saveourearth | Baby it's cold outside [mingle]

Entry tags:

Baby it's cold outside [mingle]

Date: 23.12.2018-30.12.2018
Characters: Open!
Note: Timeline behind cut at the bottom of the post!

23-24th December
With the schools out for Christmas, and the last few days of Christmas shopping closing in, there really is no escaping it now. Everyone but the best prepared is rushing to finalise the last little bits. Excitement is gathering as the shortest day of the year comes and goes.

The weather reports for Christmas are standard: grey, with light showers and patches of sun. As usual, a high chance of snow was predicted at the beginning of the month, but as the day approaches it has changed back to the more seasonal and typical (if less picturesque) weather: rain. But, with days to go, that suddenly changes again, as the weather reporters talk about the sudden turning of an artic wind, bringing with it sub zero temperatures, and maybe, just maybe, a white Christmas. Temperatures drop to -5c during the day and -10c overnight, particularly cold for this part of the world. On the morning of Christmas Eve, with less than 24 hours notice, the snow begins, falling lightly at first, and then heavily. By lunch time, the south east, including Mossgate, is a foot deep in snow and chaos has spread. Just a covering of snow is enough to cause panic, with infrastructure and transport unequipped to deal with it, and this is unexpected and heavy, and there has been no time to prepare. The trains have given up, promised refunds, and stopped. The busses have also all but stopped, and in Mossgate town centre just one or two an hour are running to the villages to ferry home those still stuck in town. Gatwick airport, which is having it's worst year since the ash clouds in 2010, has also officially given up and closed, redirecting flights to Stansted or Birmingham. Just after midnight, even the motorways close, and the smaller roads are unpassable much earlier. Panicked shoppers, trying to grab supplies for the unexpected weather, are being shooed out of stores early so that coworkers have a chance of getting home before the last transports stop. And it's still snowing. By nightfall there's almost two feet of snow, an almost unprecedented amount, and the news is talking about the possibility of powercuts and disruptions to water supplies. Sure enough, around 8PM, a powercut hits Mossgate and the surrounding area, wiping out the last of the Christmas cheer in the town centre as the festive lights go black – along with everyone's houses.

Christmas Day
Christmas morning opens to fresh, white snow all around, picture post card beautiful, and small showers keep it fresh looking for most of the day no matter how many snow angels, snowmen and igloos are built. That's probably little compensation for those stuck: the news is full of heartfelt stories of the struggle to get home for Christmas, and of locals in towns and cities along the southeast welcoming people stuck into their homes for Christmas. While the power is back on in Mossgate town centre by about midnight, the surrounding areas, including Moss Manor village, are still without power, with the word from the electricity board that it's unlikely to be fixed anytime soon. Neighbours with gas cookers and stove tops suddenly become the most popular people around (but at least with the temperatures outside dealing with food from the fridge and freezer is relatively easy).

In Moss Manor, the church hall, which has both a gas cooker and gas heating, is opened up for those who are unable to stay in their own homes. People are invited to bring along what food they have to share and join in with a community Christmas. The community feeling is only shattered when the power comes back on at 5:20PM, just before the repeat of the Queen's Speech on BBC2 and Strictly Come Dancing on BBC1 start. A short but fierce battle ensues over which to show on the big screen. With moments to go, Pat Marsh puts her foot down and casts the deciding vote for Strictly, promising that she'll show the Queen's Speech from iPlayer directly afterwards.

As if that isn't enough, Mossgate and it's surroundings have one other surprise waiting for them on Christmas morning. Father Christmas has been through the entire council area, and apparently not one single person has been good. Every fire place has been decorated with traditional stockings full of neatly wrapped coal, one stocking for each member of the family. For those who don't have a fireplace, the oven has been selected as a replacement, and the stockings hang merrily from the oven door instead. If it's a prank, it's seen as bad taste, especially in homes with small children, but it's also generally agreed that given the weather it's rather backfired (not that anyone still has a coal fire but still).

