[Indigo]

Wryle had had a busy evening, and would likely have more in the days to come, but they couldn't resist dropping into the party, just once. Maybe those gifts being given out would match the desires of one of the people they'd been studying, or maybe they would enjoy it themself. Or maybe neither would be true, but it seemed worthwhile to find out. They were learning so much about holidays!

Ooh, and this party also gave them the opportunity to learn about holiday foods! They gulped down some gingerbread excitedly. Hmm. Interesting. They weren't sure how they felt about it. They'd better eat more, to make sure.

[FrostWynd]

The more and more Amala began to hear about this 'Christmas' holiday, the more the fluffy dragon began to grow curious about it. She wanted to learn about this tradition that humans celebrated during the wintertime.

And maybe next year they could try to incorporate some of it in their own winter celebrations for their own guests back home.

So Amala decided to visit this one party that was clearly gathering a lot of attention, to scope things out and possibly stealget a couple of ideas.

Already just from walking inside, in a more appropriate humanoid form to even get herself through their small door, her senses where overwhelmed with so much stuff that was going on. Visually with all the different decorations, some curious outfit choices, and a wall covered with boxes with a hanging banner that... clearly had some sort of runes scribbled on it. (Understanding human languages was still a very slow work in progress.) Audibly with the chatter of many different people attending the party, and even some music in the background. And finally even her nose was filled with all sorts of new smells, some of them were even actually pretty good!

Slowly Amala made her way over to the nearest seat she could find, while quietly admiring everything with a smile was on her face.

[Sarah]

Sybella wondered how much work went into throwing a multiple day party. Did they close down at night? How many were on the staff? However many days in and the place still looked lovely. There were no signs of the party slowing down either.

She'd come to the party a bit unintentionally. Boredom being the deciding factor for her to dress up and go out. Prizes had been the deciding factor for her to come here or all places. This place could only be the first in a long list of places she wanted to go.

[Jaykobell]

She flew over the scene with a flash of style. She twirled in the sky before making a strong landing right in front of the cheerful tavern. She straightened up and looked over the place through her flying goggles. She pulled them off and onto her head to see better, and she repositioned her scarf. She had two large bags draped over her back that seemed to be filled with things.

She made her way inside with a bouncing trot. Her eyes grew a few sizes as she gasped and took in the decorations. Gosh, how she wished she could stay here longer. This place looked like a blast! But she had somewhere important to be, and something important to deliver.

"Whoaaa, I love what you did with the place!" she complimented happily as she spread her arm about the room to motion to the whole place. "Makes me sad I'm just here for a second! I just came here to pick up those little free things you're handing out!" She couldn't imagine having a use for it herself, but maybe she could find someone else who would enjoy whatever they were handing out.

[Isalynne]

Aranyani nodded along with Grid's repetition of the greeting, and ended up rummaging through bowls on the buffet table for other amusing treats. There was something brown and white and smelling deliciously of spice that was drawing her attention - the gingerbread man got snatched up and decapitated between her teeth, but at least he was consumed by a blissful looking girl on a journey of discovery.

"So much goodness! This is truly astounding!" Oh, her friends in the tribe would be delighted with the news. The outside world was so hospitable and giving, with their decorated trees and free refreshments! She did appear confused by Grid's question, though; Tengel? It was not a name in her tongue. "I'm not understanding. This Tengel, it is a place? I come from Za'o Feio, ah.. the Mother Jungle, it is called in my tongue. We are.. shy."

A map wouldn't go amiss, but even then Aranyani wasn't guaranteed to recognise the placement of her home from an outsider's perspective.

"Friend Grid, from where do you hail?"

[Saahs]

It took him a second to notice anything beyond the busy bustle of the party. And when he did notice the little doll, he jumped a tad. "Oh heck!" he yipped in alarm. What was this, a magic doll? Was she possessed? Enchanted? Who let this tiny little thing just wander around this party, she could get stepped on!

"Wuh' what are you doin' in here, little lady? You're going to get done a smushin' down there!" Despite what most people warned about living dolls, Warren patted his lap as he sat down as an invitation for the doll to sit somewhere a little more safe.

