COTILLION

[goosemods]

COTILLION

After two weeks of etiquette and dance lessons, the 2014 National Wizarding Cotillion is finally here! After lunch, participating students gather dress bags and overnight bags and head out to New York City. They'll be staying at the historic Exalted Enchanter Hotel, which today is filled with rich debutantes from schools all over the country. Headmistress Bloom assures her students that they are just as good (if not better) than these kids, and tells them to hurry and get ready. In the lobby, Jefferson Key accidentally ends up deep in conversation with a dragon dung fertilizer tycoon, who is so impressed that they end up offering Jeffy a summer job.

Gooseberry's musicians are admitted early so they can set up and already be playing when presentations begin. The ensemble's musical pièce de résistance is a solo performed by Iliya Krum during dinner, which is so beautifully played that the giant ballroom briefly goes silent as everyone listens. Afterwards, attendants are seen congratulating Mrs. Bloom on the talent of her students. Guess who just won the music program more funding.

HOW THIS WORKS

• Students will leave campus right after lunch, and will arrive at the hotel in time to get dressed for the dance, and there will be a 3 hour window where they can sneak off to see the city if they want to. Presentations start at 4:00 PM, dinner is at 5:00 PM, the dance is at 6:00 PM.


• Dress Code: One person in black, one in white (or pastel). Clothes must be modest, so keep that cleavage covered. Dresses should be floor length, but tea length is acceptable. Suits should have jackets and ties, and a vest ideally but they won't kick you out if you don't.


• For presentations, the pair will enter the ballroom together and link arms, bow or curtsy, and then walk down the length of the dance floor so that all the attendees can see them. Beforehand, couples are lined up outside of the ballroom and each given a notecard upon which they must write their full name, their school, where they come from, and noteworthy accomplishments or goals. This will be read aloud* for both members of a pair when they enter the ballroom. (*Unless it is offensive, trying too hard to be funny, or a flagrant lie. Subtle lies might pass.)
  • Please fill out the following form and post it HERE to find out your character's High Society Approval Rating. If you score a 75% or higher, one of these intimidating patriarchs or matriarchs is going to feel you out for marrying their grandchild one day. You're going places, kid.
    
    Full Name:
    Their Date:
    Location: Where do they hail from?
    Accomplishments: You can cite special positions, academic success, good deeds, charity work or any other awards they've received in or out of school.
    Goals: What high and lofty professional goals does your character have?
    Mannerisms: How does your character hold themselves? Do they float through the room, or slip up their curtsy? Is their hair a little frizzy?
    Connections & Pedigree: Is your character well connected and/or well bred by the standards of high society?
    Anything else?:
    
    <b>Full Name:</b> <b>Their Date:</b> <b>Location:</b> Where do they hail from? <b>Accomplishments:</b> You can cite special positions, academic success, good deeds, charity work or any other awards they've received in or out of school. <b>Goals:</b> What high and lofty professional goals does your character have? <b>Mannerisms:</b> How does your character hold themselves? Do they float through the room, or slip up their curtsy? Is their hair a little frizzy? <b>Connections & Pedigree:</b> Is your character well connected and/or well bred by the standards of high society? <b>Anything else?:</b>


• After that, everyone sits down for dinner, a five-course meal. Dates sit together, and the rubbing elbows begins. Pairs will be mixed with pairs from other schools. There are plenty of rich, judgemental adults to size up your characters from this point on. Afterwards, a constantly stocked refreshments table will be available for anyone who wants more canapés.


• The first dance is a formal waltz with your date, and after that, everything loosens up a bit. Socializing will take up the majority of the evening, and the upper crust students can expect this to be when the matchmaking goes into high gear. Students may slip out early at this point without fear of repercussions.


• Please read HERE for consequences for skipping or misbehaving at Cotillion.


• While parents may attend, any cameos from graduates must only be in logs posted separately to the comm, and siblings shouldn't really be in attendance. Parents have to pay their own way into the event, and will be expected to behave appropriately. Honestly, we would prefer not to have to deal with a "wacky parents scandalize high society" plot, because it would be a burden on the mods to wrangle it, and it steals time and attention away from other storylines.


• Much to Mr. Merrill's chagrin, no one's checking IDs when they hand out glasses of champagne and wine. On the sly, Mr. Calderon-Boot just warns no one to overdo it.


