[Illythian Ballroom] Knightly Society (Open)

[Archon]

Season of Summer, Day 46 (Afternoon), 511 AV At the start of the Summer Solstice celebration the Illythian Ballroom had sat silent and empty. Windows and skylights were uncovered to allow Syna's light to enter, but no one dared risk the rumors and scorn that would come from not participating in the first part of the celebration outside. As noon passed by the elegantly decorated room began to see the first signs of life. Workers moved into the room, wearing simple but clean clothes, and started to go about the work of preparing the room for the coming ball. Tables were decorated with both art and food, and the floor was swept and cleaned thoroughly. Next to arrive were the musicians, better dressed than the workers, and they sat down in their designated area to begin warming up. Soon they began to play their music for the afternoon, fuller and more elegant than the music playing out in the Main Gate Courtyard, and not long after they began playing the first guests began to arrive. Here the dancing was more elegant, the clothing finer, and the food and drink free. People danced on the floor, or stood off to the sides conversing among each other. Anyone in the know would be able to recognize several prominent faces from both the Knighthood and the society of Syliras. It was certainly the place to be if you wanted to make powerful and influential friends in Syliras.

OOCWhile this thread is open to anyone it does take place in the upscale Illythian District. Knights, Squires, and those with plenty of Mizas are welcome, and any others will have to rely on tricks or subtlety to gain entrance.

[Xalet]

After going through the effort and monetary losses of putting together a suitable wardrobe for such an event, there was no way Xalet could back out of going to the Ballroom. Though there was a general uncomfortable feeling about being around those with great refinement, the Akalak bit back the appearance of awkwardness and focused on maintaining a calm and professional demeanor. To be here was to represent his Patron Knight, Irine Bracklin, and he could do no less than to keep her image in high regard.

Festivals such as these held certain significance to Akalak. In a life filled with constant vigilance and harsh mental and physical training, it was good to have a period of 'break' in between the controlled chaos. Not too much, but not too little when it came toward taking the effort to experience some of the pleasantries in life. In a life where most of Xalet's time was spent sweating himself through his clothes due to wearing plate mail or working hard out in the sun to practice his skills, the feeling of being within the elegance of the ballroom, freshly bathed, with clean pressed clothing was very refreshing.

The finery Xalet wore was of the most untarnished quality. Indeed it had never been worn previously, and he purchased it specifically for this event. His gentleman style doublet was made with a lush brocade fabric, covered in intricate stitching of silver and gold with a black waist belt with brass finishings. The doublets primary color was wide alternating vertical stripes of mustard colored material, suitable for the Solstice. Beneath was a brown tinged cotton tunic with billowing sleeves, quite comfortable, and a pair of black cotton trousers cut to fit Xalet's lengthy legs finished off his wardrobe. His black boots were painstakingly buffed and polished, quite the effort considering how much mud and dirt had been caked upon them.

The squire introduced himself here and there where he thought appropriate, but noticed that there still was not a great many people yet within the ballroom. He would certainly make an effort to meet some of his fellow squires when he got the chance, an effort that he should have made long ago.

Wardrobe Appearance

[Archon]

"Well, aren't you a handsome one," a feminine voice called from Xalet's left, "I didn't know an Akalak could look so good." The apparent owner of the voice was a blonde haired woman that was regarding Xalet with blue eyes that held an appraising look to them, and her red painted lips were curled upwards in a smile that showed pleasant amusement. Her dress was a brilliant golden color that was cut and sewn in such a manner that though it showed little actual skin there was little left to the imagination of her very womanly and attractive figure. Even though she was about a foot shorter than Xalet she didn't seem to think that difference important as she looked up at him with an air of supreme confidence. "I don't believe we've had the pleasure of meeting before," she continued as she offered a slim hand, that held a surprising amount of strength when compared to her appearance, to Xalet, and her eyes seemed to twinkle with a hint of mischief, "I'm Rachel Endrikson, a Squire of the Syliran Knights, and you are?"

[Xalet]

At first Xalet would never have figured someone was talking to him. Of course when the voice mentioned 'Akalak' he had to take notice, since there weren't exactly an abundance of them without the room. He turned and saw a blonde woman with quite some fashion sense. Not that Xalet knew what good fashion was, but he could appreciate the cut and form of her dress. The squire was unsure how to respond to her comment, he wasn't even sure whom he was talking to. Was she some form of nobility?

