Year-End Festival [Year-End Holidays] Winter-Nights (Yule) Solstice Spectacular! (YE 44)

Winter-Night Lights Pavilion

Naika

Naika began to wonder if perhaps Uaeso got caught up in work, she thought he would have been here. "Oh well." she thought to herself. They would catch up eventually so she was not overly concerned. However, she did miss him. The on goers for the most part seemed to be wearing more festive clothes than she. Once more she scanned the crowd for her husband, to no avail.

When she had resided herself to being here alone she noticed a beautiful woman approaching her. Whoever this was by far one of the tallest people to cross her path so far. Even the woman's mysterious dress mesmerized her with its swirling snow. "You are very kind. I could indeed use some company. My husband seems to have got caught up elsewhere and I do not know many people here." she said in a shy sweet manner. Slowly she stood to be on a somewhat even level offering her hand in return. "It is a pleasure to meet you Thia. I am still somewhat new here, you can call me Naika or precious works to." she said with a warm smile. "Are you here by yourself as well?" she inquired.

Naika noted that Akina waved to her. The other hand that had not been offered to Thia quickly returned the gesture with a wave.

Thia took Naika's hand and gently lifted it until it was in front of her face, at which point she pressed her lips against it in a soft kiss. All the while, she kept her mismatched brown and hazel eyes on Naika's icy blues. As she pulled her lips away, Thia's lipstick left an impression of her lips on the back of the Norian's hand.

"Neither of us are by ourselves as long as we're with each other," Thia replied with a playful smile as she let go of Naika's hand. "Yamatai is very safe, so don't worry about your husband. I'm sure he's fine and I'll keep your mind off him until he gets here. What is it that you do, precious?"

Winter-Nights Lights Pavilion
Behind the Snow Cream Booth - Miyako

"I couldn't just let you not have my extra cup. There's plenty of more places to go anyway. I haven't even been inside the feasting hall yet. I did get my free Connect or was it Knet? Upgrade. My name is Miyako." It looked goofy, bordering creepy the way the volumetric of the anthropomorphic raindeer opened when she shoveled more of the cream into her actual mouth. "I hope your pants are waterproof or you're going to freeze." The woman noted pointedly to Jackson.

Her eyes did catch Yue, and she waved, not remembering she was in disguise, but she knew of all of the members of Midnight Infinity, you have to know who is popular when entertaining, you never know when you'll end up on a show with them, or meet them at a party. "Ha-ppy Yuuule!" She called out, then ate another bite while looking at jackson. Sticking the spoon pointedly inside the cup, a warm, soft hand was on offer to him to help him up. She made sure they would not fall just by playing with her gravity a bit in case she had to move them both from the patch again.

One Neko and one Minkan arrived: The first with green hair and blue eyes, and the second woman with slivery hair featuring blue streaks and grey eyes. They both wore Shimizu badges, and the former was dressed in a less elaborate rendition of the traditional Norse outfit Akina wore, with different colors and accessories. The latter was dressed in a smart Kimono with a /lot/ of layers.

The first piped up, "We're so sorry! Is everything okay? We've been trying to stay ahead of the ice but it's a little hard. We will melt and salt this." The second woman nodded and held up a small tool which she lit by making a scissor motion at the tip, which caused a brilliant flame to issue forth and draw some gasps and clapping from the crowd.

"I love this thing."

Winter-Nights Lights Pavilion
The Tokyo Brewing Company Area

"Coming right up!" Behind the bar, a member of the staff dressed up like some kind of mythical white horse pulled two pint glasses from the fridge and filled them from the tap connected to one of the many kegs they were already going through. "Would you like to start a tab?" The two beers with a practiced amount of head were placed in front of Kari and Pierre, the dark drinks presenting the offer of a feeling of extra warmth if imbibed.

Winter-Nights Lights Pavilion
Near the Stage - Akina

Oh you look so cute tonight! If you all want something let me know. The Shimizu leader sent to Yue. She had been spotted. If you want to take the stage or play up in the building suite just let me know. We can figure something out. Otherwise just enjoy, that's the whole point. This party is a marathon to the New Year.

