man I am no good at setting things up

[gardenerthief.livejournal.com]

WHO: MU MU HAKYHOUSE AND GUESTS (so, basically anyone who is friends with any of the folks in the house can show up. :>
WHERE: A certain townhouse in Park Slope, Brooklyn.
WHEN: Backdated to Saturday, 2/19/11
WARNINGS: Toward the Terrangst, goofy shonen shenanigans, & Hiei.
SUMMARY: Now that the dust of Keith's Death By Heroes has settled, it's time for
FORMAT: I like paragraphs because smalltagging takes effort, but DO WHAT YOU WANT we welcome all kinds here.

As evening fell, Kurama began preparing the house for guests. The common areas were brightly lit, with snacks and laid out for light entertainment before dinner, and he'd stocked the drinks cabinet. The tv in the living room was off, but there were video and board games discreetly displayed in case anyone cared to partake.

The top floor was safe space for Mu who wanted a little more quiet than a party with Yusuke and Kuwabara was going to provide.

As it was unusually warm - almost 60 degrees out - he'd also opened the doors to the backyard, and though there was still melting snow around its edges, he'd gone to the trouble to bring the garden to life for the night. The shrubs and Hiei's tree were green and hung with lamps, and he'd set beds of spring flowers to bloom. Coupled with all the plants inside, there was the slight sense of being in a greenhouse in the middle of winter.

Comments

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura had never seen Shuichi's home before, but there was no doubt he was at the right place!

As he had promised, he had brought desert: a large fruit tart that was carefully resting in a large pastry box (bakery supply places were so helpful,) and had Matsuka with him. The trip to the book store had helped already and he was hoping that dinner with friends would further bring Matsuka out of his shocked shell.

With a happy smile, he gave a knock.

[loveyourenemy.livejournal.com]

In contrast to Bakura, Matsuka hung back nervously, regarding the house almost with trepidation. He wasn't at all sure this was a good idea. Oh, sure, he'd been invited... but he couldn't shake the conviction that neither Blue or Leo was going to want him anywhere around them.

Coming into the place where they lived seemed like a horribly bad idea, no matter what the house's owner assured. He'd come, not wanting to disappoint Shuichi - but he was prepared, and mostly expecting - to leave quickly.

[gardenerthief.livejournal.com]

The door opened to reveal their host, and the smell of cooking curry.

"Hello, welcome! I'm glad you've come. Both of you."

He sees you moping back there, Matsuka.

[daddysoldmysoul.livejournal.com]

Ari was pretty sure this was the right address. He'd checked it about 12 times to make sure of it.

...

Maybe he should have called ahead first.

...

But he was already there. And that would just seem like something a creepy person would do.

Hopefully Keiko was home. It would be far too weird to try and explain himself other wise.

...

He fidgeted a little with the potted flower (http://image.shutterstock.com/display_pic_with_logo/77002/77002,1273628005,2/stock-photo-yellow-gerbera-daisy-plant-in-pot-isolated-on-white-52882576.jpg) he'd brought as a "thanks for talking to me and cooking me food when I was invisible" present. (Would you believe, there was no card for that?) It was a small one. The only flower that didn't look bad that he could afford. That he was pretty sure wasn't going to be seen as a romantic thing. Because Keiko already had a boyfriend. And Marlene would kill him.

...

You know, Ari, hesitating like this is how you always get left behind.

...

Right. Walking to the door now. Knocking.

..wait, did Keiko even know what he looked like? Crap!

[slappingchick.livejournal.com]

Ari was lucky that it was Keiko who got to the door first. She took at moment to stare at the teenager standing there, flowers and all, before opening the door wide enough to do more than just peek out. Thankfully, she had seen him briefly on the network before he'd went invisible.

She smiled widely, stepping back to let him in. "Hello, Ari. You came just in time."

[daddysoldmysoul.livejournal.com]

Ari gave a bit of a doofy smile, feeling rather relieved. "I.. uh... got there for you. As a thank you. For helping me out," he fumbled a bit, holding out the pot.

A bit later...

[gardenerthief.livejournal.com]

Kurama was playing host to the best of his ability anyway, but he had a particular smile on his face when he went to meet Ari. He'd noticed the new plant amongst his collection almost immediately, and it made him look forward to meeting Keiko's thoughtful young friend more than any other new guest.

"Excuse me, are you Ari?"

[daddysoldmysoul.livejournal.com]

That someone had not only realized he was there but had actually come up to him and spoken first, without having been told that he was coming or to look for him...

That sort of thing never happened.

So Ari was a bit floored and could only stare for a brief moment as Kurama spoke, which probably made him look rather idiotic for a moment before he managed a nod.

Not the worst first impression he'd made... but the way his life went, maybe it'd be forgotten.

... right. Would help if he said something to.

"Yeah."

Always the brilliant orator, Ari. Good job.

[broroona.livejournal.com]

Baroona had tried to avoid the party, in all honesty, but hell. He was hungry and trying to sleep when there was loud shenanigans going on? Doesn't really work out. So, slowly, he makes his way down the stairs to slide quietly into the small throng of people, sticking to walls and generally trying to go unnoticed.

Which doesn't help when you're a chain smoker, but whatever.

[soldieringblue]

On the other hand, Blue was virtually prohibited from hiding away from the particular occasion - probably for good measure, given the rise of hermit-like behavior that hadn't proved anything but problematic. It was probably better to be around a mass of familiar sounds and feelings, he hoped.