Xalet was struck fairly silent. Not that he was extremely glib or talkative to begin with. Reflexively he extended his hand to meet hers. Originally he was prepared to weakly grip her, but was quickly impressed with the tenacity of her fingers. His brow raised slightly in surprise, to which he responded with a more typical grip of his own.

Then he heard her introduce herself. That was why she had such wiry strength to her, a squire it seemed. "Thank you. You have an excellent grip. I am Xalet, a Squire as well." Of course Xalet would be the one to comment on a lady's grip. Quickly he fell back on a piece of advise from his Human mother when dealing with women, "Your hair is very pleasing also. I have not met very many Squires in this way so, it is good to meet you Rachel Endrikson."

[Lucas Arias]

Whenever free food and drinks were to be had, Lucas was there, and of course he never missed an opportunity to celebrate. While he generally enjoyed the company of the patrons of the Rearing Stallion more, there were advantages to being in the company of those elegant knights as well. The food and the drinks were usually better than whatever you got in a normal tavern, and it wouldn’t hurt to make an influential friend or two either, especially if you often had bad luck like Lucas and repeatedly got beaten up by guys that were both younger and shorter. The red haired, vertically challenged squire had even put an effort into his appearance for a change. He had combed and brushed his hair until it shone and lay flat against his head rather than sticking out at odd angles like it usually did. He’d washed, he’d shaved the few ridiculous hairs that grew on his chin (there weren't really enough of them to call them a beard), and he actually wore clothes that suited him. He was dressed in a black and green suit, and he had black leather boots on. They had a very low heel so that he would look at least a tiny bit taller. Today he had less of an interest in being taken for a little boy than ever. He arrived shortly after the Akalak squire, wearing an expression on his face that he considered appropriate for the occasion and trying his best to look knightly, as if his quest that would take place sometimes during the next year was really nothing but a formality (in truth he still had a lot to learn though).

[Archon]

Xalet "Well," Rachel replied to Xalet's awkward words by grinning and moving closer to him, keeping just half a dozen inches between their bodies, "you've certainly got an excellent grip yourself Xalet. How about we put them to use holding onto each other on the dance floor?" Rachel let her eyes wander over Xalet slowly, and brought a hand up to lightly caress against his chest, "Or is there someone else that you're looking for here?" her eyes turned up to meet Xalet's once again, and this time they held the definite hint of mischief to them, "Will I have to convince you away from some other charming beauty, or maybe steal you off to some dark corner so we won't be seen?" the inflection on her words gave the impression that there was something more to what she was suggesting than just hiding. Lucas Lucas had some time to look around the the ballroom, taking in the various well dressed people and couples. Before he could do much more however a hand came from his side and grasped his left hand frimly, and a young woman's voice spoke quickly, "You'll do! Come with me!" The young lady who had a hold of Lucas' hand, currently dragging him towards the center of the dance floor, had fiery red hair done in a braid to her waist decorated with strands of sliver chain, and wore a dazzling dress of the same color that sparkled with the occasional bit of silver, gold, or gemstones. She seemed to be about Lucas' height, or possibly a couple inches shorter. When she finally stopped dragging the Squire forward and turned to face him she revealed brilliant green eyes that were filled with determination that she be obeyed, "You know how to dance, right? Dance with me, now!" her voice was low, so as to not carry, but definitely carried a tone of command to it.

[Xalet]

Women. What was an Akalak to do? Xalet's domination over his darker half kept him well behaved while Rachel spoke, however he could feel the back of his throat clenching up as he attempted to figure out a proper response. This squire really was something else. He could smell no hint of alcoholic drinks upon her, and thus it simply seemed she was outright fearless. Or she was simply toying with him. His hand overlapped hers upon his chest, before he gripped it and pulled her gently toward the dancing area. "You are a very peculiar squire Rachel Endrikson. You are very open." he declared, and yet he wondered if she was hiding something.

