knightsoflegend | after-party ♔ la lune trop pale caresse l'opale de tes yeux blases

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after-party ♔ la lune trop pale caresse l'opale de tes yeux blases

♬ Complainte du la Butte - Rufus Wainwright

WHO || Wynn, any and all Knights
WHAT || Squiring Ceremony Afterparty
WHERE || Knights Headquarters, the Ballroom
WHEN || February 1st, 2012, 9:00PM
HOW || Prose OR Actionspam

The "afterparty" is rumored to be the real main event of the night. A black-tie affair in the lavish, opulent ballroom, it is every new Knight's chance to mingle and meet some of their new brothers in arms. Of course, a couple hours are provided following the ceremony for everyone to change, do hair and makeup, and choose from the vast array of formal attire in the closets of the balcony "dressing rooms" located at the top of spiraled staircases on either side of the ballroom. A separate dressing room exists for men and women, and they include full bathrooms (with, thankfully, very modern plumbing).

The squires are usually among the last to arrive, and the ballroom is full to the brim with a fancy array of people, of all shapes, sizes and species.

Hope none of you are shy. They're all here to meet you.

Feel free to make your own open threads for people to come congratulate your newly pledged knight.

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[Alainn walks in behind some of the other Knights, her eyes lit with curiosity as she looks around for the newer faces. She's glad this isn't her squiring ceremony and can really enjoy this one. She gathers up the bottom of her dress as she continues walking, snagging a glass of champagne from a passing waiter.

She smiles in a friendly manner as she sees other Knights she knows and recognizes, her eyes still searching the crowd.]

[Just who you want Alainn to get right off the bat :) She's standing there, watching everyone as well, when her eyes light on Alainn and she smirks. They haven't really spoken, but she's seen her around enough.]

Couldn't find a little tux for your feathered friend?

Alainn raises a brow at the other woman, detecting more than a hint of snarkyness in her tone. Do not comment on her bird, especially not about needing a tux. Fede is a female. One who would claw someone's eyes out for assuming differently.]

Just thought I'd give her free rein to get her kicks somewhere else for the evening, though that didn't stop her from following. [Her eyes flash gold for a brief moment and she grins at Dumage, whom she had also seen around the castle, and didn't really think too much of.]

Ah, speaking of [And she holds out her arm as Fede, out of nowhere, takes residence on her fist with a sharp snap of her ENORMOUS wings. Alainn smiles wolfishly at the other woman.]

[Dumage tenses at the weird eye flicker, her smile freezing into something a little more disturbed, and she nearly jumps when the rush of wings comes overhead. She takes a good half step backward.]

Just make sure it stays away from the snack table. [THOSE THINGS CARRY DISEASE.]

[ Alainn reaches up to stroke a finger along the birds head, chuckling to herself at Dumage's reaction. ]

Don't ye worry, she just fed herself before the party. [ Alainn is sensitive enough to know better than to let her bird eat around others, it's not pretty at the best of times. Even she doesn't like watching it. ]

Who's worried? [Uh huh, very convincing, Dumage. She eyes Alainn for a second longer.]

I'm going to go ahead and guess wizard of some sort.

Of some sort, sure. [ She grins cheekily, then looks around, spotting someone else she would rather be talking to.

Ah, if you'll excuse me? [ Without really waiting for a reply she goes to step past Dumage. ] Enjoy the party. Perhaps we'll see each other around.

[DUDE. Dude, you have a bird. Martha's not from around here, and people don't just chill out at parties with giant birds where she's from. So she's just going to pretend that she isn't staring at the hawk.]

[Alainn's eyes drift past Dumage to the woman staring at Fede like she's going to poo on the floor and grins nicely, giving her a bit of a wave.]

Evenin'! [She says this chipperly with her Irish brogue thickening the words.] Don't ye worry, she wouldn't harm a fly... [glances at Dumage briefly, then back to the other woman]...dependin' on her mood.

[She smiles warmly again, not wanting to scare the woman away, or make her think she's threatening her.] Congratulations, by the way. Welcome to the Knighthood!

I'm sure you wouldn't bring it - her here if she was likely to hurt anybody. I'm sorry for staring, I'm just not used to seeing birds at parties. [The smile she offers Alainn is friendly, but a little awkward.] Thank you. This is just all so sudden, really.

