Masquerade Ball - Totally not an ambush

[hiken]

Who: Anyone going to the Corsair Island Masquerade Ball!
Where: ...IDK?
When: April 26th - 27th (Early AM)
What: The Masquerade Ball + Ambush (12am)
Warnings: D for dancing, V for violence, A for Ace, L for Luffy
Style: Action or prose.
Status: Open to anyone attending!

There are going to be two main threads. One for the ball itself and the other for the Ambush! There will be an obligatory third thread for FASHION. Just remember to tag your muse in the subject header and OTA or 'Closed to ???' as you comment.

Comments

[myfayevalentine]

"Usually even the biggest loners have been dragged onto the dancefloor." In so saying, Faye linked up his arm in hers and stood up, attempting to pull him up with her.

[alwaysgrumpy]

He jerked to a stop when she grabbed him, his whole body stiffening up in response. His normally calm demeanor shatered, eyes going wide as his free arm grabbed the bar top.

"Wh-what the hell are you doin'?"

[myfayevalentine]

"Trying to give you an education, if you wouldn't be so stubborn." It was difficult to drag himaway when he was standing so still like that. "Turns out wolf boys are heavy."

[alwaysgrumpy]

"My body is fairly dense. Part of what makes me durable, you know? It's hard to have super-strength if your bones and muscles aren't tough enough to handle that much force."

Eventually he relents, letting off a sigh as she gets him off the chair.

"Alright, I'm up. ALRIGHT. Stop tuggin' on my arm."

[myfayevalentine]

"Then you should be using that super-strength body for some dancing, shouldn't you?" Faye grinned when finally he stood, because she's mostly just pleased she is getting her own way. Then, out on the dancefloor, they she pulled them among the other slow dancing couples. "Just don't stand on my feet and you'll be doing alright." Next, Faye stood closely in front of him and lifted his arms to wrap them around her waist, then put her own arms around his neck. "See? It's not so hard."

[alwaysgrumpy]

"I'm pretty diminished right now, admittedly. Plus, I figured you'd keep needlin' me until I gave in."

As they settled into a pace, he was still somewhat awkward with the arm placement. His arms seemed to hover right over the fabric, not really making contact with her. He turned his eyes skyward.

"Y-yeah, whatever."

[myfayevalentine]

"Those are your excuses for wanting to dance with me?" She smirked and shook her head, but only slightly, not wanting to ruin her hair style. Faye slowly moved her hips in time to the music as they danced, and tilted her head as though trying to catch his eye. "Are you scared of me or something?" To rectify the lack of contact, she laced her arms tighter around his neck, pulling herself much closer to him.

[alwaysgrumpy]

"I'm not afraid of anything," he huffed, "It's just weird, that's all. We're just movin' back and forth, why do people enjoy this?"

She might be able to notice a small blush on his cheeks, by this point. Much as he tries to control it.

[myfayevalentine]

"You're not? Then why aren't you holding me properly." Faye nodded towards some rather dapper-looking gentlemen to his right, "Would you rather be dancing with them instead? Believe it or not, people actually enjoy being this close me, you know." She pouted a little, as though she was upset by his reluctance to enjoy himself, but she has notices that small blush.

[alwaysgrumpy]

There's a few grumbles from him as he lets his arms fall, getting a more firm grip on her.

"There? See? Easy stuff."

[myfayevalentine]

Faye chuckled and nodded at his comment, "I told you it was. If I was your dream girl, you'd be having the time of your life right now."

[alwaysgrumpy]

"Trust me, my 'dream girl' is better off without me. I wrecked her life enough, as it is."

[myfayevalentine]

Faye just tuts at that and glances around the room - she's listening, but she's not sure how interested she is right now. "You lose points for talking about other women, you know."

[alwaysgrumpy]

"Then it's a good thing we aren't on a date. Let's drift toward the distant side of the room. Some people over there look pretty important, judgin' from all the medals."

[myfayevalentine]

"I'd have left you alone on the dancefloor already if it was." She leans in that little bit closer, and looks over his shoulder for these important people with medals. "Hmm, I bet those boys have a pretty penny to spend..."

[alwaysgrumpy]

"All the more reason. Once we get by them I'll disengage and search for do a little recon. You can chat away to your heart's content, since they'll think your dance partner left."

[myfayevalentine]

"Perfect. I'm sure I learned some interesting information from them. They'll know a lot, with so many medals."

[alwaysgrumpy]

"...You know, this ain't so hard. Once you get the foot placement out of the way, the rest comes pretty naturally."

He starts to lead a bit more, moving them both closer to the target zone.

"Do you dance a lot, back home?"

[myfayevalentine]

Faye notices when he begins to lead more, and says nothing about it but keeps going and laughs. "Does this mean you're actually enjoying yourself now?"

"Not really. Not like this. But I like it, and it's a useful skill to have."

[alwaysgrumpy]

"It's not bad, I guess. At least better than I thought it'd be," he shrugged, edging closer. They were finally within earshot of them. "Okay, this should be good. Slap me across the face as hard as you can and storm off like you're offended."

[myfayevalentine]

Faye grinned at his suggestion - she'd had no idea he could be such a drama queen. "Okay. But remember, you asked for this." And she gave a slap hard enough and loud enough that made other couples turn, though only to see Faye storming away.

[alwaysgrumpy]

Akira makes a good show of it, and he definitely feels it due to his diminished state, but the little grin he gives her is almost daring her to slap him harder. He mock-holds his face in pain and lumbers off by her.

"Good luck," he says under his breath, "Be ready to run when things kick off."

[myfayevalentine]

That grin that he gives her is almost enough to make her laugh, but she doesn't and continues with her despairing scowl. She barely mumurs gently in reply, "You too", then turns to disappear into the crowd. Sure enough, it isn't long before several of the heavily medalled men are giving her their attention, and that includes Faye gaining all the info that she needs. She does, though, throw one glance Akira's way, just to be sure he got away safely.