Bite they little heads off! Nibble on they tiny feet!

[baedalites]

Who: EVERYONE.
What: Catenrat party.
Where: The Apache and surrounding environs.
When: Givdi the 22nd of Toidaren
Notes: The topic threads are just suggestions; if you've got somewhere else that your characters simply must be, make your own thread. When your characters are ready to leave, they'll be given a little wooden cheese, a glass fish, and a voucher for a big basket of snacks.
Warnings: None yet. Please put warnings up on individual threads.

The Apache is much the same as it always is: dimly lit, with the jukebox playing in the background, and the bartender serving whatever's on tap. Above the doorway and wound through a few of the sets of antlers some enterprising soul has placed a garland decorated with little blue and green fish.

Comments

It's a Wonderful Life:

[aldabeyoun]

In exchange for some creative warding, the owner of the Apache has agreed to haul over a tv, dvd player, and sofa for Ki, Steve, and whoever else wants to join them in watching 'It's a Wonderful Life'. For those that need to eat something while watching, she's brought a sugar pie (made with Alan's help) and popcorn balls.

[toldastory]

Movies. How Martha Jones had missed movies. Movies were probably the thing that she missed the most being here. Oh, she missed her friends of course, and she missed her family and the Doctor, but movies tended to be her stress relief. Lord knew she had loads of stress at the moment and was missing how she would feel wrapped in a blanket and putting on a favorite DVD.

Never mind that this wasn't how she imagined spending her first married Christmas.

A DVD player and TV meant that Martha made a beeline over to the couch where Ki was and Martha could barely keep the excitement from her voice as she asked. "Is this a public screening?"

[aldabeyoun]

"Sure is." Njoki gestured that Martha was welcome to sit wherever she found room. "Not worth going through the trouble of finding the right DVD here if it's just a one off, right?"

"The only rule is that you can't share spoilers for the flick until it's over. There's some people who haven't seen it before."

[toldastory]

"No spoilers. Got it. The movie's better without them anyway." Dropping down comfortably onto the floor, Martha pulled her legs up to her chest like a kid and perched her chin on them. Her drink was within grabbing range, and she grinned up quickly.

"Does someone have the tissues?"

[truth_is_cold]

Rhade does show up, because he likes Ki and while he feels no obligations to be generous, he does like how it happens to work out sometimes. So before the showing he goes to find her in the Apache.

"Do you need anything else for your DVD-" he glances awkwardly to the side. It's still a new word. And then crosses his arms. "Your DVD showing?"

[aldabeyoun]

"No, I think I'm set. I know it'll be a strange movie for you, since it's very much set in the thirties in America." If it doesn't make sense to him or seems weirdly out of place, Njoki won't be offended if Rhade criticizes it. "It's not really anything I connect to, but it's a holiday classic and I'm trying to see if I can get Steve to tear up."

[truth_is_cold]

"Unfortunately, for all of our education, ancient Earth popular culture is something I've been negligent in studying. If Harper were here, he could properly inform me." If it does seem unusual, he at least has the good manners to not interrupt and wait until after the movie.

He has a look around. "Who's 'Steve'?"

[hehaseatenthepancake]

Hellboy has been looking forward to this part of the party ever since it was announced. In the years since he'd left the BPRD to go wandering the world, he'd spent most of his time adrift, stranded, and/or drunk in places without televisions. Watching "It's a Wonderful Life" wasn't quite a yearly tradition at the Bureau, but he first saw it as a kid on the Army base and had made sure to catch it every so often ever since. He was long overdue.

Having made his rounds of the party proper, he gets his big bowl of popcorn from where he'd stashed it and makes his way over. (He's quite willing to share, provided folks don't mind the extra butter and the light salting he'd put in.) In his other hand he has a pitcher of soda and some cups.

"This is a fine service you're doing for the good of the cohort, 'Ki."

[aldabeyoun]

"I do what I can," she says with a bright, sharp grin. "And, well, Steve wouldn't've seen it and that's a shame."

It's just wrong and against the natural laws of the universe for someone has corn-fed and apple-pie as Steve not to have seen "It's A Wonderful Life".

