RP: Party time

[rar_alicia]

Date: January 14, 1999
Characters: Alicia Spinnet, others
Location: Belladonna
Status: Quite Public
Summary: Alicia celebrates her birthday at Belladonna.
Completion: Incomplete

Comments

[rar_dean]

Dean had stopped by Carine's studio late in the afternoon at her request. They were supposed to just go over some additional details now that he'd had a week to think about everything, but their half hour chat turned into a three-hour in depth introduction to the studio and every other little thing she could think to tell him. He didn't mind--had had a brilliant time, in fact--but it meant that by the time he arrived at Belladonna, it was a lot later than he'd intended. He'd even briefly considered just going home and seeing if Seamus and Neville were there, but he had already gotten Alicia a present...and seeing Katie again wouldn't be so bad either.

Once he was inside, he scanned the interior for familiar faces. He couldn't find any sign of the birthday girl, which wasn't a huge surprise, considering how many people were there. He did, however, catch a quick glimpse of a girl in an obnoxiously short dress...well, he got a glimpse of her legs, at least. His eyes lingered for a moment and then drifted upwards to hands tugging self-consciously at the skirt, and he realized with a start that the girl was Katie. He swallowed hard, picked his metaphorical jaw off the floor and wove through the crowd toward her.

"You and Alicia having a competition?" he asked, grinning crookedly as he approached her.

[rar_katie]

"Dean!" Katie squealed, and grabbed his hand. "It's horrible. I shortened my dress as a joke, thought Al would get a kick out of it, but now I don't know how to undo it. And I'm terrified of flashing someone. I can't sit down! Merlin, I'm such an idiot."

[rar_dean]

He tried really hard not to laugh. "Well, I'd try to help you out, but I'm afraid any bloke in his right mind would be crazy to suggest anything that would 'fix' this lovely dress." He resisted glancing down at her legs again, though the urge was great. He gave an exaggerated sigh. "But since I'm not quite sane myself...why don't you just pop home and change?"

His eyes flicked downward, and he groaned at his lack of willpower. Was it really his fault if she had really nice legs? "I'm afraid that, flashing or not, that's going to be a distraction."

[rar_katie]

"That's a good idea. Do you think Al will notice if I leave? I don't want her thinking I'm bailing on her," Katie said contemplatively.

"Well, I wouldn't want you to get distracted, Dean," Katie said with a wry smile. "But before I go, it's been a week since I last tasted your fabulous lips." She leaned up to kiss him, hoping that she wasn't exposing her backside.

[rar_dean]

"I didn't see Alicia when I walked in. If she came around, she'd probably assume you popped into the loo or something. Besides, if you change, she wins the contest." He winked.

Oh Merlin, he thought as she stood on her tiptoes to reach him, exposing a little more thigh. As quickly as possible, he focused his attention on her lips instead. That was much safer. He'd been so busy that he'd forgotten how nice it was to kiss her, which was probably for the best. Otherwise it would be a huge distraction to NEWT revisions, and he was already behind where he wanted to be.

When they pulled apart, he grinned down at her, allowing himself one last quick glance at her legs. "Now why don't you get changed so I don't have to feel guilty liking the view, yeah?"

[rar_katie]

"That's true. And since it's her birthday I really should let her win," Katie said with a grin.

"Well, you are allowed to like the view, you know. I just think it might be a bit early for that sort of visual appreciation, so let's think of this as a sneak peek, okay?" Katie blushed fiercely and then went to fetch her coat before disapparating.

[rar_dean]

"Yes, I think that would be for the best," he said seriously, then grinned back. "Come back soon, though."

Some sneak peek, he thought as he watched her walk away. Shaking his head, he turned his attention to getting himself a drink and clearing his mind of thoughts he didn't want to think. Not that they were unpleasant--quite the contrary--but he'd much rather worry about exams and his apprenticeship right now and save those thoughts for when he could give them the proper appreciation. And who know when (if) that would be, considering his current and upcoming schedule?

