Paper Faces on Parade

[applesaucemod]

The residents of Manhattan will once again find themselves drawn into the currents of the rift when they sleep tonight. Once again, too, the rift is drawing in people from other worlds, both those who might one day find themselves pulled through in waking life and those who might yet escape its grasp.

Tonight, it seems, a celebration is in order. The ballroom of a country manor is the setting for tonight's gathering. Wood and marble gleam in the gas lighting, and a bar at one end of the room provides the, ahem, social lubricant some guests may require. At the other end, a staircase leads to a walkway that runs the entire parameter of the room, allowing guests to watch the dancing from above. While the party is localized in the ballroom, who knows what secret passages and hidden ways a grand old house like this one might conceal?

Those who appear here will find themselves wearing a disguise on arrival. Should the rift cause one to appear in a costume not of their liking (as it is fairly likely to do), an enormous wardrobe can be found through a door near the bar. In it, guests will find a seemingly infinite assortment of costumes and masks of all sizes and varieties ready for their use.


[Mod note: Usual dream-party rules apply. Both members and non-members are welcome to use any character, be they already in the game or no, and players can choose whether to have their characters remember this in the morning.]

Comments

[edgar_sawtelle]

Looks like everyone does, Edgar replies, eying a court jester across the room from them, whose hat appears ready to fly off with the man's every exaggerated gesture.

Were you really looking for the bathroom? I don't know where it is, but I'll help you look.

[stronglikebear]

"Nah, I was just trying to find a way out," shrugs Yuri. "Want to come look with me anyway?"

[edgar_sawtelle]

Sure. After a quick glance around, Edgar starts toward a door that looks like a likely exit. It's fairly busy, at least, with men and women alike disappearing through it or emerging from it at a steady rate.

[stronglikebear]

"I didn't think there was going to be anyone I knew here," comments Yuri, following along. Why didn't he see this before? He frowns to himself and asks, "Do you remember how we got here?"

[edgar_sawtelle]

I'll bet there are a lot of people you know here, Edgar says. And we got here by falling asleep. He gives Yuri a friendly smile. We're dreaming.

[stronglikebear]

"We are?" Yuri looks alarmed -- quickly, he glances down at himself, checking his shape. Is his bear showing?? There's no particular reason for him to be a bear in this dream, but after the last time....

[edgar_sawtelle]

Edgar watches in bemusement and concern. Are you alright?

[stronglikebear]

"Huh? Yeah. I'm, uh -- yeah, I'm okay." Yuri forces himself to stop looking for hair. "Just...you never quite know what these dreams are going to throw at you, right?"

[edgar_sawtelle]

It's true. Last time I was a dog!

They reach the door they were aiming for and Edgar leads him through, into a room filled with various and sundry costumes and masks.

[stronglikebear]

Yuri pauses in the doorway, staring at the wide array of clothing suddenly before them. "That's...a lot of costumes," he says, stepping over to the nearest rack and picking at the sleeve of something that looks like it belongs in a King Arthur story.

[edgar_sawtelle]

Edgar nods in agreement. He wanders deeper into the room, and discovers a trunk full of masks. He digs through them halfheartedly; he's actually grown comfortable in his own costume and doesn't much care to switch it out now.

However, he does uncover an elaborate mask of feathers that he holds up for Yuri to see.

[stronglikebear]

Yuri lets out an undignified snort at the sight of it. "Is that for you or for me?" he asks.

[edgar_sawtelle]

Edgar smiles and shakes his head before tossing the mask back in the trunk. Yuri doesn't seem to be making any move to change up his costume either, so Edgar nods to the door. Going back out?

[stronglikebear]

"Yeah. I was kind of hoping for an exit, not a costume change." And, well...he thinks his outfit is kind of cool.

[edgar_sawtelle]

Keeping this in mind, Edgar leads Yuri to another door on the opposite side of the hall. Let's see where this goes.

[stronglikebear]

Yuri tags along, though the mission has lost its urgency for him. "Not that there's probably gonna be much outside if we're dreaming," he points out.

[edgar_sawtelle]

Edgar shrugs. He's only been in these shared dreams a few times, but he's learned not to underestimate the power of dreams. Or of the Rift.

He reaches the door the were aiming for, only to find that it leads to a small powder room. After trying a few more doors - hiding, respectively, a large coat closet, a small music room, and, oddly, a pool - Edgar gives up.

Well, there isn't any way out through these. What do you want to do now?

[stronglikebear]

Most of the rooms hold the sort of things you'd expect in a house like this, though the pool is kind of weird. Yuri bites his lip at the question. What do people normally do in dreams?

"We could dance," he offers facetiously.