Raise your glass | CW: Alcohol & Sexual Behavior

[Deleted]

The day that she had got home from Hogwarts, her mother told her that they wanted her to stay in the castle until the quarantine had lifted. She understood why, but after the third day of royal quarantine, she started to get a little stir crazy. She understood why they wanted to keep her safe, they didn’t want to risk her getting sick and exposing any magic in front of any visiting diplomats. But it also meant she was stuck in the castle with Amedeo Grimaldi, who wasn’t under the same royal quarantine that she was. It was recommended that he stay in the castle. But, he wasn’t under their control and they couldn’t force him. Though he stayed around anyway for the most part, and it drove her to want to get out even more.

She was 17. An adult as far as the wizarding world cared. And as far as the muggle world cared as well, but, she was still living at home and dependent on her family's money and resources. So it was harder to want to go against them, but when various members of the family started suggesting that she attend certain events with Amedeo instead of with her own boyfriend, she had enough.

She waited until almost everyone had gone to bed and she stepped out into the courtyard of her family quarters of Windsor castle and from there she apperated to the only place that she could think of to go. The only place she wanted to go. Toby’s house. She apperated close by and then walked the rest of the way up his drive. It was late and most of the lights were turned off, but she knew which window was his and saw that his light was on. But his window was closed. And there was no way she was going to climb up. She found a stone on the ground and chucked it up to his window, hearing it hit the glass. Then she did it again. And again, until he heard it.

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

It was about 11:00, the Watkins residence was dark. Toby had retired to his room about two hours ago, he was cozy playing some zombie killing video game with noise cancelling headphones on, so he wouldn't disturb his parents or sisters slumber. There was an occasional whispered "Fuck" whenever he died and the sound of buttons mashing on the controller but this was a common occurrence. Toby was in his element, however, there was one thing that kept breaking his concentration. There was a tree branch, or squirrel, or something -- knocking at his window. At first he ignored the sound, blaming it on wind, but it continued. Toby walked over to his window to investigate, carefully peeking through the curtain...his first instinct to be annoyed at someone killing his game time.

Much to his surprise, it was Lusie, standing in the dark driveway. Toby instantly perked up, unable to move fast enough to open the window to greet her. The lanky teen knocked over his lamp, but quickly recovered.. the stack of books, not so much. "Lusie!" he whispered excitedly. "What're you doin' here?" he asked her quickly out of utter surprise, but obviously happy to see her. He sprang up, getting giddy at the realization, he abruptly stopped, "Hey I should be the one throwing rocks at your window--but oh my God you're here." he trailed off dorkily, already wasting time and probably making too much noise. He couldn’t wait to kiss her and hold her again it felt like an eternity.

@lusie

[Deleted]

It seemed like an eternity before Toby finally came to the window. He seemed shocked to see her and she couldn’t blame him. She was kind of shocked that she was here. He asked what she was doing here before going off on a tangent about how he should be the one who was throwing rocks at his window. She giggled a little at the comment but then spoke again, “You wannah go dancing?” She asked, biting her lower lip. a part of her kind of just wanted to go up to his room and just spend time with him, but, she had snuck out of the castle, she was going to do something to maximize her rare, rebellious craving.

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

Toby's head cocked to the side when she asked if he wanted to go dancing. Admittedly, that wasn't the first activity that came to mind when he saw his girlfriend, but if that was what Lusie wanted to do he was happy to fulfil her wishes. Anything for Lusie. Toby nodded his head eagerly,  "Heck yeah I wanna dance with you." he declared without having to think twice, he poked his head out of the window. "I'm just gonna--I'll be right there." he told her, quickly changing and throwing on a coat. Toby retrieved his phone, keys and wallet before carefully sneaking down the stairs, avoiding creaky floor boards, and out the front door with ninja stealthiness. His parents didn't suspect him or his sisters to leave in the middle of the night usually so he was comfortable with sneaking out without suspicions.

Once the front door closed he ran across the yard, crashing into Lusie with open arms and embracing her before cupping her face to kiss her on the lips. "I missed you." he told her sweetly with a smile, kissing her again. "Did you have somewhere in mind?" he asked her, wondering what was on Lusies mind. 

@lusie

[Deleted]

Toby agreed to her crazy idea and disappeared for a few minutes. She assumed he was getting dressed and grabbing his things and her suspicions were affirmed when he walked out of his front door. Lusie hadn't heard any other stirs in the house, and no other lights came on that were visible from where she stood, so she knew they had gone undetected. He ran right up to her and wrapped his arms around her before kissing her and saying that he missed her. She kissed him back easily and smiled, ear to ear. “I missed you.” she agreed, placing another kiss on his jaw bone, the easiest to reach place. He asked if she wanted to go anywhere specific and she shook her head. “no, anywhere. I just wannah go out.” she admitted. She didn’t know if he knew of any muggle clubs, or even magical clubs, she wasn’t so worried about being caught. She was already out, there was no turning back now.

