rather be. [tag; leifr]

It was feeling festive!

It was late November and the night air was cool and crisp, her warm breath coming out in small little clouds as she rubbed her hands together quickly. Sje was at Somerset House, a large building past the Strand in Central London. It was large and broad, sprawling for what seemed like miles but this time of the year, it was different. There was a large ice rink set up right outside, over the original courtyard. Muggles were funny little things. In the summer months, they erected a large screen and showed movies in the same spot.

The atmosphere was infectious. It smelt like doughnuts and mulled wine and Erika was eager to try both. It was a little after seven in the evening and the night was extra cold due to the clear inky blue sky. It was a perfect night for stargazing.

Erika leant against the barrier that surrounded the ice rink, wrapping her minty green coat around her as she bounced in her boots. Cheerful, upbeat music wafted in from unseen speakers as she bobbed her head along to the unfamiliar melody, wiggling her bum as she watched people skate. It seemed to be mostly children and parents and couples. It was lit by old fashioned street lamps and spotlights, casting the white brick into shadow. It was like a fairy tale.

It was actually quite a romantic set up. A Christmas tree, twinkling fairy lights, music, food and who was she meeting? Her cousin.

She loved Leifr, she did but her first choice was Murphy. Unfortunately, he was working that evening and couldn't get away. It was a bit depressing to know that her sort of boyfriend didn't want to blow off work to hang out with her. If he had come with her tonight, she would have put out. And bought him a doughnut.

Her long blonde hair was tied up and back into a neat, high ponytail, everything out of her face so she could concentrate. Erika could ice skate. She wouldn't win any medals but she could stay upright, unlike a broad man who slipped and hit the ice with a loud bang! Erika winced as he struggled to get to his feet, feeling awfully sorry for the girl he'd brought on a date and was obviously trying to impress. Poor love.

Turning her back, she wandered over to one of the little stalls and bought two small cups of mulled wine, just to keep her hands from freezing. There were Christmas markets dotted around and they were open until midnight, selling all sorts. Food, cookies, baubles, clothes, gifts. Erika was a terrible gift giver. It wasn't that she wasn't thoughtful, it was more that she left everything to the very last minute. Would her mother really want another gift wrapped potted plant?

Her big blue eyes were wide as she tipped the small plastic cup to her mouth, sipping the claret coloured spiced wine and enjoying the cinnamon-y cloves that warmed her insides. Then she saw him.

"Mmm!" Erika exclaimed with a mouth full of wine, raising one arm and wiggling, trying not to spill anything. She also had a jam doughnut in her coat pockets. "Hi!" She called out with a goofy grin, holding her cups above her head, weaving in and out of the crowd before she reached her cousin and she eagerly pressed the mulled wine into his hand with a bright smile. "Down that. We're gonna have fun."

It was certainly winter, there was no doubt about that, not for Leifr Trickett, anyway. Pulling his leather jacket a little closer to his body, the man tucked his hands into his pockets, and braced himself against the wind that was nipping at his neck and nose. But  he had a good reason to be out in the weather. He was meeting his lovely cousin, Erika for a bit of fun. The wizard had a sneaking suspicion that his cousin had the intention of inviting someone else in his stead, but that didn’t bother him any, Leifr knew what it was to want a date rather than an outing with family. Although he couldn’t deny that it did amuse him greatly. But either way, he knew it would be a good time, being that they were cousins, and always got up to some fun.

As he did his best not to freeze too badly, the ex-Gryffindor did his best to begin scanning the crowd for his blonde headed relative. Luckily, he didn’t have to look too far or too hard. She spotted him first, and the man couldn’t stop himself from grinning broadly. Gingerly, he took the cup his cousin was so excitedly pushing into his hand. Down it, hey? Why not? Bringing the cup up to his mouth, Leifr began to drink the warm, flavorful liquid, but found himself blanching half way through. hot. Ouch. Grimacing, he laughed at his own stupidity “It’s warmer than I expected....but what kind of fun do you have in mind? You know trouble’s my middle name..” Okay, so his middle name wasn’t actually trouble, it was Askr. Which meant Ash tree.He’d always thought Loki would have been a better fit. Downing the rest of the mulled wine, the man gestured widely, and fixed his cousin with a look “So, where to first, hmm?” He didn’t wait for her to finish before he was leisurely strolling down the street in the crowd of people.

