apocalypsehowcomm | [log] now, the party don't start 'til I walk in

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[log] now, the party don't start 'til I walk in

Who: Akechi, Mercy, Ren, Monika, with the second prompt OPEN MINGLE to anyone who wants to hang out at a club with Monika and co. for Monika's birthday (or just hang out at a club adjacent to Monika's birthday)
When: September 22--Monika's birthday
Where: shopping, then a club that accepts older teens (with wristbands if you're under drinking age)
Summary: It's Monika's birthday, and the decision has been made to go out and party. First, apartment A1 (including Honorary Roommate Ren) goes shopping to prep for said partying, and then they and anyone else who wants to tag along go to the club. Also, Akechi is one of the people going to this club, which will probably be funny.
Warnings: nothing major expected; potential for teen alcohol use; if anything happens in a thread just put warnings in the subject line please!

A. tryin' on all our clothes, clothes [CLOSED to Apartment A1 + Ren]
[If they're all going out for Monika's birthday, it's important to have the right style. It wouldn't be fair to call Mercy's outfits old-fashioned when it's not exactly her fault she got shot forward centuries in time, but now that Mercy is here, Monika is going to make sure she fits right in at the club. Also, it wouldn't hurt to pick out a cute new outfit for herself. The area of town she suggests isn't too expensive, but it's got some good clothing stores.]

Okay everyone! Priority number one is getting a great outfit for Mercy, but if you find something you like, you should grab it. [Treat yourself, this is going to be fun!]

B. DJ, blow my speakers up [OPEN MINGLE-STYLE; threadjacking encouraged!]
[It's the kind of club that accepts teens over sixteen but changes to 21 and up after a certain hour of the night. That makes it a more popular spot than some teen clubs might otherwise be, and the atmosphere is already electric by the time it's dark. The music thumps a bass you can feel in your chest and the dance floor is crowded, but not enough that you can't find a place to squeeze in if you want. If you're under 21, you have to wear a glow-in-the-dark wristband, but there's plenty of non-alcoholic beverages to try out. And of course, if you have a convincing fake ID, your options are a lot more open (just don't let Monika know!). The lights are a multicolored show of their own keeping time to the music, though the flashing is kept to a minimum.

If you're looking for a break or just want to sit and eat, there are booth tables available--small ones for more intimate moments and larger ones for big groups. Monika's picked one of the large ones as her Designated Birthday Table, if you're looking for her, but there's free ones all over the place if you want to have time to yourself! The food here's pretty good, too.]

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[The dress they had eventually settled on seemed... very short on the fabric, but Mercy had liked the sleeves and the colors on it. Some part of her laments that her usual dress won't suit for this, but trying to sew a dress fast enough for Monika's birthday would have let to something shoddy, and she wants to look nice. She can spare a little money for something more modern. So, Mercy is at the club in a brilliant blue dress made of some sort of delightfully billowy material.

The wristband that glows is an absolute delight, and she spends a little while just running around with it, a little overwhelmed by the volume and the lights, but excited, nonetheless. This is a party! Should there be games? It seems like there should be some games, but mostly people seem to be dancing.

If she sees someone who looks even vaguely familiar, she'll reach out a hand for them.]

Dance with me! I don't know how.

[Not really, anyway. Not in the modern ways.]

Oh?

[Now, if it were anyone other than Monika or Mercy, Akechi would have laughed politely and dismissed the offer to dance outright. Dancing... isn't really his thing. Hell, clubbing isn't really his thing. He'd much rather be sitting with a cocktail in a jazz bar with live music, somewhere he feels comfortable enough to just close his eyes and soak it all in.

But for Mercy, he'll offer a gloved hand with a bow, comically formal in contrast to his casual outfit, and confide,] Neither do I. Shall we attempt to learn together?

[He does look... hmm... Mercy had been admiring his muscles that time when he'd helped her during one of her nightmares. Seeing it here when she's happy and excited, rather than in disarray is certainly preferred. Maybe this will even be a chance to impress him with some of what she does know with dancing, even if it isn't the modern sort.]

I'd like that more than you can imagine, Akechi.

[She curtsies, in turn.]

If we had a ribbon, I think I'd know what we could do. Ribbon dancing and ties is popular during the Summer Season-Turning Festival.

Ribbon dancing?

