Discord-esque

Any idea for a decent chat system using a small group of users that can be assumed to be safe ?

I was thinking of using bouncers per-user with a private IRC server, and then using a web IRC client that connects users to their bouncer -- also gives them the option to use an IRC client. This would also let users enjoy IRC without having to leave a client running 24/7 on their end

The IRC protocol is so simple that I would think you could just write your own ircd and extend it a little.