Open RP - Percy is a strange (wo)man

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

Normally when Percy suffered from the throes of boredom he'd seek out one of the members of his league to entertain him, or perhaps write another insufferably terrible poem to share with His Highness, the Prince of Wales. He'd go to London for a lark or race his yacht down the Thames, scheme another scheme or maybe even figure out another way to sneak into the chaotic streets of Paris. Now? Now all Percy could do was meddle in little ways. He did enjoy a good disguise.

Dressing up as an old hag had been easy, but to dress up as a pretty young woman? Well, that would be a challenge indeed. He had found a dress, something rose-coloured and pretty in one of the shops (he did suppose it was pretty, but the tailoring was poor...and confusing), and had disguised himself well. A painted lady! It made him laugh to see his own appearance. His breast was small and his shoulders were wide, and he looked more like a Hapsburg lady of old than a dainty maiden, but he was fair enough under all the makeup and lace and frills.

Ah, and now for the fun. He left Adventureland and just went walking, wondering who would be fooled and who would just think him completely mad. He kept a fan in front of his face and tried not to topple over in these demmed pumps.

Comments

[john-adams-1776.livejournal.com]

John was taking his daily stroll when he encountered a woman he'd never met before. She was quite lovely and didn't appear to be one of these modern ladies, so he bowed politely. "Madam."

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

Oh, oh dear. It was John Adams. Well, now Percy had a very good reason indeed to keep his identity a secret. He made a silent promise not to toy with John for too long, to keep their embarrassment to a minimum and save face in the future. "Sir," Percy replied in a high falsetto. He curtsied and waved his fan towards his neck. "Charmed, sir."

[john-adams-1776.livejournal.com]

He gave a friendly smile to the sweet girl. "John Adams, at your service. Pleased to make your acquaintance. May I attend you somewhere?"

John had many fine qualities. Being a keen observer of the physical world was unfortunately not one of them. His interests lay more in the behavior of people and peoples than in their appearance, so he didn't notice anything particularly amiss.

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

Percy'd rather not outright lie to Mr. Adams, so he declined to give him a name in return. "Was just taking the air, sir," he said, clearing his throat discreetly behind the privacy of his feathered fan. What did silly girls talk about? "Such a lovely day and all, I thought I'd go nowhere in particular."

[john-adams-1776.livejournal.com]

"My occupation exactly," John laughed. "I do attempt to enjoy a constitutional every fine day, which certainly isn't a problem here. Are you newly arrived, Miss...?"

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

Percy thought about stealing his wife's name, but masquerading as one's wife was something he was not quite prepared to explain to anybody if caught. "Minette Roland," he replied, deciding upon the name of his wife's rival. The harlot - he suffered no guilt for marring her name. "And not exactly, though I keep to myself, Mr. Adams. With apparently so much to do, it seems a shame that all we are wont to do is walk about aimlessly."

[john-adams-1776.livejournal.com]

"It is not aimless if there are such friends to be met with," he said gallantly. "I far prefer such amusements to those the park provides, Miss Roland. Yet there is still more to be done if one wishes it. I, for example, provide legal services to the residents of this strange land and assist, on occasion, with the education of the younger children who live here."

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

He gave a coquettish laugh, which surprisingly did not sound completely forced. "Too true, sir, too true. I'm afraid I must take back my previous words." Now, now, Percy was intrigued here. "Legal services? Good Lord, sir, what sort of legal services could a person need in a place like this? I feel as though we have an omnipotent enforcer of the law here at times."

[john-adams-1776.livejournal.com]

"Our unseen captor is not so harsh when one behaves with propriety. Some time ago now I was retained in the interests of two young gentlemen who wished to be married. I inquired as to the legality of such a thing of Mr. Mouse and interpreted his words and actions in the affirmative. Thus was I able to draw up a legal and binding marriage contract for them." His expression was wry in the telling. But it wasn't as though he had much demand for his services.

"In another instance, a small group of men and women had determined upon providing police services for the community without inquiring of the general populace if they desired such a thing. I hosted a Town Meeting - a forum, if you will - for discussing the matter, and their proposal was ultimately rejected. But it was a fine example of democracy in action."

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

A noble cause, Percy thought with a smirk that he had to conceal. It seemed that such laws in place during his own time were all at once almost thrown out here in the Park, and he was glad for it. He had known men who had loved each other (it was Paris, for Godssakes) and it did his heart much good to hear such a marriage being defended by Mr. Adams. As for a democratic forum...

"I see now. It is reassuring to hear these things, sir, for I had feared that personal prerogatives were a thing to be missed while trapped here. You do a good service to us poor souls, even if public need for a lawyer might be small where there is no law in the first place." Aside from some laws, that is. He smiled and laughed softly, for he was afraid his feminine charm might slip. He wondered why Mr. Adams had not recognised him yet.

[john-adams-1776.livejournal.com]

It was an unusual cause for John, certainly. The devout man from early New England knew little of such things until he began his adventures, but rationally he could concede the possibility. It was only in practice that it still seemed damn uncomfortable. He certainly didn't look back on his make-out session with Percy with any fondness and he didn't even want to think about the logistics of going any further with another man.

"You have decided opinions about the law for such a young lady," John observed.

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

Percy would have loved to laugh, but the idea of laughing at his deception was too cruel. John had called him young - he could not help but preen at that. He did like the man though, very much, and wondered if he should make this encounter with Madame Roland a short one.

