Winter Gala

[justaddh2o]

WHO: Everyone
WHERE: Jeopardy
WHEN: Saturday, December 21 from 5:00 p.m. onward into the early morning hours of Sunday, December 22.
WHAT: The Winter Gala Fundraiser for Jeopardy Relief Efforts
WARNINGS: Please include any necessary warnings in your TLs.
NOTES: This post will serve as a catch-all for logs for the entire event (though you’re also welcome to post things elsewhere, of course).

It's the most wonderful time of the year! Well, mostly. In the wake of a near-apocalyptic event, the city of Jeopardy is in need. What started out as an idea to advertise Rikki Chadwick's burgeoning business, after a little more planning and nabbing some ideas from Kenzi's post, she and Rupert have reconfigured and rebranded their idea to focus less on her and more on the relief effort.


Characters will enter the venue after giving a small donation at the door and they will be greeted by a large room lit in blues, soft pinks, and purples. From the ceilings hang snowflakes made of glass. The centerpieces are also made of glass. Come to think of it, nearly all the decorations are made of glass. Except, that is, the mistletoe hanging from several of the rafters and archways. A buffet-style dinner will be served from 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., at which point, the buffet tables and seating tables will be cleared away to make room for the makeshift stage for the DJ and a gigantic dance floor.

Drinks will be flowing, music will be playing, and people will be bidding on silent auctions to win everything from one of the centerpieces to a date with their favorite imPort and everything in between. So, eat, drink, and be merry until you can't stay awake any longer. Why not? It's all for a good cause, after all.

Comments

[thecacophony]

"Of course there's some," she explains, "because the people who don't live off magic have to prove they're just as capable, if not better. Revolutionaries had their war machines, but that's probably not what you're thinking of."

Politics are fucking boring anyway, especially when you're dancing.

"Out in the Scar, and that's far away from where I started, the people with the most technology and influence are called freemakers," she explains. "Two Lonely Old Men, for instance, he owned an entire city. Made it thrive with new inventions. And maybe they weren't quite ready to put a fancy shower in every house, but it isn't...what the fuck do they call it, medieval?"

She's probably going to have to do more serious studying on this place, eventually. All of these holidays and histories.

"You, however, seem pretty well-adapted to everything here," she offers, and it definitely sounds like a compliment. "Like that dress, for instance." She takes the right moment to twirl Anathema and gently bring her back in, Sal's hand finding her waist again with ease. For as much as they're talking, Sal's no slouch on her feet. At least, when she bothers to put them on the ground.

[anathemic]

"Looks can be deceiving," Anathema admits. The twirl has her a little giddy, leaning into that hand on her waist and hurrying to keep up, to not miss her steps — she's a quick learner, but she's also not had much experience dancing like this. "Most people in my time don't dress like I do. It's... old-fashioned, a little over-the-top, a little inconvenient. But I just liked it."

She's riveted on Sal's words though, practically like she's in a seminar rather than a dancefloor, as the other woman describes life in the Scar. This strange blend of magic and science. She wishes she could have seen it.

"Do you miss it? The Scar. Your life back there."

[thecacophony]

She's busy with dancing, with keeping them in time, answering all of these questions (answering them honestly), so much so that Anathema's next question catches her off guard. The surprise is clear on her face, unguarded for a long moment, as the music turns again and she's scrambling for a decent answer.

Not right now, she doesn't say.

Instead, Sal offers something even more honest. "I just want to fly," she admits, in a voice that's strangely vulnerable. And if Anathema is just a hint less confident in her steps, well, maybe for a small moment that familiar magic stirs again between them, and it's almost like floating.

HOW DARE YOU

[anathemic]

A smile curling at the edge of her mouth; arching her step in her heeled boots, leaning more of her weight against Sal's shoulder as gravity goes a little bit... loose.

"Someday, we'll have to see if you can teach me how to do that," she says, shooting a glance down, then back up again to meet Sal's eye with a brilliant smile. The moves are easier when you're not actually touching the ground, when your shoes are just barely grazing the dancefloor.

"Then again. I like having a personal chauffeur way too much, so maybe we'll just leave this part to you."

[thecacophony]

"I'm pretty fucking useful, aren't I?"

Sal gets a grip, at last, and that normal mask of bravado is back up again. Confidence that's just armor, but it's easy to see now that her armor isn't impenetrable. There's always some way around it (at least if you're Anathema).

Like all beautiful and wonderful things, however, even a dance has to come to an end. Reluctantly, Sal pulls away and lets her go. Distance grows between them again.

"Well, being the great friend that I am," she says with a smile (slightly sad, maybe), "you can borrow my magic whenever you need it."

end ♥

[anathemic]

"And you mine," Anathema says, "although— here's hoping life won't call for another mass-summoning and magic-sharing anytime soon. I'm kinda liking just stopping and smelling the roses for now. So to speak."

She feels that distance grow between them like a rueful chill, a loss of that comforting physical touch. Her gaze drifts over her friend's shoulder, to the fake ice and delicate glass snowflakes, the wintry scene of the ballroom. The drinks table in the distance. A glance at the time, too, as she calculates travel time and how long she has left before she has to hightail it over to Harry's winterfest.

"I need to get out of here soon, onto a second engagement. Have a drink with me before I go?"

And she just waits for the briefest indication yes from Sal, before she catches the other woman's hand again and they work their way through the crowd, ducking between taller people and towering non-human imPorts and the occasional crack and fizzle of magic in the air.