Game Opening: May Ball

[undergroundmods]

LET'S GET THIS PARTY STARTED.

"" (Watch on YouTube)

It had to be done.

Welcome all to the Redbright Institute's May Ball! This evening is a celebration of the Institute's achievements over the past year. Students aged 16 and above can attend on their own, while younger students must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Meanwhile, friends and guests of the Institute are invited as a gesture of friendship and harmony between the various factions.

Rules and etiquette
• This is a black tie event. Formal attire is required.
• No weapons. This is a school, there are children present. Any weapons or objects that could be used as weapons will be confiscated.
• No drugs or alcohol. Obviously. Don't try to sneak any in.
• No violence.

There is security within the school and present at the event. (In fact, if your character is a member of the Redbright Institute, you could have them acting as security if you want.) They will respond to and put a stop to any trouble.

Places to go
The main action takes place in the large Assembly Hall. This is where the Chancellor Sylvia Redbright will give her address. It's also where you can party later on. The disco is family-friendly – not exactly a rave, but the kids will love it.

Drinks and snacks are available in the dining hall. The drinks are non-alcoholic. Vampires, no need to worry about your cravings: blood cocktails are provided! They're given in good faith on the assumption that you won't be snacking on anyone else tonight.

Just off the dining hall, one of the classrooms has been converted into a chill-out area. The lights are off, the desks and chairs have been replaced by beanbags and there's a table in the corner with a chocolate fountain, marshmallows and strawberries. A video of young witches taking part in various night-time rituals (they mostly seem to involve chanting and bonfires) plays silently on the screen.

One of the lecture theatres has been opened up to showcase students' work from the past year. On the screen you can watch a slideshow of notable events and achievements. Strangely enough there aren't many people in this room.

Outside, there is a giant chessboard on the lawn. The pieces are made of plastic and can easily be moved around. Why, you ask? Why not, is the answer.

Finally, a large marquee has been set up in the quad. This is the adults-only area, with wine and cocktails served at the bar, nibbles available at a few high tables dotted around and a sophisticated atmosphere. No children under 18 allowed. (Note that the legal drinking age is 18.)

Timeline of events
20:00 – Doors open.
20:57 – Sunset.
21:15 – Sylvia Redbright makes her address in the Assembly Hall.
22:00 – Disco in the Assembly Hall. The DJ has atrocious taste.
01:00 – Disco stops. The event officially ends.

Comments

[mensrea]

"Red! That's my favorite color!"

To be honest, he doesn't really have a favorite color; Lydia's strawberry-blonde hair has simply created a superficial bias.

"So, do you want to, uhm, dance?"

[stauncherhearted]

"Really!" Another smile over the rim of her glass before she raised it to her lips again.

Dance. She only hesitated a moment before nodding at him and finishing off the rest of her drink only to hand it off to a passing waiter. "Of course! Lead the way, Stiles!" She held out her elbow for him to take. It only later occurred to her that she should probably have been leading.

[mensrea]

Stiles follows her lead in another sense; watching her finish off her drink, he does as well. Possibly not the best idea, considering how hard the alcohol is hitting him, but he'll regret it later. For now, he takes her elbow with the awkward hesitancy of someone who is aware of what's expected but has no personal experience in it.

[stauncherhearted]

Alright, alright, she'll take the lead, bringing Stiles with her towards a corner of the dance floor. With an encouraging smile, she takes his hand and moves into the crowd of dancing people. Without a moment's hesitation, she starts to dance.

[mensrea]

Whew, that takes some of the pressure off him. Stiles has never been much for leader quality, instead opting to follow and assist from the sidelines, and he quickly falls into step with Nancy now on the dance floor. His movements are jerky, all over the place, but he's genuinely happy to be there and it shows.

"What do you do when you're not going to parties like this?"

[stauncherhearted]

She has a bit more grace, but she's hardly the best dancer. Whatever, they were drunk and it was time to have fun!

Oh gosh. Awkward question. "Depends!" She said above the music, shaking her hair back. "Studying, reading, working. Visiting my dad." Fagin was Fagin was Fagin. But he was the one who's last name she had.

[mensrea]

They are so drunk. Who let these two fool teenagers drink alcohol. For shame. At least everyone else seems as pleasantly juiced as them; no one is pointing and laughing.

"Oh, cool!" he replies, raising his voice as well. "Is your dad a witch too?"

[stauncherhearted]

"No- he's Fae." Which was precisely how he got his name. "He's not my biological dad." Which hopefully cleared a few things up for Stiles. Later she'd have to explain how she really felt towards the man. And how she was morally obligated to spend time at his place helping him out.

[mensrea]

Blinking owlishly, he tries to process this information. So Nancy was adopted by the fae? That seems kind of...interesting, to say the least. Stiles knows precious little about the fae of all the supernatural creatures, and what he does know mostly comes from pop culture and children's stories. It seems rude to ask "did he steal you as a child" so he refrains.

"Huh. Was it weird, growing up with a fae dad when you're...sorta human?"