• Students will be staying overnight at the Exalted Enchanter, a wizarding hotel in the vein of The Plaza. Very old, very elegant, and with free WiFi in the rooms and lobby. While you can choose your roommates, it's strictly girls only or boys only. No mixed gender rooms. Cotillion didn't account for Gaysberry very well.

» before the event: You'll have a few hours to get ready. Do you need all that time, or do you want to try sneaking into the city for a bit?

» presentations: Two by two, the wizard debutantes of the 2014 season are presented. Please complete the presentation form and post it here for a High Society Approval Rating.

» the dance: The debutantes will need to complete one highly choreographed group waltz before they're allowed to loosen up. But after that, it's unlimited access to the refreshments table!

» new york city: For any scenes taking place in the city, outside of the cotillion.

» the hotel: For any scenes taking place in the hotel, outside of the cotillion.

» OOC - QUESTIONS, COMMENTS & CONCERNS

Comments

THE DANCE

[goosemods]

Grace & Open to Multiple

[gracesowerberry]

Grace has never been to a party like this in her life and while she's able to pull off the look fairly well (just a petite, polished blonde in a pretty white dress, nothing to see here!), she's definitely nervous. She's polite but shy with strangers and spends most of the night talking with her Gooseberry date or her Gooseberry friends, dancing, or lingering off to the sides like a little wallflower. She watches the elegant, sophisticated people doing elegant, sophisticated things. And occasionally baffling, strange, or even absurd things. While she'd like to, she doesn't quite get all of this high society stuff. Still. She's glad to be here taking this all in and frequently smiles to herself.

She's definitely caught in a quandary about whether or not to accept the champagne she's been repeatedly offered. Is it rude to say no? Is it ridiculous that it's being offered to her? It definitely deviates from her strict diet. Decisions.

Nisha & Open

[godzillabutworse]

Where did Baby Stoker go?? Did he escape without her??? Is he bringing her more shrimps????

Nisha huffs a sigh, excess energy bubbling almost imperceptibly beneath the surface as she sits, alone and stick straight, at one of the tables. No elbows on the table, but beneath it, she touches each finger to her thumb over and over, mindlessly. Her expression is pleasantly blank as her thoughts wander elsewhere. She wonders if she needs to refill the food bowls in Neko Atsume. And what her friends back at school are up to. What if Dinah is doing something AWESOME without her?? Maybe she should send a rude text to her brother. Or Asher. Maybe she could see how many of those little cream puffs she can eat before she gets sick.

Okay, hold up. You made it through the intro without getting kicked out. No need to earn your mother's wrath now. Just ... sit still for a few more hours. You can do it. Even if it's really tempting to start playing with the candles in the middle of the table.

Suffice it to say, she absolutely does not notice anyone joining her at her table.

Stoker Bonding Time

[browbeats]

Rosy hates this. She hates everything about this. She couldn't fucking do anything right tonight, she would have been better off if she had bailed at the same time as Reid. Her parents were still going to have things to fucking say about it either way.

Stomping through the room, the poised gait of a high society lady out the window, Rosy snags two glasses of champagne off the tray of a passing waiter without even asking. She knocks one back with inadvisable speed, then pushes through the others in search of her brother. Or, more specifically, his flask.

"I'm back," she announces herself through clenched teeth when she locates him. She's not sure how long she was gone, but it wasn't long enough, considering this bullshit is still going on.

Stoker Bonding Time

[threatens]

Sy bites down on his instinctive F-word-laden response and, in a vain attempt to save his sister from looking like a lush, takes one of the champagne glasses from Rosy. He has just enough sense to not take the one with liquid in it.

"Welcome back," Sy says, all fake-pleasant, before leaning in. "You know we can just leave now, right? They're not here, they can't get mad." It's clear that by "they," Sy doesn't mean their teachers.

Madison, Open

[cupquake]

Two flutes of illegal champagne later, Madison's less than stellar reception at presentation time doesn't seem like that big a deal. Who cares about these people, right? She'd like to see them do double backflips while maintaining a 3.7 GPA. They're old! She's young and beautiful.

Madison stands on the periphery with her chin at what she hopes is a defiant, beautiful angle, like an angel scorned. She does look pretty tonight, but really -- despite her airs -- her expression is sour and disappointed, just like her stupid heart. To think she really wanted to do well here, enough to bring a boy as a date. She barely did well enough for her mother to be proud. Maybe she shouldn't have come at all. But also, how very dare these people. She's perfect.

