The Gala at Winter Wonderland!

[Mina]

Mina locked up her vardo, crossed the river into Old Temple, and visited the gala. It was easy to mingle into the strange and wonderful crowd, enjoying the warmth of the fires and the hot drinks offered throughout. It brought a pang of homesickness, but that didn't stop her from staying some time and exploring fully, her eyes on the lookout almost as if she expected someone.

There may or may not have been a squirrel resting on her shoulder, hidden in the fur of her jacket and her hair.

[Juniper]

The weather had cleared, and Juniper decided to poke around town and look for an outfit for the gala. Many stores had their displays set up to reflect the holidays, and her eyes sparkled with all the lights and decorations. She had been reading a few magazines that talked about how to "dress to impress" for various events, and she thought she'd give it a try. A large grin was on her face as she flittered around each store looking for the best outfit to fit her mood and the season. She wanted to floor Nicklaus, telling him she'd meet him at the Gala so he would be surprised. At the several stores she visited, she'd head to the dressing rooms with arms full of outfits, to the point she almost couldn't see over them. The pattern: try it on, love the outfit, find something wrong with it, then toss it aside, wash and repeat. After an hour or so, she finally narrowed it down to two choices, which turned to one when she decided she didn't like the two-tone color combo on one of the dresses. She kept things neat, but there were so many clothes... the poor clerk would have her work cut out for her when Juniper left. Eyes would brighten as she went to look in the glass, this time delighted in what she saw. She tried to find some reason not to buy it and could not find one. She smiled.

Finally! This is beautiful, and it sparkles and shows off a little!

Afterward, she'd gather as many dresses as she could, straightening them on their hangers and putting them back where she found them. She got a little more than half done, when the clerk thanked her so much for putting so much away and shooed her off to purchase the dress. She moved to the next stop: shoes, of course. She bit her lip, thinking about the heels. She'd never really worn heels and wasn't sure if she could, but decided her wings would help her if she started to fall wearing them. Back and forth in the store, she would tread, trying to get a sense of balance.
After about the sixth time, she took them and purchased them too. Next stop: walking into the salon for hair, makeup, and nails.

Just keep it simple but fun ... no base makeups or anything just my eyes and lips? Please?

She didn't like to wear makeup generally. This time, she decided to do so, but minimal. They pampered her as they worked on her hairdo, putting a red poinsettia in her hair, painting her lips and doing her festive eyeshadow. Last, they did her nails. She'd never had that done before. She grinned as they did the shaping and painting, complimenting them all on their individual talents and chatting them up. When she was finished, she decided she had time to kill, so she'd go do a little Yule shopping, and away she went again.

[Mallory]

Several charitable organizations have put together a small food and drink menu for pavilion guests. Items from the menu are available in exchange for monetary donations, and will be served until the end of the evening.

Appetizers

Toasted spiced nuts
Frosted cheese balls

Desserts

Winter white marshmallow mousse and red currant verrines
Winter Wonderland cupcakes
Red velvet cake

Cocktails

Mulled wine
Eggnog
Nutcracker cocktail
White cranberry martini
Mistletoe cocktail
Hot chocolate bar

((Thank you to Penny's player for coming up with the menu!))

[Pharlen]

Of course the Governor would show up, glamorous as ever with her husband Jack. Mainly to show off a few dance moves... actually all of them. Simply divine. In between, they would be glad to meet and greet, though expect atomic levels of snark from her sweet Jack, and always expect Pharlen to adore it.

[Penny Escobar]

Since her dress was not a floor length ball gown, the leg tattoo she got back in the beginning of fall (or at least the bottom part of it) could be seen peeking out from the hem of her dress. When not in the warmth of the pavilion, Penny did pull on her red cloak (which did not match), but it kept her comfortable enough. This however did not stop her from keeping in Patrick's personal space as much as she could, nor from seeking out bits of mistletoe in the decorations to sneak him under with her.

[Deathlord]

Convinced by his minions that an appearance, as a former baron, was required (which resulted in the destruction of those minions for having the temerity to require anything from his dread presence), Deathlord had his finest armor brought out and polished for the occasion.

It seemed appropriate to bring along decoration to help set the mood for the festive occasion. The retired general and deathknight spent the afternoon wandering through his garden and selected out some of the more interesting pieces from his collection to have transported to the gala.

He chose several of his more recent creations that could be scattered about the gala to provide festive backdrop. It was fortunate that the Watch continued to supply him with material to work with, although some of their recent deliveries hadn't been especially courageous and the deathknight had been forced to spend time encouraging them into interesting poses. Hence the title of his newest presentation: "Dance of the Rhydin Watch".


And a particular favorite from among his "Foolish Adversaries" set.


Then finally, a set of pieces he'd imported to the city from a previous encounter.


The affairs of the living tired him quickly, so he would not stay long, but it was important to keep up traditions.

[Nicklaus Burison]

Nicklaus arrives a few minutes behind Juniper. Before meeting up to take in her transformation, he stops by the donations area to drop off a small monetary contribution and a large box filled with his creations:


Hand-carved and painted wooden animals, toys for the city's children. Lest they seem archaic or boring, each is enchanted to animate and act like its corresponding animal, when activated with a simple hand gesture. The charge is sadly limited, but can be restored by any magically talented being. Nicklaus also cautions that the predatory animals (wolf, cougar, fox, etc.) will attack and possibly eat appropriate prey animals, if activated together.

