Well that sure happened

[notbymyside]

[Ango truthfully isn't much of a cook, relying mostly on takeout food to keep himself fed. But takeout isn't an option here, and after that...colorful trial, he doesn't have it in him to trust food that he isn't preparing himself.

It's not bad, really. Just rather plain. There is also a noticeable lack of meat among everything he's prepared too. And it all goes well with the liquid diet he's supplying, courtesy of the jazz bar. Plenty of booze bottles and glasses can be found for your drinking needs. He's sure he's not the only one who wants to forget that whole cursed trial.]

Food and drinks are in the opera house. Be sure to drink responsibly.

-Ango

[There are also no decorations, beyond the mess left behind from earlier.]

Comments

[notbymyside]

[Ango isn't actually hiding in his room for once, though he has brought his notebook with him and is filling out the pages. Though he seems dissatisfied with what he is writing, and he keeps scribbling things out. He eventually rips out the page and tosses it away, only to start again on a new page. If anyone picks the note up they're probably gonna have a hard time reading it since it's written in Japanese, but the name Shin appears in English letters on it a few times. Hm.

He also has a list of names that he has edited, since the trial is over and all.

He does eat his own cooking, of course. Even if it's bland and dull. In fact, he has an explanation for it if anyone asks:]

I thought milder foods would be better on everyone's stomachs.

[Yep. Totally not because he can't cook that well.]

[pr159]

That's probably fair.

[ Some of them did seem a little nauseated after hearing about that whole... furniture thing. Plus, not a bad idea if they're all going to be drinking.

Anyway, he'll sit down next to Ango. Congratulations? ]

So, we're down to three living unknowns, hm?

[deadlygoals]

[ He's showing up much much later, and smelling like vodka. He seems pretty sleepy as he plops down beside Ango. ]

Ango~

[ Just going to steal his pen and point to his notebook. ]

Let me see that real quick.

[promittere]

[Bland is better than outright terrible, at least, so Ignis can't complain too much. Not that he would anyways, because he was raised to be polite and respectable and all of that other nonsense that meant he would be successful in politics.

Still...]

And it's easier to make, that much is certain.

[They need proper caterers for these things, he thinks.]

[ortion]

[For once, Dist actually makes an appearance at the afterparty. Though the end of the trial threw him off of a bit, he doesn't feel like screaming into a pillow for hours like he had following the last two trials.

Plain food is nothing new to him, either. Honestly, even Ango's plain cooking is better than what he usually throws together. So he hangs out in one of the lounges for a little while with food and a drink. He's open to company.]

[pr159]

[ Are you open to this company.

He comes over with a drink and smiles. ]

That went well, didn't it? I mean, all things considered.

[p_q]

[He's not at the afterparty, per se, but he does have to pass through the afterparty in order to escape the afterparty -- and the opera house is a big place with a hell of a lot of lounges. For the most part, Ulquiorra drifts through like the ghost he was and still mostly purports to be, ignoring and being ignored as he pleases.

That said, he is watching the people he passes, even if it's mostly to judge the aftermath of everything. It's both more and less chaotic than the other times, perhaps.

There's a brief pause when he spots Dist. Maybe it's time for some peanut gallery commentary?]

Quite cooperative today, weren't you? Was it self-preservation, or something else?

[raventhaw]

I'm impressed.

[ raven's just here to get her food and leave, but she does have something she wants to say to dist. ]

You were cooperative today. If not for you, things might've turned out differently.

[psychophant]

[...Well, good to see he hasn't been missing much with these afterparties. Iago actually shows up to this one, though he's not eating or drinking. Instead, he's brought one of those games from the hotel's lounge - he's got a chessboard set up and is just waiting to play with anyone unlucky enough to catch his eye.]

Join me. A distraction would be nice right now.

[Unsurprisingly, this is a game Iago is very good at. But hey, maybe he'll be nice and take it easy— hahahaha jk it's Iago, he has literally zero chill and wants to win. Feel free to approach him to... not play chess as well, that is definitely an option too.]

[drydrown]

[how about we...not...with the chess maybe???]

That seems like a terrible idea, actually. The game.

[bawcock]

[ Wow, he never thought this guy would invite anyone to do anything?? Like, he has dastardly villain written all over him. From his mask to his feathers to his shoes...

Know what? "All over him" suffices, tbh.

Anyway, anyway, if he's being friendly, might as well be friendly back. Even if ha, ha, ha, him playing chess. In other words, a sucker approaches!! ] I'm more of a checkers fan myself, but why not? It's all the same in theory anyhow.

[p_q]

... A cerebral distraction for a cerebral problem, I see.

[No, he didn't make a pun, I don't know what you're talking about. Sometimes wordplay just happens and nobody is responsible for the convergence of ridiculousness and lexicon. But also: I hope nobody was expecting him to be charitable and accept the distraction for what it is instead of probing it like an alien with a new specimen because that's also probably an apt metaphor for this interaction.

Anyway: the point is that Ulquiorra isn't bothering to stick around the afterparty itself -- the food part in particular -- but he does take a moment to peruse the board in front of him.]

I suppose it's more useful than simply drowning in liquor.

[He's either doxxing no one or everyone, whatever, it's fine.]

[promittere]

[Chess, huh... Ignis is no slouch at chest, so he'll gladly settle down across from Iago.]

Oh? You don't want to talk about what's on your mind?

[Is he...being serious or not.]

[baitless]

[...you know, Seteth thinks about it for a few seconds before going ahead and sitting down.]

It’s been a while since I played, but this will probably work better for me than the alcohol, at least.

[Besides, he’s actually pretty good at tactics, if maybe a bit more prone to cautious strategies than aggressive ones.]

