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not_a_goddamn_princessParty night. The best of nights. An ornate sign on 33 Apocalypse’s door invited all to knock and make themselves known.
The space inside was bigger than it looked from the outside, stretched and displaced by magic. The wallpaper was green and textured, hinting at the English countryside. On one side of the room sat a significant bar offering food and drinks, while the other gave ample space to sit. A large Jenga tower held prominence in a corner.
It was easy to miss it, though, in favor of the little streams of water that ran across furniture and floor. Tiny glass gondolas, animated by magic, made their way back and forth across each stream. The gondolas were real, though the water itself was an illusion. It called attention to the ceiling, doubly enchanted: both to draw all cigarette smoke to itself so it wouldn’t blow in anyone’s face, but also to mimic the starry sky above Venice.
You could watch the stars twinkle, or see the occasional cloud go by. Magical fireflies added to the illusion, dancing through the air like tiny lights. If you listened closely, you could hear the sea rolling in across an invisible beach. Even the air smelled faintly of it: the sea, warm food and good wine.
Welcome to Eliot and Margo’s pad, people. They’d make damn sure you had a good time.
[ocd up, come party!]
The space inside was bigger than it looked from the outside, stretched and displaced by magic. The wallpaper was green and textured, hinting at the English countryside. On one side of the room sat a significant bar offering food and drinks, while the other gave ample space to sit. A large Jenga tower held prominence in a corner.
It was easy to miss it, though, in favor of the little streams of water that ran across furniture and floor. Tiny glass gondolas, animated by magic, made their way back and forth across each stream. The gondolas were real, though the water itself was an illusion. It called attention to the ceiling, doubly enchanted: both to draw all cigarette smoke to itself so it wouldn’t blow in anyone’s face, but also to mimic the starry sky above Venice.
You could watch the stars twinkle, or see the occasional cloud go by. Magical fireflies added to the illusion, dancing through the air like tiny lights. If you listened closely, you could hear the sea rolling in across an invisible beach. Even the air smelled faintly of it: the sea, warm food and good wine.
Welcome to Eliot and Margo’s pad, people. They’d make damn sure you had a good time.
[ocd up, come party!]
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 04:21 pm (UTC)"Summmeeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrr!" Tackle-hugging one's best friend was probably a dangerous prospect at a masquerade party, just in case that was not the correct tall, beautiful redhead-in-pink behind that mask, but Annie was willing to risk it. It wasn't, like, the most mask-y mask, anyway. She was confident she had the right girl. "What are you doing here?"
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 04:43 pm (UTC)"Ummmmmm, partying?" she said, after just taking a moment to soak in that perfectly executed bestie tackle and not even bother trying to hide her grin. "Obviously."
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 04:50 pm (UTC)Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 06:20 pm (UTC)Insert JenniferLawrenceOkay.gif.
"--and you know me, a good party is like a siren song, I had the opportunity, so I just couldn't refuse! I'm glad to see you, though! How have things been?"
It had been ages, Annie! AGES!
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 07:03 pm (UTC)It was tragic how boring Wednesday had become!
"Oh, I do have one thing to show you," she realized, holding up a hand, "but like, first, can I just say? Like, wow." And you were getting a little head-to-toe flourishy hand gesture at your person, Summer, because gorgeous. "And also don't tell Eliot I said this, but, like, you know what this party needs? Jello."
This comment was born out of loyalty rather than an actual need for jello, but still.
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 07:21 pm (UTC)"I mean, Annie," said Summer, very seriously, and totally leaning in because, yes, they could at least not be complete bitches about it by letting it be known too loudly, "every party needs jello. And honestly? I almost thought about bringing some with me, you know, if you're going to crash a party, go big or go home, but it seemed, you know, maybe a little gauche."
Also, she didn't exactly have the time, and most of the booze she had access to these days was...not for the faint at heart!
"And also? Like, totally shut up, because you are just giving me Amazing Personified with this look right now, and don't think I didn't notice your ah-maze-zing match work here."
And then, a pause for respect to the unabashedly loyal flattery, which was also, you know, hardcore truth to boot.