( Claiming today's present! )

[RiDragon]

Null had zoned out again, grinning to himself like his head was full of rainbows and cotton.  Cotton rainbows, if you will.  "Messing with you?"  He heard himself say through the imaginary cotton in his ears.  "Nahhhh."  He snorted and leaned his chair back precariously.  This was...  Very unlike him, and he knew it.  The high he was getting from the anger was far too much than his body was used to.  He was basically overdosing on serotonin right now.  He wondered how Olive would react seeing him so carefree.  She'd probably freak out, despite wanting him to loosen up all the time.  He chuckled to himself, but couldn't hold back a pang of guilt.  Was this really good for me?  He remembered how, technically, he wasn't doing any drugs.  He was just..  Really high on the anger juice this guy gave off.  He felt better now.

"Nose problem?"  That sobered him up a little.  The heck was that supposed to mean?  Just because he was high, he didn't lose his snark and roughness.  "No..?"  Though, to be honest, he didn't know enough about human culture and drugs to really understand the true meaning.  Regardless, he needed to stay nearby this guy.  Well.  He didn't actually need to.  He probably could still feed off him from far away.  The high might go away though. Plus, the stranger was kind of interesting to watch.

It was then that he noticed a..  Plush toy?  On top of his head.  Uh.  What?  Then he noticed that There was one on everyone's heads.  

What??

[Middy]

Her assistant just needed a turn at the event. In order to get the hyperactive little twit to shut up, Adela had to run out and claim the gift before she had the stomach to return to her lab. Sure he was skilled in what he did, but it didn't change the fact that she wanted to punch him repeatedly for his actions... not literally of course. Okay... maybe sometimes she wanted to really punch him. He was a construct anyway, not like he would feel pain as strongly. Whatever, she created him, might as well get him something to make him happy.

[Claiming Day 7]

[Lilith Michaelis]

Hadya emitted a series of rapid clicks as the young man jumped, the closest she could come to laughing. What a silly boy! She blinked her large eye up at him as he sat down and asked what she was doing here. When he patted his lap in invitation, the little doll jumped up and down a couple of time in glee before scurrying over and taking a seat. Headband Boy was silly but nice. She liked that.

She clicked at him again, slower this time, and pointed at the strange, bright object in his hands and tilted her head in query. What is it?

((Claiming the prize for the 6th day/December 20th))

[Adelie]

Twenty holiday parties you didn't know were going on in your neighborhood, he considered. The sixteenth will surprise you! No. That would require him to locate at least twelve more holiday parties, first of all, and although he was certain he could find that many, most of their hosts would probably not appreciate an article reporting on their family gatherings. And finding one that was actually surprising would be difficult; he'd had hopes for this one, but despite the notoriety of the host and the setting, it had proven to be perfectly normal.

Well, the tree suspended from the ceiling was a nice touch, but he'd seen better. Or maybe he'd just been exceptionally inebriated and seeing double that time around - that was, he admitted, a distinct possibility.

Elusive local tavern owner hosts holiday party, he pondered. Not enough pizzazz. No one read articles with titles that aren't at least slightly fabulous. Perhaps if he found some better appellation for the Quest Master, or some more suitable adjective for the party - but really, at this point he just wanted to eat some food, and maybe think about things later.

[Thunder]

Christmas wasn't a Japanese holiday, but the Japanese still liked to celebrate it. Heck, even the famous Japanese mobile game, Aqua Symbol Champions, was having a Christmas themed event! Sakura loved this time of year with its holiday lights, gift giving, and warmth and good feelings all around. So she knew she had to check out this Advent Calendar that was going on.

She walked into the bar and gazed in awe at the decorations before going to find the Quest Master. "Konnichiwa!" she said. "Cold I please have today's present?"

[FieldsofIris]

[Forgive me, I'm typing this on mobile]

Iris was glad that Dahlia and Kosok were taking a few days off. They always worked so hard for her, but it was odd that she hadn't heard anything from them since they had set out a few nights before. So, after finishing her duties for the day, Iris set out for the mysterious tavern.

After entering the building, she scanned for her friends, but the place was too crowded. With a small frown, she decided to inch her way towards the bar. Perhaps the staff had seen the peculiar pair.

Just as she had found an open stool, the staff dropped a mug of eggnog in front of her and continued on his way. Well... it seemed like she might be here for awhile... and it had been a really long past couple of days...

Iris took a long sip from her mug and settled onto the stool.

