(1610) Formal Court

[Victoria Stamford]

The Nox Populi

In the heart of downtown Sacramento, there is a place of intrigue, excitement, and entertainment. The modern flare of this venue is host to exclusive parties. The seduction of this establishment may take you away as you drink, dance and socialize. There are private services available upon request. The best DJ’s in town are in line to play a wide variety of music. Some of you may dine…as long as you have your VIP pass.

As Kindred arrive at Nox, they are discreetly met and led to the back of the club; some may recognize the area leading to rear stairs upward. The space downstairs is decorated in dark, rich woods and expensive furniture. There's a coat room that will also hold one's 'unmentionables' (namely, weapons) at the foot of The Stairs. There are also private areas: dark, and furnished with soft couches, meeting rooms with conference tables and chairs, and an area with several inactive televisions.

• Please Remember that Predator's Taint is in effect and role-play is expected, or rolls will be asked for!
• This is a great place to get Acknowledged.

Around the World in 80 Days!

The Court is decorated in a mix of vintage travel memorabilia. The entry way had a ticket taker's stand, velvet ropes, and a stack of steamer trunks and luggage plastered with decals advertising cities from all over the world, including an advertisement for the Orient Express. In the entry way the soothing sounds and smells of fresh flowing water danced through the air from further inside and greeted those arriving. Along one wall was a road signs, a homage to the American highway system's Route 66 with signs from Chicago, IL to Santa Monica, CA, the original path, and the floor was decorated to look like a two lane highway at the base of that wall.

The center section of court was decorated with marble columns with a working miniature Trevi Fountain, styled after the real thing from Rome Italy. There were small potted olive trees which broadcast their fragrant greenery across the entire underground. Another wall was decorated with The Great Wall of China and a silhouette of a junk, the traditional Chinese trading vessel. A third wall was decorated with palm trees and a tiny Taj Mahal. There were also printed canvasses of several iconic landscapes of India and one of the distant towering Himalayas. Finally, the last section of court was decorated as Great Britain with a small moving mock up of the London Eye and large printed canvas of the Palace of Westminster with Big Ben along with several notable sites.

The rest of the court had various travel posters and photos of exotic destinations. It was all scaled to give the impression of lots of open space and all the decorations didn't crowd the area.

It was a tribute to the trills of travel and the curiosity of the exotic.

It was the era of prosperity, of America after The Great War, or of a British Empire at the height of its prosperity in the Twentieth Century. It was a time of adventure and opportunity for those bold enough to seek it, an impressive parallel to their own more humble time and place.

Another evening; another Danse. For some, it will their first, for others it shall be their last.

After all, this is the Prince's Elysium, and subject to the Laws of the Domain.

[unlimited sink]

Modern customs of dress hold no real allure for Henri. The premium set on modesty, and on function, tends to put him off. With the slow Westernization of the globe, these values run rampant, stamping out more and more of the vibrant, and bizarre, customs of adornment that held sway in much of the world in the not-so-distant past.

So, he looks to the past--the distant past--for his inspiration. A time when even the West held to standards of dress that spoke less of some utilitarian vision of the human form. When clothing was about framing the body as a piece of art, or an object of lust. Accordingly, Henri has turned to the world of the ancient Greeks for his costume tonight.

Specifically, he's modeled his look off of Aristotle's in Rafael's Plato and Aristotle in the School of Athens. Of course, he doesn't have the funds for a custom costume, so he's had to make due: a brown maxi-dress is worn under a cunningly draped blue sheet, held in place by discreetly employed safety pins. On his feet are a pair of brown leather sandals.

As he descends into court, he removes the simple, black trench he'd worn to avoid calling too much attention to himself on the street. At the moment, Its histrionics are relatively mild, given that court is still quiet. Somewhat relieved, Henri takes the opportunity to examine the decor, clearly entertained. In the end, it is the replica of the Trevi Fountain that truly catches his attention. He stations himself before it, watching it's workings, a smile on his lips. "How marvelous..."

[Alessandra]

So she actually had to research the theme for Court. Around the World in Eighty Days? What the hell was that?! Turns out it was a movie, and internet searches turned up a few ideas for a costume. After some debate, she settled upon one, which would take a little more work than the others.


One major thing it required? She had to cover her tattoos, which was a drag, but she wanted it to look as authentic as possible. So some time was spent using the makeup she had to cover her art work. She was naturally pretty pale, but not enough. So some more makeup was used to make her face pale, while her lips were painted a deep shade of red. There was also red and black makeup accents around her eyes. Her hair was dyed a darker shade of black, and carefully styled on her head with flower hair pins added in here and there. She managed to talk one of her Herd into helping with the kimono that she had found online, it was a little more difficult to get into then she planned. But it was a rich shade of red with gold accents, and she loved it!

Going down the stairs at Court? Not something she even took into consideration, and as such, it required her to be careful in her steps.

At the bottom, she marveled at the sheer detail that had gone into Court. From the traveling trunks, to the columns, it was a beautiful Court.

Her Beast roars in anger at the weaker Beast present. It demanded her to extend her claws and rend the poor Daeva. But that wasn’t going to happen, and as such, the Geisha makes her way over.

Smiling, “Good evening Mr Michard. I hope you’re well.” Greets the Italian, who’s accent breaks her appearance. “I love your costume!”

[unlimited sink]

At the sound of another's approach, It sends waves of fear washing over him. Tearing his eyes away from the replica fountain, Henri turns in time to observe Alessandra making her way over. Her greater Beast makes him shudder, but he stands his ground, unwilling to cede control to Its demands.

