MASQUERADE

[goosemods]

MASQUERADE

Classes are not cancelled this afternoon, which leaves Event Committee scrambling after 3 PM to get everything in order in the Atrium. Students having dinner are given only 30 minutes before they’re ushered out past the privacy curtains again, since EC claims they need the cafeteria for a “special surprise.” At 7 PM sharp, the Atrium opens, and the Anonymity Charm activates.

Mardi Gras is the theme of the night, and the Atrium has been decorated all over in purple, green and yellow. Floor-to-ceiling backdrops are arranged along the walls, depicting a festive city street, and painted figures of masked performers tumble, juggle, swallow swords and perform magic tricks for the students. The ceiling is decorated with glimmering, stylized stars and a smiling silver moon, and multicoloured confetti falls continuously, vanishing just above everyone’s heads. Purple, green and yellow balloons are strewn across the dance floor, but will magically skitter out of the way so no one accidentally steps on one.

The refreshments table is the real star of the night, with a chocolate fountain surrounded by plates of various fresh fruits, marshmallows, caramels, cream puffs and cakes. A long table features treats styled after the theme, with mask-shaped cookies, cupcakes with edible beads, macarons in purple, green and yellow; glittery cake pops, and sprinkles on literally everything. (A few special treats have been set aside for vegan students, and Prospero will point to them.) At the far end of the table is an open bar adorned with feathers and colourful silk, where students can order mocktails from a menu. Isabelle Sargent, Ursula de Luca and Todd Skynner all volunteer to take shifts behind the bar for an hour (or two), and make conversation with their anonymous classmates while serving up drinks. A masked house-elf will always be present behind the bar, if no one wants to play bartender.

Step through the doors into the cafeteria and you’ll discover a stage has been set up with anonymous karaoke. Have you been too afraid to sing in front of your classmates? Now, if you perform badly, no one will know who you are, so get up there! This room is also popular for the MVSC photobooth in the corner, which automatically spits out a strip of four animated photographs for the low, low price of a half-dragot.

If you want a quiet moment, then the balcony is the place to go. The decorations out here are just as bright and glittery, but the little benches have comfortable purple, green and yellow cushions, and there’s bluebell flame lamps providing warmth and light on this chilly but romantic February night.

Staff is present and also wearing masks, but they aren’t using the Anonymity Charm, to make it easier for students to get help if there’s any trouble. Anyone who’s using anonymity to harass others will be given only one warning before they’re ejected from the dance. Observant partygoers will spot Dr. O’Hare on the arm of Mrs. O’Hare (appropriately, they’re wearing matching rabbit masks), but his partner, Agent Larke, is nowhere to be seen…

Just before midnight, Mr. Oakes presents an awe-inspiring fireworks show right above the lake. You can walk outside for the full view, but the backdrops will be taken down so you also watch from the tall windows of the Atrium. The last fireworks light up the sky at the stroke of midnight, when the Anonymity Charm ends.

HOW THIS WORKS

• Decorating the Atrium begins around 3:15 PM, and the cafeteria is cleared at 6:30 PM.


• Cocktail dress code. That’s party dresses and suits, but you won’t be dinged for getting too fancy or dressing slightly more casually. No jeans or t-shirts, though!


• The dance starts at 7:00 PM, and runs until around 12:00 AM. These are also the hours of the Anonymity Charm: the charm activates just as the clock strikes 7:00 PM, and only within the confines of the lodge and the immediate surrounding area, and permanently deactivates at midnight. If students don’t have a charmed mask of their own, a simple domino will be issued to them at the door.


• Anyone wearing a charmed mask becomes unrecognizable to those looking at them. You might have known a person by their voice, height, hair, skin, or lips, but now suddenly… you aren’t certain. This could be anyone.


• This effectively means that you can’t guess the identity of an individual by their physical traits. However, you might recognize them either from their speech patterns, or something they tell you.


• It’s easier to recognize people by their masks, but if you want your character to struggle with this as well, you may. (The same applies to clothing.) This means you might be at risk of losing track of your date if you come as a couple. This is up to individual players.


