Havin' a Ball

[Panthera]

“Disappointed? Non. Dere's a few people I hope t' talk t', but t’ be entirely honest,...I ain’ exactly comfortable at dis type o’ event. Feelin’ quite outta m’ element.”

Sam knew all too well about being uncomfortable. But this was sort of an uplift to all the death and scared humans she had come in contact with on a daily basis. The feline wanted to tell the father of her troubles, but this was not the time nor the place. Besides, Genghis Kahn was around somewhere and probably peering in on their conversation. Sam was safe no where unless near her father. No one had made her more safer than him, and oh how she wished she was in the arms of someone tonight, dancing and just being free.

Her thoughts traveled back to reality and she leaned into the father almost like the mutant was about to reveal some sub-atomic nuclear secret. With a warm smile riddled across her lips, she spoke.

"So, has she even seen you yet father? She'd be a blind if she couldn't."

It was an innocent compliment that she read while he spoke his last words. Woman just have that intuition about men and maybe she was wrong, but she hoped the lady he was maybe looking for WAS actually blind.

[Sam Guthrie]

"I have to confess, I've never gone to seek absolution from him myself,"

"Neither have I." Sam replied, a slight smile creeping across his features, "I find the practice of confession to be...irrelevant"

After all, God hadn't been there for Samuel before, and he certainly wasn't just going to build any sort of relationship with an invisible father figure. For Samuel, seeing was believing, and he had seen nothing to prove otherwise.

"I regret nothing, and my conscience is clean."

[Tatiana]

Tatiana caught the coin that was tossed at her. Well, at least she could put it towards replacing the lost inferior. And would these taller mutants never stop calling her little? Ok, so maybe being petite wasn't a bad thing. But still.

She didn't say a word as the two much taller men were trading veiled insults. Monkey man? She had dated one of those, and yuck, never again. She much preferred less hair. Although Tati didn't mind a good pair of wings. She tried not to giggle and draw attention to herself. Shaking her head, the young woman tried to get her mind back on the current situation.

[Gambit]

The woman very beautiful and suddenly very close, a fact that was not helping the priest’s discomfort level in the least.

"So, has she even seen you yet father? She'd be a blind if she couldn't."

Sitting back quickly in surprise, his eyes went wide. Had Anna been speaking so openly to this woman? It was one thing to harbour secret feelings toward him, but when she started telling others of them then things were going to get very difficult. It would be hard to pretend he didn’t know under those circumstances, and no matter how hard he resisted, people may begin to question his faith and devotion. He could not have that.

“I’m afraid I don’ know what you’re talkin’ ‘bout,” he said quickly, reaching up to adjust his white collar. “I come here ‘cause I was invited by King Magnus an’ it would’a been rude o’ me not t’ attend. It’s him I’m here t’ see.”

[Kenny Orion]

As Deefer was holdiing his waist, Kenny began did the best he can in following to the music to do the best he can in dance moves. Eventually Kenny attempt to spin Deefer around without messing up. After successfully spinning her around Kenny was about to do another manuver. "Deef can you please brace yourself in what I'm about to do" he said as he began to dip her without any trouble.

[arkady]

Arkady was in no mood to argue. He wanted to fight. But he knew it would be no fun with an unriled opponent.

"What good would that do you? You may be able to fill out some places, but I think you lack some other...components."

He cracked his neck and laughed. The tendrils in his arms were starting to tickle at the corners of his wrists. He quelled them down with his fingers and continued his unrelenting stare into Victor's eyes. He would break him, mentally, or physically.

[Panthera]

“I’m afraid I don’ know what you’re talkin’ ‘bout,......I come here ‘cause I was invited by King Magnus an’ it would’a been rude o’ me not t’ attend. It’s him I’m here t’ see.”

Sam couldn't help but chuckle a bit. He was now acting like a teenage quarterback with a crush on the most popular girl in school, who was usually the captain of the cheerleading squad. He looked very nervous and Sam sat back in the position she started.

"Don't worry father, I don't know who she is, but she's a very lucky woman to have such an honorable man thinking about her." I wish I had such a man came as an afterthought. "As for Magnus, he's probably getting his daily sponge bath with grapes being fed to him by hand somewhere", her voice broke off a bit sarcastically.

[Bobby Drake]

Between the lighting, the music and the close distance of them, Bobby felt a little funny. There was a very powerful smell coming off of her. It wasn’t exactly flowery, but it wasn’t quite fruity either. It was sweet, invigorating and made him feel light headed.

His hands on her hips felt hot. His face felt hot. He could feel a thin band of sweat just under his hairline.

But he was too caught up in the moment to care. Even though she made it clear this wasn’t going to go anywhere pretty much ever...if this was all Bobby was going to get he was pretty sure he could still die a happy man.

