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COTILLION

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.
» 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
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?:
- 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.
- 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
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
Essie grabs the closest coat and wriggles into it, giggling a little when the fur collar tickles her nose, and then she emerges from the coats, waving her arms around dramatically. "No ghosts!!! It's just ME, Estella... Bertha... Devillington... the Twenty-Fourth!!! I have SO much money," Essie explains in her best pompous la-di-da voice, shoving her hands into the coat's pockets in search of a monocle, since rich people always have monocles, "but I heard there's a TREASURE hidden somewhere in these walls."
No monocle, but Essie does find a pair of tiny binoculars on a stick??? She holds them up to her face, standing on her tip toes as if that'll help her peer down on all 6'2" of perfect boy Jeffy Key. Who she had a crush on. And was on a date with. And was now in a very small private space with. All of which Essie is very distracted from at the moment, as she asks in her best shrill matron voice, "And WHO are YOU???"
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
"Don't tell anyone, but, I don't have a penny to my name," he reaches behind him to grab the first coat he can lay his hands on, and it's immediately obvious it's way too small for him. The hat he snags off the wall has the same problem. These rich people are super small. He throws the jacket over a shoulder, and flourishes the hat in a grandiose bow to Essie. "But legend has it, my great-grandfather owes your great-grandmother an awful big debt for saving his life."
When he straightens back up, he doesn't know what to do with the hat anymore. Putting it back on the wall just seems silly. "And, uh, ALSO this hat." He plops the hat on Essie's head, still easily very much smaller than him, even on the the tippest of toes. "THAT was in the will."
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
"I'll keep your secret, if you'll keep keep mine," she continues, taking the arm of the coat she's addressing and shaking it in agreement. "But that great-GRANDfather of yours sounds like someone SPECIAL and I bet MY great-grandmother would want me to help you OUT, so we should look for this treasure TOGETHER." She leans into the coat rack, stage-whispering her plans to it and then disappears into the coats again, forgetting that the top hat has added some considerable height to her and sending it flying. Her head peeks out from the coats again. "Oh DEAR, I'm not used to being a GIANT."
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
“It takes an AWFUL lot of getting used to,” Jeffy says, spinning on the spot to scoop the hat up from the floor, and if his voice sounds breathless it’s only because, uh, the CHARACTER is breathless!! “But with a little practice, you’ll be even better than me.” He carefully sets the top hat back on Essie’s head, the only part of her that’s visible. It is almost definitely going to fall off again in a matter of seconds, and whoever owns it will wonder why their terrifyingly expensive tall hat is covered in dirt at the end of the night, but Jeffro Jameson Jr. isn’t worried about that. Jeffro Jameson cares only about finding TREASURE, and about repaying his great-grandfather’s life debt.
And maybe one other thing.
“You know, my great-grandfather ALWAYS told me that Estella de Ville was the prettiest dirty rotten thief in the whole wide wild west,” he hears himself say, and he’s not sure where it came from or where it’s going but it’s totally and completely in character!! It’s fine!!! “But I can’t imagine she could ever hold a candle to you.”
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
As predicted, the hat goes sailing off Essie's head again as she falls against the line of coats and manages to hook the opera glasses on the hanger rod to keep from sliding to the ground. "Oh DEAR, young man, you shouldn't TEASE a WOMAN my age," Estella Bertha Devillington trills, fanning herself with her free hand as she melts further into the row of coats whose owners really shouldn't have just left them hanging in this room if they didn't want people to make a giant mess of them. "I've heard STORIES about what a VARMINT your great-GRANDfather was, but I had no IDEA how much you took after him."
She unhooks the opera glasses and falls to the ground with a soft thud, heart beating a little faster because Estella Devillington is OLD and forgot to take her medicine, and not for any reason other than that!!! The floor seems like a great place to stay. Jeffy's way, way up there and there's a whole bunch of coats hiding the fact that Essie's covering her face with her hands, because this is AT LEAST a two layers of defense situation.
There had been a PLAN and that plan involved WAITING. Waiting until AFTER the next game to say anything to Jeffy, maybe even longer!!! There were probably LOTS of reasons to wait that Essie hadn't thought of yet. She just needed a little more time to figure them out!!!
An arm darts out from beneath the coats and snatches the top hat, shielding her face with it as her head slowly emerges. It's a really good thing she's wearing this coat, because her dress had been like pretty expensive and her moms probably wouldn't be thrilled she was rolling around on the dirty floor right now??? "My great-grandmother always said that your great-grandfather was the only scoundrel in the whole west she couldn't put six feet under," her voice echoes into the top hat, and she tilts her head just enough to peek one eye up at Jeffy. Barely a second passes and she kicks the wall, because she's pretty sure she's about to be sick, and it has nothing to do with all the canapés she ate earlier. "Did you hear that? I think I found the hidden door."
