victory_road | The World Has Got a Smile Today, the World Has Got a Glow (Voltron Holiday Party Log)

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The World Has Got a Smile Today, the World Has Got a Glow (Voltron Holiday Party Log)

Who: The Attack on Voltron House and YOU! Seriously, if you have Voltron CR, you're invited!
Where: Attack on Voltron House, Four Island
When: Around December 11
Summary: The Voltrons have a human/Altean holiday party at their house, come on by!
Rating: PG to PG-13, will warn as necessary

When Shiro proposed celebrating Grogory Day back at the harvest festival, Allura had honestly been touched by the suggestion, even more so when the rest of the household agreed. (Especially coming from Keith and Pidge, who liked their peace and quiet.) So after sitting down with a calendar and making a graphing calculator earn its keep, Allura determined that Grogory Day would be about December 8th. Of course, that was a weekday, so the invitations she sends out a few weeks beforehand (to give people time for travel) say it’s that Saturday evening instead. (And given the number of high-level trainers in the house, guests are more than welcome to request a ride.) And since it seems to be the main Earth holiday, why not make it an early Christmas party, too?

When people arrive, the spacious beach house is decked out with lights, mostly in shades of blue, and the interior beckons people to come out of the brisk and damp sub-tropic air, warm and bright and spacious (which it needs to be with the possible crowds), soft and cheery Poké-holiday music winding through the rooms, with interludes from Jaskier and his Wigglytuff throughout the evening.

As for refreshments, while Hunk might not be here, the non-Shiro members of the household are able to set out a decent spread from all their cultures. Lance contributes a host of Cuban recipes from golden brown tostones and empanadas, to roasted pernil with juicy meat draped in crispy skin, served with rice and black beans. A wintery gratin filled with mushrooms and kabocha squash, baked Brie topped with a rosehip jam in lieu of juniberries and wrapped in puff pastry, an assortment of Christmas cookies (including but certainly not limited to gingerbread and peanut butter blossoms), and an island of drinks featuring mugs of warm coffee, glasses of sweet coquito, slow cookers of mulled berry wine and apple juice, and a bowl with an extremely blue punch. And treats for the Pokémon as well, naturally. Of course, if guests want to contribute to the feast, they’re more than welcome!

(Also, at some point in the evening, Lance might have stolen Shiro's Gallade to help plant mistletoe here and there. Do with this information what you will.)

So come, eat, drink, mingle with old friends and make some new ones! And enjoy the night, no matter which holiday you’ve come to celebrate!

[[OOC: This is a mingle log, so feel free to make your own top-levels and such, and have fun!]]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Yeah... fingers crossed. I, uh-- if you know Geralt, I think he's mostly here to hang out with him? ["Hang out" means "fight".] He's not really a party guy. But I'm sure the cats will be a plus.

[He follows after Shiro with a quiet laugh, following his lead in ducking around decorations.] Ah... some of those are my fault, sorry. It--

[Whoops, didn't duck low enough, and now he's walked right into--

That is mistletoe.

This would fucking happen, wouldn't it.]

--Ah.

I don't think I've met him. I've met Jaskier though. [And thus heard a lot about the man. Mostly that he wore black and was fairly nonverbal.] That's fine, though. Not everyone can be a party fan.

[He turns, having carved out a comically large hunk of cake for the absent Chip, an eyebrow already raised.]

Don't worry about - [Hold on.] What's wrong - ?

[ ... who in the @#$% put that there. ]

-- Ah.

[Don't blush, don't turn red, keep cool Shiro, keep cool.]

We can - pretend we didn't see that if. You want?

[MUST MAKE FRIEND COMFORTABLE.]

[So on the bright side Grant is saved the trouble of deciding how to sidestep the subject of Jaskier, or if he should just not say anything at all!

On the... less-bright side, now he's got to figure out what to do, uh... here.

It's no surprise that Shiro doesn't exactly jump on the opportunity; frankly, if he had, Grant would wonder if this was one of those transforming Pokemon imitating him. And Grant's second thought (the first being "oh no") is also to try and give his friend as easy an out as possible.