Later on he’d wonder where the hell that kind of thought came from. What was he, some kind of chick??

[dazz]

Bobby did much better than Ali had expected. He had an air of grace and propriety about him, though it didn't fit him at all. Ali just focused on the dancing, not commenting on anything. She was comfortable, and so was Bobby in his movements, but she noted a distinct pink hue in his cheeks. Maybe it was the lighting, but she didn't think so.

It made the starlet feel odd. It almost felt like a high school. He liked her, but she only viewed him as a friend. She did her best to keep a balance so Bobby wouldn't feel awkward either way. This setting...she didn't want to use the word romantic, but nothing better came to mind. Though they weren't staring into each others' eyes or anything like that. Ali's eyes were focused around his forehead. Bobby looked a bit too spacey to notice.

Still, wasn't this some sort of storybook scene, at least from Bobby's perspective? Ali had to play into that, just a little. And so she did.

[Gambit]

"Don't worry father, I don't know who she is, but she's a very lucky woman to have such an honorable man thinking about her."

To this, Remy said nothing. There was no woman, nor could there be. He had taken a vow and he would not break it, not for anyone. But this woman seemed to have her mind set on the idea, some fascination with romance no matter how impossible, so he felt it no use to correct her.

"As for Magnus, he's probably getting his daily sponge bath with grapes being fed to him by hand somewhere", her voice broke off a bit sarcastically.[/I]

This time her words did not win a laugh.

“It’s one t’ing t’ speak unfavourably ‘bout a party y’re attendin’, but anot’er t’ing all t’get’er t’ insult de host,” he replied evenly, all nervousness and earlier humour having left his face. “Despite de t’ings he’s done and his views on ot’ers, I owe a lot t’ de King. He gave me a place t’ live an’ t’ practise m’ callin’. Few may see it, but he is a good man.”

[tara]

_{[Sorry this is so late, y'all! Camp, and then a day or so to recover braincells... but here y'go!]}

"I'm not very graceful either. Not like mummy or the other ladies here, but that'll change when I'm older, right?"

"Pro'lly. Usually does, for the most part." Tara responds with a nod and another bright grin, "I'm a bad example, but, then, I'm so not an adult yet, either - except I technically am, but shush, I'm so not - so it doesn't count." Airy and vague hand gesture, still holding the half-eaten strawberry, waving it around almost without even noticing it, she shrugs a little.

She's about to ask something about what sorts of foods are mean to clothes, and why they have to be so hurtful, before deciding she's not even entirely sure if she was kidding or not, so others probably wouldn't know for sure either and think she was really that dumb (though, really, mean food? Dude!), and so keeps her mouth shut. Well, figuratively speaking, because she so isn't just going to hold this strawberry all night...

So far, so good. No one's screamed in horror over her bare feet, or even made any real notice of it, so... yes, very good indeed. Because it so wouldn't do to be kicked out of the castle for being barefoot. Though that would definitely be something few people could ever say, it isn't exactly the way she'd like the evening to end, because staying is far more awesome than being kicked out over her footwear (or lack thereof). Definitely. Maybe next year. Maybe.

(Though if it's anything near as shiny (literally speaking and not, because, dude! They must polish... everything!) and amazing as this one, she doubts it highly - that is, if she's even around then, but she doesn't actually think about not being around because that would be terrible-horrible-bad and she's too happy to think bad things right now, or pretty much ever, really)

Tara glances up from whatever generally interesting object (and there are far too many around here, except that "far too many" sounds like a bad thing and interesting isn't bad unless it's evil and going to kill you and pretending to be cool to lure you in, but these aren't, or aren't as-yet, anyhow, so that's beside the point) had caught her attention, to catch the end of the new arrival's yellow-gold gaze, and she's not entirely sure if he was looking at her or ...not. Maybe it's not at her, and he was just sort of ...staring. Focusing intently on nothing at all (hey, she does it sometimes...)?

Or maybe he is for some reason... is it the lack of shoes? ...Nah, he'd be looking at her feet, or with some level of weirded-out or curious or ick or something, right? So...

Well, whatever the case, she's definitely not blushing, though. Not at all. Nope. Because being stared at (or, being in the general vicinity where someone was staring, because she can't be convinced it was at her, not in a room full of important and famous people like this) by an unfamiliar guy (even if he is rather cute) is so not enough reason for her to blush. Ever.

Anyway, by the time she's done reasoning through that and trying to look casual, he's talking to Dr. McCoy (sounds like he works with him?), and then to Callie, reinforcing the others' compliments to the young girl on how awesome she looks tonight (which, she does look pretty, and Tara seriously doubts the girl will develop an ego problem, so she reasons it's perfectly fine for everyone to say so).