25th-30th December
The snow finally stops overnight on Christmas evening/Boxing Day morning, but it remains cold, the temperatures only picking up at the weekend. Between the remaining snow and the ice formed where it melts, transport remains awful, with the connections to the villages particularly bad. Due to the Highspeed line, the trains from Mossgate to London are back up and running by the 27th, but other routes take days to be cleared. Likewise, the motorways are at least traversable by the 26th, but some smaller roads are still unaccessible until the weekend. Food supplies are slow to come through, and when the stores reopen on Boxing Day after Christmas closures, the shelves are immediately stripped bare again, especially of essentials such as bread and milk (although anything and everything is subject to panic buying, up to and including shampoo).

All of this chaos doesn't stop some people going out to the Boxing Day sales, with queues forming outside Next, which has advertised it's traditional early opening times of 6AM, despite the cold and the snow (and the fact that they don't actually manage to open until almost 7 due to lack of staff).

But as the temperatures rise back to a seasonal temperature in the single figures, things start to return to normal in time for the count down to New Years.

Timeline:

24th: Heavy snow starts unexpectedly in the morning
Transport is badly affected
A powercut hits the Mossgate area at around 8PM
Power is returned to Mossgate town by midnight, the villages including Moss Manor won't have power until well into the 25th

25th: Stockings appear overnight for each member of the family in every home containing coal
Moss Manor church hall is opened to the community
Moss Manor and the other villages have no power until 5PM

26th-29th: Panic buying and lack of supplies affects food availability
The snow continues to affect transport

30th: Temperatures return to normal for the time of year (0-10c)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"With the weather, I started further out and worked my way home. You're my last stop." Sadie holds up and shakes her nearly empty backpack as she steps over the threshold and starts working on removing her boots and her many layers.

"Merry Christmas Russell!" She calls towards the kitchen. "IF you've got biscuits then I'm sure I could be persuaded to stay longer." Sadie shoots Walter a cheeky grin and heads for the lounge, unbothered by the lack of general festiveness to the flat. "They smell wonderful Russell."

"Then as long as we don't spoil you for dinner, you're more than welcome to a break from the cold!"

Walter shuts the door, locking it so as to not let the cold follow Sadie in too much, then heads after Sadie to the kitchen.

"Thank you! They're one of my best baking skills."

He'd gotten the recipe from his mum's mother, and for the sake of family tradition and connectedness, he's taken up being the one to make them every year. The better to make sure there's several people in the family who know it.

"I hope you don't mind if they're a good half of your gift? I wasn't sure who to be buying for... though I did get you something, a little more than a card."

He rambles, a little defensively, as he comes out of the kitchen with the damp cloth left behind and no makeup on his face. For Sadie, who hasn't seen him in person for a few months, there's differences.

They wouldn't have been obvious on the network's videos, or any more ordinary photos put up on social media - he's been wearing a bit of makeup when he shows his face outside, touching up the shadows under his eyes and cheekbones and such, downplaying the thinness. But today, a day in the flat hiding out from the snow, there's none of that.

"Oh! I wasn't expecting anything," She calls towards the kitchen, trying to reassure Russell, "They're mostly small joke gifts, I thought people could use a bit of a pick-me-up you know?"

She turns to Russell as he leaves the kitchen, a smile on her face, only for her eyes to widen as she gets a good look at him. That was...concerning. Sadie glances quickly to Walter before standing up and going to give Russell a hug, because hugs work wonders and it is an issue that can be raised later.

"Come sit down, I can't wait to see your reaction!" Sitting back down Sadie pulls an envelope and a small, square present. She hands the envelope to Walter and the present to Russell.

Inside the envelope Walter will find a voucher for Champagne Afternoon Tea for Two at a well regarded local gastropub and a note reading "For your second date with your Spaceman.",and inside the present for Russell is a book titled "How to Train Your Small Dog" with a pomeranian on the front who looks eerily like Chad.

Hugs do, in fact, work wonders - as long as the recipient is all right with them, though presumably Russell is.

Walter opens the envelope, and doesn't even bother to hide his surprise.

"You... didn't have to," he says, as part of him thinks CHAMPAGNE?!, another part suggests telling Jim IMMEDIATELY, and another starts cheering over the nickname 'Spaceman'.

Russell's fine with hugs, though he notices her expression as she goes in for it - and gets distracted from asking, with the question of whether he wiped off enough of the flour that none of it would get on her. And then she's so cheerful, leading them back to sit down and open gifts, that he doesn't pursue it...

