it's my party and I'll cry if I want to

[palfriday]

Who: Gal Friday + YOU
What: Icebreaker party
When: 3/13, evening
Where: Rischie
Warnings: TBA

[the morning announcements alter daily now, by the second week of the month. one week until the party. four days until the party. the party is tomorrow.]

The new cruiser get-together will start at 9PM tonight at Rischie! Remember: The dress code is cruise elegant! Hm? [there is a sound like a crackle and pop of static.] The Captain says he won't be attending, but he'll be paying extra special attention to everybody who does!

[if that's a sufficient enough bribe.

"but we don't have cruise elegant clothing," you cry. but you do! have you not checked the top drawer in your room's dresser, where at most two perfectly suited formal outfits are located? you have? but they weren't there before today? don't ask questions. just get ready for the party.

the house lights in the club are at full brightness, giving everything the sort of uneasy liminal feeling a room gets when used for something opposite its intended purpose. booths line the walls, and small tables and chairs sit between them and the dance floor, which is empty except for one table, holding a series of "HELLO, MY NAME IS..." nametags and sheets of glittery stickers. Friday is there, of course, standing by the table. she's even dressed up! and if your character hasn't corrected her previously, their name tag will have their true name. there are also a few buffet tables with refreshments on them, and trays bearing canapes and flutes of champagne float by. (deftly avoiding minors! excluding Jinx, but only if Venti is within close proximity. welcome to parenthood, barbatos!)

once everyone is settled in, Friday will clear her throat (??) to get everyone's attention and explain the rules of the night. it's an altered version of twenty questions: every person in the room must answer ten questions about themselves, asked by their fellow passengers, collecting stars for every answer considered acceptable. when they have 10 stars, they're allowed to leave!

oh, yeah, the door to the club shut about five minutes ago. it doesn't seem very eager to open back up again.

time to break some ice! breaking ice and cruises always go well together, after all.]

Comments

#2

[lightconductor]

Watson looks at this poor, nervous boy, and he smiles encouragingly. It's true that this is not the easiest of situations to begin with, and if you're already a little uncertain about parties, it won't be any easier when it's enforced.

"Hello. Mr. Parker, is it?"

[hashtagparkerluck]

Peter's experience with parties thus far have all ended in some kind of disaster so he'd rather not participate if it's all the same to everyone else. However, since he can't just opt out he'll do his best and try to hide his obvious discomfort.

"Uh, yeah. Or Peter.. if you'd prefer. Um nice-nice to meet you." He offers a small smile that might betray how nervous he actually is.

[lightconductor]

"Dr. Watson," he says by way of introduction, offering his hand to shake. "Relax, lad, you look as though the room were full of tigers. As impertinent as this is, it's at least not dangerous."

Mind you, he doesn't know about the vampires in the room. He doesn't believe in vampires.

[hashtagparkerluck]

"Not yet, anyway." He offers a small smile, maybe he's joking, maybe he's not. Either way, he takes the offered hand to shake and focuses his energy on trying not to grasp too tightly. Nothing dangerous? Peter's not so sure his senses agree, there's a slight prickle at the base of his neck but he hasn't seen anything and he doesn't yet have the urge to jump up on the ceiling.

...or he does, just not urged on by his Spider-sense.

"th-the last party I went to I almost drowned so I'm just... a little anxious." It was sort of true. He did leave said party in favor of chasing after shady weapons dealers and technically the last party he went to was Homecoming where his date's dad dropped a building on him and he crashed a plane into Coney Island but semantics.

[lightconductor]

His eyebrows raise. "That... does not sound like a good party," he observes drily. "I don't blame you for being anxious, in that case."

Watson considers the matter a moment. "Well, I haven't been to a party in at least a year, so I'm rather out of practice myself. Perhaps we should keep an eye out for each other?"

[hashtagparkerluck]

Oh, he has no idea the extent of reason Peter's so on edge. He offers a small shrug.

"Yeah, okay." He agrees, trying to focus his attention on the conversation and not everything else. "I'm okay though, really. There's no Hudson river for me to fall into this time so I'll be okay." then again, they are on a boat. So there is the ocean. He could still fall into that.

[lightconductor]

"The Hudson," Watson muses, trying to remember. "Where is that... ah, New York, isn't it?" He's ridiculously pleased with himself for remembering that fact. "Well, we'll keep well away from the deck for now. It's not as if we have any real choice in the matter at the moment, I suppose."

He gives a grimace.

"Well, we may as well play the game. Do you want to start with a question, or shall I?"

[hashtagparkerluck]

"Yeah." Peter nods. "Good ole NYC. I'm actually from Queens." Which if Dr Watson couldn't immediately place where the Hudson was then he might not know anything about the boroughs.

"Um. I'll be honest, I'm kinda blanking on what to ask except like... those question that you always have to answer on the first day of school."

[lightconductor]

"I live in London, myself."

It is absolutely true that Watson has no idea where Queens is, precisely, but that's okay, because neither does his player.

"Well, I'll start with something, then." He considers, tapping his fingers on the handle of his cane as he thinks. "What is your favourite meal?"

[hashtagparkerluck]

That's an easy enough question. Or it should be but now Peter's not sure he's every eaten anything in is entire life. Churros are pretty good but they're not a meal and if he says sour candy that's also not a meal and he can feel May frowning from here. Does Thai food count? That's also not really a meal per say..

"Um.. wheatcakes? It's one of the few things my Aunt can actually cook." Sorry May, wherever you are, he loves your barely edible food, really.

