Christmas never gets old (Harlan)

14th December 2003

Jade was in charge of Christmas decorations at the Carrolls’ distillery. The young woman might not be involved in the general business and have her own jobs to keep her busy but her father wanted to hold a charity event this year and felt that the distillery needed proper festive decoration. Since neither he nor Glenn were particularly gifted when it came to decorations nor really interested in dealing with them at all, they had assigned the task to Jade who had been happy to take it over.

She had put garlands all over the place, decorating the fir branches with bronze coloured ornaments and ribbons and had put up a huge Christmas tree in the middle of the hall which was also mostly decorated in bronze colour but had some additional golden ornaments. Candles of matching colour scheme were placed on every table, she had hung up a few mistletoes across the place and she had even put small fir branches between the merchandise. The smell of fresh cut pine lingered pleasantly in the distillery and Jade was rather satisfied with her work.

A band was setting up in the back of the distillery to play and there was a holiday gift set available this year consisting of a special edition of the Carroll’s best selling whisky, two glasses, two coasters and whisky stones. Half of the money from that sale was going straight into charity. However, there would also be an auction with old whisky of which the whole money would be donated to a good cause. Grant and Glenn had given out invitations to everyone they knew, had advertised the event in papers and had invited the press to join them. While it was officially labelled a charity event, it was first and foremost advertisement for their distillery.

Jade had dressed in a festive knee length dark green velvet dress that had some glowing sequins attached to its skirt, reminding slightly of a Christmas tree with a chain of lights. She had had little time left for hair and make up and, therefore, just wore her hair down in her usual fashion while she had still managed to apply enough eye makeup and lipstick to match the festive nature of her dress. While the young witch had considered wearing elegant high heels she had ultimately chosen comfy warm boots, not caring that they ruined her outfit a little.

Her brother told her off for her choice of shoewear but Jade just laughed, suggesting Glenn could wear high heels himself if he found them so pretty. Glenn had soon left her, greeting a journalist who had just arrived and Jade took her time to look around. A smile spread across her face when she saw Harlan among the guests.

“Harlan!” she greeted him cheerfully as she approached him. “So great that you could make it. I hope you don’t feel the same about Christmas decorations as you do about toy shops,” she teased as she reached him

@Harlan Bellamy

Harlan rubbed his palms together to generate a bit of heat. It was an adjustment stepping inside from the chill of the December air, a fresh snow having blanketed the Isle earlier that afternoon. Shrugging off his coat, he thanked the redfaced man in the cloakroom and made his way into the distillery that looked to be in the final stages of set up. Unsurprisingly on-brand for him, he had turned up early. Punctuality was a hard habit to break.

Despite himself, there was something about Christmas that Harlan couldn't help but love. The music and the gifts and the cold weather. In truth, it was his favorite time of the year. Rolling up the sleeves of his white dress shirt that was neatly tucked into grey slacks, he scanned the room for any of the familiar Carroll family faces. 

Jade, he was relieved to have landed on first. It wasn't that he didn't want to see her brother or father, but he knew that they had far more important people to entertain so early in the night. He would save their conversation until after the party died down and they were able to speak openly over a few whiskeys.

"Hello," He smiled and leaned forward to pull Jade into a hug. "Then you're in luck. Don't tell anyone, but I love Christmas," He lowered his voice a decibel and spoke into her ear as he pulled back from the embrace. "The place looks great," Harlan spoke more openly, nodding to the fir branch still held in her hand that was a giveaway that she'd done a lot of the decorating work. As he looked around he noticed the mistletoe hanging from various places around the room.

"Now that's looking for trouble..." For the other guests, he figured he meant. Whiskey and any excuse to do something out of character really got people going. Holiday or not.

Jade smiled to herself when Harlan greeted her with a hug. “You do?” she asked and as she caught his gaze smiled even wider. “That’s a pleasant surprise, I must say.” The young witch chuckled softly. “However, do you want to play Scrooge or why shouldn’t I tell anyone?”

When Harlan stated that the place looked great, Jade felt how she subconsciously straightened up some more and smiled more widely. “Why thank you,” she said, implying thus that it was thanks to her work (and hers alone) that the place looked so festive.

She followed his example and glanced around just like she had done countless times before. She was quite happy with what she had achieved and would happily take all the credit but Harlan had only just arrived. It would be quite silly to boast about her accomplishment now. However, as she placed the fir branch that she was holding on the nearest table, she assumed that he was aware of this already anyway.

Jade grinned mischievously when Harlan mentioned the mistletoes meaning trouble. “That was a bit the point,” she admitted, now laughing softly. “I thought I’d have some fun watching others get into trouble and stay clear of the dangerous zones myself unless I find someone I wouldn’t mind kissing.”

"Can't let anyone think I've gone soft," Harlan said matter-of-factly with a raise of his brow after Jade's question, taking a step back from their embrace. In truth, he had never been all that easy to open up, let alone with someone he'd only been around a few times and certainly not in the public eye. He had (with reason, once upon a time) garnered a bit of reputation for being tough that hadn't fared well as he got older and less inclined to make stupid decisions.

