open RP: music is infectious. No, really.

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

Having been unknowingly infected with a self-replicating spell by the mischievous Simkin, Camilla went about her day quite as she always would. Since she'd heard inexplicable music in Simkin's presence it didn't seem to her strange that she should continue to hear it now. And because she happened to be in a fairly pleasant mood at the moment, the music she heard was not disconcerting. At the moment it was some nondescript and upbeat jazz, actually.

Being a fairly sociable person, she'd say hello to people she ran across in the halls. She had no way of knowing that her presence would also transmit the spell to them -- that was the self-replicating bit -- and that their own personal soundtrack would consequently follow them, mirroring their moods as hers was doing for her.

(( OOC: This one is Simkin-mun's idea! He says it's "a self-replicating meme, that attaches to people as they interact with one another, and plays music depending on their mood. ... if they've got a song stuck in their head, it'll play that. But if they're feeling predatory, it might play the Jaws theme, for instance."

If you feel like uploading songs, that's cool, but you don't have to. You can just describe them, as I've done, being lazy as I am.

Once a person is infected, they can then infect other characters. Eventually the spell will fade away and so will its effects. Have fun! ))

Comments

[rated-ec10.livejournal.com]

Preston had been spending a lot of time familiarizing himself with the school. On this particular trip, he was surprised to see someone familiar and waved to Camilla.

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

Camilla stopped to say a brief hello. She remembered Preston from his Sorting; she'd liked him a good deal, and was glad to see he seemed to be getting his bearings.

A couple of quick pleasantries and she was on her way -- unknowingly having transmitted to Preston the gift of song that Simkin had given her. It was contagious. It did not rid Camilla herself of the music, so she didn't notice anything change at all.

[johnryder.livejournal.com]

Ryder, ambling through the hallway on his way back from the library, stopped and looked at Camilla, eyes narrowing as though trying to figure something out. Hogwarts was screwy enough that almost nothing should seem weird, but he'd never run across someone surrounded by music before.

"Uh, what's with the theme music?" he asked, grinning crookedly. "You do that on purpose?"

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

"Theme music? It's not mine. Simkin made the hallways musical, I think." Camilla hadn't yet realised the music was only following her at present, because, of course, she heard it wherever she went.

[johnryder.livejournal.com]

Ryder didn't know who this Simkin was, but since he hadn't heard anything until he'd run into her, Ryder doubted it was the hallways themselves. "If you say so," he said. "Who picks the music?" He could do with some Led Zepplin, himself.

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

"I don't think anyone is, right now. It's become rather abstract."

Camilla cueing Led Zeppelin music would be extremely unlikely. Once the spell attached to Ryder, on the other hand ...

"It doesn't bother you, does it? I like it, now that it's not so thumpy as it started out. Anyway I'm glad I ran into you. You've been well, I hope?" Camilla inquired. She didn't even know if a demon of Ryder's type could get sick at all. The query was a mere courtesy. "Have you seen Susan lately?"

[johnryder.livejournal.com]

Thumpy. Ryder smirked--Camilla was one of the few people he had ever known who could describe any music as 'thumpy'.

"Oh, I'm all right," he said, somewhat amused at the courtesy. "Haven't seen Susan lately, though--why?" He'd finally managed to get most of the damn cats to quit following him; he was convinced that if he went near her again any time soon, he'd only wind up with another feline entourage.

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

"I talked to her a little while ago, maybe last week (http://usethepoker.livejournal.com/3168.html). Maybe a little longer than that. And since then I've sort of been tied up. I was away for a while," Camilla explained vaguely. "So I was just wondering how she is, because she's kind of -- well, she might be a little different now than she was when you first met her. I guess I was hoping you could tell me she's holding up all right."

[johnryder.livejournal.com]

Okay, he really didn't know what to make of that. "What do you mean, 'different'?" he asked. As to how she was holding up--she was Susan. Susan Death. It wasn't like he had any basis for comparison--he'd never met another Death.

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

It could sometimes be hard to pin down exactly what Camilla was talking about. She was so used to circumlocution -- whether for tact, or to avoid things she'd rather not tackle -- that it had become a habit.

"Less remote. More like the rest of us," she said. It wouldn't be nice to tell Ryder what exactly Susan had been repressing, or what it had been like for that repression to crumble. Anyhow she thought Susan had taken everything too far. She just didn't want to see the pendulum swing back too far in the opposite direction now.

"She didn't have to be like her grandfather. She put it on and now you could say it's fallen off. I'm sure she can still take care of herself. She could before. In physical terms, I mean. Goodness, you should see her with a croquet mallet -- vicious," Camilla said, not in an approving tone. "But she's lost her armor, I guess. I think that's a decent analogy."

[johnryder.livejournal.com]

Less remote. Ryder tried to picture a less remote Susan, and failed utterly. Having never known her any way other than, well, the Death way, he couldn't imagine what she might be like as something closer to human.

Okay, so say he could accept that she wasn't the freaky Ice Queen anymore--fair enough, fair enough. What did Camilla mean by 'lost her armor', and more to the point, what did she expect him to do about it?

"All right, so she's human again," he said, half questioningly. "Kinda. If she can take care of herself physically, what's the problem?" He paused, his inner serial killer making him add, "And what does she do with the croquet mallet? Are there skulls involved?"

[tomowildcat.livejournal.com]

Contrary to popular belief, Tomo does not run everywhere like a mini-freight train. Were that the case, she'd have broken her neck on the moving staircases months ago.

