WINTER MASQUERADE

[goosemods]

WINTER MASQUERADE

The privacy curtains are erected in the Atrium as soon as lunch ends, and it's all hands on deck as Event Committee get ready to transform the Atrium. Students having dinner are given only 30 minutes before they're ushered out past the privacy curtains again, so the cafeteria can be claimed for a "special surprise." At 7 PM sharp, the Atrium opens, and the Anonymity Charm activates.

House-elves will take cloaks and coats when students arrive, and usher them past festive red curtains into a light-filled carnival. Yards of colourful fabric drape out from the center of the ceiling and fall all the way down to the floor, creating the illusion of a circus big top. Blinking holiday lights cover the walls, twisted into familiar designs: candy canes, evergreens, dreidels, green and red candles, etc. At different corners stand four tall trees decorated in honour of the four houses: one in plum and gold with fuzzy bear decorations, one in olive and copper with glass trout, one in azure and white with feathery jays, and one in orange and black with felt foxes. A mystery gift exchange is taking place by the trees, so come claim your present!

The dance floor is outlined with twinkling lights that magically strobe along with the music. Cheer captain Madison Ives has organized a dance spectacle opener with the help of the other cheer captains, and student band The Heretics are set to perform tonight!

The refreshments tables lining one wall features fair foods such as bagged popcorn (mixed with green and red M&M's), hot pretzels, candy apples, funnel cakes, corn dogs, french fries, cotton candy, and endless varieties of fizzy soda. (A few special treats have been set aside for vegan students. Prospero recommends the falafel on a stick.) Communal tables and chairs have been adorned with red-and-white-striped fabric, to give them a candy cane circus feel.

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 carousel-themed photo op, where you and a masked stranger can pose in front of seasonally appropriate mounts in the shape of a reindeer, a polar bear, a two-seat swan with holly and red ribbon around its neck, and a plastic Santa Claus inviting you to sit in his lap. Only once you've stepped up to the carousel mounts will you see the sprig of mistletoe hanging overhead. Event Committee volunteer photographers will take your picture, to be publicly posted later so you can guess who was posing with you!

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 red and green cushions, and there's bluebell flame lamps providing warmth and light on this chilly December night. From here, you can see the sleigh rides running just outside the lodge, within the sphere of the Anonymity Charm. These romantic magical sleighs seat up to three, and circle the lodge on a set track that takes you past trees also decorated with brilliant lights.

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 (1) warning before they're ejected from the dance. The same applies to a handful of MACUSA agents, in identical black masks and black robes, but they appear more interested in patrolling the dance than talking to anyone.

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.

CLICK HERE FOR ANONYMITY CHARM RULES

• 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. Also, the charm also doesn't affect your sense of touch, smell or taste. (But please don't lick anyone to figure out their identity.)


• 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. The effective area of the charm is the lodge and the area immediately surrounding the lodge, enough to cover the sleigh rides.

» Setting Up » Before the Dance » Beginning of the Dance » Refreshments » Mystery Gift Exchange » Anonymous Karaoke » Carousel Photos » Balcony » Sleigh Rides » End of the Night » OOC - Questions, comments, concerns!

Comments

END OF THE NIGHT

[goosemods]

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)

Sofia + Open

[sovain]

Sofia was quite pleased that no one had been able to guess who she was. While the anonymous charm was obviously good, she'd made sure not to look quite so obviously herself, either. Red and gold did look quite stunning on her, though. She would have to incorporate the colors into her wardrobe more often.

With loss of hope she'd find whom she'd been wanting to dance with, Sofia sighed and slowly made her way towards the balcony.

Calvin & Micah

[evercreep]

This isn't how Calvin expected the night to go. He'd spent nearly all of it with Micah, who still had no idea what was actually going on. The tone of the night had hardly been platonic, either. They'd danced, flirted, and talked intimately as a magical sleigh carried them through the woods. Micah was going to wake up in the morning wondering who his mystery date was.

Despite the picturesque evening, or rather because of it, Calvin's grown silent. Time is ticking away as everyone waits for the fireworks, but Calvin's mind is elsewhere. He could excuse himself now, or he could wait for the inevitable reveal. There's a noose around his neck either way, and the floor's about to drop out. He should just let himself hang.

Calvin & Micah

[stclair]

This has been... nice. It's been so long since Micah was on a honest-to-goodness date that he hadn't realized how much he'd missed it. Having one person's "undivided attention," instead of flirting with a dozen people in the same night.