The impulse, though, was always lingering of course.

Harlan's eyes tore away from Jade to where she'd placed the final puzzle piece of the decor before flicking back up to the floating candles and twine. It took a creative mind, even with the help of magic, to have dreamed it up. "Troublemaker," He clicked his tongue at her comment, his eyes dropping once more to her. He hadn't fancied her as the type to stir things up but then again he didn't really know her all that well.

And he appreciated it. Any excuse to people watch.

"Plenty of eligible bachelors..." Harlan said it before he canvassed the room and trailing off. Most of the men who had arrived thus far were well over fifty and looked like they'd already enjoyed a fair few whiskeys in their lifetime. "...maybe later," He added with a chuckle, inclining his head to the bar. "Are you still on the clock or are you allowed respite?" He wondered aloud. Either way, he was getting her a drink.

“Of course not,” Jade smirked. She paused as a thoughtful expression spread across her face. “Or… do you think I could sell that story to the press and make a fortune of it?” she teased. “Harlan Bellamy - a secret romantic. Does the famous Quidditch player sing Christmas carols whilst wrapping gifts for his loved ones?” Jade grinned and then shook her head. “No, seriously, your secret is safe with me.”

Harlan called her troublemaker and Jade took it as a compliment, shrugging innocently in response. “Well, maybe. But who knows, maybe I’m also successfully playing cupid?”

She followed his gaze and also looked at the people in the room. “Mhmm,” Jade said, thinking that the people present at this point didn’t seem to be the kind of people that would fall in love at this event. They were probably even unaware of the mistletoes and even if they saw them wouldn’t try to kiss anyone. Besides, the audience was quite unevenly mixed. Most were middle aged to older men. Unless they were all gay they wouldn’t find a good match here.

“I’m totally allowed respite!” Jade answered Harlan’s question. “My work is done here. All that’s left for me to do is to be nice to guests and make them feel welcome. I think having a drink with you fits that description, right?”

"On second thought..." Harlan paused to genuinely think it over. Part of him figured he was aging out of Prophet fodder pieces. With all of the new up and coming young fame-hungry wizards that felt lightyears away from him, he could only hope. "Doesn't sound all that interesting now, does it?" He let out a laugh at Jade's mention of selling him out as a secret romantic. Those who knew him already figured that part of him out, anyway.

"I'm sure there would be a far more interesting story about the latest boyband scandal," He teased with raised eyebrows.

Harlan glanced to Jade who had followed his eyes around the room of potential suitors to fall prey to the old mistletoe trick. "Hey, I'm not judging," He had absolutely no room to judge in that department after the decade that was his twenties, but the grin on his face gave away that he was only joking. "I'm not a half-bad wingman, if you need it later," He nudged her with his elbow, thankful that she agreed to a drink. He wasn't quite ready for small talk with strangers yet.

"Yes, it does," He affirmed with a nod and making their way toward one of the bars, having forgotten that he was actually a guest there. "You've been alright?" Harlan glanced at Jade beside him and gestured for her to chose her order first. "Sure that shop has been chaos..." He mused with a smirk. More chaos than usual, he thought to himself.

“Oh I don’t know,” Jade said, smiling at Harlan. “I think that’s the sort of thing people like to read. You do have a bit of a different image in the media and I am quite sure your fans would like to know that you actually enjoy the festive season.” She tilted her head a little, her expression turning a little more thoughtful. “Well, I think I’d enjoy reading an article like that. It’s nice to read about how others, how famous people, celebrate Christmas anyway.”

Jade thought about his comment on the boyband scandal for a moment, before nodding. “Yeah, well, I admit that might be interesting to more people. You gotta work on your reputation so that a boyband scandal isn’t considered far more interesting anymore,” she teased him.

“I’ll come back to that later,” Jade said, chuckling softly with laughter at Harlan’s comment and the nudge he gave her. She looked around to check what her father and brother were doing and was glad to see that they seemed busy but perfectly in control of everything. That meant that she could just relax and have a drink without feeling obliged to offer her help to them.

They made their way towards the bar and Jade quite enjoyed that Harlan was taking the lead. She liked it when she wasn’t treated like she was the host at the distillery because, even if her family owned it, she didn’t really work here.

“Yeah,” she nodded, smiling at Harlan again. “Thanks, I’ve been well. Busy, of course, but that comes with this season. It’s our busiest time at the toy shop, obviously. How have you been? Do you need any presents for your nephew for Christmas? We have some new toys and since you enjoy browsing through the shop…” she grinned. After all, she could not forget Harlan’s visit to the toy shop and how out of place he had seemed. “I also created these sparkling shopping bags that we discussed,” she offered, trying to look serious. “You’d love them, I’m sure.”

The very last thing that Harlan wanted was to draw any attention to himself that might make him a more viable target for Prophet fodder. He was perfectly happy to let the newcomers take the brunt of the public eye. He certainly had enough of his own years "As they should be," There was a faint smile on his face as he said it, edging on nostalgic.

