riverviewlogs | [closed] a little party never killed nobody

who: The IPRE + friends
what: A dinner party!
when: Novemeber 18
where: Chez IPRE
warnings: some mild drug use (alcohol + marijuana)

Party time, motherfuckers.

After sending out invitations, the IPRE (mostly Taako, because he's the most extra of the group) spends a significant amount of the week preparing for the party, making sure they have all the food, decorations, and wine necessary to put on a good evening. The whole point of this is to be a distraction from a shitty month, and to get everyone together, since they have a range of friends who haven't all met each other. They've been talking about doing something like this for months, so it's nice to finally pull it all together.

Upon arrival (and despite Taako and Lup's involvement) the decorations are minimal. Couches have been transmuted from their regular fabric to rich velvets, there's a little glitz and feathers here and there, but they didn't want to go too hard on the theme. It was just a way to have a little fun with the evening. The bar cart, on the other hand, is definitely in line with Speakeasy, featuring a lot of gin and whiskey based drinks, though anyone with a preference for wine or beer won't be disappointed.

The start of the evening is dedicated to introductions and mingling, probably helped by the alcohol, though there's also cheese and antipasto plates set out, just in case anyone was worried about not being fed at something hosted by two chefs.

As a way to break the ice, and to get people talking and having fun before the evening really kicks off, the brick wall of the small living room has been set aside as the designated backdrop for a 'photo booth', which mostly consists of a few instant cameras, including one that takes what are essentially magical gifs, so long as the button is held down for 5 seconds. There are a few props that match the theme of the evening - fur stoles, feather headbands, felt hats, long strings of pearls - to make the photos a little more fun.

Once everyone is seated in the dining room, it's time for dinner. The food brought out for the main meal is warm and rich without being too heavy, slow cooked meats and roasted vegetables can be mixed with salads and lighter sides to avoid anyone slipping into a food coma before dessert has even begun. Everything is set in the middle of the table, for people to serve themselves, so they can pick and choose what they want to try. Lup has made at least one incredibly spicy dish, so be careful.

While there's no rush to leave the table, eventually plates are cleared away (by magic, so none of the hosts have to stop chatting) and everyone is ushered into the larger of their living rooms, where the small coffee table has been replaced by a seemingly floating table that's large enough to accommodate all the desserts. There are various pies (pecan, pumpkin, cherry), apple & maple cake, chocolate tarts, brownies and trifle. There aren't quite as many options as there were on the dinner table, but it's near a thing, especially when the section of the table devoted to cream, ice cream and sauces is taken into consideration.

Dessert is an extended affair, pies will stay warm and ice cream will stay frozen for as long as they remain on the table, so people can return and try more even as the rest of the night presses on. And although the food is, really, the main attraction of any kind of event that Taako is involved with, that doesn't mean there aren't things to do other than eating.

Once the dining room table has been cleared, (plastic) champagne glasses are laid out in what might be a familiar formation to anyone who went to college, especially when a ping pong ball is added to the mix. It's beer pong! Except it's actually prosecco pong, because this is a classy joint, not some frat. Or at least, that's the excuse.

There are a few other things to do, mostly in the more generic range of party games, including a deck of Cards Against Humanity that Taako discovered a couple weeks ago and had been delighted by. He's definitely going to wrangle people into a game of Never Have I Ever, maybe Truth Or Dare, and anything else he can think of that requires drinking alcohol and saying stupid shit. What better way is there to get to know people?

As things wind down, the backdoors open up into the courtyard, where a fire is set up, cushions and blankets placed outside for people to curl up with. The fixings for s'mores are available for anyone who somehow still has room to eat more food, and there's mulled cider just in case the fire isn't enough to keep people warm. It's a nice way to wrap up the evening.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

If I start to see colours beyond recognition, I might ask a few questions. [But he's obviously not concerned about it right now.]

