party post } { fool and king, ghoul and ghost

[mayoralty]

On the evening of the twenty-ninth, the ballroom on the main deck of the boat is decked out in lavish black and gold, thanks to Carol and Sophie, and the assistance of the very strong men they enlisted to help (thank you, boys). It's been a while since Carol has thrown a full out ball, and she liked the chance to stretch her event planning limbs again, even if those attending are mostly the ghost robots in their cater waiter wear.

A soft music is playing over the guests as they enter. As they pass through the threshold, there's a table with simple masks for them to choose from, in case they've forgotten their's. Once they pass through the main archway, they'll find their way to the large dance space where the ghost robot band is sitting, because live music is so much better than a recording, and they actually don't sound half-bad, all things considered. They also take requests, so feel free to tell them that song where you always wondered what it would sound like with a full orchestral backing. There's a large, expansive dance floor in the middle, and you're welcome to get out there and shake your groove thing whenever you see fit.

Tables with food line the far left wall of the room, as well as clusters of tables for the guests to sit when they so choose. There's also an open bar nestled into the far corner, for all your alcoholic needs. There are also plenty of dark corners to slip into, if you don't want anyone to see what you're doing, however the narration suggests watching those dark corners carefully. Rabbit holes lurk in pretty much every shadowed area of the ballroom and while they won't always drop you into a strange location of your choosing, there's a high chance they will. There's probably a high turnover of people arriving back in the ballroom, looking like they've gone five rounds with a bull.

Probably because they have.

The boat seem to want to promote this event as much as possible. While not everyone loves a good ball, some non-attenders may suddenly find themselves in attendance, completely dressed and no idea of how they got there. Trying to leave? Might not go so well either. For some, socializing isn't so much a choice as a punishment, but there are probably plenty of people to help you have a good time.

Or you could go on a trip to Narnia. One never really knows.

[OKAY BALL IS GO sorry I was late getting this up. Rabbit Holes are to be used at your discretion, but if you need suggestions or want me to randomize something for you, just shoot me a PM/private plurk/ping me (iluvroadrunner6) and I will give you a scenario. Otherwise, mix, mingle and have fun with all the pretty formal wear. o7 Actionspam/prose/whatever floats your boat for this, it was easier to just write up the top part in prose.]

Comments

Elena Gilbert }

[resuming]

[ elena always finds something to smile about even when life doesn't necessarily give you reasons to; it's around that time you start to make your own reasons. in this case, it's something as simple as seeing tyler reunited with his mom, and having mrs. lockwood host an event similar to those they'd have back home. it's as close to mystic falls as elena is going to get nowadays. it's why she didn't need too much prodding to show up, and it's also why she'll mingle, dance, and find it in her to have a good time where she otherwise might've skipped it.

of course, that doesn't stop her from slipping away from the crowd at some point to get some fresh air outside near the water, but overall, she'll be a good sport, and you can find her during her break or anywhere else throughout the evening.

... but first, she's going to be by the table with the masks, trying to pick one out. decisions are hard. ]

/POUNCES

[powertostand]

[bonnie would not ordinarily wear a dress like this one, but the ship had other matters in mind. she makes a face as she stares down at herself, and okay, she looks really good in it, but still. a ship shouldn't be allowed to dress you up like a doll.

when she sees elena, she makes a direct line over to her walking with a smile on her face as she sees elena stand over the table with the masks on it. it's been a little while since she's been on the ship, and it is very good to see her best friend again, okay? ...even if she just saw her back home, but this version of her best friend because she worries and loves every single elena gilbert in existence, okay?]

Elena! You look... seriously amazing! Did you pick out that dress, because A+. Very good choice. [bonnie's smile brightens as she stares at her, and she really does look all grown up in that dress. it is hard to remember what it was like when they were tinies and could only imagine wearing such fancy ball gowns and dresses.] What a time to walk through that door again and right... into the middle of a ball.

SCREE

[resuming]

Bonnie?

[ bonnie bennett, you are the most beautiful sight for these sore eyes. elena's smile goes from half-hearted to full-blown grin in less than two point five seconds, making her way over to her best friend and all but throwing her arms around her. she has missed you, bonnie. not just on the boat - bonnie is no longer at teleios either, and elena had been hoping. the kind of hope that's quiet and doesn't speak out loud, just in case it doesn't come true. ]

No, I'd had another one in mind but the boat had other plans. [ which is probably for the best, as elena had gone for something understated without looking much into it, and caroline would've likely killed her for it. ] You look amazing. [ she grabs both of bonnie's hands and lifts them up to get a better look at her, her broad smile only widening. it all but splits across her face. ] You have no idea how good it is to see you.

