GP - dreaming of a black christmas

[lcrpg_npc]

The repurposed railway arches that housed Beagle's bar and restaurant were decked in shades of black: black christmas trees glittering with sparkly and satiny black ornaments, black wreaths with perfectly tied bows, black garlands draping along the walls and bar, ribbons edging the long banquet benches in the restaurant dining room. A gentle snow seemed to fall from the ceiling, a specially designed lighting effect much more pleasant than the cold and wet that would've accompanied real snow. Christmas music played over hidden speakers, setting the mood without interfering with conversation.

The Kraken Black Christmas feast was a different spin on the holiday than you'd find most places, and yet, a christmas feast all the same. All the flavors of the season were there, both in the bar's specialty cocktails and in the feast itself, served banquet-style to those fortunate enough to get tickets - mulled wine, egg nog, roasts and stuffing and puddings, and so much more. Yet the food and drinks all shared the same theme as the decor, shades of black augmented with squid ink, charcoal, or black sesame seeds.

Guests had been encouraged to continue the theme with black festive attire, but it wasn't required, and spots of color could be found here and there along the table or mingling in the bar. There was one thing everyone could agree on, though. No matter how black the theme, the mood was anything but dark.

Comments

[akatawitch]

Sunny giggled, a sound that was half nerves, especially considering the way she started playing with one of her braids. "I don't know? I mean, I don't know how--I've never--this is kind of the first--God, that's sad, could I be any more boring?"

[faizel]

"Why do I feel safe with you?" Faizel asked, not sure what, exactly, she was asking.

[prince_of_nymphs]

"I really don't think it was deliberate," Fin assured her, shaking his head. "We spoke, briefly. He actually offered to leave with me, but I didn't think that would be very fair to his friend."

[akatawitch]

Sunny considered how to ask this. "What made me, um... especially interesting?"

[toujours_impur]

While Sirius had had loads of fun helping Remus pick his outfit for the evening, when it came to his own, he didn't have to shop long, for he knew exactly what he wanted to wear. Yes, it was bloody scorching, but he did love him some leather, and he thought he pulled it off quite nicely.

The idea of an all-black meal was rather absurd, even to him, but the drinks were all intriguing enough that he determined one of each was called for, and so he was working his way down the list. Though it was probably a good thing there were only five drinks on the list, for it had taken him several moments to remember if he'd just finished the third or the fourth when he'd gone back this time.

Fresh drink in hand (fourth, for anyone keeping score), he started making his way back to Moony, though making his way across a room could sometimes take him a while, as he stopped to look more than a handful of partygoers up and down with a flirtatious grin.

[cold_blueeyes]

It was nice to be back in London, to be back home. While everything wasn't exactly back to normal, he and John were good for the most part, and between that and the progress Bobby had made in therapy, he was in a pretty damn good mood tonight.

He'd even been in a good enough mood to ignore all of John's snide remarks about the sweatshirt he'd chosen to pair with his black jeans, although in concession to the fact that it was ridiculous and also likely to get warm after a while, he'd also worn a more John-approved tee beneath it.

While some of the black food seemed rather dubious, he'd deemed the nori chips worth a try at least, and they weren't half bad, especially with the rum and ginger beer drink he'd chosen. All in all, he was having a great time, smiling and cheerful as he hadn't been in months.

[Feel free to run into him wearing either shirt. ;)]

[utterly_mysterious]

Well, this was simply adorable. Angelique held up one finger, then scrubbed the air, as if rubbing out that last question. "None of that. Comparing yourself to others in matters of the heart is not allowed. You are hereby granted permission to feel whatever you're feeling... " She paused, grinned, and finished, "If you tell me all about it."

[offthebeatenpath]

"Surprisingly, yes," Em decided after considering a moment. With Jag, those times usually involved touch and bare skin. His fear he'd hurt her or wasn't good enough didn't seem as strong then. "Sometimes. I keep telling myself it'll get easier once things are less complicated."

[akatawitch]

Ducking her head, a gesture which exaggerated her shrug, Sunny tried again. "I don't know what there is to tell. I don't know if we're even a couple really. I know that he's into me, he knows I'm into him, and we're barely beyond holding hands."

