⇨ FOURTH WALL EVENT! (OPEN TO ALL)

[ringleaders]

Who: Everyone and the 4th Wall Visitors!
When: Day 175
Where: Heartstone Manor
What: THE 4TH WALL BALL BEGINS! This is where unapped visitors can post and roleplay. Please read the rules and setting info below. For more information and visuals refs, read this. Questions can be asked over here.
Warnings: Individually marked! Could be a lot of things.

THE GRAND BALL↴ Heartstone Manor is a giant, spooky castle floating in the middle of a twilight filled void. It is the home of a Wyld Fae calling himself The Prince - and despite his name, he is a bestial creature crammed into a gentleman's clothing, completely obsessed with replicating the ideals of old timey human society, much like the 1800's. The Prince and his many servants all dress in a manner appropriate to to the 1500's - 1800's, and decorum and beauty are held sacred above all else. All the workers of the carnival are currently staying there, in the hope of enabling a successful diplomatic venture between the Ringmaster and the Prince. The Grand Ball is being thrown by the Prince to honour these guests, but his manner of doing this is going to come as a bit of a surprise. THE RULES↴ Powers are all partially nerfed for 4th Wallers. They can be used in small to moderate ways for the sake of RP and narrative flavour, but 4th Wallers shouldn’t generally be using any powers in a super disruptive manner. No using powers for fighting with NPCs (yet), causing general chaos, or otherwise making your character a burden to the Prince. If they try, they’ll find themselves unable to do so. Your character isn’t sure how they got here but they think they’re okay with it. Your character won’t remember how they were captured by the Prince at the start of the ball. They’re just kind of here and in formal wear, and something tells them it’s probably fine to just enjoy the ball. They are wrong. In-game characters won’t initially remember how they all ended up at the ball either thanks to a temporary amnesia effect, but they will be able to be concerned about the fact that other people (possibly people they know) have shown up, and the fact that those other people are probably the Prince’s captives. Weren’t they doing something else at the castle before this, though? It’s hard to remember. This is all very confusing. 4th Wall character who aren’t apping in were possibly never the real deal in the first place. There are a mixture of genuine captives and spooky replications created with magic – this is to provide some flexibility regarding 4th wall character’s states in game, as well to allow more than one of each character to be played. If there are multiple people playing the same character, then whichever one has an app accepted will have been the real one. No doubles of in game characters. (Taken list here.) No AUs, no CRAUs, and nothing else besides characters that have full source canons or are original characters/fandom OCs with no bearing on the canon plot. If you tag in with a character who breaks these rules we reserve the right to remove them. THE SETUP: 4TH WALLERS↴ With incredibly foggy memories of their recent past, your character will find themselves at a grand ballroom dance, filled with a mixture of normal humans and odd looking humanoids that have strange features like wings, horns, tails, fur, and the like. They have vague memories of being dressed for the occasion, but are not sure by who or why. Most disturbingly, they will find that, at first at least, they don’t really care about the details. It seems like a pleasant event, doesn’t it? Why not enjoy it. This effect is definitely some kind of mind control, so you can feel free to have your characters be a bit confused and conflicted about it. Ultimately, they have been charmed to participate in the dance, so they will feel like riding the wave is the best thing to do even if that wouldn’t normally be their cup of tea. If your character has resistances to some forms of mind control, they are still overruled in this circumstance. They may discover people they recognize (castmates) or even duplicates of themselves (somehow?), and these can all be treated as canonly occurring and played out as such. This event is canon for Lost Carnival, so it should be played seriously and respectfully – not that silly shenanigans aren’t also bound to happen. All characters are required to dress in formal attire appropriate to a period area – specifically anywhere from the 1500s to 1800s. The Prince prefers if people are heteronormative in their clothing choices, but if you want you can probably get away with your ladies wearing suits or men wearing dresses as long as they look presentable otherwise. THE SETUP: MANOR GUESTS↴ You find yourself at the Grand Ball without really remembering how you got here. The last few days are a foggy blur, and though you can remember some of the important stuff you were dealing with, it will feel less important right at the start. Of course, as the night goes on, memories of how the carnival reached this event will become more and more clear – as well as the inevitable worry and stress that comes with it. For most people, there will have absolutely no memory of anything that happened after the morning of Day 175. Did the boating trip ever happen? Possibly not. Even as the night progresses, they will still have no recollection of how most of Day 175 went, which is probably disturbing. The Mod has contacted those that are exceptions to this privately to tell them what they will remember. The people lost to the Manor’s security earlier in the week will be here too, but not as guests. In fact, all of them will be dressed in the black attire of a Heartstone Manor servant and will seem pretty okay with that fact. There are parts of them that look changed – and their dispositions are definitely one of them. How else could they possibly be working for the Prince now? Updates to the event situation will be posted down in this section below. People can react to these posts as the circumstances change, and may new top levels based on them. It is possible to try to sneak away from the ball, but Manor Security will be trying to hunt you down. There is no mandatory outcome planed to this event, so character decisions can and will have a major effect in where the plot goes from here. THE ACCOMODATIONS↴ MUSIC AND DANCING: There will be music playing the whole night, and most of it is so good you feel practically compelled to dance to it. It's possible to resist, but why would you want to do that, you party pooper? FOOD AND DRINK: There are circle tables set up with fine silverware, and upon sitting down you will soon have a waiter come back to ask for an order. You can request basically any European cusine and it will be made for you. You will also be given drinks, most of which are alcohol, no matter your age. Fae don't care about children. BALCONY STARGAZING: There are balconies that are connected to the ballroom in multiple locations that you can step out onto to get some fresh air. You'll see the courtyard of the Manor down below you, but everything beyond that is black, as if the castle is floating within a twilight void. (Because it is.) One small change is that there are stars out tonight, probably added to the sky for the occasion. ALL NIGHT LONG: The ball will go on far into the early morning. Or, at least, until everyone fucks it up.

