It was all that!

[geoviki]

The birthday sojourn was an Excellent Adventure. Talk about feeling like a grown up. I think dealing with valet parking ranks up at the top of adult behavior. The Oxford Hotel, built in 1891 to service the railway station a short block away, is the oldest hotel in Denver (okay, bear with me, my non-American friends. Denver itself was only cottonwood trees at two rivers' confluence in the 1860's). The decor in the lobby was lush, rich red-and-black Pierrot style. Our room was quaint and lovely. Within 15 minutes of our arrival, a knock on the door introduced a hotel employee whose job, it appears, was to strew rose petals on our bed. Um. We chose self-strewing, and postponed the champagne until pre-bed. Dinner was at the same venue where I'd met isiscolo last January. And the city is so gorgeous for the holidays: lights galore, folks walking all over the city center, bars doing a thriving business. And my massage was as addictive as crack.

Last night, my women friends bestowed a scepter on me. It's our group scepter. I must care for it until the next milestone birthday of one of us. I've never been a scepter-owner before. Hopefully it matches my minions: it's peach and silver. Is everyone tuned in to those colors? It matches the strewing petals, incidentally.

Isn't this icon pretty? Thanks, oxoniensis!

Today I finished the first draft of ATBT's sequel, Delicate Sound of Thunder. (DSOT in the vernacular.) I'm going to play with it a bit more, then off to the betas it goes! January. Until then, friends, here's another cookie:



"Christ, Draco, you're in a snit. What the hell happened in there? Meeting not go well?"

"You could say that."

"I'm sorry you’re having a bad day."

He couldn't stand it when Harry felt obliged to apologize for every brick the world threw at him, as though it was a personal failure: I'm sorry I can't always make your world a bright and shining place. Mea fucking culpa.

“No, what I’m having is a bad life.”

Harry narrowed his eyes, and Draco could almost hear him counting to ten. "Maybe we ought to call off this little outing. Drinks at your place, then?"

"Fine." He almost said whatever until he caught himself – that would be just too immature.

Neither one spoke in the messy aftermath of Flooing back to Draco's Belgravia flat. They held their silence in front of the fire in one of the odd little suites he rarely used. Deliberately chosen so that he'd be able to avoid bad break-up memories in his favorite rooms. Above the fireplace hung Constable's Salisbury Cathedral, from the Bishop's Grounds, which the Malfoys pretended wasn't authentic: it was meant to be hanging in the Victoria and Albert. Draco had never liked it.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Harry finally ventured.

"What's to tell? The Ministry are being their usual fuckwit selves. Just in case I haven't got the message yet that every crumb dropped into my mouth is from their tolerant hand."

"But I thought Redman was—"

"Was." Harry opened his mouth to say something, and Draco pounced. "And don't say you're sorry."

"But I could—"

"No, Harry. You can't and you won't. Just— Leave it. It's fine. It's the least of my worries today."

"Why? What are you on about?”

“Most people would have noticed it's the anniversary of the day my father died. Even the Prophet managed to drag it up.”

Comments

[zionsstarfish.livejournal.com]

Mmmmmmmmm... happy belated birthday! Your birthday adventure sounds simply delicious.

Also, the cookie is yum as well :)

[shezan.livejournal.com]

Oooooo! Tension! Me LIKE!!!

[elfflame]

Can't wait to see it. Sounds great. You do Draco so well. Not sure I'm going to like what's coming next, though. Sounds like Harry's being his usual clueless self. Doesn't bode well for the relationship...

[snottygrrl.livejournal.com]

bugger, i never did get around to wishing you a happy bday. so happy late bday. am glad you had a loverly time. when ever i see a december birthday i am always reminded of what my good friend who's bday is 16 dec. 'if i never get another pointsetta for my birthday it will be fine.' ohhhh, and congrats on the sceptre. [*pouts*] i want rose petals...

lurve the cookie, though i know i'm going to dislike the crap that draco is going to have to endure in this fic. clueless!harry and snapping!draco are perfect. v. cannon.

[*rubs hands gleefully in anticipation*]

[kay-cricketed.livejournal.com]

Ouch. *winces* Poor Draco... anyway, lovely cookie! ^^ Glad to see your birthday went well!

You write VERY well... *admires* Good style. Loved some of the details involved, like Constable's work. REALLY cool. And the tension! I live for tension. It's written into the very atmosphere in this... excellent. :D And I'm in love with how you write Draco already...