[drydrown]

[Cumore actually got through today's trial while being far less of a screaming unhinged asshole than usual. Will the fucking wonders never cease.

Well, whatever's gotten into him lately, he'll make a point of seeking out Shin's portraits of everyone; they're horribly morbid things to have around and he isn't sure what he thinks of them, but for the time being he'll at least take his own.

It's morbid, but it's well-done and it's his for the time being now. Into his room it goes.

After that, though, he'll find his way back to the opera house; he isn't eating anything - he never does at these little post-trial get-togethers - and he doesn't seem all that interested in the alcohol, either, but he's certainly here and occasionally writing things down in a notebook, in some of that weird script he uses sometimes. He doesn't seem as keyed-up as he usually does after these things; he doesn't seem relaxed either, but he's calm for once. Settled. Trying to keep himself that way.

He'll leave later in the evening, though not to return to clergy housing immediately; looks like he's in the botanical gardens again despite the late hour.]

portrait gallery;

[moonfang]

[he wants to make sure he grabs the painting of him before someone destroys the lot. He didn't expect to run into anyone else]

Ah.

.... Yo.

botanical gardens

[deadlygoals]

[ He spots him on his way back from the opera house. Stuffing his hands into his pockets as he walks up. ]

Looking for more plants?

portrait hell

[p_q]

[There are certainly few enough reasons to seek out the art studio in the wake of everything, and Ulquiorra has spent a good deal of time disdaining the place in particular anyway -- to say that he has no eye for artistic merit might be putting it mildly.

Which is why it's rather unusual to have two of them here, picking somewhat gingerly through the carcasses left by both Shin and the city itself.

Ulquiorra is only delicate insofar as he's watching the paints and chemical mixtures around the place in the wake of everything, but he pauses when he sees Cumore digging for very dubious treasure.]

Is your likeness so important to you that you'd take it from that man?

[Never mind that Cumore apparently wants to add human taxidermists to his harem gallery.]

portraits

[pr159]

[ Rideaux had never actually bothered to look at any of Shin's portraits -- which admittedly may have been because if he looked bad in his art style, he didn't want to see it -- but at this point, he might as well. In part because he is pretty curious, but mostly because he doesn't trust some of these people here not to take his likeness and draw mustaches and devil horns or whatever on it.

So, sometime before the party, here he is. He sighs when he sees that Cumore is in here as well, though it's just a quiet one to himself, and not some exaggerated sound of exasperation that can be heard across the room. He still can't stand him, of course, but at least he's been less obnoxious than usual lately. Which seems a little odd, actually, but maybe he's just starting to crack under the pressure.

Rideaux gives him a bit of a sidelong glance but doesn't feel obligated to say anything, so he'll just wait his turn. (And make sure he isn't trying to run off with his portrait, too.) ]

[moonfang]

[Zangetsu is here as well. Whether he's gotten his "delivery" yet or not is unknown, but he does help himself to Ango's food.]

So. If we're to believe Shin's little note, there... well, I have an idea that'll throw a wrench in the Bitch's plan... But you crime scene investigators ain't gonna like it.

[notbymyside]

By all means, share your idea.

[This is gonna be Something, he can already tell.]

[apothecares]

....This doesn’t sound that promising.

[He almost regrets feeling responsible enough to ask]

[baitless]

[Like last week, Seteth just heads to the church before heading to the opera house, but it’s... different this time. He came with the vague intent of praying for Sirius and Olivier and no one else, but he just kind of finds himself staring at the depictions of the crucifixion for a while and then just kind of slumping into a pew and burying his face in his hands.

Right. He should probably be social. Check on everyone. He’s hungry, so. You know. Food and alcohol, even though neither of them are actually going to satisfy him. So when he gets to the opera house and load his plate up with food. He’ll also be looking over the bottles of alcohol to see what has the highest proof, because maybe that will actually affect him at all? Maybe?

...after less time than he really expected, he heads to the museum with something high proof and just kind of lingers by the fossils until he just... heads to the aquarium to maybe get shitfaced with the fish.

He does not get shitfaced. He still does not feel anything from trying to chug the whole fucking bottle.]

...damn it all.

[notbymyside]

[Ango didn't actually follow Seteth the whole time, but he does go looking for him by the end of it, and seeing that empty bottle and a noticeably sober Seteth just begs even more questions.]

You...take your liquor well, I see.

[He's curious but also hesitant to outright ask.]

[promittere]

[Ignis is there, because of course he's there. Safety in numbers is apparently not much of a Thing anymore, but he'd still rather be around people than holed up by himself.

Still, tonight he doesn't seem much up for talking. He makes his way around the opera house, and after a moment of hesitation decides to crack open a bottle. He will probably regret this, but he deserves to just not think about everything so much.

Eventually, he'll stumble his way back to clergy housing, not...not in the best of moods.]

clergy housing;

[reanbeans]

[ It's undeniable.

Tonight and this week were a shitshow. Though, on the way to the clergy housing, he hadn't expected to run into Ignis. They hadn't spoken much, if at all.

But they had been heading the same way. ]

...Ignis? What's your mind?

[galrarm]

[ Wow!! He sure hated that!

Of course, no one knows his whole past. Especially not the part about, you know, his being cloned about a hundred times. And that he's living in a clone body. Shiro's still adjusting to... well, being in a body, but also dealing with the fact that he has two sets of memories. Most days, he recognizes that his other self--he's a part of him. But others, it's more difficult.

And the difficult part of tonight is that he's remembering that fight against Keith vividly. Rows upon rows of pods.

Needless to say, he's partaking in a bit of drink. He's got some food with him, and water, but he looks pretty... out of it. ]