"What about you?"

[lightconductor]

"You live with your aunt, then?"

Watson hands over a gold star, because he really wants to give them out as freely as he can. The whole situation is silly and as such he should try to end it fast for the people who want it to. "I'm rather partial to oysters, actually."

There, that wasn't so bad, right?

[hashtagparkerluck]

"Yeah." He nods at the question, twitching a little nervously. "Aunt May and Uncle Ben took me in after.." he swallows, and starts tapping his fingers together to try and expel the nervous energy that's building up. "um.. my parents were in an accident. I-I was- I was five."

Moving on from that awkward subject. Also, he eats oysters on purpose? He resists the urge to make a face and just fumbles with the sticker sheet to give Dr Watson a sticker.

"Um.. so... what's your favorite color?"

[lightconductor]

Watson's mouth falls open slightly, his expression one of dismay. That... was not the sort of answer he had expected. He rallies, though, because he has to say something. "I'm sorry, Parker. I didn't mean to open up wounds like that. That was a foolish question for me to ask."

He hesitates.

"Blue, I think."

[hashtagparkerluck]

Peter just offers a small shrug though there is still some nervous energy left over. "It's fine.. you didn't know and it was a long time ago." He sucks in a breath and pushes the thought aside.

"Oh really? Mine too! Well.. blue and red." He jumps back on the subject of favorite colors. A much less anxiety inducing subject.

[lightconductor]

"Simply because something was a long time ago does not mean we have ceased to mourn," Watson says, as gently as he can. But still, he'll move on.

"A good combination of colours, I think," he says. What else can he ask that's, well, non-threatening? He really just wants Peter to relax a little. "Do you have a favourite book?"

[hashtagparkerluck]

There's a bubble of something building in his chest and he so badly wants to let out a humorless laugh because now he has another person to mourn and that one is the one he's really not over. Mostly, probably because Ben's death was his fault. He made a bad call and Ben paid the price.

He sucks in a breath and tries to push the thought aside for the time being and focuses on what his favorite book is. Once again, he's having a hard time remembering what books he's read. He's read so, so many it's really hard to pick a favorite.

"Um.. I don't... I don't know that I can pick a favorite. I really like most science fiction but Lord of the Rings can't be understated. I also really like most of the Star Wars Novelizations."

[lightconductor]

Watson hums thoughtfully as he offers a sticker. "I don't know what either of those are. I don't suppose this 'Lord of the Rings' has much to do with Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen?" That's... just the first thing that comes to mind. German opera that also involves a magic ring. He shakes his head. "Never mind. I'm not familiar with the term 'science fiction,' but it sounds intriguing."

Please. Please tell him about nerd literature.

[hashtagparkerluck]

Peter hesitantly takes the sticker and then sticks it on his name tag before offering a sticker to Dr Watson. He frowns slightly as he does when he doesn't recognize something and then gently shakes his head.

"Um.. I don't think so? LOTR a really old book series from like.. the seventies, I think? It's trilogy and considered fantasy. As for science fiction it really just refers to anything that's not really scientifically possible but that's... what's possible and what's not is debatable because New York got attacked by a bunch of aliens and Thor's brother like five years ago. So who's to say what's possible and what's not."

[lightconductor]

"New York was what?" Watson can only stare for a moment, eyebrows raised. "Do you know, every time I think I'm getting a feel for these future worlds people describe, something even more extraordinary comes to light."

He shakes his head. He really just wanted to know about fun books. "Impossible stories does sound interesting. Like Jules Verne?"

[hashtagparkerluck]

"Attacked by aliens. We call it the Battle of New York-grand central station was like completely destroyed." He pauses as it occurs to him that this man is unfamiliar with that concept and he sucks in a breath to try and think about how to proceed.

"Um.. I don't think I've read anything from him yet-or is that the title?" He's read probably more than most kids his age as there was a time when it felt like all he could do was read and watch movies.

"But, maybe it's at the library? In return, I can recommend you some books that are really good?"

[lightconductor]

"Jules Verne is his name, yes," Watson says, smiling. "A French author. He writes fantastic stories about going to the moon or the centre of the earth or the bottom of the sea, things like that. Quite delightful, I always thought."

The library, of course, is a thing of huge promise, with books from the future in it.

"I would deeply appreciate some book recommendations," he continues.

[hashtagparkerluck]

"Oh really?" Peter looks interested, it might actually be cool to read a book about what someone from the passed thought going to the moon would be like. Wait. He's from a time before they went to the moon? He's not sure if he should ask but he really wants to know.

"So.. if you don't mind my asking, what year is it where you're from? It's 2017 for me."

[lightconductor]

"1892," Watson says promptly, because by this point he's getting unfortunately used to explaining this to people. "It is interesting how many people I have met who are from some version of the early 21st century. Then, of course, there are outliers like myself."

He smiles brightly.

[hashtagparkerluck]

Whoa, that is over a hundred years difference. Which is really kinda cool. This means there's so much he can learn about and so many books he can read now.

...Oh, maybe he should read something that isn't totally futuristic that might be a little confusing. It's crazy how people just adapt to things. Also, do they have movies here?

"I'll have to really think about what books you should definitely read. Some stuff might be a little confusing though."

[lightconductor]

"Everything here is a little confusing," Watson laughs. "What's one more thing? At least a confusing book is a safer mystery than the rest of this. But I will take your recommendations very seriously, I can assure you."

He really will, too. He means that.