[ Alainn chuckles at the woman's correction of her birds' gender, then gives her a gentle smile at the last part of her sentence. She snatches a snack off a passing tray, biting down hungrily, then answering once the first bite is swallowed. ]

Yeah, I don't think many people are used to seeing birds at parties, and truly I tried to tell her to stay away, but she's a wee stubborn thing! [ Fede prawks indignantly, pulling at a strand of Alainn's hair and looking for all the world as though she were offended, turning her head away and raising her beak...chin? ]

Ouch, ye blasted git! Ye wouldn't be offended if ye didn't attend where you're not wanted now, eh? [ She glances quickly at the other woman, her face turning sheepish, eyes wide like she's coming across as super-crazy-lady. Which would suck on the first day out. She quickly changes the subject. ]

It does seem to happen quite suddenly, I've noticed. One day you've never heard o' the Knights, and the next you're joining them like you've drunk the kool-aid. [ Her eyes go wide at that, then her free hand comes up like she probably offended/scared the poor woman. ] Not that we drink kool-aid here! Er... well I guess you could if you wanted to, but it's not mandatory!

[ She snaps her jaw shut, then stuffs the rest of the snack in and starts chewing, hoping that will make her stop yammering. ]

[Hey, Martha's cool with Alainn being a crazy bird lady. In fact, she giggles a little at their conversation and interaction, though her giggle has just a bit of a nervous tone to it.] Well, I'm...[she gestures vaguely] ...Not from around here.

[Never mind that her accent makes her sound like she was born and raised in London. Which, uh, she was.]

So joining up with a load of nutters in armour - not that you're a nutter or anything - is just a little bit more surprising than I'd...really expected. Though I suppose you can't expect a surprise, obviously.

[Yeah, Alainn, you aren't the only person feeling embarrassingly weird right now. It must be contagious.]

[Alainn grins hugely at that, glad she isn't taken for "a nutter," then snorts. Fede deigns to look at Martha now, cocking her head to the side curiously like she's not only listening to the other woman, but...like she understands her too. She's almost acting far too intelligent for a normal bird, much less a normal familiar.]

By "not from around here" I'm guessing ye came through the misty veil of forgetting and memory snatching and such? [she wriggles her fingers all mysteriously and makes weird faces while saying that last, still smiling impishly.] Don't worry, you're not the only one. I know you've heard it before, but take it from someone who's come through the damn thing herself.

[She sticks her hand out to shake Martha's, pumping it a few times vigorously.] Alainn O'Rourke at your service! No memories beyond five years ago, and I've turned out to be right peachy, if I say so me-self! And bird brain over here is Fede. Don't let her pouting fool you, she's really a push-over for people.

[At that Fede turns an honest to goodness bird-eyed glare at the side of Alainn's head, then with a prawk she hops from Alainn's shoulder over to Martha's, settling heavily on her and cooing softly at the woman. It kinda sounds like she's saying "hello." In bird. o.O]

Really? Wynn made it sound like it hadn't happened before. [Martha furrows her brow, looking a little confused.] I don't know, it seems like I remember almost everything from back home - but if I forgot something, how would I know about it?

Nice to meet you, Alainn. I'm Martha Jones. [Martha smiles as she shakes Alainn's hand] And it's nice to meet you, too, Fede. Have you been here for five years?

[Martha turns to look at Fede, raising her eyebrows.] Is there anywhere she likes to be, I dunno, petted or scratched or anything?

[Alainn is confused by Martha's reference to Wynn sounding like crossing through the Veil hadn't happened before. Maybe he was getting senile? In her mind, anyone over forty was super old and therefore next in line to lose their minds, and though Wynn looked rather young, the way he acted made him seem like he was at least fifty.]

Oh, she likes to be stroked either on her chest under her beak, or on her head and back. And yeah, she's been here five years like me, we kinda crossed over together. We're pretty much a package deal, she and I.[Fede coo's softly at Alainn's statement, and Martha petting her...if she does :).]

Where did ye come from exactly, if ye don't mind me askin'?

[She doesn't mention how very rare it is for someone who has crossed through the Veil to remember even the tiniest details of their lives before, much less everything. A slight pang of jealousy zings through her, but her eyes soften as she smiles much less crazily and more like someone who is genuinely curious.]

[Martha gently strokes Fede's chest feathers, smiling at the bird's sounds.] So is she...um...I don't really know what I'm asking here, but is it some magical sort of thing?

[Magic vocabulary, Martha does not have it. Woe.]

I'm from London, just...not this London. We don't have magic where I'm from, or Shadowkind, or anything like this. People don't just turn up from different dimensions in the middle of mist - usually they use spaceships. Not that aliens are terribly common or anything, but they're there.

[Not that she actually remembers most of the encounters she's had with aliens, and with one alien in particular. BUT OBVIOUSLY SHE DOESN'T KNOW THAT.]

