Anya had spent most of her afternoon unpacking all of her things into the new flat she had purchased in Falmouth, thanks to the new trade that had her playing for the Falcons this upcoming season. The place was much nicer than her last had been, though it was a little smaller, which meant that she had to figure out where everything was going to go. The task was more frustrating than she would have thought, so when the last of the boxes was finally emptied, she heaved a heavy sigh before showering and changing into something suitable for going out in public – a simple black dress that came down to the middle of her thighs; something comfortable with potential to catch someone’s attention, seeing how it showed off all of her best assets.

Not looking for an exciting night out, the tall Russian strutted her way down the sidewalk, her heels adding additional 3 inches to her height, making it so that she towered over some of the men and women she passed as she walked, some of them having to turn and do a double take since they were sure they recognized her from somewhere…

She finally made her way into a local bar – the man who had sold her the flat she had just moved into told her all about how it was pretty low-key, which meant that she could have a couple of drinks without being bombarded by the press. She loved the attention, she did, but sometimes she just needed to have a couple of drinks and unwind – tonight was one of those nights.

Taking a seat at the bar, she crossed her legs, flattening down her dress before turning to the bartender as he spoke to her. A charming smile was flashed in his direction before requesting a glass of their finest vodka. She was fully aware that her drink of choice made her a complete stereotype, but it just went down so smoothly. Her foot bobbed as she waited for him to bring her drink, one of her hands lifting up in order to comb her hair away from her face, taking a moment to glance around the bar, taking in her surroundings.

Well, it was definitely low key…she’d have to make a true decision on whether she liked the place or not based on how much she enjoyed the company of the other patrons.

Berkeley knocked furiously on Sarah’s door. He hated that she was right, going home had been a terrible idea. Especially since he left on terrible terms with his mother. And unlike Sarah, she knew where he lived and could follow him. Which she did! He came home to find her standing there chatting up his super. All smiles and pleasantries like nothing had happened. Claimed that she just had to come over and check up on him. In other words she wanted to make sure that he had made the 'right' decision. Which as far as Berkeley was concerned was no longer any of her business.

She was currently in his apartement probably cleaning because ‘it was atrocious’ and how did. Berk had begged off claiming that he needed to go get groceries if she was going to be staying. He headed for Sarah’s the moment he was out of the house. “Sarah! Let me in. This is urgent! Super urgent!” he called through door. What was she doing? What on earth could be more important at this moment? Granted he had never got around to telling exactly what happened when he went home to visit. Of course she knew something was up, but he hoped that it would just turn in one of those things they didn't speak about. “Saraaah!”

Bess scrambled into the house and shut the door as fast and as quietly as she could. Brian stared up at her from his tight grip of her blouse with wide, confused eyes, and Bess hushed him before he could start whining.

"Mummy, what--" Sadie began, but Bess pulled her away from the door as she hurried into the flat. Sadie's other hand was latched onto Stephen's, and the two hurried behind their mother as quick as their little feet could follow. She needed her children silent, and she needed them to be completely unaware of her current state or what she was attempting to do. Why on earth had she bothered to look through those sleazy magazines? Why, why had she seen that little blip of an article? If she hadn't been bored while waiting at the healer's office, she would never have noticed the proclamation a certain Kestrel made about her sister-in-law, or whatever it was and----

Focus! All Bess could and should be focusing on was not dropping her children, and finding her husband's journal. Who had told the Tattler that it would be a good idea to post their stories into one of those magical things where anyone with access could read it and then be scandalized by what the articles entailed?! Bess knew that Drystan rarely used his journal, but sometimes he did paruse the entries, to tease her, or Odette, or----

Brian was dropped (put!) into his playpen, Stephen crawled into his bed for a nap, and Sadie was shooed to her room, even though Bess knew she would be out in a second to investigate why her mother was behaving so strangely. Bess tore into the master bedroom, heading straight for the desk and its drawers.