And then the gift itself is further distraction, and her earlier expression leaves his mind entirely.

"Oh my god." Russell stares down at the gifted book, and heaves a sigh larger than the dog depicted. Though not larger than the dog it resembles - Chad is an expert of sounding exasperated with him.

"I... guess... thank you? I wonder how much advice they have for magic, talking dogs, who somehow know maths."

Cheerfulness and politeness make both halves of Sadie's secret to success. In this case that success is not letting the physical changes dampen the current mood.

The grin she gives Walter as he opens his present is smug, "It's entirely necessary. Consider it a 'Thank you' as well, you've done so much for me this year, and I can hardly give up the chance to help a blooming romance."

As for Russell, a little friendly teasing is in order, "I thought it might help you can Chad get along better, though I have added my own tip in the back of the book." If Russell turns to the back of the book, the words "BRIBE HIM WITH MAGIC BONES" is written down.

"Not sure how much mileage you'll get on that book, he did say he had memories of a war, and of kissing a blonde girl..." Sadie's nose wrinkled at that, "For all we know, this time next year Chad might have turned into an actual human."

The memory of that first encounter with the bald stranger isn't far from Walter's mind, so he nods knowingly and keeps his own wry expressioning to a minimum.

"Thank you very much, then. I'm sure Jim will, too."

Russell's own gift, of course, prompts snickering... at least until Sadie clarifies.

"There is that, yes. And that would be a disaster to explain for all involved."

Wrinkling his nose, he manages to feel sorry for Chad at the prospect.

"Oh, I hope not," Russell continues, a little faintly, staring at the front cover. "He wouldn't have any papers. And his family might kill me."

There's no particular reason to believe that the influential and somewhat shady family would accuse the occasional dog sitter, of all people, of dognapping. Other than ambient dread of crossing them.

Russell shakes his head to rid himself of those doomsday scenarios, and flips to the back of the book. "Oh my god."

Somehow, the advice is exactly what he should have expected. He shakes his head again, places the book down so the dog on the cover isn't facing him, and summons one of those very magic bones to rest on the book.

"Yes, alright, thank you, I'll be right back," and he pushes himself to his feet, heading off to his room and grab his gift for Sadie.

"Isn't it just the most terrifying thought ever?" She asks faux-cheerfully, because the thought of a human wandering around with the morals of a dog is at least mildly terrifying.

She turns to Walter as Russell leaves the room. "Too much?" She asks Walter quietly, glancing in the direction that Russell went.

"I cannot possibly imagine how they'd blame you... granted, Chad might namedrop you to be petty, but I doubt it."

Walter can imagine what Russell's just read, and shakes his head, bemused.

Turning to Sadie, he winks.

"That's not why he's gotten up, I think. Don't worry."

He does, in fact, have something for her himself - an intricate drawing of a leaping cat, with ruby-red eyes - but he'll wait until after she's seen Russell's gift to fetch it.

"Very," he says with emphasis, before leaving.

Tattling to the network would be one thing, everyone involved should know better. But Russell can only hope that the dog hasn't started typing or writing things. Barking to the network is safe.

Well, so long as none of the dog's family starts getting involved in all this.

He gathers a card, a gift certificate for a dockside shop that sells things like scuba gear, and another little handwaved gift - handwaved because the forces beyond this world can finish this tag faster this way.

"It is not," Russell tells the room as he returns, "anywhere near so fitting, or pointed, as dogsitting advice. But I hope you like it."

Sadie positively beams at Russell and pulls him into another hug when he presents her with her gifts. "Thank you! It's great!"

"Maybe for my birthday you can get me a scratching post if you're worry about fitting presents," She jokes, "Maybe some catnip."

Walter's content to let the other two have their moment - though he does spare a grin at the feline allusion.

"Appropriately-shaped earmuffs? - Actually, that might be a smart idea, given the season."

"Catnip might be a little too much..."

If she continues getting cat-like, who knows, she might just reach a point when it has an effect on her. Which would be hilarious, and less expensive for her than other things - easier to grow at home, too - but might cause some problems.

"When is your birthday, by the by? Given the season."