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

Toby was still stunned by the surprise of Lusie being in front of him, he couldn't help but squeeze her, smiling when she returned a soft kiss to the jawline. Having her in his arms again and being able to kiss her was such an amazing feeling. It brought things into perspective on how much he missed her. In reality it hadn't been that long since he had seen Lusie, but he was used to seeing the princess everyday, several times a day so he found himself missing her often. Toby lived in London for most of his life so he knew the area well. She didn't sounded like she had a preference where they went, she just wanted to go out. The Ravenclaw grabbed her hand and laced fingers,  already having an idea where to take her. "About two blocks from here there's one of those Muggle nightclubs with that boom boom music and lasers and stuff." Toby informed her in a nerd like fashion, "I've never been there, but I reckon you could get your dance on there." he joked, already loving the idea of getting away with Lusie. 

@lusie

[Deleted]

Lusie couldn’t help but feel on top of the world being hre in her boyfriend's arms. He meant so much to her and she had missed him terribly since the last time she had seen him at the castle. It didn’t help now that Ame was so close by, but that was kind of her fault. She had let him make her feel sorry for him. And her family had been all too excited to allow him to stay. It would have been expected anyway, she liked to remind herself that he would stay at the castle if he couldn’t get home to Monaco.

Toby explained that there was a muggle nightclub only a few blocks away and she nodded, “Okay, let’s go there.” she agreed, giggling a little at his explanation of what the club had. Lusie had never been to a club, so she didn’t have a great explanation either, but she had seen movies, and that sounded like an apt description. “Let’s go!” she took his hand and pulled him down the drive.

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

Toby's face brightened when she giggled and agreed to the "boom boom" night club. Well, this would be interesting. He was excited to do something new with Lusie. This would probably have some sort of consequence(s) but he didn't really care about that right now. As she started to pull him down the drive, he boiled over with laughter, instantly playing along with her. They exchanged a smile. "We mustn't waste any time! This way!" he pulled her in the direction with a couple of playful sprints forward, spun her around, and stopped, to continue onward with a more leisurely but purposeful stride toward their destination. There was definitely no need to run to somewhere that probably closed near 4AM, but it was fun to show enthusiasm and just be around his girlfriend.

The pair shared a light conversation during the short walk to the nightclub, giddy for what the night had in store. He was so happy to do something so simple like hold Lusies hand again. As they turned the corner of his quiet neighborhood to a more busy street, the sound of the nightclub could already be heard from the opposite end of the street.  "There it is.." he revealed in all of its glory. They quickened their steps without even communicating it before marching up the steps like a couple of thirsty teenagers.

"ID's.." the bouncer demanded in bored tone with an extended hand, blocking the entrance of any view of the festivities going on. It actually sounded like fun. The walls were pounding and people were laughing inside. The bouncer didn't look up from their clipboard to look at Toby and Princess Lusie at first, but when their eyes trailed downwards to the petite princess, their expression and tone changed drastically, "Oh, er, Princess." they stumbled their words for a moment, fingers fiddling around with the velvet rope to let them in, "--Actually that won't be necessary just come inside." he waved them both in eagerly with a fake smile before they had to reach for any identification. Toby was dumbfounded by the special treatment, even if they were both legally allowed to be there.

@lusie

[Deleted]

Lusie was honestly shocked how into all of this he was. She was being crazy. Truly crazy. She wasn’t sure exactly what it was that had gotten into her, but she just wanted to not be the perfect little princess for once. Susan and Edmund were good too, they were well mannered and successful. Will had always been a bit of a wild card, and Lusie used to think he was crazy for going out and doing the things he did. But now she got it. She really did. There was a thrill that came with not doing what’s expected of you and instead doing the opposite. Toby had been a good boy too, as far as Lusie knew, he had never done anything like this, and the most out of the box thing he had done was sneak to the kitchens with her for a cup of tea. Now they had both snuck out and were going to a club. She wondered if she’d be recognized.

A bubble boiled in her stomach when the bouncer recognized her and waved them into the club without checking their IDs. She had this happen at some other places, but mostly it was getting to skip the line for ice cream, or being given items she was already going to purchase for free because the brand was hoping for exposure. She was always being sent things, but she didn’t count that since most of the time the items were donated without her even seeing them. Lusie wasn’t very materialistic. “Thank you.” Lusie smiled at the bouncer, flashing some of her princess charm. If it was going to work for her, she might as well use it. They got into the club and it was honestly unlike anything she had ever seen. It stopped her in her tracks. “Oh wow…” she nodded. “Where do we even start?” she wondered, looking around at the dance floor, the bar, the people sat around and stood around, there was so much going on. It was overwhelming. And really exciting.

