[open] welcome to the masquerade

[implying]

Date & Time: Friday the 7th, 4pm to midnight.
Location: Palace of Versailles, France, 1772.
Characters: anyone! Even characters not yet accepted as of when this log goes up. 8)
Summary: It's just some fancy masquerade dance with spiked punch.
Warnings: here be pictures, slow connections beware.


Welcome to Versailles.

The decorations are arranged, the food is prepared and laid out, the music has been rehearsed, and... most people have their costumes and masks ready. At precisely 1600, the Transporter machine activates, and a full room of people and all of their decorations, food, musical instruments, and costumes are sent back to 1772. The Palace of Versailles is in the height of its splendor, the weather is perfect and cloudless, and the gardens are in full bloom for the spring.

➣ Explore the Palace

Holy shit look at this, you have the chance to get your grubby little fingers all over history before it even becomes properly history. Do you know how many famous butts sat in all these plush velvet chairs? Or are going to sit in these plush velvet chairs? And they were all probably just talking the hell out of French, too. Wow. Go invade some bedrooms, poke your head into the kitchens (but no more than that, or territorial cooking elves might take offense), just. Touch everything. Everything. Just know that where ever you are, there's no escaping that beautiful music your fellow Transports are inflicting on you, that shit's just echoing all over the place tonight.

➣ Admire the Gardens

Jeez look at this, these people just had way too much money. But you get to benefit from it! You can basically just get yourself lost for hours here, so try not to starve or anything. Meet all the statues, go streaking through the fountains (please don't, no one wants to see that), get lost and desperately burst through cute little trees in your increasingly frantic attempts to find the exit. There's all sorts of fun you can have!

Just don't wander too close to the edge of the grounds, or you'll encounter (run into?) the invisible forcefield set up to keep wandering guests from utterly ruining history. That's probably a good way to get yourself a bloody nose.

➣ Enjoy the Banquet

There's tables and tables of this finger-licking good finery here, and it's all for you. And can you believe how fancy it is? Oh my god, those sausages have adorable little spears through them. And those spoons gently cradling their cheesy goodness? Yeah. They're made of crackers. And don't even get me started on these desserts. This is amazing. You've never eaten this good. And naturally, each drink (some of which are spiked, you're welcome) has adorable little frozen flowers in the ice cubes. Who even comes up with this stuff? Elves, that's who.

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Comments

[kneecaptain]

The rich.

[ A pause. ]

Let 'em eat cake, right?

[bratworth]

As they should be. It's part of French history! Quite literally, too.

[ He pauses, watching the man's face to see if he should next be explaining what France is. ]

oh he'll go at his own pace all right

[bratworth]

While sitting down? [ He smirks, still watching her from over his shoulder. ] You must have far better eyesight than I do; I wasn't aware you could see through walls.

[whatsupcroc]

I'd offer a marque, but I left all of those back in my apartment.

( Collette inclines her head to the side, studying Franziska's profile. )

Absolutely no one has broken out into fisticuffs. I'm put out! What about you, Franziska?

[bratworth]

It's more about the location than the event. [ He answers with that first, so he can try and place the girl -- but it's still a struggle. Facial recognition isn't his best skill even without masks, and his organizer that he uses to take notes of network activity has been left behind in the future. ]

We... have met before, correct?

[gevurah]

[ Oh? That dig gets an arched eyebrow from Kate. ]

I don't know when's the next time we'll able to dine like this.

[fortissimos]

Exactly! [ Sayaka... ] It's not like it's weird or anything, I was just—

[ Wait, Madoka's idea? That makes... a surprising amount of sense, actually, because if anyone could con Kyouko into this it would be Madoka. She rubs the back of her head, frowning. ]

... Anyway, you shouldn't call it dumb. Maybe you don't like dressing up so much, but I think it looks nice. [ She sure wasn't staring because she thought it looked stupid, okay. ] You should wear that kinda stuff more often.

[bratworth]

'Premature evaluation'?

[ He raises an eyebrow, clearly waiting for further explanation. ]

[neveraskedforthis]

[ Which he won't be getting. FIGURE IT OUT. ]

So is the booze any good?

[ Like Edgeworth would know lololol ]

[bratworth]

They are. It's fine.

[ If he's being a bit short it's mostly out of discomfort - although he is indeed more happy to talk than usual, sometimes he's just not too sure what to do in the face of politeness. ]

[bratworth]

[ Wow, way to switch topics back on a man. Edgeworth almost considers bringing his question back up again, before deciding that, no, maybe he doesn't want to know. ]

Why are you asking me?

[whatsupcroc]

( Collette is pleasantly surprised by the hug, hoping she doesn't accidentally bless Nananea with some of the glitter she'd so happily painted over the upper portion of her face. )

Hah, you mean Minato does. If you're looking for sporty, that I can do. Stuff like this? No, all the credit goes to the dressmaker. I'll pass it along to him, though!

( Her eyes brighten with curiosity, giving Nananea another look over. )

I really like it. It reminds me of the, um, togs I was talking about. Big in ancient Rome, which probably makes no sense at all to you, huh?

[bratworth]

[ Edgeworth almost walks right past Ed, but he does a double take when he notices the bruise. Perhaps he shouldn't ask, but that coupled with the expression on the boy's face... he frowns. ]

That bruise isn't recent, I hope.

[fortissimos]

Of course I'm sure!

