Intro thread - Meeting the Mayor

Standing on the bottom landing of the split staircase stood Mayor C. John Apollo. Dressed in a classic tuxedo, his bow tie glittered with gold tips. An insignia laid just beneath the tie connected to a gold ribbon with equally glistening claps. It was of his family crest, an eagle perched proudly with a musket in one clawed foot and, appropriately enough, bills in the other.

Mayor Apollo is the last of his great family, merchants who had helped originally settle Nachton and he let anyone who would listen know it.

'Welcome, welcome!' Stepping slowly down the staircase, he held his long arms out as if to embrace but in all actuality he went to great pains to not do so. Standing at six foot two the Mayor was a very handsome man with an atheletic build. At 48 and widowed, some say suspiciously, he was one of the most sought after men in the city social circles.

'Please leave your jackets with the staff,' pointing at the rather unhappy looking aged butler who's mustache was as pretentious as his employer, 'and join us in the ballroom. You are fashionably late,' he said with a wink, 'the others are waiting for you, as well as the champagne and caviar...oh and I hear we're having something with asparagus tonight! Welcome, WELCOME!'

((OOC - Please enter through this thread and make your way to the ballroom through the foyer. Previous special event rules apply, enter in this thread, OOC out and maintain 1 open thread, either currently active or create your own.))

Mayor Apollo nudged Humphrey in the ribs as he gave his welcome speech to the elegantly dressed group of snobs that were entering the foyer. With an up turned nose, he nodded towards the group and held out his hands to take their evening coats. The nod resembled an praise to the heavens above more than anything else, but Humphrey did not care.

If he was lucky he'd get some left overs and he'd chase the new maid around the kitchen after everyone had left.

'Good evening, Madame.' Humphreys nodded again. 'Good evening, Sir.' He draped fur wraps and heavy wool trench coats on his arm. As the group strolled into the ballroom with an air of superiority, Humphreys prayed that a piano would fall on him or his employer.

Jan pondered what to wear to this event. He could make a statement or he could be conformist and make a more responsible impression. Simon knew him and therefore it might not matter either way but to be on the safe side he had better not go for flash. There was no need to visually remind anyone that he could act up ...from time to time.

Pulling on a tailored long square cut tail coat over the gold silk embroidered vest and black tie, he checked the mirror. Squaring his shoulders and turned slightly, he had to say he looked good. Damn good, far better than the tights anyway. If he never had to wear -that- again he wouldn't miss it.

Raking a hand through the black waves of his hair, Jan headed out to pick up Addison. He had rented a limo for the evening, deciding that showing up in a large truck wasn't the way to go, tempting though it was to do so.

His hope was that they could find Simon and get the unpleasantness over with quickly so he could enjoy the drinking and well... drinking, socializing with the "better than you"Â? crowd wasn't his thing but Addison would be there and so would Nova. Watching his sister socialize with that same crowd was enough to make him want to go. He wondered if she'd find a neon dress to wear.

Soon enough Hillsdale House came into view. The driver opened the door and Jan stepped out, turned to wait for Addison.

"Okay, lets do this."Â?

He felt terribly special, being picked up via limo by his "date." Addison straightened the white bowtie and pat his front pocket to make sure the compact case with his specs was still in there. Not that he thought he would need to do any Dubine work tonight, but just in case.

He stepped out of the limo after Jan, who was looking dashing - the tux made him look slightly older. Addison tucked some wayward strands of red hair behind one ear and took Jan's hand. "Let's. The place is...terribly intimidating. Have you been here before?"

Pausing at the man waiting expectantly for something, Addison reached inside the tux jacket and pulled out the tickets, handing them over before heading inside.

(OOC: Addison is in This

Addison and Jan inside now)

Carol would later recall Simon saying it was going to be a boring evening later as her ears rang like church bells, but right then it was starting out to be pretty fun.

The tuxedo that she picked out for Simon looked amazing on him. Armani for the win, she thought to herself. Classic black, four button tux jacket with a white embroidered vest underneath and a real black tie was perfect on Simon. He sat casually in front of her as she whispered with Kyle. Occasionally she'd reach up and stick a nail into the curled ponytail and try and scratch at an itch. She could feel the curls brushing against the back of her neck and shoulders as she giggled.

The limo started to take a wide turn, signaling that they were coming up the drive of the mansion. Carol clapped her hands and declared, 'Here's to good times!'

Panos stepped forward and handed the doorman his invitation. With a curt nod the doorman opened the door for him and he stepped inside.

Why was he here? What was the point?

Every time he had asked himself this he had no answer. He would see Chryseis hopefully, it had been sometime. She wasn't the type to just drop in for a beer so their visits were limited.

With a heavy sigh Panos stuffed his hands into his suit pockets and walked to the bar.

(ooc: out in the open!)

Tai peered out at the sprawling mansion that had come into view. An old, plantation-style building. He could almost envision it as it must have been several hundred years before; it had lost none of its stateliness since then and seemed to stand proof against the passage of time once they were within the boundaries of the front gates.

Their limo rolled into a long line of other limos. Tai paid very little attention to the people ascending the steps; he was preoccupied with the construction of the building, and somehow his hand had found its way onto the luxurious silken folds of Yuu's gown.

