2020.04.04 Conn's Birthday Party

Murder of Crows Reopening
It's a bar that's reopening.
IC Date	March 28, 2020
IC Time	5 PM-???
Players	Conn, Clara, Hop, Wick, Aoife, Robin, BT, Sterling, Simone
Location	Murder of Crows VIP Lounge
Prp/Tp	N/A
Theme Song	N/A

In the far corner of the VIP section there is a rented karaoke machine. Beside it, Conn's guitar rests against one of the barstools, coopted for the evening with written permission from the management.

The central table has a Hop-special spread. Plates with sticky toffee cake, bread and butter pudding, lemon pudding, spice cakes, cupcakes and muffins surround the Baileys and Whiskey flavoured birthday cake.

While arrayed along the table by the wall there are soft drinks, beer, hard cider and a selection of Irish Whiskeys, the crown piece being a 1985 Jameson Single Cask Reserve.

Wick turns up with a wrapped gift hugged tight in his arms. And that magnificent guitar over his shoulder. His eyes shine with delight as he gazes across the room, taking in that incredible spread of desserts. But before he makes his way over, he first seeks out Arthur and offers up his gift. "Here. Um. You should open it before people really start to get here..." his cheeks seem a bit warm with a hint of color as he smiles up at the troll.

Clara does show up however, and with a large box in her arms. She looks about and smiles brightly "oh wow" at the spread then looks for a place to put her gift

Conn is a bunde of nervous energy until Wick shows up. "I'll open it later, if you like, people have started to get here. Hi Clara, yeah I'd say Hop outdid himself. But he keeps setting the bar higher every time he does something like this."

Hop is making sure everything is set and fine, and looks up, "Oh, nah, this." he motions to the spread, "I just had the crew at one of the restaurants I own help me with everything." says the dude dressed like a skater drifter.

Clara is probably very overdressed but she looks stunning and turns back after setting down her gift "you're putting me to shame Hop, and you don't even realize it" the lady laughs

Wick nods up at Conn with a shy smile, offering up the gift. "Sure. Later might be better. Though... I mean, it's just a book." It's obvious from the shape and weight of it. "If you open others, I suppose it'll be fine. Just... yeah." He pauses. "Also. Happy birthday!" And with a bright little grin, he takes hold of Conn's shirt so that he can bring him down to recieve a kiss on the cheek.

Conn grins "I wasn't expecting presents. I guess I'll put them on a chair here. And if there's more than just you two with presents, I'll open them tonight, otherwise I'll open them when I get home?" he responds, rubbing his cheek where Wick kissed him with a soft smile.

Clara looks over "I do hope you'll open some of them before you go home" and smiles fondly at the pair

Aoife lets herself in with the key provided for the party. She looks around cautiously, nodding to the few people she actually recognizes. Giving each of the others a long curious look.

Hop pffts a bit, "All I did was bake Clara, that's his present and its like, one of the few things I'm good at." he huffs in humor, "I'm def not doing solo karaoke or anything later, for example."

Wick smiles with warmth up at Conn and nods. "Alright." Glancing to Clara, he drifts over and, if she permits, he offers a light kiss to her cheek. "It's good to see you." Then with a bright smile off at Hop, he reaches out, hoping the delightful baker will come and give him a hug. "There are few things in this world better than your desserts, Hop. You should take pride." And as Aoife steps, Wick grins at her and offers her a nod. "Hello Aoife!"

Clara laughs with Hop "I can't sing, not even a little so you won't see me up there thats for sure" the smiles up at Wick and tips her cheek to the kiss "Hello my friend, good to see you also"

Conn smiles at Aoife "Aoife, this is Clara and Hop. Hop, Clara this is Aoife. She is a trusted friend of mine and Wick's."

Clara turns with a smile and nods to the woman "Aoife, its a pleasure to meet you"offering her hand "Clara Sterling"

BT arrives upstairs just slightly before Robin, his hand held in hers, though she's not really dragging him along. She's wearing her green dress, which is likely the closest to 'fancy' that she gets.

Aoife shakes Clara's offered hand, "Tis a pleasure to meet you as well...". She trails off and gives BT an odd look before shifting her gaze to Robin. She tears her gaze away from the couple and forces her attention back to the guest of honor, "Berfore I forget." She offers a small expensive looking crystal and silver vial to Arthur, "Drink this in the morning. It'll get rid of your hangover."

Clara smiles and is glancing often at the door clearly waiting for someone

Robin trails up behind BT with a big smile on his face. His hand firmly in hers.

In comes sweeping the stately figure of Rick Sterling. "Damn it all, I shall be so -late-," he frets as he makes his way in. "Aha! I'm here! Now the party can begin in earnest!" Spying Clara, he makes his way over to her. "There's my lady," he says, sweeping her up in a loving bear hug.

Hop will finish the food setup and then take a moment to give Wick a hug. "I made all of Arthurs favorites, so I hope everyone likes traditional Irish stuff, and things flavored with booze." he chuckles a bit.

Clara has been sporting a happy smile since her arrival but seeing Sterling makes her entire being brighten and she laughs, wrapping her arms about his neck as he hugs her "you are late my Lord"

Wick laughs with Hop and nods. "Mm. That sounds perfect." He wraps Hop up tight for a hug before drifting off to snag one of the cupcakes. He licks off a bit of the icing and closes his eyes with an 'mmm' of pleasure. "Hop... You've outdone yourself." Or at least, that's probably what he was trying to say. But with half of that cupcake in his mouth it's hard to make out. Catching Robin and BT stepping into the room, he lifts the cupcake in a cheerful wave.

