Childermas Surprise: (Come One, Come All)

Underwood watched the scene unfold with interest, and then confusion, and then abruptly stopped watching when naked guys were in evidence, doing the reflexive “I have wandered into the dorm bathroom at precisely the wrong time” pivot and eye-cover. There was only one thing to do. Making sure to look at only the relatively clothed portions of the audience, smiling sheepishly and pulling on his collar.

“Good night, everybody!”

And with that, the reporter left the mike. Some people knew when they were upstaged.

Erin was relatively grumpy over losing her bear. But as a changeling, she couldn't quite deny the feeling of rightness that settled over her. This was how things should go, yes. Besides, she wasn't really phased by the nudity at all. It wasn't like the boys hadn't done this before. Heck, last time they were making out. And it wasn't like she didn't have a copy of that "celebrities bare all" magazine that no one really knew about. Erin liked to support her friends.

A large bouquet of roses landed with a thud in front of Ben.

"Ask her out!" someone yelled from the crowd.

Make ALL the flowers! (3)

The Grand Show

There are some things that no red-blooded woman could resist. This was one of them. So, Whim changed her course, finishing her song and sidling over to Ben and Ilkin. She gave them an arch look, putting her hands on her hips. "You two..." She said with a smirk.

"So." Whim said, slinking over to Ben and putting her linkd hands on his shoulder, sort of hanging off it. She grinned up at the very... out there... rugby player. She grinned a little wider as she heard someone call out from the crowd, and the roses landed near the two. "Is there a point to this, or did you just get caught up in the moment?"

Ilkin, meanwhile, felt someone put her fingers around the lobe of his ear and pull him down a little. "You and I are going to talk." Deborah said, trying not to giggle.


Seth, Bo, Michael

Spike took a long look at Seth, and then began to edge away as quickly as he possibly could. If Bo came with him, that would've been very much appreciated, but at the moment, with exhileration in his heart and the images before him, Spike was going to be looking for someone of the feminine persuasion.

"Hi!" The problem with being very pretty and being very sad at a party, is that both of these tend to draw people to you. So Michael was not to be left alone to his funk for very long. "My name's Marcus. Are you okay?"

Marcus was quite possibly the most handsome man Michael had ever seen. He was of average height, but he had bright blue eyes that sparkled with adorable innocence, hair that shimmered like gold, and a perfectly formed face and form. He was a very, very pretty man. He was also a very, very pretty man who did not wear a great deal, only the kind of very expensive jeans that a model would wear. He wore no shoes, nor a shirt, only a tiny ruby stud through one ear. He was also apparently made out of gold, and had very tiny horns and wings, a bit like the classic image of the incubus.


Underwood

Squick scrammed as well, following Underwood into the throng. The boneless tunnelgrub considered snatching a drink for a moment, but really, after tonight, he wasn't going to touch anything that the Jack-of-Crows prepared.

"This happens a lot more often than you'd think." Squick observed, settling for grabbing a pumpkin pie. "Though usually only at Spring parties."

Lauren watched the whole show with the cheerful acceptance of someone happily drunk. Honestly, the sudden feeling of "rightness" was a little overkill. Mack would probably agree, especially when Lauren leaned against her and cooed, "Awwww, isn't that wonderful!" She was looking at the naked men, which was wonderful, but perhaps not in the way that deserved the kind of praise usually reserved for weddings and adorable children. "That's like.... a Hallmark moment!"

She stood there smiling happily at the scene for a moment, then frowned. It felt like she was forgetting something.... Oh! "Mack, I'm gonna go find my boyfriend before he runs out of here. Sometimes he's kinda allergic to gay," she said somberly. Lauren patted Mack's shoulder before stumbling off in search of Oleander.

Thankfully, Whim and Deborah interrupted things before Ben and Ilkin could even consider Seth's request.

Ben disentangled himself from Ilkin and smiled sheepishly at Whim. He bent down, picked up the roses, and held them out. "Jay said I had to do it," he said, flushing a little, "Said the future depended on it. I trust 'im on all of that, so who am I to argue?" Ilkin just grinned.

"So what do you say you and me go have some cider?" Ben asked, holding the roses out to Whim.

Ilkin snickered and rolled his eyes up to look at Deb. "Whatever for?" he asked, the perfect picture of innocence, "I've done nothing but save the party."

