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

[king_of_egypt]

[Still, he felt like it was. If he had a better control over his own emotions there wouldn't have been an issue] .... [He'll try harder Yugi. He'll try harder. The sounds that never formed cohesive sentences were difficult to listen to]

[Of course it hurt to hear, but it was honest] ........ Yugi. [He wouldn't try to move away. Not now. Even if it was getting difficult to bear.]

It's... alright... or... it's going to be. [Letting his fingers start to slide in what he hoped was a comforting arc along the other's back] .... This is a party isn't it? [Trying for a smile but it didn't reach his eyes, which was well enough since Yugi couldn't see it anyway] It.. .should be a time for celebration, not .. .not this.

[Still seeking the right words he added the following] Besides... it might not feel like it now.. but I am happy for you, and for Kaiba. The match... makes sense, and I hope it continues to strengthen and grow.

[puzzlers]

[ the same could be said for yugi too. he wore his heart on his sleeve though, which made things like this especially difficult. he hadn't meant to make atem feel anymore guilty that he already did. ]

[ yugi's thankful that atem doesn't move away, and to keep him from doing so or even thinking about doing so he tightens his grip on him, even going as far as to take a step closer. ] How can you be so sure? [ he's silent for another couple of seconds before humming a response. ] N- No, not this... [ his shoulders sink inward. ] I just hate knowing that you're hurting. [ especially when he's more or less the reason for it. ]

... [ what he says next comes as a surprise. he can only imagine how much strength it took to say that, especially feeling as he did. it means a lot though, especially coming from atem. ] T- Thank you, Atem.

[king_of_egypt]

[There were a series of factors playing into their interaction that neither one of them really had any control over. Either way that wouldn't alleviate any guilt either one of them may have been feeling]

[Yugi's grip tightens again, and were he of a larger build or stature it might have been crushing, but Atem could handle it.] ... because it will have to be. I'll personally assure that it is, not just for me but for you as well. [He owes much to Yugi, and he doesn't want to do anything that might interfere with his happiness] .... [He's silent for a few moments longer] It's not more than I can bear. [Though he wanted to argue that he wasn't hurting at all, it would have been a blatant lie]

[It did take a lot, admitting that you thought a couple was right for each other when it meant further separating yourself. To have what you desire so close to you and not being able to do anything about it.] Think... nothing of it.. Yugi. I mean it.