[He hums quietly, and can't quite hide the way his eyes are sparkling with a sudden interest. He's well aware that it's not how literally anyone dances at a club, at all, but it reminds him of pictures he'd seen late at night searching online for information about Robin Hood. Some kind of medieval European festival where they'd dance around poles carrying ribbons? Perhaps that's something different, but even now, there's still a childish part of him that perks up at the idea of doing something even tangentially related to someone he used to consider a hero.

Not to mention that even though they'll likely look like idiots, he can pass it off as being kind to an eccentric friend and come out looking like a better person for it.]

Well, I'm sure Monika won't mind if we repurpose some of her streamers, no? As long as you dance with her as well, that is. We can tie a few together if they're not long enough.

[He tilts his head back toward the decorations Ren had bought for Monika and gives Mercy the same kind of smile-and-mischievous-wink he'd used to give the TV cameras.]

[Mercy's eyes lift to the colorful and shiny strings put up and light. She hadn't even considered the possibility. Some of them are too delicate, but there are a few that had seemed more metallic and less like paper.]

'Course I'm dancing with the birthday girl! You're just my warm-up.

[She winks at Akechi before stepping over and reaching for two of the streamers to pull down. She gives one a few tugs between her hands just to check, before nodding to herself, and tying the pair together.]

That'll do for the length. Now, you stand there and take this end. [She hands him one end.] I'll hold this end. We hold it up and I spin under the ribbon and step to the side around, then you spin and go around my other side, then me, then you, then we both go together. We should be back in front of each other then. It's a one-two-three, one-two-three. We can go slow the first time. That sound easy enough?

[She looks at Mercy, at her dress and she lights up with a smile. It's not the first time she's thought to herself that Mercy is pretty, but even still...]

Dear, you look amazing in that dress. [She takes her hand with a grin.] I'd would love to dance.

Monika, Ren, and Akechi helped me pick it out!

[She counts herself lucky to have such wonderful (and modern, apparently) roommates. Or... apartmentmates. Sort of where Ren is concerned. He really might as well just move in, though. He's over often enough.]

I never seen something so blue! You only get this color for the fanciest folk where I'm from. Makes me feel like a high priestess. [Maybe not the cut but the shade.] You look pretty as ever. Don't reckon you could look bad if you tried, though.

[As she's speaking, she's tugging Aelwyn toward the dance floor.]

[Aelwyn's smile widens. God, Mercy is so much unlike anyone that Aelwyn has ever been close to or really has ever known in general. It's a unique sort of feeling, watching her get so excited about things Aelwyn's long since lost any care for.] Well, I suppose you're one of us fancy ladies now. You certainly wear it well, your ladyship.

[She just grins in response to Mercy's own compliment.] You are too sweet, my dear. Though, honestly, I could say the same of you.

[She follows along and bounces slightly to the beat as the song ends and there's a slight dip in energy and the next song comes on.] Ready to start making it up as we go?

[Oh, that makes her blush and bite her lip. She's never really been the fancy sort, so this is novel! Having Aelwyn complimenting her is especially nice when the elf is just... gorgeous.]

That's the best way about it. [Mercy gives a sharp nod, her lips quirking into a mischievous smirk as she steps and positions them. She takes the lead in front of Aelwyn, bowing low to the other woman before coming up quickly to try to twirl Aelwyn in a quick spin as the music starts with a rapid tempo.]

[Now it's Aelwyn's turn to blush and giggle as she's spun. Cheeky. She pulls Mercy closer and dips her slightly with a shuffle of her own. She leans in with a grin.]

Can't say I took you for the leading type. Not that I mind. Show me what you can do, darling. [She pulls her partner back up to her level as the music starts building to a drop.]

[Oh, that's nice. This is silly, though, isn't it? She's not danced so much with other girls like this, but it's fun! Almost like how she'd flirt with one of the boys she likes.]

I been forward more'n follower most of my life. [She wraps an arm around Aelwyn's back and dances them in a quick little circle, then leans in to whisper into Aelwyn's ear conspiratorially. She wants... to impress Aelwyn. It seems important just now to be able to do that.] Helped lead a rebellion against the Abbot of Evergreen Abbey. Got him pinned for murders and left him burning with the old Abbey.