:DDD

[powertostand]

[bonnie's smile brightens further when she sees that grin on her best friend's face, and she is already meeting her halfway, throwing her arms around her too and hugging her tightly. she can tell then that it has been a long time since this elena has seen her from the hug alone, because she knows elena so well.]

The boat had other plans for me too. Who knew the boat had such a fashion sense? Kind of creepy. [but she is grinning goodnaturedly because a boat that can pick out perfect dresses for people is not very high on the creepy scale all things considered.] Thank you. Oh, I think I have some idea given how good it is to see you. [her hands tighten over elena's when she grabs both of her hands, and she looks at her with a smile but that deep hint of concern too.] ...is the me that was where you were not there anymore?

[resuming]

[ the smile falters inevitably once bonnie asks.

it shouldn't surprise elena that she does. bonnie knows things. it's not even sorcery or a witch thing. it's a best friend thing. her gaze drops, and for a moment she doesn't know how to answer that. when she looks back up again, the smile is sad but it's strong, too. she shakes her head in response. ] I'm so sorry. [ it must sound ridiculous to bonnie that she's apologizing for something out of her control, but elena wasn't there and she should've been.

she should've been there to stop it. and even if she hadn't been able to stop it, she should've spent what time she could squeeze in with her, instead of going off on missions and earning agent favors. she is the worst, basically. ]

[powertostand]

Elena, no. [her voice is very firm as she looks at her. it's so, so firm and loving and insistent with the strength of it. elena carries so much weight and so much guilt already. it isn't her fault whatever happened. they have always fought for each other, that is who they are

but they have learned so terribly that sometimes no matter how hard they fight for each other, there are some things that they can't stop from happening. there are choices they aren't given. they're not allowed to be there for whatever reason, and even if elena had been there, she couldn't have stopped it. it's not her fault. it's not. if bonnie knew the situation, she'd know getting a favor from an agent is smart. it means it's something she could use later to give them an advantage. bonnie would have encouraged her to go and get that advantage for them.]

There's nothing for you to be sorry about, Elena. Not to me. It's okay. I'm just sorry that I'm not with you anymore, that a version of me isn't with you there anymore. [bonnie shakes her head, and she releases her best friend's hands only to wrap her arms around her again, tugging her in tightly.]

[resuming]

[ no, bonnie doesn't understand. not many people understand. they think of her as so much better than she really is, and maybe a part of her has wanted to maintain that image, in spite of the fear that she might be a fraud for it. that she might not be that person they think she is, the person she wants to be but ultimately falls short of. there are things she really is guilty for that she never manages to apologize for, never manages to let those words push out of her throat for fear of what they'd think. so maybe it's easier to apologize for this instead, even if bonnie deserves so much better than that.

so much better than her and her hollow sorries. bonnie is a much better person than she is, and elena doesn't know if she's aware of that, but she's selfish enough to cling to her anyway, to keep a tight hold of her hand as though that makes anyone stay.

tears grow warm underneath her eyelids, but they remain unchecked, and she smiles through the burn. she envelops her just as tightly, arms wrapping around the other girl and not quite letting go yet. ] You're here now. [ and that's what she wants to focus on. she doesn't want to focus on how ephemeral this all is, and how eventually, she'll be sent back to a city that doesn't have her, doesn't have caroline, doesn't have a damon or an allison that remember her. she wants here and now, for as long as she can have it. ]

[powertostand]

[oh, elena. you break the narration and bonnie's hearts okay ;o;.

her arms tighten around her as she pulls her in closer enveloping her in the warmest of hugs. elena doesn't have to be anything other than who she is with her, but she knows elena always tries so hard to keep moving forward, to keep smiling, to not let anyone see the cracks she feels or the parts of herself that she might not like. they've all got darkness inside of them, and they live in a world that encourages that darkness to come out to survive, to make impossible choices.

it doesn't matter to her. all that matters to her right now is that elena is hurting, her best friend, her sister, and bonnie loves her so much. she tightens her hold on her as she nods.] I am. [it's said fiercely against her.] I'm right here. We both are, okay? We'll spend as much time together as this ship lets us. [and her chest clenches at the thought that elena will have to return to a world where a bonnie isn't there. something about that feels so wrong.

they should always be there to look out for each other.]

;)

[thine]

[james wilder is hiding.

he has a drink in his hand, and he is outside near the water, half hidden against the wall and the open doors that lead out of the ballroom when he sees her step out through the door, looking as gorgeous as ever. james remembers the first time that he ever saw her all dressed up how beautiful she looks then as beautiful as she looks when she is first waking up, dressed in her pajamas too, breathtaking.

james has been worried because he knows her so well. it's a helpless thing, and his voice is soft when he speaks from behind, wondering if she even wants to see him after what he had to say. if it'd be a painful reminder when she is in another world altogether away from her brother, but his voice comes anyway, quietly from his spot behind her.]