Bo also gave Seth a dubious look, though for different reasons. The drunken, somberly-dressed mage was scaring off the immortal's potential protege, something Bo decidedly didn't approve of. Also, Bo was pretty sure Seth would be naked within thirty seconds, tops. It wasn't that Bo had anything against public nudity or even naked men. It was more he had a goal and an agenda and he much preferred not to have crazy naked poofs interrupting that.

So he headed after Spike. "Why don't we go get ourselves some food?" he suggested to the young man. "I think it's safer there."

Underwood went for one of the mini cheesecakes, taking his first bite with the deliberation of a long-time connoisseur, and apparently finding it serviceable after some thought.

“Don’t I know it, brother. Our own Lambent Queen puts on this big shindig every year, for Sweeps Week – not a lot there that’s broadcast quality, let me tell you.” The reporter sighed, absently twirling his fork. “I don’t begrudge anyone anything, you know? Only time was, there were different standards. Different kind of class.”

The reporter grabbed a glass of the cider and tipped it in the Tunnelgrub’s direction, with a melancholy sort of a smile. “Here’s to old times, Squick my man.”

Of course, when he took a sip, his expression changed somewhat dramatically – alcohol didn’t do much to Underwood anymore, but he knew a potent drink when he tasted it. “Whoo! Stuff kicks like a mule. Your boss sideline in paint thinner, or what?”

I'm done with all that I want to do. So if you guys want to keep just hanging out in Childermas, let me know in your next posts, otherwise I'll start winding this down over the next 2-3 posts. Sound like a plan?


The Grand Show

Whim rolled her eyes, but it was a fond sort of expression. She accepted the roses, because she rather liked roses, and then quirked a smile. "Sure. Though you're going to catch a chill."

"Mmm-hmm. Riiiiight Hero." Deborah said, not even remotely convinced. "What say we follow your mate's example and get some cider, and then you can tell me about it. I really want to hear the logic here."


Lauren

It was with a very strange expression that Mack watched Lauren go. The older vampire felt as though she'd just been blitzed. It was peculiar.


"Hey Lauren." Oleander said, favoring his girlfriend with a cheerfully drunken leer. He'd been standing to one side of the crowd, and had been appreciating Whim's charms (platonically, of course). Then along came Ilkin and Ben, and that took some of the enjoyment out of the game. So the werewolf had been wandering around aimlessly when Lauren found him. "Where'd you go?"


Bo

"That is a really good idea." Spike said. Food at least didn't run away, or threaten to get naked. He and Bo made their way to the kitchens, not that far from where Underwood and Spike were eating. The young wolfman looked at the menu, and settled for a bit of cider and some kind of kebab. "Seriously, this is like a really weird football game or something. At least no one's streaking yet."

"At least this guy's got loads a food." Spike said, wondering whether or not he could sneak some of this home with him.


Underwood

"I wouldn't know. I didn't spend that long... over there. It only felt like forever." Squick said with a lopsided sort of smile. Of course, any smile with Squick involved enough teeth to make pitbulls feel insecure. "Though those three aren't Lost, they're wizards."

The implication was clear, though Squick didn't say it out loud. Mages, by virtue of their mortality, were happier, more light-hearted people than most Lost managed to be.

"I'm told there used to be a Midwinter's Night to-do, back before the Jack came along. It would've been around a week ago, so it just sort of got cannibalized into Childermas." Squick said, considering. "The equinoxes are always huge parties, liminal things between Seelie and Unseelie. And the vampires have a bash at Bart's every month on the 13th, those are supposed to be awesome if you can get an invitation that keeps you unbitten."

"He grows all of his stuff here." Squick said, waving his hand around at the Corpse Farm, and the barren hedgerows and blackened plant-life. It was so easy to forget, perhaps, just what a strange kind of setting the Childermas celebration was held in. "It's not a place for growing nice stuff."

"Alllll over!" Lauren said, gesturing grandly. She reached out to him as she drew nearer, but her heel snagged on something yet again, and she stumbled forward, grabbing Oleander's arm with more force than she'd intended. But she was of course too light to unbalance him, so she just giggled and righted herself by using him as leverage.

"You're gonna have to take me home, I think," she said with a grin, still wrapped around his arm.

Ben, IlkinBen flushed and scratched his head, still grinning. "I'm a Thyrsus, remember?" he chuckled, "I can handle the cold. But if you'd rather, I can just turn back into a bear."

Ilkin grinned unabashedly. "Absolutely," he said, "Though you may need to wait til we're too drunk to remember to handle this."

Unless anyone else wants to chat, I'm pretty much done with these two and Bo/Spike.