songerein | { stroke of midnight }

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{ stroke of midnight }

STROKE OF MIDNIGHT

Although the Masquerade is being held on the night of the Fourteenth, some new problems arise in the days after. This log is split into two sections, the Masquerade and Around Town. Everyone is free to participate in either or both, whichever catches your interest.

More details on everything can be found here and here. As a reminder, events double as our TDMs and information can be found here with arrival details here. Any outside characters participating in the log are canonly logged as appearing in Songerein in February and will remain in Songerein from the IC date of February 14 through 28. TDM only characters can only thread within this log. Anyone who apps in and is accepted will have their character count February as their first time in the game without any disruption, so all content will carry over. Those who do not apply will disappear which should not seem too unusual, however players in game can choose to retcon and pretend a character was never there to begin with if it would be easier; or even think their presence was just a dream.

IMPORTANT! All outside characters MUST have "TDM" in their subject line, even if you might not app. This will help people differentiate those who are already in the game and those who are not.

TDM threads are required for samples. Refer to the Game Info for general information and feel free to toss any questions here. Reserves will open Wednesday, February 22nd and Applications will open on March 1. Our next cycle after won't be until JULY.

TDM Toplevel Link Directory (click to view, updated 02/22)

Avatar: The Legend of Korra - Korra
Avatar: The Last Airbender - Iroh
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night - Miriam
Chainsaw Man - Power
Dr. STONE - Dr. Senku Ishigami
Elsworld - Noah Ebalon (Nyx Pieta)
Final Fantasy VII - Cloud Strife
Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core - Zack Fair
Final Fantasy XIV - Erichthonios
Final Fantasy XV - Noctis Lucis Caelum
Final Fantasy XV - Prompto Argentum
Genshin Impact - Shikanoin Heizou
I Was a Teenage Exocolonist - Solanaceae
Katekyou Hitman Reborn - Hayato Gokudera
Kingdom Hearts - Ienzo
Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - Link
Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - Sheik
Marvel Cinematic Universe - Kate Bishop
NieR: Automata - 9S
Percy Jackson & the Olympians - Jason Grace
Percy Jackson & the Olympians - Nico di Angelo
Persona 3: FES - Shinjiro Aragaki
SinoAlice - Sleeping Beauty
Tales of Arise - Shionne Vymer Imeris Daymore
Tales of Symphonia - Kratos Aurion
Tales of Symphonia - Martel Yggdrasil
Tales of Zestiria - Mikleo
Xenoblade Chronicles 3 - Sena
Your Wings and Mine - Shealtiel

We will request any thread submissions for certain prompts during AC and TDM threads will count. For more information, refer to the Game Notes.

I. MASQUERADE

It's time for the masquerade and the carriages will start arriving before sunset. Upon arrival, everyone who leaves the carriage (or mercilessly spat out if they try to resist) will be greeted by fairy godmothers with an eye for the most dramatic and extravagant fashion. It's a masquerade, after all! For those who already arrive with their outfits, the fairy godmothers may add a little embellishment here and or just change it completely if they think it could look better. For those who did not, they will create a whole new outfit that would fit the wearer perfectly—with magic of course. They will also create the masks and half of the glass slipper brooch that everyone will wear. The masks are enchanted so that regardless of obvious personality or physical traits, they are somehow unrecognizable at first. While it is possible to figure it out through interaction, or if it's someone they already know well, it's more likely they need to reveal their identity first. These outfits can be kept even after the masquerade is over.

A. Get in the Carriage. As the pegasus drawn carriages begin to arrive to transport those who have decided to attend the masquerade, there is some commotion from others. The pair of coach mice—who are only about four feet tall—can be found smiling and cheerily squeaking about the masquerade as they grab and literally throw protesting individuals into the carriage, whereupon the door will immediately shut behind them. Ho ho ho, it'll be such a grand time! Will anyone try to help the poor soul? Or perhaps help the mice? Maybe you're a struggling victim instead. Should anyone want to try and drive the carriage, they might have a chance…but good luck having the pegasi listen to them. Eventually the carriage will land and take them to the front of the castle where the masquerade is hosted.

