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

^^

[heirtothearcane]

"You don't sit around sleeping as much as I do," he points out with a raised eyebrow. That might be speculation, but it's a fair bet considering his area of expertise.

At the mention of his take-away habit he shrugs guiltily. "Some of them do... It's not that bad."

[brave_heart_verity]

"Yeah, but you're working when you sleep, and thinking burns lots of calories too. So does magic I bet. Energy always has to come from somewhere. And I wouldn't let you get fat." As if she'd ever be less than a conscientious caretaker. "You deserve better than 'not that bad'."

Why are they even fighting about this? What does he... oh, wait. Something worth clarifying. "It wouldn't all be sweets. There'd be plenty of vegetables and healthy things too."

[heirtothearcane]

"I'd have to pay you if you cooked for me all the time." It's the only reasonable solution. He's far more worried about taking and not giving than he is about her only feeding him sweets.

Healthy things... Suddenly he looks suspicious. "Promise me you won't make me play golf."

[brave_heart_verity]

"What? No." The idea of taking money from him is so offensive she's actually pulling a face. "I'm your friend, you don't pay for friendship." Hopefully, that's permanently off the table. He'll have to find subtler ways to repay her for things.

The idea of him in those puffy golf pants does distract her from what would have been a brief showing of temper anyway. "No golf," she promises. "Walks. Walks are nice. But I can't picture you doing anything strenuous enough to muss up your hair."

[heirtothearcane]

"No, but cooking so much for me would be work. You're offering your skills. I have money and magic. That's what I have to offer. And when we last talked about it, you didn't seem to want me to help with your dreams."

No golf means that he relaxes quite a bit. "I don't mind riding. Or cycling. But walks are the best... I like swimming too. I don't know if you can swim, but spending time in water is very relaxing."

[brave_heart_verity]

"You have so much more to offer than that, darling." Verity stops dancing to pull him into a hug. Not wearing a mask makes it easier for her to tuck her head against his shoulder. "I wish you could see yourself the way I see you. Then you'd understand."

It's always good when he relaxes. "I've never been riding. But I know how to swim." A little. Enough to not drown. An important skill growing up on a small granite island. "Of course you'd be at home in your element. So is there a lot of swimming in our future?"

[heirtothearcane]

The hug startles him. Usually he has a bit more warning than this. Her words are about as easy to understand as the sudden comfort. Perhaps when she meets his family she'll share his views more. Slowly, he pats her back. "If it helps, sometimes I feel that way about you."

"If you want." Only if she wants, of course, always, but there is a hint of restrained excitement at the idea. "There's something wonderfully refreshing about swimming and then getting cleaned off and comfortable. It used to be that I went swimming, then afterwards I'd watch an old movie while I had my tea."

[brave_heart_verity]

She could warn him, but where's the fun in that? She's going to stay cozy and close a little longer if he allows. There's a small laugh in answer to his comment before she manages words. "Yeah, probably. We're both kinder to each other than we are to ourselves."

"I'd like that. All of that." She hates movies, but she'll try. She'll really try. Maybe he can help her understand this whole... acting thing. He's so smart, he should be able to explain it to her. "What kinds of movies?"

[heirtothearcane]

He'll allow it, since she doesn't want to continue dancing right now. Though he might adjust himself into a more comfortable position if she hugs him for too long. "I don't know... I can be pretty selfish sometimes."

"Oh, you know, old movies. Roman Holiday, Lawrence of Arabia, Gone with the Wind, those kinds of movies. But we can watch whatever you'd like," he adds hastily after rushing through the list. He knows his sister hates those kinds of movies, so he's vividly aware that classics aren't everyone's cup of tea.

[brave_heart_verity]

There's no such thing as 'too long' for a hug. He's allowed to shift positions if he wants to. They might both want to once the chao realize dancing is done and come in to join the hug. "Everyone's selfish sometimes. It's how we protect ourselves."

She listens to the list with no sign of like or dislike for the movies. She doesn't seem to even recognize most of the titles. "I'm sure they'll be fine. You'll help me understand them when I get confused, right?"

She would like them, if she could like fiction. She'll like watching them with him.

[heirtothearcane]

Viatorus is unaware of these rules. He's mostly hoping Verity knows them and is taking the lead, not knowing that he might be stuck in this hug forever... "Some people aren't. I've never seen you be selfish."

"I will, but you won't get confused. They're easy to follow, but some of them are very long. Oh!" He gets all excited as something. "I can show you Jason and the Argonauts, and Clash of the Titans. They're really inaccurate, but very cool."

[brave_heart_verity]

"I can be just as selfish as anyone else." By wanting him to stay in this hug with her forever, for instance. But would he really want to leave with her in his arms and chao on his feet?

His excitement is adorable and she loves it. "Darling, I don't have a suspension of disbelief. I've never been able to watch a movie or read a novel and... and enjoy it, or understand how people can..." She gives a little shrug, because she doesn't even know what people get out of movies. "I'm trying to learn."