He left it there, resting on her thigh, until it the limo rolled to a stop in front of the mansion. The chauffeur came around to the door and Tai stepped from the limo, holding his hand out for Yuu to take.

He exchanged a glance with her as they made their way up the stairs. It would be an amusing evening.

Mayor Apollo remembered what his publicist had told him. You need to mingle more! Align yourself with the common man, put yourself on his level! With that in mind, he moved down the stairs and into the body of the foyer. He paused at Humphreys, who was nearly buried in coats waiting for an attendant to relieve him. The dour look on his face bolstered Apollo's spirits. He patted the butler on the back heartily, pretending not to notice the fact that it threw him off-balance.

"Cheer up Humphreys," he said through a grit-toothed smile, "Perhaps one of these goodhearted folks will notice how bad you've got it and put you out of your misery. I don't know, drop a piano on you or something."

That said, he noticed a very familiar figure and moved away from the stairs. "Mr. Huntington, so glad you could come. Welcome!"

He began to move through the crowd. Mingle, that's right!

Nova gave the top of her white…gown…thingy a good firm tug before the limo pulled to a stop, feeling like she was about to fall out. There were low cut things happening, and slippery white fabric, and it was all just weird and wrong but Carol had assured her that this was the dress to wear.

Considering she could count the number of times in her life she’d worn a dress and still have fingers left over to play ‘Mary had a little lamb’ on the recorder, she supposed she wasn’t an expert. She did, however, honest to god wonder if wearing white was some sort of sick joke…then she decided it was sort of funny. Her. In a white dress.

Not so funny as all that, but a little funny anyway.

The white chucks were kind of a nice concession; painful shoes would have just been insult to injury, and at least with these she could wear socks that were neatly tucked in rather than messing with pantyhose.

Kyle, of course, looked perfect, which seemed to add insult to injury, but Carol was making enough fuss over him that she could ignore everything and be a big grumpy pants if she wanted to.

And she did. Want to. She was wearing a dress, for fuck’s sake, and she was already regretting her decision to just screw it and wear her hair down. She wished she’d brought a scrunchy.

The limo pulled to a stop and she made to get out, then realized that all that crap about guys helping chicks out of cars actually had a point; in a full length gown with fabric snug around one’s thighs, getting out of a limo was actually kind of a trick. In her usual completely unladylike manner, though, she hiked the dress up a little passed her knees and climbed out, letting the satiny material fall again once she was standing.

“Good times, good times.”

Kyle watched Nova exit the limo and he closed his eyes with a smile. He had been holding his hand out to help her but she appeared to manage on her own. While she was still trying to recover from stepping out in a dress, Kyle took her hand and tucked it around his arm.

He looked at her auburn hair and the streaks of gray weaved in. She looked beautiful in the dress, but he wasn't about to tell her that, not if he wanted to walk out of there alive. Instead he tried a different approach.

'You know you look just as beautiful with a ponytail.' To his surprise, he meant it. With a shocked breath he guided her up the steps and into the mansion.

Thaddeus concentrated on looking straight ahead and resisted the urge to either hide behind Alfarinn or glare at the photographers lining the entry way, presumably to capture a few famous faces in the crowd. Formal sit down dinners had never been a favorite of his, mostly because he very rarely liked the food. Being forced to sit around with all kinds of suspicious things on his plate that he was socially obligated to consume seemed quite unreasonable. He’d been that way all his life; sneaking into the kitchen to grab something to eat before it got mixed together in strange combinations with weird sauces and mysterious garnishes was a common occurrence.

The clothes, however, very nearly made up for things, and seeing Alfarinn dressed up and looking so dead sexy he was half tempted to ask the limo driver to just keep going blew his minor concerns out of the water.

He spared an apprehensive look at the crowd out front before turning to Alfarinn, pulling a small velvet box out of his pocket and feeling suddenly and absurdly nervous.

“I wanted to give you something…”

He opened the box and threaded a fine silver chain between his gloved fingers, lifting it up to reveal a finely crafted pocket watch on the end. A dove perched on the limb of what Thaddeus had always assumed was a stylized olive tree was intricately engraved on the cover.

“It was a gift from Lady Grey to Lord Grey before it was passed down to me and I wanted you to have it…it…should be in good working order, I sent it out to make sure, and…” He wondered when he had become so terrible at this sort of thing, and then realized he’d never been all that good at it to begin with. “…well, in any case…” he leaned forward, wrapped his hand around the back of Alfarinn’s neck, and pulled him close for a kiss before whispering softly:

“Thank you for saying yes.”

He looked out the window again, blushing slightly and wondering when Alfarinn would notice the engraving on the inside, the small, neat script that spelled out ‘I love you every second’ in a curve along the top.

/ooc Thaddeus is wearing: http://www.jptuxedo.com/images/Fumagalli_Black.JPG

In the sea of black tuxedos that were going to be present tonight, Alfarinn chose a light dove grey notched lapel tuxedo with a long square cut and vest instead. It being one of the occasional formal events, his hair was tied back in a loose low tail with a matching grey silk tie.