B. Half of a Pair. Near the entrance, everyone is encouraged to pull out one or more of the shoe brooches contained in a large bowl. The rules are simple: 1) use the brooch to lead them to the person wearing the other half; 2) spend whatever time or activity with them, be it general socializing, a dance, a walk in the gardens; 3) keep the brooch or return it to a designated "Used" bowl. The brooches will absorb whatever kind of dreamotion energy is formed between the two, and the stronger it is, the brighter (if positive) or darker (if negative) it will glow. The interaction can be romantic, platonic, or hostile. For those who do happen to "click" and wish for some privacy, there are numerous terraces and balconies available. Some are public, but there are quite a few with curtains, so be sure to close them to signal the balcony is occupied!

C. Dancing in the Air. The main draw will be the dance floor, and the ballroom is wide and spacious to accommodate numerous pairs to dance to their hearts' content—the music is played by enchanted instruments so they'll keep going without much of a break! Of course, what makes this dance floor truly special is how it uses dreamotion energy to lift everyone up—literally. Pairs who are having a fun time may find themselves floating up and dancing in the air instead of on the ground. Somehow they can maintain some balance…but it's just as easy to lose it.

D. Royal Banquet. There are numerous tables one can use and be served an assortment of foods. In fact, one could make special requests and somehow the dragons serving will be able to make it, or at least as close as possible. One just has to imprint the idea of the dish onto a special card that the chefs will use to recreate it. There are also two bowls filled with special tear drop chocolates, one with only white, pink, and red, and the other filled with the other colors. The "game" is to randomly choose one from each bowl and share a kiss depending on what is picked.

E. Out in the Gardens. Every castle has extravagant gardens, and this one is no different. Filled with numerous pink, red, and white flowers, the gardens have their typical fare…with not so typical effects.

Extravagant mazes that one could easily get lost in are common, but what's special about these gardens is that the flowers will emit a soft, sweet scent that will feel as if they are walking through a dream. In fact, the section they are going through will begin to change to look like a place from their world and must now find their way out. When this change happens, only those who are in the area will be affected and no one else can enter the area until the main person affected gets out. Those inside can help, and there are no threats—it's all in simple fun…unless the place evokes certain memories and emotions for the person. Might not be as fun for them, then.
A crystal greenhouse where the temperature is perfectly warm (or cold!) and houses various different flowers. Here some may recognize flowers from their world, the scents also creating nostalgia. There are instructions left that indicate anyone can try to help grow the flowers. The key ingredient will be dreamotion energy, and should they succeed in creating a blossom, a small marble containing a symbol of their home. There are also special daisies that can be used to play the "they love me they love me not" game. If the last petal is "they love me," then become extra flirty and clingy. If it's "love me not," they become angry, jealous, and possessive. The effects only last for a short time…unless they keep plucking flowers.
The white fountain in the center of the gardens will have a bit of a musical playful side. It will splash colorful water at any who pass by, chime-like notes playing out as it does. But if one were to drop a flower that has absorbed positive dreamotion into its water, it will calm and let people sit to look and relax. There is also a strange frog wearing a crown that claims to be a prince. For those who believe its words that a kiss will free him from the curse, they will be sorely disappointed as nothing happens and the frog just laughs and hops away.

II. AROUND TOWN

A. Mask Up. Attracted by the masquerade, some enchanted masks have found their way to town and are now finding their way onto people, be it by tricking their victims to be put on or just forcibly latching themselves on. Depending on the type of mask, the wearer will behave based on a festive, dramatic emotion. While wearing the mask, the dreamotion that is projected is stronger. Examples are angry emotions will cause tremors and cracks on the ground, happiness could blind people or will cause confetti to fly everywhere, while sad ones will cause clouds and drizzling rain to appear overhead. The only way to remove it is to somehow make the other person feel the opposite of whatever emotion the mask is using. Once the mask’s emotion is countered and stabilized, it could be removed or even fall off if the countering emotion is strong enough. Masks can also be captured and collected before they attach to someone.