"Where---are----you?" Bess let out in frustration. It didn't even matter, he could spot it in a rag just like she did, but at least she could try.

She'd done it. Bianca wasn't even going to apologize for the thought; she'd done it. These past few weeks leading up to the wedding had been so nerve-wracking, worse than any training she'd gone through, more terrifying than any mission she'd been on, worse than...she really thought that she was not going to make it down the aisle. The guilt and the fear had nearly paralyzed her, but putting on her wedding dress, seeing her closest friends dressed up and looking so very happy for her, a last minute owl from Bertram that made things all seem right.

Well, she practically ran down the aisle after that!

The reception had turned out beautifully, and she really, really had to thank her mother for making her have such an event. All the planning leading up to it had been stressful, but it had made her stronger, and Bianca's life depending on being able to push through anything life threw at her. Her hair was down and out of the twist it had been forced into this morning; if she was going to dance and party, she was surely going to have her hair flying about.

A particuarly happy tune came on and she grabbed Amissa's hand, bouncing happily with the little girl who was now officially her step-daughter. The thought thrilled her, and Bianca caught Bertram's eye with a big grin.

Who: Kendall Broadmoor, Rose Knightley & Thomas McCormack
What: BIRTHDAY RELATED THINGS!
Where: Cafe! Flat! Field! SO MANY PLACES SO LITTLE TIME!
When: Now!
Status: Finishing in Comments!

( It better be good, and she better have something for him, too. )

He had not had the desire to hold a baby in years. His nephew and niece, they got stared at by Elliot from a distance, a smile and a wave. His sister was always trying to push them into his arms, in her subtle but ineffective ways. Elliot had even found himself becoming distant with his own son, even though he and Liam had never been a hands-on pair. Liam was much more confident than Elliot had ever been, and often found pleasure in just sitting in the same room, on the same couch, at the same table as his dad.

But it was this strange pull towards the nursery, as if he had some sort of invisible rope wrapped around his waist that would only stretch to their front door before snapping him back. Elliot had spent the last nine months racked with guilt, sick with worry, and to have the relief of this wonderful, lovely, beautiful baby girl! He just never wanted to leave her side.

"Is that right?" he said softly as Elysia let out some sounds. Elliot still was keeping his distance, if sitting at the end of her crib and peering over showed. While he knew that his daughter was healthy and not a monster like he was, Elliot was still cautious---he still didn't trust the healers and who knew what infants could be infected with. He pushed himself a little closer, chin resting on the bars of the crib, "I believe you're correct, Miss."

Billie twisted her fingers anxiously as she paced back and forth across the width of the stadium where she had shed both sweat and blood over the last year. Her eyes scanned her surroundings, taking it in like she had the first time she had stepped foot on the pitch, decked out in black and white. She hadn’t known a single person when she had first joined the league – she felt like something of an outcast, a feeling she had hoped would subside over time, but never did. She wasn’t necessarily an assertive person – she wasn’t the type to try and make a lot of friends, because she was just so awkward about just about everything. It was like she didn’t know how to just be normal around people. Every now and then she managed to fool people into believing she wasn’t as messed up as she actually was, and Thomas McCormack was one of the people she had managed to befriend.

True, their friendship had been based on a mutual physical need, but he was her teammate, and probably the only Magpie who she had made a true connection with. She had tried to talk to the others, but she just…she never knew what to say to them, or how to act.

She started gnawing on the corner of her thumbnail, now walking with one foot in front of the other as she balanced on the thin white line that surrounded the pitch, marking its parameters. She had arrived about 5 minutes after she had written to Thomas, knowing she would have to wait for him to arrive. She needed some time to clear her head. She wondered if he would even care, when she told him, but tried to push her pessimism to the side, and closed her eyes as she let the cool spring breeze brush across her face.

She breathed in, and then out, wondering if maybe she should have just let him find out when everyone else did instead of wasting his time….

Who: Delilah Spinnet & Rose Knightley LOL
What: RUN-INS AND LAUGHS
Where: Outside Octavius' flat
When: Today!