The half-giant himself is showing off a new tunic, commissioned to fit his larger frame:


Over top, to keep off the snow, a waterproof green cloak:

[Helea Alwin]

The soft howls of winter acted as a sirens song that stirs just the right ounce of interest to draw her to the crowd of the Gala. She may be lingering a little too long at the ice sculptures.

[Patrick]

He didn't do fancy, except, you know, when he did -- which seemed to happen quite often these days. The season just happened to be full of reasons to look smart, galas and weddings alike, and Patrick happily played along if only so he'd look half as great as his date.

[Ebon Ilnaren]

Ebon arrived with Phen on his arm, after checking in with the Stardreamer stall in the Winter Wonderland bazaar where a number of handcrafted jewelry items and embroidered artwork were available and all proceeds went to the Very Merry Melee charity drive.

[Mist Gul]

Mist always loved the shiny parties. He arrived on foot, and wandered around cheerfully, always willing to chat or dance or even sit and have a drink or two.

[Ransom]

Ransom arrived with his wife, Eden, on his arm. After leaving a donation of clothing and children's toys at the base of the tree there at the heart of the pavilion, they wandered into the fray, greeting everyone with smiles.

[Ed]

Christmastime was Ed’s favorite time of the year. He wasn’t about to pass up an opportunity to look pretty and celebrate. And of course he dragged Goshen along with him. Ed chose to wear a festive winter dress and black leggings with boots. He had painted his nails minty green with a little snowman and snow spots to accentuate. Of course he had on his engagement ring and other common accessories as well.

It took a little bit of convincing, but he got Goshen to wear a sparkling green blazer to make him look like the most handsome Christmas tree in the universe, too.



Together they engaged in a fair amount of dancing, drank copious amounts of cocoa, rode the carousel, and went for a spin on the ferris wheel numerous times.

[A Clockwork Warlock]

A Clockwork Warlock: LIVE AT THE WINTER WONDERLAND GALA!

The band wasn’t exactly anyone’s image of festive, with all the leather, denim, and dark colors to perfectly affix them into the hard rock cliche, but the bright holiday scarves and Santa hats they wore during their extended set for the guests of the The Gala might have done at least a little to endear them to the partying masses. The lovely backup singers and orchestra members hired for the occasion only added to the contrast, elegantly clad in holiday dresses and tuxedos festooned with shiny tinsel sashes.

The music itself was an eclectic mix of rock tempered for the locale and classier holiday fare for the ear, from Christmas music with their own special twist to joint ventures with the extra hired hands into pieces as hauntingly beautiful as ones done by the Trans Siberian Orchestra. The highlight of the night was a fusion piece, a melancholy sweet ‘duel of strings’ between A Clockwork Warlock’s lead phenom lead guitarist and a petite cello player that begged to be slow danced to.

Tucked out of the way was a small, overly solicitous merch booth with band t-shirts and a few bootleg EPs. After their set, the band wandered through the party to rub elbows with the guests.

[Jake]

Jake stared in the mirror and fumed. “I don’t understand why I have to dress up. They’re gonna be there to drink the ale. Not to see me.”

“It’s called promotion, Jake. You have to represent the brewery. You have to look your best!” Jewell answered from outside the changing room. “Come out, come out. Let me see!”

The faerie was flitting about outside the changing rooms, inspecting all the fancy clothes and otherwise terrorizing the salespeople. “Ooh, can I get this in lavender?”

The half-orc growled as he pushed his way through the curtains and came out for inspection. The material was a black cloth, and as far as Jake could tell, it had absolutely no protective value whatsoever. In fact, he was sure he’d split the seams the first time he got into a fight.

The Empress cooed. “Jake, you look fabulous!” She dashed over to adjust the way he was wearing it, undoing the coat buttons and tugging the shoulders into place. “It’s a little tight across here. You’ll have to be careful. Now just… stop... fidgeting. Jake!”

He couldn’t help it. The tie chafed at his neck. Why would anyone tie something around their neck? What happens when someone grabbed it in a fight? “Jake, leave it alone! That’s the way it’s supposed to look!”

The orc sulked. The faerie Empress turned him to look in the mirror. “Very nice. Very nice. Stop slouching. Remember, you’re going there to represent the brand.”

“I thought we were going to keep an eye on the Mad Fairy in case there’s trouble with the wish fairies?”

“That too. But you can still look your best!” Jewell gleamed and started dragging him off before he could change his mind. She tossed gold at the salesperson as they exited. “He’ll wear it out!”

The salesgirls looked around at the vast pile of clothes the faerie had pulled out for the orc try on.

“Ooooo! I know, Jake, you can arm-wrestle folks who come up to the bar for samples! Oh wait, no, probably best you don’t do that.” She changed her mind as she noted the seams of the suit straining as she marched him to the gala. “Selfies!”

“What?”

“Selfies, Jake! We’ll let people get pictures of themselves with you and the ale!” Before he could protest, she added, “It will be fun! I promise!”

The half-orc was getting less and less sure about this whole thing.