Holiday Ball! [December GM Event]

[Kaelyn]

Chuckling a little at the not being able to fly comment, Kaelyn looked up at the woman. She was a bit taken back by the comment to add even more to their deal. In Kaelyn’s mind, everything seemed pretty fair, but Titamat wanted to throw more into the pot. “That’s not necessary.” But she certainly wouldn’t stop the woman if she wanted to give her the crap guns. The blonde nodded her head a little at the mention of performing at the Dragon’s Nest. She’d never been there herself, but maybe she’d have to check it out. Directing her eyes towards the man Tia was pointing to, Kaelyn’s face wrinkled up a little. Tiamat was already gone and off to greet someone else. She was supposed to go stand by some strange man...that wasn’t totally out of her comfort zone or anything. Maybe she could talk someone into giving her a drink first though. Her first glass was empty and being carried away on some tray she had set it on.

Feet started directing her in the direction of the bar. She wasn’t sure how she was going to make this work. Maybe she should just go talk to Doc and have him nab her a drink….no that’d be bad. It would like he was serving minors. She would just have to make do and figure out how to get a drink on her own. Something needed to steady these nerves a bit. Kaelyn glanced at the people that were hanging near the bar, seeming to be doing the same thing as she was.

Immediately all hesitations, nerves and doubts washed away at the sight of one person. A large grin tugged at her lips as she narrowed in on the woman. When Kaelyn was close enough, she wanted to embrace the brunette, but knew better. Ariadne wasn’t big on physical affection, so she just offered the woman a smile. “Ari! I’m so happy you came. I didn’t think you were going to. Look, I wore the dress you picked out for me! I love it.” She was excited and beyond relieved the woman was here, but she needed to tone it down some. “I was afraid I wasn’t really going to know anyone.”

[Mortll]

[against_sirens][/against_sirens][for_peace][/for_peace]


Mortll greeted Azaraeth and Flynn with a kiss on each of the males cheeks. She nodded and spoke as introductions were made. Her eyes watched the attendants she brought with her hand out flowers some being refused and others welcomed the gifts. She kept them on her peripherals her attention on the woman that stood next to Amalea So this was the mouth piece of the Sirens she wondered if this woman was aware of how many times Sirens had attacked trying to pry territory from the people that stood around her now. She noted the woman's gaze and her appraisal of her and her companions. The woman's interest seemed to be nonexistent all except for Amalea. This could be a good thing Mortll silently thought to herself. Mortll smiled and listened watching .... yes watching her eyes taking in every bit of the Sirens body language. Then a Elf shoved a bag of money into Mortlls hand . Startled Mortll almost dropped it then looked around when she realized what it was ... Really what type of charity gave out cash to every single guest?

She looked at Flynn and saw Tiamat breeze by him and hand him her bag of cash as the Children sang Then disappear as quickly as she had appeared. Mortll knew the woman and knew there was a reason she was here and it didn't add up to anything good. Mortll looked around warily expecting to see plastic explosives half hidden under serving trays or something of the sort. When Flynn excused himself Mortll took it as her chance to do some exploring of her own "If you ladies will excuse me I think I need a drink" She excused herself from the group giving Az a qick kiss on the cheek as she headed towards the bar .

[Ripper]

[for_peace][/for_peace]

‘Santa’ reared up to his full height and hackled in a full primal fight or flight instinct as his conversation with Zodiac was abruptly cut short by the hugely giant man appeirating suddenly right out of the shadows directly next by from where they stood.

Immediately and unthinkingly both hand splayed out to three times their normal width and from each finger split open in the retraction of talon-like appendages which would have looked more appropriate on the end of a dinosaur’s claw. The huge man looked familiar and even as he lifted his arm upwards to drive downward in a descending arc the clarity of realization came to him in a certain case of deja vue and the thought struck him clearly that nobody else could be that tall unless it was Mordechai. His attack came to a halt slid to a stop only mere inches away from piercing through eyeball.

