Haven Masquerade (( OPEN ))

[Tatsu]

With a last huff of wind, the song ended. Nephra gave a smile, her first Opera she had ever done went out peacefully. She gave a bow and walked off stage with many people clapping and telling her how beautiful her voice was. Suck ups. That’s all she thought of them. Nephra’s purple hair flowed side by side, the wind picking it up. She made her way to her husband’s table.

“How was my singing?” She asked him. Nephra always and only wanted his opinion; all else didn’t matter to her. The masquerade was beautiful and she felt like she needed to sing that one song. The letter didn’t state how many.

Tatsu got up, and hugged her. Something that shocked Nephra, not once has he ever hugged her in public. She wrapped her hands around his waist and together they drifted into the dance floor. Her head gently lay on his chest; she could hear his heart, peaceful, pure and beating lightly. Soothing to her.

Tatsu twirled, spinning with her in his arms. “Your voice was beautiful like the doves sweet call. More beautiful than anything in this world.” His sweet velvet voice told her. He may have been blind, his eyes slashed, but he could still see with his Eco, and he saw the many figures moving allowing him to know what steps to take.

Nephra was truly in bliss. They swayed through the dance floor, truly wonderful.


Adelaide was shocked by his words it made her…blush? Unheard of. She gave off a light smile, “You choose.” She simply said. Adelaide had never been to a party, nor knew how to dance with another man… at most she had dancing lessons with only girls. Even then she was dominant at it.

Her feelings grew more, something was wrong. She was feeling something she swore not to feel. Was this a love feeling? She didn’t know she felt sick to her stomach, butterflies sprouting all over it. She didn’t know what was going on, how can she carry feelings? Tonight was going to be good… or so she thinks.

[adeco]

The woman singing had stopped and so had the music, "Well look at that. Saved by the bell." He thought. "Oh well. Better luck next time, eh?" He said nervously, awkwardly walking away to collect himself from this nerve racking experience.

"Oh the Precursors... I nearly had to dance..." He had contradicting thoughts. On one end he wanted a date to dance with and on the other he didn't want to dance because, frankly, he didn't know how. So this was both a disappointment and a breathe of relief.

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Starus and Aila stopped dancing when the music stopped. "That was marvelous!" Starus complimented his wife, "Thank you for letting me have that dance, m'lady."
Aila gave him a giggle, "Any time, dear."

They found an empty table and sat to rest. Starus noticed that the woman giving off such tranquil music was sitting at the table next to them. He leaned over to her and her presumed date. "Might I say you have a lovely voice, madam." He said to the woman.

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Through his metal mask Khaloron responded to John. "I'm curious to see how festivities like this occur. Its the perfect opportunity for me to get close to the human race since we are all wearing masks.

Khaloron then turned his head to where Jynx was. "Also.. Killian is here." He said nodding towards to to point her out.

[kelinna]

Stumbling away from the horrible man, Kelinna collapsed into a near by chair. Frowning as she lifted her dress a bit to see if her feet were a unnatural shade of black and blue, of course it figures that her first dance ever would be ruined by a person with two left feet. Letting out a soft sigh her wings fluttered idly behind her, though looking around she saw no sign of Indigo; removing her mask briefly, Kelinna rubbed her forehead.

Already she could feel a slight headache wanting to form, re-adjusting her mask she looked back out at the dance floor; smiling sadly as she noticed couples enjoying themselves. Resting her elbows on the table next to her, Kelinna's thoughts wondered what it would be like to be in love; the idea quickly shattered as she shook her head "such silly things to think of..." Mumbling softly to herself, she continued to watch everyone enjoy themselves.

Indigo frowned behind a glass of champagne, "and your sure?" "Yes ma'am; we spot them as they came in. None of them had masks and after checking the invitations they proved to be false." Narrowing her eyes she turned towards the waiter "go and tell the other staff to be on alert, if you see anyone flash a weapon that isn't on our team... Either lure them away from the party and question them, or kill them point blank if they start up trouble." The young waiter gave a nod of his head, answering in a tight voice "yes ma'am I will let everyone else know."

Simply nodding her head; Indigo's blue eyes surveyed the floor, wondering who was here to crash her party; figuring it was either some idiot or wanna be gang member she let out a small scoff. Finishing her drink she placed it on a passing waitress's tray, after taking a small pistol that was slid down her sleeve by the woman. "Now to play the waiting game..."

[Altairas]

Leo's eyes shot open and his arm spasmed a bright crackle racing up his arm. " By the precursors! Can't you ever try not to scare the living daylights out of me?" He asked rubbing a hand through his neatly combed hair trying to calm himself. He took a nice deep breath and refocused his attention, turning himself so that he was facing her.

"There is something different about you. . ." Leo said in a matter-a-fact tone. It's almost like I can feel her. . . "I mean. . . uh. . . " He laughed at himself for such a strange comment. Wow " I didn't mean to sound weird. . . umm. . . " He face palmed, another spasm of eco crackling on his arm. The eco arched to the wall and for a slight moment a pulse of blue filled Leo's vision.

