Baby it's Cold Outside [Layla]

[Deleted]

December 9

The holidays were coming closer. Emrys hadn't payed much mind to it, he didn't have much of a reason to do so. His birthday was coming up, and he would be twenty. He, physically hadn't changed, but he could feel the time passing. Along with this being his first time in his new penthouse. After his music started to take off, Emrys had moved to the high security penthouse at 40 Lower Thames St. The apartment was large, with a second level with a open loft feel to it. He had a number of musical instruments, some duplicates. he had drums, guitars, bass' violins, a grand piano, and more. If ever he needed to think or ponder, Emrys found that playing helped clear his mind. He also had a sizeable living area and a kitchen, which he rarely used. The one thing that he used the post in there was a freezer chest that contained blood from the blood bank. This chest had a number of locking enchantments to protect it. It was the only thing he wouldn't let visitors around. Up in the second floor loft, there was his oversized bed, with a exit out to a spacious patio. Now that it was later in the evening, Emrys had pulled the blackout curtains all to the side so that the amazing view would show.

After the last practice of Bête Noire, it had come out that he had not yet decorated for the upcoming holiday. So, it had been arranged, that bandmate, and friend, Layla would be coming over for some holiday fun, and then maybe some dessert after words. For the occasion, Emrys had had a large tree brought up to his flat, along with a number of boxed decorations. Some boxes, he didn't even know what was in there. He lazed about in a comfortable spot strumming and acoustic guitar while humming to himself. Layla wouldn't have a hard time getting into the building. She was on a personal list that he had provided and would always be able to enter. Some time passed, and he heard a voice stating that his expected visitor had entered the building and was on her way up to his floor. With that, he moved up, placing the guitar back on it's stand and stretched. Moving to the kitchen, there was a number of bags and containers of sweets. He pulled a candy cane out, unwrapping, and placed it into his mouth.

It was about then that he heard the knocked at the door. Opening the door, he saw the musician there. He gave a smile as he opened the door wider to let her in "Come on in." He invited her.

@layla
OOC: The penthouse has been purchased but not yet created.

[Deleted]

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The night is young for a girl I knew

Who spent her life all dressed in blue

December 9, 2025
@emrys

Layla enjoyed this time of year. The holidays had always been her and her family and a relaxed and good time. Even when she had been at school, she’d always looked forward to going home and participating in various activities such as decorating and picking the perfect tree. It surprised her a bit, not a lot, that not everybody really participated in it so when she had the opportunity to help out, she was all for it. Emrys had mentioned he hadn’t decorated so Layla jumped at that opportunity (as well as others involving him) to come over and decorate, plus his birthday wasn’t too far away. She could sense the metaphorical eyeroll of the others, but it didn’t bother her, they were friends but had a mutually beneficial relationship. It was one of the few times Layla didn’t feel that it would be weird in anyway, she was the type that tended to get attached—and Emrys was a good guy but she knew he wasn’t one for commitment.


She had approached the front desk of the building and they sent her up the elevator after checking a list, the security always amazed her, and she could imagine the privacy it afforded him. Before joining the rest of them he’d had his own career though she still pictured the slightly younger man from their school days. He opened the door, the usual mischievous smile on his face and a candy cane half in his mouth. She returned the smile with her own smirk, ”Hey you.” She walked past him and into the large penthouse. ”Wow, you weren’t kidding about no decorations.”

[Deleted]

The number of friends/lovers that Emrys invited over to his own place was limited. There really weren't many that he trusted. It was a down side of fame, but he had obtained a few crazy fans, and one or two stalkers. Because of that, he valued his privacy and the security of his place. While he enjoyed attention, it was always nice to have a place where no one was watching you. Well, no one that you didn't want.

Emrys opened the door to his friend and bandmate...an occasional fling. Letting her in, she looked around the place. This hadn't been the first time that she'd been here, but the holidays tended to bring some sort of expectation. He didn't have a bad relationship with anyone in his family, and there had been a number of great Holiday memories. But living on his own, he just didn't care enough to try. But mentioning that it hadn't happened had got a very enthusiastic response form Layla. Keeping things fairly professional while at "work" wasn't always easy. He knew a number of secretly little areas that gave them privacy if it was needed. But everyone seemed to know what was going to happen when she agreed to come over to his place. His antics weren't a secret to anyone. "There's the tree, and a bunch of boxes that should all have decorations of sorts." He gave a shrug, not really knowing what's all there. "Your welcome to anything you want." He motioned around, including the kitchen area with sweets covering the counter. The only thing that he never let visitors into was the cold box that contained his blood. It really served as a backup, incase he couldn't get to a fresh source.

