The Charity Benefit (9) : A number of the local businesses in the area have come together to organize a charity benefit. In addition to a silent auction, there is also an evening charity ball. The community has been wanting to raise funds to fix up a few public areas for some time now and in the spirit of the Star Festival, these businesses have donated several prizes to the event to encourage people to attend. Some old warehouses and estates have been cleared out by the city, so there’s a wide variety of strange antiques and hidden treasures. As one of the local residents you have been kindly invited to attend! Formal attire is encouraged but only required if you plan to attend the Ball. It’s a good opportunity to dress up, meet new people, and maybe go home with something neat. Who knows what you can find to trade with Almadel, anyway? And, he’s always back in town for the Star Festival.
Players can roleplay any part of the Charity Benefit, including but not limited to mingling, dancing, enjoying the buffet, or leaving with a treasure they acquired There is no ORP set up for this but players can create group RPs if they like!
At first, Adrian thought it was someone's dumb idea of a scam. When he got his mail (but left the final notice for his power bill, as if not having any power wasn't reminder enough), he flipped through the few bills with his mag light wedged between his teeth, then halted on an invitation to a charity benefit.
A ******** invitation to a ******** charity benefit. Like Adrian was someone of class and privilege and not an exhausted twenty-something working construction by day and the Negaverse by night. So he threw it in the trash.
Weeks later, Adonis overheard a group talking about a ball, shortly before he'd begun to drain them. They were as confused as he was, and one of their group had enough brain cells to rub together to feed them a plausible explanation. The ball was only part of the benefit — the rest of it was dedicated to scraping enough money together to renovate part of the city. Sounded like more gentrification nonsense to Adonis, but he went home that night and fished the letter out of the trash nonetheless. Sounded like a good opportunity to rob yuppies and drain the rich.
So he showed up on the appointed day, in the appointed place, but he kept his a** up on the rooftops where people wouldn't look at his outfit and tell him he looked gross or creepy. Up there, he had a decent view of all the filthy rich sons of bitches that were milling about patting themselves on the back for their humanitarian efforts. Up there, Adonis could sigh to himself without looking weird. Could mumble to himself, too.
"That's right, bud," Adonis muttered to himself as he rested his chin on the heels of his hands, and balanced his elbows on crossed legs. "Get your virtue signaling in while you can! Who knows who's listening? Oh, and don't forget to write it off on your taxes next year!" He finished with an exasperated sigh.
xdaekie
Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2022 6:05 pm
Ninety percent of the time, Sparrow couldn't have given a single s**t about something like this.
A charity benefit? With an attached ball? Boring, loud, full of upper-middle-class (or rich, not like the difference was that meaningful from where ze was standing) middle-aged to old people who'd be doing rainbow capitalism because that was the month and the spirit, and if anyone in zyr family was going ze'd have to put up with the absentminded remarks about formal attire, how zyr shoulders worked better in a dress than a buttonup. Predictable, even without any precedence. Someone else's damn business.
But - on the other hand - if ze wanted to be a model commanding officer, or just in general get out of bed and out of the house for reasons beyond 'have to', which was a priority when it came to being a functioning human that ze'd... been neglecting - it was late enough in the night that even with the heatwave, Larimar's uniform wouldn't be sweltering, so thank god for that.
Once ze hit that point of thought, it was easy enough to plan. It wasn't as if anyone actually kept track of zyr location as long as ze made it to work and to any rehearsals on time -- being out on the appropriate night (& declining family invitations with a lot of repeated no, really not my scene, I mean it) was easy, and security watching the outside of the area was low, because of course it was. If this was a Negaverse thing and the right hand hadn't informed the left, well, it wasn't zyr ******** fault whatever ze did.
There was someone up there on the next roof already, sitting pretty, because of course there was. Larimar only caught the tail end of whatever he was muttering to himself - "...don't forget to write it off on your taxes next year!" - but that was enough to go off of.
"They'll pat themselves on their ******** backs for how charitable they were tonight," Larimar said, walking up, with a precise amount of vitriol dripping from zyr voice, "and we both know it, don't we."
How 'bout that? Company in the nick of time. Company that was even the right alignment, judging by that aura, and the right mindset, judging by that delicious dose of concentrated bitterness. Prime partner material!
So Adonis got up and straightened himself out, gave himself a bit of a stretch for having sat around as long as he did. "Sure do, bud!" Adonis groaned as he released his stretch.
