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

['All magic here dream magic.'

That's why trying to figure it out has been so important to her, after all. Though she's certainly started with the creating items factor- particularly since she had a master of that specific skill around to use as her benchmark for accomplishment.

`Like face hat that made me smell gone. That dream magic also.`]

[ Ohhhh--Azula can see the moment that understanding dawns on him. That explains so much. But also? Blows his mind. Dream magic can be used for more things than he thought! He's going to have to ask a lot more questions about it--mental note to file that away for later. Maybe he can ask Trahearne? He works in the house of books. He could know!

"Dream magic is wow..." Like, for real. "Does that mean no more adventure? We can't go up?" ]

[Apparently not. Ugh, that's so frustrating. Perhaps if she'd been better at dreamotion-

But she wasn't. In fact, she'd only realized within the last couple of weeks that she could use nightmare energy for the job, which had worked a lot more effectively. Frustrating. Beyond frustrating, almost infuriating. She was going to have to get better at this dreamotion much, much faster.

Huff.

'No. No more adventure.']

[ Unnamed's shoulders slump. He was so excited for that, darn. His first castle adventure, over after just one floor! Alas...

At least there's still technically the party, right? It's got food (he won't eat), music (that he can't hear), and all the fun costumes. It's still a fun place, even if it's not what he was hoping for. Azula looks a little bummed out too. After a moment's thought, he gives her hand a light squeeze and points to the masquerade.

"Want to dance?" ]

[Ah. Ah. She thinks not.

'Dance not good.'

Is she saying she's not good at dancing or that dancing isn't good? Who knows? ~~Not her, obviously.~~]

[ Come ooooon, it'll be fun--

"You don't know how to dance?" he asks, trying get gain some clarification. "I can teach! Dancing is fun. You don't need to be good at dancing to have fun."

Because that is clearly the issue here when it comes to Azula. Yup. ]

[What no that was not the correct answer abort mission abort mission-

"Dancing not look fun for me."

There. Easy. Even with the language barrier. It's fine. Toooootally fine.]

[ P s h a w.

"Why? You move so wow! I think you would be a good dancer." He's seen Azula's backflips. No way she's not coordinated enough to absolutely rock a dance. ]

[...Flattery will get you nowhere, sir.

"Yes. But..."

Ah. Well, she... has no more excuses, really. She doesn't want to? He'd just ask why. Maybe later? Why not now. Ugh. Ugh.

"... Fine. One dance. But we should have face-hat. For party."

Yes. Definitely because of the party, and not because she refuses to dance without the anonymity of the enchanted mask.]

[ "Don't like face-hat..." But. For Azula, who looks like she's already pretty reluctant and doesn't much want to try in the first place? He will pull his out and plop it on, making sure it stays in place before he gives her a nod.

"One face-hat dance! I promise." ]

[She doesn't like the masks any more than he does, at least not on anybody else, but if she was going to dance, she felt entitled to the compromise to protect her dignity. And then he puts his mask on.

She knows how the masks work, but understanding the concept and actually experiencing the effect are two very different things.

One moment, she's talking to Nanashi. The next, it's like a complete stranger is standing in front of her. Individually, she can see all the individual features that reveal his identity- the oddly pale and slightly blue-tinged lips, the same shape of his jaw, the slightly stiff posture, the eyes behind the mask, and of course she recognized the outfit as well. It was like the part of her brain that could recognize him was simply turned off.

Bizarre. And disorienting. Oddly, it makes her want to dance with him less. Which is ridiculous, it's not like she's particularly inclined to dance with him anyway, but the lack of familiarity...

Well. It didn't matter. She slips on her own mask again.

"Good. Now what?"]

[ It really is a bizarre situation, knowing who someone is but being unable to recognize them. All the things that tell you who they are are there, but his brain just doesn't want to make the connection. He can't help but sniff the air on instinct in an attempt to find her scent, but alas.

Seeing her Sign is a comfort though. He offers a smile and motions for her to follow.

"I learned to dance from E-M-E-T. Follow me!"