[Claiming day 6, and I should've claimed day 7 yesterday, not day 8. XD not sure if that's fixable or not, but oh well c,:]

[Night]

Oliver probably could have - should have, really - guessed that Leo wasn't particularly concerned about finding another job immediately. He'd seen the inside of his apartment, and he knew rationally there was no way that Leo had been paying for it on an intern's salary if he'd even been getting paid there at all. He wondered idly what it was like to not be concerned over finances, a sharp spike of guilt curling in his chest even as the thought passed. There were many things that he could justify being jealous over, but money wasn't one of them. They did well enough for themselves, all things considered. He shoved the feeling into the ever growing dark corners of his mind and frowned at Leo's next remark.

"Sexual harassment? Like... at you?" His eyebrows drew together, clearly concerned. "They can't do that can they? I thought there were laws to protect against that kind of thing."  Though he supposed that had never stopped anyone before, and it wasn't as though Leo were still working there. He curled his fingernails into his palm under the table to keep himself from scowling.

He was glad for the change in subject. He shifted in his seat, hesitating before he replied. "I'm not actually supposed to be working with anybody else. It'd be more of a... freelance thing, on your end." He admitted. "The other guys are just... tolerated?" That didn't seem like the right word, but it was close enough. "They aren't employed by the church. They're employed by me." It seemed best to clarify, given that he wasn't sure he was making a whole lot of sense. The church hadn't exactly been thrilled to learn he had taken on a group of civilians - more people to get hurt, more people that had to know. It hadn't been a pleasant conversation, but in the end he'd managed to get the go ahead. He was certain it was only because they'd already been exposed to what they were working to keep under wraps. Given Leo was in the same boat, he was sure that he could get a bit of leeway to take him on if he stretched the truth a bit.

Oliver did at least have the sense to feel bad that he was offering to lie to the church. There were just some things he was willing to bend the rules for, and making reprimands for losing Leo his job was one of them. He thought the church owed him at least that much.

"No, no trouble." He gave a half-smile, his leg bouncing under the table as his nerves started pulling at him. "They weren't overly concerned with the how of it, they were just glad it was over with. I can't say I disagree."

[ToxicShadow]

Although he had stayed away from the party and all of the guests up to now, mostly because of not wanting to risk getting underfoot, the oddly colored feline finally bounded down the flight of stairs from the the second floor. It had been too much to resist it, for this long, so he decided to finally come see what all the fuss was about it. And to get snacks.

Unlike the others that worked for the Quest Master, though, he didn't actually work within the tavern. No, he was just currently living with the others until he was finally sent out on his quest, which he was still "in training," for, according to the Quest Master.

[zapdragon555]

Cody sat down quietly, growing used to Kosok on his shoulder and Dahlia's kind words. In some ways, she reminded him a little bit of Ava. Warm, comforting, and ready to help whenever possible. He couldn't imagine Ava standing up to someone like that, though, he thought with a small, fond smile to himself. A wash of something like anxiety, something like relief ran over him when the person said they'd go get the place's number.

On one hand, he'd be one step closer to getting back home. On the other hand, it meant he'd have to face Zane again.

"Y-yeah, that table looks good," Cody mumbled, looking stiff. At least it was more out of the way--they wouldn't be taking up as much space that way. Making his way over with the other two, Cody sat down and seemed to deflate a little, his elbows leaning on the table and head hanging slightly. "I... really hope he comes. M-my... Zane, that is... we kind of had a fight before I came here. Well--not a fight, i-it was more of a... one-sided... thing, on my part, um..." Cody, in all honesty, looked like he was about to cry anyhow, heckled by Cyril or not. "I just don't know what's wrong with me lately."

---

Cyril's jaw was tense, anger gone but annoyance and agitation quickly taking its place. He still felt hot from everyone's eyes on him earlier, and now this guy...

It occurred to Cyril that he could just get up and leave. Leave Cody--he looked like he was getting help anyhow--and leave this weirdo behind, get back to Ava, see how she was doing... his face threatened to soften at the thought, but he caught himself and stared intently at the man. "You're a mess," he muttered, getting up abruptly and shoving his hands in the pockets of his dresspants, sliding payment and a tip onto the countertop where he'd been seated. He didn't look back at the strange man as he made his way towards the door, catching a glimpse of tears starting to fall on Cody's face as he walked by. His heart threatened to clench. He... didn't like it when people cried, even if he wasn't fond of those people. Shaking it off, he scowled and hoped the man wouldn't follow him.

[Claiming Day 6!]