faderift | Truth or Dare: The Imperial Court

Truth or Dare: The Imperial Court

WHO: Select Orlesian and Fereldan Nobility and the Inquisition
WHAT: Josephine and Vivienne have orchestrated a good-will soiree in response to this dastardly rumor.
WHEN: Drakonis 15, Evening
WHERE: Skyhold Great Hall
NOTES:
- A list of nobles in attendance can be found here. The list was provided by the mods but there will be no npc support for them. Play away.
- A secondary outside party is being held in the valley in the tent town for anyone who couldn't/wouldn't attend and/or behave in the fancy pansty party.
- The goal of the evening is to clear up a spurious rumor about Cassandra and Leliana, with secondary goals of establishing the Inquisition as a respectable presence in Thedas (and fish for more money). Any major disruptions that would Game Over the court approval should probably be brought to the advisors and/or mods.

To say that Josphine has far outdone herself with this little soiree would be the understatement of the year. The Lady Ambassador has pulled out all the stops in providing a festive and yet elegant stage for this political intervention. Because sometimes gossip can be more deadly than a sword.

The Great Hall of Skyhold has been converted into a grand receiving hall, glittering with hundreds of lights around the room, in addition to the repairs accomplished to the original chandeliers. Of course, there has been artful placement arranged so there are a few shadowy corners for rendezvous of the more suggestive nature. Just in case. The majority of the floor has been cleared for dancing, and a fine troupe of musicians have been installed for the bulk of the evening's entertainments. Some members of the Inquisition have plans to entice attendees with their own artistic performances in addition to the group of mages performing illusory tricks to oohs and aahs.

For those who feel their energy flagging, there are chairs set against the walls, with a few tables interspersed between. Servers hired for the evening circulate the crowds with wine, fine Orlesian and Nevarran reds as well as crisp whites from Antiva. Refreshments are set out on buffet tables, tasteful and extravagant nibbles, including imported cheeses, spicy saucisson, dried fruits and nuts, and the highly sought after deep mushroom and anise petits fours that are all the rage in Orlais.

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"Oh, no, not at all!" Ellana said, despite recent appearances. "I knew what I would be coming up against tonight, so I asked for advice on how to deal with people like them. It's been working well so far. At least no one has threatened to have me killed yet." And she figured a noble who felt that insulted by her behavior would delight in telling her that her life would be cut short.

"You look lovely in red," she added, taking in Hermione's outfit.

"Well, the night is still young." Despite her blithe response, Hermione was clearly worried that Ellana's words weren't just a figure of speech, and that people really would resort to threats if the wrong thing was said.

A little startled by the compliment, Hermione replied, "Oh! Thank you. This is just the only thing I had that looked even halfway acceptable for this sort of thing." Returning her gaze to the elf before her, she smiled and remarked, "You look very beautiful, too."

In response, Ellana delicately shrugged a shoulder and gave a smile that seemed to say "Sad, but true." Elves had been killed over much less than perceived slights. They were killed to make a point, or as part of an experiment, or because humans wanted something they had. Or a whole load of reasons too numerous to list.

"It's your own dress from home?" she asked, looking impressed. The fashion of her home seemed to fit in well enough here. "Ma serannas. That means 'thank you' in elven. I can't believe it was finished in time."

People shouldn't be killing other people at all, regardless of whether that person is a human, an elf, a dwarf, or a horned individual who may or may not adhere to the Qun. The fact that not everyone agreed with that wasn't sad; it was downright frightening.

"Oh, well, most of it is. The original dress had no sleeves and the hem was only at about my knee, but when I took it to a seamstress to ask if it would seem out of place, she informed me that it would have been a bit, ah... scandalous." She still thought it had been a perfectly modest dress, really. It wasn't her fault that people couldn't see bare legs without getting the wrong idea. "So she just had to add a bit here and there to make sure no one would mistake me for the wrong sort of woman."

A little envious as she looked over Ellana's dress, Hermione asked, "Was the entire dress tailored just for you? The detail is really exquisite."

Now it made a bit more sense, Ellana thought Hermione's dress hadn't been altered at all, but it seemed they wore it quite shorter at home.

"We Dalish have dresses to our knees too, but we wear leggings or chain mail under it. Depends on the situation, really. But this? The tailors said they were going woodsy with me, but I don't know if they did all this from scratch or came from Orlais with part of it done already. I can't imagine it was all done before they measured me. Elves are smaller than humans, and they never would have made a dress like this for an Orlesian elf. But I suppose they could have embroidered all this for someone who changed their mind, and brought it here." Her fingers run down the front, but then she twists to show off the low cut back.

"And if that's the case, they could have added this bit to finish it off and fit my waist."

"Leggings are appropriate for some dresses back home, but this was a summer dress, which allowed for a little more leeway." Really, it was all interesting in its own way, even if she wished she could have worn something from home without needing it altered to make sure no one would attempt to proposition her.

