after-party ♔

[wynn]

♬ Jeux d'eau - Ravel

WHO || Wynn, any and all Knights not currently on missions (Slovechnia group will be returned by this point!)
WHAT || Squiring Ceremony Afterparty
WHERE || Knights Headquarters, the Ballroom
WHEN || Feb 1st, 2013, 6:00PM
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 you aren't 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.

ooc; also if your Knight wants to get all gussied up, you can make a Disguise (Cha) check for how good they were at hair/makeup/stylin', etc! This goes for... any time.

Comments

[uncease]

[His expression goes from surprised by her sudden appearance, to politely charming (har) and accommodating, but finally settles on confused at her statement.]

By... plane? [From America, that is.] ...Emma, right? I'm David. [He holds out a hand to shake.]

[uncurse]

I know. [ she stares at the hand he offers, perplexed. ] And so do you. I don't mean to this castle, I meant to this world. Mary-Margaret and I were on our way back to you.

[uncease]

I think they mentioned something about a veil? [He still looks really confused, but is trying to smile and be nice about it.] Sorry, but I think you have me confused with someone else.

[uncurse]

[ there was an uncomfortable pause between them as something sank in for emma. something awful. dread welled up in her and it was too late that she realized just how horrible it'd be to lose her family when she'd only just found them. she'd gone her whole life without a family - she hadn't thought it'd be so hard to have them taken from her. but the familiar taste of denial rose in the back of her throat and she was quick to reject the notion. ]

No. No, I don't. You're David Nolan. Prince Charming. Whatever you go by these days, I know who you are. And you know who I am. This isn't - [ she took a breath, distress creeping into her expression and growing apparent through her vehemence. ] We did not fight like hell to get back to Storybrooke for you to forget us.

[uncease]

[Hearing about the Veil, about the memories of another life that were stripped away from him when he fell into this world... he isn't sure what to say to her. Did they know one another? She's certainly got parts of his name right...

He struggles, trying to force a memory to come, but his mind remains blank. The confusion in his eyes shifts to a helplessness.]

I'm sorry, I... I don't remember.

[uncurse]

[ the distress comes through more clearly. she wants to hold it back, tells herself that it isn't fair to put any expectation on him just like it wasn't fair of mary-margaret to push her too hard after the curse had broken. but she's his daughter and she damn well gets to expect after all that, after everything she did to get back to him, after he and snow abandoned her, that she gets to hold some expectations. ]

That's bullshit! [ it's not aimed at him. it's aimed at the veil itself, for how unfair it is in taking these things away. she quiets after she shouts the word, realizing it's causing something of a stir. ] What the hell is the point? We came back here to find you. I spent - spent weeks looking for Storybrooke, I didn't just get you back for you to not even remember who I am.

[uncease]

Hey. [As her emotion escalates, he reaches out and puts a hand on her arm, not trying to quiet her (even though she is making a scene) but just being genuinely concerned about her well being.]

I'm sorry. I wish I had the answer. All I can tell you is that I came through the Veil a few months ago. I pieced together enough of my memory to get on my feet. All I knew for sure was that my name was David. The rest was just... guesswork.

But if you know more... if you know who I was... God, I can't tell you how great that would be.

[uncurse]

[ her anxiety deflates a little at the contact. since he's asking for it, she doesn't really see a point in not breaking it to him bluntly. even with all the baggage that comes with it. ]

You were my father.

[uncease]

[He has NO words for that. If he was expecting anything, this was definitely the opposite of... that.]

I'm your... [He trails off, a strained laugh escaping his throat as a hand reaches up to his forehead, pushing back to run fingers through his hair.] Are you sure?

[uncurse]

Wouldn't be saying it if I wasn't.

[uncease]

[He lets out a long breath, trying to process all that.]

Do you want to... go somewhere and talk about this?

[Because standing in a big busy ballroom does not really seem the place to discuss SUDDENLY FAMILY to him.]