[stauncherhearted]

yes. he did. sort of. Her mother had made the mistake of summoning him, and he took her as payment. of course she'd only recently learned that story. she was raised to believe he'd found her.

"yeah- Fagin kept me out of human things- never went to school or anything." she'd tell him the whole sob story when they knew each other better. how she had been one of many, how he'd used her, and others besides. he'd put her on the street when she was far too young. and he was going to keep doing it, no matter what she did. he was more devil than Fae.

"So I've never really been in any of the three worlds completely. But it's been interesting. and you are... American."

[mensrea]

"Sure, but it's not like America is a whole different world. Not like...well."

It seems less cool and more sad to him that Nancy was never able to attend school. High school sucks. Hardcore. He is not one to champion its virtues. But he's had some incredible experiences there, and he's not sure what his life would have been like without it.

[stauncherhearted]

"Yes it is." She said simply. "California, right? It said on your license." The one that had proved that he was indeed Stiles Stilinski and she was not.

She didn't really consider herself better off for not having gone, and often lamented it when she saw classroom settings in films and on tv with life changing lessons. But it wasn't for her, in the end. And she was fine with that. She had to be.

[mensrea]

"Yeeep. Good ol' California. Not nearly as glorious as it sounds. I live in a really small town. Lived, I guess."

Stiles frowns at himself, unsure. Since he learned about the Underground, he's been less inclined in so readily returning to Beacon Hills. But home is home—and London definitely is not home.

"You've ever been outside the UK? Besides...that other place."

[stauncherhearted]

"Still! I bet it was glamorous." She had a Hollywood-tinted view of the United States. "I'll come visit you if you ever go back." She probably wouldn't, but it was the right thing to say. And it would be fun, truthfully.

"No- I've never been anywhere. Never an opportunity for it. And when Fagin was off somewhere, someone needed to watch the boys."

[mensrea]

It would have been the right thing to say, perhaps, but this is Stiles Stilinski—yet again, he totally misconstrues the meaning behind her words and fumbles. Ducking his head coyly, he focuses on not tripping over his own feet while dancing for a few moments. If Nancy did visit him back home, he could introduce her to Scott. He thinks they'd get along famously.

"Wait, what?"

Abruptly, he stops dancing. His jaw may have just hit the floor.

"The boys!?"

Holy shit, Nancy is a mom.

[stauncherhearted]

"Shut up!" She scolds, smiling. "They ain't mine- other kids Fagin's picked up along the way. He's been doing this for centuries." They grew up and got killed, more often than not, or just disappeared. It was awful, but she cared for them all the same. They needed someone in their lives that wasn't going to hurt them. And she was happy to be that person. She knew what type of man they lived with.

"If anything, I'm their sister." Though she did treat them like a mother would. She was paid back in Oedipus complexes.

[mensrea]

Cue Stiles metaphorically wiping away the bead of sweat from his brow; Nancy is not, in fact, a teenage mom! Thank god. He likes to believe he’s open-minded, but being vaguely attracted to a girl who has kids at his age just does not compute. So he sags in relief and starts dancing with renewed vigor.

“Big sis Nancy. I bet you just eat that up.”

[stauncherhearted]

He relaxes, and so does she.

"It's real sweet. They're good boys." They deserved better than they had. So she did what she could. And if that meant taking care of them? She was happy to do it. "You'll meet 'em." But he'd never meet Fagin, if she had her choices.

"You have any siblings?" His life was a whole lot more exciting than hers.

[mensrea]

Nancy, Nancy, Nancy... You really ought to pick up on the ideas you're putting in his head. Meeting the boys? Not only was this totally a date, but maybe they're also going steady... Stiles wets his lips habitually.

"Nope. Just me, myself, and I. My best friend back home is pretty much my brother though."

[stauncherhearted]

"I bet he's a great guy," she says honestly. "I'll meet him when I visit you." If she visited him. There was no push to do it one way or another. But Stiles was a friend. Not her date. And friends visited each other with no problem at all. So there.

"I bet your life is great."

[mensrea]

"It's...really not, but yeah, he definitely is."

Stiles doesn't know what he would have done without Scott in his life, honestly. After his mom died... Gaze averted, he dances a bit more sedately for a few beats, falling silent.

"You don't seem that enthusiastic about your own lot in life. How come?"

[stauncherhearted]

"Nowhere near as exciting as yours, I promise!" She's still happily dancing, even as the song changes again. "It just seems exciting, compared to what I'm used to." Nothing really exciting to talk about in her life, truthfully.

[mensrea]

He frowns a bit.

"Yeah, but... I don't know what's giving you this idea that my life is exciting."

[stauncherhearted]

"Your journal. And the fact that you came all the way out here. That's more exciting than my life." She tosses her hair back as she dances with him. "I don't like talking about my life."

[mensrea]

The reminder of the journal has him choking on air, because he remembers the way she'd arched a brow at him and asked about Lydia Martin. God. Embarrassing.

"Why not?"

Most people would have stopped pushing, but not Stiles. He's going to tease a loose thread until it's all come unraveled.