[open] Vampire Ball - May 26th (backdated)

[baisant]

The invitations go out a week in advance. Some of which are hand written (ink on parchment, of course), to those of whom he wishes to see personally, though of course they are welcome to bring guests. The more the merrier, or so the saying goes. Especially in the case of such an event as this. Jean-Claude is vying for the spot of President of the Night Council, after all, and while the event is not technically connected to the election, timing is everything, mes amis. And what an event it is.

The instructions on the invitation are quite simple. There is to be a ball. But not just any ball, a Vampire Ball. If you are a vampire, an ally, or interested in becoming both, you are more than welcome to attend. It is a night to celebrate the collective history of the Nest of London. Formal historical costume is a requirement of attendance. Masks will be allowed as well, though the event is technically not a masquerade. All wood and silver will be checked at the door, for this is a night of entertainment.



The event is being held in a private historic home, presumably for the atmosphere. In the foyer there is a coat check (along with wood and silver check, courtesy of Guilty Pleasure's well-loved bouncers). The guests are funneled through from there into the main ballroom, where yes, there is a live string quartet playing. How did Jean-Claude afford such decadence? It helps when you have lived for so long as he has and have had very little to spend money on besides clothes and decadence. It certainly couldn't be his own private residence -- could it?

Off to the side of the ballroom is an array of chaise lounges and other sofas and chairs, while on the other may be located several tables of refreshments. It is clearly indicated which table is intended for the vampires and which is for those who are still among the living. There is another bouncer posted on watch over the refreshments, and the punch in particular -- they need not have a repeat of the last time someone spiked their drinks in such a fashion after all. There is quite a selection of finger foods on the table for those who are so inclined to partake in such delicacies, and there are offers of champagne, wine, and punch for that table. There are finger foods on the other table as well, although not as many, and each one has an accompanying card indicating the donor's name and blood type, just in case you were wondering why they were for the vampires.

The house is of course bigger than the ballroom and the foyer, but few guests are allowed to venture up the front stairs or beyond the little hall to where the restrooms are located. That does not mean, of course, that there are not those who manage to sneak past the little corded ropes meant to keep such troublemakers within check, especially when the bouncers are otherwise preoccupied. There are all sorts of fun rooms to explore.

And so many costumes from so many eras! Guests are encouraged to talk amongst themselves and share memories of the good old days for those lived through them, or ask questions if there are curiosities from those who did not. Today is a golden age, Islington Nest is at its strongest yet, and it is a time to celebrate what it is to be Vampire. There is more to such a life than drinking blood and having fangs, a sophistication and experience beyond the hunger. If nothing else, Jean-Claude hopes to share this with the attendees on this evening.

Which at least manages to begin without a hitch, but if you should manage to stay for the end of the night, prepare for some fireworks to ensue. For what is a party without a little drama...


(ooc note: anyone is welcome to attend, though if you are anti-islington you will not get very far in the door before being turned away. certain allies/those who have helped jean-claude in the past will have received direct invitations, but there is a general buzz passed around the nest and islington allies ahead of time that will have spread through the supernatural community leading up to the day itself. as stated above, historical costume is a must -- vampires are encouraged to wear something from an era they lived through, though humans are welcome to whatever they desire! masks are fun so wear one if you like though there will be no anonymity here.

details will be in jean-claude's comment below, but his ex, asher, is going to be crashing the party at the end of the night, so if you're there for the end of the evening expect that as well. i will make a comment for asher as well on his own so you can tag with him before the main event if you decide you'd like to skip out on the fireworks as he and jean-claude butt heads for the first time in hundreds of years.)

Comments

[stauncherhearted]

She's actually offended you think she's Daybreak.

Nancy swallows, the feeling that she's done something wrong rising from her feet. She always felt like a fool, now, whenever she spoke with Joss. And he still looked like that sweet little boy, and she wanted to believe he was that little boy.

Things were easier when cruelty wore an ugly face.

"Of course. I didn't know you two were close."

[dredefulchilde]

That actually does surprise him.

"I suppose you could call it that," he shrugs. Didn't everyone in the Nest know that? "Jean-Claude and I have been aquatinted for...one hundred twenty years, or so?" Actually exactly one hundred twenty, come to think of it. "He's a hopelessly sentimental fool, but a fair friend."

[stauncherhearted]

She's only recently started to need to pay attention to Nest politics, and who was who's friend. Her friendship with Jean-Claude was new, and she was still trying to decide how much of a friend she wanted him to be.

"Really! Huh." The bartender slides her her martini, and she hands him a five pound note. "That's a long time. You aren't French like he is, are you?" She didn't think so, but Joss had surprised her a few times before this.

Nancy takes a drink of her martini. It's hardly her first of the evening.

[dredefulchilde]

"Half," Joscelin admits. "My mother was Norman, though I don't remember her well. My father tired of her and set her up in a nunnery somewhere as soon as I could toddle. He was an upjumped cleric with pretensions of nobility and considered himself thoroughly English. I wouldn't be surprised if he weren't a bit French himself, come to think of it. We weren't so far removed from the Conqueror not to all be a little mixed."

[stauncherhearted]

"Norman?" Nancy furrows her brow slightly. Last time she checked in, Norman was a name.

"I'm sorry your father did that to her." It was so long ago, but it seems the right thing to say. "I don't remember my mum, either." She had considerably less time to think about her, but as far as Nancy knew, she'd immediately been given to Fagin as an infant. She had no desire to approach the man to try to get more information about it, anymore, either.

Maybe one day Eames could find a way to track her mother down. Though she wasn't sure she wanted to find her.

[dredefulchilde]

"From Normandy," Joscelin sighs, in his best patronizing old man voice. Christ, the children these days are so uneducated. "In Northern France. My mother was born in Rouen." Which is why his French still has a distinctly Northern accent, after all these centuries. It was how he had first learned the language, listening to his mother and her women as an infant.

He raises an eyebrow. Is Nancy trying to bond over their shared motherlessness?

"How sad," he intones, not sounding very sad at all.

[stauncherhearted]

Nancy makes a face in response, pursing her lips and scowling a little. She didn't like his tone. "I've no idea where that is- I ain't ever been to school a day in my life." Everything she knew, Fagin had taught her. Or she'd taught herself.

"Not anymore, not really." If he was going to be like that, she wasn't going to open up to him. Instead, she'll just pretend she's extremely disinterested in the woman.