[ And it's too late to back out now, anyway, because she's heading straight for the main floor. She grins back at Kanaya, completely oblivious to her reactions. ]

Have you ever danced before? Tonight's my first time at this kinda party, but I've had a bit of practice now. [ Hopefully the toes she's already injured will save Kanaya's from being trod on. Maybe. ]

that link is beautiful :'D

[bratworth]

[ Edgeworth catches a flash of blue hair that makes him think of his sister -- he's already approaching before he notices the woman's uncertain gait. Definitely not Franziska. Nonetheless, he continues walking towards her -- perhaps the few drinks he'd consumed are making him more amiable. He does his best not to overthink it. ]

You seem uncomfortable.

[ ... and then cuts straight to the point as usual. ]

[kneecaptain]

I dunno if I'm ever gonna eat like this again.

[raisedbybirds]

[Yep. That was probably stupid of him, but for what it's worth she's caught pretty off-guard by such a bold move. Samus forgets all at once she was cold under that jacket, tensing noticeably, the tips of ears suddenly burning hot as his lips crush over hers. It was difficult, in those first few split seconds, for her to figure out his intention (never mind how incredibly distracting the sensation of warm lips over hers was) which is why she doesn't immediately kiss back--undecided if such a chaste kiss is a tentative expression of romantic interest, or simply more physical attraction and impulsive in nature. Her eyes are wide and sharply on his.

There's little doubt Versailles is very romantic; that being kissed on this very bench, by the fountain, under a clear night sky is very romantic. It's beautiful and picturesque--memorable. There is also little doubt (but plenty of denial and repression) Samus was attracted to Adam; she wants to kiss him and she wants him to kiss her more and she wants to pretend it doesn't mean a damn thing. That their common interests are just common interests and that the teasing and the time she enjoys spending with him doesn't mean anything... romantic.

Pretend if she can keep that emotional distance and that armor up that she won't get hurt and that he wouldn't have to suffer or endure another shitty girlfriend. Pretend that him doing this and muddling her thoughts and making her second guess even for a second isn't as infuriating as he usually is.

Samus finally lowers her eyelids and tilts her head to better reciprocate in a surrender of her own impulses, taking his lower lip into her mouth and sucking on it for a moment before her teeth gently hold him captive, not unlike the feather.

She pulls back and then lets him go, as if to silently warn him she could do so much worse to him.]

[gevurah]

Oh. [ She can't say the same. She probably spends Catherine's money more often than the woman herself. ]

It's too bad we can't explore the city itself.

i keep getting lost on youtube send help

[whatsupcroc]

( Collette grins, holding out her arms in an approximation of what one might expect if a younger child were to do so to a significantly taller adult. )

I don't have to worry about the footwork. Trust me on this one -- where you lead? I'll roll.

( Not as neatly as with an A-frame, but... )

Anything too sudden or powerful is just going to pull me out of the chair, so let's avoid that, my good sir. Other than that? Don't drive me into your chins, and stick to the inside of any turn.

( It's not traditional by any means -- but it's a closer mimicry than most might expect, if he's willing to try. People are amazing for the ways they learn to adapt and strive for ever more creative exercise. )

[kneecaptain]

Versailles is just outta Paris. There's not much to it.

[ He glances around the banquet, the walls crowded with gilt and silks and other things that looked like they came out of some period picture. ]

The time travel thing spooks me.

[ima_something]

I lean towards what is... practical.[which was why her dress was hardly that flashy.]

But... your mask does match your suit. [she could say that much.]

[gevurah]

Been here before? [ She follows his gaze for a couple of seconds, then her focus re-shifts to him. She wonders what's going on in his head.

There's so much that can go wrong with this time travel business even if she doesn't want to voice her own paranoia. ]

It didn't feel very real at first.

[whatsupcroc]

( It's an impression that makes her snort, a softer noise of amusement preceding the wry grin that follows his compliment. )

We could always trade, you know. I'm sure you'll look stunning with glitter to highlight the sparkles in your eyes.

( The implicit tease coming across in the tone of her voice. Bringing her hand to her chest in such a manner as to play her fingers over her breastbone, barely touching flesh, she looks up at his slantwise. )

Very dashing, I'm sure you'll be all the rage. Meanwhile I'd have to work on my dark and mysterious routine.

( Glancing down briefly, she adds: )

Possibly by starting with finding a suit-able wardrobe.

( ............................... Badumtish. )

[kneecaptain]

[ Bucky thinks about how it used to be, when every time he closed his eyes he woke up in a different decade. It was like time travel, that waking up. Except they never really let him wake up, did they? ]

I've been to Paris. It's nicer than this. [ But maybe he just needed the dirt to feel comfortable. ]

[neveraskedforthis]

[ Well, she'd be right in this being more impulsive than anything. He's fond of her, no doubt, and enjoys their banter and silly little fights, but what ultimately prompted him to snatch a kiss was the scenery and also her stunning looks. It's really damn hard for a man to resist that for very long and Adam's abstained from these things for a very long time.

He has no idea what her feelings are on the issue (though he's fairly certain that she's not interested in anything serious), but he considers it a good sign that she doesn't shy away or--worse--bites him with malicious intent. Though how far he can push it, he's not sure, so he's keeping his hands to himself for the moment. Maybe he should just say it as it is.

He's known for being blunt with words, at least. So when she lets him go, he opens his eyes again to look at her. ]

Would it be too straightforward to suggest we find a bedroom. To warm ourselves up. For stricly practical purposes.

[ This is probably where it stops being romantic and starts being just damn lewd. ]