He found he was looking forward to the event with a renewed sense of excitement for these things. Over the years such engagements had become mandatory tasks with little to interest him save the odd bit of news or possible drama. With Thaddeus accompanying him these times became a chance to combine friends and interests between their clans... and a chance to dance.

Thaddeus had turned towards him in the seat, and feeling his partner's nervousness, Alfarinn started to take his lover's hand in reassurance...only to find Thaddeus was holding a box. He swallowed hard as Thaddeus explained just how special this watch was to him, making Alfarinn all the more awed at being given it.

Reaching out, he gently took the watch with both hands, brushing Thaddeus's as he did so. The memories and visions of the Grey family came to him immediately and he found it difficult to hold back tears at the emotion and sentiment both past and present contained within the small delicate object.

As the images slowed down, he opened the watch and traced a finger lightly along the engraved words and smiled at his companion.

“I really do not know what to say.”

He closed it carefully simply holding it for a long moment before hooking the chain in place and sliding the watch in his pocket.

“Except thank you and I will treasure it always.”

He returned the kiss gladly and smiled.

“Thank you for asking.”

The limo soon arrived at the large estate and glided to a halt in front of the entrance. Alfarinn stepped out of the vehicle and waited for his companion, still caught up in the unexpected gift that added to his happiness.

Moreover it was Thaddeus that had actually invited him to the banquet this time and he found it endearing; it had been a long while since he had actually been someone's date instead of needing to find someone to bring or coming alone. Though they were both invited to attend by their respective clans being asked was a pleasant surprise. Not that his partner had to worry about him saying no...not bloody likely, certainly not with the possibility of seeing Thadeus dressed so elegantly again and the hope of after dinner dancing to entice him.

Taking his companion's hand in his own, Alfarinn smiled and led them to the main doors.


Tux

Sorin stepped out of the limousine and turned to reach a hand down to Fiona in order to help her step out of the vehicle. She chose a colour that was thankfully easy to match and so he wore a black tuxedo with an exceptionally long styled coat that came just below his knees with a blood red silk vest and matching cravat tied as a tie.

They were of course, fashionably late and yet early enough not to miss any of the important drama unfold. It was a perfection of timing that he had centuries to hone into great skill. He knew they were going to be the center of attention as those who had arrived earlier would watch the door to see what new important personages made their appearance.

Once she was standing beside him, Sorin held out the crook of his arm. Giving her a smile and a wink, he said

"Well, my dear, our public awaits."Â?

(( OOC: I can't believe I have to post after -him- and all that mush. Tux ))

Ana had taken most of the afternoon off work to get ready... and she hoped her preparations* would be worth her effort.

Her totally confused, unprepared, out-of-her-element, "oh my god I have no idea what to do with this thing" effort. So she asked her neighbor for help. The college student was happy to help, though the girl's impression of "high society galas" had been "Oh, those're for old farts." Then, at some point during her "dolling up" she realized she might need to duplicate these efforts in a scant few days, and went back and wrote everything down. Four -pages- of notes. "Primp this. Curl that. Tug here. Stuff there. Shave here. Tweak there."

When had being a girl become so difficult?

So when she stepped out of her taxi, the door opened by the driver, fluffed her hair (because leaning against the taxi's seat had scrunched the lower ends) she took a deep breath, raised her chin just a little bit, and got into the line to enter the mansion.



(( *Ana's actual dress is ankle-length, but in the same style. Her hair is similarly styled, but her shoes are solid black. She carries a tiny purse in one hand, and her bare shoulders are covered by a light black jacket. ))

Fiona’s smile widened wickedly at Sorin’s wink and she slid her arm through his, automatically glancing over his own ensemble to make sure he had not gotten rumpled. It was not surprising to see that he still looked like perfection. How wonderful to be escorted by a handsome man with a sense of style. The blood-red accents had made her wish she had brought the shawl from New York that would have matched them perfectly, but the fur stole over her black gown would suffice. She had pulled her hair up into a neat French twist using ruby tipped sticks that matched her jewelry to hold it in place. Laughing softly, she responded

“Well, of course they are, mon cher. The party could not begin without us!”

While preparing for this bit of pageantry, she had spent some time perusing the local paper and internet, doing research on the power structure of Nachton. There was a list of names now firmly embedded in her mind, waiting only for faces to match to them. She trusted that Sorin would know which were truly important, and which simply fronts for something else, though even those should net be ignored. It didn’t do to inadvertently insult the power behind such people by slighting their chosen spokesperson.

Looking up now as they approached the Manor, she smiled, pleased with the world in general. If her instincts were right about Sorin, it would cause a bit of a stir for him to arrive with an unknown at such an event. It would do much, for both of them, in the way of attention. There could not have been a better way for her to enter Nachton’s society. How simply perfect.

It still made Rachyl giggle to know the sheer agony Meegan had gone through when deciding, after the long run, to just buy a dress from one of their competitors.

Technically, two, since she'd chosen one from a completely different outfit. Chosen an outfit from a completely different outfit. "Damn, figuring all this out while trying to stay focused on everything that's going on is just... grrr!"

Growling low, she shook her head to shake the negativity out. Tonight was going to be great! She hoped that Nyra and Connie had decided to come - she really wanted to dance with Nyra again, though tonight probably was not the best time to tell their friends the great news - but they'd not said for certain either way.

