The First Annual Scortoni BQ BBQ.

[Scorch]

WATCH THE FLAMES CLIMB HIGH INTO THE NIGHT

Well, if she had thought that the hard part of this weekend would be setting up the house, Scorch knew now that she had been SORELY mistaken. Just massively so. Her house, in a matter of minutes, was about to be less of a house, and more of a hurricane - why she had even bothered to dust, and decorate, and flush the cushions AT ALL was beyond her. Everyone was just going to be drunk everywhere anyway.

But! She was going to be one of those drunk people, so the pros and cons of this shit show leveled out.

@[Nocturnal] and her gang were the first to push through Scorch's front door, a raucous group who either slunk off to respective corners of her houses, or bum rushed her so ferociously that she nearly toppled over. "Hey Iri, hey Sol," she chuckled to the toddlers, tousling their long locks before straightening to wave at Noct. "Long time no see! I'm glad you brought the family. Is @[Quark] going to make it?" Her green eyes glimmered hopefully at the prospect of seeing one of her predecessors, and her friend, too.

"Oh, and Nish!" She exclaimed, pushing through the puddle-soon-to-be-sea of people. @[Tarnished] stopped obligingly at her call, and she wrapped him in a bear hug, smiling happily. "Can't forget to say hi to my favourite cousin. How've you been??"

There wasn't much time for her to listen though, as more and more guests began pouring in. Feeling minimally (read: 1,00,000%) overwhelmed, Scorch mumbled an excuse and sprinted to the sliding glass door that lead to the backyard. "@[Hestoni], if you don't get in here right this instant, I will cry and you will have to peel my off the floor like spilled nail polish." Her threat was far from a joke, but when her husband accompanied her without hesitation (turning the barbecue on low), her anxiety dissipated almost instantly.

She had barely stepped back into the storm of people when a hand gently clasped her tattooed arm. Looking to see who stood there, Scorch's eyes immediately filled with tears, and in the next moment, eldest daughter and long-estranged mother were warmly embracing. "Hey, Kaida," She muttered emotionally, feeling silly for crying so early in the night. "I missed you." Drawing back from the beautiful blogger, Scorch rested her hands on Kaida's forearm, smiling her biggest, most heartfelt smile. "Make yourself at home love, Noori should be here soon!"

A tiny hand tugged at the hem of her black muscle shirt then, and Scorch released eldest daughter to look down upon youngest. Little @[Philomena] asked after Kha, and Scorch was about to reply when a grandson came swooping in to do all the answering. She smiled at Kori, snatching him to give him a wet kiss before he can run off with not one female companion, but two! Scorch laughed at the retreating children, and turned to greet who came next.

Or rather, what came next. Fumbling with the wine and chocolates that suddenly appear in her arms, Scorch looked for their source, and grinned upon finding... "@[Brennen]!" The woman exclaimed, hastily shoving the gifts on a counter somewhere, where someone besides her would probably make good use of them. Her eyes roll at his half-flirtation, feeling Hestoni's arm wrap a little possessively around her waist. Ah, men. Reaching out (for the tension really was meaningless, and all parties knew it), Scorch exchanged a quick embrace with Brennen, ruffling his little granddaughter's hair on her way back. "Welcome to the house Kellyn! I don't know of any ghosts, but Kha tells good stories about ghosts." Winking both at her and at Brennen, she watched as the little girl ran off with Kori to find just that child. (WHAT IS CHRONOLOGY? I CAN'T).

"Well, make yourself at home Brennen," Scorch grinned. "Maybe take a shot or two. You really don't know how to relax." She reached out and pushed his arm amiably. "The hooligans will take care of themselves tonight."

Speaking of hooligans, some strangers wandered into her house then, but with a glance to Hestoni (who keeps better track of these things than she does), she returned her attention to those around her. Her grandson Nihlus was proclaiming his relationship with a terrified looking boy, and Scorch only smiled knowingly, nodding a silent greeting to the newest member of her family. Ah, young love.

Without warning, yet another presence demanded her attention, but Scorch didn't mind - she'd literally asked for this, after all. And when she realized just who it was, she cared even less. "Oh god @[Hestia], you're a fucking life saver!!" She said under her breath, grinning at the goods hidden inside her co-worker's expensive handbag and returning the double-cheeked kiss. "I'll be there to down that with you before the hour's up, swear-to-god," she laughed, clearly a little shaken by the amount of people bombarding her. But Hestia does her own part in shoving off, going to take care of the flower's she'd brought (bless her). Scorch watched the beautiful woman meander down into a room, and she smiled to herself when she remembered just what lay in that treasure-trove. Ah, well. She wished Hestia the joy of it, and hopefully not too much of the nostalgic pain.

A chill sped up the length of her spine then, and her head whipped to the sides, looking for the eyes that had caused the goose-bumps. But she's just a second to late to glimpse @[Volcan] sneaking around a corner and into a kitchen. Her brow furrowed, stumped at what caused her chill when the house was a fiery furnace with this many people inside. But no matter. Perhaps it would be easier this way, for the two of them.

@[Leilan] bustled around the house too, and when Scorch eyed him about to go into the room that Hestia was in, Scorch darted to intervene, wrapping her son in a big hug before drawing back to playfully chide him. "I know what you're up to, and I hope you have your fun." She reached up and pinched his cheek, grinning, because she knew that it would piss him off just the right amount to make him all cute and huffy. "But do me a favour and skip this room." She kissed his cheek before allowing him to turn and scamper off, probably to go spike the punch or terrorize the family Gays. Who knew with that one.

Exhaling shakily and tapping her hands against her running pants, Scorch tried to look inconspicuous and walked around for a while, gathering up coats and laying them all in the room to the side of the front entrance. Then she made a quick trip to the cellar, and shooed her granddaughters Sunfyre and Starfye up from its depths, issuing harmless threats about telling their mother (like Kaida would give a damn). She chatted for some minutes with Caw and Gendry, then those stranger's she'd seen before - Burnt and her little charge. After peeking out into the backyard and smiling at all the kids swimming in the pool Hestoni had slaved so diligently at, Scorch trotted back inside, and suddenly caught sight of yet another new face.

"@[Ea]," she called softly, knowing that this scene was pretty much the opposite of what her politician-daughter needed right now - retired or not. Scorch smiled at her most successful child, and pulled her in for a quick hug, hoping that all her love could be communicated in such a short exchange. "I'm so glad you could make it, love. And the family," she said, turning to briefly hug Ramiel, as well as her grandchildren Sabrael and Sela. "If you're looking for a quiet place to hide, there's a living room on the second floor that's nice and cozy. I'll send @[Shahrizai] and @[Ilka] your way when they get here, too, and maybe Noori once you've all had a little wine." She smiles knowingly at her beautiful daughter. Her time in the public eye hadn't been the easiest on Ea, and it had left her a little shakier than Scorch could really handle without some guilt. Okay, a lot of guilt; she'd been the one to convince Ea to ever even do that sort of thing. But she tried to make up for it as much as she could, and she knew that her daughter could see that.

When at last her front door closed and no one was speaking to her, Scorch allowed a long, shaky exhale. LORD. The night hadn't even begun. And then -- the front door opened again. With an internal (read: external) groan, she turned to greet whoever it was, probably smiling the second she saw their face.

Scorch

Once Khaleesi of the Amazon Jungle

ROUND TWO, FIGHT. YOU HAVEN'T JOINED YET? WELL GUESS WHAT SCORCH IS STILL GREETING YOU BITCHES. MUAHAHAHA.