Thia's bold outfit was not lost on Akina, and she caught it when she and Naika were speaking, mouthing, "Nice." To Naika with the happy smile she wore growing slightly deeper.

Yue saw her snowball get intercepted and saw Sayako’s reaction to her, which caused her some fear as she arrived. Fortunately Tachiko stoped things from getting bad. Yue hugged Tachiko gently”Sorry for causing you to worry Sayako-chan!” She said to her before she turned her focus on the group. She waved to a disguised Miyako, but she didn’t recognize her, and kinda assumed and hoped she was a member of the Motoyoshi keibi. “Happy Yule!” she said to them all, before turning her attention to Tachiko as her desire for snow cream was known. “Yes, sounds good, ” she said, feeling happy just to be by her side again. Her attention went to Miyako and Jackson again before her attention to the newcomers arrived. Yue was wearing a full winter outfit, and only parts of her arm could be seen, but Tachiko would recognize her but she wasn’t sure if the newcomers did.

"Dark?" Kari replied, still seemingly dazed as she watched a white anthropomorphic horse pour a couple of beers and place them on the counter. Kari took one with her free hand and started to inspect it, easily falling back into old habits rather than try to unravel why she was feeling so funny around Pierre. Pressing the tip of her nose to the foam, she sniffed gently. She got the impression that the cold muted the smell somewhat, but she could still smell grainy sweetness balanced against something bitter, presumably the hops.

Glancing down at Pierre's glass, she decided against taking a sip until they were both ready to drink. Somehow it didn't feel like they were drinking together if she dove in first.

"I enjoy volunteering," Kari said, lifting her face from her glass and turning to look at Pierre. Her nose still had a bit of foam from the head of the beer, though she didn't seem to notice. "You know I have trouble in social situations. But it's different when I have something to do. There's structure and order instead of unpredictable chaos. In this case, people came to me for snow cream. I also spent my time volunteering while I was in the reserves before being assigned to the Azalea. In that case, I was a school nurse at the Kyoto Academy for the Arts."

Winter-Nights Lights Pavilion
The Tokyo Brewing Company Area

Nara

Nara walked through the festivities with a book in hand due to her outfit's lack of pockets. The outfit in question consisted of a form hugging black latex-like body suit. It somehow continued to keep what was contained underneath protected from the snowy weather. To add to it she wore a pair of black combat boots, for mostly anti-slip purposes. She made her way towards the Tokyo Brewing company area as her blonde french braid swung to and fro behind her.

Violet eyes looked over the menu and caught sight of "the Leviathan Dark". She could not help but smile to herself. "Can I get a large mug of the Leviathan dark please?" she asked a bartender. That sounded like it would make a delightful accompaniment to the book she brought with her. The norian's idea was to enjoy the festivities in her own way, with a good story and a drink. If she happened to make friends while she was here, even better. That is, if they could get her to open up.

Itami had been pulled from his duties on the YSS Koun, by Captain Belmont as it was that time of year. He himself was wandering through the festivities in his dress uniform as he had no other formal wear. He didn't know what to do with himself and oddly enough he had a book cupped under his arm as well. It was a well-worn and often read book, which had been a gift from his mother before he had left for training with the SAoY. He wasn't sure what he was going to do here, in all honesty. He was more accustomed to training and combat then he was to relaxing now.

He found himself leaning against the bar which Nara found herself at, getting something to drink. He caught sight of the book she was holding, "Pardon me, Miss, but is that a first edition on the Void War History?" Yes, it was odd that he would ask such a question, but his mother had raised him on books.

“You know,” Pierre said, “I’ve been trying to figure out who you would be without the army. I think I understand now.” Turning back to the bartender, they said, “Let’s start a tab, it’s all on me.”

