Dance Dance Reprobation

[magicademymods]

The Twilight Ball Arrival The Promenade has been transformed. Literally. With Modification. Ha ha. Cough. Crickets. Toad familiars eat the crickets. Circle of life. Animals bow before singing lions. You get the idea. Neither tree nor stone form the Promenade now. It is instead a long bridge over a shallow and brilliant pool, the gentle ripples of which catch the afternoon sun and scatter it into a million highlights that play over the Great Hall, the bridge, and those who walk down it. There is no formal receiving line, merely a gentle procession of people across the bridge at whatever speed feels comfortable, slowly making their way to the Great Hall. The Great Hall itself has been enchanted to be completely invisible while one is inside it, save for the outline of doors so people can actually find their way out through means other than smacking their noses into the invisible walls till they find a place with no resistance. Thus the twilight for which the ball is named will show all around the dancers, while they are protected from any errant breezes, faint hints of rain, or slime monsters that might otherwise threaten the festivity. Come in. Find your date and get comfortable. The fun is just beginning. Let the Revels Begin After Headmaster Birony welcomes everyone with a speech about she's going to get on her boat, go upriver, and kick that sonuvabitch Bison's ass so HORDT that the next Bison-wannabe is gonna feel it, the dance formally begins with a peppy number designed to get people out and moving. The orchestra here comprises some of the finest players available anywhere in the world, thanks to the whole Valhudor shtick and graduates of said house, and the music is infectious as it drifts through the slowly-darkening air. But as the dance progresses, they play something for everyone. Martial waltzes and slow dance ballroom numbers. Powerful tunes to lose yourself in, and gentle melodies that slip beneath conversation and encourage intimacy and closeness. Professors Trammel and King treat everyone to an exhibition of what an Earth resident might call 'swing dancing on amphetamines' and many students do call 'the closest I have ever come to death'. No pause for speeches, no announcements or interruptions -- just a steady stream of music, bringing dates and lovers together in dance, as the sun sets and casts the room into gentle and romantic twilight. Also a dolphin and a whale are swimming through the floor and they, too, are unmistakably dancing. If this is the weirdest thing you've seen all night, you need your eyes checked. "Food! One of the food tables has been discreetly slid against a wall, where it positively shudders under the weight of a massive buffet open to everyone. The food here tends towards the light, such as fish and vegetables, cucumber sandwiches and thin-sliced meats. Things that will give you energy without weighing you down, so you can keep dancing till the dawn comes. At one end of the table, an owl the size of a cupboard sits on a perch, serenely watching the varied drinks laid out for consumption. 'Spiking the punch' is so cliche that no one is going to pretend it won't happen or the students will behave on their honor, so here you get a chaperone. Even so, this whole area is a popular gathering spot for those between dances or partners, drawing steady attention throughout the night. Meanwhile, Elsewhere Shockingly, not everyone has found that loving feeling, asked out an attractive someone, and gone to the dance with romance on their minds. The rest of the campus, and of course Anastara itself, remain open as normal... and perhaps even less-minded than normal. The faculty, the familiars, the cleaning golems -- almost all attention is on the dance itself. If there's mischief to manage, now would be the perfect time... or just something else besides wallflowering and missing out. Wait, Wasn't There a Ghost Dragon and an Off-Brand Shoggoth? Professor King managed to find a way around the protoplasmic ooze's resistance to magic and splatted it (with no small amount of help from students and faculty!). The dragon disappeared into the caverns beneath the Magicademy. That certainly isn't ominous and won't inspire anyone to go down there, will it? Don't fall in the river down there. Please don't fall in the river.

Comments

[noasark]

[Arrival]

Noa didn't originally intend to come to this event. But then things happened, and a meeting place was needed, and so Noa wound up promising a large salmon to his familiar in exchange for enough to buy decent formal robes.

And decent they are indeed, in a rather fetching black and green. There's no tomato here, not today folks!

He's very clearly looking for someone however, which begs the question of if he found something of worth in this date deal anyway. ...Did he?

