Open 🎄 Obsidian Daycare Centre Holiday Party

[Sofia Loris]

Sofia donned a set of vibrant yellow shimmering dress robes as she finished hanging the last of the decorations. She placed her wand in her left side pocket before smiling at her work. The main room had been transformed into a celebratory space that left availability for any December and New Year holidays to be incorporated into the party. There were many platters laid out with small bites, perfect for children and busy parents to grab, the usual toy area, and an arts and crafts area where children could make something for others. Some of the instructors and some parent volunteers had agreed to man areas across the space. There was also an area for older children to play gobstones or wizard's chess, something the oldest group had been learning the past month. She smiled as she saw Lena sitting with her two granddaughters, one who was no longer a student at the Daycare Centre, but had already finished her first semester at Hogwarts.

She walked over to grab herself a drink as she saw her granddaughter try to grab a sweet off the table. "Ah, ah, ah, you need to finish your dinner first," she said to Margot, who quickly started pouting as Sofia placed her back at a small table.

Out of Character:

Open to any Daycare Centre staff and children and their families (whoever that may include).

 

[Margot Williams]

Margot was excited to go to a party. Her mum had even let her wear a pretty pink and yellow dress. It was the pink dress she had wanted to wear with all the ruffles, but it was still pretty, and it matched her grandma. Her curls flowed behind her as she ran to grab a treat while her mummy was distracted, but Grandma saw her. Margot looked longingly at the strawberry treat she wanted so badly and then stomped back to her seat, staring at the food before her. It was green. She would unknowingly eat green things when people hid them in her food, but ever since Lottie had told her how that if she ate too many green foods, it would turn her blood green, and eventually, she would turn into a greenaghoul and then be invisible. She didn't know what a greenaghoul was exactly, but she did not want to find out. "But I'm huuuuuungry," she whined to everyone, as she saw her mum shoot a dirty look at Lottie. She saw Margot crossed her arms and sat silently, staring at her food, as people walked in.

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan knew this event was mostly for the kids, but he was still excited for it. He was thrilled to have Mason enrolled at the daycare centre, it was as close to a school as he could get right now, and he was also happy to participate as a parent in whatever way he could. He had made sure Mason was dressed smartly for the occasion, smoothing down his shirt before they went in. He let go of Vivian's hand and looked around, before gestured to Mason. "Look, there's a girl your age over there. You should talk to her." He said encouragingly. He was a little worried about how shy Mason was, even though Vivian had tried to reassure him about it. He gave Mason an encouraging nudge, then smiled and approached the director. "The room looks lovely." He told her. "And I really appreciate this event, it's lovely for the kids." He said with a smile. "Mason is enjoying the daycare so far."

@Sofia Loris

 

[Mason Collins]

Mason's eyes were wide when he walked into his school and saw it looked completely different. It was pretty, but different, which was strange. He glanced at his dad when he told him to play with a girl around his age. He knew her, as she was in his class, but he didn't often play with her and he was worried she wouldn't want to talk to him. Mason wished he could just stay with Vivian, but he wanted to make his dad happy. He hesitated, stepping forward a little and giving the girl a slight half-wave, uncertain if he should approach. She seemed upset.

@Margot Williams

 

[Vivian Brackenstall]

Vivian had never really pictured himself being a dad. He had never had one, and if he was totally honest, had never really wanted one. It only felt natural that when he looked at his future, fatherhood hadn't been part of it. The twins being born hadn't changed his mind - having sisters so much younger than him was almost like being a father, and he had always thought it would be enough for him. He had his sisters, younger cousins like Miro and now Tamati... it was enough.

But then Tristan had blown back into his life and brought Mason with him, and now Vivian coudn't imagine anything else. He didn't really know what he had done with himself before Mason. He was only a stepdad, of course, but he loved every second he got to spend with Mason. It was a relief that he didn't seem to take after his mother at all, (and the less said about her the better,) but seemed to have endless patience to sit quietly with Vivian; to talk about music, read together, share ideas. Vivian had been teaching him the basics of how to write a song, and there was something so wonderful about the unrestrained creativity of a child.

Unfortunately, fatherhood came with burdens, and this was one. Vivian hadn't really wanted to go to the holiday party at all, but one sad look from Mason and he had caved, and now he was here, standing next to Tristan and feeling profoundly awkward. What were you even supposed to do at these things? He watched Mason ushered off to go talk to a young girl and looking about as comfortable as he felt, and Vivian wished he and Mason could both go home. But they were here, and hopefully it would be over quickly. He stayed by Tristan's side as he spoke to the director, keeping one eye on Mason in case he (hopefully) wanted to leave early.

 

[Zoe Westwick]

Zoe still wasn't totally on board with this daycare thing, truth be told. Theodore had changed jobs just so they would have access to childcare & she could start pursuing her own work, but part of Zoe wanted to hang up her own ambitions and interests just a little longer to keep her girls homeschooled until they were ready for Hogwarts. Coming from such a strictly oppressive home, Zoe had always been determined not to do the same to her own daughters. It was the thing she and Theodore had always been the most on the same page about; the twins would have all the freedom in the world to be exactly who they were, no restrictions. The same couldn't be said about a school environment, and while that would be unavoidable when they reached Hogwarts, there were a couple of years left for the girls to be themselves.

And yet, here they were. A school, with rules and dress codes and a curriculum. Zoe didn't trust it as far as she could throw it, and she was determined to take the opportunity to get a feel for the place, check what kinds of things her daughters were being taught when she wasn't around. If she got so much as a hint that they were being discouraged from being themselves, they were out of here, she vowed. Zoe's career could wait a couple more years, that would be worth it to make sure her daughters got the most of their last few years before Hogwarts. She poked around unabashedly, studying the books on the shelves and toys in the bins, trying to get a feel for things.

 

[Dominic Torres]

Dominic was always a little nervous to have parents around the daycare. A lot of them had big opinions that were ultimately, well wrong. He couldn't blame them exactly. They were handing off the most precious people in their lives to complete strangers. He understood that came with some concern. But he had to admit he liked seeing how excited the kids got to show their parents around the place. On a personal note Dominic was feeling a bit homesick. He missed his family all the time, but the holidays were especially hard. He knew Santiago would be end up bringing presents from his mother when he came back for school. He sighed thinking about his nephew. He wanted to do so much more to help out the kid but he knew his brother would just tell him to stay out of it. Before he could get into a mental argument with his brother for the millionth time he spotted a parent poking through the books and toys. "Looking for something?" he asked with a pleasant smile. "We have a pretty good gobstones set that I'm pretty sure has all the pieces." he offered. @Zoe Westwick