As the party comes down . . .

---

Xavier gave into the pleading look Eli was giving him and snatched the bottle of rum from Cade ignoring the glare she had given him in return. If she wanted to let loose and enjoy herself she could very well do it without messing up his own night. If he couldn't indulge in a tense Dimbleby he could certain enjoy himself with a drunken Amherst. After giving back the bottle he took hold of Eli* and hoisted him onto his back giving his room mate a piggy back ride as they descended into the basement to join everyone else. For once he was mildly thankful for being mostly sober, otherwise he may have tumbled down the stairs with Eli on his back.

As the pair entered the basement he loudly announced, "Thee real party 'as arrived!" He let Eli down and swaggered over to the bar to get himself an actual drink. While his trusty flask was still tucked into his shorts at the small of his back, as it usually was, it wouldn't exactly be polite of him to refuse all that free alcohol Gracie was offering. He could save his secret stash for when the Bartender (inevitably) cut him off.

He turned to the crowded basement with a satisfied smirk, now this was a party. He spied Chloe hiding her shoes out of the corner of his eye and wondered how easily it would be to wreak havoc there, he found himself wondering if Gracie had a pool. Nothing would rustle the perfect Ravenclaw's feather more than having to fish her heels out from the bottom. 

---

* with Kelly's permission

As a witch of vaguely Russian constitution, it would be most unseemly for Raine to feel drunk after two glasses of red wine.

But that didn't account for how the basement swayed as she trotted down the stairs on the heels of several Slytherins, hands steadying as Virgil Carstairs leaned into her back like he was well prepared to doze off right there and then. The idiot had fallen asleep propped up against the wall upstairs. She took his arms around her waist and marched the last few steps - raising a fiery eyebrow at Xavier's not altogether unexpected enthusiasm.

"Video games and alcohol does not a party make~" Raine paused by the gamers, pushing Virgil off so that he slumped sleepily on to the couch arm. He leaned back against the closest person's shoulders and yawned. She kicked nudged his shins and turned around for the bar. "I rather think my grandparents call it babysitting."

And so they went. With a slight but reassuring grin – and more reassurances of no harm done and it’s fine, RELAX – Gracie stuck close by Chloe as they made their way down, reluctant to let the other girl take a tumble on her watch. They might have a trainee Healer just a few feet away, but there was only so much magic could do for a broken neck.

As the others petered further into the basement, Gracie stopped to watch the Ravenclaw put away her shoes (briefly making a note to remind her later), and blinked as she rose, holding out a pretty gift bag artfully stuffed with tissue. Nonplussed, Gracie could only accept and, peering inside, noted the shoes with growing bemusement. Recognizing them for what they were… did not help.

They were rare, the gorgeous things; it was easier to order them weeks in advance than to find them in person (much less the ones you wanted), and even then they had the regretful but inevitable propensity for being sold out. Most people gave up, eventually deciding– wistfully– that they weren’t worth the hassle. Gracie herself had made the choice to forgo the hunt. For Chloe Harris to simply give her a pair was…

“Is it my birthday?” she joked unthinkingly, and regretted it as soon as it was said. She didn’t know why the redhead thought it was her birthday, but it was obviously with earnest intentions. And the poor girl was already embarrassed enough as it was–

Quickly Gracie swept up Chloe in a tight, determined hug (–smearing a bit of paint on her in the process, but oh well; let her take it as a sign of friendship!). “Thank you,” she beamed warmly as she pulled away. “You should probably grab a seat, though, before they’re all filled up.”

Because there were so much more people downstairs than she’d thought there would be, it seemed; despite the traffic flowing between the floors, it looked like more people were coming down than leaving. There were faces she hadn’t seen – or had only briefly seen – upstairs, and though some still trickled out of the room (even outside, as the basement peered out of a hill, overseeing a slow but steady decline of grass), it was likely things would only progress further in this fashion. And with their arrival…

She headed for the main couch, just as Raine shed her sleepy burden. Since its occupants (or what was left of them) seemed distracted, she took that moment to sweep in front of the screen, snatching up the remote as she did. “Luckily I have more than that,” she loftily cut in, and with a press of a button the channel changed; swiftly the Slytherin dropped to her knees, opening the glass cabinet to turn one of the many glossy electronics inside on. “Because now that I’ve got you all here…”

Rising to her feet, a smile crossed her face, broad and brilliant and wicked. Picking up one of the many red Solo cups to litter the coffee table, Gracie thrust it high into the air—a mike clutched in her other hand. “It’s time for karaoke!”