Coming up with something to say, herself, however, proves to be a little more difficult because all she can come up with is something like babble about shiny things or chocolate, things typical-Tara, which don't fit in conversations in social-fancy environments with cute strangers and employers about, and so she's lost for a bit, eyes scanning the room in a quietly-and-smoothly frenzied attempt at finding something to spark conversation, absently resuming the wiggling-bouncing "dancing" now that she's not paying attention enough to ignore the music. Nothing immedietly presents itself as a conversation-piece, so green-blue eyes flick over to land on the desserts again, and she waves a hand at them vaguely.

"Dude. Everyone has t'have one'a those... things. Whatever they are over there, the ones that look like cookies? Yeah. They're amazing. Probably made of win, if win involves chocolate. Which I think it does. That an' coffee, I mean, but ...yes." The end sort of falls quieter as she realizes she's just gone into babble-mode again, and the grin downshifts to something more sheepish (though she's still not blushing). Another handwave in the general direction, and half-shrug serve to complete the thought best she ever completes anything, and this time the staring at the shiny things is mostly-intentional.

[Doug Ramsey]

Watching the exchange between his Hound and Corporal Summers distracted Doug from the enigmatic young lady named Carter. He thought he had solved this problem, but it appeared there would have to be some more... conditioning... applied to the situation. He would see that Scott Summers would have an appointment with the headshrinkers soon. He would have to catch up with Carter at a later point, he decided, returning from a visit to the rest room. Again, he cast his eyes about the room. The Princess Katherine had left, presumably to chastise the servant. There seemed to be a dispute between the catering staff and Arkady, the bounty hunter. Note to self: Speak with the hunter. Samuel and his associate were dancing, if that is what you could call the foot stomping that was going on. The pop star and the Guido's boy reporter were also cutting the rug. THAT was an interesting pairing. Summers and Grey parted ways. As good as a time as any to get a report from his best and favorite Hound.

Douglas acquired a sparkling cider to replenish his empty glass, and stepped across the room to the lovely redheaded Hound.

"Miss Grey." he said softly, looking across the room in the same direction as she. "Report."

[Bobby Drake]

The uncomfortable feeling was starting to get to Bobby. For the kid that fancied himself a ‘playa’ he was acting suspiciously like a schoolboy with a crush. In fact, Bobby was smart enough to know that was exactly what was going to happen here...a crushing in the most uncool of ways.

He steeled himself up as he danced. He reminded himself that he was stone cold and untouchable.

He valiantly ignored the soft parts touching his chest, the smell that was making him crazy, and how much he wanted to plant one on those full lips. He was also forgetting to breathe.

Something needed to be said, but nothing was coming to mind. He focused on her eyes for a moment while they danced their way closer to the end of the song and managed to keep time.

And just like that it was over.

Bobby was torn between needing to get away from her and not wanting to, so for a moment he just held her there until another song started up and panic struck him, reflecting in his ice blue eyes as he looked at her. He felt vulnerable. He felt alone. He had to get some air!

“I need a drink. Do you want a drink?” He pulled away in an effort to break the weirdass spell that was going on.

Note to self...never do that again.

After pulling away he found it much harder to look into her eyes.

[scott]

The ballroom suddenly seemed a little smaller than Scott had first imagined. His head hurt, and though headaches had been a regular part of his life for quite a long time, this one was insufferable.

He needed some fresh air.

Scott slipped over to the large French doors and stepped outside for a moment, leaving the stuffy ballroom behind him for a moment. He massaged at the sides of his head as he looked sullenly out at the shadowy grounds.

Gripping the rail, he leaned on his hands and sighed. He could all but feel what was coming next.

Though the sound of what came next took him off guard. He turned his head to the side and listened...the sound of a chain rattling loudly in the space of silence between songs in the ballroom.

What was...

He hurdled the rail and landed softly in the grass below, following his ears toward the sound.

[Logan]

Slipping back in to the ballroom was easy enough. Weapon X passed among the partygoers with a roving eye, not acknowledging anybody in the room, but taking every minute detail in nonetheless.

His nostrils flared just slightly as he caught her scent over any of the others, moving across the room from to keep a close eye on her unnoticed. She was talking to the priest now, though Weapon X doubted she was confessing any sins.

As he passed by his shoulder connected with the little Ramsey kid somewhat roughly. He turned cold eyes toward the kid and looked him over impassively and with a glance that was so devoid of emotion that it seemed almost alien.

There was no anger, or annoyance...nothing closely resembling human emotion.

The moment ended, and Weapon X glanced over at Jean Grey before bowing so slightly that it was almost imperceptible.