Which means I am going to seek out more of your work, as it's break and I have the time to indulge in delicious fanfic. *runs off*

[arsenicjade.livejournal.com]

I'm glad your birthday went well, dear.

Oh, poor Harry, the shmuck. Poor Draco as well, but that pretty much goes without saying, don't it?

[luci0logy.livejournal.com]

I sense there's going to be lots of angst and interference from outside agencies. I know that will entail biting of nails, sitting on the edge of the seat & swearing at the screen because you write it so well.

Belated birthday wishes, the hotel sounds fabulous, will you be posting photos?. I have some photos on my first (& so far only) post of the faded glory that was the Midland Grand Hotel at St Pancras station. You see the see the exterior and platforms in the Potter films. It's now being renovated and part of it (the old servant's rooms) are going to be made into very expensive apartments.

[marksykins.livejournal.com]

Awww! Poor boys, both of them. Since it's you, though, I have faith that they'll be okay. :)

[cool-september.livejournal.com]

Ah! I forgot about the sequel! *is so excited*

Thanks for the cookie! =D I think I may re-read ATBT once again just to celebrate. Always a pleasure. Keep up the good work, it is loved!

[thrihyrne.livejournal.com]

What a fun snippet! Well, I mean, not fun for them, but fun as a reader to see refreshingly realistic cranky banter. Certainly makes for a believable dynamic. I'm sure you're having fun with your sequel, and your ever-growing readership will be glad to see it when it's been beta-read.

Happy belated birthday! Love the scepter idea. Maybe when I get to 40. :)

happy birthday!

[forlornhope1865.livejournal.com]

I see you were at the Oxford Hotel. It's so lovely nad historic there. Their web site has pics for those out of town to view and envy you:
http://www.theoxfordhotel.com/

I saw you commented in my LJ in Sept. I'm still figuring out my own journal, so I just now read it. I friended you because I LOVED "A thousand beautiful things" and I'm thrilled to see a possible sequel coming.

I'm happy to virtually meet a sister-in-fandom in the Denver area. I love it here; moved here in 98 and live between Capitol Hill and Cheesman Park.

I started in fandom when it was mostly K/S and Blake's 7 and all either Usenet Newsgroups or print zines. So yeah, I'm kind of old. :)

meme-ing (Viki-related :)

[painless-j.livejournal.com]

http://www.livejournal.com/users/painless_j/84578.html

Hello!

[silentauror.livejournal.com]

Hi! I love the cookie! Are there more like it? I just thought I would drop by, btw, to say hello, inquire, whilst attempting to seem calm and not at all squirming with anticipation, about the sequel to ATBT. And wish you a belated Merry Christmas and tell you that I've friended you. :) I see your story's hits are back in place, and I'm very happy. I went to that poll, by the by, said I thought it was a bit ambitious, but voted for ATBT all the same. :) Good night!

Re: Hello!

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

I'm madly catching up to my LJ life...

Yes, there are more cookies - two others if I recall. Just scroll back through my entries and you'll find them.

Story hits are back; I hope yours are as well. Another fic of mine was clobbered, but they've since restored the count there as well, with their usual good grace.

I read your entry at the H/D poll entry, and was curious about your reading habits. Obviously, you are no novice, yet you said that most of these fics were unfamiliar to you. Me, I've heard of every story except one, and have read over 50 of them and have at least skimmed the rest. But then, I thought I kind of knew the H/D LJ crowd, yet most of the names answering the poll were new to me. I guess I've got one little niche of fandom with which I'm familiar. Although I do think that these stories are the ones I have seen talked about/drooled over the most frequently. If you are curious, I can tell you my favorites, but I will say that judging from the responses, that Invisible To See is criminally underappreciated. Oh, and Malfoy, P.I. as well, but it's still a WIP. And a few that I think are a bit ... pedestrian ... are popular, but I'll never never tell you those, because we each have our own tastes! ;-)

the H/D poll...

[silentauror.livejournal.com]

Hi! Yes, I've been thinking, since having posted that comment, that some of the stories on there I know marvellously well, while others were complete and total mysteries to me. It did occur to me that perhaps they were not as mysterious to others, and I feel duly chagrined. :) I was also in a spectacularly pissy mood that day - I understand COMPLETELY about the mom-visiting situation - I live at home again after many years of having lived elsewhere, and over Christmas, it's been driving me mad. My dad's office is being renovated right now, so he's working from home, and my mom and younger brother are constantly here, too. Grrrr..... Serves me right for going to university for 8 consecutive years and running out of money, I suppose, but still...

Going to find your other cookies. :)