[Before The Fall] 12:00 - 2:00 AM
Fraise had been thoroughly enjoying herself throughout the night, and she was certain Ithomi, who had remained perched on her shoulder the entire time, felt the same way. It had been an evening of endless luxury and fun, the likes of which she had never experienced before. She had been to parties, of course, but never one of this size or splendor. And never one with such an extensive bar - which was somewhat obvious, given how many drinks deep the Curio was by the stroke of midnight and Jay’s speech.
She had flitted about the party with little Ithomi, moving from group to group to chat and introduce herself, trying to collect as many names and handshakes as she could as the night went on. That had been her goal, after all, had it not? Meeting all the glorious guests that were invited (unlike herself) to a Jay Warlowe’s party, getting her own name out there. If she was going to make a name for herself… well, she’d have to attend digs and study relics (which was her passion, of course), but there was always going to need to be a little bit of elbow rubbing with those more famous than her and those above her own (relatively lowly) position in the Archaeologists’ Guild. Ithomi was more than helpful in that regard - the bright pink little pill bug was memorable, and he seemed to glow in the attention from other Curios. Fraise didn’t go anywhere without her little mechanical friend, she loved him quite dearly, and on occasions such as this, he was quite helpful.
Fraise’s favourite activity was reading those thick tomes on relics and writing her own theses, as well as working at digs - and considering that, she was quite adept at the other side of things, at playing the friendly socialite. It was exhausting, she found, and she knew she would be happy to collapse into bed at the end of the night, but the ever present and ever full champagne flute in her hand was keeping her fueled, keeping her energised to do what she had come to do in the first place.
If she was going to be honest with herself, she had lost track of the glasses of bubbly alcohol she had consumed. It was… more than she was used to. She felt an awful lot like she was floating across the floor when she moved, and remaining upright was becoming something of a challenge. More than once she felt Ithomi skitter across her shoulders, trying his best to act as a counter balance. She wasn't sure how effective it was, but he was certainly trying his best. There was a seeming aura of concern coming from him, but Fraise wasn’t even entirely sure if he was capable of concern. It sure seemed like it.
“It’s okay,” she assured him with a little pat and a warm smile. It was a party, after all! She was supposed to be enjoying herself, wasn’t she? She could work and have fun!
At some point, before midnight, she lost herself in dance. The main entertainment was wonderful, and it had been so long since Fraise had heard any live music. She had been working too hard, she thought. She wasn’t often the kind of person to let herself go and lose control like this - normally, though she was quite easy going, Fraise liked to remain in control of herself. Dancing on her own, tipsy, in the middle of a party? Nearly unheard of. But she couldn’t stop smiling.
Up until just after midnight, Fraise’s night had been something out of a fairy tale. She had felt much like a princess in her pale pink, ruffled dress, with her little pill bug fairy godmother on her shoulder. She had seemed to float her way through the party, enjoying every conversation she ended up in, letting herself be carried away with the flow of the music… everything felt magical.
Jay took the stage, and Fraise couldn’t help but mentally kick herself. Perhaps she shouldn’t have had so much to drink. Perhaps she should have ensured she could actually pay attention to the words he was speaking up there on the stage. She imagined they carried some sort of import. When the staff came around with their trays of vibrant, jewel toned beverages, Fraise raised a hand and shook her head. She still had a full flute of champagne, and as interesting as the drinks looked, Fraise had been raised not to waste a thing (“Waste not, want not,” she could hear her mother’s voice repeatin”) and she could not consider swapping out her glasses, knowing her flute of champagne would just be dumped.
She was smiling to herself, raising her flute to her lips with one hand and giving Ithomi another affectionate pat with the other, when her fairy tale night turned into something more akin to a nightmare.
She did not realise, at first. The cry went up, and with her slowed, tipsy reflexes, it took Fraise a moment to focus her gaze on the collapsed woman. By the time that she has, and concern has started to spread across her face, there is another cry. And then another. And they do not stop.
She cannot focus. She cannot determine what is happening as the bodies of Curios begin to rush past her, some moving to the sources of the shouts and others moving away. Her affectionate pat for Ithomi turns into something more protective, and she takes the mechanical pill bug and clutches him to her chest. Something is wrong, but she cannot pinpoint what. If she hadn’t been so excited by the champagne… it was frustrating knowing that she had purposely dulled her wits like that.
But whatever it was that was happening… it wasn’t supposed to happen.
Fraise can manage that thought and that thought alone before everything moves faster. A hand lashes out at her - a hand that she can barely recognise as that of a Curio. She screams. She cannot help herself. Her grip on her champagne flute loosens, and it falls to the floor, shattering into hundreds of tiny glass shards. She takes a step back, and feels her back collide with the solid pillar behind her. It feels as if there is nowhere to go, no escape from this monstrous… thing before her. Is this what is happening all around her, she wonders, as the hand comes again. She squeezes her eyes shut, squeezes Ithomi tight, and holds her breath. But the attack, whatever it was, never comes. She opens her eyes to see the mutated Curio engaged with someone else. She doesn’t even stop to see who her saviour is, because she cannot focus her eyes. Everything has started to spin at the worst possible moment.
What she does do is run.
It is, she knows, the most cowardly thing to do. But with the alcohol coursing through her, she doesn’t know what else she can do. She is not a fighter. There are many reasons she did not join the Hunter’s Guild, and that is one of them. She can dig for artifacts, she can lecture for hours, she haul several heavy tomes long lengths. But she knows she cannot fight these curios (if that is what they are, for she knows she cannot even say that for certain).
The bar, she thinks.
Without hesitating, now, she slips Ithomi back into her hair, instructing him to hold tight, and she moves as quickly as she can through the chaos, hoisting herself up and over the bar. She isn’t sure if she has been followed, but she knows she has to try something. She ducked under the bar, pressing herself into the corner and squeezing her eyes shut as she pulls Ithomi back into her arms. What is happening around her? What is this chaos? Will they be saved?
She can hear the movements and shouts from the rest of the party, and she can feel the tears beginning to well up in her eyes. She had been so excited for this. She had worked so hard to integrate herself into the crowd. But when it really came down to it, she was useless, wasn’t she? She couldn’t save anyone. She couldn’t fix this. She hadn’t even thought to run to the doors. She had decided to hide and wait to be saved.
“I’m sorry, Ithomi,” she murmured to the little pill bug in her arms, lowering her head to press her forehead to the cool metal of his. “I’m sorry. I’m so useless.”
Would they find her here, she wondered? How clearly could they think? More clearly than her, certainly. It… whatever it was, now, had moved so quickly. On instinct. And if it hadn’t been for that Curio, a Curio she hadn’t even looked at, she’d be dead or injured now. She was too slow. Much too slow.
A glance at her feet, when she could bring herself to open her eyes, told her she hadn't managed to escape unscathed. There was red along the white of her fur. She could feel nothing but her heart beating in her chest, and knew it wasn’t just alcohol coursing through her veins, but adrenaline, as well. Of course she couldn’t feel the glass shards of the broken flute embedded there.
But compared to what could have happened, what could have been… she was doing okay, wasn’t she? But for how long. How long until she was found here? One of those bottles could work for self defense, she thought. If she had the strength to swing it.
A voice carries across the chaos, then. Across the mess and remains of the party. Jay. Offering his office for shelter. She couldn’t help anyone fighting or protecting, so it was going to be her best chance, but she doubted she had much time. Okay, Fraise, she told herself. Take a deep breath. You can survive.
Ithomi in hand, Fraise raised herself up, gaze focused only on the open door of the office, and launched herself over the counter. Fingers of her free hand crossed, she started her dash across the wreckage to safety. She could do this.