"Priscus Antinori! Konnichiwa," he greets her with a cheeky smile. "You're a vision in red!"

She truly is. His dark blue eyes give her a very attentive once over, taking in the details of her costume.

"Come, join me by the fountain. Isn't it a wonder?" His eyes return to the miniature water feature, his appreciation evident on his face.

[Alice Hart]

She'd thought she'd wear her costume under a long coat, to take off when they got to the Nox, but then the Burned Man raised a very valid point with his own chosen attire for the evening, in that, he couldn't do the same.

An unexpected benefit found with Robert's elevation to Reeve, was the use of his new office to change into their costumes. A shadowy silhouette moves against the material of a quickly bought folding screen separated the one haunt from the room. Just encase someone would enter the office for whatever reason, they wouldn't see what they probably didn't want to...

...and, because Alice was still to shy to undress in front of Robert.

Quickly, Alice changes from the dress she'd been wearing when she arrived and into the red and white polka dot vintage style swimsuit.

Stepping away from the screen, Alice pulled her ghostly locks off to the side, her other hand pressing her top to her chest, a mockery of a sheepish smile appears. It seems the Blind Doll needs some aid after all.

Scared finger brush against her neck as they find the string that still needed to be knotted around her neck. There's a moment where they linger, Alice turning her head to smile at the Burned Man, Then she made a motion with her hand, silently urging him to change before she steps away from the new Reeve.

As Robert strips out of the layers of his black suit that had quickly became his uniform, to change into his matching themed costume, Alice finds and slips into her matching wedges.

Once she's sure that Robert is ready, the Blind Doll steels herself, a bone-white hand on the doorknob, and turns it.

The two haunts that have come so far in such a short time walk into the court proper.

The Wraith already waking, coils and uncoils it's frozen self, instincts within warning whether she should take up arms, or flee....practice makes perfict and Alice has had a lot of practice, so the Blind Doll simply sets the Wraith behind cold iron bars. Ready for her first Court as Priscus, and Robert's as Reeve.

[Robert Cross]

Before Seneschal Stamford had named him Reeve, his idea for their costumes had seemed acceptable, even fun. After all, what could be more exotic for the Kindred than a day at the beach? But, now, in hindsight, the Burned Man is feeling a little apprehensive. Not about Alice, mind you, who looks amazing in the bathing suit he'd bought her as a gift. His choice of her suit had been dictated by a certain fondness he held for women's fashions of that era. And she certainly wears it well, or so he thinks as he helps her secure the strings of her suit in a tight knot.

No, it was his own choice of attire that gave him pause. The idea had been to shock the members of the domain. To go above and beyond, and to exhibit himself to them, scars and all. To that end, he'd chosen a very revealing swimsuit for himself. And honestly, his physique is nothing to sneer at. It's the patchwork of scars that covers his body that will raise eyebrows.

Still, the real issue is that he now represents the foremost security official in the domain. And on his first night as Reeve, he'll be dressed in little to nothing. What had he been thinking? Looking at Alice, though, Cross realizes that none of this matters. In the end, clothed or not, he had been chosen, given this title for very concrete reasons. And anyone who dared challenge him would regret it. Yes. Let them see him in all of his grotesquerie. Let them get an eyeful of their new Reeve. Let nothing be hidden or left out. Besides, there's no going back now.

So, when the time comes, he leads the Blind Doll out of the office and into court proper, describing the decorations and the costumes of those in attendance as they make their way, sure to offer Priscus Antinori a nod of respect when he spots her despite the protests of his beast.

[Alessandra]

“Grazie.” She replies with a grin, not knowing the Japanese phrase she reverts to her native tongue.

Her eyes look to the fountain, wondering how many strings and how expensive it must have been to get this in here.

“It is. I’ve always found the sound of fountains soothing, and they remind me of home.” Comments the Savage to the dignified Daeva.

“Tell me about your costume, why did you chose it?” she asked, genuinely curious.

She then notices Alice and Robert enter Court. Alice, once again a vision in red, though this time it’s a bathing suit. And she certainly had the body for it. Robert? His was more of a surprise, but she had to give the Haunt credit for wearing it. A nod of respect was returned, though she wished Alice could see her smile.

Then there was a stirring of her Beast. This time it felt challenged, and it was not happy about that. No Beast was equal to it, or so it thought. And it sweetly urged the Savage to meet this challenger head on, and make him pay.

“Seems we have a new face here this evening. Which is always a welcomed sight.” Their numbers were low, so more Kindred was a good thing. Unless this one proved to be a fool and his Danse short lived.

[Asa]

There's an age-old joke that a man doesn't pay a prostitute to have sex with him, but that he pays her to leave. And so when his ghoul asked why he couldn't be practical and sensible and pick a location that was known rather than one which had defied discovery for centuries, it was precisely that joke that came to mind.

A Vampire doesn't converse with their ghoul for their wit or insight, but because they can tell them to Shut Up.

And so Asa found himself dressed in safari gear to discover the unknown -- but very specific -- location and endured the parting shot of being asked if Indy was forgetting his whip from aforementioned (and apparently still vocal) ghoul. His thoughts on whether withholding the Embrace was making her uppity was interrupted by the press of Beasts as he entered Court.

It was a genuine first, driving back the Rage at the sight of a banana hammock.

But he did, mostly by pondering the sunburn jokes that could be made. Clearly SPF: Requiem hadn't been enough.

"Reeve Cross, Priscus Hart," he said, greeting both with a smile.

Was there ever-so-slight emphasis on the first title? Perhaps.