They noticed Sunde seemed to be waiting on something. “Oh,” they said looking at both of their mostly untouched drinks. Lifting their glass, Pierre said, “To us, to good beer, and to staying warm in the holidays. Kanpai!”

Snow Cream Booth​

Double-fisting a pair of hot toddies in to-go cups Vec made his way back out into the festival, unsure where to go next. A true Vec move would have been to ensconce himself next to the stage and watch whatever bands played, but he wanted to at least attempt at socializing tonight. Maybe it was just the alcohol talking but he didn’t think he needed to always spend his free time alone.

Passing the stage, Vec caught sight of Thia and the Norian again. He was glad he’d given her a wide berth, the woman had obvious plans tonight and definitely didn’t need him showing up and cramping her style. He moved on, tossing an empty cup into a recycler and enjoying the unique double warmth of the whiskey and the hot tea. Where to next, he wondered. Street food was always a hit at festivals like this. Making his way over to the snow cream stall, he caught sight of a familiar Neko. With a wave of a gloved hand and a dumb grin forming on his face, “Hey, Ops, long time no see, how’s 5XF treating you?” She was with some friends it seemed, but he had at least wanted to say hi. “Don’t let me bother you though, I’m just grabbing snow cream.”

Calandri was relaxed and a little buzzed as she noticed the woman that stood beside her and smiled "Hello there." Her features a little unreadable under the paint, but her pure emerald green eyes shone brightly as she tried to make small talk with someone, after everything she needed a little relax. One of her four ears twitched as she went to take another sip of her drink and sighed "all gone I guess, hey miss, do you know the quickest place to get another drink, I really like this, reminds me of home"

Winter-Nights Lights Pavilion
The Tokyo Brewing Company Area

"Great, I'll take care of it sir. Just let me know if I can help with anything else." The bartender bowed slightly, which looked kind of amusing but revealed aside from her face being painted and her wearing a neatly made horse costume was the fact that she had four extra hooves attached to her that motioned wherever her arms did. The hooves even motioned with her as she approached Nara and smiled.

"I hope I can get that outfit somewhere? It looks so good. If you want to start a tab lemme' know." She was cheery, and it was hard to tell if her hair had been white naturally as a Nekovalkryja, or if she dyed it to match the costume more fully. A large, cold mug came to her hand with the Tokyo Brewing Company logo etched into the side, looking especially fitting with frost over it. With the same expert pour she filled the mug quickly but properly. A new coaster, bigger than the pint glasses ended up in front of her before she set it down.

She waited for Itami to finish speaking before sliding him one of the menus quietly as well.

Incidentally, Pierre's toast got some revelers to raise their glasses, only hearing and responding the last part, "Kanpaaaa~i~i~i!"

Winter-Nights Lights Pavilion
Near the Stage - Akina

Katsuko quietly passed her thoughts to her wife, "You did amazing love, now that you feel a little lighter you can enjoy yourself." The former Empress observed those who had gathered for the occasion, many of her own clan were present as well as some other familiar faces. Katsuko probably wouldn't be recognized easily due to the strangely absent clan colors. She wore a rather elegant thigh-length white winter jacket with fuzzy fur that lined the hood she had drawn up. That usual bubbly, people-forward personality seemed to take hiding for the evening. The truth was she had only come to support her spouse. At least the party was kicked-off, it was nice not to have to be the face behind it all for a change. She coiled her right arm around Akina and pushed the left into one of her coat pockets.

"Want some beer love?" Katsuko asked quietly as she eyed the TBC booth nearby. "I could use some hot chocolate, I don't think booze is good for the younglings," she said as she knew beer was not for her. It was the first time she had actually verbalized it, Kaoru's outburst had ruined the other opportunity.