Pirate? [Thor raises a brow. He knows damn well what Cisco means, but he's going to make this as uncomfortable as he possibly can.]

Are all pirates half-blind?

[ Oh no. Oh no. As soon as his reaction is anything other than some variation on 'yeah' or 'thanks' or laughter, Cisco realizes that maybe he's gravely misinterpreted the situation. ]

I... so you didn't- that's not part of your- you're just...?

[ Cisco's embarrassment and horror couldn't be more evident. He covers his mouth with his hands, and then asks, simply: ]

Can we start over and can I pretend I didn't just stick my entire foot in my mouth?

[Cisco belatedly gets his laughter. Thor is beyond feeling upset about other people's reactions to his face, though he still deeply wishes it was a costume.

He reaches out to pat Cisco's shoulder firmly, before he squeezes it in reassurance.]

You're fine. It's a new thing I'm trying. [As if he had any choice in the matter.]

I suppose a costume party wasn't the best place to debut the new look, but Taako is very persuasive.

[ Despite Thor's laughter and the shoulder pat, Cisco is mortified by his mistake. Now that he looks carefully, it's only too obvious that the eyepatch is not part of a costume. He can see a little faint scarring around the edges of it, and it doesn't have the look of something cheap from a costume shop.

The last time he'd seen Thor, he had had both eyes. Then again, it's possible that was an illusion (like the one Taako maintains over his own face) or that one of the eyes was glass. Thor had also had longer hair, back then; clearly there have been some changes, regardless. ]

Hey, man, if anybody can rock an eyepatch...

[ He trails off, not really sure where he was going with that, and figuring it's better to just let that sentence die before it finishes. He latches onto the topic of Taako's persuasiveness, saying: ]

He is. You wouldn't believe some of the crazy shit he's talked me into. How do you two know each other?

[Thor cocks his head to the side in silent but grudging agreement. He can rock anything, it's true.]

He's better friends with my brother, it was only a matter of time until we were in the same room together. [And in the same bubble, kissing. Never mind that.] The last time he talked me into something, I almost electrocuted him to death. Maybe you should try that.

[ Thor somehow manages to perfectly time it so Cisco is taking a bite of a chocolate tart right as he mentions nearly electrocuting Taako to death. That, of course, makes Cisco inhale in an inopportune way, and spend the next few moments coughing and red in the face. When he manages to speak, his voice is hoarse and croaky. ]

You what?!

[ How come he is always the last to hear about things?! And just what had Taako and Thor been doing, anyway?! ]

I electrocuted him. [Maybe Cisco didn't hear him because he was busy choking.]

He challenged me to a fight, so I fought him.

[ Oh no, Cisco heard him just fine. He heaves a big sigh, glancing across the room to where he can just see Taako, talking animatedly to Rin. He looks back to Thor then and asks, simply: ]

Why?!

[ If it were Magnus, well, Cisco wouldn't be surprised or feel the need to ask follow-ups. But Taako really doesn't seem like the kind of guy who starts fights for fun, much less with demigods who can apparently control electricity. ]

I'm not really sure how it came about, we were bickering and he put forward the challenge in a way that I couldn't possibly turn down. [Which is basically any challenge.]

He's quite a competent little wizard, you know. Don't let him hear me say it, but he almost had me with his tricks.

[ From the sound of it, Taako really had challenged Thor - deliberately, not just by some accident of etiquette or some misunderstanding. What on Earth had he been thinking?! Cisco really is going to have to ask him just what the hell had happened. Usually Taako seems like he's above that kind of macho thing. For now, though, he merely shakes his head. ]

You better not let him hear you callin' him 'little wizard' either. Don't imagine he'd be into that.

[ He's not really sure he'd call the magic that Taako does tricks, either. He's seen some of that magic. It can be pretty terrifying. Then again, none of those were probably spells that he'd pull out in some silly fight over nothing with Thor, who is, if not his friend, at least not his enemy. ]

[closed] a little party never killed nobody

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