He turned, took a half-step off the ledge, and took stock of the newcomer. Captain by feel, and someone he'd never met. Or if he had, it was either before jail, and therefore a Very Long Time Ago when he was a Different Person and he Didn't Want to Acknowledge That. Which meant it was time for introductions!
"Name's Adonis," he began as he held a hand out. "Sphere's Skin, and it's a whole lot like melting people's faces off with cheap horror movie acid. Dare I assume you've also got the idea to drain our pseudohumanitarian yuppie friends of all their energy and nab a few starseeds to boot?" To say nothing of funneling some funds into his pockets, but he knew better than to show all his cards at a first meet.
Besides! He had to give this Captain enough room to show zyr stuff. Maybe ze had a whole master plan waiting in the wings, and only needed one other warm body to execute the biggest energy heist in Negaverse history.
daekie
Posted: Tue Jun 21, 2022 8:32 am
"Larimar." Ze took his hand and shook it, curtly, not loose-handed but not too tight. "You've got me dead to rights," ze snorted, "I ******** hate these people, and really, if they want to show supportive allyship the best thing they can do is benefit me directly, you know?" Well, most of the energy ended up going straight into the Negaverse's gaping maw, but details, details. The starseeds were a nice personal bonus; ze'd been holding off on those as of late, treating them as if they were caffeine, but even with that zyr personal stock was almost at zero, and that was subpar.
Good time to stock up on starseeds, then. And energy, of course, but that went without saying.
"I might be able to blend in if I lose the hat, but you -- " cue grimace - "not so much. Any bright ideas? It'll be more efficient if we work together."
"Oh, they'll benefit you directly. Once they're out cold? Just check their pockets," he suggested with a shrug. "Whatever they got in cold, hard cash is all yours if they don't object to it." Hell, he always helped himself whenever he drained someone who looked like they wore those high thread-count suits and the stupidly expensive ties.
Larimar was right, ze would fit in just fine. Looked all fancy, all ready to tango zyr way around a ball and score big enough to satisfy a month's worth of quota. And Adonis, on the other hand… Well, Larimar was right — he'd stick out.
But that didn't have to be a disadvantage. "Oh, me? Totally misread the invitation, ha ha, imagine that. Thought it said costume ball!" And he smacked the heel of his hand against his forehead as he whistled at his own feigned stupidity. "Welp, can't be helped now. Guess I better get myself to the bathrooms n' wash off all this makeup at least. Mind showing me the way?"
Grinning, Adonis rested his fists against his hips. "It'll work on a few of 'em, I figure. And those stalls? Perfect for stashing all those guests who had 'too much to drink.' And if that doesn't work, well — I'm pretty good at thinking on my feet."
daekie
Posted: Mon Jul 04, 2022 12:11 pm
"You're a genius." The flat affect of zyr voice might've come off sarcastic, but, really, it mostly wasn't; Larimar was simply already thinking over what Adonis had suggested, giving the idea enough time to turn over and around in zyr head, and resting b***h face sometimes translated into resting b***h voice. Costume party - that was clever, and not an idea ze might have had on zyr own.
"You've got enough skin showing it'll surprise someone." Which might've been beneficial, given the heat wave lately. "Odds are at least some of them are officers, too, so if one does spot the bodies they won't raise an alarm. ...Hopefully." As plans go, it might have used a lookover or two, but there was only so much that could be done without knowing more information. Who was here? Who ******** knew. Ze didn't.
If zyr hands were shaking, almost imperceptibly, from exhaustion and stress -- it was easy enough to hide. The hat did probably need to go, though, which was a shame; it just didn't quite fit the deception.
"So? You need time to self-prepare, or are you good to go?"
Well, he supposed he wouldn't be winning any awards for his on-the-fly plan. If Larimar thought it was a terrible idea? Ze was welcome to suggest another. Disappointment wrote itself all over zyr face, though Adonis was ready to accept that he was going it alone —
Until, shockingly, ze sounded like ze was good with it. This broadened Adonis's smile, especially as ze asked if the blonde was ready to go for it.
"Oh, no need to hold on my account — I'm all in. We got this! And if any other officers show up to the party, they're welcome to play along.
"Alright!" Adonis clapped his hands together as he approached the parapet. "Let's rob some ******** yuppies!" And with that, he made for the street, and the decadent party beyond.
daekie
implied fin?
Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2022 7:05 pm
"Let's rob some ******** yuppies," Larimar confirmed back at him.
