#lumosevent005

New Years Eve had always been a favourite occasion of Amelia's to celebrate. It was a day she was always sure to wrap up anything she needed to do at the Ministry in plenty of time so she could head home, get changed, and then make her way down to Diagon Alley for the street party so she could spend the evening surrounded by friends and party goers alike.

Making her way down the cobbled street, Amelia was busy taking in the festivities around her when she caught sight of a familiar face up ahead. Making her way over, she beamed. "Hey, it's good to see you. Are you having a good night so far?"

At the beginning of last year she wouldn't have imagined that she would start the next year pregnant, but the baby had been a most welcome surprise. What she didn't welcome was all the people around her now being drunk and exuberant, while she had no desire to drink herself she did feel a little left out, her hormones making a mess out of her emotional state. It wasn't a big deal, but why did she feel close to tears? Seeing someone stop in front of her, she waved them off before they could open their mouth. "Oh no. I'm fine. Don't worry about me. Feel free to carry on."

Ludo did not have a favorite holiday, perhaps his birthday, but this would be a close second. An excuse to party with anyone who was around was always welcome for him. Which was why, after quite a few shots, he had left the comforts of The Three Broomsticks and decided he was really craving ice cream.

So with a cone in hand, he was settling in one of the tables as he spoke to a near passerby.

"Oi, how fast do you reckon I could eat this whole cone? Because I'm thinking less than 2 minutes, tops."

It was easy to be around him, it had almost always been that way. Sure, they had a rocky start as they fought for James' attention, but soon had grown to be great friends, if not more. Marlene had ever since felt completely comfortable around the Black wizard, able to enjoy herself as they shared a connection that to them was unquestionable. Eager to finally find Sirius, the brunette sneaked through the busy crowd as soon as she spotted his face from a distance, throwing an arm around his shoulders and pulling him in for a big smooch on the cheek. "Do you figure we need to start this new year with a louder bang that we did last year?" She wondered out loud, a suggestive smile forming on her lips as she looked up at him. "Because I do plan to have fun tonight, Mr. Black, and I can do none of that without you, my love." Marlene stated with feigned seriousness, her expression giving in as she winked an eye at the wizard.

Waiting in line to buy something to eat, thinking it'd be better to have something else in her stomach other than the several drinks she already had and planned to have, Marlene almost didn't recognise the person in front of her until he turned around, a smile forming in her lips immediately. "Frank, darling, happy new year." She greeted her co-worker with a hug. "Are you having a good time? Where's Alice?"

When Marlene thought of family nowadays, the one face she could picture was James'. He'd always been family to her, growing up together but most importantly choosing to stay by each other's side all throughout the years. She'd lost everything, except him and with the passing time, she realised she was lucky to still have him, cherishing every chance she got to spend time with him. As the party unravelled all around, everyone celebrating and having a great time, the witch didn't feel the party could really start until he was there. She'd been having a couple of drinks already, sure, but the important bit wasn't that at all. What could one want more than to begin a new bright year with those one loved? She heard his voice among the loud crowd, she could recognise anywhere, turning immediately at the mention of her name. Spotting his face walking towards her, Marlene felt warm all over, that unique feeling one gets when thinking about home. A soft smile pulling at the corners of her lips, her eyes sparkling with enthusiasm as he finally made his way through the crowd, the witch threw her arms around him the first chance she got. A very much needed hug, a very much deserved one. "Happy new year, Jamie. I think this might be a good one for us all."

It had always come easily for her to get along with people, no matter their upbringing, personalities or even age. Marlene considered herself quite the sociable butterfly and had proved over and over again that she was fun to hang out with. Gideon was one of the people she had the most amusing times with, their humour quite similar and both laid back enough not to concern themselves too much to spoil what could be a promising night. So far, the witch had been drinking a little more than she should, but for the first time in a long while it was purely for the pleasure of it rather than a way to escape reality. So when she came upon the wizard, she waved her hand right in front of his face quite clumsily to catch his attention. "Oi, Gid, it's new year and one of my resolutions is to get sloshed with your pretty face. Just a tad bit, nothing over the top, just waking up with no memories except the feeling of the best night ever-- what do you say?"