Forums » Fantasy Roleplay » Official Masquerade Topic - Winter 2020

It was just like her to commit a faux pas as soon as she arrived and Cass heaved an inward sigh as soon as she had offered her name. Eyeing Sir Robert and the others around her suddenly suspiciously as if they were here solely to throw her off. Well now that she'd told her name, there was nothing for it! She wouldn't let a rule breaking cause her to not enjoy the ball. But still. No more telling names, she decided.

When Sir Robert moved to take her hand she found a smile curving her lips upward at his compliments. "Good sir, I assure you, the wind needn't spread anything about me far and wide. I am content with my circle - for now." Her smile widened,"But how can I not take this chance to widen it as I make new friends? I hear you are a traveler. I must admit to a small bit of jealousy there." Turning her head as the duchess introduced her to Elora, Cass would again dip in a courtesy and offer a wide smile to the other woman. "Well met lady. I am glad to see such exciting people here to meet. I'm sure each of you has some bit of news I'd love to hear."

Sir Robert bows his head and spreads an arm to welcome Elora to the conversation. "I find that the reward for the journey often comes at the end. The world is a perilous place filled with dangers and wonders to terrify and delight, but stepping onto the shores of one's home, with time away logged in the months and years gone by, is a delight to remind one of why we set forth in the first place." He chuckles ruefully and touches his nosegay to his face for a moment before continuing "I consider myself blessed to have this opportunity to join such circles of friends as these and pray that I may be worthy of your good ladies' acknowledgment and amicability".

It was easy for anyone to tell, be they magic or mundane, that the winter air was charged with some strange energy beyond the obvious enchantments that hung over the dell. This was a night of intrigue, where revelers could show their truest selves by becoming someone else entirely. For some, it was a thrilling sensation--for others, alluring. For the Sword, however, it was a little nervewracking.

The Sword was a man broad in the shoulder, wearing layered robes in grey and silver silk with red fringe along the hem. His costume incorporated several pieces of lightweight steel armor, notably a gorget, pauldrons, and gauntlets. His mask was what gave him his name, hiding his face before rising up into crown of sharp swords. Despite his handsome raiments, there was an air about him that made him seem ill-fitting in this grand sparkling field with all its graceful occupants.

Presently he stood just beyond the dance floor, hovering awkwardly by a table of refreshments as he struggled with a wardrobe malfunction. He fiddled anxiously with his crimson sash, untying and tying it around his waist in an effort to make the ends even.

Elora gave a nod to Cassia as the duchess introduced her. "It's a pleasure to meet you," the dark elf said. "I'm sure I do, though perhaps tonight may not be the night for such matters. Let's just say that I'm looking for a fresh start. Perhaps I'll find it here." She grabbed a glass of wine off of a nearby table and took a sip.

Gustav gave a light chuckle, "Well you'd have to call me something would you not" he joked lightheartedly, at the duchess' observation, "Besides, I'm not planning to get into too much trouble tonight anyways" he chuckled lightly. When Sir Robert came around with food for the party Gustav took one of the bags he passed around and bit into the food, a bit too spicy for his liking but it was fairly good. He heard the princess of Nohr speak up and looked over at her, "Oh, I didn't know there would be other royals here, I was afraid I'd be the odd one out" he told her. Though it sounded rather silly, it wasn't often for a royal to simply show up at a gala such as this due to schedules.

Though the full moon still shines brightly over the gala in the glade, a lone cloud wanders across the sky, and begins to unload a rather surprising amount of snow just over Aspen. As he moves around the glade, it follows after him gently, leaving a path of snow in its wake.

It was the night of the Gala and Alfred had thought his mind was made up about the event. He would not be attending. It was too risky, too dangerous. It was already strange enough that an invitation had found its way to his house, hidden in the shrouds of trees. It was enough to frighten him, but when the sun sank to make room for a full, blue moon, something unexplainable pulled at him to go. So with caution tossed to the wind, Alfred adorned the most fanciful garb he could find in Garridan’s dusty old closet and set foot for the estate.