[Alainn smiles gently at Martha's stumbling magical terminology, then nods as she answers.]

Yes, she's me Familiar. That's what they're called when an animal is bound to a Mage or Wizard, though...with Fede and meself it's a wee bit different. We were...connected, I guess you could say, when we crossed the Veil, and that was before I knew I had a knack for magic. That's not something you hear often, least not that I know of. [Which would sort of explain the closeness the two share, and the slight look of possessiveness in Alainn's eyes as she watches the bird fawn on Martha, though the look is tinged with acceptance as well.]

Ye had spaceships from your time?! [Realization of what Martha just said finally catches up with Alainn, curiosity coloring her gaze.]

Real spaceships that take you to different planets? Phew, that must've been so exciting!

So...[She gets that 'I'm going to ask a dumb question and I know it look' again] This is going to sound a bit daft, but can you two communicate through...some sort of psychic bond or something? I have to admit, I don't know a damn thing about magic.

Well, we didn't have spaceships on Earth, but aliens drop by from time to time. A spaceship crashed into Big Ben and landed in the Thames a couple years ago, right before something blew up Downing Street.

[Alainn chuckles softly, then nods at Martha's question.]

Please don't ever think you're daft for askin' a question such as that! Ye don't know about things in this world, and I never mind answering questions! I may not have all the right answers but that's never stopped me before. And yes, I can connect with her though... again that's a wee bit different than I've seen in others. Watch this.

[Alainn concentrates on Fede as the bird is preening her feathers. Suddenly, her eyes go gold, the same shade of gold as the bird, her pupils taking on the same shape as well. Fede looks up sharply to Alainn as this happens, flying back over the other woman's head and out one of the open windows. Alainn's eyes go back to their normal bright green and her gaze settles once more on Martha.]

She'll be back in a moment. Anyway, aliens? Really?! Wasn't that scary? That's so crazy to imagine, aliens just dropping by!

[She honestly doesn't seem to notice how yeah aliens stopping by sure is crazy, but for someone so freshly new to this world and seeing things like magic and elves and the such is just as crazy! Sometimes she is oblivious too.

[Martha's own eyes go wide as Alainn communicates with Fede, especially when the other woman's eyes change.] That's so cool! Do you see out of her eyes when your eyes change like that, or is it something different?

It was absolutely bloody terrifying - it's always terrifying like that, but sort of amazing, too, that other lifeforms can just...come to Earth. Problem is, a lot of the aliens don't exactly have good intentions. [The briefest of sad looks crosses her face as she thinks about her cousin, who died - as she only recently found out - in an invasion of Cybermen.] I guess it's a bit like Shadowkind, huh? Although I imagine most Shadowkind just want to live their lives here peacefully, and it's only a small minority wanting to cause trouble.

[Really, Martha thinks aliens are just as crazy - it's only been about two years since the Big Ben incident, and since then, aliens have been popping up more and more frequently, but she didn't even know about them for the first twenty-two years of her life.]

Aye, I see outta her peepers and she see's outta mine. Tis a trifle hard sometimes because I'm basically blind when it happens, y'know, not really seeing things from my perspective. [She gives a nonchalant shrug like it's nothing too big, then nods her head to what Martha was saying.]

From what I've noticed about the Shadowkind who end up here, meself included, we just mainly want to find our way in this world and live peacefully, just as you said. And o'course there are those who would disturb that peace, which is why I'm happy the Knights exist. We can defend this world against those who would do harm to it and it's inhabitants. That is something I've always been passionate about.

[Understanding crosses her features when Martha talks of the alien attacks and the sudden sadness in her face and tone.] There may not be any aliens here to fight against, which I know is probably a good thing, but at least you've found an organization where you can do something about those other terrors that no one else can. And you're not alone in doing it.

[This actually makes more sense to her than anything Wynn said - something resonates within Martha at Alainn's words, and she nods in agreement.] That's precisely what I want to do. If I'm stuck here - for as long as I'm stuck here - then I want to help the other people in this world, as well. It's nice to have other people who feel the same way. I- the people I worked for back home, their organisation was founded with that in mind, but it's changed over the years, I think, and it's not really about that anymore. Or it is, but with a more militaristic mindset.

Who was it that you worked for back home? Was it something along the lines of the Knights?

Not really. It used to be a government organisation - associated with the United Nations, anyway - but now it's private. It seems more military than the Knights are, less concerned with things like chivalry and helping people.

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after-party ♔ la lune trop pale caresse l'opale de tes yeux blases

Alainn / Open

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