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
Jeffy takes a little step closer at the promise of a HIDDEN DOOR, unsure of how much room he could REALLY give Essie right now considering they WERE still in a closet. "Where do you think the hidden door LEADS?" he asks in a stage whisper, tentatively putting an ear up against the wall. "Could be a whole ROOM full of treasure." He pulls away from the wall and tries to put on an easy smile. Does it work?? Oh god, he hopes it works. Not that Essie can probably see him all that well from the inside of that hat, but maybe she can FEEL how perfectly normal and effortless that smile is!!
"Or a room full of TRAPS."
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
Like, she just told him right??? That totally counted as telling him how she feels??? And he didn't even say thank you???
This is definitely, one hundred percent the worst thing that has ever happened to Essie Morales-Tran.
So it's kind of a really good thing that's not who she is right now???
So like, MAYBE, Estella Bertha Devillington is a lot more CRAFTY than just plain Essie is and MAYBE she's only been PRETENDING to have all these problems that totally happen when you're old, but she's actually a sneaky old fox who's going to trick this poor spring chickabro and EAT him for BREAKFAST.
Okay, no, maybe not that last part. That's maybe mixing too many genres???
"Hard to say, young man, but-- Oh, OH DEAR!!! I think I broke my HIP when I FELL," she cries out dramatically as she pushes herself back up a little. "You'll have to CARRY ME or leave me here to DIE!!!" This last word is punctuated with a flinging of her arm over her eyes. (The top hat gets flung as well and someone is probably going to step on this damn thing soon, the owner really should have taken better care of it???)
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
Decisions are really not Jeffy’s strong suit.
LUCKILY, this is ALL in character!! Totally in character!! Nothing weird at ALL!!! Sidestepping the top hat, Jeffy kneels down at Essie’s side, concern in his eyes. Concern for his treasure hunting companion. Nothing else. Everything!! is!! SUPER COOL!!!
“I would NEVER leave a companion to DIE, Miss Devillington!” Jeffy exclaims. “And I swear on my great-grandfather’s favorite top hat that if I have to choose to carry YOU or the TREASURE, I would never abscond with all those gems and jewels.” He winks, like maybe he WOULD, but, like, he probably won’t. Because of that life debt stuff.
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
But Estella Bertha Devillington is also mighty crafty. And you don't get to be a filthy rich lady by playing nicely.
The thumping in her chest has to be loud enough that Jeffy can hear it, so she hem hems a couple times to cover it up. It's like totally a character choice and not because she's feeling incredibly nervous now that she's formulated a plan.
"Did ANYONE ever tell you what happened to my FIRST husband?" The very wicked and crafty old Miss Devillington asks. (Or does that make her a Mrs??? Ms??? Whatever!!!)
Before he has a chance to guess, Essie presses her lips against Jeffy's. They're only there for a second and then gone. But she does it. Or, well, Estella Devillington does it, because this is all completely part of a game and so it's not like she actually just kissed Jeffy for real. Because THAT would definitely be SUPER WEIRD. But this right now? Not super weird at all, because the tables have just been turned on this poor spring chickabro!!!
"Poison lipstick."
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
Okay, okay, he's GOT this, he DEFINITELY knows what to do here. He's seen COOL WESTERNS with SUPER SMOOTH cowboys?? He can act like this SUPER isn't a big deal, just like them!! Because Jeffro Jameson IS super cool! Just like them!!!
Jeffy lets out a gasp, he clutches at his chest (acting SUPER COOL, as per the plan), he puts his free hand on Essie's shoulder. "I could..." he chokes out, the poison clearly taking over his body by now. His voice is a melodramatic rasp, his death scene acting finely honed from years of dying gruesomely in MVSC masterpieces. "I could think of worse ways to die."
He slumps, moving his hand from her shoulder to her cheek, which is totally super cool and chill and not making his stomach twist up!!! Jeffy coughs weakly, as if that will loosen the knot in his guts. "In fact," wheeze, "I can't for the life of me think of any way I'd rather go."
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
Also, this whole scenario is getting kind of confusing. Like, not the pretend one, which is SUPER confusing, but the actual scenario here where this was supposed to be a really cool closet, but it's just, like, a closet???
Phew. Wow. That's a lot of thoughts. Oh, and Jeffy's kind of touching her cheek right now. That's happening too and.. okay, yeah, that's definitely making her want to just bolt and leave him for dead. (Which, he IS, so like, she could totally do that???)
But maybe it's also like, not totally a bad thing??? There's a flip-flop in her stomach that she's pretty sure means that she could just sit here like this for awhile and deal with her cheeks getting warmer and warmer because the rest of this? It's like, pretty cool. Even if it's totally, one hundred percent, not for real.
