and the bass keeps runnin runnin

[250mhzwabl]

Who: Anyone who heard the announcement, caught a flier in the plaza, of heard by word of mouth. Everyone's welcome!
What: A rave! Well, "rave." Luceti makes everything a little different.
When: June 21st, nightfall to early morning
Where: the beach near Adele's house
Summary: It's the first day of summer! This calls for bonfires, naturally, but why not spice it up with loud music, flashing lights, drinks, dancing, and a conspicuous lack of curfew?
Rating: PG to PG-13, please move anything steamier to appointments or Adele will take the hose to you



Getting all the firewood, food, and drink out to the beach had been, honestly, the hardest part of preparation. Whatever else one might say about running things on magic, it certainly did cut down on the trouble of constructing edifices and machines to run the entertainment side of a party. As it stands, the setup is labour-intensive but otherwise minimal, and there's not much to do by sunset. Escape the house before Max and Zevran, the culture-displaced madmen, can put any more eyeliner on him. Arrive at the beach. Light the bonfires. Make sure the bonfire-cooking-compliant food is set out. Put up a table loaded with bottles, cups, ice, and permanent markers. Thank the resident doctor and quartermaster once more. Plug in the stereo system.

The speakers and light show have been with him since he left his house, in the form of the resident god of mischief, and they confer over sheets of paper with track names and times written on them for a little while just before the start. That's the last of it, and by the time the sky above the mountains is beginning to darken into twilight, the first thumping, trilling strains of dance music begin to echo out across the sand.

It's the shortest night of the year. Best make every second last.

[OOC: Feel free to post your character for mingling, since this entire event is very free-form anyway. For everyone's enjoyment there is a drinks table, food, several bonfires, the ocean (lifeguards not on duty, splash drunkenly at your own risk), and of course a dancing area with lights and music. Music will probably be primarily EDM with a heavy bass line, but occasionally wander into the territories of electro-swing and the like to give even less modern partygoers a chance to show off. The light show as well will stray out of the typical at times, with the expected abstract wheeling and flashing lights giving way to more complicated illusions. Don't be surprised to find yourself and your fellows occasionally dancing in a forest glen or a Rivendell look-alike for a few minutes at a time. Loki is working the tech booth, after all.

The party will go as long as people stay and are enjoying themselves, so have fun and tag around!]

Comments

[Bucky and/or Natasha]

[jamesbarnes]

[They can actually feel the bass partway to the beach, and Bucky takes a moment to be impressed with the light show even from a distance. It's dazzling, and when it catches in Natasha's hair, she practically glows. He's got an arm around her while they walk across the beach. He's still trying not to stare at anything below the neckline, partly because he doesn't think they'll make it all the way to the party if he does, and partly because he's still trying to trust her about this kinda thing not getting them, at best, arrested for public indecency.

Luceti is pretty different from home but he's only been here six months.

Natasha has managed to get him into a shirt with the lowest collar he's ever seen, and attacked him with hair gel and, eventually, eyeliner. He feels a little ridiculous all made up like...]

How'd I let you talk me into this again?

[Once they settle in, the two of them will break off to mingle and dance with the crowd. Bucky especially enjoys the electro-swing, and he's a pretty fantastic dancer who's happy to show off or pull other partygoers into it.

Getting on past midnight he'll accidentally down some magic alcohol and be totally, utterly smashed for the remainder of the party.]

[Natasha - grab her with Bucky or later on without!]

[widows_kiss]

Because you haven't figured out how to convincingly say no to me yet?

[There's a smirk on her lips as she walks beside him, a sway in her hips and her fingers tangled with his. She'd actually found something that almost resembled clubbing fashion in the clothing shop, had modified it as necessary, and the way Bucky kept trying not to stare told her that she'd succeeded well enough. Her real victory had been getting him to dress in something a little more modern. And the eyeliner. That had taken some serious wheedling, but it had been worth it.]

[She gave his fingers a squeeze and tugged him towards the crowd already forming on the beach, flashing him a playful wink.] Relax. It'll be fun. Trust me.


[She spends the first part of the evening acquainting Bucky to the concept of a rave and what dance has evolved to in the sixty-some years he's missed. Although she does enjoy the electro-swing, both with him and any other partners she comes across familiar with it. She has considerable skill at dancing of any sort - it's the closest thing she'll come to having as a hobby and she's more than happy to be pulled out by any willing partners or pull out some in turn.]