And what a grand estate it was. He marveled at it, clutching his letter tightly in his gloved hands. He took a breath then headed inside, letting the blue light wash over him. People already danced and conversed, and Alfred watched them with awe and jealousy. Were they ‘normal’ under their masks? What lives they must live. His own mask was reinforced with twine to stay on his head and the mouth was long and beak-like. He gave his invitation to whoever was at the door and strode forth, aiming for the food table and hoping to stave off any unwanted hunger.

When Aspen greeted everyone, him included, Alfred waved a hand and tried to say hello, though his voice had been neglected for far too long. He cleared his throat, quietly as he could, and tried again. “I’m Alfred,” he said and sounded a little rocky. “It’s nice to meet you, Aspen.”

He looked at the Duchess, who might’ve spoken next, and nodded toward her and smiled without realizing he no longer had a smile and that his mask covered it anyway. “Thank you,” he said and tried not to sound awkward. “For this lovely party. I’ve never seen such beauty.” As he spoke, his gaze lingered on Cassia, and her horns.

Torie got up, finding that he was bored sitting outside. He needed people to interact with. He found the need to dance, but he needed a partner. He glanced around the room, finding that everyone seemed to be talking to others. He smiled some as he listened to some of the conversations, unable to avoid hearing them. He didn't know what he was doing, but he was going to figure it out.

"....Huh." While her approach certainly wasn't ideal, she hadn't expected to go unacknowledged- likely another rule she'd missed, she assumed. She lowered her hand and looked around, deciding not to focus too much on it. In the meantime, she went back to looking over the crowd, hoping to learn more about the event- there was still plenty of time to get to know everyone, but evidently she wouldn't make much of a good impression if she had no idea what she was doing.

With her hostess sense tingling, the duchess pivots toward where the Sword stood on the edges of the glade. She steps away from Robert, Cassia, Elora and Aspen, and goes to thread her arm through The Nebular Arcana-Ivy Chiffon's, steering her smartly toward the Sword. "Friends! I sense you both have some questions about how one enjoys a party, hmn?"

Elora gave a nod to Robert, as she had missed him gesturing towards her earlier. "I haven't had much chance to experience that," she said to him. She paused to take another sip of her drink, but as she did, a strange feeling came over her.

"My journey's just begun, I'd say," she sang, before immediately putting a hand to her mouth. Well that was weird. She tried again to speak. "I'm sure you have adventures you'd love to tell?" she sang again. Oh gods. There must have been something magical in that wine- she could only sing now! And unfortunately, her voice wasn't the most melodious. Whatever was she to do now?

A lighthearted feeling began to steal over Cassia as she looked around at the revelers both the newcomers and those who had already begun to find themselves occupied by conversation. Her wandering gaze centered back politely on Sir Robert as he spoke and she dipped her head, the movement practiced and graceful, though perhaps a bit too studied as she tried to maintain her ladylike air. But who was she kidding. She wore a mask and the air was so clear out here, invigorating! Her eyes sparkled with excitement behind her mask. "I wholeheartedly agree sir, home should always be something the world weary traveler can find solace and comfort in upon arriving there after experiencing the various flavors of the land!"

She smiled encouragingly at Elora then and nodded. "Let us keep our conversation to lighthearted things then, nothing more than the delicacies we taste and the wine we sip then." With that she selected a wine as well and sipped it with a wink at the other woman, her firey hair swaying slightly.

Glancing around, she noticed a strange flurry seeming to follow a poor soul who looked cold indeed! Before she could decide where to mingle next she caught sight of a pair of Grey eyes nearly hidden behind a beak like mask. The ensemble was slightly intimidating but she had never been one to quail under such circumstances and so she dipped once more to her current conversation partners and gracefully extricated herself to wander toward the newcomer. When she arrived near Alfred, she dipped in another courtesy and glanced demurely up at him. "Hello there sir, welcome to the ball, there are many good things to eat and music to enjoy, of course! " She eyed him curiously as she awaited his answer, not mentioning she had caught his stare. Her horns so far.. Well they did seem to stand out.

