Angels In The Night [INACTIVE]

[Ryder]

RYDER

Ryder smirked at what he said, looking at Zane who hadn't moved from her side, and Monster who had sat down on the ground. As long as Zane was out, Monster wouldn't do a thing. Though it was as this time, that Ryder wondered where her brother was, where had Brenden gone to. Looking at Monster, she sighed, "Monster, go find Brenden won't you?" She saw Zane glare at the dog, but Monster wasn't looking at Zane, only at Ryder. At her command, he let out a bark, and soon vanished into the swarm of people, looking for his owner's brother.


When Jun answered her question, she felt one of her eyebrows raise. "What kind of business, if I may ask?" She wondered what he would get into, after he didn't seem like a people person. Ryder often stayed to the mountains, avoiding people, and she couldn't see Jun in the middle of Central City. Ryder had only been there once, with her brother, when he had gotten Kite from the shop. It was a big place, and it was so easy to get lost down there. Ryder had been happy when they had left, and was even more happy, when they never went back there again.

She didn't look at the Buizel as she heard its cry, she only heard a cross snort from Zane. She rolled her eyes, knowing that it would only be a matter of time, before Zane finally full out attacked the Buizel. It didn't take much to tick off Zane, and no doubt getting hit by a random attack by a pokemon, might just push him enough to the edge, where he did fight back.

[Ezio]

Fixing his tuxedo and his masking, Eli took one quick glance at his reflection in the glass, making sure his hair as ok. Content with the result, Eli smirked as he entered the castle, swiftly moving in among the crowd, taking a wine glass as if he had been there all night long.

Quickly scanning the room, Eli spotted a light haired woman next to two people who appeared to be a couple. Taking a sip from his glass, Eli grabbed a glass rose that was concealed in his sleeve as he made his way over. Something he had made barely a few hours earlier

Approaching Kali, Eli offered the glass rose. "A rose for madame. It's a party you know, you should lighten up. Your parents seem a little preoccupied with each other so why don't we take a dance?" Eli asked Kali.

[Ethereal]

Adrian nodded her head in Yue's direction,
"Of course you will," She affirmed, "I have the highest confidence in you." The duchess added flatteringly. She could hardly wait for Xerxes to be a lucario, and if she had to stroke a few egos to get that - well that wouldn't be too much of a hassle.

This conversation was beginning to bore her, and the noble was about to make a graceful exit. She would have, if it weren't for the sudden remark made by an intrusive stranger. Adrian glared down at him with the most venomous contempt, and if she hadn't been surrounded by so many people the duchess might have grabbed the fool by the throat.

Her thoughts swirled in her head like a twister that grew larger with every passing second. HOW DARE HE?! She screamed mentally. Do I look OLD?! She thought while taking in a deep breath. NO! She asserted, I am NOT OLD. I AM BEAUTIFUL! BEAUTIFUL! Adrian wanted to go look in a mirror to make sure her face hadn't broken out in wrinkles or something even worse that would make this man think she was old enough to have a teenage daughter. Whoever this guy was, he was an idiot and Adrian would see that he pay for such an insult.

Getting her emotions in check, the regal woman stepped forward so that she was face to face with the man. She had effectively blocked off his view of Kali. Adrian reached out nonchalantly to pull up Eli's mask. She flashed a sinister grin.

"I'm afraid you are mistaken. I'm not this girl's mother and he is not her father." Adrian spoke slowly and clearly, like one would converse with a child. "My name is Adrian Bane - you would do well to remember that - and I am the grand duchess of the south. It would be in your own best interest to avoid that region." She flipped her hair over one shoulder then moved past Eli, "You should also pray I forget your face." The woman laughed callously, "But then again," She paused thoughtfully, "You don't seem like the intelligent type so I wouldn't expect you to take my advice."

She began walking away from the group, but looked back to leave them with one last comment,
"Oh and Kali, I do hope this isn't the kind of company you keep." Adrian gave a parting smile then made her way through the crowd.

The shiny houndoom smelled her mistress's distress and hatred for the man. Stupid male, she thought and spit a few embers at the legs of his pants. The man might not even feel them - or his pants might light on fire. Either way, Adelina decided that he deserved it.