You look... beautiful.

[resuming]

[ it's not that she doesn't want to see him; she has no reason to be upset with him and he strikes her as a good person faced with very lousy choices.

she's just not sure that he'd want to see her, and after everything she learned about the world she could've ended up in had teleios not gotten to her first, she could hardly blame him. she isn't the elena that he knows and remembers, isn't the elena that lived through every ordeal along with him, but she feels remnants of guilt for that person's actions in many ways.

still, she smiles softly at the compliment, looking down at the dress the ship decided she wear. ] Thank you. [ she eyes him a bit curiously, her elbows still propped on the railing before her. ] You didn't strike me as the kind of person that would want to go to a ball.

[thine]

[there is absolutely nothing that either this elena or the other elena has to feel guilty about. james wouldn't be surprised that she felt the remnants of that guilt anyway though there is no reason for her to feel it, nothing she is at fault for. of course, he wants to see her again. james breathes in, pushing off from the wall as he takes a slow step up beside her to where she stands by the railing.]

My... little sister wanted me to come. She helped set it up and volunteered me and my brother for the heavy lifting so I'm here for her. Balls happen often in the universe I'm from.

[he rests against the railing, bringing the glass up to his mouth as he takes a long drink from it and looks sideways at her. the way she looks is so incredibly striking to him always. he feels that twist in his heart that is hers and hers alone.]

I'm... just currently hiding.

[resuming]

[ elena watches him from her vantage point when he comes to join her.

there's a certain way he moves that is compelling, and she can't help but observe. a smile touches her lips at the revelation he has a sister, and she ducks her head a bit once he looks sideways at her. it's strange, to think of another version of her meeting him and living with him so many things that seem like a far off story to her, even if he doesn't. he's familiar to her, somehow, and she can't quite explain how or from where, just that he is. that she likes his company, even if it's complicated.

she leans in before she says: ]

I'm currently hiding, too.

[ it's a low whisper, as though she is sharing with him an incredibly important secret. ] So if you don't mind, maybe we can hide together.

[thine]

[james turns toward her too, tilting his head to the side. there is always something very easy about interacting with elena gilbert whether that is an elena that he has been through all of those things with or it is one that has never met him. there's an ease to their interactions that he doesn't really find with very many people. connecting to people has always been this struggle with him, but it isn't when it comes to her.

he smiles a tiny smile when she leans in. something aches in his chest at the familiarity of it. she has no way of knowing at the first event that they ever attended together back home, she found him... hiding in the coat closet among all of those coats. and they hid together multiple times in coat closets... and did more than hide in those coat closets. it feels like a very, very long time ago.

james leans in slightly too with a tiny smirk that is almost a smile, which tugs across his face.]

I don't mind at all. You're very good company. [he pulls back slowly, lifting the glass to his mouth to take a sip from it before he looks at her curiously.] What are you hiding from?

[resuming]

[ she would be happy to know that he finds it easy.

she finds him easy to talk to, as well. the rusty smiles and the pauses in between his answers don't go unnoticed by her - not much about him goes unnoticed by her, and that has become especially true since she's realized he knows her, or a version of her - but that doesn't make it any less easy to communicate with him. there's a quietness and perceptiveness to him he likely doesn't realize, and his leaning in as well makes her smile just a tiny bit wider. ]

You're not half-bad yourself, you know. [ snarky elena gilbert. she can be something of a little shit, but she means that entirely. in the sense that he is more than not half-bad company, of course.

leaning further against the railing, there's a moment where she looks down at the water below them. she's always wondered what would happen if someone were to fall toward its depths - remembers her heart catching in her throat when she saw ethan and damon both so close to that edge. ] ... I'm not sure.

[ and she's not, really. she looks back to him, her expression still soft and her smile almost self-deprecating. ] I don't want anyone to think I'm not having a good time. [ because she is, she just has her moments, and she thought it might be better if she had them away from where all the fun is, before she could return to it. ]

[easily]

[How could Rebekah not go greet her not!girlfriend? It'd be very rude. So that being said when she spots Elena getting some air she slips away from the crowd to do the same.]

I promise, I won't turn into a cat on you this time. [They're at a point where they can joke about that, right????]

[resuming]

[ Elena isn't expecting it - but maybe that's why the startled sound that leaves her lips is almost a laugh as she shakes her head. She'd like to think that yes, they are at a point where they can joke about it. God, it feels like so long ago - it almost feels like it happened to another person, in a story she once read. ]

I'd appreciate that. [ Considering. ] I think the ballroom is big enough for the both of us, don't you?

[easily]

[It was almost a lifetime ago, wasn't it? Rebekah brings a finger up to her chin, as if pondering for a moment before she nods.]