(The answer is no, but it doesn't mean he can't be absolutely in the way as he cranes his neck to look around the crowd)

[Revels and Food]

The party is in full swing- but Noa, while far from a wallflower, doesn't seem to actually be...participating?

Some of Adelai's penguins certainly are, and seem to be having quite the time of their life, but Noa pays them no mind. Instead, chewing lightly on a cucumber sandwich, he keeps skimming the crowd...frustration building visibly in his eyes.

"Tch..." He scowls. "Where on earth is he..."

[MEANWHILE, WASN'T THERE... | TAGS FROM BOTH NOA AND SPYRO]

Noa found who he was looking for.

"Alright. We don't know how long we'll have...but it'll be our best chance to seek out where that thing went," Noa whispers to his companion- ironically, a dragon themselves. "That dragon was a bit too familiar," he explains to his partner, "And if we stand a chance at questioning such a thing, you're probably our best bet. ...Wouldn't you say?"

Noa that's kinda species-ist

Spyro is the one he's speaking to, and apparently they have a plan to go on a mini-adventure of their own.

Like children.

Which tracks, really.

chasing the dragon

[blue_ice]

Seto Kaiba is nothing if not a large, looming nuisance at the best of times. And here he is again, interest piqued when he sees his stepbrother and...another dragon? Sneaking away from the dance.

He strides up to them, skeptical expression firmly in place.

"You're going after the ghost dragon?"

[holdyourhorns]

The tiny dragon isn't wearing anything fancy for the ball aside from a red and polished gold bowtie. Well, it's likely not real gold, but it was bought very recently thanks to Ire sending him a generous 'allowance' of money.

And initially, they seem unamused at Noa's assumption, about to argue a point to him until the tall stranger cuts in. Spyro peers between the two, debating if he should attempt some sort of excuse, confirm their intentions, or overall leave the matter to his partner-in-crime.

...

But soon enough he pipes up with, "Who said anything about a ghost dragon?"

[blue_ice]

"You did."

Kaiba folds his arms. He's very unimpressed...well, maybe a little impressed. He likes dragons in all forms, after all.

"That insane math teacher claimed it was his dragon, you know."

[noasark]

Noa is one part rolling his eyes, another simply groaning because Ugh, Caught. That last bit is neat though. "The math teacher did? That's unexpected," he snorts, crossing his arms.

Well. "We may be attempting to find where they've settled for the moment, among other things..."

Well, someone is playing coy aren't they.

[holdyourhorns]

"Insane math teacher?" Because Spyro certainly wasn't going to willingly pick up a math class for himself if he can help it. "You don't mean who I think you're talking about, do you?"

Because. They might've met before. And it wasn't fun.

"But we might just see about that, either way." Any dragon that proves to have enough intelligence to speak its mind shouldn't be owned by anyone.

[blue_ice]

"Minamimoto. I have the pleasure of sharing a dormitory with him. His nonsense lasts all hours of the night. I should've known he was likely lying."

Oh, don't get him started on that subject. He scoffed.

"Do you have any leads?"

[noasark]

"Ah. ...Can't say I've encountered them," Noa remarks, crossing his arms. Regardless, he nods.

"The last anyone saw, it apparently disappeared into the caverns beneath- I don't intend to go too far without a way to navigate, of course."

The question is how well Noa can actually judge that for himself.

[holdyourhorns]

"I think it's clear we're getting another addition to the party here, so might as well lay out all of your reasons for why 'of course' there's enough brains for this to be a great idea."

Are these guys bros? Spyro wouldn't know without asking.

[blue_ice]

What, don't see the resemblance? Well. They're fairly different enough for humans. Kaiba gives Spyro a small nod of acknowledgment.

"I'm guessing there's no map. At minimum we'll need light---I'm sure you have that, but I can be a backup. And some working protective glyphs wouldn't hurt either. I know a few."

His tone leaves no room for argument, but his face softens a little with what he says next. "The name's Seto Kaiba, by the way."

