The Samhain Ball - Come as You Aren't

[u_can_have_it_4_a_song]

A woman strides through the Nexus, garbed in royal finery of a distinctly Elizabethan style. In the crook of her arm, she carries an ebony scepter shod and capped in silver. There may be something familiar about her confident bearing, her angular features, her mismatched eyes. When she pauses to speak, the cadence of her words might spark recognition--is this Schön?!

"People of the Nexus, friends, in the world from which I hail we stand on the cusp of a special day, a harvest-fest when the walls between worlds grow thin, when masks and costumes are worn to frighten away the wicked spirits--or to invite them in on more congenial terms. So on this day, I invite you, each and every one of you, to join me in a revel to bid farewell to Summer, and welcome with fire and song the coming dark! Join me, won't you?" Letting her gaze sweep the crowd, she raps the heel of her scepter once against something solid, vanishing in a flash and leaving a sparkling trail for the curious to follow.

A cool wind herds dry, crackling leaves through the gathering gloom. On the cusp between the parklands and the residential district, darkness and cloudy skies have been slowly coalescing for days around a stately house of Gothic style, ivy-encrusted and showing its age somewhat. A square tower stands vigil over the entryway, tall windows overlooking the flagstone drive looping around a fountain gone dry. The house’s angular wings stretch to either side, the windows dark save for occasional glints and gleams of colored lights bobbing within. A glow does creep over the line of the roof, however, and the faint throb of distant music hint at something happening behind the house. The door stands open, a silent invitation to every brave soul who passes by.

((Happy Halloween! Enjoy the festivities. All LOLs are optional. Threadhopping is encouraged. Backtagging is forever, so don’t worry about missing out: we’ll still be here when you get back from your more mundane ghosties and goblins.))

Playlist
Visualosity
The Entrance
The Ballroom
The Banquet
The Bonfire
The Corn Maze
Dark Corners
Costume Icon Requests
The Photo Booth

Comments

[conjuredskies]

Hey! Please excuse him, Big Friendly Spriggan, he needs to pursue his partner. "Not everyone's as well brought-up as I am, you know."

[i_amgroot]

No worries. "I am Groot."

[brave_heart_verity]

He needs to finish dancing with Verity first. "Well, obviously. I've met your brother." Ans yes, he should try to keep up.

[auspex_caelo]

He wasn't expecting such a complicated reaction, but he avoids looking too curious. "By local standards, you are dressed for battle."

Either that, or the sort of gathering respectable, upstanding citizens should flee immediately. But let's go with the primary-colored bandit theory out loud.

[onemorebounty]

They don't do costume parties where you're from? I'll have to get a dress, I suppose.

[conjuredskies]

That's tricky! He needs to recover after being addressed by the biggest spriggan ever. "He really must have shocked you!"

[brave_heart_verity]

Imagine the friends he'd make if he could introduce Groot to a Spriggan Matron...

"Mostly because he found us. The place where I grew up wasn't known for breeding gentlemen."

[auspex_caelo]

"Skyrim's less adventurous in that respect. And the company much less interesting, I warn you." Though the masquerades are exciting in their way. One of these days he's sure to need a plus-one who can fight in any outfit.

[onemorebounty]

You'll need to advise me on local fashions, then. So I only stand out enough to impress.

*For one of those shindigs at the Thalmor embassy, perhaps?*

[conjuredskies]

If it could get spriggans to stop throwing bees at him, he'd try it!

"Well, I can't find any fault with its ladies."

[brave_heart_verity]

But the bears are still cool, right?

"Aww, thank you. Okay, that's enough compliments for now. You go have fun. Don't let the chao catch you doing anything naughty." One last quick hug before he goes.

[auspex_caelo]

"I doubt I have any place telling a lady what to wear, but I'm sure we could find someone more qualified." Someone less obligated to frown on concealed weapons.

Where else to find a sufficiently exciting party?

I have just the icon...

[onemorebounty]

*If they're obvious enough for Stratos to frown on, she isn't concealing them well enough, is she? After all, he's not frowning on her arsenal right now.*

An outing before the party? Sounds nice.

*Where, indeed? And did she just put you on the hook for two dates, Stratos?*

[conjuredskies]

Only if he has a Bosmer to hide behind.

"Don't get caught," he agrees solemnly, returning the hug. "Enjoy the night, Verity. You deserve it."

They'll have the chance to catch up soon. After the news she's given him, Felix doesn't want to miss any more meetings than he has to.

[shardofwinter]

The twirl catches him by surprise, so he draws Verity close to join him in spinning under Samus' arm. "I only need to be less exhausted than you, my dears, remember that."

[smartass_captain]

"Normally? Me." Jim grins and shakes his head. "It's fine, Reynard. I'm just glad you accepted my offer to dance."

He's chuckling even as he puts a hand on Reynard's shoulder, shifting to allow the other to lead in their dancing.

"How about you?"

Perfect!

[auspex_caelo]

Propriety forbids him from even looking too closely.

His surprise swiftly turns to amusement. "I can't make any promise of that. The dressmakers in Solitude have a reputation for sharp tongues."

[onemorebounty]

*It's almost a pity that he's so good at behaving.*

Is that how they sew where you're from? I think I'd have to see that.

[brave_heart_verity]

A second surprise spin? Reynard is 123% made of trouble. By the end of this go-round Verity is laughing and clinging to him. "Just remember that making me dizzy isn't the same thing as making me tired."

[onemorebounty]

And you have to wear us both out to win.

*Samus puts out a hand to help Verity steady herself, if she'd like it, giving Reynard a challenging smile.*

[drehnifusbahi]

"Huh." Vanyel examines his find with a thoughtful frown, turning it over in his hand. But there's nothing out of the ordinary about the mirror, not even any sort of tooling on the leather.

"What do you make of this?"

For his part, it seems to imply that they're on the right track following the path with the lights; after all, what use would such a thing be if they followed the music? But he'd like to hear Shade-Seeker's thoughts.

[gate_crasher]

"A fine prize," the Argonian wizard muses, looking over the mirror, "for the glass is well-made, and the silver smooth. Mayhap it is also a warning, not to look directly at whatever comes next, or to peek discreetly around corners before we take them--or, to reflect on what we have learned thus far. Hmm?"

[shardofwinter]

"No, I was going to make a jibe about Verity becoming your commanding officer. It was going to be terribly witty." And once he has Jim in his arms, he'll set off in an energetic dance to match the music. "What about me?"

[shardofwinter]

"But making you laugh might be," he points out with the cheekiest smile you ever did see. He will ease up on the spinning for Verity's sake, dancing them back and forth, hip twisting and shoulder rolling like there's no tomorrow. "It's a win-win for me either way."

[brave_heart_verity]

She's grateful for the assist from Samus and her smile makes that known, even if she's still laughing. It isn't long before she's back to the dancing. "Oh, you are a sneaky one. Next thing we know, you're going to be convincing us you planned all along for us all to have fun."