• Mr. Calderon-Boot has the power to take the charm away, though, so if you act in a truly horrendous manner or break a rule, you could still get caught. Not to mention that a lot of people will remember if the guy in the blue domino mask was being a total dick all night, and someone might later see it amongst your possessions.


• If you leave the dance, the charm deactivates until you return. If you remove your mask, the charm deactivates, but will reactivate once you put your mask back on.

» Setting Up: In the afternoon, Event Committee works on getting the Atrium looking its best. Event Committee has thrown up magically impenetrable curtains around the Atrium, so even students exiting dinner at 6:30 PM won't be able to see what they're working on.

» Before the Dance: Dress to impress! Do you let your friends see your mask, or are you hiding it until you get to the dance? The trails have been swept by Mr. Covington, to make it easy as possible for students get to the lodge. (He recommends wearing your boots, and changing footwear once you reach the lodge.) Doors open at 7 PM.

» Beginning of the Dance: Students are allowed into the Atrium and get to admire the decorations and everyone's masks. The music aims to get everyone dancing with a playlist that’s heavy on the jazz, ragtime and brass band. (~7:00 PM)

» Refreshments Table & Open Bar: Food and drinks are available all night, and there’s little tables, decked in colourful tablecloths, if you want somewhere to sit. Head to the bar if you want someone to mix a drink for you—all non-alcoholic, of course. (~8:00-11:00 PM)

» Anonymous Karaoke: Through the doors to the cafeteria is a stage with a karaoke setup. Can you guess which one of your classmates is performing? (~8:00-11:00 PM)

» Photobooth: In the corner of the cafeteria, you can take instant mementos of your night. Just insert a half-dragot coin, and strike a pose! Note that the Anonymity Charm does not work in photographs, so your pictures might give away your identity... (~8:00-11:00 PM)

» Balcony: The balcony overlooks the lake, and some students mingle out here to chat or appreciate the scenery. (~8:00-11:00 PM)

» End of the Night: The music winds down with some slower, romantic songs. Just before midnight, there’s a fireworks show. The charm immediately ends at the stroke of midnight, Cinderella. So either leave the dance by then, or stand around with everyone else to unmask and see who you’ve been talking to! (~11:00 PM-12:00 AM)

» OOC - Questions, comments, concerns!

Comments

BEGINNING OF THE DANCE

[goosemods]

Isabelle

[-sparrow.insanejournal.com]

In a multi-colored mask (https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/6e/2d/ac/6e2dacf1f407ee872e5d1daa643ce265.jpg) and a very nice but very last minute choice on a blue dress (http://imgur.com/ztfmmSq) with even her hair a different color, Isabelle is sure no one will recognize her. She's covered in glitter (this time on purpose) and makes her way into the dance completely solo. It doesn't matter if anyone sees, right? No one would know it was her.

There's only mild panic coursing through her right now. Just mild.

Sylla

[sylla]

Sylla is all about the anonymity and mystery of the masquerade. . .only she's probably the tiniest girl at the school and her whole aesthetic probably gives her away to guessers if they even notice she's there. Her mask is serving major Artemis goddess of the moon vibes just as she intended and her dress is still mostly black. Because it is her favorite colour, naturally.

Since she came dateless and unattached, she mostly just keeps herself company and flits away the time people-watching.

Penelope

[get_fucked]

Penny doesn't bother to get ready with everyone. Most of her cabin isn't really like that, anyway. She dresses for the dance on her own and makes her entrance without anyone having seen her before or with anything she has as sh enters the dance. Though the basic mask might be recognizable, Penny did her best to finish it out of sight of anyone but Mr. C-B. She's wearing a sparkly dress, nothing too fancy but nothing too casual, either.

She's actually feeling kind of hopeful.

Mina & Dimi

[wilhelmeana]

As promised, Mina makes all the arrangements for her and her date, and Dimi will find his mask and clothes delivered to him this morning. Since there is no freaking way Mina is walking all the way back to Ebonhide just to put on a dress and then trudge all the way back through the snow to get to this dance she worked her ass off for, Mina changed in an empty classroom. She clips back her hair with a black feathery barrette, and keeps her makeup relatively lowkey despite the heavily gothic theme she's going for. Lots of black eyeliner behind her mask, but simple otherwise.