With most of them three sheets to the wind and about as high as the sky, the room broke into cheers—only to cheer even louder as she downed the cup’s contents, making a show of smacking her lips in satisfaction. “Who wants to go first?” The hand with the cup pointed at one face. “You? How ‘bout you?”

More cheers, this time threaded with hoots and catcalls. “The people have spoken!” she broadly grinned and, tossing the mike at the hapless loser winner’s chest, plopped down on Virgil’s other side.

---

Come on, if you’re brave enough! :P

He watched a little awkwardly as Verity ordered another drink – the ease with which she took it at odds with the clean-cut image he knew her for – but the possibility that he might be the reason was a distressing one—Micah’s smile faded a bit, as she took a swig. But then she was facing him again, smiling, and though it was more influenced than was reassuring he followed her lead anyway; if she wanted to cool off, he wasn’t about to get in the way. He smiled back.

But then. But then, Verity was panicking, falling out of her seat, and Micah reached out to steady her, eyes wide—only to find her climbing into his lap, movements awkward– clumsy– as she steadied herself, drink sloshing dangerously in her hand. Stunned, he simply sat there, frozen, cheeks flushing a deep, awful hue. “Um,” he said faintly.

Oh Merlin, what was happening.

Weakly he tried to extricate himself without hurting her or making things even more awkward, but then. Well. She was square in his lap, rocking with laughter, and, and– suddenly her face was right there. He choked. “I,” he started, swallowing, and wildly looked around for someone, anyone–

He caught Theo oh so casually aiming a phone at them, but before his gut could so much as even swoop with horror one of the people sitting between them leaned forward, cutting the Slytherin off from view. Micah’s gaze skittered away. Ollie, Sophie, Zel—Dimly he registered the empty spot at the couch, but with all the blood in his body rushing places (specifically his face) he was too lightheaded to notice Ji-Hyun approaching.

As she crossed the finish line, Ji-Hyun’s expression relaxed from one of intense concentration to a smile, which widened very slightly when she realised that Theo was in last place.

It wasn’t that she was happy that Theo was last, but she did think it was a little funny, especially because he seemed so unhappy about it. She didn’t offer verbal reassurance, but she smiled at him, reaching out and squeezing his hand before releasing it.

As Theo stood, Ji-Hyun’s smile dimmed slightly. She knew that Theo had only played because she’d asked, and the others here were her friends rather than his. Not that they disliked him (mostly), but they weren’t close. She wanted him to get along with them, but not if that meant doing something that made him unhappy.  “Theo?” His explanation was enough to soothe her concerns, and she made her request with unvoiced relief,  blushing and looking at her hands very intently when Theo moved away. It wasn’t that she disliked the contact, quite the contrary, but it was still – they were in public! Even if people weren’t very interested, they could still see.

But despite her worries, she was smiling, when a month ago she might not have been. Time had brought familiarity, and even though sometimes she couldn’t quite believe it, Theo never gave her any reason to doubt him. The group around her had dissipated quickly, and instead of getting up, she reached out to grab something to eat. She had had a proper meal before she left, but it was a well-known fact that snack food was irresistible.

Turning to see if Theo had got drinks, her smile disappeared when she saw Micah. That was – bad. Very bad. Ji-Hyun had no idea how that had happened so quickly, and it should probably stop happening very soon so that Verity wouldn’t be embarrassed in the morning and Micah enjoyed the rest of the evening. Things between them hadn’t gone how she’d thought they would, how she’d been so sure they would (uncharacteristically, for her) that she had actually encouraged them. And – well, she shouldn’t have.

It just meant that her helping now was all the more important, and she grabbed the M&Ms and offered a general apology before setting off, guarding her prize until she was at the bar and could offer Micah an apologetic smile for not being there faster. “Hi Verity,” she said with only slightly forced cheer, holding her arms out expectantly, “How’s it going? Can you come with me for a moment? I need to,” she faltered, trying to think of a reason for needing to leave the basement, “um,” her fingers tightened around the M&Ms and even though she was supposed to be helping Micah, she turned to him for inspiration, “get some air. And Gracie said the garden is really nice.” Gracie had said no such thing, and the lie made Ji-Hyun’s face heat up to brilliant red.

There was a rush of people coming down the stairs, and Ji-Hyun bit her lip, not wanting to pressure Verity too much in case she said no. She wanted to get her upstairs, which would be quieter since now everyone seemed to be here. The less people who saw Verity drunk, the better.