Open A Dressed up Birthday

[Jon Phillips]

Birthday parties weren't usually a necessity for Jon, who preferred a quiet dinner with family or friends on his birthday during most years. But after reaching his thirtieth birthday with no party or celebration whatsoever, he resolved to change this and host a costume party for his thirty-first, to make up for missing another milestone birthday in his life and the other milestones previously passed. His own costume for the night was simple, a green t-shirt and brown pants to match Bongo's turquoise collar in an effort to dress as shaggy and scooby doo, since he thought it would both be the perfect and easiest costume for him to put together that included his dog. But he expected costumes much more extravagant and original from the people attending, and wondered if he would even be able to recognize some of his friends behind the costumes they wore. At least so far the few friends of his already there were recognizable, making waiting over a few drinks for the night to unfold relaxing, although still completely exciting as he anticipated what would happen.​

Jon was unsure whether this type of party would become a staple for his birthday in the future, but for the time being at least, a chance to dress up, drink, and celebrate with as many people as possible was all he wanted. He couldn't wait to see where this would go and with everything set up all that was left for more guests to arrive so his party could properly begin.​

Out of Character:

Alright, so this is set in late August and is of course Jon's 31st birthday party! If your character knows Jon personally, or knows someone who knows Jon, feel free to post and have a great time! Just make sure your character is over the legal drinking age, and isn't a current hnz student or a recent graduate before posting

 

[Monty Pendleton]

Monty rarely turned down an opportunity to dress up - especially in costume. There was something about putting on unfamiliar clothes and pretending to be somebody else that made him feel ordinary somehow, even if only for a little while. He could forget his anxieties and apprehensions, for tonight he was not Monty, but a Georgian naval captain. He had meant to buy or make a new costume, but in the end had decided nobody would notice if he reused that which he'd worn last Halloween. Arriving early, Monty lent Jon a hand where he could with the setting-up, though much of the hard work had already been done. "Drink?" Monty asked, handing Jon a glass whether he wanted one or not. "How many people have you invited, out of curiosity?"

 

[Professor Kahurangi Josephs]

Dressing up had never been something Kahurangi really saw much appeal in, but after giving it a go the last couple of Halloweens at Hogwarts, she had discovered that she actually rather enjoyed it. So when she had gotten her invitation to Jon's birthday party she had put real effort into her costume, and was pretty proud of the result. The wig was a little annoying but she tried to ignore it, smiling nervously as she knocked on the door, a bottle of wine under her arm. Kahurangi had been doing a better job of coming out of her shell with her colleagues recently, and hopefully tonight would be fun.

 

[Professor Matt Alcott-Ward]

With Kyle recovering from the last full moon, Matt had to attend the party at Jon's on his own. He was happy to be here and attend Jon's birthday, but it did make him sad to leave his husband at home. Matt had never been one for dressing up, so his costume for tonight was very lazy. He was Wally from 'Where's Wally?', something he had thought of at the last minute. He walked up behind Kahurangi as she knocked on the door, a gift box in his hands. "Hey, fancy seeing you here." He said with a smile. "You look... different." He added, unable to contain his laugh entirely.

 

[Jon Phillips]

Jon, already feeling a buzz from his previous drink, didn't protest as Monty handed him another one. It was his birthday after all and he did not have any qualms drinking as much as he wanted in celebration of the day. He sipped from the glass slowly and smiled, happy that Monty was able to help him out that evening. His friend's early arrival and assistance in helping set up the house for the night ahead was very appreciated, especially given Maurice was not around and Samuel declined helping organize the event, wanting to show up later in a costume Jon could only assume would be ridiculously extra. Jon couldn't imagine cleaning the house and ensuring there was enough disposable cups and alcohol to go around alone. There was something about setting up his own party in such a way that would have been depressing, so it was good he hadn't needed to experience that. "Um I dunno, lots of people?" Jon responded to Monty's question, shrugging as he went to sip from his glass again but finding his actions interrupted by the sound of knocking on the front door. After excusing himself, Jon walked over to open the door, smiling when his eyes landed on two of his colleagues. "Hey guys! Come on in, the party's in the living room." He greeted, stepping aside to let them in the house. "Love the costumes!" He added a moment later, glad that they had gotten the memo about dressing up.​

 

[Professor Kahurangi Josephs]

Kahurangi was pleasantly surprised to hear Matt's voice behind her, turning with a laugh as he approached. "Dunno what you're talking about, I dress like this all the time." She grinned, running her fingertips through the beads hanging from her vest. "Do you think blonde suits me?" As she was speaking the door opened and Kahurangi looked over, quickly giving Jon a bright smile. "Hi! Happy birthday!" She said happily, presenting him with the bottle of wine she had brought. It wasn't the most personal gift, but Kahurangi knew shamefully little about most of her colleagues. She smiled rightly at his compliment, stepping into the house. "Thanks!" Kahurangi was pleasantly surprised to find that she was early, giving Monty a friendly wave as she entered the room.

 

[Olive Layton]

The last nine months had easily been some of the hardest for Olive. After being taken ill at the welcome of the New Year and spending a considerable amount of time trapped in St. Mungos, the former Potions Professor had only been free of the place, and back on her own two feet for a few weeks when she came to hear about the passing of a close family member. She'd taken the news hard, as had her mother, and as a result the red head was doing her best to split her time between her home with Leda in New Zealand and her parents house in the US. The weeks had past and tear stained cheeks had started to dry as she tried moving on, but it didn't mean there was any let up for the woman, who now spent most of her time picking up the pieces of her late father's life.