But there's... definitely still a part of his stupid idiot heart that stings a little, irrationally, at the speed with which Shiro suggests they just ignore the plant. Probably because Grant is a hypocrite, he's pretty sure.

He wonders if that hesitation shows on his face. He's not sure whether he hopes it does or not. Sure, the prospect of Shiro figuring out how Grant feels about him like this is kinda terrifying, but there is something appealing about the thought of that choice being taken out of his hands, so it can just be... out there. Without him having to decide to take the leap and say it.]

We... we can. If you'd rather.

[We can]

[In all honesty, Shiro thinks he misheard. Or that he's flat out hallucinating. It had never occurred to him to - that this was An Option. He ... really shouldn't. He shouldn't want that. He absolutely, one hundred percent should not want to accept that offer.]

[He can still feel the band of metal around his finger. It feels cold. Accusing. He... shouldn't. He's still - he's still waiting. Isn't he? He's given up, hasn't he? The idea of We can sounds foreign. How in the hell can they? Grant has multiple people who love him. Who are with him.]

[What right does Shiro have to We can? When he's the one who's given up? Who's walked away and been left behind?]

I... don't know if I ... [We can] could do that to your partners.

[He's such a coward.]

[Claude, from behind, coughs a little exaggeratedly; there's a twinkle in his eye that's probably only going to make Grant more nervous. But, in fact, he's going to behave himself.

Mostly.

He's not here to horribly embarrass Grant, that's for sure. ~~(Even if he was, he's not sure Grant would need the assist.)~~ So he doesn't intend to call Grant's obvious crush on Shiro out right in front of Arceus, Shiro, and everybody.

But he's also definitely not going to let this opportunity pass Grant and Shiro by on his account.]

I'd say 'oh, please do it to us', but considering how even innocent words have gotten misconstrued in the past, I wouldn't want to say something so suggestive in mixed company.

[Definitely a barbed comment re: Lance, who Claude is still fuming mad at on Grant's behalf(fortunately, in a controlled way). But, not making said comment near Lance or Pidge, it can simply be taken as a pointed joke in this context.]

Really, though, you guys don't need to hold back from a harmless tradition on our accounts. [And he cocks an eyebrow at Shiro, as if he suspects - or knows - that Shiro may have been using that as an excuse to hold back on someone else's account. After all, if Shiro was worried about what Grant's boyfriends would think, Claude was standing right there to ask...

Claude doesn't mind if Shiro has his own reasons for holding back, of course. A mistletoe kiss that doesn't have enthusiastic consent on both parts isn't one worth having. But if there is some other reason...well, Claude thinks Grant deserves the honest version.]

Edited 2021-12-23 11:35 (UTC)

[That…

…Might not be an outright rejection.

Maybe it is. Maybe Shiro is just trying to let him down easy, and Grant’s going to regret pushing it. He often does, on the occasions he brings himself to push anything.

Grant gives a soft laugh at Claude's interjection, fondness mixing in with his anxiety about… this.]

Ah… thanks, Claude. And I wouldn’t still be standing here if I thought it might bother Dimitri.

[What is he doing? Yes, it’s true, he’d pretty sure Dimitri would be alright with this, but how must it sound to Shiro, for Grant to be insisting that his absent boyfriend wouldn’t take issue with them kissing?]

But, uh, if that’s-- if you’d rather not, I… I understand.

[ CLAUDE WHERE DID YOU COME FROM, WHAT THE F -- ]

[Okay, maybe the man had been there the entire time, but - in Shiro's defense? He'd been preoccupied. Extremely preoccupied in the last handful of minutes. It's fine. Right? That's totally fine and expected, isn't it?]

[He may or may not have jumped, and may or may not be trying to regain his composure. Desperately. His face is already the color of the berries in the cake. His response had not been a rejection, not entirely. Because he can't deny there is a part of him that wants this. Badly wants this.]

[Grant keeps taking his arguments and turning them on their heads. And honestly, if Grant were anyone else, he'd... probably be angry about it. Defensive. Lance is on his case, Blue is on his case, everyone just... needs to stop pushing. But Grant hasn't pushed. Not once.]