She stands at the door to wait for her date, who's supposed to arrive at 6:30 on the dot. Or if by "wait for her date," you mean "stomping around and micromanaging last-minute details" ("why didn't we put the box of spare masks where it's CONVENIENT?!"), then yes, that's exactly what Mina's doing.

Wilde

[destructobot.insanejournal.com]

Wilde gets ready a little later than his roommates (he can't decide if this is actually worth it, and then says fuck it and slinks into the Masquerade by himself). He looks basically the same (http://media.gettyimages.com/photos/justin-chatwin-during-the-invisible-los-angeles-premiere-red-carpet-picture-id114998724?k=6&m=114998724&s=594x594&w=0&h=Xjyx4au8LSv2UzK-geZWrLjQXdKiPhkfysmGWhXQF5w=) as the last dance, but he's charmed everything black and has transfigured a handkerchief into a black half cape to wear around his shoulders... ... because his mask is batman (http://img05.deviantart.net/e3f7/i/2015/111/b/1/redesigned_batman_masquerade_mask_by_suichu_kokyu-d68rek8.jpg).

He's also downed the rest of the Emergency Flask before leaving the cabin, so that's cool.

Ariadne never misses an opportunity to fuck with people

[untarnish]

Ari's traded her usual dance wardrobe of form-fitting but pretty modest dresses in dark colors for this sparkly silver cupcake dress, which is something she wouldn't be caught dead in on a normal day. Her bejeweled mask is a tiny bit more her style.

She spends the majority of the night acting nothing like herself, and circulates and chats politely with everyone instead of being a sour wallflower. She's even got a passable if not perfect American accent practiced for the occasion. Mostly she's doing this to see if she can get someone to tell her something interesting that they usually wouldn't, but partly she thinks it's kind of nice to just like... blend in to the group for once.

Rafael & Dancing!

[firstposition.insanejournal.com]

Rafael is always drawn to the dance floor, and tonight's no exception. He trusts himself to be able to recognize Leo easily, but every time they're separated he loses some of that confidence. This anonymous thing sounded fascinating in theory, but when your control issues run as deeply as Rafael's do, it becomes a little disconcerting in practice. He's not paying a lot of attention to his immediate surroundings as he stares out at the sea of strangers.

Regardless, he's available, even though his speech pattern and dancing might make it fairly obvious who he is after a few minutes.

Isaiah & Jacob

[icovington.insanejournal.com]

Isaiah and Jacob have made plans to meet up outside of the boundary of the Anonymity charm, so after walking down with other Ribbonfins the former hovers around the outskirts waiting for his...person. Person seems like a safe term.

Did he mention that he's nervous? It seems stupid. But he is.

He may be pacing.

Saira

[sairaza.insanejournal.com]

Saira is legitimately fascinated by the idea of being unrecognizable despite the fact that her apparel is generally fairly distinctive. She's wearing a typically demure ensemble (https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/16/f1/29/16f129a0c8d11afe9d287fe45f0c5c53.jpg) and a minimalist mask (https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/79/39/62/793962ab3566e7be70453063f1102469.jpg) and is interested in testing the boundaries of this charm.

Reid

[cygninae]

Reid is creeping around the edges of the dance watching people. There's a certain freedom to being anonymous, but he's not using it to open up or approach strangers. Instead, he feels at ease to be as visibly out of place as he wants to be. He doesn't need to try when no one knows who he is.

Diego LARPs

[indiefolk]

Diego arrives alone, and takes a deep breath as he surveys the atrium. Mina really outdid herself. He knows what Ravi's mask looks like, and that's his only clue starting out. Earlier that day between classes they had shown one another their masks, fawned over the details. Diego got an impromptu history lesson on plague doctors, and then they confirmed the final rules of their game. Passwords, what to say if they needed to call it off for any reason, what was considered cheating, and where to meet at the end of the night for the conclusion of the story.