Still, there was a bit of strain in his expression, greeting those he knew quietly and listening more than speaking, taking care to answer short, but satisfactory. The underlying anxieties from his fellow Mu were hard to ignore, though.

He excused himself outdoors for a moment, exhaling the weight of concern into the open air. The event at the hotel was larger, full of strangers, and became nothing short of a small crisis of a party, yet it wasn't as unsettling as the house.

[broroona.livejournal.com]

The smoke from Baroona's cigarette crept through the air, twisting and curling in front of Blue like a convenient plot device. To his left, Baroona leaned against the wall of the house, exhaling a puff of smoke and watching the sky. Unfortunately for him, he hasn't noticed Blue yet, too busy watching a sparrow fly through the sky.

[gardenerthief.livejournal.com]

It had taken Kurama a little while to decide that he was alright with Baroona smoking in the house, as long as he did it by an open window whenever possible. He didn't really mind Yusuke bringing home strays, and he supposed that after a houseful of extremely polite, helpful, tidy Mu, Yusuke had earned himself a scruffy misanthrope.

"Dinner will be ready soon," he assured Baroona, as it was clear the fellow was not down here to socialize.

I'm not apologizing for this

[broroona.livejournal.com]

All the women in the house were making Baroona seriously confused. Then again, hadn't Keiko explained something like this to him? That it was normal in this world? She must have.

So he accepted the fact that apparently Yusuke had a harem of pretty women living with him (maybe he was a king??) and put out his cigarette. It was rude to smoke around girls, after all.

"Is there anything I can do to help, miss?"

(locked to matsuka)

[soldieringblue]

Blue felt them near well before entering the house and had begun to prepare early. He hadn't seen Matsuka or Bakura since Keith's death - if one could call that brief meeting anything more than 'seeing'. A flicker and a demand for peace and that was it. The rest of the evening was selfish and bitter until further intervention.

He'd agreed to try and change, hopefully for the better. To be something substantial beyond Soldier - whatever that could possibly end up being. He wasn't overly social, Mu though he was.

But he did want his comrades to be happy. Safe. If he had the means to do that by simply being alive and well, that counted for something, right? He tried to believe that, descending slowly down to the main level, head fixed in the direction of the front door where he could sense the several minds of familiar people.

/types around lapful of cat

[loveyourenemy.livejournal.com]

Matsuka, too, felt Blue's presence well before he could see him, and not very long after following the other two inside he drifted a little away from them, extending a tentative thought towards Blue - a small thing not really framed in words so much as just the feeling of an anxious question, similar to what he'd already asked Kurama before even coming in: is this okay?

let the cat type too i'm sure he's great

[soldieringblue]

The notion was caught at the base of the stairs, almost immediately responded with a wave of concern and will - he wanted to know if Matsuka was safe and well. If he had suffered further outside of his watch.

He lingered by the staircase, palm on the wall as he leaned enough to see the suggestions of shapes mulling there. Of course it was alright; Blue was certain he could never turn one of his own away.

[violentsoftie.livejournal.com]

Believe it or not, despite the number of people in the house, Hiei was foraging in the kitchen.

Honestly, would it kill the other house residents to keep more fish around?

[daddysoldmysoul.livejournal.com]

Ari had been hanging back a little from the group, not having expected there to be so many people at Keiko's house. Which meant he was in the kitchen when Hiei was.

There was just something about Hiei that was familiar. Not that Ari could put his finger on it or anything. Something that almost reminded him of Stan.

Maybe it was all the black.

Eh. Whatever.

[gardenerthief.livejournal.com]

The fox came in to pour himself a cup of tea, movements sharply graceful and aggressively calm. Someone had annoyed Kurama, but (for once) does not seem to be annoyed at Hiei.

[violentsoftie.livejournal.com]

Hiei spared Kurama a sideways glance to assess the danger levels. Kurama was annoyed--danger. But not at Hiei, so that lessened his chances of being strung up by a plant considerably.

"Not enjoying the party?" he said mildly, with just enough bite to ride the line between snidely joking and actually asking.

One had to be careful with an angry fox, after all.

[rocksfallidie.livejournal.com]

Leo, on the other hand, was relaxing in an armchair in the living room. Just because he was still recovering didn't mean that he couldn't make it downstairs to where the people were.

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura perked up as he spotted the familiar figure and made his way over with a smile. Seeing the Mu up and about after hearing what had happened... it was big relief. "Hello, Leo!" he greeted.

[rocksfallidie.livejournal.com]

Leo gave him a little wave in return for his greeting.

Hello, Ryou.

[loveyourenemy.livejournal.com]

RBlue's welcome, however strained, had put some of Matsuka's anxiousness at ease, but he still hung back, reluctant to approach. From this distance, his thoughts brushed hesitantly across Leo's. ...Are you all right?

He was here, so that was good at least, but...

[rocksfallidie.livejournal.com]

Leo turned his head, wondering if he could see Matsuka from his position in the living room. It was part precaution, part curiosity--Matsuka had tried to warn him, after all, but he had still willingly taken Keith Anyan's side in the past. Dealing with Matsuka meant walking a thin line between trust and distrust.

I am here, Leo thought back, a sense of gentle wryness in his "voice". Are you?