She took a little step back to properly examine the dress as a whole, especially when Ellana turned to show off the back of it. "However they did it, they did a lovely job of it. Were you going for something... 'woodsy'?" So long as Ellana liked the dress, it wouldn't have mattered, since it really did turn out beautifully. It just would have irked Hermione a little if tailors automatically made assumptions about what a person should wear based on her being an elf or some such thing.

"I wasn't. I dreaded what that meant when the tailors suggested it. But the result is beautiful." So yes, the tailors did immediately think of the wild when faced with an elf savage, but they managed to come up with something not totally offensive.

A look of disappointment crossed Hermione's face at that assertion, but it faded away quickly enough as she smiled and said, "It really is. But then, you're a very striking woman, so they had an easy job of it." Granted, Hermione still hasn't met any other elves face-to-face, so she's probably still significantly biased.

Ellana could take comfort in the fact that she was the prettiest elf Hermione had ever seen, and just discard that being the only elf so far part."

"Ma serannas," she said, eyes lowering a bit and lips lifting in a faint smile. Usually one to wear her heart on her sleeve, Ellana had been focused all night on hiding her emotions and keeping herself from blushing. It was an arduous task.

"I can't say I'll ever have the opportunity to dress this way ever again, so I had better make the most of it."

Well, not the only elf. But she was certainly prettier than Kreacher, so there was that.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," Hermione replied with a little smile. "You don't need a reason to get all dressed up. People might look at you a bit oddly, but if they're going to look, let it be for a good reason." She'd grown almost impervious to stares, after all; that was the sort of thing one learned to take in stride when one was best friends with someone as famous as the Boy Who Lived.

"As if I don't get looks already," Ellana said, letting out a soft huff of laughter. "I'll keep your words in mind, if there ever comes a day I feel like looking beautiful again." She swished her skirts a little as she spoke. Since she shared a bedroom, there was a door that could be locked, and good thing too, because she wouldn't put it past someone to sneak in and steal such a masterpiece as her dress.

"I would tell you you look beautiful all the time, but that sort of flattery is best reserved for two people who know one another well enough to not get the wrong idea about it." Though technically, she did just say as much, and so she shrugged, clearly not meaning anything untoward about it. "At any rate, you're very lucky to have managed such a beautiful gown. I'm afraid I didn't find out about this until fairly last-minute, so perhaps next time there's an event like this I can manage something a bit more elaborate. You'll have to give me the name of the tailor who did your dress."

She did, but since she pointed it out, Ellana hardly felt it warranted needing to let Hermione down gently.

"I wish I could, but none of them were very friendly, so I don't have his name to give you. You could perhaps ask Madame de Fer who the three tailors were, as she's the one who sent for them. Then at least you'll have narrowed it down for the next event." Personally, Ellana hoped there wasn't such a thing. This evening was trying enough as it was, and she didn't want to make a life out of this.

Hermione was partial to gingers, but she'd never shown any active interest in ginger women. That would have made sleeping in the same bed with Ginny all those times infinitely weird.

Hermione would also rather not have to be dressed up and paraded around like some sort of exhibit, but if Skyhold did host another soiree, she knew she'd have to show up. At least, she would if she were still under Adelaide's employ. "I'll do that, thank you. I don't think she and I have been formally introduced yet. I should probably change that eventually."

"She holds a great deal of influence, so it would be a good idea. Whether you agree with her ideals or not, she's a powerful person and a good ally to have." As someone who has lived outside a Circle and has heard the horror stories about them, she can't really agree with Vivienne's belief that they are needed. It sounds to her like Vivienne had an idyllic experience and assumes those who didn't were just isolated situations. Despite that, Vivienne is shrewd and knows how to get what she wants. She's someone to befriend or keep an eye on. Maybe both.

"I wouldn't know about her ideals, but so long as she isn't advocating for anything I find particularly abhorrent, I'd be glad to make her acquaintance." Granted, Hermione found all sorts of things particularly abhorrent, most of them being things that Vivienne held dear, but she could hardly know that right now.

"At any rate, I'm sure you'll get enough talk about influence and allies and all that sort of thing while you're here tonight, so I wouldn't want to keep you preoccupied, especially since I'm sure you could win all sorts of people over to the Inquisition's side."

"Oh, I'm not sure about that," she replied, canting her head to one side and trying not to look embarrassed at the compliment.

"Mostly I've been just trying to keep my head above water while showing these nobles that their rumors about elves are just that: rumors only. But you're right that I should get back to it. Maybe I can save someone from a boring conversation." Her eyes lifted to search the crowd a moment before they refocused on Hermione.

"I wish you a good evening."

"From what I'd heard of your earlier talk with that noble, you're doing an excellent job of that," Hermione replied with a small smile. "Good luck, and I hope you find some time to enjoy the rest of the evening for yourself."

With that, she gave Ellana a small smile and a slight wave before excusing herself, hoping that she wouldn't end up being one of those people that needed a rescue.

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Truth or Dare: The Imperial Court

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