[If anything, he's done the opposite.]

[Belatedly, Shiro realizes he's been standing there silent for way too long. He seems so shake himself, exhaling sharply. Okay. If Grant's partners won't take issue, then... maybe... it wouldn't be an issue for ... it's just mistletoe. It's just a tradition.]

[There's nothing earth-shattering or fairy-tale that happens. He just musters up the flagging courage, he just shifts forward enough to reach - because how dare Grant be so much taller than him - to plant a perfectly chaste brush of lips on Grant's.]

[It doesn't take anything Earth-shattering or fairy-tale for Grant, who had half-expected Shiro to give another reason just to ignore the plant or to put his foot down and tell Grant for sure that this wasn't going to happen, to flush another couple shades brighter as his heart jumps in his chest.

He only leans enough to make it a little easier for Shiro to reach, not wanting to seem... too eager. Shiro's just going along with a silly tradition, and that might be more than Grant expected - and could, perhaps, be a sign of some kind of progress in Shiro's recovery from his husband's disappearance - but it still doesn't necessarily mean much.

Just like that, whatever bubble of excitement he had built up pops. He holds until Shiro breaks contact, and, with any luck, the combination of the flush lingering on his cheeks and his own effort will be enough to mask any external sign of the sudden deflating-balloon feeling in his chest when they move apart.]

Uh... [What does he say now?] ...Thanks.

[...Sure. That works. Especially if he takes the slice of cake for Chip, so maybe he's got plausible deniability on what he was thanking Shiro for.]

[It's... been a long, long time since anyone kissed him. Since he even thought about it. Honestly, he's surprised he still remembers how. His brain, his body, though, apparently recall how nice it was, and even that quick little brush is enough to get an electric thrill in his chest.]

[He ends up with his eyes shut, pulling back a lot more slowly than he probably should. Just trying to hold onto that feeling a little longer.]

[A deep breath, he nods. Pushing his hand awkwardly through his hair. Thanks, says Grant. Shiro - what the heck is he supposed to say to that? It's not Grant's fault. Honestly, he's at a loss for words too.]

I uh. Yeah. Sure thing.

[For the cake. Definitely for the cake.]

[Maybe Grant can, at least, take some kind of solace in Shiro's body language... whenever it sinks in to begin with. For now, it's taking most of his focus to keep acting like he hasn't internally talked himself out of any and all hope.

As it is, all he can think is that oh god he's made everything awkward.]

S-so! [Think of something to talk about. Anything. Leaving right away would probably be the worst thing to do, so-- he thinks back over what they've talked about that he could go back to.] Iiii can tell Dimitri and Chip you said hi!

[...Okay, so, worst thing to do would probably be either leaving or immediately bringing up his kid and other boyfriend. Why is he allowed to talk.]

[Oh.]

[Was that - did he say something wrong? Should he have said more, or ... said nothing? Did Grant not really want this? Maybe he should have tried harder - did he just make things weird between them? No, that's the last thing he wanted to do. Grant sounds like he's about to leave because Shiro went and made things weird by saying yes.]

I ... [Say something normal.] think that sounds fine.

[That's not normal, Shiro.]

You've probably got more rounds to make. So uh. I'll... I won't keep you.

[There!! That's better!]

[Claude, possibly forgotten again but still very much here, is only stopped from smacking Shiro's and Grant's heads together by being too short to easily reach. But the temptation is truly staggering.

In order to do something, however, he pipes up with all the cheery brightness of a wife who's about to drag a husband into the next room and tell him exactly where he stepped out of line just now.] Actually, Shiro, would you mind if I borrowed Grant for a second? I know you guys have a lot to talk about, so I'll get him right back to you, I promise.

[This is an interesting conversational tactic, where Claude is informing these two men that they have a conversation to continue that neither of them knew about. Both of them are free to interpret this, as well, as their imminently going to have something to talk to each other about after Claude is done with Grant.

