open | happy (earth) new year, everyone!

[genice]

WHO: Any and all!
WHERE: 2nd residential floor lounge
WHEN: OOCly 12/31; today.
WHAT: Victor's ICly claimed the day as being the 31st, and subsequently celebrating the "New Year" with anyone who comes by! After sending out a post on the network inviting any of the new arrivals via anomalies to attend, people are welcome to come enjoy a probably very random seeming New Years celebration.
WARNINGS: There is food and alcohol here, beware!

The lounges are interesting spaces, and Victor didn't hesitate to roll up his sleeves and rearrange furniture in this section of the middle floor lounge. A cheery wave to anyone wandering through earlier on the 31st (by his calendar, he's quite cheerful in acknowledging how arbitrary that really is) while he goes about arranging things to his satisfaction, before he jets off again to finish preparing his olivie salad.

It's nowhere near fancy, but he's shown up again with a big, borrowed bowl from his work, containing the closest approximation of olivie salad he'd been able to manage working with the supplies he found on board. There's a tablecloth tossed over the table he's appropriated for holding the foodstuffs, along with simple plates, utensils, cups and bubbling wines (three, okay, that's toeing the line of careful financial management). He's even figured out how to get music playing, though it's hard to say if there's any unifying theme to what plays.

Perhaps the most ridiculous part of any of this is how he's constructed a small cone cap for the brown, fuzzy creature that had been delivered to his bunk last week. That it's a shaved ice cone inverted with the words "Happy New Year" written on it amuses him. The unidentified creature simply coos and purrs and wears the cone hat, not moving off the smaller table it's been set on.

"Happy New Year!" he says to just about anyone walking by, tipping his (oh so classy) cup their way with a smile. Welcome to the party. Bring something to contribute to the table? Very welcome to the party!

[ ooc: please tag in with your own top levels and enjoy a relaxed, informal celebration of the new year (per Victor)! ]

Comments

[realists]

When Saw told me about Coruscant it sounded like this, but I don't remember it much. [ her mother didn't like talking about it and it all sort of swirled around with the rest of her childhood. ]

[ouzel]

It is, but even then. There are floors of these places, on just one ship. [ He shakes his head. ] Coruscant is just one planet. It makes me wonder what the planets these people came from were like.

[realists]

You say just one planet as if a planet is some small thing. [ it's half teasing, lobbing the space equivalent of a prickly pear at him. she doesn't bother seeing if he's ready for it. hopefully he is! ]

I wish I knew what galaxy we're in. For all we know, we could just be flying on the edge of the Outer Rim.

[ she doesn't really believe that though, maybe wishful thinking. ]

[ouzel]

[ He catches it, because even when he's not ready he's aware. Turns it over in his hand with a thoughtful frown. ]

I know. Still. It feels...opulent, in a way, I suppose.

[ Cassian looks up, considering. ] What if we aren't, though?

[realists]

[ it is definitely opulent, she agrees with him there 100%. his question draws some thoughtfulness from her, however, lips pursed as she considers. ]

Then we aren't. [ she strides back, chin tipping up to look at him, almost defiant. there is no way they could have survived back on scarif and it's almost funny to be parroting his own (loosely paraphased) words back at him. ] There is nothing left for us there. We don't have families, our friends... it's just us. That won't change whether we're in the Outer Rim or Andromeda or whatever weird planet celebrates the end of the year. Does it matter?

[ouzel]

No, I suppose it doesn't. [ Mostly he just wanted to know how she felt about it, if she was okay with the idea of a different, changeable future than the one they were given back home. ]

I'm glad you are here. [ He feels like he can't say it enough. ]

[realists]

So I've heard. [ sometimes he looks at her and she feels like she's going to vibrate right out of her skin and so to combat that feeling, she drops the fruit she's holding into the basket -- a lime green sweet potato shaped fruit -- and steps back, shaking the one bottle she's been holding on to. ] I'm gonna go buy this.