He glances toward the outside, where the snow's steadily falling.

"Earmuffs would be funny. Especially with the weather, I've honestly never seen this much snow in one place before and I can honestly say I never want to see this much snow in one place ever again." Sadie has decided that she hates the snow.

Sadie will absolutely be affected by catnip in the future and it will be hilarious.

She giggles and pats Russell on the shoulder, "Don't worry, I don't have a birthday waiting to creep up on you any time soon, mine's about a fortnight after Walter's birthday so not too far past actually."

Walter affects a pointed look at Sadie.

"Well. Could have informed us sooner! Though I do hope you informed Ben."

Then he grins outright.

"Either way, I do think I have something that will make it up to you."

And he dashes off to his own room to get that picture. Once back, he hands it, hidden in an opaque properly-sized binder, to Sadie with a flourish.

"Back... around Halloween?" Russell estimates, and shakes his head. "That's not better! I can't get you a belated birthday card months after the fact."

He tugs out his mobile and pulls up a calendar app, then waves it at her. "When exactly, I'm not letting it creep up on me at all."

Of course, there was no guarantee they'd still be close buddies in a year's time. If either left the echo boundary, or if the rules governing it changed so they forgot about these things... if things went sour with her and Benjiro's relationship... But there was no need to borrow trouble or assume such things.

Sadie shrugs sheepishly, "Sorry...I just sort of forgot. There was a big family do and then Halloween was just bizarre. It's the twenty-seventh."

The future certainly was uncertain but this was a nice bit of normalcy amongst it all. Sadie looks at the opaque binder in surprise, "Oh! This is a little different." She then proceeds to rather eagerly open the binder.

Walter chooses silence, anticipating (with a small amount of anxiety) her reaction.

The spotted (it is, perhaps, a Bengal) cat is drawn in such a way that it seems in the process of springing off the page, a gleam in its eyes implying curiosity and playfulness. One could almost think it was a still-life... if the eyes weren't ruby-red, a visage that would almost certainly not look healthy on a regular cat.

Russell's free to sneak a look, too, if he wishes; Walter won't stop him.

"Right, right," Russell grumbles in reply, pointedly adding Sadie's birthday to his calendar. With that done, he's nosy enough to peer around the edge of the binder and get a glimpse of the image: a skillfully drawn fantasy cat. It's impressive enough for a little envy, and Russell leans toward his flatmate with a question.

"Now, what's the story with those eyes, then...?"

There has to be a story, or a reference, or something. They're almost scary-looking.

Sadie gasps, jaw dropping open in surprise at the painting. The style and the quality of the painting was massively impressive given the time that Walter has had the painting supplies even with his current speed.

"Walter it's wonderful! It looks so alive!" Sadie carefully puts the binder aside and pulls Walter into a tight hug, "Thank you so much, Walter. I have the perfect from for this by my desk."

Letting Walter go she regards him curiously when Russell asks about the eye colour, also intrigued by why he chose it.

Walter is all too happy not to let the embarrassment reach his face beyond microexpressions; he does, however, enthusiastically return the hug.

"You did mention receiving a ruby as part of the Echo on Halloween," he explains.

"Did you ever find out more about it?"

"That I did. It makes it very striking!"

Sadie huffs, more annoyed at herself, "Not really. As far as I can tell it is a genuine ruby, but with its size and the symbol on it, I don't want to take them to an actual jeweller. Though considering when I got it, it's probably related to the magic I have."

Russell nods approvingly at Walter over the hug - good job arting, good gift.

"Probably for the best, that. If it's not normal, someone might try prying..."

Who knows, given the odd variety of people who've been tangled up in all this, they might find there's a jeweller in the area who remembers a number sooner or later. But for the time being, if it's an otherwise ordinary gem...?

"Have you tried doing any magic while holding it? It hasn't done anything odd, has it?"

Baby it's cold outside [mingle]

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i also forgot to track the thread, whoops

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... Oh dear. What with Mellie dropping Jim next month and all. >.>

did they get together during the echo stuff, or before it?

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Since I legit do not remember if she's told them by this point, or if you just told us. XD

offering a much belated tag

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Description quote: an intricate drawing of a leaping cat, with ruby-red eyes

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