Madison and Tally

[heresie]

Tally isn't sure where her date is, but she doesn't mind. She's an independent creature, and she doesn't like having to check in on other people or have them check in on her. She's been cruising around the ballroom, elbowing her way into conversational circles looking for new grown-ups to dazzle. But now she's run out of easy marks, and she's getting thirsty.

Hiking her skirt's train up over one elbow, she makes her way for the refreshment table. But she gets distracted on the way there, as she is sometimes wont to do.

"Madison! Hi!" she says when she happens across someone she knows. "We go to school together." (Obviously, Tally.) "You look pretty tonight," she adds as she tugs at her skirt and tries to straighten it out without dropping the train. "I wish I had gone for something with a skirt more in that style. It looks very comfortable. Is that champagne?" she asks with absolutely no transition, locking in on Madison's glass with the focus of a dog that just saw a piece of bacon.

Madison & her failuredate??!

[ashworthless]

Though people seem to be very impressed with what Ira wants to do someday, he knows that he could probably be better. He's been on the outskirts of so, so many dances, but seeing Madison there at this one makes him feel just a little guilty. He doesn't know the whole situation, maybe, but there's disappointment in her eyes, and it was at least a little up to him to make sure that didn't happen tonight.

More champagne will probably make it worse, but frankly, Ira doesn't have many other solutions, so he grabs a glass for himself, and joins her like the doting escort he's supposed to be. Apparently he still doesn't have anything better to lead with than "Hey," though. "Let me know if there's something else I should be doing, ok? But I think I'll be maybe even less impressive if I dance more."

Madison & Ruby

[patineuse]

She does look beautiful. It's not something Ruby would say, not when she's so careful of boundaries. (That is, her own, not those of other people. Other people's boundaries are minor annoyances to Ruby, but her own are fifty-foot walls no one could ever vault over.) Which is why it's later in the evening before Ruby dares to approach Madison.

And not too directly. She stands two feet away, pretending like she's just milling around with a glass of red wine in her hand, contemplating something important. Then Ruby says, only loud enough for Madison to hear: "Pick a target and I'll pour my wine on them."

Tobias & his unfortunate tablemates

[norush]

Over dinner, Tobias accidentally uses his neighbour's bread plate and napkin and it sets off a chain reaction of compensatorily-incorrect plate use all the way 'round the table. What was the acronym they taught at those etiquette classes? BMW? Or no... wait... WMB...?

Either way, he seems blithely unaware of how badly he bunged that one up, and now, he's staring very, very intently at his salad fork. Or is it his desert fork?

He's about to make his move. Please, someone save him.

Re: Tobias & his unfortunate tablemates

[opencarefully]

Carolina is by no means an expert at these things, but she did pay enough attention in the classes (not to mention to her mother) to look like she knows what she's doing; if not like she's doing it a little nervously. There's no way to miss that Tobias accidentally uses the wrong plate, but she isn't going to call him out on it. They've all already compensated anyway.

Looking at the fork dilemma on his face, though, she leans over subtly. "That one is for dessert," she whispers with a smile.

Iliya (open to multiple)

[iliya]

Iliya is trembling with nervousness after he completes his cello solo (Debussy's Sonata for Cello and Piano in D minor), but he forces himself to sit and finish out his parts for the remainder of dinner. By the time the waltz is done, he's finally allowed a break and to get something to eat.

Adrenaline is still buzzing in his veins, even after consuming a few hors d'oeuvres. He stares at the offered champagne, internally wrestling over whether or not he should get a glass. On one hand, it would calm him down. On the other hand, he might do something stupid.

Iliya's hand reaches out, then pulls back. He's only sixteen. What if they catch him?

Rupert & Antigone

[somethingwick_ed]

Rupert loves places where he can get attention, but now that presentations and the waltz are done Cotillion is less exciting, especially with the somewhat lackluster reception he and Antigone had got knocking around in the back of his mind. He reminds himself, though, that they're here for a reason - to covertly look after Grace - so he's still charming and affable and smiling... outwardly. He's been whispering small complaints to Antigone every chance he gets as they linger on the sidelines, glass of champagne in hand because it makes him look nice. He has yet to take a drink.

"Well, at least Spencer doesn't look like garbage."

