The Devil's Nest, Wednesday Evening

[okteiviakom]

Octavia had been in something of a strange mood since she'd left Turtle & Canary earlier today. Thinking about wings and chance and change and a handful of other things she wasn't sure she wanted to actually be thinking about.

She wasn't listening too closely to the music playing over the sound system, and maybe that was for the best.

She was mixing herself a mocktail for practice, and for something to focus on. The Devil's Nest was open.

[ooc: OCD freee because I just fought off a headache.]

Comments

[existencemisspent]

Eliot loved Margo dearly, but the "woo!" girl thing definitely got tiring fast. So he left her to hopefully sleep off the rest of whatever had happened to her while he went out to explore this weird town they'd landed in.

By . . . going to a bar, yes. Look. He hadn't had a decent cocktail in months, okay?

". . . Is that an axe range?"

[okteiviakom]

Octavia looked up at the newcomer. Her eyes flicked to the axe range - still at least halfway blocked off - and back to him.

"Yeah," she rasped.

What? It was a simple question, it merited a simple answer.

[existencemisspent]

Eliot nodded slowly. "Well. I suppose I should just be glad there's no sawdust on the floor. Or talking animals slinging drinks."

Bristlyfoot the bulldog had made quite an impression upon Eliot's first arrival in Fillory.

He came up to the bar, brushing off his cloak with an idle flick of his wrist. He'd left the crown at home, but was still dressed in his royal Fillorian garb otherwise. It'd likely be a day or two before he got his hands on a proper waistcoat and trousers.

"Hi," he said, resting one beringed hand on the bar. "I would like whatever you might consider to be your signature cocktail, please."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia raised her eyebrows, just barely.

"So... That's gonna be a beer."

Just ignore the obvious cocktail in front of her on the bar. Just ignore it, Eliot.

[existencemisspent]

"Okay, that's just not acceptable." He would not ignore that cocktail, Octavia, nice try. "Who made that, and can they make me a drink, please?"

[okteiviakom]

"That one's just for practice," Octavia drawled, glancing at the cocktail.

... And then relented. She was doing a job, here, right? "But I can probably make you a Jack Rose."

[existencemisspent]

Eliot made a show of considering this, then nodded. "Not my favorite, but it will do. By all means, proceed."

He was definitely not going to be critiquing her technique while she did so.

. . . Out loud.

[okteiviakom]

Yeah, well, Octavia pulled something up on her phone before even getting started, so there was probably plenty to critique, and she didn't give a damn.

Though as out of practice as she was, she was focused and meticulous about putting the drink together. Slower than someone who didn't have to consult instructions, but still.

Finally, she garnished the glass with a lemon twist, and slid the glass over. "There."

[existencemisspent]

Eliot watched all of that without comment, then picked up the glass and took a sip. His brows went up and he nodded.

"You have potential," he decided. "Accuracy being the most important factor in mixing a cocktail. The showmanship can come later."

[alwaysonguard]

Dwight needed a drink. Several drinks actually... after the week... weeks.. he had had. So on his way home, he swung by The Devil's Nest.

Walking in, he ordered a drink as he slid into one of the seats and sighed. He might had avoided the insanity of the Chaos Drink madness, but there was still a lot he was trying to process.

Thankfully the bar seemed fairly quiet that night, which made is impossible to not notice the rather well-dressed man sitting at the bar a few seats down. Dwight gave him a slight nod of greeting.

[existencemisspent]

Eliot glanced over at . . . someone he was absolutely certain would either be a lumberjack or a barbarian back in Fillory. Or possibly an ironically-sized court jester.

"Here for the ax throwing?"

[alwaysonguard]

"Here for the beer" Dwight said simply lifting the bottle slightly before taking a drink.

Setting the bottle down he looked back to Eliot, figuring he was one of the new folks who had been arriving on the island the last few weeks. The clothes, the jewelry, the air he had... yeah Dwight was pretty sure he would have remembered seeing Eliot around before.

"I'm Dwight. Dwight Hendrickson. You new here to the island?"

[existencemisspent]

"Of course you are," Eliot murmured, watching him drink for a moment before shaking it off. "Yes, I'm new. Eliot Waugh the Spectacular, High King of Fillory. I just arrived this morning."

Why did he feel like giving his full title to this guy and not the surly bartender? Who knew? Eliot didn't generally go for rough and ready men who looked like they could pick him up one handed, but, well. He hadn't been able to go for anyone but his lawfully-arranged-wedded wife in ages, which made for quite a dry spell.