[Admiral Striker General]

Kali-- didn't know what to say to that. The rose was beautiful, and the comment was flattering in a way. And at the same time, how young did she look?! After all her effort to look like a proper woman tonight, even still people took her for a child! Between the two sides of the mistaken relationship, her jaw had dropped, and her heart spiraled a bit to hear the second person today mistake Leon for her father. Arceus damn it, he wasn't that much older than her! ...Was he? Hell she really did need to find out..

Before she could react, however, Adrian did, marking the first time she'd been grateful for the woman's presence all night. Inferiority complex as she may have been developing, she certainly didn't mind that she was less intimidating than the powerful older woman, and she did so appreciate the excuse to not try her own no-doubt fumbled reaction. As she left, however, Adrian naturally found a way to send the girl right back into an awkward, blushing rage.

Stuttering profusely for a few moments over no particular word, Kali finally clamped her mouth shut, face setting in a glare. She drew a deep breath in attempt to calm herself, and weighed her options. Part of her wanted to just slap him and get away quickly, but would that seem too 'childish'? Just in case, she went with the other option.

"Keep your gift," she told him, attempting a calm tone, though seething anger clearly laced it despite the effort, and her face was still quite flushed. ...Actually, it was mostly in attempt to be mature, but she also really did like that sparkly, sparkly rose, and really didn't want to risk breaking it with a harsher reaction.. "It was a nice thought, but I already have a date tonight." The lie indicated no one in particular, and she'd not answer if asked, but a part of her really did hope a certain man would claim the spot to get this.. boy to go away.. If nothing else, she prayed this reaction would go over well enough with that man, whatever effect it had on the overly assertive stranger.

[Maid Melody]

Miguel walked swiftly up the stairs to the entrance of the masquerade, knowing that he was a little late but then he had to put the young mistress to bed before he was allowed to come to the masquerade, by orders of Felis. His costume was a slim red velvet frock with silver embroidery and lining with an insignia of a silver eagle on the front and back of the outfit. His boots were just as fancy, made of the same material with silver embroidering all the way down them.

In his hand Miguel carried a red mask with gold embroidery around the edges and simple designs around the eyes attached to a handle that Miguel could hold up to his face at his leisure since he didn't care for the masks that simply attached around the head since it would mess up his long blonde, wavy hair that almost reached his waist. Miguel had spent quite a long time fixing up his hair so that he looked something of a knight coming out of a fairy tale, complete with his ever existing sword sheath strapped onto his back.

Entering the ball room, Miguel was not really surprised to see that there were quite a few people in the room, along with some pokemon as well. Smiling to himself, Miguel released Camelia, his Shikijika. Kneeling down by the little grass pokemon, he smiled kindly and gently rubbed the top of her head.
"Don't be afraid Camelia, go have fun."he said in a quiet, kind voice before standing up once again and surveying his surroundings.

There were some children in the room as well as a couple talking over by the drinks. A young man was talking to a younger woman who seemed to be pretty perturbed by whatever the man had been saying. Frowning at this, Miguel had half a mind to tell off the young man when he spotted Felis talking to Akira. Knowing his lord's behavior all too well, Miguel sweat dropped a fraction before looking around the room once again, spotting a young lady over by the drinks all alone.

Not missing this opportunity, Miguel made his way over to the young lady and bowed to her.
"Good evening mademoiselle. Pray tell, what is a lovely young lady such as yourself doing all alone on a night like tonight?"he asked in a kind, polite voice, holding his mask up to his eyes as he spoke.

Camelia looked a little daunted by the amount of people in the room and was about to make a dash for the exit when she was squirted with a water gun attack. Shaking her head to the minor annoyance, she looked up to see the Buizel hanging from the chandelier. Now curious more than anything, Camelia reared up to attempt to make herself seen.
"Shiki?"she chirped curiously, wondering what the buizel was doing up there in the first place.

[Admiral Striker General]

Ava honestly didn't notice the man until he spoke, jumping startled a bit when he did. After a moment to take in his face, though, she sighed. "Waiting," she answered simply, looking out over the dance floor listlessly. Trying to feign some minimal tact, she asked, "And you, sir knight?" Eh, maybe that was over the top. But really, his costume gave a templar-esque impression, and it wasn't as though his comment wasn't over the top, so meh. With a mental shrug, she took another sip, realizing she was nearly out and considering whether or not she might want a third glass.

