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WHO: Peggy Carter
WHERE: #43 - The Vincennes
WHEN: December 27th - Evening
OPEN TO: All!
WARNINGS: n/a
STATUS: Open (Gathering Style)

When the gifts had arrived, Peggy had treated them at first with the same suspicion as anything else here. Things simply weren't that good to be true, but these gifts had people's names on them this time. With the exception of several that she couldn't begin to understand (such as that one from a man named Ivan, that she barely recalled interacting with), the rest were so kind and thoughtful that she soon found herself with a wealth of possessions she hadn't hoped to possess here.

The party had been borne of one single thought: I have nowhere to wear such lovely things and when she'd found the wine and liquor from others (including Tony, which didn't surprise her in the very least), she knew that she could change that. She'd posted a quick notice at the inn using some of the cardboard of a box and the lovely fountain pen Helen had given her, then did the same at many of the public buildings, inviting people to her home and inviting them to bring any food or drink they might like to provide, as well as suggesting this as an opportunity to wear their fanciest.

She set out her drinks (the ones she was willing to share) and made sure to tidy the home so that it was presentable. In her youth, back during her first engagement, she might have imagined entertaining like this on a regular basis, but that had been swept away by the war. Instead, Peggy was left hoping that such a gala would be acceptable and that she wouldn't simply be here alone tonight.

Setting her new record player (and her single record) down, she cranked it to begin playing the record that had come with it (a pressing of the Glenn Miller Band), and then she began to convince herself that there was nothing more that she could do.

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"Riza, you look lovely," Ravi praises when he turns to look at her, bowing his head to give her the proper respect? Is that a thing you do? Where's Liv when you need her for proper party etiquette. He feels like that's the sort of thing she'd know, brains or no brains. He lifts up the intensely green drink in his hand, wincing as he does. "Someone did the unfortunate deed of gifting me absinthe, which is something I've never tried before," he explains.

"I'm not entirely sure this one is without hallucinogenic properties or not," he says. "Hence, the risk."

Honestly, Riza would not be the one to ask. She was used to soldier's salutes and not bows from a social gathering. It was one of those times where it was the thought that counted though so she dipped her head in reply. "Thank you. Apparently someone thought this was an appropriate gift, though I can't actually say I've met the person who gifted it to me."

She shook her head, "Still, it seemed like the proper time to wear it. It's not like this place has much of a social scene otherwise." And unless there was a wedding coming up, she was pretty certain parties like this would be the only time to dress up.

"I can't say that would be my drink of choice either, but maybe we can find something to dilute it with?"

She really does look beautiful and it takes Ravi aback to realize that it's because they're only ever in their functional scrubs all the time. There's no variety and no differences, so it's nice to see everyone outside of that. He gives his shirt a little tug, as if boasting, and says, "I've got a little something myself," he says proudly. "And I do know who gave this to me and I'm definitely going to give her a very big thank you later."

"Or we could find someone we don't really like all that much and suggest they try it first?" he suggests, reaching onto the liquor table for the red wine. "This looks much, much safer, unless it's somehow also tainted with whatever insanity this place has."

"You should. It's a nice shirt on you," Riza replied with a small smile. It was strange to see people in garments that weren't scrubs. It really did make for a nice change of pace -- even if some of the outfits had to be piecemeal together. At least in Ravi's case he had scrubs that worked well for that.

She sighed, "I have a name from a gift I wasn't too impressed with. Unfortunately I'm not sure if they are even here." She wasn't even sure she knew what they looked like, though apparently they'd thought enough of her to give her lingerie of all things. And, sure, she might have even been wearing it. But the fact that someone had thought it appropriate to gift a complete stranger lingerie had rubbed her the wrong way.

"Weren't you the one drinking and eating everything in sight at the feast awhile back? Why are you suddenly skeptical of everything now?" Her question was more out of curiosity than accusing him of anything. She really wanted to know why a party like this and gifts that were given was suddenly the line where the mysterious feast that had appeared in the inn had been free game.

"Not everything," he feels it important to clarify, holding up a finger. "No, no, even I have my limits and green alcohol that can cause hallucinations and a ridiculous trip is not something that I walk into lightly, not without a planned environment, careful self-purchase, and available food in the event it goes poorly. I can hardly run to the store here and buy ginger ale if things go awry." He gives her a wary look when she talks about a gift with a name on it, because that's another fun thing he's learning about - that apparently, there is a big toy store in the sky and they're apparently sending down items based on...something? He's not entirely sure what.

"I hesitate to ask, but what did you get from me? Provided you did get something from me," he says, wondering how this works. Ravi knows he didn't sit down and write out a list to some secret village Santa.

"Fair enough," Riza concedes. She can see the point of what he's saying and it certainly wouldn't do to blackout tonight. Riza would much rather remember what happened at the party, however small it may be.