"But what do you have to show me?"
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 07:38 pm (UTC)"And, okay." Okay. Annie was fishing out her phone -- of course her dress had pockets, they were a requirement after those months of the bodysuit -- but she wasn't quite holding it out to show Summer the carnage just yet. "Like, I have Vought bullshit to show you, but like -- things are good in space? You're happy? Your mom is good?"
Because Annie was gonna show her this stupid music video anyway, because she had promised, but she needed to know whether this was catch-up time or cheer-up time, first.
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 07:46 pm (UTC)And Summer had no idea where Annie might be going with this phone thing, but as soon as Vought bullshit left her mouth, she let out an excited gasp, and was locked in.
"Oh, yeah, sure," she said, almost dismissively waving her hand at Annie while leaning in toward her phone. "Space is great, Mom's great, we're totally kicking ass, what level of Vought bullshit are we talking about?"
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 07:56 pm (UTC)She knew you and your deflection, Summer! And also she was stalling just a little.
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 08:39 pm (UTC)"It's not exactly the best right now," she allowed. "But it's getting better. Also, I maybe kind of got shot in the stomach," her hands went to the spot on her torso where that cute dress was definitely hiding a gnarly bandage very effective, "but it's okay, really. I've got fancy space drugs now, so it is all good. Mom and her team are also really great, and only one of them is being a major heinor bitch about me being there, but everyone else assures me that's just how she is."
She took a moment to guage Annie's response on if that was enough information to satisfy her for now so they could just get to that video, because while she was sure it wasn't quite as bad as Annie thought it was, it was still Vought, so it was still going to be a beautiful disaster, and she could not wait!
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 09:01 pm (UTC)"Holy shit, getting shot sucks so much," she said, her eyes widening in sympathy. Look at how she'd graduated to just accepting that if she ran around with dangerous, capable people, then her loved ones would occasionally get shot! And instead of worrying and freaking out, she could move on to the important thing: commiseration. Because getting shot fucking sucked. "You're okay? Like, you're going to be okay? Drugs aren't a longterm solution."
And look, even if she hadn't promised, Summer had basically earned the right to see this trainwreck Annie had called up on her phone. Badassery was its own reward, of course, but this was some grade A Vought bullshit Annie had to share.
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 09:21 pm (UTC)And clearly not even half as important as what was playing on Annie's phone, because...
"Ohmygod," said Summer, clearly the only response to this epic. "Woooooooooow, Annie. Wooooooow."
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 09:30 pm (UTC)But, she could admit, in a sort of hilarious way. She at least knew her performance was not the problem here.
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 09:33 pm (UTC)And also hilarious. They were both right!
"I mean, and not to be all male-gazey or whatever, but your legs look fantastic, and I kind of need to take about two seconds to just hate you for them right now."
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 10:25 pm (UTC)And maybe an attempt to turn that hand on her shoulder into a half-hug because ugh, Summer, thank you for getting her whole vibe.
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 10:32 pm (UTC)"I miss you, too," she said, and was just going to let that moment actually, like, exist, because there wasnt a whole lot of these moments she was actually going ot let herself have while she was here, but with Annie? With Annie, it was perfect.
And then she was going to get right back into nice, impersonal wryness by then adding, "I don't know what they were thinking with your hair, though, good lord."
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 10:51 pm (UTC)But still. She was nothing if not sincere, as often as she could be, and she'd sincerely missed Summer and hadn't really realized how much until right then.
"Oh, it's a wig," she replied, shaking her head. "Like, obviously, but it's a new wig. I'm wearing a butt pad, too. Which -- like, yeah, fuck the male gaze and all, but it's made a weirdly comfortable pillow in a pinch?"
Re: Mingle!
Date: 2021-10-22 11:03 pm (UTC)And now Summer needed a moment to just sit and hat ethe patriatriarchy with a little extra force than usual.
"But I do appreciate you reusing it for something more useful. It would probably be great to take to events and shit with, like, really uncomfortable seating."
Then she just thought about that video a little more and shook her head.
"What a great use of your talents, music videos with wigs and butt pads and creepy implied invisibility."