Winter-Nights Lights Pavilion - Uaeso​

In a more Yamataian outfit, he wore black trousers and a rather simple crimson and dark green fleece turtleneck with a purely aesthetic black scarf, the Teslanese heir excused his way past several revelers to reach his wife. He knew she had gone to the festival ahead of him and was rather easy to find with their vesper bond tugging him in the right direction. He spotted her talking to someone else, so he used the opportunity to sneak up behind her and wrap his arms around her waist, "Sorry I'm late love, I had to take my father shopping - remind me never to do that again," he said, then looked at the woman who had just kissed Naika's hand, "Ah well good evening there, nice to meet you. I'm Uaeso, the lucky husband of this young beauty," he said in the introduction.

The cold was refreshing, it was a shame it was not winter year around - at least Akina was cold, not that they would be there all the time. He admired his love's outfit and added a quiet, "You look amazing my love, a truly gorgeous woman, I love the outfit choice." He was glad he was finally there with her, by her side again where he belonged.

Tokyo Brewing Company - Airwin and Gemetzel​

Airwin noticed Nara at the bar, apparently, he had not been as crafty as he had hoped of not immediately landing near one of his own people upon reaching the festival. "Ah, you're attention straying again," he got reminded rather playfully as Gemetzel's digits climbed from the polished MERN buckle of his belt to the open edges of his jacket up to his collar. Her tail curled around his leg, as she tugged him down by the jacket collar to press her lips firmly against his. The black dress she wore was laced at the sides with roses which allowed glimpses of her skin to show through. She pulled back slightly from him and chuckled. "Better order or I'll be forced to drag you behind a snow bank," she whispered as she pulled away and turned around in the space between him and the bar in front of her. Obviously, this little turn of events was going to cause a few looks among their people.

Airwin could hear Nara's order, he piped up and said, "We will have two of those Leviathan Mugs too." He was honored that the TBC had named one of their brews after their living vessels, he gave a smile to the bartender and then greeted Nara with a slight wave. Gemetzel gave a wave too, as she leaned back against the soft warm fabric of Airwin's sweater, she wasn't as resistant to the cold as him.

Ice Skating Rink​

Kaoru finished lacing up her skates and stomped lightly through the snow to the edge of the ice. She glided across the smooth surface, a smile on her face as she pushed her mittens back on. She slowly picked up speed and took off weaving through the formation of other skaters toward Tachiko and Sayako. She slipped towards the center of the rink and did a little spin before she moved next to them, skating backward so she could look at them, "Surprise sister! Happy Year End to you!" she said as she continued to skate backward keeping up pace with them. She had on a pink jacket with the purple infinity symbol on it, obviously some Midnight Infinity Gear. It made the pink highlights and the ends of her powder-blue hair pop a little more. "And Hello and Happy Year End to you too!" she didn't know Sayako, so hopefully Tachiko would introduce them.

​

Jackson accepted the hand that was offered to him by the saint-reindeer-lady. Looking down, he realized that the saints comment was not about the fact that he had a small visible hole on the left pant leg, but the fact that his pants were absolutely covered in the snow cream he had split. "Gah! Fuck! these are my only pair of civvie pants!" Attempting to brush it off only to remember that it wasn't dust, and it was a very large amount of very cold snow cream. Shaking his hand, he looked at the woman and said "Miss, Ms. Miyako, honestly I know this is my first time meeting you, but you are the most amazing woman I have ever met in my entire life." Motioning to his pants, sighing, and saying "Miss, Im really sorry, but I have to go now, but as you can see, I really need to get a new pair of pants, so I have to go. You are the best damn person I have ever met, and I wish you many warm night and cold days. Happy Yule."

Winter-Nights Lights Pavilion​

NAIKA

Naika's eyes widened in shock at this unexpected turn of events. Her cheeks blushed a deep red, clearly she had misread the situation. Then again she had not got out much to interact with people. The poor confused norian had thought that perhaps Thia's intention was to shake her hand. "Oh my...that was surprise." she chuckled lightheartedly so as not to catch the woman off guard. "I thought you were going to shake my hand, it seems I have so much to learn about Yamatai still." she said warmly the blush still apparent on her pale cheeks.