Unnamed holds out a hand for her. ]

[She stares at the hand for a few moments, tentatively.

It's just Nanashi. He's harmless.

She reaches out and takes his hand. Most hands are colder than hers- quirk of being a firebender- but his is colder than most. There's a familiarity to it now. It sets her at ease, though she can't explain why.

It occurs to her, as she tolerates being led to the dance floor, that it will be quite difficult to take instruction with their hands occupied. All the other dancers had their hands in a peculiar frame- holding hands on one side and resting on each other's shoulders with the other- which would make signing impossible.

Ah. Hindsight.

Well, she'd have to figure it out from his cues, then.]

[ If there's one thing that doesn't need words as much as most other things, it's movement. And Unnamed is very deliberate about his; he wades them through the throng of dancers to a spot a little bit off to the side and avoids the middle. One reason for this is that there's too much movement there for him to pay attention to while dancing, and the other...is that he thinks Azula will prefer it. As much as she's confident in most things, this doesn't appear to be one of them.

He gives her another smile as they come to a stop and turns to her. He'll wave one arm down in front of him and give a slightly awkward bow--his leg swept back in the opposite direction it's supposed to, but oh well. He was taught to give a little bow before dancing and he's gonna do it no matter how silly it looks.

There's two ways he knows where to put his free hand, but he wants to know which Azula prefers: so! He taps his own shoulder, then side, and gestures to her. Which would she like?

Because yeah, Emet-Selch taught him to lead. CHOOSE, AZULA. ]

[Yeah, she's pretty cozy near the wall for this, for sure. A formal bow, she has no idea how to reply to that, and then he

Is he offering her some sort of choice?... Uh. What- she lacks context for-

Okay. It's fine. She can figure this out. Quick glance around the room, results... frustratingly inconsistent, but typically the posture when men and women dance is for the woman's hand to be just off of the man's shoulder. Alright. Good. She can work with that. After another moment of careful verification, she places one hand against his shoulder and holds the other one out to the side. That... that looks right? She thinks?]

Ouh.

[ He nods to her when her hands settle in their places, one of his coming up to catch and hold hers while the other settles benignly on her side. While some people might be a little tentative being around someone else like this, Unnamed just looks...normal. It's no different than holding hands. He looks happy.

With her poses all set he nods to her that they'll start moving soon: easy steps. One step back so she can follow, and then one step forward; a simple back-and-forth to ease them into it since he isn't sure how well she knows how to dance. He's half-expecting her to just huff and start moving them around her way.

The thought tempts a chuckle, but he suppresses it. ]

[Oh, to be as carefree about this nonsense as he was right now. She's not... as uncomfortable as she was expecting at first, with his hand at her side like that, but she's still not used to the closeness. She expects another disruptive bout of intrusive memories.

Fortunately, they don't come.

What does continue, at usual strength, is the feeling of awkwardness at publicly performing something she's not good at, her distaste for parties and social events, the strange alienation of not recognizing Nanashi even knowing who he is, and the perfectionism that demands that she not merely learn but master what she's being taught.

Suffice it to say, trying to take over the dance is the last thing on her mind. The closest to it is impatience- she quickly gets the knack of taking cues from the pressure of his shoulder and his hand, so she's matching his simple steps quickly, but she's got no way to demand that he not slow down for her benefit.]

[ That Azula's this patient is a testament to how much she is willing to put up with his shenanigans. He expected her to pick things up fast, but boy. She puts Unnamed to shame; what takes her less than a minute took him half an hour of practice. He'd never learned to move his body that way, had no concept of rhythm, no sense of flow... He's a little envious of how easy she makes this seem.

On the other hand, he's really happy to have a dance partner and takes her seamlessness as a sign to add a few more steps, and more direction. A waltz of sorts, which is about the most complicated dance he knows how to do ~~besides bad break-dancing, Toge's fault~~. Between her ability to pick things up and his own dedication to performing tasks and motions over and over and over until he gets them right, they're...doing pretty good. Well, in fact. He might shuffle a bit (a lot) more than her graceful steps, but in what feels like no time at all they've got an easy pace going.