"Truthfully, sir, I am an odd lady with odd tastes to match," he replied with a smile. "I can appreciate the law for I have seen the world without it. I have no patience for mob rule for it offends culture and civility."

[john-adams-1776.livejournal.com]

"I would be no gentleman if I agreed with you on the former, Miss Roland, but I do sincerely agree with you on the latter point."

He'd be no gentleman if he said it, at any rate, but John was beginning to see that she was indeed an odd lady. He just couldn't put his finger on why...

"May I ask of this world you have seen without law or do I presume too much?"

[kit-invelvet.livejournal.com]

Kitty was doing what she did most days, ambling around the park, smoking and trying to take in the bizarre and new things about this world. Or at least enjoy the sunshine. She had just sat down on a bench, lit a new cigarette, then looked up and around to see...a lady who looked rather more like she was from her time. She bounded to her feet and took a second to get a bit more into role, "Well, 'ello there, darling, I haven't seen you around these parts before, are you new?"

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

Percy recognised Kit from a good distance away; the young man did rather stick out like a sore thumb, what with his stylish suit and all. It was rather easy to play pretend, and he found that being a young lady wasn't as difficult as he first imagined. Still, he would see if Kit recognised him before long.

"Yes, you could say that," Percy said with a "shy" smile, reaching down to grab his skirts and curtsy to the gentleman. He was a bit startled to find how graceful he could be in pumps.

[kit-invelvet.livejournal.com]

Kitty took a drag from her cigarette and looked the girl up and down when she got a bit closer. It was...odd, somehow. She knew how women's features should look, close up, for reasons she'd rather keep to herself. This one looked a little odd to her, but she made no comment, as she couldn't place why. Kitty gave her a polite half-bow in return, then smiled at her, "I can't quite believe I missed you getting here. Do you have a name, or am I just going to have to call you the pretty new girl?"

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

"Minette Roland," he replied, not skimping on the French accent. Kit was quite the charmer, but there was always something about him that had Percy wondering just what he was hiding. There was always something to hide, he knew that for a fact. "I've not made a very...public appearance until today, sir."

He took his skirts in his hand and stepped over to be closer to Kit and his very young face. Such a fop, he thought to himself. "And your name? Don't you know it's inappropriate to speak with a lady and not be introduced?"

[kit-invelvet.livejournal.com]

She raised an eyebrow at the accent, but first apologised for not introducing herself. She wasn't used to introducing herself to people as a man, or at least, non modern people. "Kit Butler, pleased to meet your acquaintence, madmoiselle. You are French, I presume?" She did have a very distinctive and...quite sexy accent. It was sort of deeper than she expected, but that was French women for you...

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

"Yes, as a matter of fact," Percy replied, deciding that with Kit he'd try to bit a bit more like Minette than he had been with John Adams. Minette hadn't exactly been a good person, but her occupation served his purpose. "I'm a thespian." In more ways than one. "Or I was, in Paris. In London I'm just another pretty face."

[kit-invelvet.livejournal.com]

A thespian. That might explain a lot. Mainly the slightly odd air she'd noticed about her. She knew enough thespians to know what certain things looked like. She also had admired enough women's features closely enough to know what a woman looked like. She couldn't be sure, but Kitty certainly had the odd suspicion that all was not what it seemed here. "Ah, but a very pretty face with an accent to match, if I may say so." Well, she had no real intentions either way, she just enjoyed playing this character, in a sense. So flirt she would.

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

"I'd say I was an unusual beauty, to be perfectly honest, Mr. Butler," he replied. He knew that he was a master of disguise, but it did make him uneasy at how easily people were fooled. After all, this was Percy in his barest of disguises. "Though you're very pretty for a young man as well. Tell me, would it be rude to ask your age?"

[kit-invelvet.livejournal.com]

"Unusual is one word for it." She gave him a wink and smiled, which could be taken one way or another, depending if she was right or not. If she wasn't, it was just a cheeky wink. If she was, well, it was like an unspoken bond between her and the mystery-man-in-drag. She smirked, to cover her thinking time to think of a reasonable age to be for that question, "Why, thank you, ma'am. And I am not a day older than 22. I shall not be so impertinent as to ask a lady her age."

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

Ah ha! Percy grinned, wider and wider at that, and waved his fan in front of his face. Well, if Kit had figured out that he wasn't quite as he appeared, then it would be just a matter of time before he was fully revealed. "22? So young then. It would explain the lack of beard on your smooth face."

[kit-invelvet.livejournal.com]

Kit swallowed hard and gave him her best sheepish smile, "All the men in my family never really got beards until they were quite a bit older. It's rather strange, I must say." She lit a new cigarette and took a quick drag, offering the packet and a box of matches to the...gentleman, perhaps, "I know it's probably not the sort of thing a lovely lady such as yourself would do, but we are stuck here, after all."

[yousir-mesir.livejournal.com]

He did like his snuff, and having finished all of Bernard Black's cigarettes after that one...rather disturbing day, Percy had found that he did enjoy smoking the tobacco. "When in Rome," he replied, then took off the silk gloves he had been wearing and hooked them over one of his elbows. His ring was now exposed, the one carrying his seal, but he wasn't sure just how observant Kit actually was so worried little.

With a bit of a flourish he lit the cigarette (he supposed there was no use trying to look confused or fumble with the match), and lifted it to his lips for a puff. "Thank you, Mr. Butler. I do hope your whiskers take their time growing in; your face is very lovely."