Today however was a most important one. Olive had not seen her friends since they visited her at the hospital, and while her daily situation may have been difficult, Jons birthday was definitely a cause for celebration. She'd held on tightly to the invitation and made the trip over to spend a few days in the area before Leda headed back to Hogwarts. Thankfully her sister seemed unfazed by the families dilemma and she could only hope it wasn't a mask that the Slytherin would later push onto others. Arriving at the house dressed seemingly plain in a deep green dress, but with a pair of long pointed ears atop her head that would only represent a certain character she was sure Jon would recognise, the only thing that would have improved the look was if she'd been half the height, she stepped into the middle of the commotion, the party clearly already underway.

 

[Professor Matt Alcott-Ward]

Matt grinned at Kahurangi and shrugged. "Of course, how could I forget?" He joked, then looked at her wig. "Honest answer? Not really." He added, knowing she wouldn't take it badly. "But for tonight it's not bad at all." The door opened and Matt waited until Kahurangi had given him the wine, then stepped up and gave Jon a smile as well. "Happy Birthday." He said, handing over the gift. Inside was a book, which was a pretty predictable present coming from Matt. But he still hoped Jon would like it. He stayed close to Kahurangi as they headed inside, waving at Monty as well as he spotted him.

 

[Bonnie Fergusson]

The point that she was at with Jon was tricky, they’d reconnected but there was nothing really official between them, though Bonnie was very hopeful that she would get an opportunity to talk to him at some point and they could talk about where they were in their relationship. Or what they could be, she did very much still like him, and even just knowing if he felt the same way or not would be exceedingly helpful to her. She hadn’t moved back to New Zealand for him, but she had moved back because she missed him a lot. They’d broken up because she’d finished off what she needed to do in New Zealand, but now that she had additionally finished her course in Scotland, she wasn’t so tied down and with less connections to the family line Bonnie was more free to do whatever it was that she wanted. Regardless, she found herself in a costume and at the door. Bonnie had a few bottles of various alcohols to drink, and of course a little present for the man, a special suit made by her adopted father's company, it was something she was sure Sam might like better than Jon, but it was Jon's birthday after all. She spotted people she knew a little from Jon or from Rory's old stories. She spotted the man in question easily, "Jon!" she greeted warmly, as she walked over, "Happy Birthday!" she added going to hug the man. ​

 

[Charlotte Williams]

Given that Charlotte had been Jon's friend before she had really been Sam's friend, the nervousness that she felt towards facing Sam during this evening could not trump her desire to see Jon on his birthday. She had to go. That was it. She had pushed down her feelings for Sam, they hadn't ever talked about what had happened, just going back to how things had once been between them, which had been a bit of a relief, though she did get this odd feeling in the pit of her stomach each time she saw him, as if she knew she was lying about how she felt towards him. Lying about how seeing him made her feel, lying about how much time she wished to spend with him where they could be romantic. But, all of those feelings aside she wouldn't let this affect the fun she could have at Jon's birthday. She had costume on and headed in the door of his home. She spotted a few people she recognised from Jon's life, most specifically the ginger woman, Bonnie whom Charlotte hoped was here to get back with Jon. She made her way over to the pair and quickly gave Jon a kiss on the cheek in greeting, "Can I get you a drink there?" the woman said to both Jon and anyone around him really, she'd be going to get a drink anyway, why not get one for him too. She couldn't spot Sam in the room yet, but had to figure that he would be there soon enough. She hadn't arrange to arrive with him though their costumes matched, Charlotte would just have to get herself a drink and whomever else wanted one before waiting for him to arrive. ​

 

[Jon Phillips]

Jon opened his mouth wide and gasped as Kahurangi handed him a bottle of wine, an expression that only became more prominent as Matt also gave him a gift. He had only expected and wanted the guests to wear costumes and have fun, presents had been entirely out of the question. But he did appreciate the efforts his colleagues had made for his birthday and accepted both gifts with a wide smile on his face after he got over his initial reaction of surprise. "Thanks guys, this is awesome!" He exclaimed, following behind Kahurangi and Matt into the living room. Placing down the gifts on one of the kitchen counters, Jon was forced to pause for a moment when he spotted a flash of green in the corner of his eye. Turning around he realized this was Olive dressed in a costume that could only be Yoda. Giggling at the costume as he approached Olive, Jon pulled her into a quick hug, appreciating that she had arrived despite all that was happening in her life. He was glad she was able to make the effort to dress up and be at his birthday. "Hey, love the costume." He said as he moved away. He had half expected her to show up dressed as a cat or some other kind of feline when he sent her the invitation so a Yoda costume of all things was a pleasant surprise. "There's drinks just kind of everywhere so help yourself, alright?" He told Olive, gesturing to the room around him as he spoke. ​

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Turning around, Jon went to retrieve the drink he placed down earlier and sipped from it slowly, wondering who else would show up from the list of people he had invited. The sound of his name being called caused him to turn in a different direction again and a wide smile appeared on his face when he realized who was approaching him. Jon instinctively held his arms out to give Bonnie a hug, moving away a moment later to give her costume a glance. "It really is my birthday then." He joked, placing his drink down again. Not a moment later Charlotte arrived and Jon turned his smile to her. "Hey! No, I'm good thanks." He answered her question, waving at the drink he was still nursing. "Would you like a drink, Bonnie?" He then asked, ready to pour Bonnie a drink if Charlotte didn't pour one first. Being a host was tiring, but already this birthday was turning out to be better than many of his other birthdays and Jon was happy to continue spending this time with his friends.​

Out of Character:

Sorry for the wait on this guys!!