( Was that silence, even for a split second? )

Who: Berkeley and his Mother
What: Berk is freaking out about this kid
Where: Darcy home in ~Wisconsin~
When: Er backdated like whoa... a week or two ago?

( She took pride in knowing that she had raised a headstrong son that didn’t need to lean on anyone to achieve his goals )

Who: Ludo & Greta
What: All kinds of fun!
When: Sunday Evening
Where: Ludo's Bachelor Pad
Status: Incomplete
Rating: Uhhh...let's go with PG for now? But let's be for real here. It's Lureta. Or Grudo. IDK. It's them.

( blah blah cut text )

It was getting down to the wire -- a little less than a month to go now, and no room at all for cold feet. He was sure that his mother was expecting him to get up and run every minute of the day, with how frequently she stopped by for 'emergency visits'. She always found a reason to show up, whether it was a last-minute flower arrangement change she wanted to discuss with Bianca or another concern over Bertram's tuxedo not being of precisely the right cut. It was starting to take its toll on him, not being trusted by her, but at least Bianca was being reasonable ... outwardly, at least. He had the sneaking suspicion that his mother might've been stressing her out or something like that, but he didn't want to bring it up and have it turn into an unnecessary fight.

He tore the invitation in his hand in half and dropped it into the bin, checking off the names on the 'master list'. It was tedious work, moving through all these RSVPs, but he'd been roped into doing it by hand to make sure that the list was as accurate as possible. He glanced at the small mountain of RSVPs that were to his right and sighed, rubbing a hand through his hair.

"Bianca, can you put on a kettle or something? I think I'm going to need an energy potion just to make a dent in this pile."

WHO: Seth Wadcock + Arista Sykes
WHAT: Children = disastuh
WHERE: Some W.Q.W. deal
WHEN: BEFORE THE TATTLER LOL

( Princess of Portree, Child Killer )

WHO: Samantha Cadwallader and Thomas McCormack
WHAT: Trips to Thailand!
WHERE: ...THAILAND
WHEN: This past weekend??
STATUS: Finishing in comments like Cristina does best

( Take the bed, I’ll be sleeping on the beach while you work, so )

While going to Portugal for the offseason had gotten rid of the problem of the media being around every corner, it had not done much for herself and Adrian's own senses. Maggie was still unsure of where they stood with each other, and it was obvious that Adrian was even worse off, especially with his mother within flooing distance. Since the wedding, she had been refusing to push him, giving him a chance to figure out what he wanted, what he wanted from them, and even with this new baby Maggie hadn't pressured him. Adrian knew that she was a woman who could take care of herself, he had to know that she would accept not being together, but yet he had still invited her to Portugal, they were still in their own way making an effort.

She'd decided, though, that she wasn't going to sit back and 'see what happens,' any longer. Maggie knew she wasn't going to give Adrian an ultimatum of any kind, she didn't need a timeline, she just wanted...she wanted to not be worried about her feelings for him. She wanted to be secure in how she felt.

She also wanted to have sex, and all of these confusing thoughts were inhibiting her greatly. Her son was also causing a bit of a problem with that, as Josef had become obsessed with the beach and dragged Adrian out to the sand the moment he woke. Maggie'd had enough sun for the day and had retired early to the bedroom, and was currently sitting on the bed, still in her dry bathing suit and cover up, drawing in her planner. Her pictures had become letters and the letters became words and names, and soon she had hers and Adrian's and Josef's covering the page.

Maybe some girl names she found pretty too. The door opened but she didn't look up at first, concentrating on perfecting her cursive M's, "He must have passed out if you're back so soon."

WHO: Berkeley Darcy and Sarah Stebbins
WHAT: Berk is freaking out!
WHEN: ERRRR
STATUS: Cristina is posting and commenting here so we don't lose this good thread!

( Did you come all this way just to use my bathroom? The ones in London not suitable? )