[both please]

[250mhzwabl]

[Jack's been trying to keep an eye on who all is arriving, and at the sight of Natasha and Bucky he crows out a delighted laugh, bounding out of the dancing to jog over and meet them. When their shapes resolve to the point where he can see that they are in fact holding hands, he chuffs an amazed, bemused noise, slowing to a walk and ruffling some of the sweat out of his designer-mussed hair. There's eyeliner on him as well, smoky black overlaid with darts of metallic blue that only make his grey eyes look paler, along with an actual clean shave that conspires with a mesh undershirt to take a few years off his apparent age.]

Hey! [He enthuses, looking between them.] Now how long have the two of you been together? Because I had no idea.

[jamesbarnes]

[Bucky is silently glad that he's not the strangest looking person here by a long shot. He takes Jack in at a glance - it's actually a pretty good look on him. Jack's eyeliner doesn't look nearly as strange as he thinks the stuff does on himself.]

Well, Natasha wanted to put a 'property of' tattoo on me but I had to argue with the placement so... Surprise. About four months.

[widows_kiss]

He argued. I did it anyway. [It's said with a teasing smirk as she leans against Bucky's shoulder and gives Jack a wink.]

Wow, you really outdid yourself here, Jack. I'm impressed

[250mhzwabl]

Well, congratulations. And thank you. [He nods in a just-slightly overdramatic show of gracious acknowledgement, though the way he grins is a much more suitable answer to the wink.] It's a lot easier than you'd think, when nothing costs anything and most of the populace has fantastic powers. Can I get you something to drink?

both, also!

[z_jay]

[Stunning didn't even cut it for how the two of them looked, Eugene at once impressed, intimidated, and thrilled to see them. For a little while he watches from afar, taking a brief break from the dancing and music to relax his leg and enjoy the beach. They stuck out from the crowd not because of being out of place, but because they matched it well.

Or, Natasha did. Bucky was... he'd take some work. Potential was there.

But, no need to continue being a wallflower, he pushed off and meandered his way back into the crowd, moving toward Bucky because at least he wouldn't look as awkward beside him. Then he made his way between them-- mainly facing but not favoring one more than the other, and asked...]

Fashionably late?

[widows_kiss]

Hey. There's the birthday boy.

[She smiles brightly and holds out a hand to him when he joins them, tugging him in to dance with them. Bucky was still getting the hang of things, but he was doing surprisingly well for someone whose last dance scene had been in the 1940's. She leaned in, dropping a quick peck on Eugene's cheek.]

Happy birthday. And we're always fashionable. Even if Bucky doesn't believe me, after I forced him into eyeliner.

[z_jay]

One of two birthday boys, don't forget Max.

[He had to correct while he sipped his own rune-addled drink, glancing over toward Bucky once Natasha made mention of him. He gave an appraising look as he watched him move, frowning in an impressed sort of way before glancing back at Natasha, pointing at the object of his scrutiny]

Not bad. Where'd you pick this guy up?

[jamesbarnes]

She found me in a cardboard box on the side of the street. Couldn't resist.

[Bucky slips into the conversation easily, reaching out to clap Eugene on the shoulder.] Happy Birthday, man. Got you a present but I figured I'd drop it off tomorrow, considering.

[jamesbarnes]

I can say no to you. I choose not to.

[There's a brief moment of resistance, and then he thinks, what the hell. This isn't his kinda music, but Natasha's promised to show him how to dance to it, so he follows her lead into the crowd. People dance a lot more suggestively than they used to, and he mirrors her at first, letting his body find its way into her rhythm.

Dancing and fighting - and another activity he could name - aren't so different, and they've always fought like two parts of the same machine. The base thrums right up into his skull, and he finds himself grinning as they move against each other, losing himself in the slide and sway of her hips.]

[widows_kiss]

Is that what it is?

[She teases him with an affectionate smile, not letting go of his hand as she tugs him into the mass of dancers already there, caught up in the beat, the lights.

She shows him how to move at first, starting slow, giving him something to follow, her hands on his hips, her body against his. He picks the basics of it up quickly, even if he looks like he half expects to be caught and hauled bodily out of here for being indecent by some disapproving chaperon. Not that that's likely since everyone else in the crowd is just as caught up in the music and the moment.]

[She leans close, her lips brushing against his ear so she can be heard above the music.]

See? Not so hard to get the hang of, is it?

[jamesbarnes]

Absolutely.

[His hands tighten briefly on her hips, reflexive, and he laughs softly.] Getting the hang of it isn't exactly what I was worried about.

