Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » Official Masquerade Topic - Winter 2020

Aspen heard the Duchess speak and smiled after her speech. It broke his focus on the rose. He decided to dance a little bit more, since the gala was going to end pretty soon. Aspen didn't want to focus on this rose too much, but he was enamored by its beauty. To break from it, he walked onto the dancefloor and danced to his heart's content, even if he wasn't dancing with anyone. He didn't care if it made him look weird. Aspen loved galas, and this was proof of it.

Between the rushing about and the warnings, he’d almost forgotten about the party itself. But the sudden blooming of flowers startled him enough to stop in the middle of the table, peeking over the edge. Where did all those come from?

He feels it too, to some extent, as he looks down to his painted heart. He knows the feeling very well too; the feeling he gets when he has a really good idea, or when he sees something that has to be drawn. He might be beginning to understand Gyrfalcon’s words on the flower. Maybe it was more like a surprise!

Still, what to do? He turned another page over, and gestures to the newcomers. Then he hops off the table, making his way to the crowd through the forest of roses.

He bowed to the Duchess

"Your grace, I am compelled to take you up in your joyous offer of dancing!"

As he stepped forward the snow underneath his feet crunching, the petals in the air, his gnomish nature took over an he could not help but join in the joviality of the masquerade even though it would end soon, he was happy to have made it!

The alicorn smiled as he watched their hostess. For her to enjoy the filled him with joy once more and driving the shadow away. " I would be honored to dance with you" He said as he stepped towards her. Each hoof landed to create a beat.

At first, the Sword was a little confused at the Dragoness's bashful response, and then he realized what she had assumed. Alfred skulked off to get a drink, and Aspen drifted in awe towards the rose, leaving him alone with the woman. The Sword's face went wholly red, visible even below the bottom of his mask. "Ah, I mean--um--I have two left feet, but ..."

But despite his awkwardness, he quaffed the rest of his mead, set the cup aside, and took her hands. Both of his own seemed to tremble slightly, in fear or something else. He pulled her into a slow, shuffling dance. The Duchess reappeared then, as flowers bloomed all around them, and he smiled a stronger smile. "'Tis beautiful," he whispered.

Sarthelia's humility prompted a birdlike incline of the man's head. He smiled all the while, a ghost of laughter ringing on the edge of his voice as he insisted airily, "Then it was your knowledge that preserved your little friend's father. That is all the more impressive!" He reached a gloved hand, only to hesitate, maintaining enough of his senses to first inquire: "Would he mind...?" If not, Xefyr would be stroked softly from the top of his head to the nape of his neck, admired as dragons (even half-dragons) deserved to be. The night erupted with the appearance of blue flowers and shining crystals (Cosmic). Gry's strong sense of wonder was plucked at from every direction, and he couldn't resist stooping to scoop some from the ground. As with the book, he produced his pocketwatch, pouring his prize onto the mirror. They disappeared as before. A sample of the night, which he would surely need next next morn to assure himself that this was not a dream.

Aspen was having a ball (hah! get it?) while he was dancing. However, he didn't notice that he was dancing next to the Duchess and some other people. He looked, stopped, and blushed.

The Duchess claps her hands, laughing in delight. "Perfect, two most excellent dance partners!" She reaches one hand out to take one of Laterd's hands, and weaves her other hand into Cosmic Spectrolite's mane, and somehow, it works -- Despite all of their different sizes and formations, it seems part of her nature as the perfect party host is to make matches work. To the gnome, she seems the perfect size dance partner, and to those looking on, there is some kind of optical illusion -- although once can see they are different sizes, the brain simply seems to adjust their sizes in post, so they feel matched. She begins to lead a courtly circle dance, stepping first left and then right, pausing to clap and spin with her two partners as the beat unfolds.

Before Sarthelia could even answer his question, Xefry quickly made his way onto Gyrfalcon's hand, his tail coiling around his wrist loosely as a gentle wave of magic washed over his hand and crept up his arm and to his neck. A voice, childlike but wise beyond his years spoke to his mind. "It is a pleasure to speak with you sir. I hope I am not intruding by speaking this way." Sarthelia smiled. "He really likes you." She said softly, stepping a bit closer as the smile on her lips widened further. Her cheeks, just barely visible beneath the mask were slightly more red than before.

