deercountry | Live and die, and then... [open]

Entry tags:

Live and die, and then... [open]

Who: D, his Left Hand, anyone
What: Open and closed prompts for general June catch all
When: early june and onward
Where: Various places

Content Warnings:: mention of blood drinking, apathy towards violence, casual disregard for the safety of others, violence, additional warnings to be added to closed prompts in comments

1. A stiff drink; any time in June, especially after the wilderness expedition returns; open

The end of the previous month had brought an end to D's excessive bloodthirst. Which meant that he could once again drink alcohol without experiencing an almost painful and intensely bitter disappointment at every drop that passed his lips and wasn't blood.

He was still not a very social person, but could be found in various drinking establishments around the city, slowly making his way through the wide variety of unfamiliar alcohol. His usual habit was to order the strongest drinks on offer and work his way down from there.

2. A bloodless cut; two weeks before the end of June; open

D wasn't one to get involved in the affairs of others. Drunken brawls simply weren't his concern, and even when one escalated immediately to a lethal level and had people fleeing, D only glanced over briefly to see why everyone was screaming and running.

This was more than just a drunken argument getting out of hand, but apparently a case of corruption. The corrupted man was apparently not satisfied yet either, as he was lunging at the next nearest person with a jagged piece of wood from a broken chair.

Though he was half way across the room, D was suddenly next to the man in the blink of an eye. Before the sound of his sword being drawn could completely fade from the air his first slash had cut through the weapon, turning it from sharp enough to stab to a blunt end. The second slash, even faster and seeming no more than an arc of silvery light passed through the man's torso before he could stab the newly blunt end of his improvised weapon into his target.

Despite the arc of the slash that should've cut the man in half, he didn't even stumble. The man jabbed his newly blunted weapon against his target, only to realize it was no longer suitable for stabbing. D is the next target of his ire, the remaining stub of chair leg swung at him like a club was caught in D's left hand.

It was a waiting game now, to see how long it would take a corrupted person to drop from the very unusual slash he'd made that hadn't broken the skin or spilled a single drop of blood.

3. Wildcard

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

She was, by no means, a heavy drinker, although from time to time the social aspect of it was brought into play. Padmé knew better than to get too drunk at senate functions, as there were always eyes spying, waiting for any slip up to make the front page of the holos. She had been there once, and she would prefer not to be there again for any blunders or missteps.

But she had found that a glass of wine now and then on her way back home was a nice change. Life itself wasn't overly complicated, but the events that transpired threw a kink in such things. Still, she had learned more about the future than she might otherwise have, both good and bad.

Having placed her own order at the bar, Padmé waited, hearing a voice ask for a drink that she was unfamiliar with. Mild curiosity as she waited, she did glance toward him, asking. "What's that drink made with?"

The question had D turning his head slightly to look at the young woman. "I don't know," D answered honestly. "But I've heard it's very bitter."

His preferred drink had so far been unavailable, and the one time he'd thought he'd come across it, it had turned out just to be a jar of some kind of salsa with a hideous but not particularly potent grain alcohol poured into it.

Bitter. Padmé's nose gave a little wrinkle as it wasn't something that she went for. Even the thought reminded her of some foods that she had had over the years. No, she preferred something a touch sweet with hints of fruit.

"I'm afraid bitter isn't exactly my go to. Wine." Giving a small grin with a light swirl of her cup.

"There are some nice dry and bitter wines, too, but it's too bad there aren't many higher elevation wines available here." When D's drink came it was in a mug, and the liquid itself was a clear and very alarming shade of orange. Less a cheerful color and more the kind of color some animal might wear to warn predators it was highly toxic.

He brought it up to his lips and inhaled before drinking it. It was certainly strong, but whatever was giving it that strange color had clearly been added only for the color. D would do everyone a favor and not try to identify it.

"I'll keep that in mind for next time." She wasn't exactly a heavy-weight when it came to drinks and one was good enough for her. The stars above knew that this place had already had her acting like she was intoxicated. She didn't actually need it to happen.

She couldn't help but see his drink and stare. That was... orange. Glancing over, Padmé was trying to see if it was going to stain. "And...?"

"It's very strong, and bitter, but that's all there is to say about it," D said before taking another drink, not particularly concerned that he was consuming something that might be better used as an accelerant or antiseptic. It didn't leave any stain on his lips or teeth at least. Small mercies.

"I don't recommend it." But he was still drinking it quickly all the same.

"... so it this one of those instances where you are hoping to acquire a taste for it, or because you have gotten it, you will finish it?" Padmé may know a thing or two about trying something to be polite, especially during senatorial functions, and just as politely getting rid of it when it wasn't to her taste. No need to offend the host by spitting out the food or drink that just wasn't palatable. "Or none of the above?"

