well this is a depressing excuse for a party

[onthebusagain]

[Mid-day on Sunday, Heather goes around and slips notes under dressing room doors.

If you don't want to be alone today, there will be snacks and people in the Ballroom today

--Heather

She's even dotted every i with a little heart! How cute.

The dining hall is a way better location for a party (or whatever this is) with its close proximity to the kitchen, and more intimate space- but Heather doesn't want to be anywhere near that place. Not for a while, at least. True to her word, Heather's brought snacks- finger sandwiches, a few bags of chips, and a big pitcher of lemonade. There isn't much else set up, but the piano is still there, should anyone want to play.]

Comments

OTA

[onthebusagain]

[Before Heather slips the notes under the doors, she might be caught bustling about the hallways, carrying food back and forth between the kitchen and the ballroom. Or maybe you catch her in action, dispersing notes.

After the notes have been delivered, she can be found perched on the edge of the stage , dressed modestly in black. She's quick to beam and greet anyone who enters- relieved that someone has actually showed up. Being alone is a total bummer, right now.]

Oh! You came!

after

[trettende]

Yeah, I... I didn't want to just stay in.

[ Hans seems almost embarrassed by the admission. He's never needed anyone to comfort him, he's always handled things by himself. But he has to keep up appearances and maybe... having people around who don't just tell him to shut up and get over it could actually be nice? ]

How are you doing?

ballroom!

[bestof]

[Eliza is one of the first to arrive, which is a little surprising considering she's barely left her room since the trial. But the heaviness of being alone with her thoughts had been starting to wear on her so Heather's note about the party is a huge relief.

She even had a similar idea fashion-wise, wrapping a knitted black shawl around herself.]

A little socializing sounded better than locking myself away for the rest of the weekend.

after

[rockthistown]

Yeah... I mean, we should, right? [wave wave]

after

[sunshineprincess]

[Anna gives her a small smile and wave.]

Y-Yes. Hime didn't think I should stay in my room by myself... Thank you. For doing this.

[dontfeedplants]

[Seymour does eventually arrive at the party, but only after it's been underway for at least a couple of hours. His eyes are red and puffy and it's very obvious that he's just been crying and still doesn't really look like he wants to do a lot of socializing.

He's mostly just going to nibble on some of the food here and look nervously at all the other people here. Hope you like the life of the party.]

[trettende]

Hey.

[ Gotta watch out for those investments, right? Hans approaches Seymour carefully, waving at him somewhat shyly. Holy crap, he's not wearing gloves. I'm going to keep reiterating this. ]

Hello, Seymour.

[ That's his best sympathy voice, pls appreciate it. ]

[rockthistown]

I'm sorry, Krelborn-san. [Hime sniffles.] None of this should've happened.

ota

[trettende]

[ Hans' smile is a little strained this morning. Well, he's trying mostly for everyone else's sake. But then again, he didn't bother with fixing his hair much this morning or dress in anything besides some pants and a button up shirt. He's obviously been shaken by the day before, but he's here if anyone wants to talk to him.

He grabs some snacks and sits down, mostly staring at his hands. He actually took off his gloves this morning. Woah. ]

So, I... guess we're alive. That's something?

[ Finding a silver lining is really not easy this morning. ]

[rockthistown]

[sniff] Why would she do something like that? I tried to tell her...

[solomonjihad]

...Alive...for now.

[Sorry she's being a debbie down rn]

[rockthistown]

[Hime drags herself out of her room and totes a blanket along to sit on in the ballroom. She rubs her tear-streaked face and sits down, busying herself with studying the scuffs on the floor.]

ota

[sunshineprincess]

[Anna is only here because Hime decided she needed to be dragged along. For once a party wasn't very appealing. She's already missed the last one since she decided she wanted to talk to the Balladeer.

She's going to be a wallflower for the most part, hanging out near a corner with lemonade in hand.

Otherwise she'll probably be in the kitchen, a hot pocket that is still frozen in front of her. She doesn't know if she'll eat it or not since it reminds her of Valjean.]

wall

[rockthistown]

[Hime looks up at Anna and offers up her bowl of chips.]

I'm sorry.

[solomonjihad]

[Where?...where...

Ah. Anna! Maybe she knows--wait.

Her face.]

Anna? Are you...ok?

[catliketread]

[The Pirate King shows up eventually, though he isn't his loud, boisterous self. He watches the others for a little while, but he's never been good at sitting still so eventually he leaves. When he returns, it's with a pile of fabric and bright costumes that no one will wear ever, probably. He then leaves again, only to return with paper and pens and scissors from the storage room. Once he's gathered everything he thinks he needs, he raises his voice.]

