+ Now the Jingle Hop has begun [OPEN] +

[vitaelamorte.livejournal.com]

Who: Everyone [OPEN]
Where The Ballroom
When: December 18th, 6PM-midnight (oocly however long you want to keep logging)
Rating: Well gosh, that really depends on you folks and how you behave, doesn’t it? I’m going to tentatively guess PG-13 though.
Summary: The mansion's decided to throw you all a party out of the goodness of its heart. You know, if it has one. This is the open log for the Jingle Bell Rock portion of the event!
the Story:

Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring
Snowing and blowing up bushels of fun
Now the jingle hop has begun

Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells chime in jingle bell time
Dancing and prancing in Jingle Bell Square
In the frosty air.

What a bright time, it's the right time
To rock the night away
Jingle bell time is a swell time
To go gliding in a one-horse sleigh
Giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet
Jingle around the clock
Mix and a-mingle in the jingling feet
That's the jingle bell,
That's the jingle bell,
That's the jingle bell rock.

The ballroom is decorated extravagantly for the occasion, with all of the same sorts garland and holly and lights covering the rest of the mansion, at the moment. There is another tree at the far side of the room as well, though not nearly the size of the one in the front hall, decorated in a very classy white. From the ceiling, fake snow is falling from somewhere that can’t quite be seen, but it does not seem to gather on the floor more than a flake or two.

There are tables with chairs to one side, near a table filled with delicious food and beverages of all kinds, from wine to wassail to eggnog and more. The rest of the space is reserved for dancing.

We could tell you that the mansion is going to force you to dance forever and ever or something, perhaps until your feet fall off, but we won’t. Gosh, you’re all so suspicious. I mean really. The party-goers may wonder at first, some entering very suspicious of the mansion’s intentions, but it will quickly become apparent that for once…for once, it doesn’t seem to be a trap.

So giddy-up, jingle horse, pick up your feet and jingle around the clock. You can even go mix and mingle in the jingling feet. That’s the Jingle Bell Rock!

Comments

[blimeyjamwalls.livejournal.com]

This is the point where the latest song reaches its chorus, which involves a peal of bells and then another peal of bells and then so many peals of bells that it's hard to tell where one ends and the next begins. But begin and end they do.

God, it's like watching the physical version of a stutter.

[sadfreezingbrit.livejournal.com]

Here's a fun piece of trivia: The reason Philip knows his baking was caused by bells is that Clarence attempted to achieve that very same effect by recreating the sound of bells in Philip's mind.

He heard the mind bells all right, but apparently the mansion decided to trademark and monopolise its mindfuck jingle, so the corresponding effects remained missing.

It was a sad day for Clarence then... and it's a wonderful moment for him now.

Philip... well, the first bell switch got a chuckle out of him, but it's been exchanged for a frown by now, because that's just cruel.

He waits until the chorus is over to see whether the on or off switch prevails.

[blimeyjamwalls.livejournal.com]

A few more cheery lines of bells later, it's the latter. Daniel's experience of the last several seconds has been as one trapped in a series of photograph that don't quite follow on from one another. Or as a character in a movie with a bunch of frames missing. If neither of these comparisons suffice, just trust me that he's given up trying to speak and is disoriented as hell.

The extra wine catches up with him, and he starts toppling sideways and has to catch himself clumsily on the table.

[sadfreezingbrit.livejournal.com]

This seems like an appropriate moment for a little copy and paste with a few annotations.

Right. Time for serious face [again]. Philip stands up [gets rid of his fruit salad], puts his hand on Daniel's shoulder and shakes, carefully. attempts to provide additional stability.

"Daniel?"

[blimeyjamwalls.livejournal.com]

And Daniel attempts to stay upright. Between Phil's steadying hand and the helpfully-positioned table, he manages not to end up on his arse. But this time he doesn't laugh.

Slurred: "See it did it again."

[sadfreezingbrit.livejournal.com]

"Yeah..."

And Philip would be having the time of his life with it, if he was more of a practical joker. As it is he merely has a careful look around the hall.

Objects of interest, as far as he can see, is an empty lounge nearby and the exit. The lounge seems easier to reach by far, but staying in an area frequently blessed by bell music might not be the best idea.

He intends to relay this conclusion to Daniel, but doesn't come much further than something heavily overshadowed by tones of 'my place or yours'.

"Where do we go now~?"

NOT NOW MANSION GDI.

Uhmuhmuhm...

"...Do you want to leave?"

HA. Okay, that's the cliffnotes version of everything Philip wanted to suggested, but it will have to do.

Not that Philip actually thinks leaving the choice up to Daniel is such a good idea, but even (or perhaps especially) piss drunk he doubts his ability to drag his friend anywhere without his consent.

[blimeyjamwalls.livejournal.com]

It's okay, Daniel's had a similar idea. It's less easy to joke about in the actual event.

"I am all right. I can... I c'n conduct myself."

Well, you know. We said he'd had a similar idea, not that he'd lost the desire to be impressive. Give him a moment. Let him wobble some more, maybe register the fact that he's literally balancing in a confusion of inebriation at this point.

"...P'raps somewhere to sit down."

[sadfreezingbrit.livejournal.com]

"Yeah. Sure."

In case you're wondering, that's an affirmative. An okay, if you will. Sitting down was plan B, after all.

