Eagle had just given him. A magical pond sounded like just the sort of trap he'd accidentally fall into. "Magical properties? What sort of properties do these ponds have?" Though, really, at least if they went around turning people into weird things, that wouldn't be anything new. He was good enough at weird transformations on his own.

Ryo kind of chuckled when Eagle suggested he try to slip out of the party. "With my luck, I'd be followed. Probably by more than one."

"All I have to go on are the rumors I have heard from the soldiers I was visiting along the front lines but they claim there are some pools that have monsters in them, or magical swords, or that taking a swim in one of the pools could cause you to forget everything about yourself. Then again there are rumors that if you chose the right pool you might get to swim with mermaids." Eagle shrugs, "It really can be difficult to tell which, if any, of these stories are true so it is probably wise to inspect the pond carefully before you jump in."

Look before you leap? It was always good advice but it especially applied to bodies of water in this strange world.

"I'm sure that would happen. You would need some kind of diversion to distract everyone when you slipped out or some one would surely notice."

It almost sounded like a challenge. He might have to try it later himself... just to see if he could.

"Sounds like checking would definitely be a good idea, then..." Monsters in a pond? He could handle that. Magical swords? Sure. Mermaids? Sure. Forgetfulness? Not really into that. He doesn't want that to be a thing.

Ryo looked a bit thoughtful at the word "diversion." He could think of a few small things, several of which might not work as well as he'd hoped. He could always transform into Gills; that would make for one heck of a diversion, certainly. No party really needs a spiky green bug-man running around. "About the best diversion I could provide would probably start a panic." Or he'd get attacked. Either one. Possibly both.

A panic, really? That did beg the question...

"What kind of diversion were you thinking?"

The possibilities Eagle could come up with were more sedate than transforming into a bug creature, ranging from a toast which would require the assistance of a partner in order to allow the one to slip out while the other gained the crowd's attention to getting the band to select a 'special couple' for a private dance. Things like that always seemed to encourage everyone else to watch and the lights could be brought down low to aid in escape.

"We really wouldn't want to panic the crowd, just distract their attention a little."

"Either yelling that there's a fire or transforming into my other self, mostly." Ryo looked a little sheepish. "Probably a sign I'm getting a bit desperate." He shook his head. "Not like I'm going to do any of that, mind you." He warily eyed a few girls across the room. They looked like they were trying to convince each other to go up to ask one of the heroes to dance. "But it's tempting."

Ryo nodded in agreement when Eagle said they'd need to distract the crowd. "You have any better ideas?"

A bit desperate? Eagle has to chuckle again.

"You might be."

It was a lot like being hunted wasn't it? One never knew when the next lady would strike, asking or demanding a dance.

"I could help you if you really want to leave? Just stay near the door there and I will try to encourage everyone to look the other way for a moment."

Ryo looks a bit grateful. "You're sure about this?" He's giving a very wary eye to some of those ladies that are in turn eying him and Eagle like vultures checking out a dying animal. "Because I would really like to get out of here..."

"If you aren't interested in parties I don't see the harm in a little escape attempt."

Eagle peeks over to where Ryo is cautiously looking.

"But, it looks like we will have to act quickly or you might be captured again. Are you sure you want to leave?"

"Very." Ryo didn't look at all like he was interested in another dance. "I'll owe you one after this."

"Alright then. I'll do it. Just stay near the door like I said and wait until it looks like everyone is paying attention elsewhere."

Eagle stepped away then and over to the band. Probably the best way to do this was to suggest a special dance. That everyone's attention would be brought on the 'special couple' and the lights could be brought down low to air in Ryo's escape. After completing a song the band was spoken to about the idea and a couple was pulled from the crowd by the band manager. A young couple that was getting married in a weeks time. As requested the lights dimmed and most everyone turned to watch the young lovers dance together. It was a very sweet and touching moment after all.
The group of girls that had been keeping an eye on Ryo were a bit more persistent. They had to be distracted by Eagle personally as he engaged the ladies in conversation so they would look away long enough for Ryo to slip out.

"Thanks." Ryo gave Eagle a nod and made his way towards the door as casually as he possibly could.

As soon as the lights dimmed and the couple stepped out to dance, Ryo was tensed up and ready go go. He tensed up when he saw his pack of stalkers fail to get completely caught up in the moment, but fortunately, Eagle was true to his word, and the coast was clear.

Tossing a loose salute at Eagle, Ryo scooted out that door as quickly as he could without drawing any attention to himself. Freedom!

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Action: Come one, come all!

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