B. Special Messages. Throughout the month, valentine's are being delivered to people all over town. Some are even receiving some from the fae and dragons who live outside… Perhaps some caution should be had from those. Regardless, while the messages are brimming with both platonic and romantic (and questionable) love, the messengers are a bit… Well they need help.

Insightful Mockingbirds. Special mockingbirds are flying around and perch on random shoulders. They have the ability to "read" a person's thoughts and repeat them out loud. Without warning. Hope there aren't any secrets because that bird is going to make it public, especially if it's an observation or thought—good or bad—about another person. Good luck shooing it away, too—it'll stick around for a while because it might enjoy sowing this bit of chaos.
Arrow Delivery. The group from last year have decided to use their prank arrows for good and start a business in delivering special Valentine's messages via arrow. A "shot to the heart" in the less literal sense this time! While some of their archers are skilled, others are…less so. Some are hitting a bit too close to comfort or way off the mark. Some messages are going to the wrong person entirely. Help avoid, retrieve, or even deliver these messages around town.

C. Candy Kisses. A special assortment of flat bottomed, tear shaped chocolates are currently selling like hotcakes and can be found practically everywhere. Their main selling point is they come in different colors and each color has a special effect that will make the eater want to kiss the person near them in a certain way (see chart). Some people are deliberately swapping the wrappers around, so be careful!

D. Bleeding Hearts Return. It's Valentine's, yet Cupid is nowhere to be seen. That is because he's still corrupted from last year and now he's thirsting for love, any love. Using the Bleeding Hearts from last year, Cupid is using them to gather all that jealous, possessive love, but of course that's going to make it worse. We're not tackling Cupid here, but the main goal will be helping those who are afflicted by the Bleeding Hearts and purifying them via dreamotion instead of just destroying them. Purifying the Bleeding Hearts with pure love—romantic, platonic, familial, reminders of how they are loved and cared for by others—will help Cupid. Of course this could backfire and make the person feel worse, so be careful!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ gimme a custom starter 9u9 EXPLORATION ADVENTURE AWAITS ]

[The crowd is beginning to vex Azula.

Even in a mask, she feels... uncomfortable. Too seen, too close to contact, too many potential threats she couldn't account for. And she didn't enjoy crowds at the best of times.

It doesn't take long for her to begin to seek out other parts of the castle. They're not supposed to, but hahahaha, like she cares. Besides, it would be a bit like old times, exploring a place like this, even if she was a little too old for hide-and-seek with Zuzu.

It takes her a moment to recognize Nanashi when she sees him- she hasn't really been paying attention to faces, because that was oddly impossible with the masks, but he wasn't even wearing one.

Interesting.

He was, however, dressed in an absurd suit of some sort. With a cape.

She gives a brief nod of greeting, pausing in her previous route. She supposes he's better company than most.]

[ Listen. The cape is an essential part of his attire this fine evening. He's sophisticated

Like a superhero.

Not a masked superhero though, the ones they give out at this party are a little...weird. It's like everyone disappears when they put them on. He can smell and see people are there, but none of them are recognizable. The scents are weird. He can't pull them apart--so yeah, no mask for him. They're a little creepy to someone who relies more on his olfactory senses than his visual ones to identify people, and he doesn't want to be hiding. Not at a party!

He's gotten to dance with a few people by now so he's taking a bit of a break, curious to see what other rooms this giant castle has, when he spots someone who seems to be of a similar mindset. Some...person. He can't tell who they are because again. Mask. But if they're wandering around too...maybe they could explore together? ]

Auh!