Comments

REIRA | OTA | GAME MUSE | YGO-ARC V

[soft_focus]

[You may spot her as you finish your plate, but a servant is meant to go unnoticed, so it may be difficult. Reira is the master of remaining 'invisible'. She reads the emotions of the people around her as if they were bilboards in plain sight, carrying a basket with which to bustle away dirty dishes with ease. She gathers them before anyone's even noticed, and then it's off down the hall to the kitchen where they'll be replaced out.

It's one of the few things she can do, really. She's too small to be serving h'orderves, let alone drinks-3'8'' is just a bit too short for anything involving an approach to others.

But clean up is easy, and clean up can be done.

Reira moves with wide eyes, however-as though she feels she could be watched the whole time, and while she doesn't seem skittish, the expression she carries remains unchanging. Occasionally a small sparrow seems to take refuge in her bun-she doesn't notice, but the bird isn't always there, darting off the moment she begins work in fact.

Something is wrong-but Reira doesn't seem to notice, at least not with regard to herself. But occasionally she glances out and stares at the guests from the carnival, as if studying them.

Waiting for something to happen that she can tuck away in the back of her mind.

Don't mind her appearance, if you do catch sight though. It's just moonrock, growing off her skin-even forming a crystal flower at the side of her head.]

[criticallyfucked]

Well, Reira might be elusive to some, but to Foster, she's carrying a little undead homing device in her hair.

He has no trouble finding her out on the floor, slipping dirty dishes off the table with the same deft ease she filched a certain spyglass just a few weeks ago. But unlike most of the ball's guests, he's not muzzyheaded or looking to dance.

He's not all that obvious about it, even stepping up to the table as though he is, at last, interested in something to eat. Even bare-hooved, he's as finely dressed as any, his difficult blond hair pinned back in the neatest up-do anyone has ever managed. (Thanks, Taako.)

But though he barely glances at her, he is most definitely there for her.

[soft_focus]

Oh yes-he is definitely there, but Reira does her level best not to pay him much mind. She takes the dishes-the empty ones, obviously, but she pauses when she feels she may be watched....

....And Reira catches a look, one that she returns with wide eyes, and perhaps even...irritation? Upset? It's difficult to say, but her Sparrow at least is still around; it peers out, and stares, as if waiting for some sort of command. Something's not right here, after all.

Whatever, she tells herself. She grabs for the empty plate nearest him, attempting to continue her job.

I rolled to see how stupid this was and he got a 19 wth

[criticallyfucked]

He doesn't stop her. He does, however, appear to change his mind about eating after all. He pauses a moment--only a moment, long enough for the sparrow to hop out as she reaches for that next plate. Taking advantage of her distraction, it crosses the short distance between them with a short burst of flight and disappears into his waistcoat.

