Caritas, Friday Evening

[built_fjord_tough]

"Don't fuckin' talk to me," Fjord had growled to Tino immediately after setting foot in the bar tonight for his shift. "Not in the mood."

Well. Definitely in a mood. But not that mood. Whatever mood Tino was expecting him to be in. Fjord's mood was decidedly more volatile, a mix of pollen and an ugly start to the week just rolling downhill and picking up speed this morning when, after another dream of glowing eyes that had informed him they were WATCHING and had told him to CONSUME, that there would be a REWARD for doing so, he'd woken up drowning all over again.

So.

That was where Fjord was at today. Tense and more than a little aggro, but he was here at work, because the alternative was at home going out of his mind. Besides, there was some kind of school thing going on tonight that he'd recused himself of on account of not wanting to conduct himself poorly at a school function. How busy could the bar possibly get?

[OOC: Whoooo knooooooows?]

Comments

[1000yearstoolate]

Some part of Seivarden knew this was a bad idea, but she'd spent a few days frustrated, and ended up thinking about how the only ones who could have sent her that sword was Fjord or Fenris.

And what better way than to ask Fjord straight out?

Possibly a few better ways, especially this week, but here she was, walking through the door, despite having told herself not to show up on Fridays anymore.

[built_fjord_tough]

Oh, Seivarden. This was not a good day for this conversation. It was, in fact, probably not a good day for any conversation. Not with this particular half-orc, at any rate.

Fjord did look up, at least, when Seivarden came in. And then made a point of grunting, reaching for a rag, and cleaning out one of the bar glasses.

Very enthusiastically cleaning out a bar glass.

[1000yearstoolate]

Seivarden took a seat at her usual bar stool and fixed her eyes on Fjord, with less appreciation than usual.

"I'll have a beer."

This was absolutely not adressed to Tino.

[built_fjord_tough]

Funny how, low wisdom stat and all, Fjord managed to realize that this was already headed nowhere good. He blew out a short little breath, reached for a glass - actually clean, he had pride in his work damn it - and topped it off.

"Beer."

You're welcome.

[1000yearstoolate]

Seivarden made an effort not to look at Fjord's arms as he poured it, for her own sake, not Fjord's.

She took a sip from the glass, then said: "Good week?"

[built_fjord_tough]

"No," Fjord drawled, reaching again for his rag, and for the glass he'd been needlessly cleaning. "Not a good week."

Fucking awful week.

Fjord was good and ready for the week to be through.

[1000yearstoolate]

"Sorry to hear that," Seivarden said, not sounding particularly sorry. After another sip of beer she added:

"Not managed to make enough swords?"

Even she realised herself that this was a bad way to approach the subject.

[built_fjord_tough]

There was a long moment of silence, there, while Fjord's expression darkened just that little bit more.

"Not in the fucking mood right now, Seivarden," he said, a note of warning in his voice, lips pulling back just a little to bare his teeth. "You here to drink, then drink. Tino will be happy to serve you."

[1000yearstoolate]

"Oh, you're not in the mood," Seivarden began, about to continue, when she noticed Fjord's teeth. Or tusks, to be precise. She paused, looking. She felt she should have noticed them before.

[built_fjord_tough]

That would require her noticing anything that served some purpose beyond her own self-interest, wouldn't it?

Fjord actually growled a little, a sound low in his chest that was just as much threat as warning.

He turned his attention resolutely back to his glass.

"Exactly."

Not in any manner of safe mood at all.

[1000yearstoolate]

Seivarden tried to decide whether those tusks were attractive, and to figure out why they hadn't kissed Fjord during that mistletoe day. Did growing tusks go with growing grumpy?

"Actually I came to ask why you sent me that sword and didn't own up to it when I ask."

It could be Fenris. She might try with Fenris later if this didn't work out.

[whatdattonguedotho]

Well, Eddie was getting through this week by eating far, far too much food and aggressively fighting down the urge to rip heads off.

Which wasn't even his urge, damn it.

HUNGRY, EDDIE.

"I know," Eddie snapped, taking a seat at the bar. "I know. Do you have anything edible back there?"

The last part was really the only thing aimed at Fjord. Sorry, bud.

[built_fjord_tough]

Uh-huh.

Okay. It was like that, then. Seivarden clearly had no sense of self-preservation. Not when a man double your size was actively snarling at you, telling you it was a bad day to piss him the hell off.

Fjord's eyes narrowed at her, and he regarded her with that same predatory ire he had back when she was accusing him of actively trying to kill Amaya.

"You didn't ask," he replied, teeth grit. "You came in with an accusation. You came in with many accusations. You played victim while all the while makin' me out to be the villain in your own fucking melodrama, but Seivarden, you didn't once ask." He pulled in a breath, squared his shoulders, and let himself tower over her just that little bit more. "And," he added, voice a deep rumble of a growl, "I got you somethin' pretty. Because you're the sort of selfish fuck who'll sit there blithely making comments about what is and isn't civilized, about useless swords or ugly fucking orcs, without ever stopping to consider who might be in earshot, hearing you call their weapon of choice uncivilized or their people ugly. I got you that sword, Seivarden, because you're a self-absorbed, cruel bitch, and for a while there, it gave you something to focus on that actually was about you, for a change."