Her cheek itched, but she refrained from scratching it. She hoped she wouldn't have an allergic reaction to the soft powdery pale pink shimmer she was wearing. Everything about her outfit was a stark contrast from her usual dress; the silver of the outfit just "called to her" and she knew she had to wear it. Even her nails had been painted silver, and she wore silver eyeshadow.

Sighing, she waited for the driver to reach a hand to her to assist her exit from the limo.

Bending her head backwards, nearly scraping her nose against the door's edge, she did her best to avoid bumping her hairdo. Knotted and braided, raised above her neck, it was a strange counterweight to her skull that she just wasn't used to. It felt like a floppy hat, and she kept wanting to yank it off.

Shaking her dress into a more falling-position, than the sitting-crunch it had been in, she reached out to slip her arm around Meegan's. "Ready to dance the night away?"

The stretch limo slowly pulled up along side the entrance to the regalla and the tall black skinned heavily built limo driver got out and walked around the long expensive black vehical and opened the door for its single passenger.

Rorri Rosethorne exited with all the grace of someone raised for events like this. Her long fiery red hair was tied back into a single tail with stringed cords of prescious stones and she wore a crystal tiara studded with diamonds that caused her emerald eyes to glitter.

The emerald evening gown she wore was tied around her graceful slender neck leaving her shoulers exposed and her bosom accentuated. The material held a sheen to it and was probably nothing else but pure silk. It came down to just above her ankles where matching emerald heels finished the picture.

A single plantinum gem studded ankle charm decorated her left ankle bearing the Rosethorne house emblem. Likewise she wore a simple silver necklace and matching bracelets.

Her look screamed elegance and beauty as she picked up her small purse and stepped out onto the red carpet.

She walked up to the Mayor and gace a slight curtsey.

"Thank you for the invite Mayor, I hope my performance is up to yer standards." She said in a soft tone.

Simon helped Carol out of the limo and mentally winced as Nova struggled with her dress. 'You do look lovely, Nova,' he commented by then busied himself at escorting Carol up the marble steps to avoid the eyefull of daggers.

The mayor presented himself and Simon gave him a rather bland expression but did him the courtesy of shaking his hand. The mayor seemed pleased and moved on to gobble elsewhere.

Carol was giving her coat to the butler when he reached out and pulled at a lock of her hair playfully. She had twisted it up into a ponytail of curls and trimmed a little in the front. He liked the short wisps of bangs she had now. Not much but just enough to curl and cover her eyes seductively. He pulled one of them approvingly.

He took her hand and tucked it around his and they walked off to the ballroom.

((ooc - Carol and Simon out and into the ballroom))

Meegan placed her freehand on top of Rachyl's, and gave a small squeeze. They made their way up the steps and into the entrance hall. She pulled the black ankle-length velvet wrap from her shoulders, revealing her dress and placed the wrap into the waiting arms of the butler. They were greeted by the mayor with smiles and thank yous. As the mayor expressed his delight at having Nachton's very own designer present. As they walked away and entered the ballroom, Meegan gave herself a moment to roll her eyes.


((Meegan and Rachyl out and into the ballroom.))

Nova had a brief moment of wondering just what the hell Kyle was doing to her before she realized that he was just taking her hand to walk in together, and by then it was too late to do much about it.

Besides, she didn’t so much mind.

At his compliment, though, she gave a choking sort of sound of surprise and looked up at him as though he had sprouted two heads.

“Well...what the hell did I dress up for then!”

Breaking into an incredulous grin, she gave his arm a little punch and walked with him inside the mansion, actually chuckling under her breath.

/ooc Nova and Kyle inside

'Miss Rosethorne!' The Mayor bowed deeply at the site of the beautiful musician. 'Thank you so much for coming tonight. If you should need anything, anything at all,' he gave her a rather lecherous smile, 'do not hesitate to ask.'

The mayor looked the young woman over. Quite delicate, he thought. He'd hate to see that beautiful dress crumbled so he considered his options on how to get it off her.

He smiled gracefully again.

The black sedan delivered them safely to the Mayor's ball with only a minute or two delays as they waited in line to disembark. Had it been just him, he would have gotten out and walked the last block or two. But he waited patiently for his fledgelings sake.

Upon exiting he straightened his onyx cufflinks and held out a hand to Fallon.

((Cy's tux))

Quite taken with the entire event, Fallon was a bundle of nerves from the moment Cyrus' car arrived to pick her up, until the arrived at the steps of the ball.

His invitation was more than surprising, and she initially wanted to decline, politely of course. But having found some unexpected money in her budget, she was able to buy a relatively inexpensive gown, as gowns go, and jumped at the chance to accompany him.

"I can't thank you enough for the beautiful piano, Cyrus. It was way too extravagant a gesture, but I cherish it and the thought behind it."

And she was beginning to cherish him as well, though those thoughts were kept to herself, as she hugged his arm, and kissed his cheek, once she was beside him in the car.

"I can't wait to play for you...I just hope I don't disappoint you."

Remembering herself, she sat up straight beside him during the remainder of the drive. She was very conscious of creasing his suit, or her dress, as she wanted him to be proud of her tonight.