I think so. It's hard to be certain.

[resuming]

[ Elena smirks faintly. She's in a good mood. She feels good now that Bonnie's here, now that - a lot of things, and that's rare in and of itself, so she's rolling with it. ] It might be a risk we'll just have to take. [ Poor Stefan if they're wrong - but Elena has the feeling they're not. ]

[easily]

We've dealt with more cramped quarters and no one died. [Ever the optimist, Rebekah. It's true though. She and Elena have tolerated a lot together -- and sometimes even worked well together.]

[resuming]

That we know of. [ there was that one time they were sent back to the forties, and their alternate personas were apparently plotting a murder. it was fun. a small pause follows the recollection, and then, a question. ] Do you miss it? [ chicago and everything that it held. it's strange to think it's so definitively over. ]

[ageoftheg33k]

[ hardison is a super smooth guy with super smooth skills and maybe has just been lurking about since arriving, having a meltdown, and then getting it together a lot quicker than most 'normal' folks might within some vague span of time prior to this ball happening.

he's also sure that he's underdressed and not necessarily hideable via a mask, but fortunately he wants to be a good sport. ]

Wow, you are making me feel all kinds of out of place. Damn.

[ it's totally why he's fidgeting with the plain mask he's picked up, yep. ]

[resuming]

[ !!!!!

the masks make it hard to recognize anyone right off the bat, but his voice is unmistakable. elena's face splits into a grin, and what follows is likely not the reaction hardison is expecting. because this girl right here? is going to throw her arms around him in an effort to hug him as tightly as possible without crushing his bones.

not that she even can, but the narration digresses. look at this icon face, hardison. it is a very happy face. ]

Hardison! [ pulling back right about now. ] You're here. ... You're here? When did you get here?

[ so! many! questions! ]

feel free to blow his ish up at any time! i just like to make him flounder... ♥

[ageoftheg33k]

[ the thing about pretty girls hugging hardison? he's super OK with it to the point that he's most certainly going to hug back because wow hello yes little stranger you're super cute and he's very happy to be on the receiving end, here. ]

Oh, hey-- yeah, uh hey ... girl. What's up?

[ and while he doesn't give out his name like candy, hardison doesn't necessarily hide it as much as the others in his team. not to mention it's hard to be mad or worried about it just now. he's going to go ahead and try to play along. try being the operative word.

because while he's still hardison, there are marked differences from the one elena knows -- facial hair, less muscle on his bones, and a bit more cockiness to replace the helpful spirit she'd begun to get to know in teleios. the heart's still under there, it just might take some coaxing out. ]

I'm here! Uhh, couple days ago, but I been hanging low-- that door definitely put a whammy on me, you know...? One minute I was, you know. The next-- bam! Almost forgot my own damn name.

[ so tell him yours please and he will try to not be totally lost while laughing very awkwardly, here? ]

nuh uh let's ride this wave until we can't no more ♥

[resuming]

[ the fact hardison hugs her back only makes elena hold on that much tighter, lingering for several moments before she pulls back. her smile shifts into something more like confusion the more he talks. on the one hand, hardison definitely would've called her rookie or grifter jr. by now. on the other, she knows tumbling through that red door can be an experience.

disorientation is not out of the question. not to mention, he sounds like hardison in nearly every other respect.

confusion, then, quickly makes way for worry. a whammy is certainly one way of putting it. she really shouldn't be so happy to see familiar faces, knowing their being here isn't necessarily a good thing. ]

Okay, well. A refresher course - you, Hardison. Me, Elena.

[ it's around this time she starts to notice the differences, and she wonders about their time discrepancies - how long it's been for him since the mission. hardison, have you been eating less? has teleios become a wasteland? this is concerning. ] Are you here alone, or did your team come through the door with you?

/puts on speedo and goggles (you asked for it)

[ageoftheg33k]

Elena-- right, yeah! [ he repeats it with a smile, and sure it's part-flirting (hardison can't really communicate without at least a bit of flirtation) but it's also warm enough to suggest that he is genuinely making her name and face a linked memory in his mind.

and then she mentions his team, which throws him a little more. while his warmth doesn't entirely disappear, he does look a little caught off-guard for a moment, blinking rapidly before the smile comes back to try and cover it up. ] My-- team? Oh uh, no, no. Just ... me, as far as I know.

[ a guy who's constantly in motion, hardison's hands continue to fidget while he works out whether the way his instinct to trust elena is worth following or not. ] So, uh, how long you been here, then? You sound like a veteran.

[ and even though he doesn't know he's stumbled on the opposite of the nickname another him has given her, it feels right. she is definitely the lead in this conversation and if he's learned anything about grifting from sophie, it's to let the mark do the talking when possible... ]