His skill in dancing certainly wasn't anything legendary, although his dexterity kept him from tripping over his own feet or crushing the feet of his partner. His hand held upon hers, while his unoccupied digits gripped about her waist as he had seen others do. Inside his own mind, Xalet was drawing a blank. He had never been approached so forwardly by a human girl. At least she appeared to be a human girl. "I am...here with no one else. Although I imagine my Patron will arrive of course. You are not reserved, not hesitant around an Akalak?" He asked because in his experience, most were in Syliras.

[Lucas Arias]

As Lucas took a look at the other people in the ballroom, he couldn’t help but wonder if he wasn’t a bit underdressed. Maybe he should have bought a new suit especially for the ball, something made of silk and velvet, with nice embroidery on it, even though he would barely have been able to afford it. He also wondered if there was anybody that he recognized. He was just about to approach a person that looked kind of familiar when somebody grasped his hand. The boy turned around instantly. There was a slightly annoyed expression on his face, but it was quickly replaced with the most radiant smile ever as he realized that there was a girl in front of him. „Of course I’ll do“, he replied, not really caring what she had meant with the statement and that maybe she had picked him just because she needed somebody to dance with and not because he was such a charming, handsome boy. He followed her to the center of the dance floor quite willingly, admiring her as he did so. He was pleased to notice that she had red hair, just like him. His biggest weakness were Eypharians, with as many arms as possible, but red haired women came a close second. She was quite pretty – and he could actually look down on her! „I can dance very well“, he assured her and looked into those brilliant green eyes. In truth his dancing left a little to be desired (he hadn’t had a single dancing lesson in his life), but he was comparatively graceful because he’d spent so much time running away from people that were trying to beat him up and dodging the foul eggs and rotten vegetables that they thre at him when he was trying to pretend that he was a great bard. Hoping that she didn’t notice that he wasn’t the best dancer in Syliras, he offered her his hand. She was a bit bossy, but he decided that he liked that. And thus he began to spin her around in a slow circle, trying to avoid stepping on her toes.

[Archon]

Xalet "No need to be so formal Xalet," Rachel responded to Xalet's comment on her persoanlity with a grin, "You can call me Rachel," she tossed the Akalak a flirtatious wink as she followed him out to the dance floor, "Unless you have something else in mind?" Rachel certainly seemed more confident and self-assured when it came to dancing than Xalet, judging by her smooth and relaxed movements as the pair started to dance to the music. Xalet's question brought a light laugh from her lips, and only served to bring back her grin in full force, "Why should I be hesitant around you Xalet? You don't seem clumsy enough for me to need to fear for my toes," again she had that mischeviousness glint to her eyes as her voice dropped to a more suggestive tone, "And unless I'm mistaken I shouldn't need to fear becoming pregnant from just a dance, unless you had something more in mind for afterwards?" Lucas Lucas' impromtu partner seemed to calm slightly in satisfaction as he offered his hand to her, and she took it quickly and began to move along with him in the slow circle of a simple dance. As they moved her gaze seemed intently fixed on his face, but from Lucas' perspective it seemed more focused on some point just behind his head. To most anyone else it would likely appear that she was looking at Lucas' face much the same some of the other women on the dance floor were looking at their partners. As the music continued to play the young lady made no attempt to talk to Lucas, or even gave the impression that she was paying attention to him beyond the needed attention to dance with him. It seemed that all she had wanted was a body to dance with, and not much more.

[Xalet]

Xalet smirked slightly as they danced. Smiling itself wasn't something he did often, mostly due to the discomfort he felt around others. As many often felt unease around an akalak, so too did Xalet feel some ease around them. That inner darkness was always there, no matter how much he beat it back. Sometimes it would only echo in his thoughts but once or twice a day, just enough to remind him his polite yet awkward gallantries weren't all there was to his psyche.

"Pretty girl there. It would be a shame if she died." Sometimes the thoughts happened so fast he would question whether it was his or the other half. "Certainly can't get her pregnant just from a dance." it went on, far enough for Xalet to pipe up verbally in order to drown it out, "No. Such things would have an effect on you being a squire, which I've no doubt you are very proficient at. A strong grip, a direct approach, and an excellent body..." Xalet had to pause for a moment, just long enough to realize that last part probably came out completely wrong, especially when talking to a human. Oh well. "...are all traits the Knighthood will be thankful for when you undertake your final task."