Razor claws extended back to where they had first come from and the vampire takes an desperate few minutes to swallow and compose into something that wasn’t only merely guttural.
He and the other Killer had been and always were on good enough terms during each of their previous interactions, but this didn’t mean that Ripper still felt comfortable stepping into normal arm reach necessarily and remaining unvigilant. He knew that this big bad would not pause or even think twice about trying to end him if ever asked to by somebody else whom they liked more.

“What in the blue sodding blazing bahjeezus!!”

[Amalea]

[for_peace][/for_peace].[for_sirens][/for_sirens]

Tagged: (spoken to) Ayuka, Azraeth, Caligrace, Every, Flynn, Freyja
(telepathic) Azraeth, Every

A smile tugged at her lips as Every’s reply flittered through her mind. She could have chuckled in quiet amusement at the initial statement if not for the question that followed. Of course she would have picked up on that slight flinch that the red-head had hoped would have gone unnoticed; it seemed that little escaped her notice from her own experience. It wasn’t really surprising given what the brunette likely dealt with on a regular basis; particularly given Enver was her cousin alongside her own affiliations within the city.

Her own reply was made as she nodded in agreement of Ayuka’s comment to Every about being daring as often as possible. As opposed to most of the city’s inhabitants, she figured Every likely already lived such a life. Though, there was wasn’t much harm in pushing one’s boundaries on a regular basis. It was how people tended to grow and strength themselves. Without risk, there was no true reward.

Considering the Asian’s question a moment, she tried to formulate her reply into a form that wouldn’t make her sound entirely insane. ”Well, I should start by confessing I’m not a Starbucks lover. Growing up on the East Coast in the United States, you’re in Dunkin Donuts territory, but I have to say I strongly prefer Tim Hortons now. I came here to do some digging into my family and never left. It’s the only place I’ve really ever felt at home and like I belonged. Aside from that, I’ve met a lot of wonderful people and seem to be building extended families. I guess I love it because it is home and I can’t imagine being separated from all the people that make it that way.” It likely sounded cheesy but it was true. Harper Rock had become home a long time ago and she was more than happy about that.

She listened to Every explain how she had ended up in this city. Criminology would certainly have been an interesting major within the city, particularly if the University paired with the local law enforcement and justice systems to give students an insider’s view and/or hands-on experience. Goddess knew there was no shortage of crime around here that could be learnt from. She suspected if the program was set up right that the graduates from the program would end up at the top of their fields in a short time. Most other cities would be tame in comparison to Harper Rock.

The jingling of bells amongst the crowd drew the red-head’s attention to the elves darting about in the crowd. It was a rather odd sight to behold though she would be the first to admit she was curious as to what merriment they were trying to weave. As if one read her mind, a heavy weight descended on the belt of her dress before a jingle of quickly ringing bells sounded as the elf dashed off. A single eyebrow rose as she freed the green velvet from her dress, lest someone attempt to snatch it and take the garment with them. It certainly had a bit of heft to it and a bit of jingling of its own which she assumed were coins. She tucked it into an inner pocket not worried about the contents; she had plans for whatever amount was inside later. A bit of last minute shopping would be the perfect nightcap.

Many would likely have assumed that all the city’s shops would be closed by the time the ball ended if they hadn’t closed prior to it commencing. It was Christmas Eve after all never mind the late hour that the fete would likely draw to a conclusion. One only needed to know where to look. The red-head had learnt about the shop from her assistant, Rei, a few nights prior when the woman reminded her that she needed to bring a gift to the staff party the next morning. Amalea still wasn’t sure why the woman waited till nearly two am to tell her this but she had headed straight to the suggested shop delighted to find it was indeed open at the wee hours.

The clerk had been more than helpful with suggesting several gift options and she had ended up chatting with him a while. She had been surprised that he was actually the owner of the store. When asked about his hours, he had stated he believed everyone should have access to a decent selection of items at decent prices during all hours. Even holidays she had learned as their employees came from a variety of walks of life so there were always those willing to work. She had been so impressed with the man’s business ethic that she had returned a couple days later to purchase the gift she had brought with her tonight – a set of building blocks in a variety of colors and shapes.

