Masquerade Mingle

[thespaceopera]

[The night has finally come--the Gravity Rush is nearly upon us! What normally serves as a large performance hall has been gutted, emptied of its boring furniture and rigged up into a fantastical mismatch of technology and old culture. No matter where you go tonight, you're encouraged to move around, dance, play games, whatever helps you sleep in late tomorrow morning.

If you aren't one for scurrying around a ballroom all night, there's always plenty of people-watching to do. After all, so many people are wearing extravagant costumes and elaborate masks. How can you even tell who is who? Get lost in a crowd of sequins, chatter with a sun and a moon, or try to beat the guy in the monster-mask at a game of cards. Meet your friends or make some new ones--this masquerade party has begun!]


[[ooc: All sections are up now, have fun! A related ooc post is HERE for any questions or plotting you'd like to do.]]

Comments

[girlverine]

Yes, it does. I...

[She was not going to dwell on Logan.]

Do you want to dance?

[experiencepoints]

Ah-

[Well, that wasn't subtle at all, but she understands the sentiment.]

I'd love to. Would you like to lead?

[Not that she can't lead, but... ... Well, no, if we're being honest, she totally can't lead. Though at least Laura is the same height as her, which is... unusual, to say the least. She's just happy to have the company of someone her size, though.]

[girlverine]

Okay.

[Dancing was something she knew how to do, even if the reasons why she knew how to do it were terrible. Some small good things could come out of her awful past, right?]

[So she reached out to take Nightingale's hand and lead her out onto the dance floor.]

[experiencepoints]

[They can just not discuss why they know how to dance together, then, because Nightingale sure doesn't want to share much about that.

She follows (taking a moment inside her head to mentally flail about a pretty girl holding her hand like this), taking her position with Laura. And once the music starts, she is indeed skillful at it, moving with a very practiced grace- She hasn't done this in a long time, but muscle memory is a very good friend to her.]

[girlverine]

[Laura wasn't focused enough to be embarrassed. Physical contact, at least, was not something she'd ever had time to be awkward about. She led her out into an empty spot on the dance floor and turned to face her, taking her other hand but not quite starting.]

[At first Laura isn't hesitant in her lead, but there's the occasional pause, and her gaze isn't on her partner, but on the other dancers. The dance was similar to others she had seen, but the details were different.]

[So over the course of a minute or so, she was picking up the changes, adapting them, and then using them. Say what she would about her education, it had taught her adapt and learn in the heat of the moment.]

[experiencepoints]

[Despite spending half a year on the most hug-happy team at the castle, Nightingale is still awkward as hell about physical contact most of the time. Or, at least, when it actually comes from people she doesn't dislike.

Still, the pauses throw her off a bit- with that and Laura not looking at her, she assumes the worst about Laura's interest, and that's bolstered by her own lack of confidence... She at least tries to follow Laura's gaze, until she realizes what's going on.

She's following Laura's lead easily enough, too- It's much easier to not know a dance in this position, after all.]

You learn pretty quickly, huh?

[girlverine]

[Laura doesn't answer for another few seconds, until she's sure of her footwork and can actually turn her attention to the other girl.]

Yes.

[And then, realizing that might have sounded somewhat egotistical.]

Adaptability was considered an essential part of my training.

[Shame it only seemed to work on missions, and not with social skills.]

[experiencepoints]

Training for what? If that's okay to ask.

[She's not sure where Laura's boundaries are, so best to err on the side of caution. And it sounds like her past was dark enough to put Nightingale's own to shame, so... Better not force it.]

[girlverine]

[Laura doesn't answer for what probably feels like a long time, but is really only about thirty seconds or so, moving through the dance as she thinks over the question.]

As a child, I was trained to be an assassin.

[She finally decides the truth is the easiest explanation.]

[experiencepoints]

... Oh.

[Awkward, but it's not like she's the first assassin Nightingale's met. Hell, at least two of her teammates were assassins of some kind. So was Belt. And all of them gave a much different impression than Laura had.]

"As a child" means not anymore, though?

[girlverine]

No. Not for several years.

[Which wasn't to say she wasn't murdering her way through the world. She just was doing it for her own reasons. Or the X-men's reasons anyway.]

[experiencepoints]

[She nods, not even breaking step in the dance through this entire conversation. Apparently that is all the assurance she needs.

(One day, someone is actually going to lie to her about this sort of thing, and she'll fall for it long enough to get stabbed in the throat.)]

Then that's good.

[girlverine]

[Well, that was certainly one reaction. Better than most, really.]

What do you...do? Kitty mentioned you have some type of magical ability?

[Small talk while dancing was probably better than normal small talk, right?]

[experiencepoints]

That's right.

[She lifts a hand long enough to wave, causing some brief sparkles and lights to flash through the air around her hand, then resumes the dance.]

I was an adventurer at home. [Then again, that's a useless explanation to someone who doesn't know her world, she's found.] That's... We explore ancient ruins or other dungeons, seek treasure, fight monsters, things like that. I specialized in offensive magic- I was the strategist and... Basically the party's heavy artillery. I can do a little healing magic, too, but I'm not suited for it at all.

I can show you more later, if you're interested.

[There's a lot she's not mentioning- How she quit adventuring, how she lost most of her spells, and all sorts of unpleasant things. But that can wait. Besides, she's being given the chance to show off about magic, and she does love that.

(And it's probably amusing to hear a 5'1 twig of a girl calling herself 'heavy artillery', yet here we are.)]

[girlverine]

I would like to see that, yes.

[Magic was something she didn't know much about. It didn't quite worry her the way telepathy did, but it was still a thing that needed to be assessed.]

Is it safe to use it in the atmosphere of the moon?

[experiencepoints]

It is. Magic doesn't interact with anything besides what I want it to. You can stick your hand in my fire spells, and if I didn't target you, you won't even feel it.

[girlverine]

...I have never heard of magic like that.

[experiencepoints]

It's how basically all combat magic works in my world.

[girlverine]

I have never seen magic...referred to that way. Magic something Doctor Strange does. Or the Scarlet Witch. Not...

[She has no frame of reference for this, not really.]

I would like to see it, as I said.

[experiencepoints]

I don't mind. Not here, since this isn't a good place for it, but... There's a training room on the Iskaulit I use sometimes.

But more importantly... "Doctor Strange"?

[girlverine]

It would probably not be a good way to ruin the dance.

[A joke? And even a small smile.]

I have never met him, but...he is one of the most powerful sorcerers in my world.

[experiencepoints]

Oh, I don't know, I can't think of any better way to ruin it.

[She's giggling, though.]

Most powerful sorcerer, but he goes by that?

[girlverine]

I think they would be upset if we ruined it. They spent a lot of time on it.

[So serious.]

He also goes by Sorcerer Supreme. I think.

[experiencepoints]

I'd be sad if I ruined it, too, I'm having fun here.

... That guy sounds like a tryhard. A tryhard who sucks at names.

[girlverine]

...So am I.

[She was pretty sure, anyway.]

I have never met him. I don't know how true any of it is.