Everyone! We have all suffered greatly recently, but I believe it is in trying times like this that we need to focus on something. Would anyone care to help me decorate?

[Valjean had suggested it. He had never really gotten around to it even though he had considered it and now... Well, now's as good a time as any, isn't it?]

[onthebusagain]

[ Mr. The Pirate King, you are the dang digging dang best! Heather jumps at the opportunity for a distraction, approaching the pile of supplies. Wow. Some of this stuff is ugly.]

What kind of decorations?

[dontfeedplants]

[Even though Seymour's despairing pretty badly right now, he still can't help but be curious about all this.]

Um, what are we decorating?

[rockthistown]

...decorate?

[allicareabout]

[Billy's not really here for much socializing, and being alone after something like that isn't anything that's going to upset him in the first place. But at the same time, he's kind of curious about how everyone's managing (or...not managing...) and you...you are really making him jittery just watching you, buddy, but at the very least he gets what you're trying to do.]

Long live our king, doing his best for morale. Exactly what we need in these trying times.

[...That is...jesus, it's still hard to tell if it's goddamn sarcasm.]

Unfortunately, I've still got no eye for decorating whatsoever.

[bestof]

[Oh, Pirate King, you're a good egg.]

What sort of decorating did you have in mind, sir?

OTA

[solomonjihad]

[When Astarte woke up, she was in her bed. Huh. It was...wait, where is she? What..wasn't she getting out of bed, and then--

She can almost hear the voice in her head chuckle as she remembers. The hallway. The body. O-oh no--

She bursts out of her bedroom door, running to towards the dining room, and--stops. There's no body. Not even a trace of blood. There's...nothing. Her head slows down--did it skip a beat? And Astarte clutches her chest.]

Just...a dream...
Of course.

[She is nevertheless dazed, as she walks back to her room and finds the note. Oh...another party? If she doesn't want to be alone...yeah. Yeah, she doesn't want to be alone. Maybe she'll talk to Valjean about her dream. Hopefully, it'll be all right.

So she walks into the ballroom finally, wearing something other than her nightgown, at least (even if it is...so early in the...day...?) looking around for Valjean, before she finds herself singing softly.]

That was a frightening fog
and I was the one left behind,
That was a frightening dream
The traces of my tears remain on my cheeks
Forget it, forget it. That was just a dream
Since it's a dream, let it disappear, it's just a dream

Aa, a person I knew
I had a feeling that they will being going far away
The black clouds of anxiety have crossed me

That was a frightening night
I just don't know what this is
That was a frightening dream
My heart is still pounding with fear
Forget it, forget it. It was just a dream

Since it's a dream, just let it fade into the morning

[Her eyes look left and right, confused, as she ventures forward. Are her eyes tricking her? Why is everyone so somber?

...Where...where is Valjean?]

[onthebusagain]

You actually showed up? [Heather left a note for her, sure, but she hadn't expected her to actually show up. She's still sour about yesterday.]

OTA and as late to the party as I am

[dechagny]

[Raoul arrives to the party late and empty-handed. It's in poor form and he knows it, but there is very little that could have motivated him to even attempt to make anything from the electric ice box. He's sullen and quiet, sitting alone with a sandwich, nibbling it in an attempt to put something in his stomach. He's still pale from the trial.

Someone sit with him, he needs a distraction. Something, anything.]

[rockthistown]

I'm sorry!

[Hime bows and sits down. She picks at her bowl of chips.]

We couldn't do anything.

OTA

[littlegirl_littlecurl]

[Well, Darla's never turned down a party before, but she does take awhile to come to this one. She's tired but hasn't slept well. Doing that thing kids do when they're sleepy; slow blinks, big yawns, rubbing her nose and eyes. But she's trying not to act like it.

She'll beeline for the sandwiches after a little while since she didn't wanna travel down the hall...]

[sunshineprincess]

[Anna still can't believe there's a little girl here. She's seen her in the playbill and around the theater, but hasn't actually spoken with her. And the little girl looks exhausted.]

Why don't you go to bed?

ota

[bestof]

[Eliza arrives fairly early to the party but she's not quite as keen to socialize as the last one. Her heart is heavy and part of her wants to slip out of the ballroom and back to her dressing room but she knows this is better. Being around other people who are feeling the same things she's feeling is better.

Her eyes are still red-rimmed from crying but she's keeping her chin up and tries to smile at least a little if someone approaches her. Mostly she gravitates toward sitting at the piano, lightly plinking at the keys. At one point she looks up, her eyes scanning the room as she sings in a voice soft enough to barely be heard.]

Look around, look around
At how lucky we are to be alive right now
Look around, look around...