[ He lifts a hand and waves with that little greeting--which, Azula may notice--he has stopped doing around her the more she's started to learn Sign. He tends to vocalize less with people he has other ways of communicating with. ]

[Hm. He's usually more animated than this-

Ah, yes. She briefly lifts the mask to show him her face, then slips it back down.

'Don't like party. I look castle.'

The sign is... still clumsy and awkward, but she's still clearly been practicing.]

Ouh--!!

[ AZULA WHERE DID YOU COME FROM. Holy cows holy cows holy cows, one second he has no idea who he's just met and then all of a sudden it's Azula and then she's gone again--like, intellectually he knows he saw her there, but when he looks at her now, he's certain he doesn't recognize her.

So. Creepy.

"Face!" he signs, gestures more wild than usual. "Magic face! I can't see Blue Fire's face."

He still sees her bit about not liking the party and wanting to go off and explore, but he needs this explained first please?? And also to make sure she's still her. So he may or may not hurry over, trying to...uh...sniff. Her. ]

[Huh. Did he not know how the masks work?

Wait.

What's the sign for 'mask?' It genuinely never occurred to her to look. Uh. Okay. Improvisation time.

`Face hats. Magic.`

...did she learn the sign for magic before the one for mask? Maybe. Look, there's more tactical relevance to magic, okay?]

[ It is a testament to Azula a) not giving a fuck and b) becoming used to his general weirdness that she doesn't react in the slightest when he tries to catch a whiff of her scent and fails. He looks genuinely baffled and a wee frustrated to have no success while she's wearing the mask, but she supplies him with an explanation in short enough order.

he huffs.

"Face hat magic is bad. I can't smell you. You are gone."

The sign for magic is v important, it's okay. He understands. ]

[Ugh. Very well. It feels ridiculous, but if he was going to get so hung up on it-

She removes the mask again, tucking it away under her coat.

`Face hat gone. You come or no?`]

[ Much better! He takes another deep inhale and--yes. She's there. He lets the breath out in one big whoosh, shoulders slumping in relief.

"Thank you. Much better!"

And back to their initial conversation thread--

"Where are you going?" He tilts his head and falls into step beside her without missing a beat. ]

Edited 2023-02-16 05:17 (UTC)

[Hm. How to explain-

She retrieves her journal and her quill- good news, it seems to be fixed now- and writes.]

This party bores me. I want to explore the rest of the castle.

[... Hopefully that was simple enough for him to follow.]

[ Oh, it is fixed! That's good news. He'd been considering making her one out of dreamotion, but he hadn't seen much of her before the whole 'carriage-and-costume affair. He's glad she has a new quill.

"Adventure!" He doesn't gasp, but it's a near thing. His eyes might as well be sparkling with the way he looks at her, hands clutched into excited fists. "I go too please? Together??" ]

[Spirits, she had asked out of idle boredom and he made it sound like the thrill of a lifetime. What is his lifespan, anyway? He may not age. He may already be centuries old, for all she knows-

Well, probably not more than a few years, the deterioration in the dream hadn't been that bad, and it wasn't really relevant. She rolls her eyes, but she's smirking slightly as she nods and beckons to follow.]

[ Heck yes. Adventure Time^TM.

Grinning, he grabs the edges of his cape and flutters it back and forth in excitement. He's never been on an adventure before, but from what he understands they are the Literal Best. Ever. You can meet dragons, find treasure, see a "goblin"... Unnamed doesn't know what those are, but they sound like they eat a lot. (goblin > gobble...in > "they gobble [food]")

Yup.

"Where are we going first?" he signs, eager. ]

[The eager glee, the... strange flapping of the cape-

He really could be so childlike sometimes, despite his unique capabilities.

Ridiculous. The thought carries less venom than it used to, though.

She doesn't directly answer his question. She simply gives him an impish smile and beckons for him to follow as she slips down the hallway and carefully slips beneath the velvet rope marking the boundary.]

[ He would be perhaps more wary of that if he understood that ropes and stuff like that are meant to serve as barriers and keep people out... But he doesn't! So he follows her without questioning it, sniffing the air again for any signs of new smells and swivelling his head back and forth to take in the sights.

