Come Here Often? -Closed.-

[darkest.desires.]

Closed to Xakthul

The hot water ran down her body, trickling down her scalp, rolling over her shoulders and plump breast before making it's way down her flat stomach and round rump. Washing away the days filth as she was getting ready to start a shift at the Red Oak Tavern. Camille had been pretty much living here for some time now after everything that had happened to her. Turning off the water she stepped out of the tub wrapping a large towel around her body. Wiping away the fog on the mirror the young maiden studied herself closely. Her golden honey brown locks fell in waves to the end of her shoulder blades, her cheek bones strikingly high giving contrast to her small button like nose. The two things that drew most peoples attention besides her body that looked as if he was hand crafted by the Gods themselves. Her crimson plush lips, full and plump two soft pillows; her midnight ocean blue orbs were curtained with full lashes that tended to bat at someone with sarcasm.

Pulling herself away from the mirror she walked into her room, same queen sized bed with the plain red bedding. Pursing her lips she went to the wardrobe that held most of her clothing. Opening up the doors she bit down on her lower lip sucking it in slightly, the dilemma on what to wear was a nice distraction. Settling on some clothing she shimmed into tight blue denim pants before putting her deep royal purple shirt on, her black waist corset that stopped just under her bust. Slipping into her black leather heeled boots Camille opened the door making her way down the long hallway, quietly walking down the stairs.

"Cammy, you are here finally!"

Meredith the owner of the Tavern called out from the small kitchen, the round woman put down the bowl she was mixing vigorously. "You look good my dear!" Simply shrugging Camille offered her cheek to the woman as she felt a light peck before the woman hurried back to a pot that was getting ready to boil over. The bell on the door chimed as Cammy slowly made her way behind the bar, taking a bar rag she wiped up a few messy spots. Offering the man that sat at the bar a small smile she leaned against the bar.

"Welcome to the Red Oak what can I get you?"

[Xakthul]

The man standing in front of the bar was hooded, cloaked, and deathly quiet… At least until his hood seemed to push itself down off his head to reveal his purple hair, and the cat ears that he wiggled at the girl across the counter. Just to add to the air of strangeness, there was also a perfectly real tail sticking out of the back of the man’s clothes. Add to that the holstered knives he carried, and what seemed to be iron chains wrapped around his waist and chest like bandoliers, and he cut a pretty odd figure. Besides the bizarre appearance, he was also dressed in black, looking a bit like a rogue, or at the very least a very shady fortune seeker.

The thing that marked him as neither a rogue, nor a thief, nor even a mercenary, was the look on his face. He didn’t seem to be in a particular rush to go anywhere, or look at anything. The sweeping motions of his eyes mostly served to help him remember the details of the room, and the building, in case he ever needed to find it again. Or draw it. Or… damn, he was supposed to do something with information. Eat it? No. He just couldn’t remember. Ever. He didn’t even know why he was in this bar. What was he hunting?

Hopefully, whatever it was could wait a day or two. Tired cat-man was tired. Jink smiled at the girl looking at him.

“Whatever tastes good. I could eat a dragon right about now.”

[darkest.desires.]

A small sound of laughter parted her plush crimson lips as she nodded at the man with the features of a cat. "Coming right up," turning around she stood on the tips of her toes peering into the small window that over looked the small kitchenette. "Hey Mer, I need a plate of pork roast, potatoes and carrots." Meredith hollered back that it would be up in a minute, nodding Camille turned back around towards her bar. "It will be a moment on your food, sir."

A patron on the other side of the bar hollered for her attention as she held up a finger asking for a moment. "I am sorry I will be right back to get you whatever you wish to drink." Offering him an apologetic smile before hurrying away to deal with one of the regulars. Flipping the bottle of whiskey up in the air, it flipping one, two and a half times in the air before she caught it. The top half pouring out the contents in the bottle into the patron's cup. "Show off," the man grinned a toothy grin at her before she winked at him laughing. Scooping up his coins she placed them in the small locked box.