"I saw it a couple times when I was a kid. A terrible dubbed VHS that someone had and would emerge once a year."

[hehaseatenthepancake]

"An absolute shame," he agrees. "I first saw it on film. You haven't lived until you've heard an entire mess hall of trained soldiers weeping at the end."

[fuckrobertfrost]

Though he has indeed as he said never seen It's a Wonderful Life, John is aware of some of the plot elements, and is actually a bit more reluctant to sit down and watch than he indicated to Kate. On the other hand, he really only likes watching movies if it's with other people, and except for his few years at Xavier's, he's never had the time or opportunity to do so, let alone with someone he's interested in. It provides an easy conversation topic during (unless Kate is one of those people who doesn't like others to talk) and after. He just hopes he doesn't have to talk about his family or anything. Maybe he'll make something up.

Once it's clear the movie's about to start, he glances over at Kate, the probable entire reason for having dressed... 'nicely', as in, comparatively nicely, as in, a shirt with buttons. But he's learned his lesson from the bar. Shaving just makes him look fifteen. So he's just got that look that turns any effort regarding clothing into a Some Dude look.

"You're still interested, right? I think I might need another drink," he deadpans. "Or pie or something, you want any?"

[joiedeviolet]

Camped out on the closest sofa with a mug of hot chocolate and far too many marshmallows, Kate eyes John warily when he asks her that question. Of course she's still interested. When's the last time any of them had a moment to just breathe? To relax, watch a cheesy movie with some friends and not worry about anything but if there'll still be onion rings later? Besides, the movie is a good enough excuse for her to hang out with him without anybody question motives and suchlike. It's not a date nor is there any of the pressure of a date hanging over either one of them, even though she did put a little more effort in her outfit tonight, complete with the requisite lilac perfume she always wore back home. It's just two people who know each other at a holiday party. Nothing more, nothing less.

At least right now.

"Yes. Yes, I am," she throws back, setting her cup down on a nearby table. "I'm going to guess you're not?" Kate's not going to force him to stick around, but she'll be a bit disappointed if he left.

[fuckrobertfrost]

"Nah, I am. You want anything before it starts?" John clarifies, eyeing the crowded bar and then adding in that same deadpan, "Maybe send help if I'm not back in five."

He hasn't been thinking of this as a date, because, well, it's not. But it'd be a decent way of figuring out if they have anything more in common, or if there are any wildly disparate views or something. He liked what she'd said in the library, and he's sure she's at least somewhat okay with mutants, so she seems to be potential friend material.

[deservesadaisy]

Ivan makes his way over to Njoki, Ilde at his side, shortly before the film begins. "As promised." It's really not such a sacrifice, though Ilde out and about is still a new-ish development after Sukkardi.

[rhinemaid]

She's slightly less sure about being at a cohort-wide party as opposed to the more private meeting at Lost Society-- but she's also already here, and she can't hide in a pillow-fort in Ivan's flat forever. Sooner or later there's a certain amount of 'back to normal' that's required, so here they are, her fingers snagged in his sleeve.

"Hello," she murmurs, glancing at the TV, then further out, in a casual headcount of how many people are here and how many are near.

[aldabeyoun]

"Hey!" Njoki is genuinely pleased to see that they both made it out to the Catenrat party. "You ready to have the cockles of your heart warmed?"

[wandandsickle]

Jones wanders by at some point, attracted by the sound of what must be a film playing, but even having a CiD with video functions, the idea of television is still something of a novelty to her. She idles in the back, craning her neck curiously over the heads of the other viewers.

"What picture is this?"

[gifted_hands]

Tadhg has slipped in rather quietly to the outskirts of the group around the tv, leaving him in a good position to note another newcomer. He offers the young woman a smile and then...stares for a few moments. This is not, mind you, a "checking the pretty lady out" stare. While it's just as intent, it doesn't linger in the same places.

He does come back to himself quickly enough, and he even caught her question. "It's called It's a Wonderful Life," he murmurs. Traditional Christmas film with Jimmy Stewart."