She couldn’t help but blush lightly between Ayuka’s comment to the newly-arrived trio and Azraeth’s own greeting. Her only hope was that it wasn’t too noticeable otherwise she wasn’t going to live most of this night down for a rather long time. She had to bite her lip to keep from laughing at the potentially unintentional spider-reference; though she suspected the woman had been fully aware of and meant to say what she did. Given she was a public relations representative, it would be outside her nature to do otherwise. The blood thief was also grateful for her companion speaking up and asking for an introduction to the two woman who had approached Every as she had never met them either.

”I’m doing fairly well this evening. It’s been quite the festive party thus far and the company just keeps getting better,” Her eyebrow had quirked lightly at the Mystic’s slip of tongue as he introduced Flynn to the others. While she was quite sure the dragon had been ready to call him his human, the red-head couldn’t help but have a little fun with him. If you want to put a ring on it, Alexandrea has some really nice pieces you might consider, the thought was sent with a fair bit of amusement from the human. While it was mostly in jest, the bit about Alex’s work was not; the woman did wonders with jewelry. In either case, she was pleased that the couple was happy together. She was only just getting to know Flynn, but she could tell her brother was smitten with the Paladin, which made him ok in her book as long as he didn’t hurt him.

She couldn’t help but notice the appearance of the children as they made their way to the newly-erected choir stands. They were all adorable though their outfits could use some work. It wasn’t that they weren’t nice, but no one had taken the time to ensure proper fits and alterations had been done where needed. It was a shame given this was the best time to make a great impression on those present; one that would make wheels start turning in heads to consider giving one of these precious angels a place to call home. The name of the home was filed away for later reference as the crowd stopped to listen. It wasn’t the best rendition of the carol she had ever heard but there was no denying that they had put their heart and soul into the piece which made it extra special.

She silent agreed with the Siren as she voiced the same sort of thought that she had been thinking earlier. There was a bit of curiosity though as to how the woman had planned to finish that statement. Was it perhaps something to do with vampires? Or Sirens? She discounted the siren angle almost immediately as it would be silly for a woman in her position to talk ill of her own species in such a venue. It was likely vampires and honestly, she couldn’t fault the woman if that’s where her thoughts had been going. It was true after all between the force feeding and internal fighting; but she couldn’t fault the woman for holding her tongue if such was the case.

”Pleased to meet you ladies,” she smiled at Caligrace and Freyja, giving the ladies a slight wave. She wasn’t really great with new people sometimes and it seemed as this was going to be one of those times. That her head was pounding didn’t help and she could already feel the sinus pressure start to build. She’d have to do something before the red-eyes reared their ugly head but hopefully she’d be able to mingle a bit longer before that occurred. The question of Every was a good one that Amalea herself was curious about given how wide ranging the opportunities in the field were.

The whispered words of her companion were unexpected; after all, the woman really didn’t need to justify her actions to the red head. Especially not in such a manner even if she was just being polite That she then offered the entire group a similar sentiment made the quiet words even more redundant. It was a mystery that would likely take the entire evening to solve, if not longer. Her eyes subtly tracked the woman’s path, curious whom she was off to see; of the trio, she only recognized the male, Alaric, from the time he had accompanied Elizabeth to the town hall meeting.

There was a moment when she wondered if Azraeth would mind if she strangled his lover just a bit. She was fairly sure his statement had caused her cheeks to match her hair; she was just grateful he had waited till Ayuka had stepped away and that Doc and Elizabeth weren’t present. Goddess above, she wasn’t going to hear the end of this, was she? There was a minor sense of amusement in her mind at the image of Azraeth having a heart attack over it, especially as the man was currently protesting that description and adding his own demands. She eyed the Paladin as he made his excuses and headed off into the crowd. Yup. She might strangle him a little later. Evil man that he was bringing it up and running.