[Jay]

An extreme hiss came from the Glameow who had watched the water gun hit another pokemon, and in half a second, Mai was looking up and threatening the Buizel with a look ready to kill. She hated water beyond all measure being the cat pokemon that she was. However, in order to limit the fighting in the party, Sebastian had already started walking over towards his pet and picked her up gently. Happy to be in her master's arms, the Glameow simply relaxed and began to purr lightly in his arms. "Young master, are you enjoying yourself?" Sebastian asked calmly as he walked back to Ciel. "You should dance, for that is what a ball is for, you know." The butler was rather coy with his words but kept an easy smile on his face.

Teme danced with an easy step for a while as the music went, yet her eye was ever scanning the room to try and find her target in time. She didn't want to get too drunk or something of the like and then completely forget the reason that she was there to begin with. After the song had ended, she broke apart from the young man. "Thank you for the dance," she said more or less as an after thought to the dance itself. A light smile was on her face before she started to walk a bit. However, her eye caught something rather surprising. It appeared a woman was walking away from two white haired people...and.... Something about the woman herself made Teme raise an eyebrow. Could she be someone from the bounty list? Or...where had she seen that face before. After a moment, Teme looked back at Ez. "I'm curious," she answered as though it were some sort of excuse. After that, she turned and started off towards Adrian.

On the origins of Kleptomania with our purple haired friend... Black Jack Spade could not quite explain how but he had taken approximatively fourteen cups from the table as well as someone's gold watch which was hidden in said cups. When he came to realize that he had these items, he couldn't help but grin to himself and was more comfortable with the idea of just keeping them. He walked around the room and quietly allowed his own disorder work for him.

Yue watched Adrian walk off and simply smirked to himself. That had actually gone better than he had thought. Looking back at the young man that had inquired of relations, the white haired man found his eye narrowing. However, he didn't say anything for a full moment before simply stepping forwards and putting a hand on Kali's shoulder. "Indeed, 'Daddy's' her date tonight," Yue grinned rather lightly with a light laugh to boot. However, in another moment, he caught sight of the Dragonite in the middle of the room. It was....it was...a Shadow Pokemon no doubt.... Mentally kicking himself for not seeing it before, the white haired man stared for a good twenty seconds before blinking. "And I get this first dance," he answered to the boy once more before starting to walk Kali out towards where the Dragonite was.

[Admiral Striker General]

...What?? It was all Kali could do to keep from looking completely appalled. She was certain he was just being a dick about it, but as infuriating as that was, the thought he may legitimately be supporting the idea was worse. Her face had grown hotter still, half in anger at his remark and half in nervous response to his skin touching hers- never mind if that was just a hand on her shoulder. ...His hands really were soft..gentle.. Not really surprising considering those sleeves he always wore; they rarely actually touched anything, so--

Realizing she was quite staring at that hand, she quickly turned her head to leer at him instead. 'Daddy' indeed. "Actua--" It had been intended as a bluff that she was waiting for a date he didn't know about, so there; instead, she was cut short by him claiming a first dance. ....Dance was good.. Her blush deepened a little further still at another thought: it wouldn't just be her first dance for that evening, would it? Of course, the question at this point was really whether or not she could avoid making a total fool of herself due to that, wasn't it?

As he turned to lead her away from the abrasive boy (who, admittedly, was probably older than her, but continuing to think of him as a 'boy' made her feel older), his arm naturally moved into a position of being more around her due to that hand on her shoulder. She quickly pushed the thought aside and stamped it flat, but she couldn't help but have the momentary urge to move closer, cuddle a little even. Nuuu nu nu nu, she thought. Dance was fine, just a nice plat--

Her jaw dropped a bit as she noticed the Dragonite at last, some few seconds after being turned toward it. "How is that thing not drawing more attention?" she asked in a near-whisper. Perhaps most at the party assumed it was decorative, a mockery of real Shadows? Hell, perhaps it was.. But they couldn't well just ignore it assuming, now, could-- ... Kali gave a small sigh and muttered, "The dance was a lie, wasn't it.."

[Jay]

Yue half smirked but pulled Kali closer to him and started the dance rather oddly at first. "I wouldn't be so mean as to not at least give you the dance, so no, it's not a lie," the white haired man answered back. However, his eye was still half on the Dragonite in the room, and it was all he could do to keep from rushing straight up to it and examining it. Curiosity would sooner skin the Yue than let him be if he simply went up to it, and Leon Alias knew this. He danced fairly to give it the best. In truth, dancing had never been a forte, and he had only learned the basics in order to participate in events such as this.