No matter what, he's committing to this. As Diego walks in he gives his cape a distinguished flourish. Ideally, Ravi is watching him enter, but honestly, who knows. There are a lot of little black masks out there, and everyone is completely beyond recognition. It's a little dizzying.

Diego's (relative) anonymity and the narrative he and Ravi built have him in a peculiar mindset. Conversations with him might be... eccentric.

Micah & Hazel

[stclair]

Micah is running back through the door of the lodge when it occurs to him that maybe he should've gone to Coppertale to meet up with Hazel. Except oh man it's so far away? Why are all the camps so far apart from each other? Who the heck planned this out?

He leans against the doorway, trying to catch his breath again. The bells keep jingling on every inhale and exhale. (Dude, this is going to be great.) Is it past 7 already? Oh yeah, it's past 7. He's late. Craaap. That means they're all anonymous now. How is he going to find her?

Micah puts his hands around his mouth and starts shouting. "HAZEL. HAZELLLLLL. HAZEL!!!!!"

Essie!!!

[magitechnically]

Essie is on the PROWL tonight and she is going to dance with so many cute boys!!! They may actually just consist of the entire freshmen class but that's okay because in Essie's mind they're all super handsome seniors. ヾ(o✪‿✪o)ｼ

BEST NIGHT EVER!!!

Addy; a stalker flirt

[addytives]

Addy a hundred percent takes tonight for all it's worth. She probably tells all the couples dancing close that they're really cute together (for more than one song, because like, she wants to make sure they're actual couples). If she'd thought to wear wings tonight, she'd be like. A compliment fairy. She usually leaves without further explanation, but the sentiment is genuine. She will dance with people, too, of course, but takes particular joy in flitting around from partner to partner and leaving. This is a lot how she used to be, but with a lot more making out. It's fun, okay?

Xavier

[solveforx]

Xavier manages to psych himself out in the short walk from the Ribbonfin cabins to the lodge. Maybe he shouldn't have worn the crown. Originally, he had hoped it would be a great big "this is that goofball that will embarrass you, do not ask him to dance" warning sign, but now he's realizing that being more identifiable is kind of an instant disadvantage.

He considers taking it off. Running it back to camp. But, it really ties the outfit together. And, god damn does he look good. And, oh, are those cupcakes??

Vanity and dessert win out.

Asher

[guthriegazette]

Asher is occasionally jotting down notes and doodling in his notebook (making it pretty obvious that that person in the cat mask is probably him), but nothing about his posture suggests that he's unapproachable. He's happy to talk or dance with anyone that wants to, and he even occasionally ventures out onto the dance floor solo.

Jaime

[lupofiasco]

Jaime is going to dance all night if he can help it! He loves dancing, and while he's not normally the shy type being anonymous just makes him feel even more free! He's seriously enjoying having fleeting dances with anyone that passes by, and occasionally he tries to (nicely!) rope someone into dancing with him longer.

Leo ; the paranoid

[ninjaleo]

Truth: Leo actually really hates this charm. The dance is beautiful. However, he keeps his back to the wall whenever he can. At the back of his mind, he knows that these are just his classmates,and they're not inherently dangerous. He doesn't like not seeing faces. He tries to stick to Rafael, mostly. That's just smart. He really doesn't want to be separated permanently tonight; he tried to memorize every detail of his clothes and mask. But when he's not with his date, he's standing around, dancing and talking only sometimes, very tense til he knows who he's with. He'll be a blast at this party, if you like monosyllables.

RILEY!!!

[riledup]

Riley is here to dance. She is hopped up on Pixy Stix and Twizzlers, and her dress is so TWIRLY AND FLUFFY AND CUTE AND FUN!!! She bounces around the floor, spying anyone looking even the least bit alone or fun or open to dancing or just anything. Even Riley's very obvious lady-leaning ways is not going to stop her from dancing with dudes, she wants to catch 'em all.