[heirtothearcane]

"Maybe you can be, but you aren't anyway." It's a silly suggestion. Everyone is selfish a little bit, she's right. That doesn't mean he won't playfully insist that she's some impossibly perfect person.

He leans back to blink at her in astonishment. "You... what? Never? I... What do you mean?"

[brave_heart_verity]

So long as it's playful. It would crush her to disappoint him. So, in the spirit of play, she retorts, "But obviously I am if I'm arguing instead of letting you have your way." If they weren't so cuddly at the moment she might even stick her tongue out at him.

Ah, cuddles, no. "Part of the curse," she explains quietly. "It's... well, it's called a curse for a reason."

[heirtothearcane]

"No, that's being stubborn, not selfish." Sorry, but he says it before he realises. "Not that you're a stubborn person- Oh, nevermind."

This is... incredibly difficult for him to try and understand. "Well... What do you think when you watch a movie?"

[brave_heart_verity]

Don't worry V, she's not insulted. She's laughing. He's so cute, she almost can't stand it. But she'll let him off the hook now--this time.

But the laugh doesn't last long. It's hard, painful, to talk about these things she can't do. Nobody likes to admit to being damaged goods. She's quiet when she answers, shy and sad. "It's like trying to run a marathon through an obstacle course. I think, 'that is a whole bunch of people telling lies and I don't understand why'. Sometimes I think about how nice the costumes are."

Her life is small, V, small and sad and lonely. Is it any wonder she looks to her friends for so much?

[heirtothearcane]

"Oh..." Can she hear the gears turning? Now that he has a problem in front of him, his mind starts spinning into working out possible solutions. It also stops getting him to look at her in shock. "Maybe I can help you understand it then. I can at least try. And if you still don't enjoy them, then we don't have to watch any."

He understands sad lonely lives, but he gets to pad his out with daydreams and fantasy. It's difficult trying to offer help to someone unable to use the same coping mechanisms.

[brave_heart_verity]

He's a problem-solver like she is, albeit much gentler about it. It's one of the things she loves about him. And she's so glad he's stopped looking at her that way, it was getting uncomfortable. "Thank you. I'd like that." She'd like it enough she's smiling again. "I want to be able to talk to you about the things that are important to you."

Even if she doesn't end up liking the movies much, swimming and then tea and whatever with him is a winning plan in her book. It's the little things that will help them both be less sad and lonely.

[heirtothearcane]

If he tried to be half as direct as her he'd only end up apologising frantically after a second or two. But they balance each other out nicely because of that. "And I want to understand you better. To know how to avoid things you dislike, too. I've never heard of someone not liking movies, and I never would have guessed. It's very interesting. I've never come across an empathic challenge like it."

[brave_heart_verity]

It's good to have someone to balance with.

"'Empathic challenge'? I hope that's not a bad thing." It doesn't sound like a good thing. But interesting is usually good to a scholar... so long as it doesn't lead to too much actual poking and prodding. "If I kept trying to avoid everything I don't understand, we never would have met. And that's working out splendidly, so I'd like to keep trying."

[heirtothearcane]

"No, no it's not. It means that your perspective on movies and acting is difficult for me to empathise with, so learning how to will be a bit of a challenge, but a good one. Usually I don't understand people for simple reasons like confidence and difference amounts of social practice," he explains and then hums a bit. "Your situation is... unique, but important. If you can help me understand then I'll be a better empath for it, and maybe I can help you too somehow. You'll have to tell me if you're unhappy though. I'm not always good at telling."

[brave_heart_verity]

She nods along with the explanation. It's all very reasonable. A little impersonal, maybe, but that's okay. She can lean in for more cuddles now, right? "I like the idea of helping each other understand," she admits. It's so much less embarrassing that way. "And I promise I will. If it gets to be too much I'll tell you."

And don't think she's not going to pull out that admission of his needing more social practice later when he's being stubborn about it.

[heirtothearcane]

Impersonal is safe. Impractical and difficult, but safe. In his little bubble, anyway. "Wonderful. We'll do that then some day."

She caught that, did she? Damn.

She can have all the cuddles she likes, but that won't stop him from realising that this is more than a bit strange. For him, at least. "Should we... move?"

[brave_heart_verity]

Someday he'll stop trying to push her away. She hopes. She'd like that, and she suspects he will too when he stops to think about it.

And oh, yes, she caught that. She catches more than people think.

It's probably strange for a lot of people, but Verity's a strange one. Sometimes it's better to not try to understand and just go with it. "Move?" She glances up at him questioningly. "If you want." They can go sit on one of the benches around the edge of the patio, go back inside, take a walk in the garden... whatever he wants. He's the one leading after all.

[heirtothearcane]

"The chao are going to start pulling apart my laces otherwise," he points out with a smile. He steps back to look around and consider the options available to them. His mouth pulls to one side for a minute, then he shoos the chao away from their shoes and takes Verity's hand. "We'll go and explore the garden. I haven't been there yet and everything here is beautiful."