Chloe & Open to Multiple

[cmdrchloe]

This is worse than the MACUSA Press Gala last year. There are lots of old and fancy people, and Chloe has to talk to them. She can't say anything weird, and she can't ramble about fandoms. She's trying to pretend that this is LARP, and that she's playing a character very like her mother. It helps only marginally. At least the du Ponts are nice. At least Dr. Nithercott-Hughes isn't Kurt's family. Then again, people keep asking her what kinds of stories she writes, and her palms are starting to sweat.

Carolina & Open to Multiple

[opencarefully]

While she generally has misgivings about being shown off or having to act proper all night, it is fun to wear a pretty dress and dance and hang out with her friends. When she's not around people she knows well, there are shy smiles for anyone who approaches her, and she spends a good amount of time on the outskirts observing if Tobias is off doing....whatever it is Tobias does. She doesn't look incredibly uncomfortable, but more just...timid. Luckily her smile is sweet enough to invite conversation.

When the champagne is offered, Carolina looks around for a brief moment before deciding why not. Maybe it will help loosen her up if she has a glass.

Addy & Nia Narrate an Award-Winning Documentary

[heyitsnia]

Nia squints one eye shut, gesturing with a tilt of her half-full glass of champagne toward a tallish, blondish fellow who looks slightly more handsome than all the other tallish, blondish fellows here tonight. She smiles, listing just slightly to the side so that Addy can more easily hear. "Behold, Aristocratus Maximus," she whispers, even and soothing in a bad Australian accent, narrating the anonymous young beau as he searches for a dance partner. "These are his lands. He moves with confidence befitting a king as he stalks his elusive prey." A pause. She takes a sip. "Ah! I think he's spotted her. He's going in for the kill."

Nia's eyes widen, and then, trying not to giggle, she asks, "Professor Foster-Hayes, what do you think her chances are?"

Evangeline Razor & Logan Cyanide do a mission

[odder]

This dance is boring. It reminds Jade of the embassy balls her mother used to drag her to before she became too unruly even for those. To her own vast credit, Jade's not unruly tonight. But she's not here to dance, anyway. She and Lucas are on assignment. She hasn't yet seen an opportunity to shove Essie and Jeffy in a closet, but she's tried some doorknobs and has several options.

She lights at Lucas's elbow when he's standing near the refreshments table at some point, touching the delicate silverware for no apparent reason. "Do we have eyes on the eagle and the...northern eagle?"

They really should've come up with bird code names before the dance, but those would have to do for now.

Cameron & Open to Multiple

[gonnabefamous]

"High society" isn't the vibe Cameron usually (if ever) gives off, but he certainly seems at ease here. He went to Swan Academy, baby cotillion prep, in elementary school, he's spent a lot of time with the Quayles, and he's a natural schmoozer. No matter who he talks to, he seems to find a comfortable rapport with ease. He's also had several glasses of champagne, certain that no one's really going to question his age. He can't grow a beard, but he can grow a whole lot of height. Cotillion is one of those things that's all about confidence.

Ruby & Ari

[patineuse]

Ruby is not in the habit of praising her parents, but here: thank god they never forced her to go to such boring events. She has memories of starchy dresses and endless photos during Christmas parties, but otherwise, her skating career started too early for this kind of pedigree dog show nonsense.

Flirting with debutantes turned out to have limited appeal, but Ruby's giving it one more shot before she flags down Tally and makes her excuses. "Hey there." Ruby walks up to Ari as though the last time they interacted didn't involve trying to shove each other into a mud puddle. (Alright, only Ruby was trying.) "If you want to get out of here, I'll take all the blame."

Sofia + Open to multiple

[sovain]

Sofia can feel her eyes finally starting to glaze over as this rich old man from Iowa goes on yet another tangent. He's been telling her stories about his champion line of horses for almost an hour and she doesn't think she can take it much longer. Even a long scolding from her obnoxious mother couldn't be as bad as this right now.

As soon as she's able to catch the eye of someone she knows, she mouths "help" and hopes to Merlin they'll come to save her.

Ira tells Spencer a Bad Idea

[ashworthless]

Many of his friends didn't come on this thing, and Ira's beginning to see why. It's a lot more stuffy old people and aristocratic (read: scary looking) young people. He could be flirting with them, improving his reputation and value. But he doesn't really want to. At least 60% of these people were Republicans, or would be, if they had any stock in the Muggle world. He could smell it.