Azula goes a bit faster than he would've if he was on his own (one's never in a hurry as a member of the undead), but he's keen to see where they're headed all the same and doesn't ask her to slow down. ]

[It occurs to her that bringing a deaf person on a task that called for stealth might be a problem. He would have no clue when he was making noise, no clue when somebody was coming- unless he smelled them, she supposed, he seemed to rely on that a lot.

That was a notion. Maybe she'd have to train him to use that more reliably.

Meanwhile, she would simply rely on feigning ignorance if they were caught. Up a staircase, and she hears distant footsteps from one direction so she leads him in the other. That will do.

As they walk, she idly signs, 'practiced dream magic' Hey, if they have a silent means of communicating, they might as well use it, right?]

[ Absolutely. It's like talking in code! Only that code is his everyday language so he doesn't think of it that way and is really just glad that Azula seems to have been working really hard at it. The motions of her hands are steady and lack hesitation. It...looks like she's really put a lot of work into it.

He smiles.

"Practised magic? How did it go? Good?" He hopes it went well. A lot of people seem to struggle with it. ]

[It had. For the first time, it really had. She felt pleased.

"Bad dream magic. Works more good to me." Ugh, she's not even entirely familiar with the grammar of sign language, but she's positive that was atrocious. Whatever. It can't be helped.

She glanced around them briefly to ensure they weren't being watched, then led him into an alcove and held out a hand, concentrating.]

[ 'Bad dream magic'...? That sounds...bad. That

That...

...What were they talking about, again? He feels like his blanked for just a second there. He's about to ask Azula to repeat that, but then she holds up her hand and looks like she's focusing and he can't help but watch with rapt attention. ]

[It takes a few moments of concentration, and a thick vapor of black mist seems to slowly billow from her hands, rising into the shape of... a mask.

The, uh, detail work leaves something to be desired, basically just a minimalist white and purple design, but in terms of shape and texture it's identical to the mask she was wearing when they first met, the one he reproduced for her. She offers it to him.

`I made dream magic work`]

Ouh--!

[ "Blue Fire! Wow! You did it...!" Unnamed actually jumps up and down once or twice, shaking his hands, before he's able to calm down enough to sign to her. "You use magic!"

He is so happy for her--he knows she's struggled with it ever since she first arrived. He doesn't know what's helped her jump that hurdle or mental block, but this is amazing! Unnamed claps his hands for her, giving an off-kilter, wheezed laugh.

No way is he not accepting that mask--he's going to take it and treasure it ~~LIKE A PROUD MOTHER~~. ]

[The effusive praise would feel patronizing from anybody else, but she's begun to accept that he's simply not capable of it.

She still feels she can do better, but for now she's satisfied at having found a solution.

Unfortunately, she doesn't know how to sign 'never underestimate me,' so she simply contents herself with `I found a way'

Then, with a cautious glance to ensure nobody is approaching, she starts walking again.]

[ He wants to tell her how amazing that is, but a) his hands are full of mask, and b) she starts walking. So. He puts the mask in his coat quickly and goes to follow her, hurrying to stand side-by-side with her so he can ask instead;

"Where are we going? You know a secret place?" ]

[The sly smirk returns.

'I don't know. We know when we go there.'

At first, this had simply been an idle bit of boredom-induced rebellion, a somewhat spiteful alternative to the tedium of the party. But honestly, there was something sort of pleasant about just exploring the place with him. It sort of reminded her of exploring the palace as a child, though of course she wasn't playing a game this time.]

[ "A mystery..."

He knows what those are now, and he. loves it. The adventure now has a mystery! A destination unknown! It holds all the promise of an epic (which he doesn't know about), and the look on Azula's face (much less unnerving than her...uh...'smile') only cements this in his head.

This is going to be awesome. ]

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FOR YOU? ANYTHING <3

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