[widows_kiss]

[She slides against him with a smirk, her hands coming to rest against his chest as she dances with him, still reveling in the bone-deep throb of the music.]

So what were you worried about?

your choice, folks!

[touchofrogue]

[One or the both of you just gets a little nod as Rogue seeks to make her way out of the rave-area towards someplace a little less claustrophobic. She has a glass of something in hand, is dressed for the occasion, probably with the bright pink wig still on her head, and doesn't look like she's been dancing at all.]

have a pair!

[widows_kiss]

[The pink wig is rather hard to miss and it catches Natasha's eye as she and Bucky slip out of the crowd of dancers to catch their breaths and maybe a quick drink as well. She recognizes the girl under it and a smile flits across her lips as she alters the way they're heading for an intercept.]

Hello, Rogue. Having fun?

[jamesbarnes]

[Bucky follows without a thought when she turns, his gaze flicking away from her with mild curiosity, searching until he spots Rogue. The hair is new, but she fits right in, makeup and all.

He stops at Natasha's shoulder and inclines his head in greeting.]

Careful how you answer that, Mississippi. If you say anything but yes, she'll take it as a challenge.

[touchofrogue]

[With the way the bass was throbbing, it was a wonder she heard them at all. Her eyebrow raises a little at Bucky's warning, but Rogue believes in honesty.]

It's a great party.

[She also believes in answering questions stragically when it suits her and in trying not to actively bring other people down to her level. This isn't her kind of scene. At all. All those bodies writhing together so close... no. She really wishes she wasn't here right now.]

I can see you two are havin' a ball.

Both!

[abjurer]

[Max is trailing butterflies by now, the bright little things shifting colours as they follow him around the beach, giving off a soft glow. He's decked out in full makeup, dark eyes and bright glowing nailpolish and arcane symbols painted down the side of his face.

He spots Natasha nearby with a friend, and heads over to greet them. The butterflies settles like a cloud over them, landing on hair and clothing.]

Hi Natasha! Enjoying it?

[widows_kiss]

[If she hadn't been caught up in the exhilaration of the rave, Natasha might have been a little more startled at the sudden cloud of illusionary butterflies. As it was, she tensed for a moment out of instinctive wariness before relaxing at the sound of Max's greeting and lifting her hand to investigate the pretty piece of magic with a moment of fascinated delight. She wasn't fond of magic - for obvious reasons - but tonight was in harmless fun, so she went with it.]

Hello, Max. I am. You've gone all out, I see. [She grinned at him, her gaze warm and bemused as she takes him in, then motions to the man at her side.] Have you met Bucky yet?

[jamesbarnes]

[Bucky's had a couple of drinks in him by now, so he doesn't immediately tense when the glowing butterflies show up. He figures it's a part of the show, and Natasha seems mostly nonplussed by it, if not outright pleased. Bucky lifts a hand too, trying to coax one into settling on his finger.]

This is so... What? Oh, hey. Sorry. [He drops his hand and extends it to Max, giving him a grin that's just a hair sheepish.] James Barnes. I'm this lovely dame's arm candy for the night.

[abjurer]

[The butterflies are more than happy to oblige, settling onto Natasha and Bucky's hands and hair and Max can't help but laugh softly.]

It's a party! You have to get done up for a proper party.

[He takes the hand when it was offered, giving it a firm handshake.]

Nice to meet you. Max Woodville. I can think of worse positions to be in for the night.

Once Bucky is good and trashed

[complicatedliar]

[As luck would have it, Loki's well and truly smashed too by the time he happens across Bucky.

A memory surfaces, of a time what feels like long ago, when they did not know to be enemies. When they had met, not in combat, but in... dance.

This, Bucky. THIS IS THE BOOTY SHAKE OF CHALLENGE.]

Katsu we are awful people.

[jamesbarnes]

[Bucky is having a fantastic time. He doesn't know what was in that bottle but it hit him like a freight train and kept going. He's just drunk enough to want to keep moving, and modern dancing apparently doesn't require a whole lot of co-ordination, so he's doing great. When some pretty tall lady throws him a challenge - Wait is that a guy? Does he know that guy? Who cares?

The gauntlet has been thrown. He accepts with a slow twist of his hips and beacons her. LET'S RAVE.]

Awfully amazing. oh my god I can't write this kind of thing to save my life.

[complicatedliar]

[Loki had learned his rave dancing from Jack, though fortunately he manages to be far more graceful and coordinated than his teacher. But that means he believes in dancing far closer than he probably should. That's the way it's done right?

He slinks in close and bumps hips with him.]