Which is kind of ridiculous when he doesn't even know this guy's name. For all Micah knows, this is a senior. Who wants to date a senior? It'll never last past graduation. Not that high school relationships are know for lasting, exactly. Oh my god, he is totally getting ahead of himself. They haven't even kissed yet. How do you know if you want to date someone if you don't kiss them at least once?

"If you want to run away, handsome, now's your last chance." Micah leans in, not touching him, but almost.

Calvin & Micah

[evercreep]

Calvin exhales, defeated. He's already made his decision, even though it'll hurt. He's spent so many years evading, lying, and manipulating. Anything it takes to survive. Calvin's adaptable. People might see him as ridiculous and overdramatic, but doesn't he usually slide out of trouble? A foolish person can't manage that. If this were anyone else besides Micah, he'd probably slide out of this sticky situation yet again. Wouldn't it be romantic if I didn't tell you who I was until tomorrow? he'd say, and then never reveal himself.

"I'm not going to run away." Calvin fails to not sound sad, but doesn't pull away from Micah either.

Calvin & Micah

[stclair]

Micah's eyebrows draw together in concern, but his mask hides it. Despite Micah making it his whole thing that he doesn't know appropriate boundaries or how people really feel about him, he's actually pretty good at reading people. He just ignores it, most of the time.

Like he's going to ignore it now. Man, he's the worst. Micah reaches up, just slowly enough to give the other boy a chance to pull away, and puts a hand against his face. "Good, because I was planning to give you that kiss now." He hesitates only for a half-second before moving in.

Bird lady takes flight

[sheepish]

Welp, it's Cut'n'Run O'Clock!! Ennis collects his white winter cloak from coat check and drapes it over his shoulders, taking his time to adjust it neatly before calmly heading toward the lodge doors. Once he's just outside and still within the Safe Zone, he pulls a separate birch mask out from an inner pocket and looks at it longingly before fastening it to his face over his other mask. It will help to conceal his face on the trek home.

"I wish you could have come," he quietly tells the void, taking long strides down the trail. "It was too dangerous anyway. There were too many of them."

Just before he reaches the edge of the boundary, he begins to bolt. He can feel the spell slough off him and he grabs his bodice by the cups to hold it up as he races back to his cabin. One should never forgo modesty in their panic!

Gwen and Open

[gwenniepop]

Figuring that at least a few people guessed who she was (and the fact both the senior Fins and Webster knew who she was), Gwen hung around after the charm ended, removing her mask to see how it held up. She'd worked pretty hard on it, after all.

Gwen and Calvin

[evercreep]

Calvin spots Gwen from a distance and makes a beeline for her. The fireworks have come and gone, and so has Micah. He took off north to Azurcrest, leaving Calvin to wander back to Ribbonfin alone, or maybe instead with Gwen. His mask is nowhere to be seen, and might even still be with Micah, his recently-more-than-a-friend friend. He's not exactly sure what to say about that, but upon seeing Gwen, he knows he wants to say something. It won't feel real until he tells somebody.

"Have a nice night?" he asks, breathless and smiling.

Gwen and Calvin

[gwenniepop]

"Calvin, hey!" Impulsively, she hugs him, inordinately glad that he is there and she finally got to see him and that he's happy. He looks happy. That makes everything better. "I did," she admitted, although she found herself uncharacteristically reluctant to go into details as of yet. "But I don't know, I'm not sure I had as good a time as you, judging by that face." She grinned up at him. "Did something happen?" Her voice was sing-song and cheerful.

Gwen and Calvin

[evercreep]

"Ah!" The hug startles him, but tonight has been an oddly touchy-feely one. He allows it, and even returns it, sincere if a touch awkward. Calvin is always one step behind Gwen. at the minimum. Often it's several steps, if he's being honest. And now she's read him like a book, and his composure wavers. "Well, I... It's, you see—"

Calvin stops, takes a deep breath, and tries again. "I had a... ah, a conversation with Micah." Calling it a conversation is generous, he realises. "Of a sort."

Gwen and Webster

[websterknox]

Webster is relieved to see Gwen is still here. He'd been pulled away to the sleighs and wasn't sure if he'd missed his chance to say goodnight to her. He runs over, now looking and sounding like himself. "Hey... I'm Webster..." he introduces himself, ninety-five percent joking. "We met earlier. When we were talking and dancing back... on... the..."

He trails off and his words are just replaced with a smile. It feels a little silly how excited he is for them to be standing face-to-face without their masks on. It reminds him of missing someone for a long time and then finally getting to see them again. Which didn't make any sense. But somehow also did.