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

Toby thanked the man at the door and stepped inside, still holding Lusie's hand to keep her close. Instantly they were greeted with loud bass music and multi colored lights. There were people scattered everywhere dancing, chatting and drinking. There were empty booths for people to sit and drink, it was a "hip" looking Muggle nightclub. He could barely process everything that was happening he was so stimulated. "Wow" they said in unison, his mouth gaped open dorkily. His eyes found the bar that was lined with every type of alcohol imagined. Toby had only drank one time in his life, with Anastasia, but he barely remembered it. All he remembered was embarrassing himself and kissing her. Lusie didn't have to know about that. This seemed like a cool place to drink, everyone looked happy. 

When Lusie asked where they should even start, he chuckled. "Uhh, I don't know..." his eyes scanned the room, eyes falling on the cool bar again. "Did you want to drink?" he asked her curiously, unsure if that was something she was 'allowed' to do in public, but he figured she wasn't supposed to be out anyways so what the hell..

@lusie

[Deleted]

Toby seemed to share her overwhelm but she was glad that he was here with her, even if this wasn’t a situation in which he knew how to act either. They were both completely new to this and she was sure one, if not both of them, would make some sort of fool of themselves, but she was ready for it. She just wanted to have fun. He asked if she wanted to drink and she thought for a moment and then nodded. “Yeah sure. I mean we’re here at a bar, I think that’s expected.” she agreed. Of course, they were encouraged to always present themselves highly in public, but she was already here, and this already wasn’t a decent place to be. How much worse could it get. She’d already likely get in trouble. Why not make the trouble worth it. “I’ve only ever had wine though - do you know what’s good?” she asked.

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

Toby laughed when she made the point that they were at a bar so they were obliged to drink. She was right. The idea sounded fun with Lusie. When she asked him if he knew what alcohol was good, he kind of shrugged his shoulders upwards, "Not really...but I know beer is kind of gross and foamy. If you want to get drunk quick, liquor is the way to go..." he trailed off, carmel brown eyes scanning shelves lined up along the wall with colored blinking lights. "Shots of vodka or tequila seem to be popular." he said as he watched a group take shots together at the bar. 

As they discussed their options a bouncy blonde approached them with a wide smile, "Welcome! Here are some shots on the house. Let me know if I could get you anythin'" she told them before turning around to help a man, but it was as if she was listening... The club was busy on a Friday night but they knew how to treat royalty. Before the bartender turned away she left two tall shots of clear liquid, accompanied by slices of lime. Toby offered Lusie a cautious look with raised eye brows that transformed into a more mischievous smile. His first instinct was to question what the mystery liquid was but he truly wished to see what she wanted to do first. 

@lusie

[Deleted]

Toby didn’t seem to have much experience with alcohol either, which didn’t surprise Luise. He told her that shots seemed to be popular and she nodded as they made their way to the bar to order something. However, before they could even get the chance, two shots were placed in front of them along with a lime. Lusie had no idea what proper etiquette for taking shots was, but she would feel bad for refusing the gift now, and she doubted the bartender could take them back and sell them to someone else now. “Shall we then?” she asked her partner, looking around to see how others in the club were doing it. It seemed that you drank the liquid and then sucked the lime quickly afterwards. Their faces, however, didn’t make it look like much fun. But there had to be a reason they kept doing it. “on three?” she suggested.

tobias charles watkins

[tobias charles watkins]

Toby smiled when Lusie reached for the shot glass, reaching for his own glass and the lime wedge. "When in Rome." he agreed easily, the smile on his face growing a little more enthusiastic because they were about to do something crazy. He knew it was going to taste bad. Isn't that why most people winced when taking back shots? 

Lusie said 'on three?' and Toby nodded with a smile, skipping 'one and two' to waste no time, "Three!" he bellowed happily, clicking his glass to hers and knocking the tall shot back. It was a lot more liquid than he anticipated. As soon as it was down his throat, he could feel it burn his esophagus and he pulled a funny face, "I imagine that's what fire taste like." he winced, biting into the lemon wedge and turning to face Lusie to see how she handled it.

@lusie

[Deleted]

Toby agreed that they should do it and didn’t seem to be wasting any time, while she was still kind of hesitant about taking the shot, seeing him on board as well helped comfort her and assure her that this was okay. She knew there were people her age, even younger, who drank all of the time, and she had never thought that she’d be one of them, but it was okay to have fun every now and again. Toby picked up the shot and went straight to three, which Lusie had to catch up with so she started a second after him, downing the liquid in one gulp and then having an instant wave of regret. It tasted like she had just chugged nail polish remover. She put the lime in her mouth afterwards and the sour citrus taste definitely helped the burn. But it wasn’t very pleasant. “Why do people like this?” she asked with a giggle. Honestly, she kind of got it. It was gross but it was also fun. “Wannah do another one?” she asked.

tobias charles watkins