”Down boy,” she muttered quietly, thankful Mortll had departed just after Flynn. The less attention, the better in her mind, though she knew Az would share what he learned with his man later. Her explanation was put on hold by Az’s out of the blue statement. Her initial thought was that it better be some real, thick wood that he did his knocking on given some of the people in attendance. Idly, she wondered if he knew about Santa’s true identity, though she’d let him know later if need be. ”Don’t jinx it,” she laughed softly. ”It’s been a rather nice night thus far.”

Despite the comment, she knew he was still waiting for the explanation. Her voice was kept low to keep from disturbing the others and to avoid unwanted attention. ”I only just met her. She came to me to introduce herself since she had never seen me at one of these shindigs before, which is true as I’ve never been invited to one before. I think the closest thing would be the Unification Event.” Her nose twitched slightly at the memory; she missed Enzo being around and hoped the man was doing ok where ever he had gotten off to. ”We’ve just been talking for the most part. She’s the public relations representative for the Hebigumo Foundation.”

She held a hand up to forestall any protesting. ”Yes, I’m quite aware of what she is. Someone made extra sure of that. But you know me, I don’t care about things like that. Besides, we’re in a very public place, I think I’m… we’re perfectly safe.” She sighed as continued, ”The kiss was just a mistletoe spurred kiss. I wasn’t about to deny a pretty lady a kiss.” She laughed softly, ”Besides, it would have been worse to have denied her and have it end up as front page news. I could just see the headline now. ‘Hebigumo Foundation official insulted over refusal of holiday tradition.’ She seems to be a nice woman, despite the spidey senses. As for dating or anything, I don’t think so at this point.” She gave her brother a small, shy smile, hoping she had provided adequate answers to his concerns.

[Topher Carpenter (DELETED 10052)]

The vest was a little loose on the Southerner’s wiry frame, but what else could be expected when he was a last minute call-in? Most days Topher didn’t know which way was up and he lacked the willpower to do anything about it. This was the kind of attitude that had got him fired on numerous occasions.

Despite this shindig being set after sundown, Topher continued to work with fuzz in his brain and that weird, sticky feeling in the back of his throat like he couldn’t get enough water. Dehydration, and a lingering headache from a big night that had finished only fourteen hours before. How much sleep had he got? Barely any. But Franky, his erstwhile (but altogether more organised) housemate had hauled him out of bed and dragged him to this ‘party’ to do some work. Someone had dropped out, quit, and Franky was expecting thanks for providing Topher with new income.

The powers that be hadn’t said no to Topher; they needed the extra hands, and they’d listened to Franky who’d vouched for Topher. He’d waited tabled before. He’d done catering. He could hit the ground running. The waiters were all dressed similarly, black pants and white shirts, their vests all either a deep red or a deep green. His was deep green, which appeared to match that of Penelope Dupuis -- the woman stopped Topher as he was heading back to the bar to fill his tray.

He hadn’t known he’d looked sullen until she mentioned it. He might have corrected her and said he wasn’t sullen, so much as hungover and tired, but he didn’t think that would do him any favours. He bowed once she released him and scurried off to do his job -- though he wasn’t about to ignore the boss. He forced a smile (which wasn’t all that forced, in the grand scheme of things) and slipped behind the bar.

He slid the tray onto the bench and retrieved a fresh set of iced champagne glasses; he could fit about fifteen on his tray. Next, he collected two fresh bottles of Mumm from the fridge, focused on untwisting the wire and ripping off the foil that covered the cork. Champagne bottles weren’t Topher’s forte. So, although he tried to be careful with the cork, tried to catch it before it popped, he failed; it escaped his grip, and instead hurtled across the bar and… oh no.

There were two women, one younger and one well, not older, but older than the curly blonde at her side. Topher could only watch, and hope that the cork didn’t hit anything important.