Once the car stopped, and Cyrus got out, Fallon carefully slid across the seat and took his hand. She also straightened her dress, and gave his hand a squeeze.

"Am I okay?"

She turned around slightly, wanting him to make sure her dress wasn't tucked up somewhere it shouldn't be, before they walked inside. She managed to smile, even though her stomach was full of butterflies.

((Fallon in her dress))

Ana was glad to have gotten through the entrance line, to shake the Mayor's hand, get a smile, a lecherous stare (is that what those look like? wow.) and beyond.

She didn't think she'd warm up, she'd been in the line so long, cold and shivering. She hadn't expected to wait. Invitations were important! People with invitations even more so! People with invitations who paid by check or credit card should have first dibs on getting their asses in out of the cold and getting warm!

With that thought in mind, she strode through the final door of the mansion and immediately looked for something to drink.

(( ana out, or should we say, in? ))

"Tis was a pleasure to come, I only hope yer guests find the music entertaining sir!" Rorri replied to the Mayor. She had seen so many people coming that she wondered just how many people had been invited.

She wondered exactly what the special occasion was, but figured it would be rude to ask as the Mayor no doubt would tell all at some time.

It had been months since Rene had made it to Nachton. She had not really had a night out on the town since her arrival. Oh take that back, there was that one night with Kyle when she first go into town, but that felt like ages ago. Hell she hadn't even seen him since then surprisingly enough. She was going to have to change that soon.

Reaching up to assure herself that her hair was still in its fancy updo the hairdresser had styled it up into, she glanced over at Corey. Definitely not her choice of dates, but the Chief had made it clear that neither of them had any choice about tonight's little shindig. Somehow she and her partner had won the "honor" of representing the force at some uppity charity event. She had no idea why they were the lucky ones, just that once Rizzo put the tickets in their hands, there was no going back.

Rene settled back into the cushy limo seat and waited for the waiting line of cars to dwindle. Finally, Corey was holding the door for her and escorting her up the steps to the grand event. He was doing a fine job of playing the gentleman for a change; it was a nice change of pace. Rene had to admit, he cleaned up pretty nice, too. Then again, it seemed so did she.

She still couldn't believe she'd managed to get a dress on such short notice, the Chief only told them two days beforehand, but she was happy with the slinky green number she'd stumbled onto. It was tight all the way down to just above her ankles, but cut at a slant that gave a little bit of extra play for walking. The shimmering dark green really brought out her eyes without clashing horribly with her red hair. A pair of fingerless gloves that matched, some strappy heels, dangly earrings that matched the choker neckline of her dress, and a little black lace shawl completed her attire.

Finally they reached the end of the line, or was that the beginning. Either way they both greeted the mayor and shook his hand. Rene had to fight the urge to wipe the back of her hand against her leg after the mayor placed a rather sloppy kiss there. She settled on placing her hand back thru Corey's arm, nonchalantly wiping it against his tux as she did so.

With a forced smile, Rene looked over to Corey. "I think we've taken up enough of Mayor Apollo's time, shall we head in?" He gave her an almost imperceptible wink and nodded to the Mayor, and then proceeded to lead Rene into the ballroom.

(Rene and Corey into the ballroom)
Rene in her finery

Pulling her floor length dress up at the knees so she could exit the sleek limo Chryseis waited for the driver to shut the door behind her before she continued to walk.

Once inside she scanned the room seeing the familiar faces. The humans alsways showed up to these events, making them slightly less appealing to attend. There was no shortage of them here either. Her eyes narrowed in on the one particular human that Panos had chased for some time. Her dreadful black mess of a gown spun about her like a cob web gone mad. What was with these humans and their insistant need to look like a corpse bride? Panos should have let her end this girls wretched life so she could really be 'dead'. Shame.

Another glance around and she spotted Panos by the bar. She was hoping to have found more Anantya but perhaps they hadnt arrived yet. She would like to have introduced Panos to a few of them. Talon even, for he seemed to be of great trouble making patterns and Panos would fit in with that. The evening was still young.

(ooc:out and about)

Nyra worried fretfully at her dress. The creation just seemed a tad too uninspired and well... black for her tastes. But they had only had it in the one color so she swallowed her usual distaste for the color and bought it anyways. Her shoes were a lovely flat strappy silver, matching the beaded silver headband pulling her wayward auburn locks away from her face.

Looking at Connie as they stood in line at the entrance way she bit her lip. "You look fabulous, but are you sure I look ok?"

The taxi arrived and dropped them at the bottom of the steps to Hillsdale House. Ginnie paid the fair, and let Alec help her from the taxi. She wrapped her arm in his and they made their way up the stairs and to the back of the recieving line. They weren't the only ones who had been fashionably late.

It took less time than she'd expected and they were divesting their outer garments into the hands of a very tormented looking buttler and being greeted by a smarmy looking man. She hadn't voted for this man and really didn't like him, but hopefully the food would be good and the company fun.

She shook his hand with just the tips of her fingers and thumb, she had zero desire to actually touch him and she and Alec made their way into the ballroom, Ginnie giving the golden confection that was her dress a final smoothing as they entered the room.