A figure stood infront of him, a face covered by the shadow of a mask. Soft blue-red archs rippled across her skin. "You look beautiful." He said in a tone of awe, the sight fading as quick as it came."


Audra spun herself around to face the voice, her dress twirling around behind her "Eh, I have been to better. . ." She joked a smile panted across her face. "What brings you to such a formal occasion?" She asked Mykah, she had never gotten a chance to see her friend wear any sort of formal attire.

[Nelly]

________;;Noel;;________

Ellie was a little freaked. Why had that guy stared at her so intensely? She shivered and shook it off. She’d have to forget about it, she told herself. However, she couldn’t help but glance over her shoulder at the passing figure. He was hella tall, and dressed in all black. Also, he was the one person at this party that had ears like hers; short and round. That made her curious. "Huh…"

She took a seat by the tables, knowing that dancing would be a hopeless option to her. Her eyes roamed the dancefloor. There were a few familiar faces; Nephralia and her husband, Tatsu; Benny and some lady from the KG, who Nelly had only seen a couple times before. But her eyes fell upon one man in particular. She had never seen him before, but he was somehow strangely familiar. Noel did recognize the lovely girl she danced with, however. It was Aerie. Aerie was cool, they’d talked a couple times but never really got to be friends. Ellie felt somewhat jealous of her… wondering how it felt to be in someone’s arms like that. It made her feel despairingly lonely. Nelly sighed and glanced back at the man who held her. Who was th---… HOLY CRAP!

Wow. That was DB, wasn’t it? That was the guy she had seen the very first day of her freedom. That was the guy that Ben had told her of two and a half years ago… Hmm. After all that time, since Benny had retold that story, she had felt a soft spot for the poor man. She could somewhat connect with him. To an extent. But at the same time, she feared him.

Feeling awkward, she looked down at her hands, which were folded in her lap.

~

_______;;Alikae;;_________

He was almost completely engrossed in his own thoughts; awareness, concentration, strategies of the upcoming event....

Alikae’s men had already integrated into the party. Yes, most of them had received valid summons to the party – they had found dance partners and appeared as any other persons having a good time. Hell, he could see Dusty in his navy blue suit and feathered mask, and the ever so petite Ms. Red socializing by the table of hors d’oeuvres. The others were either hidden among the masses or fanning out over the grounds. He could hear the quiet exchange of words between the femininely clad man and the maître d'hôtel. They were discussing security and whatnot. This would be an issue, but not a hard one. It would make things more… challenging. Good.

A voice interrupted his thoughts, somehow more audible to him than the white noise of distant talk, laughter, singing. “I don’t want to dance with some stranger!” It wasn’t a yell, but his keen ears could pick up the harsh whisper of a girl. Alikae glanced over his shoulder, one black eyebrow raised. A lovely emerald-headed young lady was being ushered off toward a rather ghastly man. She didn’t seem very happy with that matching. The corners of his lips turned up in a smirk. How amusing. Alikae turned around and leaned his back against the railing to watch the girl. She was practically being dragged along by the disgraceful man. What an atrocity!

“Hmm…” He chuckled as she seated herself in one of the chairs by the punch table. She looked breathless. Perhaps she would need some soothing…

Alikae kicked off the railing and in long dawdling strides made his way toward and through the mass of bodies, his blood red eyes never leaving the young lady’s face.

He came to a swift stop a few feet from where she sat. He did not take his mask off, however. He simply perfered to stay anonymous for now. He swept into a deep bow and grinned at her, his eyes ablaze with the Dark Eco that infested his veins.

“May I?” He asked, offering a gloved hand, palm up. His palm was empty for a moment, but suddenly a bloody red rose took form out of wisps of misty Dark Eco - and tied to its stem in a neat bow, a black satin ribbon. Alikae met her eyes and smiled ever so sweetly.



~
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[Neki]

The mans surprise showed in a ripple of sparks on his arm. When his eyes shot open she almost laughed, seeing she had surpised him big time. She could feel the blue crackling in him, so like the feeling she had been feeling lately. She smiled towards him, even tugh she knew he couldn't "see" it.

" Well, I don't think so. It's just th way I am. I like scaring people. I haven't gotten you as bad as I got Jay....." She stopped and took a breath in. " As ad as I got a frein from along time ago." She finished lamely. She wasn't going to let her thoughts rest on the man. She looked out at the people, for a moment forgetting that she had her mask on. She didn't see anyone else she knew, but she did know that Mykah was here somewhere. They had alked about going.

" So how re you Leo? " She asked him, trying to fill the silence between them with Idle Chatter.

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Mykah nodded to her friends joke smiling. She looked out at the people as they danced.

" Well, I was thinking if someone coul hold a party this big they might be intersted in weaponry. My normall suplier met an uh... untimely end." She winced, knowing exactly what had happened. The supplier had been dealing in some dark stuff, and someone had hired Shinrah to take him out. She sighed with annoyance and loked back at Audra.

" Anyway. So ya, here I am, all dressed up and feeling girly. I like my work clothes better."