[alwaysonguard]

Dwight stared at Eliot for a moment. He had just said king right? High King? That was quite the revelation to wrap one's brain around. Though....there was already some royalty on the island, allbeit the large shark lord variety.

He gave Eliot a slight smile and nod.

"I'd say welcome to the insanity, but after one day I am sure you have already gotten a taste for what the island has to offer." He took another swig from the bottle before he continued. "High King of Fillory you say? Haven't heard of it. Though to be honest, I'm not all that well traveled myself."

[existencemisspent]

"I've . . . encountered a bit of it, yes," Eliot said, delicately sipping his cocktail. "Have you read much by way of mid-century children's literature? Most people where I'm from who've heard of Fillory know it from the books."

[alwaysonguard]

"Used to read a lot to my daughter. Never had the pleasure of reading one about Fillory, though. So..." Dwight said after a slight pause, "it's a fairytale land then? Seems to be the standard flare of children's stories usually."

[existencemisspent]

“Mmm.” Eliot sipped his cocktail again. “You know how modern fairytales always have princesses and heroes and end happily ever after? But if you go back to older versions, all the characters usually die horribly? That’s Fillory. It’s a charming series about three siblings who go through a clock into a magical world where they get to be kings and queens, but skips the part where the trees get you stoned, the entire kingdom is cursed and bankrupt, and no one has even heard of champagne.”

A beat.

“Well, they’ve heard of it now, but still can’t make it worth a damn.”

[alwaysonguard]

Well THAT was definitely a lot to process. Dwight finished his beer and nodded for another one then looked at Eliot.

"Guess everything has a dark side. Whether it is ruling a fairytale kingdom or having special powers and abilities. Two sides to every coin, right?"

[okteiviakom]

Yeah, the bar was quiet tonight. But that just made it more obvious when someone like Dwight came in.

Tiny had gotten him his drink while Octavia had been busy with some new inventory, but once she'd come out from the back again, she'd spotted him, with an idle glance.

... And then another, as a small sliver of recognition sparked in the back of her brain. And then her glance was turning into more of a glare. Sure, his hair was longer now, but she knew Dwight was on the island these days, and she wasn't about to forget a face that had stalked her around Haven, once upon a time.

[alwaysonguard]

A few beers was not enough to bring down his guard or put that much of a damper on his normal attentiveness, so it wasn't long before he felt like he was being watched. Feeling eyes on him was always an unnerving feeling... One which was made all the more painfully obvious when there was virtually no one in the bar.

Dwight glanced around a few times, each time catching sight of Octavia watching him. His brow furrowed slightly and then he remembered. He had heard just recently, among all the recent insanity the island was throwing their way, that Duke, Lucifer, and Octavia were back on the island. So that explained why he barely recognized her. What it didn't explain was why she was now glaring at him the way she was.

[okteiviakom]

Probably didn't clear anything up that it continued even after he'd obviously noticed her doing it, right? But, yeah, Octavia was still doing it: a cold, harsh glower from her end of the bar to his.

She didn't care whether he even knew who she was.

She was just silently weighing whether it would be an overreaction to tell him to get the hell out.

[alwaysonguard]

After far too long of the glares being directed his way and fiddling with the empty bottle in his hand Dwight sighed. Turning slightly, he faced down the bar and looked over at Octavia directly.

"Are second rounds allowed?" he asked her, holding up the bottle. "Or just glares and scowls?" he asked, his tone not defensive necessarily, more annoyed than anything.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia's voice was in line with her expression. Just... maybe a little flatter, less sharp than her eyes.

Dry, though.

"You want drinks, you talk to Tiny."

[alwaysonguard]

Right. Because the woman who had been walking around earlier with the cocktail in her hand clearly didn't work at the bar and know how to get drinks.

"Sure, of course" Dwight said with a equally dry tone. "Octavia, isn't is?"

He had no doubt really who she was. He was more interested in figuring out why she seemed to have such an obvious vendetta against him... especially since he had never even really spoken to her at all since getting to the island. But something was obvious up and he was going to get to the bottom of it... someway or another.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia was sliding right on back behind the bar right now, too, so it really wasn't about that.

"Yeah," she replied, in a dry rasp. "And I don't serve the Guard."

Look, she wasn't one to beat around the bush about something like this.