After the snow has fallen

[valmont-vicomte.livejournal.com]

Wednesday, early evening; after the snow has stopped but the power is still out.

It seems that I missed some excitement last night. When I came through from the apartment to the inn proper in the late morning, I found a note from Adam.

Boss -
There was a bit of a ruckus here last night. Some girl took her clothes off and got offended when Billy Hogan got fresh. A fight broke out - just the usual broken glasses. Will tell you more about it when I'm in next. Don't believe everything any of the regulars tell you - I was the only one who wasn't drunk.
A.

I would, perhaps, have got to hear some of those stories, and I must say I'm terribly curious, but then it started snowing. It has been a long time since I saw snow fall like it did this afternoon; since I lived in New London, I think, for Versailles was warmer. The Whitechapel is quiet enough during the early afternoons anyway, so we locked the front door, Cora and Peter soon settled into a high stakes game of gin rummy, and I went to make sure that Hermia and Alice were alright. Luckily we have plenty of food and firewood, and the apartment is well furnished with candles.

The snow has settled down now, but it is very dark outside and the power is still out. So I come back into the bar and Cora - cheerful for once, having managed to take most of Peter's wages for this week - and I get the fire banked as high as possible and line the windows with candles so that passerby can see that we are open, and I unlock the front door. I imagine that many people's homes will be very cold and very dark this evening, and what better cure for that than company and alcohol?

[OPEN]

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[gaueko-erebus.livejournal.com]

I slept through most of the storm, which suits me fine. At night, blizzards are more fun than the damned carnival. During the day, they're dull as all fuck. I burrowed under the blankets and didn't move until I felt the darkness rising.

I only realize that the power's out when I come downstairs (I don't tend to use the lights in my room). But there's the innkeeper, setting candles in the windows and stoking the fire until it blazes high. The snow is still ticking off the window, but it's just the occasional flake and sweep of blowing snow. Judging from the drifts outside, though, it must have come down like all fuck this afternoon.

Well. Might be nice to warm up before I head out. I sit down at the bar and signal the barman. By now he knows me, and he brings a double measure of whiskey without having to be asked. Good lad.