The Sword jumped when he noticed the approach of the duchess and one of the guests. He released his uneven sash and sank into a deep bow, from wish he did not rise until he was given permission from either of them.

Torie giggled some as he started dancing, trying to figure out what was making him dance. He wasn't a perfect dancer but he could dance better then most. He hummed along to the music, trying to find someone to pull into the dance. He didn't care whether people stared or not, just finding it fun to dance. He didn't even care that he couldn't stop dancing, finding it fun.

A warm glow like the setting sun preceded this strange guest as he followed the pull on his element. The familiarity of the magic was a delight yet stirred a great fear. As he stepped into the clearing, the glow faded to reveal a winged unicorn with a deep coat like velvet and mane and tail like frosted gold and silver.

He paused for a moment and looked around. Many strange creatures seemed to be gathered here or was he the strange one? Nonsense, he wore a mask and his finest outfit like the rest. There was no need to second guess why he was led here. Head held high now, he pranced into party, heading straight to the rose.

It's glow and magic was delightful and...alluring. So perfect. Magic began to radiate from his horn as a familiar shadow rose within. It was quickly shut away and his magic faded.

Her viewing was once more interrupted by the duchess's assistance- while it was for the better, she definitely didn't feel prepared enough for the event. "Ah, no really, I'm-" before she could finish her sentence she found herself shown directly infront of The Sword. She looked down at his bow, tilting her head to one side in confusion. "Uh... What are you doing?" She asked in confusion, a noticeable theme of her stay this evening.

Gustav enjoyed himself alone, for the most part, mostly looking around the Gala and enjoying the scenery. He figured that the princess may have run off since he only barely heard her and responded rather offhandedly, but he figured if she wanted to speak she'd surely find him again. He figured he should perhaps start a conversation with some of the guests and looked around for anyone who seemed to be free. He spotted Torie, who seemed to be standing far off and alone. He made his way over to him, "Enjoying the gala?" he asked with a small smile

Smiling broadly, Sir Robert bowed again, to nobody in particular and stepped backwards three paces, fading away like ink running in the rain.

Renia walked in and was a bit shy about the whole thing and knew nobody here. She looked around and wondered what to do. She never been at this kind of party before. She waited for something to happen or somebody.. She had no clue what to do. She walked to a table and sat down to have a drink watching everything.

She stood on the outskirts of the gathering after entering, watching with pale eyes from beneath her mask of ebony. From the swirling patterns of gold feathers about the eyes, two black horns formed and sloped back in the shape of a twisted crescent moon, hanging above the mask-wearer's dull blonde hair. Her dress was of a tulle-like fabric, layered in crimson red and charcoal black; when it rustled, one might have thought they heard the far-off sound of beating birds' wings. Her bare shoulders were covered by a mantle of black fur to keep out the chill, whatever the temperature happened to be inside the room. These were matched by a pair long dark gloves, sleek but warm. About her pale throat was a simple black band with a little gold insignia at the front that, upon closer inspection, was revealed to be a tiny dragon, curled into a circle.

She took her time, walking slowly along the edge of the gathering and basking in the ambiance with quiet contentment. Eventually a man with a mask like a crown of swords caught her attention; he stood by one of the refreshment tables, fiddling with a sash about his waist.

Daring to step even farther outside her comfort zone, The Dragoness approached the knight-like figure, waiting until the hostess and her acquaintence had finished greeting him before speaking up.

"Good evening," she greeted, her voice quiet but perfectly audible. What to say now? Can't just say hello then walk off... "I like your mask. Have...Have you come from very far?"

Oh goodness, it had been a long tike since she'd done this.