@layla

[Deleted]

template by punki of adoxography

The night is young for a girl I knew

Who spent her life all dressed in blue

December 9, 2025
@emrys

Layla had been here before, since they’d reconnected with the band forming, they would hang out and spend time together and she remembered being amazing by the large penthouse and the security and the whole show of it. But he understood the need and want for privacy. It must have been quite the shift to go from more or less your average wizard to someone that people obsessed over. But between then it was just fun, nothing more than that but it made it less messy and complicated. When the expectations were not clear Layla had a bit of getting a git attached and it never seemed to end well for her and her naturally social nature. The look on their bandmates’ faces at the insistence that she was going over to “decorate” hadn’t been missed but she did mean to decorate, among other things.

She turned after he spoke to look at him a bit bewildered, ”You’ve never decorated for Christmas before?” Again, just her assumption that everybody had the holidays as she had. She took off her coat and laid on the couch and went to the boxes, opening them happily and inspecting the contents. There were ornaments and typical items for the tree and some other things that could be hung around the place. While she looked around, she also noted the collection of sweets on the counter top and grabbed a candy cane for herself that she kept in her mouth while she rummaged through the box. ”We can do the tree first and then take a break.” She said smirking as she took the candy cane out of her mouth.

[Deleted]

Emrys loved attention. That was no secret. But there were times when he just needed to get away. He also had a number of crazy fans who would never leave him alone if they knew where he lived. And that would just be annoying. True, he lived a charmed life now, but he figured, why not have fun while he could. Their band mates knew that more than just decorating was going to happen, it was a fact. But it wasn't on the bands time, so, it didn't matter. What they did on their own time was theirs.

After looking around, Layla turned to him. ”You’ve never decorated for Christmas before?” He shrugged, moving closer to her and kissed her cheek. "I wouldn't say never, but never on my own" He had helped his family decorate their family home in the past, when he lived with them, but it was never his initiative. It was always a parent getting the family together and organizing it. Many hands and all. He moved away as she took off her coat, and set it down. She knew that she could make herself at home here.

She moved to the boxes, and he did the same, opening one and spotting some hats on the top, below were lights, which were for the tree. He placed one hat on his head, adjusting it so that it would sit nice, but also look good. He then walked up to her as she mentioned starting with the tree, then a break. He kissed her peppermint covered lips, and as he did, he placed the other hat on her head.

@layla

[Deleted]

template by punki of adoxography

The night is young for a girl I knew

Who spent her life all dressed in blue

December 9, 2025
@emrys

The world of being a rock star and a musician was still new to Layla, she didn’t have the fan base that Emrys did and she didn’t mind it either way. She just wanted to play music, it was her dream and always had been and now she was part of something professional after all that doubt from her parents. It was a good feeling, not that she ever let much get her down and she’d definitely played her hand that she was part veela in order to get here though she knew she was talented as well. That fact hadn’t been lost on her vampire friend, though Layla would have befriended and flirted with him regardless—he was rather attractive, and she wasn’t shy. She smiled when she saw the hat he put on, it didn’t matter what he seemed to wear because he wore it with such confidence that it looked good on him.

He walked up to her with a slightly mischievous look on his face and she kissed him back tasting the candy cane that he had been working on previously and she felt the hat placed on her head. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him close but after a few minutes but then pulled away, a mischievous look on her own face. ”Not so fast.” She teased, turning back to the box and pulling out a couple of ornaments. ”The faster we finish this.” She looked at the ornaments in her hands. ”The faster we get to that break.”

[Deleted]

Emrys liked Layla. She was a good friend, and quite beautiful, she wasn't his only part veela friend, and certainly not the only one he had fun with. She was a good person, and went along with him. Being in the same band didn't mean that lines were blurred. They were able to keep things professional and be friendly, but when they were "off the clock" so to speak, they could be good friends, who had good fun. It also helped that neither of them were shy. He had learned easy in life, that confidence got you noticed, and more if they were into that. It didn't matter what cloths you wore, even if you had a goofy Santa hat on. He knew he rocked the look, without even looking at himself in the mirror.

