( open ) time is tickin' I cannot waste it love

[scarcastically]

CHARACTERS: Erik Stevens + Everyone / Mingle! I’m not the boss of you.
LOCATION: Open Field near ish the Palace
DATE: Sometime in July
CONTENT: Party, drinks, dancing.
WARNINGS: N/A


( i. party hats )

[ this had been the stupidest condition of his goal, but it’s a doable one so erik handles it the way he would handle any kind of mission; single-mindedly. he gets to work and makes a couple of dozen party hats of various colours and size. some might seem too small, others too big, a few that are just right, no he doesn’t accept constructive criticism. ]

Just put the damn thing on, it won’t kill you.

( ii. food and stuff )

[ unfortunately there are constraints. if they were back in usa, setting up the supplies of food and drink would be a cinch. however, he’s working with fantasy asian cuisine, out of which he knows half of. still, his position as a nobleman’s attendant gave him a hefty salary and he put it to good use. there are plenty of caskets of booze, all the kinds he could find and various eateries and snacks. some from the palace, others he cobbled together with the use of their kitchen like basic butter cookies and wafers.

eat, drink, he’s not here to card you kids ]

( iii. dancing )

[ and of course, there’s music. lively music, slow tunes. erik managed to hire a band (like three people on instruments but details). the sun was setting, the breeze was cool and maybe for a brief moment, you want to enjoy yourself. give up your worries for a day. the light hits the flowers, giving the scenery a warm orange glow.

grab a partner and have a little fun. ]

Comments

iii

[winscenario]

[ Jim isn't exactly in the mood for a party, admittedly, but he sees Erik's post and decides to drop by anyway. He'd like to get to know him better, and besides right now things are pretty quiet. He may as well take the opportunity to help himself to some good booze.

Despite that train of thought, he doesn't actually drink much, just enough to feel slightly tipsy by the time the sun sets, and by now he's spent most of the party just chatting a few people and standing around in the sidelines. He's also tragically not wearing one of Erik's hats. Maybe he's outgrown parties, huh. ]

Are you going to dance? [ He asks with a smile as soon as he spots Erik walking towards him (or somewhere in his general direction). ]

ii

[bindsthedead]

[Sabriel's happy enough for an excuse to take her mind off of things. And she's often enjoyed a glass of wine at dinner- she's not a child, after all.

How different could a party serving alcohol be? And the food's good, even if Sabriel still struggles a little with the chopsticks. She's happy to make conversation- mostly light, idle chitchat, unless someone brings up something serious first.

Later in the night though- she's definitely swaying a little bit.]

i.

[silverneedles]

[ This is too much.

Wen Qing stares at the brightly colored, polka-dotted thing in her hands. After months of indignities and then ending up somewhere completely foreign, having some demand she wears a— a— she can't even call it a hat—

No.

She snaps the elastic cord meant to secure it, glaring at Erik. ] This can be used to strangle someone. Or create a choking hazard. No.

( ii )

[soups]

❰ it's a good thing she has a lead to follow with regards to the party hats — otherwise jiang yanli would have made quite a fashion faux pas. it doesn't bother her to put one on, a little thrown by the snap of the tight, itchy plastic against her skin. aside from that, she's more than capable of following a trend.

the strange headpiece, sitting basically on the side of her head so her long hair and ornament can remain upright, is quickly forgotten. she's quite delighted to eat food she hasn't prepared herself, and it's happening so often in this world! and it's quite well prepared.

if she had to make one complaint about the food situation, it would be the limited beverages. a nice tea would go well with all of this, but instead it's just some kind of alcohol. it's hard to identify, being that she's only had an alcoholic beverage...never. so there's a first time for everything.

after about 20 minutes of floating around, drinking three cups by now, she can see why wei wuxian fancies this stuff so much. it's nice! it makes your nose feel tingly!

it also means she's trying to eat these guksu with a tad less dignity than she usually would have — including long slurps and a few unintentional mmms escaping her throat. ❱

i.

[bossily]

I know that. I'm looking for one that compliments me perfectly.

[And she's taking the time to pick up each and every one to give it an appreciative look over. It's precious that he's made party hats for the occasion. Even more precious that he's insisting everyone wear them.

She pauses while looking over a red one and glances up at him curiously.]

Is it your birthday or something?

ii

[chronosynthesis]

[In the spirit of giving the guests actually here to party the time to enjoy the food and... little paper hats, Syrlya only arrives well after its started. Armed with a pillow case from his own room, because he needs something to smuggle it in.

He has the manners to let Erik (Jaguar) know he's here before he starts making off with the buffet, so after he spots him in the area he walks right towards him with a hand waved for his attention.]

Thank you again for your assistance. [He inclines his head briefly.] And, I suppose, congratulations?

i + iii

[hatejakku]

i

[ Finn blinks down at the weird cone-shaped thing in his hands. He gets the overall idea of it, the fact that it's supposed to be a hat and all. And, no, he's heard that Erik made these himself so he's not going to... be critical of his work.

But he turns it over his hands and pokes at the pompom on top. ]

Well, yeah, sure, but-... You first.

ii

[ Finn's managed to relax a little after time went on. Not that he isn't still tense about everything, but it's nice to find a little calm in the mix of it all.

He doesn't strictly plan on dancing (two left feet, this one) but he has shown up to see what all the fuss was about. Besides, he has a low-key obsession with hearing new music. So he's happy enough to linger on the outskirts until he spots a familiar face and trots over. ]

Hey. Enjoying yourself?