Thia seemed to be a very sweet woman and perhaps if the Princess Consort were not married or monogamous things might have been different. "You seem very sweet and I am terribly sorry if this comes across the wrong way..." she trailed off momentarily trying to decide how this should be carefully worded. "I am sure there is another here that would be better suited to keep you company. Though I do not doubt Yamatai's safety I do worry about my husband's ability to find me in a crowd. Currently, I am trying to decide what path to pursue to repay the people for saving us." she stopped when she noticed Akina mouthing,"Nice." to her. "Oh goodness what have I gotten myself into." she thought as she blushed a deeper red that before.

Thankfully that was when Uaeso had found her. She squealed happily when she felt his arms wrap around her. Her head leaned back into him, "What in the world could he be shopping for?" she asked curiously. It also had become apparent he was not wearing traditional garb, from the scarf that brushed her cheek as she rested her head against him. "Darling husband, this is Thia. She came over to keep me company, because she saw I was alone." Naika felt complete now that he was back by her side. "Thank you my love, I feel I am woefully overdressed again. However if your scarf goes missing later, it will probably be my fault. It is so soft." she said nuzzling into it just a bit.

The Tokyo Brewing Company Area

NARA

Nara's eyes looked over cautiously to the man that addressed her. Violet eyes narrowed as she analyzed the non-norian in a dress uniform at a bar. "Yes, it is." she said quickly in an effort to end the encounter. However her eyes took note of a well worn book cupped under his arm. That so her said something, if not for the man then the book at least. "I see you also have a book. What might the title of yours be?" she asked.

Her attention was drawn to the alien female next to her. This was an uncomfortable amount of interaction with people she did not know. Perhaps she should have had different expectations to a peaceful read in public at such an event. "Hello..." she said carefully.

Things quickly took another turn when she heard Airwin's voice pipe up. "Joyous day." she thought sarcastically seeing the attractive norian and his companion. Now the head of the royal family that her clan had a close relationship with was here. Hopefully he left her to be in peace, after all no one had officially picked her up for anything. Nara smiled at the bartender, "Thank you. I don't remember where I got it I am afraid. I think this may be my only drink for the night." She gave Airwin a slight wave as she looked him over, briefly nodding at his companion who for some reason waved as well. She took a sip of her drink while she waited for Itami's response.

The Tokyo Brewing Company Area

Perhaps Itami was out of his depths here, but the lovely Norian had spoken to him, and instead of finding a quiet place to watch, he seemed to have found a bustling hub of activity. Not only had Nara asked about the book he himself was carrying, but now there was a group growing here it seemed. Seeing the bartender try and get his attention by offering him a menu, he smiled and shook his head no in response, he had never been much of a drinker even before he had joined the SAoY, his drug of choice was still adrenaline.

He looked to Nara, as she had asked him about the book he was carrying. "Oh, this? It's just an old copy of The Adventures Beyond the Veil of Reality. It was a gift when I joined the Star Army." He showed her the copy he held, it was dog-eared in multiple places and looked well-worn. "I always keep it with me, it is my way to keep my family close, even though I haven't seen then for almost a year." He didn't know why he told her this, but something about this shy Norian made him feel safe in this sea of people and their shared love of books.

The Tokyo Brewing Company Area

NARA

Nara noticed that Itami had turned down the bartender's offer of a menu. "Not much of a drinker, are you?" she asked quietly. It seemed he was just as uncomfortable as she in this growing crowd. The book he showed her seemed rather interesting and she thought to herself that he might have come here for reasons similar to hers. His reactions definitely indicated that he probably did not want to be stuck in the crowd long. "I came here to read and have a drink quietly. What about you?" she whispered to him

If anything his answer might indicate his intentions for the evening. Maybe she would leave the event having made a new friend. Though that possibility remained very far off. At the very least she had a book to add to her reading list. That in itself made the night a win.

The Tokyo Brewing Company Area

"What? Oh, not really no, I wouldn't call myself a straight arrow, but I suppose some might." It was almost like they were having their own private conversation among the bustle of this festivities within the brewing company space. This was a welcome change after he had been abandoned by his crewmates who had wandered off to other areas and had just left him to his own devices, which in all honestly was fine by him, he had wanted to find a roaring fire to sit by and read.

