after-party ♔ october

[wynn]

♬ Jeux d'eau - Ravel

WHO || Wynn, any and all Knights not currently on missions (if you are uncertain if your character would be at the castle for this, ask!)
WHAT || Squiring Ceremony Afterparty
WHERE || Knights Headquarters, the Ballroom
WHEN || October 1st, 2014, 6:00PM [backdated]
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

[undealt]

Belle? [no bluff check in the world is good enough to hide the surprise (and maybe a bit of fear- after all, he saw how she reacted to that spell and knows more than anything now that he can scare her) on his face. He tries to play it off, but the damage is done as he steps forward.] Hey. I was just- [He glances around and sighs, unable to come up with a better excuse or a way to make the truth less unpleasant.] I needed a change of scenery.

[now that he's looking at it, an expanse of forest bathed in moonlight is probably not the best change of scenery when one is trying to escape their hard fairy tale life.]

[untethered]

[ she moves closer to him, lifting one hand to brush his cheek with her fingers. there's no hesitance, only concern. ] What's happened?

[undealt]

Just some familiar faces from home. [Faces. Is that all they really are? Is that why Regina's a stranger and Mary Margaret goes around telling people her name is Snow White?] I think they may have accidentally given me some perspective on something I refused to believe could be true.

[He reaches up to touch her hand, more to ground himself than anything else.]

[untethered]

[ she frowns a bit, searching his eyes as if for more than that, but doesn't find it. ] ... Did you want to talk about it?

[undealt]

[yes.

no.

maybe.] I always convinced myself that uncovering what memories the Veil took from me was mere academic interest, that it couldn't possibly be anything I would truly miss.

Now I'm starting to wonder if I've lived another life and I just don't recall it. [all those small things he could never explain start to add up, all the lies he told himself, all the things he's had said to him... everything forms this horrifying patchwork quilt and even still, he can't separate the fact from the fiction.] And I may never know for certain as long as I live.

[untethered]

Auric. [ she puts her other hand on his face, holding him there. ] Maybe there's a reason that the Veil caused you to forget. Maybe you shouldn't go looking. Maybe this life? Is all you need. With me.

[undealt]

[The what ifs crawl through his head like hungry beasts, gnawing at every doubt and insecurity that ever existed, telling him that if he doesn't know what his demons are than how can he ever hope to master them? What if next time he can't control it? What if next time someone gets hurt?]

Aren't you frightened, Belle? [He stares into her eyes, so perplexed by her kindness, her insistence to leave things be, when he knows he could just as easily become a monster without chasing anything down.]

[untethered]

Of course not. [ her arms slip around his neck, drawing him down to her. ] Whatever it is, you're better without it. This man you are now, this is who you truly are. Who you can stay.

[undealt]

[He takes those words to heart- it is true, isn't it? The idea of the Veil offering second chances, wiping away the bad memories and leaving you with a fresh start. Even if what he remembers isn't even real or half a lie and there's some other life buried under all that... what would knowing that change?

Still. He's not a strong man. It's easy to say things and then be given to temptation later, but for now, he nods.]

You're right. I've lived here for years now with none of this ever being an issue. Why should it start now? [He presses his forehead to hers, drawing strength from her. It's fine. He's not losing his mind. Really.]

[untethered]

[ ♬ clarity - madilyn bailey

what a time to crit fail. her face contorts, and she looks on the verge of tears. ] Auric... There's something I have to tell you.

[undealt]

[Oh right... He almost forgot about that. He studies her expression, haunted by what she could be keeping from him, but also desperately curious.] It's all right. You can tell me anything.

[untethered]

I wanted to tell you sooner. I tried to find a time, but -- you were gone for so long in Germany, and when you came back, I could tell you were in pain. I didn't want to make it worse.

[undealt]

Belle. [He manages a breathless laugh- he can't help it. She's kind of adorable, even if she's making him nervous. He squeezes her shoulder reassuringly.] What is it?

[untethered]

[ ♬ silhouettes - of monsters and men ] There's something I never told you. Because I never thought-- I hoped I would never have to think on it again. That I'd left it behind.

