gooseberryhigh | MASQUERADE

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!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

After a lengthy disappearance following the Cupcake Incident, Levi returns to Cecil renewed, refreshed, reinvigorated, and smelling of mint toothpaste and Firewhisky. (Okay, so a fraction of his disappearance included his trip back to the cabin to freshen up and refill his flask.)

He approaches him from behind, looping his arms around his middle and pressing a lingering kiss to the side of his neck. "Why, Cecil, I could just eat you up." Clearly, getting sick on cupcakes wasn't enough to kill his mood.

Levi has been gone for so long, in fact, that Cecil had started to think the other boy wouldn't come back at all. Not that he would've blamed him for curling up in bed after being so ill. Even if it was a little disappointing to consider. So it's definitely a surprise when a pair of arms wrap around him from behind and a body presses up against his and someone is kissing his neck. He jolts, starting to protest...until he looks around and sees Levi. "...Levi!" He smiles broadly (false fangs and all), looking relieved. Though, apparently, he was too startled to register the flirtatious comment, because all he says in return is, "You're back. Are you feeling all right?"

Levi releases him and takes a step back as his boyfriend jolts. Oops, he should've thought that through a bit better. "Sorry, I got excited," he apologizes, actually sounding sheepish for once.

But, ahh, that smile. If only it was on the face of his Honeybee instead of... whatever this charm was distorting him to be. He'd though the anonymity charm was going to add a new and exciting element to their date and it did at first, but now the novelty's worn off and he finds himself longing for all the little things that make up Cecil.

Levi lifts up his own mask to do away with his charm and wears it like a visor. "Better than ever!" he enthuses, that familiar dimple forming on his cheek when he grins. Throwing those cupcakes up brought immediate relief. He's never doing that again. Until the next food-eating competition, anyway. "I took some pictures with Ree and then I went back to the cabin to brush my teeth so I could kiss on you."

Cecil doesn't know why Levi's removing his mask, but it only takes him another moment to do the same. He won't look entirely like himself again until the makeup and the contacts and the fangs are gone and the freckles and the flushed cheeks are back, but he's familiar again and he's still smiling at the other boy with unmistakable affection. "...Hi there, stranger," he teases quietly, hooking the bands on the back of his mask through a beltloop so it can dangle there for the remainder of the night. Then he takes his boyfriend's hands and looks into his face. Levi's actual face with the dimples and the scattering of moles and the pierced eyebrow.

"I'm glad you're back. And I'm glad you're feeling better. And..." He leans in, pressing his lips against Levi's briefly before he draws back with a soft laugh, "I'm glad you brushed your teeth."

Ah, shit, the belt loop idea was clever. Why didn't he think of that?? As Cecil starts to tie his mask down, Levi hastily copies him with his own mask before smoothing down his bangs and looking back up at him again. Though he's fond of the blush and those darling freckles, Cecil with vampire makeup is still Cecil and it makes the effort he put into entertaining Levi's weird little fantasy more meaningful. The look Levi gives him is one of pure adoration and when Cecil delivers a brief kiss, he swoops forward to steal one more. "And I gargled with mouthwash," he boasts as if it's an achievement worth being proud of and gives his boyfriend a playful wink.

Levi withdraws his hands from Cecil's in order to cup the boy's face, lightly thumbing the impression of the scar on his cheek before leaning in to press a kiss to his fuzzy brow. "I missed your face," he laughs, "I just couldn't wait until midnight."

Trying to look very impressed by Levi's decision to use mouthwash after brushing his teeth (but mostly just managing not to laugh), Cecil squeezes the other boy's hand and assures him playfully, "I can tell. Very minty. You almost can't taste the Firewhisky at all."

Once Levi is touching his cheek and kissing his eyebrow, though, his expression softens and his dark eyes lower shyly even as slips his arms around the other boy. "I missed you. I guess the masquerade just loses its appeal a little when there's someone that you...want to lose yourself in." Looking up again, he gazes lovingly into Levi's face for a moment before kissing him again and smiling and adding more quietly, "...not that I haven't had a nice time."

Levi lets out a happy hum when Cecil wraps his arms around him and he grips the lapels of his suit jacket to pull him closer as they kiss. His face still lingers close to Cecil's, eyes flitting to his mouth and the flash of teeth as he speaks. A sly little grin forms on his lips as he leans in to murmur into the other boy's ear, "I can show you an even nicer time if you really want to lose yourself."

Somewhere beneath that makeup...Cecil is definitely blushing. "Levi. I..." His voice comes out soft and shy and it's clear that he was unprepared to have his boyfriend this close or to feel breath against his skin. He doesn't draw back, though, and his arms remain wrapped around the other boy in a way that's both familiar and intimate. After a moment, he manages, "What did you have in mind?" Because they're in a very public place and the other boy is almost certainly just teasing him.

Right?

Levi answers with a kiss to his earlobe and then a more amorous kiss just above his collar, teeth grazing against his neck to make his intentions clear. "The cabin is empty. The classrooms are empty. The auditorium is empty..." He pulls back to gauge Cecil's reaction before adding an easy out, "Unless you've something else in mind?"

This is very clear. Cecil gasps softly when Levi's lips and teeth touch his throat, pulling in a sharp breath that he has to force himself to exhale. His hold on the other boy tightens in that moment too, but eases again when Levi looks at him. Expecting an answer. "We'll...miss the fireworks," he points out quietly, even as he lifts one hand to brush his fingers back through Levi's short hair. Even as he touches the back of his neck, thumb idly stroking the warm skin. Really, they're both very mediocre vampires.

While there's a long moment before he actually answers, it's clear that he wants to agree. But the Head Boy can never overcome his embarrassment or his need to think about everything or his good boy tendencies without some amount of hesitation. Being impulsive doesn't come easily to him. Finally, though, he presses his lips to the other boy's, murmuring quietly and smiling very shyly as he draws back, "...The cabin. Definitely the cabin."

A soft chuckle escapes him when Cecil mentions missing the fireworks and he finds enough self-control to hold back his own smarmy comment as his boyfriend quietly contemplates his offer. He's comfortable with rejection and having his bold suggestions shyly brushed off by the other boy, but Levi can't help but feel relieved once Cecil's lips meet his. "The cabin!" he agrees with enough enthusiasm to compensate for Cecil's bashfulness, taking a lengthy step toward the exit and reaching for Cecil's hand to eagerly pull him along. They're absolutely very mediocre vampires. "Don't worry, you're definitely gonna see some fireworks~!"

Cecil steals one glance back at the dance, feeling a moment of combined exhilaration and nervousness over what he and Levi are about to sneak away for. He smiles to himself and bites his lower lip briefly, then follows along as the other boy pulls him out of the Lodge.

MASQUERADE

Cecil & Levi & Vampire Flirting (around ~10pm)

Cecil & Levi & Vampire Flirting?

Cecil & Levi & Vampire Flirting?!

Cecil & Levi & Vampire Flirting ♥

Cecil & Levi & Vampire Flirting ♥!!

Cecil & Levi & Vampire Flirting ♥!!

Cecil & Levi & Vampire Flirting ♥!!

Cecil & Levi & Vampire Flirting ♥!! - Completed via email!