[noasark]

They have the same face Spyro.

The Same Face-

Noa looks for a moment like he'd rather refuse more company, but after an internal debate that goes on for about ten seconds behind his eyes he simply nods. "Light, certainly- glyphs, not so much...so you'd be right there," he concedes. "I've also asked Adelai to provide us with a simple option for keeping our path."

The penguin among them gives a quiet croak, and holds a large ball of twine. If it worked for Theseus...

[holdyourhorns]

Flip things around and one might assume any purple dragon is one of Spyro's relatives. But he does end up broaching that exact off-topic subject anyway. "Are you guys related?"

... Another reason the dragon doesn't keep up with the talk of necessary preparations is that he's been on more than enough adventures with little to no need for such besides locating butterflies and his own tenacity. And there's no Sparx to feed butterflies to here.

[blue_ice]

That's an interesting question. Seto straightens his robes with a small cough.

"His father was my legal guardian for a time, making us stepbrothers."

He gives Spyro and then Adelai a nod. "That should work. Ready?"

Revels and Food

[outofyourshadow]

"Looking for someone?"

Lena couldn't help overhearing as she was grabbing a bit of food herself, and wandered over to see what had him so frustrated.

[noasark]

"Ah-" Noa nods, though he looks at least a little cowed given the kind of mood he was just caught in. "...Yes...I don't suppose you've seen a small dragon around? He's purple, mostly. We're in the same house."

No, they are not at the dance together. Technically.

[outofyourshadow]

"A dragon?" She thinks she's seen the dragon he's talking about at least around school, but she can't remember seeing him here at the dance. "Not that I've noticed so far."

[noasark]

"Mmm. He goes by the name 'Spyro'," Noa adds with a nod, only to sigh. "Hahhh...we were supposed to meet a while ago," the boy mutters. "...I didn't think he'd be that difficult to pick out of a crowd..."

[outofyourshadow]

"Well, I'll keep an eye out for him." She can't help raising an eyebrow, though. "So...were you two supposed to come together, or...?"

[noasark]

Aha.

He quickly waves a hand. "Ah...not like that no- we were going to meet. I've been tutoring him lately," he explains, not actually covering the part where they plan to slip out and find a dragon. "And since neither of us were really interested in the dance end of things, we might as well use this time to talk about things that aren't Physics," he adds with a shrug. There's food after all, and arguably entertainment in the form of whoever else is dancing.

It'd be perfect if he wasn't lying.

[outofyourshadow]

She suspected that there was something more to it than that, but she decided not to ask about it. If he wanted to say, he would have.

"I see. Well, like I said, I'll keep a look out for him."

Then she glanced out at the dance floor.

"So this isn't really your thing, huh?"

[noasark]

Noa nods. "It's appreciated then. Ah..."

He manages a small sigh, confirming Lena's question. "...Not entirely- I was more familiar with the sorts of 'balls' that adults held for business related gatherings...hardly a social event for the ones under 18, I can assure you that." The boy shrugs. "This is certainly less boring, but it doesn't change the fact that nothing's stood out as 'interesting'..."

[outofyourshadow]

She can't help a snicker at that. "Yeah, I always thought that these kind of events would be pretty dull. But this one actually hasn't been so bad."

Then, glancing at him, she grins. "Have you tried dancing yet?"

[noasark]

"There is good food at least," he notes, eyeing Lena almost cautiously when she asks that last question.

"....Not yet..."

He certainly...Can dance, if he has to, but...

[outofyourshadow]

She gives him an almost expectant look. "So...wanna?"

Yes, that's how she's asking.

[noasark]

"Ah-" Oh!

Oh no! Of course it's how she's asking. And of course, since he actually thinks she's cool to hang around, he'd really rather not say 'no'.

That would be Rude.

"I... ...I suppose we could," he answers somewhat lamely, looking more alarmed than hesitant at least. "I wouldn't know what kinds of dances should be paired to this music though..." But if either of them can figure out Some way to start, he'll try his best to follow along.

"...Have you danced before?"