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

[theoldgirl]

His justification is a little hard to believe when there's an entire table full of refreshments, not to mention his ability to make a drink appear as he had just done. But before she can figure out the meaning of that, and just how offended to be at being treated like this, the rest of what he says strikes her.

"This is about Peter," she states icily, the realization sinking like a stone in her stomach. "Again." Weeks of silence, but the moment she upsets his human, he deigns to seek her out. The bitterness could make her retch.

[has_a_horn]

"This isn't about Peter." He takes a hefty drink, noting two things. The first being that he probably said that way too quickly to be believable, and the second being that whatever this drink is tastes horrible. He sets aside the glass with a sigh and dips his head, not wanting to look at her.

With a swift motion, he pulls off his mask and lets it drop onto the table next to the drink. He's tired of the thing.

The truth is that it's partly about Peter, but mostly about them. He runs a hand over his face, realizing he's lashing out at her in much the same way Peter had been lashing out at him. So she doesn't want to be his friend any more. That hurts, but it happens. He's already added her name to the extensive list. "But you could try to not scare the shit out of him every time you run into each other."

[theoldgirl]

It isn't...? She's taken aback for a moment, especially since he suddenly seems more weary than snide. But then he continues to talk about Peter anyway, so maybe it was just a bad attempt at another lie. Either way, she's not going to let that accusation go.

"The last time we ran into each other, I healed him when he got himself hurt and took him to safety," she counters darkly. Of course Peter wouldn't tell him about that. "Yet he continues to insult me. So forgive me for making use of his tendency to be spooked at harmless things in order to keep him away from me." It comes out in a biting tone of voice, but truthfully she is so, so tired of this argument, tired of being angry and bitter, tired of Gabriel caring more about it than about her. She turns away from him to stare morosely at her drink.

[has_a_horn]

"And that was necessary, using his weaknesses to scare him away?" It strikes him then that he's still defending Peter, even though the man clearly wants nothing to do with him. He shakes his head and laughs at his own foolishness.

"You know what? Do whatever you want. Help him, scare him, actually light him on fire." He grins up at her, and it's as if his entire mood has changed. He seems amused, happy even, but the truth is that any right she might have had so seeing the real emotions roiling inside him have been revoked. He points out a plate of cookies as he stands and picks up his mask. "Have one of these, you won't regret it." His smile tightens for just a moment and he gives her an impromptu wave. He has his back turned to her before he says, "See ya around."

[theoldgirl]

As during the original conflict, she does actually feel chastised for a moment being reminded that Peter is just a small, scared human. It hadn't been strictly necessary, he's no Zagreus who can't possibly be tolerated, perhaps she should have been better than that. But where her conviction falters, the hurt of being treated like this by someone she'd come to like so much so quickly is there to pick up the slack when he laughs and acts like she needed his permission to do as she sees fit.

She's been in close enough contact with his mind to know that his facial expressions have a tendency to not line up with his emotions, particularly when they change so fast, but she's too upset now to care about whatever's behind the mask, or about his stupid cookies. It's good that he's leaving, she tells herself; she wants nothing more to do with this mess, is done feeling like this. "I hope not," she tells his retreating back, quiet and bitter.