Happiness wells up inside him to the point where he can't help the delight on his face, nor the way he gives her hand a tiny squeeze. ]

[Once they've got the basic steps down, she actually starts to fall comfortable into the rhythm. This-

Well, this isn't... unpleasant. There's an elegance to it, a grace she finds appealing, even if they're only repeating the same basic steps and rotating slowly in their little corner of the floor. She almost feels herself relaxing. And then she sees the broad grin on his face, feels the gentle squeeze of his hand on hers.

The strange spike of panic returns, and she has to restrain the urge to immediately flee the dance floor.

Without missing a beat, he signs 'You have me,' staring at her as if it was the most obvious thing in the world-
"I suppose it's making the music a bit more tolerable"-
A sharp pain in her right shoulder, a dull impact on her left side, and the Boiling Rock gondola platform is suddenly rushing up to meet her face-
"Sooner or later," the younger version sneers, "they all realize what you are"-

So much for escaping the intrusive memories. She forces herself to ignore them, but her posture become rigid, her grip on his hand and shoulder suddenly tightening.]

[ It's not easy to see the changes in Azula's demeanour. He's know her for several months now and he's still learning what to look for in her expression, in the way her lips turn downward or her eyes narrow. He's still learning to read body language, to understand the cues that point to something being wrong rather than different.

Unnamed has a long way to go. But even he can see the way she goes from effortless grace to something more stiff. Feel the way her hands clutch and her fingers dig into him. He's confused. Did he do something wrong? Is she not having fun anymore...? It's only been a few minutes, but maybe she's had enough of dancing? He doesn't want to be done just yet, but if she doesn't want to...

He tilts his head and gives her an inquiring look--despite the fact that the masks make it all the more difficult. ]

[...Ah. Ah. Okay she's clearly causing a scene- get a hold of yourself, Azula. She forces her grip to relax, wills the tension out of her muscles, and lightly shakes her head- it's fine, Nanashi. She even tries to muster a reassuring smile.

She's not notoriously good at those, but uh

There was

An attempt.]

[ Oh god, it's the smile. Or a version of it. An uncanny valley, something isn't quite right smile. The sort where he doesn't know if he's in trouble or if her face has broken--

Azula might force herself to relax, but now it's his turn to be a bit stiff. He stumbles a little on his next step, catches himself, and looks flustered. ]

[Of course. Of course he was losing his nerve already.

She very nearly stops dancing right then, but- no. No, she said she would dance one full song, she's not going to give up just because he's easily intimidated. She smoothly adjusts her own step to make up for the stumble and keeps them moving in time with the song, but the smile slips from her face.

"But you probably would do something horrible to them"- Not useful. "All your life, you've used fear to control people"- Stop it. "Tell me, mother, did you have to have a new daughter because the last one turned out to be such a monster?"

Rrgh. She had to suppress the urge to scream. it was just supposed to be a stupid dance.]

[ The smiles goes, but Unnamed doesn't feel any better in its absence. He knows something must've shown on his own face or in his actions, because just like that, Azula's demeanour shifts again. This time it feels like she's mad rather than...whatever that was a second ago, and while it's a more familiar "flavour" of Azula, he still wishes she'd feel good rather than this--which she'd probably describe as 'fine' if he asked.

She catches his stumble at least, so he's able to nod his head to her in thanks as she corrects their pace and gets them back on track.

He grips her a little tighter to keep himself focused, relaxing only once he's made it through a few more steps without fault.

He exhales. ]

[Azula only dimly registers the nod of thanks. It's not until she feels him hold her more tightly that she's pulled from the intrusive memories.

It's obvious that it's a response to the stumble, nothing, more, but it's still... odd. She can't put a finger on why, but chasing the odd thought to its conclusion at least gives her mind occupation as she continues dancing with him, and keeps her from any more upsetting memories or feelings.

The panic and the odd clenching frustration at least seem to ease up, anyway, and the tension in her chest begins to relax. She almost feels lighter, somehow.]

{ stroke of midnight }

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