[Admiral Striker General]

Kali's head could have exploded for the rush of blood as he pulled her closer, and took his sweet time shifting into proper position. The way he eyed that Dragonite, it was certainly just a result of distraction, but that didn't well make it linger any less, did it? Eventually, one hand had taken hers, while the other had come to rest on her hip. Kali gulped lightly and tried to keep herself from trembling as she cautiously raised her own free hand to his shoulder. Her chest literally hurt for the strength of her heart pounding. Of course, that was nothing compared to the pain of her feet, each step worse than the last since they'd begun to move again. Damn how did other women wear such heels?

As they danced, she didn't at all mind his lack of 'skill', in fact quite grateful to find either he was only on basic level himself or was intentionally going easy on her; she didn't really care which. Slowly waltzing their way closer to the Shadow, Kali found she couldn't decide where she wanted to look. His face and chest both somehow seemed every bit as exciting yet unnerving as the large purple dragon.

Speaking of, she did wonder at its behavior, then finding that to be a suitable distraction from her nervousness concentrated upon it. If it was in fact a real Shadow of such magnitude, why was it so calm? ..Perhaps it was close to purification, then? How very odd... She thought to voice this thought to Leon, but found her throat not working in the slightest, and instead gave a mental sigh and decided to savor the moment as best she could.

[Maid Melody]

Miguel smiled and bowed again when Ava made the comment of him being a knight.
"You have guessed my title correctly my lady. I am indeed a knight; My name is Miguel Castillo, knight of the east under Felis and noble of the west. Might I ask what your name is mademoiselle?" he asked in a kind voice before realizing that Ava was almost out of her drink,"And perhaps another drink?"

Camelia reared up again in an attempt to gain the buizel's attention. How had it gotten up there in the first place?

[Ethereal]

Now that Adrian was away from the group, she needed something new to entertain her. The duchess watched people dancing and felt a twinge of jealousy. She wanted some attractive stranger to ask her to dance. It will happen sometime tonight, she assured herself. Maybe I look a bit too tense, my beauty and elegance might make me seem unapproachable. She sighed dreamily to herself, it’s a curse she thought with a small smile.

The woman was not averse to alcohol, except that it lowered her awareness. Regardless, this was a party and she intended on having fun. A duchess needs time to get away from the stresses of nobility. She made her way to the bar and ordered a drink fitting her social class.

Adrian turned back to the crowd. She put the glass to her lips and sipped leisurely. It’s not like she was in a rush to get drunk. Adrian hardly ever did get drunk, she was afraid to be that defenseless and out of control. To be without control even for one night was more frightening to Adrian than the worst kind of pain. No, the glass would mostly be a prop that allowed her to blend in with the carefree scene.

It appeared that the plan worked, except not in the way Adrian had anticipated. A woman was coming her way, for what reason the woman had no idea. Did this stranger know her and want to have a diplomatic chat? Business was never far from Adrian’s mind so taking time out of the ball to tie up loose ends wasn’t a problem. An opportunist at heart, Adrian saw the party as a gathering of potential conquests.

The duchess smiled cordially at the blond-haired woman’s approach. She put her drink down softly on the counter of the bar,
“Hello,” She greeted the other woman, “Are you enjoying the party?” It was a socially acceptable conversation starter, and the duchess was partly curious. If the northern noble’s ball turns out to be a hit then that might motivate Adrian to throw her own.

[Admiral Striker General]

Oh, thrill, she thought dryly. Another noble. "Avelina Egilart, a noble in your Lord's lands," she replied, trying to be as proper as her irritation would allow. Standing then, blushing lightly to realize he must be nigh a foot and a half taller than her, she added, "But I can get my own drink, if you don't mind."

[Maid Melody]

Miguel nodded at Ava's reply and took one of her hands, bending to kiss one of them.
"As you wish Lady Avelina. Perhaps you might care to join me for a dance? A fair maiden such as yourself shouldn't be standing by her lonesome." he said in a kind gentle voice as he released her hand and waited for her answer.

[Admiral Striker General]

As her hand was released, she all but jerked it back, giving him a rather uncomfortable look. "I told you," she replied, "I'm not alone. I'm waiting." There.. was a difference, right? Kind of? Meh. Looking out over the guests again, she realized how late it was already, and that each minute that passed lessened her already slim chances all the more. Ava sighed. "Even if he's not showing up.." she muttered.