In the meantime, however, Claude doesn't actually give Shiro the opportunity to refuse his request - not that he thinks Shiro would - but even more importantly, he doesn't give Shiro the opportunity to volunteer that he doesn't feel Grant needs to return after this moment away. He simply hauls Grant away by the arm - and it's a good thing Grant is such a willing dragee, or it'd look like Claude was having a tug-of-war contest with a statue.

Once they're safely out of earshot, Claude engages in Surreptitious Couple Hissing.] Grant, you know I love you so much, but please explain to me what you are doing? This is not the kind of guy to play hard to get with!

[Never has Grant been so relieved to be pulled aside so someone can ask him what the hell he's doing. At least it means he can't keep making more of a fool of himself.]

I don't know! [His voice comes out so strained it threatens to crack, which is certainly something coming from an adult man with a voice as deep as his. Goddammit, he can feel his eye burning. He swears, if he cries right now--] I-I'm not trying to, I just-- I shouldn't have done that! I was just setting myself up for disappointment, getting him to indulge me and this stupid plant--

[He scrubs his palms over his face, because, frankly, if he's gonna cry in public he'd rather hide it for at least a moment.]

[Ah, okay - Grant's stress level is way too high for the tone Claude is taking with him. Claude changes it immediately, reaching up to cup Grant's face in his hands and guide it down to rest their foreheads together.] Easy, big guy. [His voice is far gentler now.] If you shouldn't have done that, you should probably be mad at me for pushing you guys into it instead of letting you both make your awkward excuses - not beating yourself up.

But I think you're way off-base. Looked to me like Shiro was doing some indulging of himself, and not just me or you. I mean, maybe I'm just crazy, but I think I've got an eye for when a guy enjoys a kiss? And then right afterwards you shot yourself right in the foot for no reason, trying to run away. He's going to think you hated it, with that kind of sudden, forced scramble to run off. Is it because you psyched yourself out this hard? Because if so, I think you've got some damage control to do.

[Grant breathes out, slow and shaky, and lets his hands drop to Claude's shoulders; the contact from Claude's hands and forehead immediately go to start grounding him, making it possible to at least start getting a handle on himself, before the change in Claude's voice even fully registers.

At his first point, though, it takes some work not to let his next breath come out as a guilty whine.] ...But I would have done it anyway. If it were just me, I probably still would have told him you guys would be okay with it - only because I already knew it was true, but-- [Grant swallows hard, quietly giving up on that sentence. He's sure Claude gets the idea, and with every second there's more bubbling to the surface that he feels like he's going to have to say.

He... thinks he might be starting to understand why he broke down so fast.

In the meantime, though, Claude sure is saying something here that sounds to Grant like it... can't possibly be the case, regardless of how much he may want it to be. And that confusion... probably shows on his face. But... it is Claude.] Wh-- are you sure? I mean, I-- what-- what do I do, then?

I mean, it is me. [Claude grins up at him.] I'm pretty good at reading people, aren't I? And from where I was standing, it looked to me like he savored that little kiss. It took a long couple of seconds before he even opened his eyes again. Obviously he's the only one who knows exactly what he's thinking, but people generally don't linger over something they didn't enjoy.

As for what you do with that...well, that's up to you, isn't it? I don't know what kind of following up you'd be interested in with him. [Claude cocks his head.] Would you want a proper relationship with him, if it was possible? It sounds like you've been pining over him for awhile, but I don't know if it's just attraction to a hot guy or if it runs deeper.

If you mean what you should do right now in the present moment, though...I'd go apologize to him for trying to run off so fast and making things weird. I think you can be honest enough about saying that you psyched yourself out over kissing such a handsome guy without totally dying of embarrassment, and then he gets reassured that you were very much into it and your reaction was just nerves. Because I feel like if you don't explain what just happened in some kind of way, he's going to be set up to get the wrong idea.

If it were anyone other than you, I might just not believe it. [He laughs softly, and then goes quiet again, consider Claude's evidence - and the question of what follows.