"Well, my crewmates from the YSS Koun had convinced me to come to the festivities, though all I really wanted was to chill and read in my quarters." He looked around before leaning in so that only Nara would hear him. "Perhaps, would you joy me for a walk, in search of a warm fire?"

@BloodyScarlet
Fuyuko looked all the way up at the tall alien, toothy grin returning. "There's the Tokyo Brewing Pavilion back that way," she said pointing. "Also I've seen a few small bars selling cocktails. There's also a section way to the back where they've got small brewers and distillers. I'll buy if you'll drink with me."

Winter-Nights Lights Pavilion
Tokyo Brewing Company Area - Akina & Katsuko

The way Naika flushed made Akina want to add some notes to her personal notes on the Caeyara Ysi, but the warmth Katsuko fed her washed it away while they walked off, a giddy laugh breaking out of her. "I do feel much better. Unless the food and drinks run out I think we're good." Somehow she managed not to do more than scuff her boots slightly on the ground, which was muffled, as her wife made her flush brightly, not that it was hard for her.

There had been so much going on when they were on Jiyuu that she missed the most obvious moment while conversing with Yue back on Jiyuu. After a beat as if she were an ancient analog device devoting more resources to process, she asked, "Are you going to tell me more?" The smile did not leave her face, and she even left a seasonally appropriate whisper of sweetness when she leaned up ever so slightly to kiss her at the edge of her lips from the side.

When they ended up nearing the outside of the combined indoor/outdoor Tokyo Brewing area, the red Taisho almost seemed surprised, "Oh, we're here." She was happy to see the building, knowing not many present were aware that the mead hall with the combined outdoor area (the bar was still sheltered from the snow) was a Shimizu Fleet Yards prototype of a somewhat familiar nature to the 15 year old company.

All her thoughts were wrapped up in what her wife had just told her.

Behind the Snow Cream Booth - Miyako

With some of the decorum she was required to display in more serious settings, the reindeer girl still managed a much more tame version of what she was thinking, "That is a good idea. Have just the best time, okay? I know this thing runs 'till the New Year. Happy Yuuule~!" Buoyed by the interaction, she almost bounced away from the crew taking care of the patch of ice, it was actually a great distraction in case anyone put two and two together to equal Miyako★. There were more food stalls to go to, and she looked at more costumes and outfits while taking glances over to skaters passing her on the rink going in the other direction.

The Tokyo Brewing Company Area - The Horsetender

"That's no problem, it's two KS then." She reached underneath the bar and produced a small pad detailing the short transaction. A little image of a Hostess bowing repeated itself at the bottom of the display. Like everyone else, there was using a KS card or the bills themselves. With a menu still in hand, she wandered over and away from the bookworms to make sure that anyone trying to get her attention could have it promptly.

Between the Ice Rink and the Delicious Snow Cream

Tachiko giggled liquidly at Kaoru's sudden appearance. It seemed as if she'd been a-wassailing at the mead hall before they'd gone skating– that rosy flush in her cheeks and nose wasn't only from the chill in the air. Nothing, after all, goes together like drinking and ice skating. While Tachiko was hugging Yue and dealing with the snow-pantsed Jackson, Sayako gave Kaoru a polite bow and proceeded to introduce herself.

"Yoroshiku onegaishimasu," it seemed Sayako shared a lot of Tachiko's mannerisms. "My apologies, Motoyoshi-sama. We have met before, but I was not yet in this KAIMON/Ascendant Consort body. I am Takeda Sayako, your sister's former FARS. Happy Year End, Motoyoshi-sama."

"Oh, sorry!" Tachiko looked up, smiling sheepishly. "Happy Year-End, Kaoru-nee! Oh! Thats the new logo? It looks wonderful! Yue, why don't you have anything like that yet?"