((ooc Ginnie and Alec in and out...Ginnie's dress.))

It was a silly grin, he knew it. He'd seen it as he had passed by the mirror on the way out of his suite. He just couldn't help himself though. Not only did he look great, but he was getting out of the Towers, AND he had a hot date. Well, he had a date, how hot it became was yet to be determined. But that Maeve had accepted his invitation went beyond his dumb luck of late, and added to his list of reasons to smile.

When Nic had got word of the charity ball, that happened to coincide with a message from the Liefde security officer, Christian Bern, via MARI, he was more than excited. Finally he would be able to get out among people again, and be in his element. Nic always felt just as comfortable in a tux, as he did in jeans, but even more so when in and amongst the wealthy elite. And it had been much too long in between events such as this. He had ordered tickets immediately, and had them delivered to his suite at the Towers.

That he met Maeve within hours of the first two occurrences almost seemed prophetic, or would have if he had looked at things that closely. Fortunately, Nic just took the whole thing in stride, much as if it was just a normal, every day occurrence. It wasn't until Maeve actually accepted his invitation, that he began to wonder, just a little.

He had called a cab to drive them from the Towers, and met Maeve in the lobby before hand. Having learned several years back, that women no longer liked being whistled at, Nic instead took her hand, kissed the tops of her fingers, and extended his elbow for her to take.

Of course he also told her point blank...she looked radiant, and that he was honored to be her escort for the evening.

As they stepped from the cab, he again had to check the urge to whistle, and instead quickly swept her inside the building where he handed in the tickets, and walked her into the hall.

"The evening is young...what shall we do first?"

(Nic's Tux)

It always made Connie smirk - but thankfully she was able to control the twitch at her lips - when Nyra nibbled on hers, concerned about her appearance or other outward social graces. "You look fabulous, but are you sure I look ok?"

Taking her lover's hand and gently wrapping it around her arm, then covering it with her own free hand, Connie replied softly, "Of course, love. More than okay. Wonderful. Magnificent. Splendiferous. And at the risk of sounding presumptuous and overly praising, sexy as all get out. You wearing black is just... droolworthy. I'm glad you chose that for tonight. It's so..." She pursed her lips, stood back from Nyra just a little, peered up and down her lover's body, and nodded. Stepping closer, she whispered into Nyra's ear, "It's so not-you that it is-you and I just want to eat you all up!"

She squeezed Nyra's hand comfortingly and stood close. "Any plans on whom to contact, whom to avoid?"

It honestly hadn't been Connie's idea for the both of them to wear black. In fact, as with the Halloween Ball and the Charity Gala, neither knew of the other's dress until they picked each other up at their apartment and headed to the limo. But Connie was enjoying the lack of frills that her own black dress afforded. Didn't afford. A tiny sun charm dangled from a silver chain at the hollow of her throat; the single piece of jewelry she wore tonight. Her shoes were a matching silver strappy sandal, with just a hint of heel.

Leave it to Lucile to get Shay tickets to an event in her own town. She called and thanked her boss for the thought, though she hadn't really been planning on going.

It wasn't that she didn't think the charity was worthwhile, or that she didn't love dressing up, especially when it was to go somewhere with Alexi...but she was still just a little shaky from her trip to New York.

Of course Lucile wasn't aware of the most recent trip to New York, as Shay hadn't stopped by the publisher's office. The tickets were just delivered yesterday via messenger. And because Shay knew it would be a great opportunity to do some personal research for her book - a thought not lost on Lucile - she asked Alexi if he wanted to attend. When he said he did, it was decided, and now that she was dressed and sitting next to him in the car, and she was glad they were there.

When the valet opened her door, she got out and waited for Alexi to walk around to her side. He looked absolutely fabulous tonight, and her heart beat just a little faster as he approached her. She took his arm, as she always did, but this time actually used it to help support her. She was feeling fine now, but on the off chance she got a little weak in the knees, she didn't want him far.

"Are you sure I'm not too pale?"

She asked, looking up into his wonderfully sexy face. She had been given blood in the hospital, and it had been a couple days since, so in reality she looked better than she felt. But she didn't want anyone to suspect anything, so she had even worn a little makeup tonight.

(Shay's dress)

Maeve had dressed for the night carefully. Granted she hadn't had a lot of choice of what to wear, but as usual Mary had packed a few appropriate things for every occasion. As she was flipping through her closet her eyes landed on a gorgeous red dress that she'd bought and never wore. She almost laughed out loud when she saw it. Mary had been trying to get her to wear it for years. She passed it up and reached for something more conservative, but just as she was laying it on the bed she stopped. With a small smile she put her first choice back and reached for the red dress.

She carefully rolled her hair then piled the curls on top of her head. She pinned and arranged every strand carefully leaving some curls to hang down her back and frame her face. After slipping into the dress she added some elegant matching sandals and the jewelry that Fiona had given her just for these occasions. Looking in the mirror she took a deep breath, before heading down to the lobby to meet Nic.

When he took her hand and kissed it, she smiled brightly. Slipping her arm through his, she followed him outside to the cab. She thanked him sincerely for his compliments before adding her own. He really did look extremely handsome. His personal shopper had good taste.