As for his question, well, she wasn't sure how it had all worked either. She could have sworn half the people she received gifts from were people she had barely spoken to or even met. So, it wasn't quite as awkward to answer the question as it might have been if he had actually been responsible for getting gifts. "I actually didn't receive a gift from you."

Well, now he feels like a complete cad and awful, at that. It's not like he willfully sat there and didn't think of anything to get her, but at the same time, it really does make him look like an asshole. He reaches for something a little less potent and hopes that other people will take advantage of the absinthe lying there so that Ravi can observe the effects and decide whether it's safe to drink and take home, himself. "Well, then, I'm sorry," he apologizes. "If I'd known we were going to have some kind of strange Christmas gift explosion, I would have tried to get my hands on something for you." He thinks that if he could have given her a puppy the likes of which she'd talked about the first time they'd met, he would have.

Unfortunately, it looks like he's missed the boat on that one. "How about I offer you a gift down the line? Sort of a rain cheque gift?"

She holds up a hand, "Please, it's fine. It's not like we knew what was coming. I can't begin to explain some of the gifts I received or what I might have even gotten some people." She wasn't a very materialistic person anyway, nor very sentimental. What she wanted weren't gifts but people or at the very least answers for this place. She wouldn't actually wish to see the people she cared about unless it was to get out of here and see them again.

She shakes her head at his question, "You don't have to do that, really."

"I'm going to feel really guilty and horrible if I don't," Ravi confesses, giving her a shrug that says that he's helpless to do anything else. "Honestly, I don't even know what we're talking about here, but it'll assuage my worried soul if you could promise to let me do something like that."

"I mean, I could also offer to help unwrap more gifts, but that might get a touch personal," he admits, seeing as there's really no way of knowing who might get you what, in this place.

Riza supposes she can understand that feeling, she knows she'd likely feel the same way if the tables were turned. Although, that does make her wonder, "All right. But did I happen to get you anything while we're on the topic?"

She shakes her head at his offer, "I already unwrapped most of them just to get a sense of what I had. Better to be thorough." After all, there had been no telling what was useful and what wasn't.

"Well," he begins, in the tone of voice that speaks of feeling very encouraged and pleased to announce this, "it appears you think that I needed a little help relaxing, it seems, because you gave me a bottle of kahlua," he says, which had been quite the lovely thing to open. "Maybe my gift to you ought to be half the bottle," he says, seeing as he hasn't even opened it up yet in order to enjoy it, and it's the perfect drink to sip and enjoy with friends. "I mean, if we had more, we could make some really incredible martinis out of it," he says, his mind drifting away to dream of a time and place where he can just run to the store to pick up anything he wants, if it's missing.

Then again, a little bit of kahlua over ice never goes wrong and they have plenty of that, these days.

She considers that gift choice, bringing a finger to rest on her chin as she tries to reason it out. "Hmmm. I do recall us having a conversation about drinking coffee and alcohol around that one feast--kahlua is like that, isn't it?" Ravi had been particularly ravenous at the feast and she remembered catching him drinking booze and they'd discussed coffee as well. Was there a way that conversation had contributed to her gift? It certainly wasn't something she would have picked at herself, but the association was there and if they were being watched, maybe someone had picked up on that.

She shrugs, "Well, if you're offering. That sounds like a safer drink choice than the other gift you received. How much alcohol were you gifted anyway?"

"Now you just need to wish us a new feast," he says, because it would be best to be able to enjoy the kahlua with some proper coffee. That, or he can hope that some coffee bushes will magically appear, along with the methods in order to be able to harvest them. He reaches forward and starts to pour it for her. "It's really just these two bottles," he confesses.

"One that might kill me and one that's very enjoyable, but more so when it's in something else." He hands her the glass. "Cheers!"

"I think one was enough for the time being. You didn't have to wake up to a woman screaming and then after the gifts...well I'm not sure if those of us staying at the inn can handle too many more surprises," Riza said, her tone betraying her slight amusement at the events that had transpired. It was crazy, wasn't it?

Riza accepts the glass, a little less wary of this liquid than what might lie in store in the other bottle. "Cheers," she echoes, clinking her glass to his before taking a drink. She doesn't drink often, but the taste is certainly unique. She makes a face, "I can see where that would be better mixed with something else. It's not too bad though."

"If a woman is screaming in my house, something is definitely wrong," Ravi says with a knowing nod of his head, seeing as that's about the last thing he really wants, though he can't stop it, because it's not like he has a handy lock that he can put on the door to keep out intruders. Maybe he ought to see if anyone around here can do that.

He watches her, waiting for that first bit of liquid to actually hit her tongue, sipping soon after. "Milk is nice," he says. "A good White Russian," he shares, with a long sigh. "Oh, for the days I could wander up to an aloof bartender and pay ridiculous amounts of money for a single drink."

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