⇨ 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

[prazerbutterfly]

The only ones he's been more open and honest with are Joker and Childermass. With everyone else he was vague and to a point obtrusive to keep up that allure of wanting his attention. He never made it a matter of pride and more of a way of keeping himself from getting bored and providing a sense of camaraderie and trust. It's why he never gave his report to Zecora or... wouldn't have.

The guests were rather messy but then it wasn't their responsibility to clean up after themselves. Childermass would have noticed that he'd wander through the ballroom from table to table doling out food and drinks. He made several visits to the balcony for decent periods of time. He's doing a round of retrieval and when that wrist is successfully snatched he'll keep his hand perfectly still.

For a brief moment that serene smile starts to falter as his eyes reflect a moment of confusion. His mind is rationalizing the situation. While he could use his power to snatch his hand away now that he wasn't as heavily dampened as the Ringmaster would have him, he doesn't. He allows the 'guest' to hold onto it. "I didn't work at this Manor," comes his final response, "I do now, Mister Childermass." No 'boss'. No role reversal. No cheer.

[atouts]

"You've no leave to," Childermass replies, though if this argument goes similarly to how it did with others, he'll have some reasoning for that as well. He only grips Tyki's wrist a moment longer, squeezing it briefly in a moment of frustration, but not terribly so. Then, he lets go, he steps back. He isn't one to lose his temper, though today has been such a trial for him.

"You cannot just change sides on your own will, Tyki Mykk. That isn't how this works."

[prazerbutterfly]

Oddly, Childermass' hand on his wrist does well to reign him in much like a tamed dog gone rabid and for the moment he doesn't move from his leaned over position when he was trying to retrieve that glass. He can feel the squeeze, the tension of his skin above where his perfectly laid gloves and those hidden scars itch into his skin. There's a possibility the other man can feel them. But then it's just gone as his hand is removed and Childermass steps back. He picks up where he left off as fingers slide around that glass and lift it onto the tray of dirty ones.

His brows do point in as if he just heard a direct order while frustration and confusion make their way to the surface upon his serene face. He has no leave to? It festers in him as the conflict is clearly there. "I didn't have much of a choice but then he provided me with a better one. Nothing will change that, Mister Childermass regardless of 'how it works'."

[atouts]

No, that's true enough. Nothing will change this unless the Ringmaster wins this sick game the Prince is playing, which means it's time for him to make his own move. The best Childermass can do is hope whatever it is she's after will be enough to free Tyki from whatever 'better choice' he's made.

"Everything changes," he does point out, at least, "Even things like that. It's only a matter of time."

But arguing and debating with the other man won't do much good. Action is what's needed, which isn't something he can take from out here on the balcony. So, he'll give Tyki a dismissive wave before turning to go.

"Do try to keep out of further trouble until the Ringmaster sorts this out."

[prazerbutterfly]

There are ways to break any game either through possession, pain or beating the rules. Tyki had always learned to cheat no matter what he did. His voice could carry a heavy weight which is why he was such a good conman. He had a way with words and he could get under someone's skin easily.

The edges of his lips turn up as his smile starts to evolve, "Yes, it's only a matter of time." Implying much more than he should but there are some people he wanted to instill panic and fear.

He sees that dismissive wave and normally he would listen but he doesn't have to listen to Childermass any longer, "If, she sorts it out. If not, I'm sure you'll know exactly when she decides."