BT will look to the woman in the room even taller than her, but she gives a friendly smile instead of an odd look, "Hi, I'm Betty." She states before wafing to Hop, "Hey Bunny." She's dropped the 'boy' from the end of the nickname, then an equally cheerful wave back to Wick.

Conn smiles at Sterling "Doctor Sterling. A pleasure as always," he strips the seal off the bottle of very expensive whiskey, smells the cork and smiles, "if anyone else drinks whiskey, this is from the year I was born" and starts pouring out glasses.

Aoife chuckles at Hop's comment, "I learned to like most of that because of friends in Colledge. It smells delicious."

Conn smiles at Aoife "Thanks, I plan on putting myself in a situation where it will be needed"

Robinsqueezes BT hand. "I'm gonna go say hi to the hi." He says letting go and walking over to pull Hop and Wick into a hug. "Hey guys."

Hop will give Robin a hug back, wave and smile to BT and then head over for a small glass of whiskey from Sterling with a smile and a "Just a bit please and thank you."

Wick grins off at BT with warmth. "Hi Betty!" And he wraps Robin up tight in a one-armed hug, holding the rest of his cupcake up in the air with the other. "Hey Robin. Glad you two could make it." Conn tugs at his attention as he mentions whisky. With a bright grin, he stuffs the rest of that cupcake into his mouth and hastens after Hop for a shot of whisky.

Aoife nods in response to BT's greeting, "I'm called Aoife.". She glances at Hop and grins before looking at the other woman again, "So many interesting people at this party. Makes me glad I decided to show up."

Despite the line about not having to bring a gift, Simone climbs the stairs carrying a box wrapped in shiny red foil paper. Not necessarily wrapped very well, but it's the thought that counts, right?

Clara kisses Sterling with a grin then turns to the rest of the party as more people arrive "I believe Dr Sterling would love ataste of that spirit Conn"

BT nods as Robin heads away to mingle, then just looks around, sort of rocking back and forth for a few minutes before she moves off to get a drink. Whiskey will be a new experience for her, and that's what the woman is all about, experience.

Conn grins "The bottle is open", he says, referring to the $2000 bottle of whiskey, "and on the table, at this stage it would be a shame not to drink it all tonight. So please, help yourselves. Simone! Glad you could make it. Simone, this is BT, Robin and Aoife. Aoife, Robin, Aoife, Simone. Make yourselves ... I guess at home is the wrong phrase, but at ease."

Simone smiles to Aoife and Robin in turn. "Nice to meet you, and nice to see you again," she says to them, respectively. To the latter: "Sorry I haven't been able to meet up with you. Larry and I have both been pretty busy." She turns her smile on Conn. "Happy birthday! I can't stay too long," she says, approaching him. "And I know you said presents weren't necessary, but here." She offers the box, which turns out to be a little heavier than it looks.

Aoife chuckles, "Home has been a lot of temporary housing over the years, but i understand the sentiment." With that she also walks over to collect a glass of the whiskey.

Clara laughs and steps over to pour a glass of the expensive liquor for her husband, finding something less potent for herself

Robin smiles at Simone "Nice to see you again as well." He starts heading over he isn't missing out a two thousand dollar bottle of whiskey for anything.

Wick laughs as he accepts a shot of whiskey. "I don't think there's any risk of that bottle being empty by the end of the night. Doubt it'll last the hour." He raises his glass to clink with Hop's before taking a sip. His smile quirks. "Mm. Yeah. Not even an hour..." Simone draws a sunshine smile to his lips as she approaches Conn with that gift. He waits his turn, watching her, before stepping over. He might seem hopeful for a hug - but he waits for her to offer. "Hi Simone! It's wonderful to see you."

BT would wait for her turn to get a small sample of the alcohol. She has some good patience so most everyone gets their glass before she does. And after it is in hand, she's raise it to her nose to get a smell of it, as it's not a type that she's tried before.

Conn has put the small collection of gifts on the small table, nervously ambling around the room trying very hard to make sure that everyone is having a good time. He hugs Hop and Clara in turn, leaning in to whisper words of thanks, looking uncertainly at Simone before doing that "hug/handshake" thing that people do when they don't know which to offer.

Sterling gives Clara a tender squeeze. "I -am- sorry, my lady," he says. "Robbie was simply inconsolable that he could not come to the party. I had to promise him that I'd tell him all about it when we returned home." He accepts the whiskey she buys him, smiling warmly as he passes it under his nose, inhaling the fragrance. "Hmm." He indulges in a swallow, nodding his head. "A fine spirit indeed." He looks over to Conn with a smile, lifting his glass in the younger man's direction. "And there's the man of the hour! Many happy returns, old boy!"

Clara smiles and returns Conn's hug tightly "You could open the gift from Rick and I" she asks then nods to her husband "He'll be totally distracted by Paw Patrol I'm sure"

Simone offers Conn a slightly awkward hug - better than a handshake - after putting her gift down. She very carefully doesn't look too closely at any of the booze floating around, and instead moves on to offer Wick a hug of greeting. "Hey."