When she gets bored with her first mask, she'll swap it out and start spreading her glittery charm as just another tiny pink-haired blur of blue. She might even talk about that person with the awesome purple and gold mask like wow, that's so not me, but isn't she like the best dancer here everyone should go find her and make out with her.

COME DANCE WITH RILEY, if she doesn't find you first.

Roxie

[uponawire]

The Roxanne that shows up for this particular party is one that people would recognize only from the hours she spends practicing on ropes she strings up between trees. It's the one that most often appears right around the time the spotlight flickers to life and centers itself on her. She's precise in her movements, her steps light and her smile small and curved and painted dark - not nearly its usual wild and windblown grin. Her dress is simple, but her mask and shoes are enough of a homage to the stage costume her mother (rudely) refused to send for her.

And, despite some commitment to her mild air of mystery, she's very happy to dance with anyone that asks. Or to ask anyone that catches her eye.

Clem, looking for Sy (open to multiple~)

[neattrick]

It takes Clementine (who is wearing a dress that she owns, gasp) 30 minutes flat to lose track of her date. This anonymity bullshit is disorienting.

After wandering around the dance floor for a few minutes and making absolutely no headway (she looked at his mask, and she knows that she knows what it looks like, but... there's a lot of masks here and they all start looking the same after awhile), she considers removing her own mask to expedite the process a little bit. But that feels unsportsmanlike, somehow. Not that this masquerade is a game or anything... but isn't everything, a little bit, with her?

Instead she starts making a tentative second loop around the room, intermittently calling out his name, and occasionally grabbing people by the shoulders to gauge their heights in comparison to her. SHE'S GOT THIS UNDER CONTROL, EVERYONE.

Ennis (& open to multiple~!)

[sheepish]

Ennis arrives about forty or so minutes into the dance, initially delayed from the event set up and further delayed by his stubborn need to remain anonymous, even to his own cabin mates. Anonymity provides relief from many of Ennis's insecurities and allows him to construct his own identity; it's the allure of the internet, it's the allure of the New Moon posts, it's the allure of this masquerade. Nobody knows he's Ennis Harper, the kid with the dolls and the rat and the animal bone collection in his sock drawer.

For the first time in a long time, Ennis seems at ease with himself. His posture is relaxed and not slouching, his head is held high instead of turned toward the ground, and his eyes are concealed so that he can see them but they can't see him. It's nice.

His clothing is fairly androgynous, with long, lightweight dress robes in dark green worn over an ankle-length olive shirtdress with buttons of gold, and brown pants and darker brown boots beneath. A necklace made of moss encased in glass dangles from a golden chain around his neck and his fingers are adorned with several golden rings, the most prominent of which has a large stone made of rose quartz. His theme is very simple: a love note to the forest.

Instead of sticking to the sides of the room as per usual, Ennis leisurely strolls through the atrium, observing the party-goers and grinning fondly at their antics. Other people seem to enjoy the anonymity, too.

Laurel

[laaurel.insanejournal.com]

Laurel spends a lot of time on the floor.

Her dance style probably gives her away a bit, but she doesn't care. It feels good to twirl around in this skirt and not care about anything. And maybe to show off a little bit. The charms on the phoenix mask sometimes seem to trail fire and sparkles behind her head when she moves too quickly, and it makes her feel happy and powerful.

Anyway, Laurel sometimes approaches strangers herself if something about them looks interesting, and is playful with anyone who comes up to her first. ♥

Gavin and/or Garrett

[gavogletree]

The Ogletree twins arrive in identical black suits with identical gold accessories and identical-but-inverted sun and moon masks...which makes them relatively simple to identify regardless of the charm as long as they're together. This doesn't bother Gavin, though, who's acting the way he always acts during parties: confident, charming, outgoing, and upbeat. He'll talk to anyone, try anything (that won't instantly get him into trouble), and dance with everyone. He wants to be included and he wants his brother to be included and he doesn't want to miss out. While he intends to stay with Garrett for most of the night, he would like to get some one-on-one dancing in with a few cute mystery girls or mystery boys and scans the crowd from time to time.