[uncurse]

[ she looks around, and nods, composing herself better now that it's out. ]

Yeah. I can tell you whatever you want to know.

[uncease]

[He puts a hand on her arm, not gripping, but guiding her out towards one of the doors that lead to a large hallway. In a castle this size, they can surely find a place to talk privately.

He walks them down the hall, towards the front entrance. It's far enough from the ballroom that it's much quieter, but it isn't exactly private. He looks down both ways.]

I guess we can give ourselves a tour while we talk?

[uncurse]

Beats getting it from Gold. [ emma nods her agreement and begins to walk alongside him, starting off to the left. ] Storybrooke's where we lived. Before we came here.

[uncease]

[He nods along, following beside her.]

Sounds... nice.

You said something about being separated?

[uncurse]

Mary-Margaret - my mother - and I, we were taken out of Storybrooke through a portal. Back to the land you two were originally from. Where I was born. Took us months to find a way back.

[uncease]

Your mother. So that would make her my..?

[Well he doesn't want to assume]

[uncurse]

Wife. Or .. well, it's more complicated than that in Storybrooke. There was a curse, it split you two up. But you're together again, now. And before the curse, you were ... You still are Snow White and Prince Charming. [ beat. ] I know this sounds crazy. I didn't believe it at first either, but it's true.

[uncease]

[Odd as it may sound, the hardest part for him to take in is the part about a wife. He can't imagine not remembering his own wife, but... then again, this woman is telling him that she's his daughter and he's never laid eyes on her before. He knows how the Veil works, but it's also quite a tale to try to believe.

There's something about her conviction, though. If she was trying to sell him a lie, there were easier ones to pass off. And even when he studies her very closely (Sense Motive 18) he doesn't see a sign of her being deceptive.]

Prince... [He laughs.] I guess that explains that. [After a moment of head shaking, he tries to explain.] When I first showed up through the Veil, someone asked my name. I didn't know what to say. It was like my mind was... trying to make a decision. Eventually, I just blurted out 'David Charming.'

And it stuck.

[uncurse]

David's your name. Charming was a nickname from Mary-Margaret - from Snow White. [ a beat. right. he didn't know her name, and he didn't know emma's either - not outside of the squiring ceremony, anyway. ] I'm Emma Swan.

[uncease]

Emma. [Even if he heard it at the ceremony, saying it now... with her, it felt nice. He couldn't help but smile a little. Even if he couldn't remember the things she was telling him, he felt comfortable with her, at the very least.]

Do you think there's a chance your mother... my wife... that she could be here too?

[uncurse]

[ she drops her voice a little, growing more serious and less warm-fuzzies. because this is seekrit ok. it's motivations for being in the nights. ]

I think she's in this world, and that being with the knights is the best way to find her. When I got here, it was through a portal - coming back from your land, the fairytale world, to a world like this one but without magic. If I ended up here, she should have too.

But, Storybrooke doesn't exist here. I went looking, but ... I haven't been able to find her.

[uncease]

[He's very still, listening to her and taking in what she's saying. He has no idea who this woman is, or why the hell she thinks he's Prince Charming, but he believes her... or at least that she truly believes what she's saying.

And he can't help but feel like he should help her look for this woman, this supposed wife of his.]

We'll find her. [The words come out before he realizes the weight of them.] I mean... I'll help. If I can.

[uncurse]

[ the abrupt decisiveness of it gives emma pause. david, the david she'd known, was a good guy who made a lot of bad choices. but for him to be so willing, so ready to find someone he didn't even remember on the word of a girl claiming to be his daughter ... ]

Just like that?

[ she had to admire that kind of faith. ]

[uncease]

[He reaches out and puts a hand on her arm.]

I don't remember anything from before I came through the Veil. You learn pretty fast how to trust your instincts when it comes to meeting new people.

I trust you. What you're saying sounds unbelievable, but... so does a lot of stuff lately. Maybe we're both here for a reason. Maybe we're supposed to find her.