Grabbing the cat-man's plate she set it front of him than grabbing the niceties he needed to eat and a napkin. "Can I get ya' anything to drink with that sweet heart?" The man dug in to the plate, the look of hunger in his eye as Camille smiled sadly remembering the first day she drug her sorry ass into this place. Meredith was an angel that took her under her wing and nursed her back to health. The faint of memory how she met the bar keep and her daughter and then there was her beloved Gnarl..

Her face fell slightly at the memories that came after, pushing it back she plastered another smile on her face as she waited to see if the man need anything else form her.

[Xakthul]

“Thanks, miss.”

Jink smiled warmly at the woman after watching her put his order in. He thought it was a little funny that she turned around and repeated what the loud lady in the kitchen had very loudly and clearly yelled at the top of her lungs. It certainly made him wonder if that was something everybody did. Just repeat what other people told them. The furry purple amnesiac himself might have done it to annoy others, but not for any other reason. Hell, maybe it was an annoying habit that his old self might have gotten into. Being without all the memories that had formed his habits and quirks had left him totally bereft, closer to a living and breathing ghost than anything else.

Bereft or not, though, the furball was impressed with the woman who seemed to be running the front bar at the moment. Her reflexes had to be something pretty amazing for the bottle-tossing bit to work out with no messes involved. Some deep, lost, part of his mind tried to calculate the timing and balance of the toss and catch, but Jink shook that thought away. Whatever that was, it was not going to be of any real help to him. He needed to try and concentrate.

When drinks were mentioned, Jink very suddenly felt the hair on his spine stand up. He picked up his fork and started eating, letting the sense of déjÃ* vu wash over him. Had he been to this bar before? No, he doubted it. There had to be a million other ones like it, even if he was on what was basically a big island. He’d landed here, a place he was absolutely sure he had never been in his life. So what was so familiar? When he looked back up, he realized that he’d been picking at his food for nearly a minute without answering the woman.

“Oh. Something strong, I guess. And cold.”

His golden eyes flashed as he looked back down at the plate, and then back up again, now with a coy smirk on his face that fit it surprisingly well. His gaze was now directed right at the woman who’d been asking him for his orders, and his voice was a very low whisper.

“Could also drink you. I’m sure that’d be fun.”

And then just like that, the flash was gone and he was eating again. What weird part of his subconscious had made him say that? He sounded like some kind of crappy pick-up artist. Ugh!

[darkest.desires.]

Camille smiled as she rummaged through the cabinets looking for the bottle that Mer usually only busted out during the holidays to get a good buzz going. Standing on the tips of her toes she reached for the jade colored bottle that was towards the back. She could feel her finger tips grazing the smooth glass. Literally taking a leap of faith she jumped up giving her enough height to reach the bottle. Landing with a soft thud she turned around with a unique looking bottle. Round with a hole in the middle of it as if a handle with a long neck and rather large cork. The small label held a blue and purple fairy. A wicked grin on Camille's plush lips as she turned setting it down before taking a glass out of the chilling chest. "Well this my good sir is harsh and packs a punch, Absinthe." She purred saying its name as her dark midnight ocean blue orbs had a glint of mischief in them.

Uncorking the bottle the sickly sweet smell of anise perfumed the air around the two. Letting the tip of her tongue trace her plush crimson lips as she pour him a small glass of it. "It does so many things to humans that they banned it, it's also called la fée verte; the green fairy." Putting the cork back in she smiled as he had his own troublesome look on his face.

Catching her bottom lip in between her teeth, the pickup line taking her by surprise. It had been a while since a man had been blunt about flirting with her. "Drinking me could get you into a bit of trouble, dear." She hadn't even gotten the guys name before he had hit her with that surprising pick up line. Weighing her options she watched as he switched from being daring with his comment to now retreating back to himself. Arching a slender eyebrow at how quickly had with drew from her as if she had been the one to flirt with him.