"It's not that bad, I might as well drink it," D said, taking another drink. He also really did hate to waste supplies, when even things like alcohol could occasionally be scarce and valuable to people.

"At least I'll be saving anyone else from drinking this particular cup of it."

"No doubt that one person thanks you, unless they were truly looking forward to it." Padmé offered a smile. Different people and different tastes. She wouldn't judge, even if it was not hers.

"Even if they were, their liver will thank me. Perhaps some of the rest of their organs too." D had consumed some truly inadvisable substances made into alcohol over the centuries, but this one he would bet was only toxic in long term use or large doses.

The last third of the mug he down in one go, drinking until it was empty. With that done, he ordered another, different drink.

"Mm. Their head, no doubt." As there have been some times when Padmé had drank a bit more than she should have. Not often, and not in public, but it had happened. She still nursed her cup, before asking. "... drinking to drown some sorrows, or just have a hankering to sample drinks?"

"Drowning sorrows doesn't work, at best you just forget how miserable you were while you were drunk. They don't serve my drink, the closest I've found so far is called absinthe but they serve it with sugar of all things."

D didn't share the same fondness of sugary things that humans had. His taste buds were too vampiric for it to be pleasant. The mix of an otherwise almost pleasant alcohol with sugar was almost an affront to his unusual preferences.

"No. I find approaching them head on, while painful, does do the job." Although Padmé does have that force of will to stand up for what she believes in, consequences aside. It may have given her some troubles in the past, but she wouldn't change. "I'm not familiar with that one either. It doesn't come without the sugar?"

"They refused to serve it to me any other way." Left Hand was still unhappy about that, but D supposed if it was some kind of tradition he could understand.

"It's a very distinct clear green."

That had her pausing for a moment, wondering why that was. It did not seem like an outlandish thing to ask for. Padmé would only be able to take a shot in the dark if she were to guess. Some purity to the recipe? “I don’t suppose you could ask for the ingredients separately and make your own?”

"If I find it somewhere else, I will."

Left Hand had gotten them kicked out of that particular establishment, and D wasn't too upset over the loss of someone who refused to serve a drink any way except the traditional manner. "Some people get very upset over little things."

"The sugar being the only little thing they got upset over?" Or was there more of a story there. Padmé did not know him well enough to say one way or the other, or even if he might give an answer that wasn't true.

A small voice spoke up from around D's left hand, the voice hoarse and clearly not D's. "He was a real stuck up kill joy. Said it was a waste to drink it any other way and to do otherwise is an insult to the craft of brewery."

For his part, D did nothing to contradict the small voice. "My drinking partner may have insulted his ability to hold his alcohol."

At the voice, Padmé did find herself looking for the source of it. His mouth didn't seem to be moving, unless he was throwing it for some reason. The curiosity remained as her eyes lingered for a moment, trying to pinpoint who or what was speaking, but returned back toward him once he started again. "Ah. That would do it then with some."

While his Left Hand would sometimes claim D as a ventriloquist, D was relieved he'd mostly given up that particular joke. But he wasn't in any hurry to encourage his Left Hand to continue talking by bringing him into the conversation any further.

"If they had my preferred drink I might consider it a loss." D was accustomed to being kicked out, refused service, or chased out of town as it was. "And you, are you just out for a relaxing drink or are you searching for something?"

"I might say I'm always searching for something, but nothing in particular this evening." Unwinding, if anything. It is far less stressful in some ways here, as there are no worries about the senate and bills or committees. On the other hand, this place has it's own issues. "Padmé Amidala. I'm used to hecticness, but not quite of this type that we seem to find ourselves in."

"I'd say there are very few who aren't searching for something. Most don't go looking for it in bars," D observed, looking around the room. The only thing that could be found in a bar was a little bit of diversion and a lot of trouble.

"Call me D. The place I'm from is very similar to this."

"Sometimes you find things in the most unusual of places..." Not that she had ever really found anything in a bar. Padmé had rarely gone to them. "Where I'm from is quite different. We travel through space, although I'm a Senator, so I am typically on Coruscant- that is where the Senate is held. Other times back to my home planet, although not often enough, especially not with the conflict that is going on in the galaxy."

"You'd think with a whole galaxy out there people would run out of things to fight over instead of just finding more." The Nobility had space travel, but their mystical tie to the Earth kept it from being too attractive to them.

"Being trapped in a single town like this must feel very stifling in comparison to the openness of space."

"One might hope that someday that may be the case, but I doubt I will see that in my lifetime." Rather, she knew that. The war might end, but she knew that was just the beginning of the next saga. "People are varied and diverse. Some cannot see beyond the scope of their own life."

Those who bring others down to rise themselves up were the ones that Padmé did not like. She gave a rueful smile. "Yes and no. There is still plenty that goes on, although I do miss my work in the Senate."

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