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Jaytn watched the girl as the man trod all over her. It made him so angry because he knew she was nice Girl. Her green hair was the same, without blood in her hir. She was sitting there alone, rubbing her temples as if she had a headache. Then someone else came. Jaythen instantly dislike the man because he just seemed slimy. He had seen enough slimy people in the prison to last a lifetime.

Jaythen had a feeling he was asking her to dance, and had the same thought. No, I'll wait until they're done. I can dance with her later. He ruffled his blue green hair and adjusted his mask, trying not to seem so nervous about being aroun so many people.

[kelinna]

Closing her eyes as she was lost in her own little world, she quickly opened her eyes as she heard someone speak. “May I?” turning her attention towards the stranger, Kelinna swallowed nervously as the man bowed before her; blinking in confusion she tiled her head slightly. Not used to strange men coming up to her unless it was at the library, and even then the interaction was short and to the point. “May you...” Her words cut off as he produced a rose, then she felt it; the sudden surge of dark eco.

Clutching her hands tightly together she had to focus on controlling her eco; every so often it would have a mind of its own and purify any dark eco surrounding her. Not wanting to seem rude though, Kelinna smiled politely mumbling softly under her breath ‘thank you.” And with a shaky hand she took the lovely rose, a sudden swirl of dancing green lights circled the tainted beauty; the flower instantly disappearing from her hand as her own powers purified the dark eco that made contact with her skin.
Quickly she pulled her hand away from the man she placed it back atop her lap, looking down in embarrassment. “I’m sorry… It’s just that I have a slight ‘allergic’ reaction around dark eco.” Kelinna tried to giggle softly at her horrible joke, as her wings her fluttered slightly in annoyance. The green eco inside her started reacting to the dark eco coursing through the stranger’s veins. “I do not mean to be rude sir… But besides the trick, was there another reason you came over here?” Brushing some green hair from her vision, Kelinna’s eyes shone brightly in curiosity and a slight unease behind her mask.

Pausing in her sentence Indigo smiled curtly as she noticed a handsome looking stranger trying to converse with Kelinna, giggling she kept her eyes trained on the pair. After a few choice words with a few of the waiters she was once again enjoying the party, now if only her friend could do the same. Fanning herself lazily Indigo nodded and mumbled a few words to make it seem like she was still involved in the conversation.

Blinking in confusion at the sudden light show that happened by Kelinna and the stranger, Indigo hopped the girl would control her eco. The last thing she needed at her party was green eco going everywhere, she had seen what the girl was capable of and sometimes it wasn’t pretty.

[Jynx]

As the music stopped the boy walked away, and Jynx sighed. She had almost been looking forward to dancing. Almost. She wished for a moment she had brought Kovu, but decided it was better she had not. The girl was trouble. As she moved back through the crowds she noticed Khaloron once more. Jynx decided maybe she shouldgo havea talk with them.

Her frost white and blue dress swished all aroud her as she moved closer to the two cloaked figures. It would be good to have a chance to speak to them. Maybe she could even give them thier next assignment. She smiled. When she had finally reached htem she stood for a moment, silence spreading around her.

"Good evening boys. I did not expect to find you here.

[adeco]

Khaloron grunted as he turned hid head to her. "Nor, did I expect you see you, m'lady." The irises of his eyes began to have a soft glow of orange through hole of the metal mask. "Let me guess... New assignment? I know you're not here for mere conversation."

[dbkillerex]

Catching her, seemingly effortlessly with his right hand, it seemed as though the fall was planned. She was diagonally at about a 45* degrees angle form the floor, leaning forward DB whispered "How conveniet...". He lowered himself over to her, placing his left hand on the back of her neck to support her, than stole a second, longer kiss.

"Humans, their odd behavior... How do they expect to get enjoyment by swinging each other around and drinking alcohol while wearing masks..." John kept wondering. His eyes now set upon jinx, as directed by khaloron's notion "Intriguing... The last human I'd expect here" he murmured while trying to wear his mask back over his head.

lifting aerie back to her feet DB lowered his mask back and led aerie toward a vacant table, around the center. Pulling the chair out from beneath the table DB awaited aerie to take a sit before taking his place on the seat from across the table. The cold glass touched the wooden table as the waiter lay them with professional care, and a single drop of water trickled down the tall cup slowly down the cold wet surface "Hmm... looks like a Margarita to me..." He assessed the drink than lifted it off the table and wraped his arm around aerie's and back to his mouth, expecting her to do the same "Cheers"

Waiting for another performer to go on, Benjamin took hold of both Adelaide's hands and began leading the way, one step forward one step left and a turn. He was well educated in the art of dance by his first girlfriend and was ready to take it to the next level once assessing Adelaide's capability. The next performer was a young man with a somewhat feminine voice that although would be put to shame by Benjamin, or john's tone has created a fairly romantic atmosphere along with the band and lighting.

"The one human i thought sane" John nodded his head in a 'tisk tisk' notion as DR Killian approached, "Well khaloron, i thought to give these humans a chance... Ill tell you how it goes when it ends". Giving a nod to jinx, confirming he has heard her John awaited to hear her words, with a distinct lack of anticipation.