Not pulling his punches today.

But he'd warned her.

Not in the mood.

[built_fjord_tough]

"We got beer nuts," Fjord replied, a little more gruffly than usual, hiking up a shoulder in a shrug. "Other'n that, we can get Tino to cook something - I don't suggest it - or we can order delivery for you while you drink. Got a preference?"

[whatdattonguedotho]

"Anything high protein is good," Eddie said, making a face as Venom did this weird thing about trying to take over because of A Threat. But it was just the bar.

[built_fjord_tough]

Fjord's brow quirked a little, but he shrugged at that, reaching behind the bar to pull out a bowl, and then topping that sucker off with peanuts and sliding it toward him.

"We got drinks, too," he added, somewhere between amusement and that ever-present state of annoyed that had settled in somewhere around Monday. "You lookin' for drinks or just company for the night?"

... Oh, that hadn't come out right at all.

[whatdattonguedotho]

WE HAVE COMPANY. TELL HIM, EDDIE. TELL HIM.

"Just the drink," Eddie said, pulling the bowl of nuts close to his chest to compulsively eat. Which wasn't suggestive either.

Because no one needed to be traumatized by his goo-friend just because he was horny.

[built_fjord_tough]

"And what'll it be, then? Beer?"

Really, goo-friend would probably still manage to come in second to the giant glowing-eyed serpent buddy who was at the root of all of Fjord's recent, uh, wet dreams. Hard to get that voice out of his head today, so help him.

CONSUME.

"Somethin' harder?"

... Gods damn it.

[whatdattonguedotho]

Well. Maybe if their respective sugar daddies met and hit it off, they could finally chill.

"Sure?" Eddie croaked. Much to the despair of Venom.

[built_fjord_tough]

Poor Venom. Fjord was already reaching for the whiskey and pouring, because so help him, it was right there. He wasn't going to go spelunking for anything more or less exciting if he could help it.

He slid that glass over to Eddie with a short nod of his head.

"Hell of a week," he noted.

Because really. Really.

[okteiviakom]

Yeah, so, nothing Octavia was doing was actually doing much to how she was feeling except in the most temporary of fashions. So tonight, she was finally considering giving into one of the secondary urges she'd had throughout the week, which was to get drunk enough to either make bad decisions, or to pass out, or both.

Her fingers tapped anxiously against the edge of the bar without her even really realizing it.

"Just -- beer. Thanks."

[built_fjord_tough]

Busy bar night. Mostly not even Friday regulars. Interesting change of pace this week, which Fjord noted, and then nodded, just... resigning himself to it. So long as nobody grated his nerves too much today, it'd be great. No big deal.

"Bottle or tap?"

Actually more words than he wanted to say today, but here he was, at work, as a bartender. Communication was actually important or something.

[1000yearstoolate]

Seivarden was relying on Fjord not wanting to end up in the pond.

"Oh, so you spent, what, half your monthly pay on getting me a weapon you knew I didn't want. Anonymously. Because... That explanation actually don't make sense. If you really dislike me that much..."

Seivarden leaned forward across the bar.

"... You could have just mentioned it instead of letting me try to have conversations with you, assuming you were just not very good at it, I did make an effort, you know, that's... Fucking passive-aggressive!"

She leaned back.

"What the fuck did I ever do to you?!"

[built_fjord_tough]

"You got no concept of other people's fuckin' boundaries, for a start," Fjord ground out. "You're doin' it right the fuck now, you know that? Corner me at work when I'm expected to be polite to you, ignore every indication I give that now's a bad time to push - I even told you today was, flat-out - and then go on pushin' anyway. Or makin' demands, or just ogling me like I'm some kinda piece of fuckin' meat. Every goddamn week you're in here, pullin' that shit. Talkin' about your idea of civility like we're all fuckin' animals. Hell-" He raised his hands, fingers curled a little to show off his nails, "-makin' comments about things usin' animal words in the first place. Like that's supposed to be flattering? You didn't even wait for me to say it was okay before you took that goddamn kiss."

That had rankled.

Had been rankling for months.

"And the moment anyone calls you on your shit, it's them, over-reacting. Bein' too sensitive. You know why people get passive-aggressive with you, Seivarden? Because you don't let assertive work, and if I were to get aggressive with you, I'd be the fuckin' monster, here. I'd be the ugly fucking orc bein' a vicious animal at you for no damn reason."

[mages_suck]

Fenris walked in and his already bad mood plummeted when he saw the look on Fjord's face.

"You," he snapped at Fjord, "need whiskey. I need whiskey. Do the bartender thing. I'm buying."