[utterly_mysterious]

Angelique sniffed, delicately. "It isn't deliberate. That's why it's careless." She sighed, and reached up to touch Fin's cheek. No matter what she said, she knew Fin loved Will. There was something there that she couldn't really fathom. "Your heart deserves a kinder caretaker, if you want to know my opinion."

[utterly_mysterious]

Considering Angelique's profession, that confession sounded rather quaint to her. "Well, your options are wide open, then. You've nowhere to go but up," she suggested with a quirked grin.

[akatawitch]

"You still had to think about it," Sunny pointed out with a grin. "Good luck, though."

[akatawitch]

Sunny only shrugged again and looked down at her lap, feeling as though her barely non-virgin state was like a neon sign over her head. "It's okay. For now anyway. I don't meet many guys who don't make me feel like some exotic animal, it's a nice change of pace."

[shannonteverius]

Shannon arched a golden eyebrow at the leather suit Sirius wore. "That's a bold choice," he said. His own outfit was cooler, though it didn't adhere completely to the evening's theme.

[utterly_mysterious]

"He treats you well? That's the most important thing. A bit of shyness can be mended eventually." Clearly, Sunny was rather bashful about the entire thing as well, so perhaps she and her beau were well-suited.

"Someone who sees past the surface... that's a treasure," she added, with the thoughtful quiet of experience.

[shannonteverius]

Shannon spotted Remus by the wall and wandered over to say hello. As Remus swallowed the inky liquid in his glass he asked, "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

[wandandawolf]

"You might have already," Remus told him, twinkle in his eye, and toasted him with his glass. "Cheers," he said, before reaching across to extend his hand. "I'm Remus. Here's to us wallflowers."

[akatawitch]

"He's sweet," Sunny confirmed, relaxing a little even as she was still speaking mostly in the direction of her lap. "He's a little odd, sometimes to the point of being amazingly dorky, but he's easy to talk to, and he cares about how I'm feeling, and he listens even when he has no idea what the hell I'm talking about, and I believe him when he tells me I'm pretty." This last came out barely more than a murmur, like even now she couldn't quite avoid her self-consciousness.

[wandandawolf]

Remus responded with a somewhat roguish grin of his own. "Oh, you don't expect to find the Picasso opposite the front door, do you?" He took a sip of his drink, admiring Felix's outfit. "I'm just making you demonstrate my value, Felix. I appreciate the effort." That tone was downright conspiratorial.

[wandandawolf]

"Oh, certainly not," Remus murmured, before treating Shannon to a bright smile over the rim of his glass. "But that's what makes it interesting, surely." He licked his lips and paused for a few seconds, trying to identify the flavours on his tongue. "...I have absolutely no idea what it tastes like. Maybe some sort of fruit brandy, but tart. Have you tried one of the resident concoctions?"

[wandandawolf]

"It's a bit of a do, isn't it?" Remus replied, with an eager enthusiasm of his own as he played with the cutlery a little, before dragging his hands away and settling them in his lap. Everything that night seemed either gleaming or black, and either way it was pristine: a fair cry from the medieval (if well polished) chunky settings of his school years, the drab, second-hand table his mother set, or even the extremely late 70s fashion of the apartment he'd shared with Sirius.

[toujours_impur]

Sirius glanced down and smirked, striking a bit of a pose as he replied, "I'm a bold man." He chuckled and took a sip of his drink. "Are you enjoying yourself? Quite an interesting concept, isn't it?"

[wandandawolf]

"Why would you want to do that?" Remus said, having overheard her. Benefits of supernatural hearing. He reached across to gently clink his glass of...something smoky and black and bitter...against hers, eyes smiling. "We had one in the lake at school. Terrible for the swim team." Was he joking? Could he be joking? Oh, maybe.

"You look lovely," he added, the smile in his eyes managing to touch his lips. He might have felt like he was being torn in two directions at once, but he could hold it together for his friends. He always had. "Here's to parties."

[toujours_impur]

Sirius had been passing the woman just as she spoke, just close enough to catch the murmured question. He turned and looked her over, liking what he saw. A flirtatious grin spread over his face and he retorted in a low voice, "If you'd like."

[toujours_impur]

"Is that how you want me tonight, then?" Sirius asked with a little grin as he finally made his way back to Remus' side with his latest drink, still probably smelling faintly of the bloke he'd just snogged by the bar underneath the stronger odor of rum and cider.