[Alaric von der Marck]

Aurelia felt the need to apologise to the elf on Alaric’s behalf, which only made the elder more agitated. There were reasons why Alaric chose to get out of the house on his own; he was finding his own feet and his own independence, and less and less did he have to seek the help of those willing to help him. To have someone else apologise on his behalf only made him feel… well, he tied not to focus on it.

”I decided to try to attend cultural and political events, ja. I do not wish to be a recluse any longer,” he responded. He did not answer the first question; it wasn’t that he missed it, he simply chose not to.

Before Aurelia could find it in herself to repeat the question, the two of them were joined by Judah. It turned out Alaric wasn’t the only one to have heard about this party, but that was no surprise. It had been profusely advertised. If a self-confessed recluse could have heard about it, then the whole city must have. And, given the turn out, it almost felt like the whole city had come. He was wearing a jacket that looked… well, like something that Alaric would never think to wear, though he was quietly considering whether it was something he might be able to pull off. Equally as quietly, he concluded that the jacket suited Judah, young and hip. It would not suit Alaric.

”You look… festive, Judah. It is good to see you,” he said with a smile that, at least, wasn’t forced.He even chuckled. ”I will keep your preferences in mind for our next party,” he said with a subtle wink.

He then flinched, cringing as a voice shouted to them over a megaphone; in comparison to such grating noise, the carol that the children sang was soothing. They were children -- their lack of tune could be forgiven.

[Game Master]

R O L E P L A Y + P R O M P T + ! ! !

The Carol of the Bells ends, and the elves begin to help guide the young singers out of the Ballroom. They need to get back to the Home, and into warm beds anyway. It's past dark, and late for all of them. In fact, a few yawn on the way out, as the choir stands are hastily pulled back down so that people can continue with their mingling.

With the two trees all but filled with presents, and more people pouring in all of the time, a third, yet unadorned Christmas tree is wheeled in and placed beside the other two in a large metal tree stand. After an ornately embroidered tree skirt is placed around the base (depicting the nativity), that is when the elves begin to come in single file with boxes of ornaments.

Megaphone time again. "Anyone wishing to help decorate the new tree may feel free to do so! You will find ornaments of every variety, tinsel, garland, strings of cranberry, lights, and more. Have to make more room for all of these wonderful presents!" Which is totally a great way for the elves to cover their own backsides and try to get some free labor out of those in attendance at the Ball. Or something.

[Everyone who has posted since the last prompt receives 1000 EXP!]

[Ainsley (DELETED 8973)]

Ainsley had only been outside a few seconds with the offertory scarf, before one of the two guys in the crowd of five individuals, glanced her way and then shrugged his way out of his suit coat. "Woah, you'll freeze to death coming out here like that." He said, offering him her coat, to which she held up a hand and shook her head.

"It's your coat, and I don't plan to stay outside long, but your friend there needs a scarf." She assured him, holding out the scarf to him as he still held out the jacket. "Why don't you stay out with us? We're almost done anyways." He pressured, ever so slightly, before one of the three women with blond hair came by and took the scarf with a slight glare. "Maybe a few minutes just to see him finished." She said, looking past the woman's steely gaze, to the snowman that only needed a head and to be decorated by this point.

He clapped his hands together, then again, shoved the coat in Ainsley's direction. "Thanks." She said, taking it appreciatively. He had a little bit more to his appearance than she did, so a few minutes wouldn't hurt or kill someone, right? She hoped so. She pulled the coat around her figure, then joined the group, in the respect that she stood there, watching the two guys putting the head on the top of the snowman, before the women began to put on the nose and eyes. The scarf was saved for last, only because it had been casually discarded (intentionally or not), to a pile of snow, before Ainsley pointed the scarf out, which was collected by her temporary Knight in...whatever material the coat was made out of. "He looks great. Thank you for letting me join in." Her eyes moved to each person in the group, before she tugged the coat off and offered it back. "And thanks for this. I have to get going-my toes are freezing!" She said, shoving the coat in the male's direction before heading back inside to warm up and make her way out of the party. That was, until she head the children singing, causing Ainsley to just listen and observe with a smile on her face.