"I'm sorry I got pulled away earlier, but I'm glad I caught you. How was the rest of your night?"

Gwen and Webster

[gwenniepop]

"So that's what you look like," Gwen teased, a matching smile on her lips. She hadn't realized how effective the charm had been; she felt like this was the first time she'd seen him all evening, and an uncharacteristic shyness surprised her. Silly, really, since she'd been talking with him all evening, and dancing as well. She fiddled with her mask, running her fingers over the bees, feeling like a bit of an idiot, but not really caring overmuch.

"It was...interesting?" she managed, with a wry, crooked smile. "I went ahead and tried to sleigh rides too, but my fellow rider was definitely out of sorts." She didn't mention Todd's name, since she considered what he told her as private, but she knew Webster would understand. "Some other students had been messing with him. So, it was more of a therapy session than a sleigh ride." It was clear that she didn't mind, just felt for him. Ribbonfin softie, through and through. "How was yours? You got snatched...I didn't know if I needed to come rescue you."

Gwen and Webster

[websterknox]

"No, it sounds like this guy needed you more than I did. I hope you were still able to enjoy yourself, though." He thinks it's kind of nice that Gwen doesn't elaborate more on this person's personal situation. Somehow it makes him feel like their own conversations are similarly protected and valued.

Webster laughs at himself for thinking that. He's self-aware enough to see that he's taking everything she does and assigning it some larger, deeper significance. This was just one date. Not even a date. They were each others' dates.

"My ride was fine," Webster says, not particularly interested in elaborating. There isn't much really to say. Plus, he's here now and just wants to be in this moment. Their fellow classmates are starting to disperse and he can feel the night coming to a close. The fairy tales always end at midnight; the carriage turns back into a pumpkin, the gown into a simple dress. The evening's charms have worn off -- their faces and voices having returned -- yet the two of them are still together. He knows their night is now on borrowed time.

"Can I walk you back to your cabin?" Webster asks, offering his elbow for Gwen to take, hoping to extend the evening just a little longer.

The bunny fairy is found? (Essie & Jeffy)

[magitechnically]

A bunny fairy with a very cold foot peeks out from behind a balcony bench every so often, though the bench isn't large enough to hide the tips of her ears when she does hide away. A nearby trail of funnel cake crumbs has also been laid out for only the cleverest of treasure hunters to find. A passing Event Committee member does not look amused.

The bunny fairy is found? (Essie & Jeffy)

[racingstripe]

Okay, it's cold outside without a shoe on. Jeffy learned this from sledding, and he should really probably make sure the FEISTY CINDERELLA that threw her shoe at his head doesn't ALSO lose her foot?? So once he departs the sleigh and left his very tall new good friend behind, he's ON THE CASE.

He checks under tables and behind trees, looking for any person with only one shoe on. It shouldn't be that hard, and yet there are actually a couple people without shoes at ALL?? WEIRD. But there's a trail. A trail of SUGAR and CAKE CRUMBS . A trail that should UNDOUBTEDLY lead him to an AZURCREST, right??

Eyes narrowed, with one winged shoe in front of his face, Jeffy crouches down to FOLLOW this suspicious trail. Some people have already tracked through it, others nearly trip right over him as he sleuths, but he stays on the trail until it leads him to the balcony.

"Hmmm." He stands up, looks around, hands on his hips. If he sees the tips of those ears, he doesn't announce it right away. "Did that no good varmint lure me out here as a TRAP?"

The bunny fairy is found? (Essie & Jeffy)

[magitechnically]

Oooh, a trap. Essie should have thought of that. Quick thinking leads her to tug on a drape of fabric nearby and-- okay, no, that's almost definitely going to pull down a bunch of stuff and, okay, sure, the night is almost over, but she'd still like to not ACTUALLY get ejected from the dance. The only reason she hadn't been already was probably BECAUSE she'd been hiding so well???

Because she is definitely a master of hiding and there are definitely not bunny ears moving about behind a bench as she tests the drapes from a crouched position.

But with the drapes a bust, she's gonna have to be ready for a long fight. The bench is suddenly flipped on its side, becoming a makeshift barricade, and an entire bunny face appears. She only has a little funnel cake left, so she'd better make this shot a good one. "And you walked right into it", she calls back, but when she throws the bite of fried dough, it's more of a high, gentle arc, like she's actually trying to toss it towards his mouth.

Apparently concerns about getting ejected from the dance were quickly forgotten.

