lostcarnival | ⇨ FOURTH WALL EVENT! (OPEN TO ALL)

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⇨ FOURTH WALL EVENT! (OPEN TO ALL)

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.

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Oh, that's right! That shakes Yuya to a more positive thought. "Yeah, I talked to her!"

And ratted him out for joining the carnival. "I'm glad you found her... but is it really okay for them to all show up now?"

That's what he's worried about. There's something in the back of his mind that's alarmed at so many people now in the Prince's realm, but he can't remember what. What made the Prince so dangerous...?

Oh good, if Yuya talked to Arabella then that means Strange actually has someone now who knows Arabella (aside from Childermass but if they talked, it only was once or twice). Strange has this dopey look on his face like he's about to talk to Yuya about how wonderful Arabella is or isn't she just amazing or you know, she's the reason he decided to be a magician after all...but then Yuya brings up an important question.

Hmm. He's right. It might not be okay for them to all show up now. But why, though? After all, it's just a party.

"But...she's already here," Strange responds, as that dopey expressions shifts to a confused frown. "I don't think it matters if it's okay or not. It's not like I can send her home again, not like this." Said with a vague wave in the direction of the ballroom.

"... Yeah, that's true," Yuya casts his eyes down with a defeated expression. That's what it was like with Yuzu, too, after all. She was here, Yuya can't send her home--he just has to keep her safe for the rest of their contracts.

Which is a frustrating line of thinking when he can't remember what made him find the Prince dangerous to begin with. They lost track of people, but there was--something else, something that horrified him. Something that made him sick.

He furrows his brow, almost glaring at the darkness below. "You'll keep her safe anyway, I bet."

"Of course I will," Strange answers, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "She's Arabella. I'd do anything to keep her safe."

And he means anything. Trying to bring her back from the dead, going mad, summoning a long-lost English magician, the amount of things that Strange would do for Arabella are ridiculous. He would move the world if it meant keeping her safe.

With a small smile, Strange looks out to the crowd, as if expecting to see Arabella in there, laughing with a friend or happily dancing with someone else on the dance floor

Yuya looks back up at Strange when he says that, mostly because of his tone. It draws a smile out of Yuya as well. Not exactly knowing, but certainly with a sort of shared warmth. He has people who mean that much to him, too. "I'm surprised you're not spending all night with her."

He's only teasing a little.

Strange responds to Yuya's teasing with a gentle little laugh. Unfortunately, that bright mood lasts for only a few seconds because when he tries to respond to Yuya's question, he stops.

Because why isn't Strange spending all night with Arabella? She's here, after all. And he's missed her so much, why isn't he spending the entire night right beside her, drinking in her presence, listening to her wonderful laugh and just being with her. He should be by her side. But he isn't. So why?

"I should be spending all night with her," he answers, a bit confused, as he tries to push past the haze in his mind.

Yuya would nudge him a little more, all in good humor, but that Strange is genuinely confused that he's not still next to her. Did something happen? Maybe not between Strange and Arabella, but to them?

Yuya looks down at the ground, confused himself. What are they doing here? "Something's wrong?"

Something's definitely wrong, but Strange got hit hard by the memory haze and is just now trying to put together some of the very obvious pieces.

"I know she's here," Strange explains, looking out towards the ballroom as if he can see Arabella within the crowd. "So I should be with her. Otherwise—"

Otherwise she might get captured again. That damned white-haired faerie was here already as was the Prince. God, as was the Ringmaster, and while he trusted her, he was not going to let Arabella sign a contract with the carnival. It's at this point that Strange realizes he hasn't finished his previous thought.

"Otherwise I might lose her again," he finishes, way more worried and tense now than when the conversation first started.

Yuya also knows that feeling very well, and his attention snaps up suddenly to stare into the ballroom, trying to quickly scan the figures. Yuzu, where was Yuzu? Did he see her today, was she still--?

He spots a glimpse of her, dancing, safe. He relaxes immediately against the railing. She's still here, she hasn't disappeared from the castle.

... Wait. "You almost lost her before?"

"I did. She was kidnapped by one of my fae: a pale man with hair the color of thistledown." Which Yuya ran into earlier, huh, what a shock. Strange is blissfully unaware that Yuya ran into the Gentleman, but his disgruntled frown tells Yuya all he needs to know about what Strange thinks of the man. He's a jerk.

"I saved her in the end, but it was damned touch and go for a while. As such, I'm never going to let anything take her away from me ever again."

