worktodo: (COFFEE ☮ why does it taste like fish)
Albert Rosenfield ([personal profile] worktodo) wrote in [community profile] route_10652012-12-23 03:53 pm

We Survived the Snowmageddon

Who: Albert Rosenfield ([personal profile] worktodo) and whoever is congregating at the Justice Farm for the Christmas holiday!
Where: El Rancho del Justicia, aka Albert's house in Saffron City
When: Anytime between Monday the 24th and Wednesday the 26th!
Summary: A lot has changed in a month, but some things never do. Losers getting together to fail their way through the holiday season is one of them.
Rating: Individual threads may vary, but let's go with G overall and warn otherwise!
Log:

Despite generally doing a very excellent Grinch impression, Albert doesn't actually hate Christmas. Granted, it's not one of his favorite holidays the way that Thanksgiving is — it's a little too overdone, a little too commercial, lacking in some of the spirit of togetherness in favor of the spirit of consumerism — but it is decidedly a holiday, and once again Johto has presented him with a situation where he is forced to make a choice. For the second time this year (by Albert's reckoning), Johto appears to have done everything in its power to prevent them from putting on a holiday, including but not limited to summoning up the actual apocalypse. The question that begs to be asked, therefore, is simply: is Albert willing to surrender Christmas in the face of all these apparent attempts to ruin it?

The answer, naturally, is: oh, hell no.

It is, however, an undeniably different atmosphere from the one that filled the house on Thanksgiving. Most of the occupants of the house are worse off now than they were then, be it emotionally or physically — some from spooky encounters, some from harsh truths, and some from going out in the apocalyptic snow like the damn fools they are — so if there's slightly less pep and enthusiasm saturating the grounds, that could certainly be why. Any decorations applied to the outside of the house have been battered at best and outright wrecked at worst. But as the slightly paraphrased song lyric goes, "Though the weather outside is frightful, by the fire it's so delightful", and the interior of the house is a thankfully different story.

On Monday, Albert will be spending the Eve of Christmas largely in the kitchen, having allotted the whole day for getting all the components of Christmas dinner prepared and readied in advance; on Thanksgiving, it's a fundamental part of the holiday tradition to run around the kitchen like a madman trying to get dinner to the table on time, but for Christmas, he'd rather everything just go smoothly. Early arrivals are welcome to hang out in the cozy parts of the house, grab some cocoa, and carefully avoid him; otherwise, they might get drafted into menial labor like shoveling out the front walk or putting the finishing touches on the interior decor before the party officially kicks off.

By Tuesday, it's all Christmas all the time; there is no victory quite so sweet as the one that comes hard-won, and as far as Albert is concerned, the most effective "screw you" to Johto's Snowmageddon is putting on an occasion that is positively bursting with holly and jolly anyway. Somewhere near the kitchen, Zack the Porygon2 is contributing by blasting from his Gear's speakers a concert of every Christmas song he knows (of which there are three: "Feliz Navidad", "Grandma Got Run Over By A Stantler Reindeer", and the Weather Girls' "It's Raining Men"). A stately (albeit slightly lopsided) Christmas tree that is probably the Johto equivalent of a Douglas fir is set up in a corner of the living room near the fireplace — which is burning merrily — and its branches are decorated with makeshift ornaments like Pokeballs and paper throwing stars along with the standard colored bauble variety. Stuff your presents below; there'll be time for opening them later, but for now they're part of the decor. There's holly on the piano and fake candles in the windows, and you better believe at least half of those doorways have mistletoe strategically placed near them. Don't get caught! (Or do, if that's what you're here for.)

The one new and interesting addition to the house can be found in a corner of the living room, where a little space has been carved out for a small end table topped with coasters, a chair, and a tripod apparatus just the right size for holding a standard Pokegear. Got someone to call and wish a Merry Christmas? Do it from the comfort of this corner like it's Masterpiece Theater.

But however Tuesday is spent, there's sure to be a lot of love, gifting, and good Christmas cheer. Or else.

When Wednesday comes along, it'll be the standard post-Christmas wind-down — leftovers aplenty in the kitchen, trash bags of crumpled wrapping paper tucked into the corners, and a nice low-pressure environment in which to interact, gush over gifts, and enjoy the spirit of the season a little longer before getting right back to work on Important Business. For some, that might mean playing in the snow or having a snowball fight; for others, that might mean coordinating federal agent business for the future. But either way, it's another Christmas survived, and that's what really matters, right?


[OOC: Just like last time, this is an open log for everybody coming to Albert's for Christmas! Feel free to start your own threads as you please — open them to everybody, close them to specific people, whatever works for you. Just make a note in the header of what day it's taking place on and who all's invited, and have fun, everybody! Also, for people who aren't physically present at the Farm on Christmas, feel free to use the designated Skype Thread™ to chat with them over video anyway!]
bywiseguidance: (okay that's hilarious)

[personal profile] bywiseguidance 2012-12-27 06:18 am (UTC)(link)
"NCIS. I have worked with the FBI at times, but we are a separate agency." Still, it was a sort of comraderie, and Ziva was glad for it. But she would probably even understand Heather's caution if it came to light--she'd also been on the run from them before, falsely accused. Or, well, framed--but it was the same thing in the end.

Cujo's darting off gets another laugh out of her. It must be entertaining having him around all the time.
foolishwren: Looks like SOMEONE hasn't tried finger but hole (HEH...)

[personal profile] foolishwren 2012-12-27 07:26 am (UTC)(link)
"Oh! Uh, cool then!"

In Heather's case, it had been a little less about being on the run and a little more about having watched cops manhandle her father after he'd shot a home invader in defense of her-- at a super young age. Combine that with a rebellious chip-on-the-shoulder teen attitude and you have a recipe for FUQ DA POPO.

But all the same, she smiles at Ziva's clear amusement.

"He's... a little special." Leaning to the side, she calls down the hall after him. "YOU RAN STRAIGHT PAST IT, GOOBER."
bywiseguidance: (small smile)

[personal profile] bywiseguidance 2012-12-27 04:05 pm (UTC)(link)
That would be a good reason too. She'd just be glad that Heather was realizing that not all police--or agents, in their case--were bad people to be around.

She lets out a whistle, and Abby, her own Growlithe, pokes her head out from the archway to see what all the noise is about. Maybe now Cujo can find her easier.

"He must be a handful."
foolishwren: as i was, you shall be (HURR)

[personal profile] foolishwren 2012-12-29 09:02 am (UTC)(link)
It was an ongoing process, but thankfully, she was. It was hard to hold grudges against the delightfully eccentric bunch associated with Cooper, really.

Cujo's shaggy head comes popping back around the corner at the sound of the whistle as well, and at the sight of Abby, he comes bounding over in an entirely renewed explosion of enthusiasm, practically skidding to a halt in front of her and snuffling intently.

"Yeah, he's... it's always interesting living with him, I'll put it that way."

Overcoming her fear of dogs had been less of a goal and more of a NECESSITY when she was being woken up every morning via A) a sloppy tongue in her ear, B) scratchy mane hair up her nose, C) a cold nose burrowing under the blankets in search of ticklish spots to nudge, or D) all of the above. In quick succession.