[Jay]

The dance continued on rather smoothly...well...as smoothly as one could hope for when his real goal was somewhere else entirely. The white haired man continued to dance with the young girl slowly making his way to the Dragonite in the process. "Do you know why some creatures change their colors with emotions while others do not?" Yue asked more or less implying the Dragonite out of the context they had both established and yet leaving it vague to those around them.

Teme stopped short with Adrian's greeting and simply started to make her way to half leaning on a wall. "It's a pretty nice party," she answered back rather coolly. She still couldn't put the face to a name, so maybe it wasn't from the bounty hunter list...."Teme Efrette," she said extending a hand after a moment.

[Admiral Striker General]

It took her just a moment to realize he was speaking, but she mentally jumped to attention when she did, then pondering his words heavily. "...I don't," she admitted after some moments. "Unless all who do are like Ex-Dee--" she hoped he'd recognize the half-codename-- "and do so due to such.. permanent emotions." Glancing over to the Dragonite for a few moments again, still marveling at its behavior, she finally turned back and added, "But in this case I can't see how, given... Well, how they calmed Ex-Dee, compared to how calm..." She was trying so hard to stay vague enough, and hoped that wasn't too much.

[Jay]

He recognized the codename not from his personal experience with the shadow Lugia but from what he had taken away from the information he had gathered. "Indeed, darker coloring tends to take effect out of a different technique so-to-speak," Yue found himself eying the Dragonite even more now. "And they prove harder to change back. However, the coloring itself appears as an after effect rather than the cause of anything else. What one can only gather is that by judging the color, one can sometimes tell the extent of the work done..." Yue was all but muttering to himself now, and one would have to pay very close attention and be in close range in order to hear him at all.

[Admiral Striker General]

Thinking only to hear him a little clearer, as well as be able to talk in a more hushed tone herself, Kali shifted a bit closer, leaning her head against his chest gently. She didn't want to lay it against him too much; if she put her ear right too him it would just distort his words. This seemed a good compromise, as she could still watch the Dragonite off and on and hear him well enough.

Her own voice dropped to a half-whisper now. "..Really?" she asked, admittedly surprised. Quickly enough, she added, "Not to doubt you, of course. I just remember on the news, when Ex-Dee's work was undone, the distortion.. seemed to have faded. ..Do you think that was faked, or done separately, to calm the public? Or are there other methods of purification that work as well with varying results?" And what did it mean if it did? Did the color indicate some truth in the claim these could not be purified- represent some permanent after-effect lesser methods could not remove? Or did it mean they were in fact wrong, and these more powerful, long-lasting Shadows could be purified through normal means after all, and just took longer? Depending on the specifics of the first, either could be a load off Kali's mind.

She respected Shadows, and saw no harm in their use in general. But XD-001... that had always been the one project Ardos had been so proud of that never set well with her. To her, Shadows seemed to peak just as their emotional doors cracked- when their emotions were slim and filtered, but present. When the Pokemon were controlled and focused, but not quite heartless. To seal them so tight as to be purely machines was just... Well, she saw no purpose in it. Why inflict that on a living creature when it was no different than investing in battle machines of some kind? No, it was that small glint of emotion that made Shadows so superior, able to think and feel but not controlled by their emotions. That was their beauty, and the vision she fought for.

[Ezio]

Ezio the character incase you didn't know

[/right][/color]

Enjoying the dance, Ezio smiled and nodded slightly as Teme left. Leaving the dance floor, walking to a waiter nearby, Ezio grabbed some of what they were offering. "Strange finger food" He thought to himself as he tried it, "tasty nonetheless". Looking back over at the crowd, Ezio quickly scanned the room for one lady in specific but failed to find her. "She's probably not going to come" he finally figured, grabbing another wine glass and taking a sip. He should probably slow down on the drinks he thought to himself.

A newbie by the name of Eli

[/i][/right]

Smirking slightly to himself, Eli walked away a short distance before turning back to Kali and her "father". Now that he took a more careful look, he definitely didn't look like her father and by the way they were dancing, that only supported that opinion more. Sighing slightly, Eli put his mask back on and made his way through the crowd. "That went not at all as I had expected" he thought to himself as he went along.