His voice is even softer when he speaks again.] I... I think I do want that. But-- I mean, we still haven't even given Zuke an answer. And if I was going to pursue something with Shiro at all, I feel like I... I should tell everyone I want to do that first, but I don't know that Felix would want to hear about it-- [He interrupts himself with a short, hollow laugh.] I mean, for one thing, he might be a little tired of talking about getting more people involved in all this, but then again-- I don't know if he even cares what I do, I'm not you or Dimitri.

[At least he can give a nod of confirmation at that advice.] ...Yeah. I can do that, at least.

Well, none of that other stuff has to be figured out right this second, does it? For one thing, you'd have to talk to Shiro to see if he was even interested before you talked to any of us. But I'm sure you're not going to have that conversation here at this party, tonight. [Claude doesn't say 'in the same place where Lance and Pidge are', but it's certainly a consideration he knows Grant would take into account.]

So for now, I'd just go correct any mistaken impressions Shiro might've gotten, and thank him for the nice kiss. [He smiles up at Grant.] You've still got time to save it, and if you do want this to maybe go somewhere, it keeps that door open. And frankly, even if you didn't, Shiro deserves to feel good about that kiss, and I'd hate for him to wind up regretting it thinking that you didn't like it when you actually did. [He pats Grant's cheek.] I know you can make him feel as good about it as it actually was. And maybe you'll get to hear from him how much he liked it, too, so you can stop worrying.

Would I? I mean, if... if Shiro is interested, it wouldn't feel right to bring up the possibility to him before I know for sure if everyone else would be alright with it - comparatively, I'd think it'd have a higher chance of going smoothly if I checked how everyone else felt before trying to make any kind of a move... [He sighs, scrunching his face into kind of a pained look for a moment.] ...'Course, for that same reason, I really should've talked to you guys before saying anything to Dedue, but... that didn't go anywhere, anyway-- but, uh. Yeah. You're right, none of this is coming up tonight, anyway.

[He takes a deep breath. Lets it out.] You're right, [he repeats.] The last thing I want is for him to feel like he did something wrong... I'll go talk to him. Thank you.

[They've doubtless left Shiro to worry more than long enough. So he gives Claude's hands a gentle, appreciative squeeze before pulling away and returning to Shiro.]

...Hey. Sorry about... that. [He smiles weakly.] I... kind of tend to do and say some dumb stuff when I get flustered.

[Somewhere in the midst of Grant and Claude's conversation, Shiro had... well. He didn't leave the kitchen. But he'd definitely busied himself with something else. Which just so happens to be the dishes. You have a party, you rack up a lot of dishes. And those are one thing Shiro can do without setting the place on fire.]

[His shoulders tense up a bit, hearing Grant. He figures it's the inevitable. The "we can't be friends" talk. Or something along those lines. But he still turns, he still smiles.]

No, I... it's fine. It's fine. I should apologize - [Why, Shiro? He shoves his hands back into the water.]

If I... If I made things awkward back there - I didn't mean to. I... [Deep breath.] Yeah.

No-- no, you've got nothing to apologize for. [Jeez, Claude was right. Which is no surprise, he usually is.]

You didn't make anything awkward; I was the one nudging for it to happen to begin with, and then I was the one who... well, panicked and tried to run off, because, uh-- I-I still sometimes get weird about kissing handsome guys.

[His face is probably turning red again.] So, you didn't do anything wrong, I promise. It... was nice. I-- uh, I hope that's not weird to say.

[Wow. All right. That sucks the wind out of his sails, so to speak. He'd assumed... he'd thought... all wrong, apparently. He's not upset. But sort of floored. Everything he'd planned to say dumped down the drain. Not in a bad way, either. But in the "well there goes my speech" sort of way.]

[He pushes a hand through his hair]

I uh... [Wait, crap.] I'm not upset. Either. I just. I was prepared for... the opposite.

[It was nice. Of course it was. It was the first kiss he'd had since the disaster of a - ]

[Another hand through his hair. This one trailing soap suds.]

Yeah. Yeah, it was... it was nice.

Oh, yeah, no, I'm-- I'm sorry I gave the impression there was anything wrong.

[It was nice. Shiro agreed.

Grant can feel his heart jumping in his chest and his face heating up again.]

Great! I'm-- I'm glad.

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