Alfred stared after the alicorn, frowning defeatedly. It seemed he was too late for a chat. He watched as everyone began to dance, some coupled, some with the duchess, and some just by themselves. He admired them all, his eyes wistfully scanning the grounds then down to the snow and flowers at his feet. Something in him wished to dance, but he just couldn't bring himself to get out there. To face their host, who was last so angry. He sipped on his mead, letting it further warm his belly, something he didn't think was possible anymore. Could it be, that just for tonight, he was full? He sighed a happy sigh and leaned on the table behind him, viewing everything as if it were far away.

Alizha bustled in, extremely late. Her skirts rustling, she ran through the last of the hall, and stopped to catch her breath.

Looking around, the young princess saw glowing lights, bright and beautiful people and creatures everywhere, and the whole room filled with dancers and food and shimmering laughter.

She smiled and stepped in, thinking that she could at least sample the festivities before the whole event was done. She thought, she could even eavesdrop a little.

As the Sword took her hands she managed a little laugh, replying with a small shrug, "Well, that makes two of us."

For a few moments she did her best to simply focus on putting her feet down in a way that didn't make her stumble and didn't impede on her partner's boots, but as she felt another tingling wave of magic she looked up. The magically-produced flowers appearing all about, coupled with the Sword's soft comment, made the entire world feel gentle and magic for a time.

"It is," she agreed quietly, looking around in subtle awe. "I haven't seen anything so beautiful in...a long time." Her gaze returned back to her partner, and the blush that had briefly subsided returned while she tried to figure out what to say next. Curse her lack of social interaction...

"Thank you," she began slowly, attempting to find the right words. "It might be hard to understand why something so simply as talking and dancing could mean so much to be, but--I truly appreciate your companionship tonight. You've been very kind."

The crisp smell of snow in the glade takes on a cold floral scent, and suddenly, the snowflakes falling from the clear, moonlit sky aren't snowflakes at all, but an endlessly falling rain of white rose petals. The spell that Cosmic Spectrolite had cast to spread magical blue flowers throughout the snow seems to catch hold of whatever magic this is, and the blue flowers suddenly grow rampantly, twining up the legs of tables and climbing the walls of the manor in but a moment. And still, they are dappled with falling white petals, swirling down from above...

Though the final petal still clings to the enchanted rose in its glass dome, its light has grown searing, as if it is almost at risk of catching fire as it clings to the final moments of the perfect party. The light bathes the glade until the moon above is barely visible, and the dark shapes of the evergreens that surround the glade become a black, impenetrable wall, as if the only place left in the world is the glade itself.

Look in the meantime has taken to watching the scene: the forest ground covered in roses and snow, the dancing partners, the moonlight illuminating turn all and the single pearled rose. There’s another feeling that’s almost too big for him, that he doesn’t quite understand, but he’s not a bad one.

He finds a seat between the roses, and takes in the scene one more time. Alizah gets a small wave and gesture for her to hurry in, and Look begins to sketch.

The sudden dark has him slightly worried though. Is..is this another “not bad” thing?

Aspen eventually regained his composure and continued to dance.

Alizha stared as the petals fell, swirling across the room like a dream of beauty- like her favorite opera, or the glide of her skates. She almost longed to have the skates for this floor.

How easy it felt to dance around them and such a free and delightful energy that filled him. His feet seemed like they might tangle as he kept up the beat yet he gracefully weaved among their hostess and the gnome in a fine dance. When she spun, he reared up and released another burst of magic. Glowing snowflakes filled the air and sang with a magical tune.

Every regret faded away and a light filled his soul as he watched the first spell spread farther. The falling petals made him realize something, he didn't need the flower. He was dancing with it and it had given a gift he could hardly repay.

"My heart is saddened. I have missed all the festivities."


😒😒😒

Seeing a wave from the corner of her eye, the young woman darted into the glade and sat next to this... Orange person. She wanted to dance, but soon enough she would be able to, and she might as well see what this fellow guest wanted.

As Kneewm bowed once more to his amazing dance partners, Kneewm felt as though he had just danced the best he had an years, a great smile spread across his face, he saw a young woman ressed fairly with a bright blue mask breathing deeply as she entered the room, as if she had arrived delayed as he had.

"Well I am not the only one that is a comfort" the Gnome walked over to the young woman bowing deeply he asked, "what may I asked kept you miss, it seems you and I both were delayed from this magical event?"