Their drinks were handed over quickly with the crowd still in its infancy for the evening and Harlan handed Jade her glass before taking his. They both had whiskey— appropriate— and he let the woman behind the bar pick the variation. With the Carrolls' product, you couldn't be steered in the wrong direction, anyway. "That's good," A bustling toy shop wasn't actually good in his mind but he was trying to be being polite.

"Oh—" Harlan let out a laugh. "—my nephew loved the presents," He nodded with assurance, recalling his birthday party a few weeks prior. "And my brother hated them, so very well done," He grinned mischievously. Although Jade had no personal stake in the matter, he figured she ought to know the outcome of his not-so-carefully laid down plan.

At the mention of the shopping bags, Harlan rolled his eyes slightly. "You haven't brought any for me to sample?" He pretended to scoff. In truth, he was sure that they were great. Just not his speed, per se. "I've been well," He began, pausing to take a slow measured sip from the lip of the glass. "Busy with quidditch, the holidays..." He trailed off. Not unlike everyone else at that time of year.

Jade found it amusing that Harlan organised them drinks when she was more or less hosting this event with the rest of her family. She didn’t mind that in the slightest, though. In fact, she rather appreciated it and she couldn’t help but realise that she rather enjoyed Harlan’s company at such events. She was getting used to seeing him whenever there was something going on at the distillery. Talking to him made her feel like she was doing her job while she was actually rather enjoying herself.

“Yeah, this season is really a good time for the business,” Jade nodded. “At least financially,” she added, smiling. “It can be a bit too much occasionally.” It was as much of a concession as he’d receive. Jade wasn’t a perfect sales person. She loved developing toys, but being in a crowded toy shop with lots of different voices - among those the shrill voices of small kids that wanted to have something their parents wouldn’t buy and who’d then cry - wasn’t really what she liked. Besides she always hated how stuffy the shop got after a few hours. She always longed for the evening then when she’d be at home on her farm where she could finally breathe freely again.

She chuckled softly when Harlan talked about how the items he had bought at the toy shop had been perceived. “Sounds like those were perfect presents, then,” she agreed. “I take it, you rather liked that outcome. Let me know if you ever need to buy toys again, I’ll gladly help you pick out something fun again.”

It was fun to be teasing each other and Jade gladly played along. “Maybe I brought some of the bags for those special customers that enjoy carrying whisky home in a toy shop gift bag,” she suggested with a grin. “I take it, you will buy some nice Christmas presents here? I could also gift wrap them for you, you know?! Add some glitter and all that…” she lifted her glass to her lips and finally took a sip from her whisky. She didn’t want to drink too much for as long as her father might still have a task for her but that didn’t mean that she would attempt to stay sober either.

“Yeah, I guess it’s a busy season for most people.” Jade offered. It clearly was busy for her entire family, too.

"Only occasionally?" Harlan asked, a sound somewhere between a laugh and a sigh followed, his eyes narrowing on Jade. It was no secret that her trade would be a lot, all of the time, at least as far as he thought— dealing with people, customer service, Merlin's sale, the pre-teen kids. Every detail of the toy shop was enough to make his skin crawl at the thought of being there for too long. He could only commend her for her patience in the face of it all.

He took a moment to take a drink as he settled into the barstool of the otherwise empty bar with the exception of the two of them. Give it an hour and he figured it would be the busiest spot in the place so may as well have taken advantage of it while they could.

"Hmm," Harlan hummed a thought, dropping his chin to the palm of his hand, eventually breaking into a grin. "That is a very tempting ofter..." His gaze narrowed on the barrels around them. He would certainly be taking at least one bottle home, anyway. "Only if it comes with the, you know—" He gestured vaguely with his free hand. "That gold tissue paper that smells like cinnamon. He noticed it that night after bringing his nephew's gift home.

Jade chuckled softly when Harlan asked if it was getting too much only occasionally. “Yeah, okay,” she conceded, “before Christmas it’s overwhelming but it’s not for long and I’m not always working in sales. My mother is there most of the time and our employee, my friend Frida.” She shrugged and smiled a little. “I’ll admit that I wouldn’t want to only sell toys all day. What I love about the business, though, is creating new toys. While we order some from manufacturers from around the world, we create most ourselves.”

Happy that they had reached the bar before most people would feel thirsty, Jade looked around. The place was filling up but people were still settling in, greeting acquaintances and looking around.

“Oh, you liked that cinnamon paper?” Jade asked, grinning a little. “I could also some green tissue paper that smells distinctively of Christmas trees…” her voice trailed off as she realised that Harlan would hardly be interested in hearing about all their tissue paper. “You name the gift wrapping and decoration you want and you’ll get it,” she simply added before lifting the glass to her lips to take another sip.

“I help people choose presents and wrap them nicely so that I sometimes feel like I have tons of presents myself but, truth be told, I’m always running late when it comes to getting Christmas presents,” Jade said thoughtfully. “Doing last minute shopping most of the time.”