Leaning back on the bar, he drank his beer slowly, enjoying the flavour. There was quite a crowd, and to his eye it was all one big painting waiting to happen. Birds in bright dresses and tops, blokes in darker colours but holding the birds so close that they might as well have been wearing the brighter ones. And mostly importantly, there was movement. He couldn't wait to be able to paint something like this.

[rar_katie]

Katie reappeared about 15 minutes later in the dress she'd worn to the Christmas party at the Three Broomsticks. It was still fun and red, but not so short that she was paranoid about flashing her arse.

When she found Dean, he was staring out at the crowd, watching everyone move with such an intensity that she knew he must be sketching them in his mind. She got herself a bottle of cider and moved to lean next to him, nudging him in the side gently. "Hey you. Did you not bring your sketchbook?"

[rar_dean]

Dean didn't notice Katie had walked up until she nudged him, shaking him out of the concentrated stare he'd had focused on the crowd. He looked over at her and smiled, shaking his head, then looked back toward the dancers. "Nah, the light's not really good for it anyway. Besides, people keep shifting in front of one another, and it's hard to pick out a clear snapshot for a drawing. I'll save it for after I learn the new way."

He set his drink on the bar and turned to look at her. "The first week back treating you okay? I hate that we only got to exchange a couple of words after Defense Thursday, but I can't say I'm surprised. My free time rapidly disappeared, and I don't think NEWTs will cure that. I almost didn't make it here tonight."

[rar_katie]

Katie nodded. "I guess that means more evenings skulking around in bars then, huh?"

"It's been alright. Busy, but that's to be expected," she said with a shrug. "I'm really glad you came. I would have understood if you couldn't make it, but I'm glad you're here."

[rar_dean]

"Might be fun," he said, nodding. "I think my primary projects will likely have a bit more...meaning. But good practise, at the very least. And an excuse to drag you dancing." He grinned.

"I'm glad I came, too," Dean said, reaching for her free hand, holding it lightly. "Not likely I'd be doing much revising if I was home anyway. I was at the studio again today, so I'd probably have gone straight home and started painting. So I'm glad for the distraction--" He took in her new attire and smiled. "--which is just as lovely without the short dress."

"Do you think we should find Alicia so I can wish her a happy birthday?" He patted his pocket, where her shrunken present was stashed. "Or would you fancy a dance, since she doesn't seem to be around just now?"

[rar_katie]

"You'll never need an excuse to drag me dancing," Katie grinned.

"I kept you from painting?" Katie frowned. "I don't want to keep you from painting, Dean." She sighed. She didn't want to be a distraction to him, keeping him from the things he loved. That's not what she wanted to be at all.

"Yeah, let's go find Al," Katie said, trying to smile.

[rar_dean]

He scrunched up his eyebrows. "I didn't mean it like that, Kate. Not serious painting, just wasting time painting. As in, avoiding-revision painting. Believe me, you're not getting in the way. Can't have good art without good inspiration, and I can't get good inspiration if I never step away from my canvas."

She still didn't look convinced as they turned to leave the bar area, so he added emphatically, "Really. Now let's go find the birthday girl."

[rar_katie]

"Okay," Katie said with a small smile. "Sorry. I just don't want to keep you from stuff, or get in the way." She knew that painting wasn't the real problem. The real problem was Seamus.

"Let's go see Al. Did I mention I got her naughty underwear? Bra and knickers with these lovely cherries on them," Katie said with an evil grin.

[rar_alicia]

"Did I hear my name?" Alicia said, having excused herself from Wayne and Roger, who would hopefully follow up with their promises of dances. And now she had a tasty cocktail, so the night was looking even better.

"Hello, Dean!" she said, giving him a hug. "Thanks for coming, even if it was only to see Katie in that tea cosy of a dress- oi, where'd it go? I was considering that one of my presents," she grinned when she realized Katie had changed.

[rar_katie]

Katie blushed. "I couldn't quite stomach it. My arse was practically hanging out. So I went home and changed," she mumbled.