Leifr wasn’t looking for anything in particular, just kind of waiting for Erika to decide on something, or for something to catch his eye. Then his eyes landed on the ice rink. He hadn’t been skating in years. He had a faint memory of going with his parents when he was little, but it wasn’t much to go off of. Pointing at the structure Leifr shot a glance at his cousin “Want to go skating? Or were you hoping to get me to help you pick out presents this year?” He finished with a small chuckle, and gently nudged her side to let her know he was kidding. This was going to be good. It had been awhile since they’d gotten to catch up.

"You are such a moron!" Erika exclaimed fondly as she laughed loudly. "Of course it's hot, you ninny," she chided him with a roll of her big eyes as she tutted gently. "It's mulled wine. You bung a lot of spices in and it heat it on the stove?" She snorted before she shook her head, her long blonde hair whipping her cheeks as she blew on the hot liquid, a small cloud of winter-y deliciousness enveloped her in a cuddle. "But it's great to see you," she said with a bright, happy smile. She'd be seeing him in a few weeks at the Trickett Christmas get-together but this was different.

"Well okay, Leifr "Danger" Trickett," Erika replied, making air quotes with her fingers before offering her taller cousin a swift, playful salute. She looked around quickly, her already above average height making it easier to look above the heads of the other people present. "There's a great Christmas market on?" she asked, pointing to the left where there were rows and rows of little wooden huts. The air smelt like cinnamon and there were boughs of evergreen along the roofs and they were all intertwined with glittering fairy lights.

They sold everything. Christmas cookies, wooden hand carved decorations, tinsel, aprons, kitchenware, the lot. "Hey!" She snapped suddenly, her eyes wide with outrage as she quickly smacked Leifr on the chest. "Don't be rude," she grumbled. "My Christmas gift picking skills are the best," she said haughtily as she flipped her hair over her shoulder before she laughed. "And you loved that cheese grater I got you last year. Don't be a dick. I thought we could -- oh."

Leifr was off. Erika quickly downed rest of her lukewarm beverage in the nearest rubbish bin as she ran in her heels, twisting and turning through the heavily layered up clouds. The temperatures were quickly dropping in the dark and there was a fresh threat of snow lingering in the dark grey clouds that dotted the inky blue sky. She was going to suggest the market, a walk around the streets that were decked out in all their finery. Maybe a pint in a warm cosy pub with a plate of fish and chips in front of a roaring log fire. But no.

As he nudged her, she scowled at him and swatted his hands away. He was so rude but skating? "Do I ever!" she squealed, flailing her hands at him before leaning in and kissing his cheek. She'd been ice skating a lot when she was younger, the Cornish weathers were long and harsh but she'd never been skating in such a picturesque setting before. It was gorgeous. Very romantic, really. Erika felt a pang of sadness in her chest as her thoughts strayed to Èdouard. He'd promised her a tour of Paris, she should return the favour. He'd like it here.

"Two please," she said brightly to a short man in a hat and some sort of Muggle football scarf wrapped tightly around his neck as she handed over that silly coloured money with some woman's face on it. Erika stepped over and sat down on a bench and hastily yanked off her boots, slipping her feet into her ice skates and hastily lacing them up. She was grinning from ear to ear. The rink was filled with people at different skills; kids squealing, a single woman making elegant laps, a young couple laughing, grabbing onto each other clumsily to keep themselves upright.

She got up and clunked her way to the ice, letting a wobbly man pass in front of her before she set foot on the slippy ice. "Oh it's not so bad!" She called carelessly over her shoulder at Leifr with a grin, her porcelain cheeks red from exposure to the cold. Easy! Like riding a bike. Erika pushed off, her mint green coat flapping in the cold night air as she started off, carefully and slowly before getting very confident, very quickly. "It's fun!" she yelled back, her face like a child's, lighting up with pure joy as she did another lap. She thought she'd be showy and she attempted a turn but her blades crossed and she lost her balance. The result was her letting out a scream of terror as she crashed to the ice. The shock of the cold and the hard unforgiving floor rocked her. Her shoulder throbbed as that was the part of her that hit the ice first of all.

As she was on the ice, a cocky little brat with a shock of ginger hair laughed at her. The little Hellbeast was jeering at her as she skating rings around her, literally. Having had quite enough, Erika made sure its parents wasn't watching before surreptitiously sticking out her leg and tripping the child up. Ha! Who's laughing now? Bahaha.