[ so she can drink it in the store. JUST GONNA RUN AWAY NOW AHA ]

[ouzel]

[ Cassian laughs, once she's out of earshot; it's not a bitter sound, exactly, but he worries he's saying these things too much and it'll just push her away out of fear.

Then again, she's only running as far as the cashier, so there is that.

After a second of gathering up more fruit, he goes to follow her. Just in case she doesn't have any money left after the yarn. ]

[realists]

[ as a kindness from the universe, jyn has enough to pay for more than just her bottle, but she'll settle for just that for now, twisting the cap off once the cashier has put her sold sticker on it. she waived a bag. ]

I am too, [ she casually adds when cassian approaches, tipping the bottle up to take an unhealthy swig of the alcohol. she looks at him over the top of the bottle. maybe stop her from chugging it. ]

[ouzel]

[ Cassian's face lights up when she says that, only for his expression to be clouded in confusion at her method of drinking. ]

Are you going to share? [ Is this a race he knows nothing about? ]

[realists]

[ boo. she lowers the bottle and immediately makes a face. ]

It's terrible. [ a beat, pushing it at him and taking the basket out of his arms at the same time. ] Try it.

[ouzel]

[ They make the exchange easily and he also takes a swig, frowning immediately. ] Eugh. Well it will get the job down, sour as it is.

[realists]

We can mix it with the fruit! [ which she is piling on the counter along with the rest of the booze. i am sure they look like such capable adults. they've got fruit and veg. if you squint, and pretend the potato that jyn's vodka is made out of counts as proper veg.

it does not. ]

[ouzel]

This is true. [ It's New Year's. Somewhere. On some planet.

Look, these people can't judge them and he still has the makings of some empanadas back in his room.

Still, the cashier raises their eyebrows at them. ]

[realists]

[ jyn ignores this look. can't beat the bullshit in her life. they should be grateful she isn't stealing. ] We'll need bags for this. [ which is basically like telling the help to do their job, which they do, jyn stepping aside so cassian can pay. ]

[ouzel]

[ Cassian gives the cashier a wry smile and pays, nodding his thanks before they head out through the door. ]

So. Are we going back to the party? Be honest. I don't want to take you if you don't want to go and you'd rather just drink with me.

[realists]

[ first of all, who says she wants to drink with you? oh right, she did. ]

I'd rather hug a Hutt than go back. [ it's not that she's opposed to the party, she is just opposed to her own presence there. celebrating, after everything, feels hollow. she's not the one that would enjoy a party, she'd be in the back with baze talking shit and lacking that meant she had no desire to go in the first place. she had enjoyed... moments, but not enough to want to return. ] There's a garden, isn't there? Let's go there.

[ouzel]

[ Cassian rolls his eyes just a little. ]

Hugging Hutts is probably not all that unpleasant. [ Cassian. He can appreciate, however, her honesty about it and desire to do something else, somewhere else. ]

There is. [ Onward, then. ]

[realists]

[ even walking alongside him, she still protests. ] They're slimy.

[ ewoks, on the other hands. those little fuckers are cute. ]

[ouzel]

[ Okay he's going to have to take her word for that one.

Also Ewoks are cute but murderous. Murderously cute.

Kind of like her but fuzzier. ]

I should've bought something to chop the fruit with.

[realists]

[ idly, before she takes another swig of the drink: ] I've a knife.

[ouzel]

Ah. [ He nods. ] You have a knife.

[ Why is he not surprised. ]

[realists]

[ she glances over at him as if trying to suss out whether or not he is teasing her. she decides no, probably. if only by virtue of the fact that she just told him she has a weapon on her person. ]

The job they gave me is disgusting, but it has some benefits. [ there is a taser. she has a taser. ]

[ouzel]

[ Not really, no. More like teasing himself for being surprised that she has a weapon. Small, concealable weapons sound right up her alley to be honest. ]

What are the other benefits?

[realists]

I don't have to talk to anyone, I guess. [ she would have to work more than her one shift to find out that it's basically sitting around by herself until someone finds a space rat. ]