Midnight Manor Boarding House, Tuesday Evening

[hasaknightjob]

It had been close to two months since Steven and Llewellyn had hosted a gathering for the residents. Not two months exactly but someone was rudely going to SDCC next week there was no real need to be that much of a stickler for dates. Particularly as the hope these days was that the events were regular enough that it made it easy for people to join if they were able without it being a stress.

Of course, regardless whether or not the choice of date was a stress was completely separate from whether Steven stressed. This particular gathering was meant to be potluck. The summer weather made it ideal for a barbecue and, well, it wasn't as though Llewellyn and Steven would be the ones supplying meat burgers for that sort of thing.

(Also Steven was absolutely the kind of Brit who thought there was no difference between barbecue and grilling. Those who did know the difference might be in need of a support group after the fact.)

Regardless, Steven and Llewellyn had spent the day preparing. In the outdoor space outside of Midnight's dining room a place had been set up for everyone to gather and enjoy. There were paper streamers, tables with tablecloths, chairs, and all manner of disposable cups, plates, napkins, and silverware. Thanks to Cal's efforts with the outdoor speakers there was a moddable playlist of summer music adding atmosphere. Fairy lights had been hung up to help set a fun mood. Candles to lure bugs away had also been set out as the outdoors was wonderful but also entirely out of the reach of Midnight's abilities to provide illusions or protect them.

For drinks, there were moddable soft drinks and beer. For food, Steven and Llewellyn had provided vegan veggie burgers, as well as pineapple tofu skewers, and lemon orzo pasta salad. Llewellyn specifically had also baked hamburger buns, cinnamon rolls, a blueberry pie, and a raspberry pie. Of course there were also moddable platters of cut vegetables, fruit, chips crisps, and dips. All the food was laid out along one set of tables for just that purpose, with plenty of room for people to add what they'd brought.

The grill was fired up and ready to go. The music was playing. The view of the beach was incredible. All that was needed was the guests.

[for thems who live in Midnight Manor. Subthread free, go nuts!]

Comments

[pocketpretzels]

"I see," Watts said. Look, the modern concept of the potluck didn't exist until the 1930s. "Well, it's appreciated."

And yes, he was going to make sure to tuck away a few of those baconless 'jalapeño poppers' so Marc could have them later, as the chances of him appearing at the gathering were, while not impossible, somewhat negligible.

[afraid_of_marshmallows]

Probably wise, yeah.

"So is the cookout," Arden assured him. "It's nice, getting a chance to hangout with everybody again. Especially over a meal." She sounded a bit wistful for a moment. "Reminds me of Sundays after church when I was really little."

[pocketpretzels]

"Oh?" Watts said, curious. "I've not much experience with church-going," he said. "Even when I- well. Before I knew I was Jewish. And now- sometimes we gather for coffee following temple, but nothing like this."

[afraid_of_marshmallows]

"In a lot of Black communities, the church was the center of it all," Arden explained. "So have a big community meal after church was just kind of expected. It's not as true these days, so there's less emphasis on the post-church cookouts but for most places I lived before Callista, there were at least monthly cookouts, at least from March through October."

[pocketpretzels]

"I see," Watts said. "That- sounds nice," he added, with a flicker of wistfulness that was gone as quickly as it arrived. He had a community now, a wonderful one he wouldn't trade for anything, but part of him was always going to wish he could claim that in childhood too. "Ms. Callista was not- the churchgoing type herself, then, I take it?"

[afraid_of_marshmallows]

Arden couldn't help but scoff. The idea of Callista at a church was hilarious, even ignoring being an Othersider.

"Nah," she said. "Uh. She wasn't big on religion. Or community."

Or humans. Or morality. Or anything that didn't suit her schemes...

[pocketpretzels]

"And yet you seem keen on at least the latter," Watts observed. "Despite being raised under her influence."

[afraid_of_marshmallows]

"From the time I was seven till I ran away, my life was made up of three people," she said softly. "I used to think that I liked being alone, but I think I just told myself that so I could pretend I wasn't so achingly lonely."

[pocketpretzels]

"I understand, after a fashion," Watts said. "I have always been- difficult. To get along with, myself." Well, and people kept dying and/or leaving him. "It is only recently that I've found- a community of my own."

[afraid_of_marshmallows]

"I...had something sorta like that, I guess," Arden said. "Before Callista, I kept getting bounced from place to place. I think the longest I was kept by one family was about eight months? That was when I was a baby though, so I don't actually remember. So, yeah. Difficult."

Or humans had been able to sense that something was off about her. One of those.

[pocketpretzels]

"I suppose I was lucky in that respect- the landlady was kind enough to take me in and ensure I had a roof over my head, after my parents died," Watts said, neatly skipping past the part where his sister had taken care of him first before she'd tired of that and left. "But- I was not her son, and she never tried to be my mother." Her sons, on the other hand, had been like brothers to him, but that, like Clarissa, was a topic a bit too private for this conversation.