The bunny fairy is found? (Essie & Jeffy)

[racingstripe]

The bench upends, and there's the bunny fairy, just waiting for him like the lowdown no good dirty varmint that she is. Jeffy grins, but it only lasts until he sees the funnel cake soaring through the air at him. And there's only one course or action available when a hunk of sugary goodness comes flying at you, and that's to try and catch it with your mouth.

Jeffy does not catch the funnel cake with his mouth. It's a good try! He gets pretty close!! But BEING the goal is not a skill Jeffy has practiced ad nauseum, and the funnel cake lands somewhere around his eye. HEY IT'S COOL, IT'S CLOSE ENOUGH!! At least he can still pop it in his mouth and, with his mouth full, announce, "You can't take me down that easily, de Ville!"

He takes a couple steps toward the bench, but then he stops. And coughs. Did the cake go down the wrong way?? Or... "Unless... that was poison funnel cake??"

Are Jeffy and Essie ever going to have a straightforward, non-LARP conversation? Stay tuned to find out!!

Archie & Hero

[cherubic]

Archie walks up to the boy sitting on the steps outside the lodge and silently joins him. The first thing he does is take off his mask, then carefully puts it aside. Its purpose is done for the night. He's almost certain this is Hieronymus he's sitting next to, but almost isn't good enough in this case. There are some things Archimedes can't afford to be messy about.

For a moment, he's quiet. Light snow flurries swirl around them, and Archie finally breaks the silence. "I need to talk to you. To ask for a favor. But only if I know it's you."

Archie & Hero

[victimless]

He'd told Archie where he would be at the end of the night. Maybe Hero should've banked on a whirlwind romance with a charming stranger, but he dislikes situations with too many unknown factors. He's spent too long cultivating his image to step into a whirlwind romance with any girl whose family net worth is a question mark.

So he can appreciate Archie's caution, even if he raises his eyebrows a little before removing his mask. "Should I offer you a blood sample as well? I could using Polyjuice Potion to imitate Hero."

Archie & Hero

[cherubic]

"Not enough time for that. The potion or testing your blood." With Hero's face visible, Archie relaxes. He breathes a little deeper, and his voice loses some of its sharp, uneven rhythm. Without asking permission, Archie takes Hieronymus' mask from him and inspects the craftsmanship, but doesn't share his opinions.

"My father has... declined my request to remain here. During winter break." Archie's voice is flat. "Will you watch my things for me again? I can't take them home. Too much explanation would be required. He doesn't understand."

Archie & Hero

[victimless]

Hero folds his hands in his lap as he watches Archie. Normally, he avoids overly formal Gooseberry events like these, too self-conscious about how plain his clothing is next to everyone else's, but the masquerade gave him a good excuse. His face is unmasked now, but he hadn't done anything scandalous tonight. Too bad.

"Even your journal?" It's not an unusual request. He'd taken Archie's things with him last summer, but Hero would've imagined that a little journal wouldn't arouse any suspicion. "What if you want to communicate?"

Addy & Lachlan

[addytives]

Not knowing literally any of what had just transpired with her friend and a mysterious card man, Addy's just glad to see a familiar face at the end of the night. She's sitting on the edge of a red-cushioned bench, chin pressed up against the cool railing, but catches a familiar mask out of the corner of her eye, walking out on to the balcony. It's lucky; there's only one mask like that here tonight, and it necessarily belongs to Lachlan. She waves him over like a maniac, eager to hear his exploits. She'd lost him, like everyone, into the night, but she's slowly coming into her own skin, down off the high of the dance, just in time for the fireworks.

Addy & Lachlan

[lachlangalbraith]

When Lachlan sees Addy waving at him, recognizing her by her dress and her mask and nothing else because of the anonymity charm, he turns toward her but hesitates to walk over. She seems happy. He can still feel stress and uncertainty making his chest tight and the beginnings of a headache throbbing behind his eyes. Should she really have to deal with him right now? Still. He can't just turn and walk away and, no matter how selfish it probably is, he'd like to go sit with her. He forces a smile as he waves back and goes to join her on the bench.

"...Hey." He almost says her name but catches himself. They're still playing anonymous, after all. "Whit like?" Okay, maybe not that anonymous.

Addy & Lachlan

[addytives]

Addy is very happy. She's tracing the length of ribbon around her wrist, eyes darting around to see if she can find a girl with a glint of gold in her hair. But all that has to be put on hold for a minute. Lachlan looks unhappy. At best. She hates that she can't tell that for sure. At least he's certainly Scottish enough to be himself. "Hey yourself." She grins, trying to get a better look at his face. "This is like. Such a good dance. Tell me about the strangers you've charmed?"