[ she takes a deep breath and looks back up at him, guilt in her teary eyes. ] Auric, before I came to this world, I ... I had a fiancee. And this summer, when you were gone, I heard word that he was here.

I had to find him. He had no one, and this world was so strange to him... And he was injured when he came here. He needed help.

And he... he told me things. Things I'd forgotten.

[undealt]

[He doesn't let go of her, but he's still staring at her, albeit with a much stranger look on his face.] And... And what had you forgotten?

[untethered]

[ the tears burst free, and she grips him tightly, shaking her head, saying frantically: ] I told him it didn't matter, Auric. That I loved you, and nothing was going to change that. And I meant it.

[undealt]

Does... [Oh there's some things clicking together all right. (wis 16) He doesn't pull away, but confusion gives way to horror.] He knew me, didn't he?

[Her fiance. Which means all this time... he and Belle have been from the same world. That would be heartening if Belle weren't crying and this didn't seem to be coming to a bad end.] The person I was before this. [So that's why she hadn't wanted him to go digging- why she'd been so frightened.

Instinctively, he pulls her into an embrace, his next words spoken almost in her ear. He sounds pathetic and desperate, but if this is the last thing he has to hear about his dreadful past, then so be it, but she can't leave it there.] What did he tell you about me? Belle, please. Tell me.

[untethered]

[ her grip tightens on his shoulder as if in horrified confirmation of something, but she shakes her head tightly against his shoulder, and gasps: ] Not about you. Not-- [ her voice shakes however, and it doesn't sound entirely convincing. ] About us. I forgot our... our wedding. [ she doesn't look up, muttering the words into his neck. ]

Auric, he's my husband.

[undealt]

[wow that's even more disheartening. he really wanted to believe he and belle were from the same world AND MAYBE GASTON WAS TALKING SHIT ABOUT WHAT A MONSTER HE WAS, which really speaks to Gold's level of awareness of other people besides himself right now.

but it's a good thing none of that was true. maybe he's not a monster. maybe there's- WAIT A SECOND, HUSBAND????

No. This is worse. He holds her tightly, suddenly very glad she's crying into his shoulder so she can't see the stone-cold look of jealous rage pass over his features.

You can't commit to a man you barely remember, Belle. I don't know what he expects of you. It's... It's no different than me deciding that I truly am what's been hinted at and just giving into it. We're not the same people we were before the Veil. Isn't that what you've been saying?

[untethered]

Why do you think I keep saying it? [ she laughs painfully through her tears, but there's still something else there as she looks at him, something off. ] I don't know if he expects anything, Auric, and I was honest with him from the beginning, about you and how I feel - and don't feel for him. But I think if... [ she seems to swallow, looking down a moment, then back at him with wide eyes ] I think it's only fair for him to meet you.

[undealt]

Of course. [He manages to spit it out, though it's a bit strained. There's never really any pleasantness involved with an old suitor meets a new one- even worse when the suitor is a husband. Some resolve returns to him and he forces a smile, trying to cheer her up as best he can.] If anything, it might bring some closure and he can move on with his new life, just as we've moved on with ours.

[He flicks a wrist without thinking about it, only half-aware of how strange the gesture seems or why his tone has a sort of musical lilt in it.

It's just... optimism. And being amusing for her sake. Really.]

[untethered]

[ ♬ dark paradise - lana del rey

her own smile looks just as forced, wavering, perhaps with her tears, as she meets his gaze uncertainly. ] Ex... exactly. It will be... better for all of us. [ the smile starts to fail, and her eyes zag across his face with sudden despair, but she cuts it off by pulling him into an insistent, desperate kiss.

there's something off about it, however. something not entirely honest, that she's not particularly good at hiding. whatever she's upset about, this seems to only be the tip of the iceberg, and the shaking in her hands still feels a great deal like fear. ]

[undealt]

[He seems to be too keenly aware of everything and maybe it's because this is the second time he's kissed her and felt all that uncertainty. He wants to know everything, but that can wait for another day- it's already too much to deal with.

He kisses her desperately in return, trying to banish all that fear from her and from himself. There's nothing to worry about. It's one man- one insignificant man.

A man that Gold isn't going to let ruin the life he's trying to build.]