[Game Master]

MORI, ayuka ◦ Hebigumo Foundation Representative ◦ #804080

[for_peace][/for_peace][for_sirens][/for_sirens]

Home. She certainly understood that sentiment. Home, to Ayuka, was an intersection of love and location. If someone was utterly and completely wrapped up in themselves or their things, then home was anywhere that they felt comfortable, surrounded by the objects which brought to memory their happy or glorious moments. For those who loved people, who looked outside of themselves to find recognition in ‘human’ reflection; to those people, home was based on who rather than where or what. Ms. Mori suspected that Amalea fell into the latter category of persons, and this suspicion had all but been confirmed in a short period of time. It was clear that there were many people who cared deeply about Amalea, who she was close to. The whole thing brought to mind a quote by L. Frank Baum. And in that case, nobody could say the blood thief’s heart was judged poorly or in wanting.

Indeed, Ayuka could see why Lea called Harper Rock home.

Maybe that was why she was drawn away from the little group that had gathered so close. She could feel the euphoric buzz of friendship, of kinship that was there. There were others in the crowd though that felt differently, and she wanted to spread some of the cheer to them. It was the Holidays after all, and everyone deserved to feel a little bit of extra warmth. Plus it was great for networking.

She neared the group of two men (one very brightly clad) and a woman, only to offer a hand over. Her nails were French tipped, only with black and a deep red as opposed to nude and white. Her voice was naturally soft, though the words clearly enunciated, with just a hint of steel behind them which gave the indication that she could have been whispering in a crowd, and those around her would have been able to make out every single word she spoke. The accent was barely noticeable, but there were the tiniest hints of her Japanese heritage when she greeted them. “Happy Holidays.” She said, glancing first into Aurelia’s eyes, and then Judah’s, before settling her gaze on Alaric. “Ayuka Mori, public liaison to the Hebigumo Foundation. I hope the season is finding you all well?”

[Elizabeth]

[for_peace][/for_peace]

Elizabeth listened to Doc's explanation of 'Chub,' before her eyes fell on the woman, easily found given his description of her. She smiled at Doc's sentiment of the young woman, there obviously was some for the woman, and his phrasing of 'Chub,' or more so her personality. "I will keep that in mind, should we ever meet." Elizabeth said with a light laugh before her eyes returned to Doc.

The Telepath tipped her head in thought, recalling how she had casually mentioned in trip, when he had gifted her a relic that would be valuable no matter where Elizabeth traveled one day. "Long?" 'Long' to one person may be short in duration, and what is short, may seem long to another. "A little over a week, if all goes according to plan." Elizabeth admitted, seemingly vague-without intending to be.

"I have seemingly found myself in a state of...nostalgia, if you will." Elizabeth began, her voice just loud enough for him to hear her over the holiday 'hustle and bustle.' "Since the prospect of this 'cure,'" She turned to face him, so that Elizabeth could focus on him and not the other distractions. "The...'what if potential,' I suppose. Partnered with your recent scenario or situation." She took a sip of wine, then allowed the half drunk glass to be taken away on a passing tray.

"Back in October, I hired an investigator and he's found a woman, I am highly interested in. Not from my branch of the tree-if you will, but from the branch of one of my brothers..." The elder's voice trailed off for a brief moment as a small crowd walked by. "There are others-her parents-the father being a descendant of John's, and then some cousins, aunts and an uncle." Her right shoulder lifted into a small shrug. "Perhaps you find the idea silly, or a potential waste." Elizabeth laughed lightly, "But I find myself interested, regardless." She finished as Elizabeth turned back so that her view rested on dozens of strangers, instead of just Doc. "As I said, I do not plan to be gone long-though it depends on her. I was not trying to be so evasive, the conversation has just simply not come up since then."