She followed him into the hall with her arm once again linked with his. She couldn't help but notice how at ease he seemed to be in this setting, and it helped to reinforce her own comfort. "How about we get a drink?"Â?

The red of her dress was so vibrant that his attentions were constantly distracted by it. As he walked alongside her, he found himself repeatedly turning towards her, as if to say something, but mainly just to look at her. He felt like one of those goofy teenage boys at their first dance, with the prettiest girl at school. And yet he knew he held his own beside her, and felt it only right that she had joined him for the event.

Quickly scanning the crowd, he did see Addison right off. The man's red hair was very difficult to miss. He noticed an older boy seemed to be Addison's companion, and remembered him from the Creator's Ball, as well. It was good that Addison had someone to attend to him, and this boy looked much more comfortable in the position.

Plucking two glasses of champagne off a passing tray, he handed one to Maeve.
Continuing his observations, Nic was a little dismayed not to see more of the Evenhets he knew. In fact, the only one he had seen was Arin, and his friend Thaddeus. Nic remembered them from the bookstore in the Meridian Mall, and thought he should at least recognize Arin's recent communication to Nic. He appreciated everything Kem and Arin had done on his behalf, and felt it only fitting to express gratitude.

"Maeve, I see one of our own, over there. Why don't we go say hello? Do you know Arin Bjorn?"

His hand covered her's on his arm, as he led her through the throng of people.

(Nic out, and moving to Being Seen thread)

There was no way she could miss Nic turning toward her repeatedly. The thing she couldn't quite understand was why she liked it. She knew he was just doing it to look at her, and usually she would merely register the glances as she had done in the gym. Now she was actually pleased that she'd chosen the dress she had and that her choice was garnering such attention. It wasn't just the attention though. Nic seemed to possess all of the chivalrous qualities that they had been saying were missing these days, and she found that more than a little appealing. She shook her head to clear her thoughts. This was just not her.

She smiled as she took the glass from her escort. "Thank you, sir."Â? She scanned the room as they entered looking to see if she recognized anyone from her previous visits to Nachton. So far she didn't see anyone she remembered right off the bat, but she was sure that would change at some point. She also couldn't help scanning the room for signs of Fiona. She would not be at all surprised to find that her friend had managed to land an invite. She just had that way about her. For all Maeve knew she might even be here with her new Anantya friend. She sipped her champagne and leaned toward Nic when he spoke.

"That sounds like a great idea. And I believe I do know Arin. Lead the way."Â? She smiled as she followed him through the room.

(Maeve out with Nic.)

Palmer handed the keys of his rental, a grey Towncar, to the valet and accepted his ticket in return, pulling out his wallet, attached to a fine silver chain that dropped down past his knees, and slipping the ticket inside. A second chain, shorter than the first, held his small mobile phone, though when his particular brand of formal wear was invented one was more likely to carry a pocket watch.

Still, Palmer thought a zoot suit sent just the right message.

He wondered if he would see any of his clanmates tonight. He wasn’t sure if the Elders showed up to such things and thought it more likely that they sent underlings. Thaddeus might be here, though if his letters were any indication, the nightsman was becoming almost as antisocial as Blaine. Odd, considering when they had worked together all those years ago…god, decades ago…Thaddeus had been lively in his own way. His own fussy little British way, to be sure, but lively none the less.

He slid his sunglasses off after passing the cameras and walked inside, looking downward while his eyes adjusted to the artificial light. It wasn’t too harsh in here but he’d keep the slim rectangular shades close by just in case. Back home, he might have had his photo taken a dozen times and it would have taken longer to recover; here in Nachton, he was an unknown, a clean slate, and he found the feeling both interesting and intimidating.

/ooc pimp. http://www.suavecito.com/images/Suits/Black%20Tux.jpg
And onward, onward, out!

What the hell, sometimes these charity gigs could be fun. At the very least the right people would be there. Granted Val hadn’t paid for her ticket, not that she couldn’t afford it she just didn’t hunt down this sort of thing. But one of her clients had given it to her as a thank you. Business was a great two way street.

She didn’t bother with a limo, not even in an evening dress, she still preferred to drive and was still currently driving her Mercedes. But it was time to sell that and try out another one, maybe a Ferrari this time. Yes, that would be nice.

Sliding out of the car, she tossed a seductive smile at the valet and made her way inside. Her hair was set in a slightly more modern version of Marcel waves and dressed with two diamond ornaments. She’s picked up her black dress at Bergdorf’s at the last minute but damned it looked good.

The hair ornaments were accented by long shoulder brushing earrings, whit cold with diamond drops, that matched a pendant, just a single diamond on a long chain, and a sleek bracelet and ring.

Good, she was here. Now all she had to do was find some fun.

((OOC… in and out.))

Smiling at Fallon he assured her of the beautiful picture she posed. "You look amazing."

Handing their coats to the overworked butler, Cyrus tucked his fledgelings hand in his elbow. "Mind viewing the garden first?"

Fallon smiled at his assurances, and nodded her acceptance of a moonlight stroll through the gardens. She placed her free hand over the one on his arm, and followed.

"I would be delighted, Cyrus, please...lead on."