Philip helpfully offers to hook arms for the greater good of maintaining Daniel's not-end-up-on-his-arse streak. He looks towards the lounge and--

What the hell? was a lounge, only seconds ago!

Right. Okay. There's some

He grits his teeth and looks past Daniel's shoulder, back to where they sat earlier,

"You fucking--"

Philip bites his lip. No hissing at the alien virus in his head while in company. Utterly wankered company, but company all the same.

He takes a sharp breath.

"Over there okay?"

He attempts to turn Daniel carefully, steering him towards... a comfortable sofa and a few armchairs or a lovely yucca plant.

[blimeyjamwalls.livejournal.com]

"What did I do?" he complains, being not exactly up to the task of considering the statement's implications at the moment.

Leading him places is remarkably easy, since he has for now decided to use Philip as a dedicated balancing-post.

[sadfreezingbrit.livejournal.com]

Philip really wishes Daniel had chosen a different statement to respond to. So he repeats the other one again, a little louder, a little slower, because obviously Daniel did not understand him properly in his drunken haze.

"I just asked if over there was okay."

He attempts to point with his head while venturing boldly onwards, leading Daniel further in the direction of the

@&F#KC§€S!H/#D@!!!

[blimeyjamwalls.livejournal.com]

"No," says Daniel, who picks the awkwardest moments to be stubborn. "You said--"

OH HEY, is that the bell-filled chorus coming round again? He starts to pull away, walk back to the buffet, then stops.

"--y--"

Then starts walking again, then loses track of his centre of gravity completely and ends up in a heap on the floor. After that, well, imagine a guy totally out of his skull trying to arrange his limbs into a standing position, but constantly finding that they've moved somewhere he doesn't expect them to be. It's not an endeavour traditionally associated with success.

[sadfreezingbrit.livejournal.com]

Behind them the back into a lounge while

Philip himself wonders if that's where most of his drinks have gone to. He also wonders whether an alien with the mind of a teenage prankster is preferable to one with the disposition of a homicidal maniac.

He has no time to pursue that particular train of thought further as Daniel resumes his futile limb rearrangement dance, forcing Philip to bite his lip and cover his mouth in an effort to (shamefully, as the narration would like to add) hide his own amusement.

Once again he will be forced to wait for the chorus to end until he can take action. As much as he wants to offer a hand immediately, he doesn't quite trust the extent of his steadying quality at the moment.

[blimeyjamwalls.livejournal.com]

Daniel would be hurt, sir. Hurt and affronted.

...Apparently being on the floor is a good antidote to the event, though, because now the chorus has ended and he hasn't touched a single drop. Daniel gets himself onto his knees and sways there in a dismayed sort of fashion.

[sadfreezingbrit.livejournal.com]

We will keep 'tripping Dan' in mind for the next chorus. But for now Philip merely gets a grip on himself and then one on Daniel, in an effort to help him back on his feet.

"Up you go~"

[blimeyjamwalls.livejournal.com]

Up he goes. But not like that, you filthy-minded physicist.

"I'll certainly be ashamed of this," he says indistinctly, holding on to Philip's shoulder. Not that he isn't a bit already, but hey, clear communication is not his best friend.

[sadfreezingbrit.livejournal.com]

"Two more days of this and I doubt you'll remember anything to be ashamed of."

Contrary to the edge of ♥~ on that last part it seems that the only thing Philip will be putting in tonight is his foot, even if his grin might indicate otherwise.

"Anyway," he says while carefully steering Daniel towards the exit, "let's go."

Difficult or not, Phil's not watching him twitch through another chorus, not if he can avoid it.

[blimeyjamwalls.livejournal.com]

"By God, we've found my greatest talent," he says loudly, not sure whether he's making a joke or angsting.

...You know what, exit sound good. Let's do that.

[sadfreezingbrit.livejournal.com]

Truthfully Philip likely wouldn't even know enough details about Daniel's amnesia to feel all too ashamed about his previous comment, even if he was in a state to feel said amount of shame on account of his previous comment.

...

...

Yeah.

He'll stay silent for now in any case, focusing his attention on getting Daniel away from the dance music as fast as his current state will allow.

[blimeyjamwalls.livejournal.com]

"Where are we going?"

Ever on and on he wobbles.

[sadfreezingbrit.livejournal.com]

That's... a good question, actually.

You know what this mansion needs? An elevator.

Because as it is Philip doesn't think he can get the both of them all the way up to the fifth floor... not with the amount of effort he's currently willing to spare.

But hey, one of the infinite number of empty rooms somewhere on the other side of this floor will do, just as long as it's far away from the sounds of the dance.

"Somewhere nice and quiet."

...

Aaaaaand we're moving on.

[blimeyjamwalls.livejournal.com]

Between the boozing and the noisy future music, Daniel's starting to get a headache, so the notion of going somewhere quiet is a welcome one. Thanks, Philip bro.

"I'm sorry, I'd not be in this state if the event... if it weren't for the event."

[sadfreezingbrit.livejournal.com]

Really? Seems to Philip that this is a great state to be in. In fact, he still has every intention of achieving a similar state tonight.

"Don't worry about it."

Ah, though supposedly there is something to be said for choosing this outcome rather than having it forced on you, sip by sip.

They are now leaving the ballroom and embarking on a journey along the seemingly endless corridor. Philip hopes that somewhere along the way a magical room will be found to house Daniel for the night.