[captainredwhiteblue]

And then Steve sniffles.

Oh, sure, he tries to hide it with a cough, with fussing with the half-eaten popcorn ball in his hands, but it's a sniffle, all right. He coughs again and then he turns to the person beside him, summoning a smile, ready to confide something.

"...Did you know Jimmy Stewart was turned down the first few times he tried to enlist, too? For being underweight. He's kinda my hero, just a little."

[joiedeviolet]

He's crying. Captain America is crying. Again, Captain America is crying. Never had Kate expected to see this from the man who in another universe yelled at her and her friends and denied them the opportunity to be heroes.

However, she can't say much about the movie bringing out his waterworks because there are tears running down her own cheeks and she's sniffling herself. No shame with her emotions here. What for? Clearly she isn't the only one sobbing over this flick.

"I didn't know," Kate whispers, slightly distracted from the conversation by the overwhelming emotions. "But he did well for himself anyway." Just like Steve did.

[hehaseatenthepancake]

Aw. He wasn't kidding to Njoki earlier when he said there was nothing like watching trained soldiers crying at the movie. Seeing Steve sniffle brings something of that thrill, but it's accompanied by the fact that it is a very sad movie and Hellboy isn't immune to that either. He quietly reaches over and places a hand on Steve's shoulder reassuringly. It's okay, we've all been there.

Guess who didn't know movies came in black and white? :|

[mightymorbid]

Looking at Mozenrath, one wouldn't assume that he was the sort who watched a lot of movies, a habit he'd picked up from Snape and Martha. He wasn't the most accustomed to parties -- even his once revered enemy had noted he was not the sort who exactly got invited to many parties -- and so it was his first impulse to find a corner to sulk in, a familiar person to talk to or some sort of distraction that might prevent him from socializing too much.

A movie seemed like a fair compromise. He sat near Martha -- preferring to be close to someone he knew over the alternative (sitting awkwardly by himself), for a moment thinking he would slip in quietly and just not be noticed. He could do that. He was born to do that.

...But then he realized there was something different about this movie, that made it unlike any of the ones he'd watched with Martha. He leaned toward her and tapped her shoulder. "Where are the colors?" he whispered, looking mildly troubled.

[toldastory]

Martha had been very engrossed in the story. As soon as she realized what the movie was, she'd gathered up a pocket full of toilet paper and bar napkins in lieu of the tissue that she would have preferred. It's a Wonderful Life was just one of those movies that she practically was in tears for all the way through.

There were more tears there than usual, of course. Until she'd started watching this, Martha hadn't realized that it was Christmas. Her attempts to fix things with Severus had been a mad slap-dash way of not actually dealing with the fact that forever here meant 'forever without your family.'

But she was reminded that not all of her family were locked dimensions away when there was the tap on her shoulder. Quickly Martha turned and smiled with a slightly damp face., Looking to the film and back to him, Martha offered the answer in a whisper. "It's an old movie. From before they could color film."

[alan_shore]

As threatened, here Alan is, dressed impeccably as ever and holding--'tis the season--a glass of scotch. For the moment he refrains from taking a seat (he'd rather those unacquainted with It's a Wonderful Life had first pick) and situates himself near the pie--both for ease of access and so that he might extol its virtues to anyone in the vicinity.

(He will cease talking once the film starts. For the most part.)

[betterthansubpoenas]

Scotch is the evening's drink of choice, and though Kalinda Sharma will never admit it, it makes her a little homesick. One of the better remedies for melancholy is sugar, and it doesn't take an investigator of her calibre to spot that pie over where people are watching It's a Wonderful Life.

The movie? Not her cuppa, generally. But she'll pretend to be interested in watching it for a short while if only so she doesn't get dirty looks for stealing their food. Setting her glass aside, she cuts herself just a sliver of the dessert to transfer to a small plate.

That done, she lifts her gaze and offers a smile (that doesn't quite reach her dark eyes) in Alan's direction. "The comforts of home, huh?" She tilts her head toward the television to indicate the classic playing. She doesn't realise they've spoken before. Not just yet.