It's probably the smoothest move Foster's pulled in years.

Probably because it had very little to actually do with him.

He doesn't leave her just yet, though. He turns away from the table just a second before she does, enabling him to 'coincidentally' follow her as she finishes filling her tray.

IM GONNA MOBILE TAG THE SHIT OUTTA THIS THREAD WHEN I CAN YO

[soft_focus]

Coincidence? Is there really such a thing as coincidence? Foster best be careful not to let any thoughts of dedication or determination fill his head-whenever anything remotely along the lines of a 'purpose' meets her thoughts, she glances back with narrowed eyes, clearly suspicious. Fortunately, she hasn't noticed the sparrow gone-so that's definitely something Foster's pulled off Perfectly.

As it is, she doesn't do anything as she's followed. He'll be stopped once she's too far into the halls to the kitchen after all, and that will probably be that.

Right? Time to bring these dishes in.

[espigeon]

[Julien sweeps by with a tray of champagne and pauses, his palps twitching, to offer her a bread roll as soft as cotton wool, and consequently kind of squashed. He'd palmed it earlier and snuck it into a pocket, something from someone else's plate that had gone uneaten.]

Here, Reira. Eat something, won't you?

[They'd all been hungry. He has to feed them before it goes bad.]

Please.

[soft_focus]

Umnh- [Reira looks up from her basket of plates, and immediately shakes her head. After all-] No, I'm still working... ....I can eat later, when work is done. It's fine.

[Also.] ...Where did you get it?

[espigeon]

[Julien's face is a smooth service mask, but he's got the palp movement going, and his eyes are worried. He's worried, and since he can't worry about certain things right now, he'll let it all pile on to this. She might starve.]

C'mon. Just a piece? It's fine, it got flattened like this, so I can't give it to a guest. That'd be so unseemly. But it's still good, see?

[He moves his tray to block the view of someone who might care, brings the roll to his face, and tears off a soft tuft of bread with his palps, popping it into his mouth.]

C'mon, I won't go until you take a bit. Just a little bit.

[soft_focus]

[...............She looks even more uncomfortable before. No. Dammit Julien why do you do this.

Finally she sighs, and begins moving toward the kitchen.] ....Out of sight then, [she says grudgingly, already growing more fearful just for saying as much.] ....When I go to get rid of the dishes.

[hippocarnival]

[Yuya does notice her appearance as she takes the plate he just left on the table, though for a moment it's just staring blankly at her. It's a little girl, kind of familiar, if not for the weird rock along her skin...

No, wait. It's a very familiar little girl. It's--] Reira?

[He snaps out of his daze enough to start following her wherever she's going. Wasn't he worried about her...?]

[soft_focus]

[Indeed it is her. For now, she hasn't noticed him....or at least, it seems like it. She simply continues around the table, doing her best to ignore the other-though occasionally when she glances back, it's perhaps with malice of all things. An unbridled hate, which might remind the boy of something he's seen from the effects of certain parasites.

Reira doesn't respond though. She focuses on gathering dishes, ignoring the other as best she can.]

[hippocarnival]

[The first time, that look causes him to stop. It's wrong, especially on Reira. But because it looks so wrong he pursues her again, weaving around the table.]

Reira, wait--what are you doing? [Is she... working? But she's with the carnival, so why is she doing anything like the Prince's servants do?]

[soft_focus]

[Tromptromptromp-she's moving through her job as quickly as her teeny legs can carry, but that's just not enough for Yuuya is it? He's too close for her to truly ignore either, so finally she hisses-]

Go away. [The words are harsh, certainly, but they seem laced with a curious edge of fear.] I'm working.

[atouts]

[ Downside to being a servant, other servants don't go unnoticed by people who have also been servants. It's only a matter of time before Reira finds her path back to wherever she's hauling the dishes off to blocked by a tall, grim-looking man in black and silver finery. It's, of course, Childermass, and he looks down at her with a frown. It isn't an angry one, but possibly a worried one.

It's tough to tell with him, even with empathy, as he has a tendency to keep what he's really feeling as close to his chest as humanly possible. ]

Ms. Akaba. What do you think you're doing?

[soft_focus]

[Ah, yes. There would be some sort of downside, wouldn't there? Reira freezes as she comprehends the figure before her, standing stock still, as if shocked. Her fingers tighten around her basket until the knuckles go whiter than her already pale skin-and certainly white in comparison to the moon rock covering her skin in messy patches like scales.