Unsure she was ready for this,so soon after the hospital stay, Mathias considered saying no. However,as Shay seemed to have her heart set on this he relented and agreed to go.

His reasons weren't entirely altruistic, once again glancing at the beauty next to him. Not for the first time tonight, he once again wondered how -he- had gotten so lucky. Like light given flesh he thought, the glow that Shay seemed to radiate being one of the first things he noticed about her.

"You look wonderful,my love. I don't see how one can improve upon perfection,but you look even more beautiful tonight. "

Taking Shay's arm in his, Mathias headed into the ball - looking forward to a nice,quiet evening of empty conversation.

((ooc - Mathias out and into the ball with Shay ))

( Mathias' tux )

Lotus already regretted the shoes. It had been decades since she wore shoes like this. It felt like she was walking on little needles.

She was late, very late. She wasn't even sure they'd let her in. As the car pulled up in the circle drive, Lotus gazed out of the window. What a sight! She felt giddy and anxious.

Praying that her fitted halter dress, above the knee on one side, and slanting down to the ankle on the other, Sheer black material except in all the right places, was acceptable for this event. She let the driver help her exit the car. Smoothing her dress and hair, Lotus began the climb to the large doors, silently cursing the shoes.

(ooc out)

Christian adjusted the collar of his green dress uniform thinking that it was good to not have to wonder what is appropriate to wear to one of these events. Being able to wear a military uniform always gave you the option of something reliable and acceptable to be seen in. He had not been in the Swiss Army in centuries of course but the red and green modern military dress of his native country was a part of his human alias. Christian felt that he had served his homeland well enough to be able to do the uniform the honour and justice it deserves.

He was in fine company tonight with two ladies in the limo with him. For Dani, as well as himself, it was business as well as pleasure. They had the job of making sure that everything went well for Evenhet and Meridian. This was a big PR event for the young woman and she had the unenviable job of keeping the elder on task and making him smile for cameras as well as speaking to and greeting the various important people present.

Alfarinn had been doing that well enough for years but it seemed to be taking its toll on him to play the role that he did. Christian was glad that the elder would be able to take some time out of the public eye soon. With his never changing appearance, the Norwegian would have to have someone play the part of him as an older man and that gave him a chance to rest in anonymity and to focus on his clan.

Dani had been an angel of mercy with all the help and support she gave Alfarinn. Moreover, she really inspired him to put his all back into the media situations that he had been going through mostly by rote of late. She really believed in the cause of the combined strength of their two races. Hearing her speak was enough to melt the heart of even some of the most hardened and care worn vampires of the clan who start to doubt that such a thing could possibly work well.

Stepping out of the limo and standing aside to wait for the two ladies, Christian knew how they must look. A man and woman and a little girl, they appeared to be a charming little family. The reality of their ages was all together different. He and Theo were a mere eight years apart in age and Danielle had been alive but a brief span of time in their long lives.

"Would you say we are still fashionably late?"Â?

((OOC: Christian's opinions on Dani with permission))

Dani had been attempting to find the mate to her chandelier earring in the desk drawers of her office when she saw Theo, sitting in front of the television and looking forlorn, and thought that, though she normally avoided crowds at all costs, she might at least like an invitation. When Theo stood up and walked away without a word, however, Dani assumed she wouldn’t be going.

It was quite a surprise when she found Theo, fully dressed, waiting in the lobby when she exited the elevator. That she was holding out her missing earring was not quite such a shock.

She decided that, with all the other things to be concerned about tonight, she didn’t want to know where Theo had found a new dress on short notice.

Earlier in the day she’d managed to transfer the important items in her purse into a more appropriate bag, though it was hard not to grumble at the smaller size. No box of cookies tonight, and she’d been lucky to fit her palm pilot, her cell, some bandaids, the sewing kit, extra lipstick, tissues, her swiss army knife…alright, she probably would have everything she needed tonight.

Didn’t mean she didn’t hold the opinion that there should be larger evening bags.

She beamed a smile at Christian, who was looking quite handsome in his uniform, and looked over her shoulder to make sure Theo was getting out alright.

Dani’s dress http://a1216.g.akamai.net/f/1216/955/6h/images2.nordstrom.com/images/store/product/large/10406.jpg

Theo gave Christian her best lofty look as she climbed out of the limo.

“We have arrived at exactly the right time.”

She did her best to follow that with a somewhat nervous grin and wrapped her arm around Christian’s. Her mind was literally buzzing but she was managing to keep the voices to a low hum, well aware that had they come in while the crowd was milling about instead of settling in at tables she would have had a harder time. As it was she was more than a little nervous, but there were plenty of hiding spots in the mansion if things got too unmanageable.

/ooc Theo’s dress :
http://us.st11.yimg.com/store1.yimg.com/I/edressme_1883_4826467

And onward we go!

A lovely lady on each arm was a good way to arrive if you were going to make a noticible entrance. At least the public would figure that you had a good reason to be late. Christian figured they would be less suspicious together and people would go quickly back to their dinner. If he had entered alone there might be more cause for speculation and he would look less like a guest simply here to enjoy himself.

"How very philosophical of you, Theo."

With that he opened the door for them both and then stepped inside.

((OOC: in, in and in... so out out and out ))