He enjoyed their kiss, Emrys always liked making contact like that. And there was no "professionalism" that needed to be held up here. They were in his place, all alone. They could do whatever they wanted. It was easy for vampire to sneak up on muggles, much easier than on wizards. But Emrys had his ways. Especially if he already knew his target. He let himself be pulled closer, wrapping his arms around her waist, closing the gap even more. After she pulled away, he mirrored her look with one of his own. She pulled away, saying that they needed to finish first. He pulled out his wand and flicked it at the box he had opened. He moved so that their lips were almost touching. "Guess we should speed things up then." The lights from the box leaped out and quickly began to string around the tree.

@layla

[Deleted]

template by punki of adoxography

The night is young for a girl I knew

Who spent her life all dressed in blue

December 9, 2025
@emrys

As someone who often wore their heart on their sleeve casual relationships seemed to work best. She was able to be herself and have some fun but with none of the heartache involved and that’s exactly what this was. Plus, she knew the stories behind some of the muggle bands she’d grown to enjoy listening to along with Magical ones but some of them ended up with drama that caused the band to fail because members dated one another. She wasn’t going to ruin her big break with that. Though this was their off time, not the band’s time or the company’s time and they weren’t limited by all that. The point had been to decorate and get in the holiday spirit but naturally they both had other things on their mind but didn’t mean they had to skip ahead so quickly.

Emrys pulled out his wand to magically decorate the tree, and with his face so closer to hers she could feel his breath as he spoke, but she didn’t close the gap just yet. There was always the fun in the anticipation and the chase, it was a game and Layla liked to play. A smirk came across her face, ”Maybe I’ll make you wait anyway.” She teased as she went in to kiss him but didn’t and instead took a step backwards and put the candy cane back in her mouth.

[Deleted]

Emrys tried the monogamist, faithful relationship thing. It ended with the girl yelling at him, just because he was being himself. After that, the longest "relationship" he had was with the vampire that turned him. Three days. He was with them for three days. After that, he was on his way. Casual things with zero expectations and attachments was how he lived his life now. He enjoyed his time with many different people. Anyone who thought that more would happen, was fooling themselves. Emrys lived in the moment, and hated drama. Drama just brought the fun down. Now people occasionally fighting over him was totally fine, but he also figured that there was enough of him to go around.

Emrys usually found that he was happiest doing what he wanted when he wanted to do it. The two stood there, their lips just out of reach from each other. They shared a warm breath and Emrys smiled his mischievous grin. The lights magically started to string themselves around the tree at a wave of his wand. They could be done in no time. Emrys enjoyed the anticipation, it was always fun. There were a number of games that made things more interesting. She teased him, moving in for a kiss, but instead creating more distance between them. He readjusted his Santa hat on head head and chuckled. "Make me wait too long, and I may just take what I want." He said, a evil grin dawning on his face. Then took a sharp bite of his candy cane, breaking it in two.

@layla

[Deleted]

template by punki of adoxography

The night is young for a girl I knew

Who spent her life all dressed in blue

December 9, 2025
@emrys

One had to find their fun where they could, and when Layla had joined the band, she had immediately noticed Emrys but mainly just his energy as well. Not to say that she didn't think her other band members were good looking, but she didn't want drama, and it was all platonic. Why would she ruin such a good opportunity because she thought one of them was cute? This was just good fun, and it didn't get in the way of their work. Layla could hear the commotion of the decorations magically adorning the tree. Emrys didn't mind when she pulled away but only because she wasn't leaving him hanging exactly. She fixed her Santa hat so it was sitting more on the back of her head, much like she would have worn one of her beanies in this weather, and her smile still playful.

She moved back to the boxes of decorations, which had been mostly emptied by Emrys. Inside were still ornaments and the star that went on top of the tree. She looked at the different colors, but they were still pretty basic. Red, Gold, Green, and Blue. The lights were wrapped around the tree now, and she thought about how to put the ornaments up. But then she grinned, an idea popped in her head. With a wave of her wand, the ornaments went from their plain colors and simple round spherical shapes to various shapes. The red ones were now shaped like red and white striped candy canes, and she levitated them so they could decorate the tree randomly. "What should we make the other ones into?" She asked, looking at Emrys.

[Deleted]

Emrys rarely let his romantic conquests interfere with his work. He had a passion for writing, composing, and over all making music to share, either with his solo work, or his band responsibilities. Layla was a member of Bête Noire. But the two of them were friends also. What they did on their own time, was for them. He knew where this night would lead, but the premise of them getting together was to decorate. So, he didn't mind waiting. That didn't mean that he wasn't going to have some fun in the mean time.