It must be one of those rare moments, since Tomo is walking down the hallway at merely a brisk pace when she passes Camilla - and stops, looking around for the source of the sudden music. She looks behind the nearest suit of armor. Nothing. She pulls its helmet off, and peers inside the empty suit and helmet before putting the helmet back on askew. The blonde lady isn't holding a wand that Tomo can see.

It's a definite mystery, that's for sure. "What's with the music?" she asks curiously, looking up at the empty ceiling. As if addressing an invisible audience, she adds, louder, "Hey! Is there a ghost orchestra up there now?" After all, she'd heard there were ghosts as well as zombies!

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

Camilla had to laugh at the girl's suggestion -- more than audible even over the music. "No, I think the hallways are enchanted to make music today," she said. As it happened, Camilla was wrong about that, but since she heard music everywhere she went, and since she hadn't been outdoors yet, she assumed it was true.

[tomowildcat.livejournal.com]

"Huh! This is the first time I've heard any music," Tomo observes, still peering at the ceiling thoughtfully, closing one eye as if that'll help her see the invisible musicians for a minute. "And I've been exploring all day!" Exploring, getting herself totally lost once again, for Tomo they were one and the same. "Maybe someone enchanted part of the hallway. Dunno why they would do that!" She walked along the wall for a bit, tapping her knuckles against it. "Maybe there's a secret door here or something!"

What this has to do with musical accompaniment is anyone's guess. But Tomo's on the case!

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

Hmm. "Really? That's funny, ever since I talked to Simkin earlier I've been hearing music everywhere I go. He also turned a handkerchief into a small elephant but it's gone now." Thank God. "Where all have you been exploring?"

[tomowildcat.livejournal.com]

"Simkin? Your boyfriend? I didn't know that kind of thing could happen for real!" She briefly wonders if the elephant and handkerchief is a euphemism for something, but can't figure that one out. "Aw! I missed that!" If it was literal, it was still cool.

"Around! You wouldn't believe some of the awesome stuff I saw in the dungeons. I dunno why they ran away. Guess they couldn't stand up to the awesome that's Takino Tomo!"

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

"God, no, I'm not dating Simkin. The elephant was just a present, it didn't mean anything." Camilla hoped! It hadn't occurred to her before, but maybe elephants were meaningful to Simkin! Who could be sure, with a being as unpredictable as he?

"I wasn't in the dungeons. Maybe they aren't enchanted to play music. I wonder if you can get WART reception down there. ... What did you see in the dungeons, anyway?"

[tomowildcat.livejournal.com]

"Okay, okay, but you know what guys who shower you with gifts really want," Tomo says cheerfully, although she doesn't personally know at all. "I don't know about a guy who gives away elephants, though. Kinky. Or just weird."

"A couple of ghosts, I think. And there was something with tentacles, I don't know, it tried to get away too fast for me to get a good look at it. No zombies, though. I coulda sworn they'd be hiding down there." Something finally dawns on her. "Oh yeah. I'm Tomo! Nice to meet ya!"

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

"Well, I mean, I told him I couldn't accept the elephant. So he turned it back into a handkerchief. I just hope I didn't hurt his feelings, you know?" Camilla thought maybe she ought to look into this. "It's nice to meet you too, Tomo. I'm Camilla. But I think I should probably go see about this elephant. The concept of elephants."

[tomowildcat.livejournal.com]

"Ah, just let him down easy! ...'Course, maybe subtlety's not gonna work with a guy who thinks an elephant's what a girl wants!" Well, Tomo might be amused, but it was the principle. Of something. "Same here! I'm gonna check out the kitchens. Now that the house elves aren't packin' anymore, I might get past the door. See ya!"

With that, she turned and trotted down the hall. A few minutes later, the first guitar riffs of Bad Reputation (http://download.yousendit.com/41CDDA334DA7D2BF) could be clearly heard.

It was a tune the house elves would rapidly learn to fear.

[wh0-kill3d-m3.livejournal.com]

On their way to the library, Laura's treecat had leapt from her shoulder and raced ahead, attracted by - well, Laura wasn't sure what. So she was making her way in the same direction, taking care to peer in each doorway, when she saw a woman's figure up ahead and heard the faint strains of music. (http://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=download&ufid=E80A637013FBF546)

"Hello? Miss?" She waved. "Have you seen a really big gray cat come this way, by any chance?"

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

Camilla turned. Her own soundtrack rose in inquisitive counterpoint with the trill of a piccolo. "Hi. I haven't seen any cats today. Did you lose one?"

[wh0-kill3d-m3.livejournal.com]

"I did. He ran on ahead of me, and boyoboy can that cat move."

She looked around the walls and ceiling. "I thought maybe it was your music he was after - I know he loves our windchimes. Is this a charm of yours? It's really neat."

[c-macaulay.livejournal.com]

"No, Simkin made the hallways musical." That was Camilla's story and she was sticking to it. "I don't know how, really. I don't think his magic is the same as Hogwarts magic. And it's an odd sort of spell. Mostly I just hear one kind of music, but then sometimes there are two songs playing at once, like now. He needs to work the bugs out if he's going to do this again."

Actually the spell was doing exactly what it was supposed to do. Camilla just didn't know it.

[wh0-kill3d-m3.livejournal.com]

"Well, it beats messing around with the school's chocolate supply, that's for sure." Laura shrugged. "I better get back to the cat hunt. Thanks."

She waved and went past Camilla, the music (http://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=download&ufid=7AB927C351880375) shifting into a darker tune as she began worrying about her treecat's well-being.