This last part is said with utter conviction. Given the choice between the carnival or Arabella, hell even the world or Arabella, Strange would choose his wife. Every time.

Yuya's the same way, he can't exactly call Strange out for his intense devotion. Still, the description causes him to pause a moment. Thistledown is... white? Pale and white hair. That's not very descriptive at all.

But he remembers the man from earlier who matches the description and, more importantly, didn't have a name. If Portland was good for anything, it was filling Yuya's head with knowledge of the supernatural. Fae usually didn't have names, they had titles.

He looks sideways at Strange. "Was it... the Master of Lost Hope?"

He only hesitates for a moment, but if this man kidnapped Arabella before, Strange deserves to know he's here.

Now that is a name Strange wasn't expecting Yuya to know. The fact that he goes as pale as a sheet tells Yuya that yes, it was the Master of Lost Hope. Strange had tried to distract that fiend for as long as possible during their conversation, but this damned memory haze prevented him from doing so.

"Yuya, no matter what, do not talk to that fae again. We've already lost far too many carnival members to the Prince, I refuse to have any lost to him."

Yuya purses his lips. Knowing that man is fae puts his insistence into perspective, and it chills Yuya's spine to realize it. The Ringmaster's contract seems to have protected him, and he wonders if he should mention it before deciding it's probably better if Strange doesn't think Yuya's in trouble--not when Yuya is pretty sure he's safe.

"I won't," he says it earnestly. "If the Ringmaster doesn't have power here, that means he doesn't either, right?"

Edited 2017-10-17 19:58 (UTC)

"That all depends," Strange continues, trying his hardest to keep his tone level. Damn, he would kill for a drink to calm the nerves right about now. "The carnival is here because the Ringmaster wants something from the Prince. She's in a position of subservience, can't cause a fuss if that's the case. If the Prince invited that white haired faerie as an equal, then that means he has more power than the Ringmaster, but not as much as the Prince."

Enough power to make Strange visibly worried, possibly the most worried that Yuya's seen him in a while. After all, if that faerie was able to put such a powerful curse on the two magicians that it lingered after the faerie's death, who knows what he could do to any other carnival members or guests of the Prince.

Yuya's brow knits with worry--it's not a comforting answer. But he really doesn't want to freak Strange out any further, but that probably isn't going to be avoidable. He's only seen him so tense when talking about Nightshade--whatever 'touch and go' meant, Strange was scarred for it. It was something horrible.

He shifts on his feet, uncertain what to do for a moment before he reaches to put a hand on Strange's arm. "I don't think he'll be allowed to take anyone that easily, and we can't start any fights. You should just spend the night with your wife, because you missed her. We'll be fine."

As fine as they can be.

Through the haze and fog, Strange realizes what Yuya's trying to do. He's trying to be comforting. Which, while he appreciates the thought tremendously, Strange knows can only do so much. Comfort can only go so far against the fae. Strange needs to stay here, stay out of sight, and find a way to keep everybody here safe. Or, at least, to keep Arabella safe. Because damn the rest, he's not letting her be hurt.

"I hope you're right," Strange responds, with a frown. There's another pause before he continues. "And I know I'm being damn cryptic about the whole thing, but...give me a place and a time after we leave the ball and I'll tell you the whole story about Arabella, that fae, and myself."

Yuya was a good kid. He deserved to know the truth, even if Strange was still so terribly reluctant to actually tell him.

Yuya looks surprised at that, but then he nods. He's sure not going to tell Strange not to tell him, or trust him with the history he went through. Especially if it's rearing its ugly head again.

So instead he offers a smile. "Okay. I'm really worried about things too, but we have people who need us now. We'll take care of them."

Reira needs Yuya, but Strange has his wife to worry about. Yuya doesn't want him to worry about him, either, so he'll find another way to help her. He's got an idea who to ask. " Do you need any help finding her...?"

Strange can't help but gently laugh at that, shaking his head. "I'm a magician, Yuya. I'll easily be able to find her. But thank you for the offer."

And besides, as oddly crowded as it is, this is just one ballroom. Strange has navigated his way through larger parties than this and now that he knows Arabella is here, he's keeping a particularly close eye out for her.

Yuya nods. "I'm going to go find my friends, then." And the Ringmaster. "Have lots of fun with your wife!"

He winks before bouncing a step forward away from the balcony, straightening his back so he walks back into the ballroom with exaggerated propriety.

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⇨ FOURTH WALL EVENT! (OPEN TO ALL)

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