The girl moved to look in the boxes, and Emrys peaked inside one that was close. He watched as she transformed the red Christmas ornaments into candy canes as they adorned the tree. He looked around to see three colors remaining "How about..." He moved his wand again, and the blue ornaments floated and transformed next, shifting into snowflakes, many taking on different variations. They shimmered and levitated to spots on the tree. "All that's left are green an gold."

@layla

[Deleted]

template by punki of adoxography

The night is young for a girl I knew

Who spent her life all dressed in blue

December 9, 2025
@emrys

Emrys joined Layla near the decorations box as she mused what else they could do with the ornaments. There was a pause, and she looked at him with her usual happy and relaxed expression, though a hint of playfulness in her eyes. Then after a moment, she watched as the blue ornaments float out of the box and transform into snowflakes. She smiled in amusement, the holidays were always a special and happy time for her, and the addition of magic made it all the more special. She could only hope that everybody else could have as happy a time as she did--though she wasn't naive enough to think that everybody thought the same thing. "Snowflakes! Good idea." She exclaimed as she thought about what to do with the remaining green and gold.

"Well, for the green....how about little presents?" She waved her wand, and the green ornament shaped into small boxes that resembled a wrapped gift with even a bow shape on top. Satisfied with her idea, she motioned for the rest of the transfigured ornaments to decorate the tree. It was coming along nicely and much better than the plainness she had witnessed when she first walked in. Turning back around, she smirked at Emrys, "You know what else was in this box?" She waved her wand again, and out floated a small bundle of what looked like small leaves with a red ribbon wrapped around the stems to hold it all together. She levitated it over the both of them. "Mistletoe." The gold ornaments were still left, but she couldn't' help it.

[Deleted]

Layla was relaxed at his place, but Emrys could also see a small hint of playfulness. He transformed the blue ornament into snowflakes and smiled at the compliment. She then transformed the green ones into wrapped presents. He watched as all the ornaments. His flat was now starting to look more "holiday ready" As the ornaments moved to hanged on the tree, he moved some stalking's to hang.

"You know what else was in this box?" He looked back to the girl He watched as the leafy bundle was levitated. His green only grew as he pulled her into him, wrapping his arms around her waist, he brought her into a passionate kiss. Pulling away only just he grinned, waiving his wand for the gold ornaments to become snowman, top hat and carrot nose included. Each one giving a different expression. "I think snowmen wrap things up nicely." He then kissed the girl again. There were more boxes, and he knew that there were other places and other things that could be decorated, but the ornaments were now all on the tree.

@layla

[Deleted]

the night is young for a girl i knew

December 9, 2025
@emrys

Christmas, the happy holiday season. Layla had always thrived and enjoyed it. She enjoyed the energy and everybody spending time together. It was a bit of a shame that a holiday was required for people to spend time together. Layla loved to see her friends and family and meet new people. She was always running around and greeting whomever she could find, even as a small child. It had put some stress on her parents and had contributed to the lack of surprise in her sorting at Hogwarts. In general, she lived her life rather carefree, just as one might describe as Emrys doing as well. Thanks to Layla, the mistletoe made its appearance, and Emrys moved in to close the gap between them.

Layla wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned into him. He was significantly taller than her, but that had never mattered, and neither did it matter that he was a vampire either. When he pulled back, Layla managed to get some air, and she turned slightly to watch the remaining ornaments be transformed into little snowmen and decorate the tree. ”I think they do.” She grinned and kissed him back. She tugged at his shirt, almost out of habit, but as she pulled away for a second for air, she spoke breathily. ”What about the rest of the decorations?” She didn’t mind, either way, as much as she loved the Holiday spirit and decoration, they all knew why she’d really come over.

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[Deleted]

Many would call Emrys self centered and wild. He was just living the way he wanted to. When it came to him, what you saw was exactly what you would get. Commitment was not something he would ever do. Anyone who knew him, knew that if he ever wanted to settle down, he was probably under a love potion.

Feeling their lips press against each other, and her arms wrap around his neck was just right. It was natural. With the tree decorated, she first agreed with him. It was done. He wrapped his arms around her, preparing to move to a more comfortable position, feeling the tension on his shirt. As she pulled away for a breath she spoke. ”What about the rest of the decorations?” He took a few breaths, noting the other boxes, but keeping his grip on her. Feeling her he moved down, pulling her legs around his waist. Pulling her into heated, and passionate kiss, he breathlessly spoke "I think they can wait"

Moving to the near by, uncluttered couch, he let her down, pulling off his shirt before moving down on top of her. No matter what excuse they used to get together, there was only one reason to continue. They both knew it.

@layla