This-this is...Ah yes, the supervisor. Her former one, her mind supplies, even as confusion grips her in the face of Childermass' frown. Reira continues to grip her basket, with her eyes wide in seemingly perpetual horror-but when she speaks it is with a deathly monotone, and an unflinching stare upward.]

...You don't have to know what I'm doing anymore, [she announces flatly, waiting for the other to move for now. Perhaps, if he makes the wrong move, she'll call security. Yes, that would certainly be appropriate.]

I have to finish what the Prince asked. Move.

[atouts]

[ He won't make a wrong move. In fact, he won't make any move, which includes not moving out of Reira's path. ]

I don't recall ever releasing you into the Prince's service. [ He would consider releasing her full-time to the Psiioniic's, provided they survive this, but the Prince's? Never. He wouldn't even be able to. ] So I disagree. I do have to know what you are doing.

Re: REIRA | OTA | GAME MUSE | YGO-ARC V

[theshowmustgoon]

[Dennis has been watching everything with a keen eye. Despite the lack of doubt lingering in the back of his mind, he was also studying the world around him.

What he had spoken with Gongenzaka and Yuya was twisting around as he took a drink from Reira.]

What an interesting past time, Reira...

[soft_focus]

[And now, comes the time for the difference in guest treatment to come to light. If it were Yuuya, or Yuzu, she would stiffen. Hold her frightened and wide eyes forward, and try to move on. Tell them to leave. Tell them to go away.

Dennis is not a guest through the Carnival, however. Dennis is a guest of the Prince, and as such-she gives a slight, polite cursty of acknowledgement.] ....I'm working, [she tells him plainly-but her voice is a chilling monotone, more stiff and stone-like even than the first time they met.] ...It's not a past-time.

I have to collect the dishes-this one was still full though, [She adds, trying not to think too much upon the conversation she had with that fellow. She had intended to bring it to the table, honestly-but Dennis taking it worked rather well.

Ahh, but back to the point. She continues speaking, robotically,
her eyes wide and unreadable.] ....So you're free to drink it. I need the glass when it's empty though-but you can take your time, [she finds herself adding, thoughts clashing against each other.] ....I'll find it when it's ready.

[theshowmustgoon]

[It was a far difference. Of course, Reira was a babbu when they last met but then again...]

How interesting. I'll be sure to enjoy the drink. Though I'd like to visit a bit more, call it a past time. Can I ask what the Prince is like?

[dorkypantsuit]

Reira!

[Psi sees her and hurries forward, still in a panic.]

[soft_focus]

[Reira, as much as she's heard the voice and can feel the panic radiating off of Psi, does not intend to engage. She's very much focused on the dishes, as though perhaps paying attention to those will keep her from getting stuck dealing with conversations with...Them.

She's probably wrong though. Very wrong, actually, but it's worth a shot.]

[dorkypantsuit]

Reira?

[He calls again, confused about why she doesn't answer. Did she not hear him? Could she no longer hear? He panics at the thought, reaching out to put a hand on her shoulder.]

Reira, what's going on?

[wild_magic]

[Susan almost misses her at first, as he's trying to find a way to Fix This, whatever This is that needs fixing. But it's hard for him to miss one of the only people actually shorter than him around, especially when he's actively looking, when he's trying to find a servant of the manor to talk to.

He just wasn't actually expecting to see someone so young, and someone who. Well, who he actually recognizes, even if they haven't talked much.

But that doesn't matter. In fact it might make it easier to try and get answers out of her, right? He hopes so at least, and he approaches with a small smile.]

What're you doing? [Because she's dressed like she works here, right? So why would she have changed... That's strange.]

[soft_focus]

....Working. [Working is what the answer is, but Reira seems to stare not at Susan but through him-not even in the sense of one ignoring another. It's more as though something dark were lurking far behind him, or even all around them, and her focus is captured by that. She does not return the smile. In fact her face is kept emotionless, like stone...

Except those eyes, wide and fearful of what cannot be seen there.] I need to keep working.

[wild_magic]

[He frowns a little when her expression doesn't change, like she's looking through him... It's a little creepy, honestly, but he continues anyway.]

Did you decide you didn't like working with the animals? I think they're more fun than dishes.