It's a few hours in, and he's starting to get restless. He didn't technically come here for the dance, anyway. It's a relief when he sees Spencer in the crowd, and Ira makes a beeline. "If I was escaping from here and could only see one place before getting caught, where do you think I should go?"

Maybe that's a hint of desperation to his best bad idea friend, who he trusts has this answer. Maybe he's picking at the buttons on the cuff of his dress shirt a little hopelessly. He's been good so far, and it can only hold up for a few more glasses of wine.

Jeffy + Open to Multiple

[racingstripe]

Every time Jeffy thinks he's done with the conversing and the business connections and people asking him just how closely his father worked with the Vice President, he found himself swept into another conversation, another introduction, another executive of another company Jeffy had never heard of, and he's starting to get a little worried this night is going to end before he gets to, like, really hang out with his date?? HE MEANS FRIENDS. And one friend in particular. One he kind of really wants to make tote bags with.

He edges away to the sides of the dance floor, little by little, trying to escape the attention of more adults who look like they're on the prowl. It's super easy to escape notice when you're 6'2" and apparently used the right combination of words to draw adults to you at a fancy dress dance. Someone save him. Keep him in constant conversation so no one can ever rudely interrupt and drag him away ever again.

Charlotte & Open to multiple

[meerigold]

Charlotte holds on to the bowl of her wine glass like it's a can of beer. Every time she sips from it, she wrinkles her nose in distaste; it's not beer, but it's expensive and it's free and she's going to drink it because she can.

She's trying her best to make an embarrassment of herself within the confines of the rules by simply being herself, but for some reason these hoity-toity types are into it. She'd come here to create chaos, but now she's making business connections and giving her contact information to meddling parents with hot, rich sons.

As usual, she looks far too pleased with herself. That is until she takes another sip of her wine.

Ari & Jade

[novelling]

Ari's been giving Jade her space this evening, partly because she's been trying to be an attentive date to Ramon, but also largely because she knows Jade is on a mission. She has respect for that. The fact that Jade has been poorly received is a secondary concern at worst. (Not that she'd be embarrassed to be seen with Jade or Lucas, but Ari can't help but feel like she might be damaging the reputations of her friends by hanging around them. She doesn't regret announcing herself sans relations, but there's a paranoid voice in the back of her mind that reminds her people still make assumptions, and the well-bred people here will surely know the Flint family is social anathema after the Wars.)

But it's late in the evening, and the crowd is thinning. If there was something to be done about Essie and Jeffy, it's surely been done. And even Jade and Lucas can't play super spy or assassin or whatever it was forever. Also, she just witnessed a spectacle, and she's got to tell someone about it.

She sidles up to Jade from behind, looping her arm through Jade's elbow and leaning her chin on Jade's shoulder, a friendly but intimate gesture that she probably owes to the three flutes of champagne she's been plied with tonight (she'd picked the first up on her own; the second two had both been handed to her by Mr. Ulysses Quayle, who has a surprising and useful talent for spotting people miserable at social events). It does, however, make it easy to speak in a voice that's low enough that only Jade will hear her.

"Ruby," she begins with a dramatic pause, "was asked to leave."

Essie & Open to Multiple

[magitechnically]

Essie had never been in a more terrifying room full of smiling people. As soon as the first matron had descended upon Jeffy, she'd put her completely nonexistent ninja training to good use and made a hasty escape to the refreshment table. There was reconnaissance to be done, or at least that's what she was telling herself. So far she'd determined that there was absolutely, definitely no tote bags anywhere and also that she didn't really like shrimp that much and they were kind of too slimy to just drop in her handbag anyway.

There was some good news. It turned out canapé was basically just a fancy word for crackers and cheese. Like, the fancy kind in the pictures on the Ritz box that no one ever actually made. And it had been basically forever since Essie had eaten crackers and cheese since they had a house elf now and that had been the end of fruit rollups and spray cheese for snacks. And, well, they were just sitting there and people were supposed to be eating them, so it would be rude if Essie didn't try one of each. At least five times.

As she starts searching for a good improvised tote bag, a champagne flute appears in her hands, not for the first time tonight. She stares at it suspiciously, tinking the side of it with one of her nails. She hadn't drunk any of them before, but if they were going to keep handing them to her...