Except she just killed Jeffro, so there's a minor problem that needs to be dealt with. Time for some fast thinking, Essie.
"Mr. Jameson, I have a secret to tell you," Estella confides, wiping her lipstick off using the sleeve of this very nice coat. If she's learned anything from Micah, it's that there can never be enough plot twists!!! "I'm actually a VAMPIRE." Cue the shift to spooky Transylvanian voice. "And if you do not vant to die right now then I can make you vun TOO." Pause. Totally for dramatic effect and not because what she's about to say is super terrifying!!! "But I'll have to kiss you again."
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
"Well I sure," cough, hack, wheeze, "don't wanna die," he says, and truth be told he's kind of not sure if this is the kind of Talking To Essie he's supposed to be doing. It's technically progress, but also it's kind of hard to actually tell someone how you feel about them when they're currently pretending to be a rich vampire assassin?? You can't just break that character to discuss awkward things like your feelings for each other!!! But it's still progress!!!!!
"But I got a confession myself." He doesn't know exactly where this is going. It could be another twist! He's a WEREWOLF, which is her SWORN ENEMY, or he's ACTUALLY Jeffro's identical twin—the REAL Jeffro having been killed by HER identical twin!! These twists could go on for days, they could get lost in here, pretending to be a series of different people with different shocking new identities.
"My name is actually Jeffy Key," oh god his heart is hammering in his chest, how can he even get words out right now??? Is he actually even talking?? "And whether I'm dying or not, I kind of just want to kiss you." He looks down, the extremely limited space in this closet feeling even more limited now, and adds a hasty, "Miss Devillington," to give Essie an option to continue the game. Only he's breaking character!! She can stay in character as much as she wants!! YOU'RE DOING GREAT, JEFFERSON!!!
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
It's not that Essie doesn't WANT to kiss Jeffy Key, because that split-second where their lips touched was super nice, or well, it probably would have been really nice if it wasn't like immediately over, but it had definitely made Essie want to barf in all the good ways and that had to be a sign of a good kiss, right???
In fact, Essie would really LIKE to kiss Jeffy Key, and here was Jeffy Key saying that he'd really like to kiss her too??? Or her character, Miss Devillington. But he was probably ACTUALLY talking about her??? It wasn't super clear, because that was a twist she really hadn't been expecting, and he'd definitely still called her Miss Devillington so, well, she could totally work with that???
"Ah, VELL, Mr. Key," Essie says in a voice way too loud for this closet and it's not like she's suddenly like a million times more nervous because Jeffy's just being Jeffy, it's just... Miss Devillington's hearing is going bad.
...And okay, she's also like really really scared of the idea of actually kissing Jeffy for real, because if she kisses him and he's just Jeffy, then what happens next?
Essie squirms. The floor isn't very comfortable. There's a bunch of coats right in her face. Wicked Miss Devillington should be saying something else and snatching another kiss from this unsuspecting young man, but... she doesn't. When Essie does speak again, she's just Essie. Awkward, scared, definitely not a rich vampire assassin.
"...I want to kiss you too."
Jeffy + Essie vs. A Closet, Take 3
He looks up at Essie and tries to quell his confusion and... panic??? No, it can't be panic!! Jeffy Key doesn't panic!! He's an eternal optimist!! He just wants to make sure he does the EXACT RIGHT THING, because the thing is he doesn't JUST want to kiss Essie. He also wants to hold her hand and tell her that she's pretty and funny and SUPER BADASS and sit with her at lunch and try to figure out how they're supposed to use their planners together to fit in FUN and not have ANY of it be WEIRD. Because what if she wants to kiss him but not do anything ELSE?? Or what if they're both CONSTANTLY worried about doing or saying the wrong thing and they end up sitting in awkward silence every day?? What about Quidditch??
Okay, okay, maybe worry about the rest of that stuff later, maybe just take it one step at a time. That's what he does when a Quidditch game gets hectic, or when a seance goes horribly wrong, or he realizes two hours is so NOT enough time to get all his homework done: focus on one thing at a time, and block the rest out. What's the first thing on his list? What can he focus on???
“... Can I?” Jeffy asks, and he can definitely feel his heart beating somewhere near his throat and his stomach twisting and WOW he wasn't even close to this nervous before the Ilvermorny game last year or the finals match or during his final exams or—okay there might have been a second where they were being chased by a ghost and he was this nervous, but that was a PRETTY SPECIFIC INCIDENT. His hand twitches, makes a motion like he's going to maybe think about holding her hand or something, but he stops short. One thing at a time. “Kiss you? Even if it turns me into a vampire, that still sounds PRETTY awesome.”