Edited 2021-10-12 21:31 (UTC)

[Well, that's certainly got her attention. She hadn't expected that level of cunning or ruthlessness from Mercy, given that Mercy so far has been nothing but kind to her. So hearing that she helped incite a revolt and participated in the brutal murder of a religious authority figure is certainly interesting.

God, that's hot. She leans in to whisper in Mercy's ear in return, her tone definitely indicating that Mercy's succeeded at the goal of impressing Aelwyn.]

Oh? You'll have to tell me about that some time, darling. It certainly sounds like you must have been a sight to see.

[Mercy's heart is fluttering a little faster, the warmth of the club getting to her.]

Aye... marching next to Ciaran and Mr. Goodwine, tearing through the embers Brother Ainsley left the gates in for us. We got him good. Got all of them who were doing wrong and killing folk they shouldn't've been.

[It had been... significantly more harrowing, she recalls, but maybe she'll leave out how scared she'd been, even with righteous anger fueling her. How much she'd relied on Ciaran to keep her going. They'd finished it together in the end, there.]

Could show you some of the tricks I learned with my dagger afore the final battle sometime. Can't say I'm the best at being up close, but I got an eye for throwing.

Bright and brilliant justice. It sounds romantic.

["All of them who were doing wrong and killing folk they shouldn't've been." She wonders how Mercy would feel if she knew the amount of innocent people Aelwyn's killed. She knows her body-count, thanks to a self destructive spell use to learn it supernaturally. Fifty six people. Fifty seven, counting the boy her mother had her ritually sacrifice.

But she doesn't have to think about that. Because even if she is a vicious killer, she doesn't want to hurt anyone here. Mercy's a friend, and she's aware of how flat that sounds considering how flirtatiously they're dancing together right now, but it's true. She can be differenet here. It can all be different here.

Instead, she just twirls Mercy with a smirk, pulling her close enough to keep whispering by the end.]

Maybe you could even teach me some things. I've always been rubbish with martial weapons.

Edited 2021-10-16 06:58 (UTC)

I-I'd like that, Aelwyn.

[She'd like that more than she expected, honestly.]

Learned some of my best skills from a real soldier.

[Hereward... Even with the bubbly heat and excitement, her heart aches a little at the memory of the younger boy. Bright and suspicious and so terribly cruel to her at first as he'd let the hate they'd poisoned his head with fester. But he'd come around in the end, even to the likes of Ciaran.

She takes the lead back for a moment of wrap an arm around the elf's back and lift her in a spin before setting her down again. It feels good to be working her arms again. She's had much less exercise in this new world compared to home.]

I bet you'd look fine with a pretty little blade of your own. Maybe a whole set of bone knives for throwing.

[She smiles brightly at the first comment. In truth, she's never had much use for martial weapons. Her parents, and the society which she came from, always treated them like they're used by savages, with so much less grace and prowess than the elven people.

She'd still say magic trumps a sword ten times out of ten, but unlike her parents she wasn't raised in an isolated xenophobic bubble. All things have their uses.

She giggles brightly as she's hefted up into the air, actually at ease in one of her very rare moments that she gets to feel like that.]

You know... there's actually an elven dance using daggers. Halfway between a dance and a combat style. I saw it in practice, once, during a visit back home. It was actually quite beautiful.

Sounds it. I seen some of the warriors do their blade dancing at home during festivals.

[Mercy sets them more into a swaying rhythm that's a little closer to the dancing going on around them. She still feels rather inclined to keep a close hold on Aelwyn, though.]

You got the reflexes for it, you reckon? That's the only thing that's ever stopped me. Ain't keen on stabbing myself too much.

Hmmm... probably not. But I think it's like any skill, all you need is practice.[That's far from what her parents taught. She can feel their disapproval, worlds away, where unbeknownst to her both of them have met their horrific deaths. So fuck them and their elitist bullshit.]

And I have to say, as your partner, you're a natural at dancing already.

You're mighty kind to say as much. Easier to be a natural when you got good company on that, though.

[It is simple enough to follow the rhythm and the dancing here seems to be far less prescriptive than much of what they'd had back in the Abbey during festivals. It's just... fun, something that's pure entertainment without particulars to pay attention to.]

I got skills I need to keep sharp already, but I'll keep blade-dancing proper, in mind. Seems like dancing like this'd come in handy, though. Helps our sort of folk blend in, don't it?

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[log] now, the party don't start 'til I walk in

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cw: discussion of death, murder, and immolation

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