As if a sign from the Gods Meredith came from the back kitchen before halting in mid stride. "What are you doing with that?" Making sure to put and emphasis on the word that popping the t harshly at the end. Cammy gave her the most innocent look she could before coming up with a story. "Well you see Mer, he needed a pick me up and so I got it out giving him a little." The plump woman eyed her with suspicion before nodding taking a few steps and stopping. "Don't give him too much of it last thing I need is someone acting crazy because they are seeing things." Nodding she drew a "x" across her head before swearing to responsible.

Turning back to the man she started laughing uncontrollably, "that-that was close!" She gasped in between laughs before her laughter died down to small sounds of giggle and fading out all together.

[Xakthul]

And then it happened again. The moment the young woman started trying to get at the bottle, Jink felt the same rush of déjÃ* vu as before. He’d definitely seen that particular kind of alcohol before. Fée verte, she called it. And Absinthe. From somewhere deep, deep down, another name came into his mind. One he liked a little better, one that felt more familiar to him.

“Aethervenom. I love that stuff.”

Where did that come from? He hadn’t had Absinthe, verte, or any sort of anything called venom since he’d woken up in front of that bar on Scara Brae. He smoothed down his purple hair and ears as he tried to think, mostly ignoring what was going on beyond the misty cloud of the sweet liquid. His effort to remember was not quite helped by the sight of the woman in front of him… or her reaction to his sudden lapse into whatever his old memories were doing in his head. But now he was feeling a little bit of a compulsion to act that way, if only to watch her bite her lip again. Tease the woman, maybe. Was that what he normally did? He had no idea.

When the older woman went back to her own business, Jink found himself smiling. Why? Who knows? He just felt like smiling at this giggling woman in front of him. It felt like his mind was grasping at the straws of his real self. His fingers wrapped around the glass in front of him as he winked at her.

“Very close. More fun that way, isn’t it?”

[darkest.desires.]

Tilting her head slightly she pondered on the name, it didn't ring a bell. "Never heard of it.." Shrugging slightly Camille couldn't help the grin that danced across her plush lips nodding in agreement. "It is more fun but if you start acting a fool Meredith is not only gonna have your ass she is gonna skin me alive for giving it too you." Just at that moment the fates were on her side as Milly walked in, a tall slim version of her mother. Her long raven colored hair fell to her waist, sighing she plopped down next to the man that Cammy was speaking too. "Give me a shot of that Cam.." Her voice was monotone, her face hung low with sadness. Pursing her lips she looked at her new found 'friend' that back at Milly sighing. "I can't Mil, you are suppose to be covering me in an hour and if I give you a shot you won't stop there.." The girl with the raven colored hair, her face turned twisted as if she had eaten a sour grape. "Come on Cammy! Jack stood me up I waited three hours and he never showed I need to let loose a little."

Weighing my options I looked around, quickly I pulled out a chilled shot glass before uncorking the bottle once more. As if her life depended on it Camille quickly poured the girl a shot of the green liquid before recorking it. Milly smiled gratefully at her before tossing the shot back with ease. The taste of anise and sweet fennel caressed her tongue with a mixture of other herbs and flowers before she swallowed it. Camille winced waiting for the impact of the 'spirit' to hit her. Milly relaxed instantly a lazy grin sauntered on to her face as she leaned close to the male with cat like features. "Hey come here often," she purred. Giggling Camille placed a hand over her mouth as she watched Milly scoot her chair closer to the male licking her lips like she had just found her dinner.

"Down girl," Cammy said in between giggles looking at the poor soul that was now in the danger zone with Milly.

[Xakthul]

“Wouldn’t expect you to have heard of it. Pretty old name for the same thing.”

Jink was grinning over the edge of his glass, not bothered whatsoever by the smell of the venom. His tail waved around excitedly, and he was just about to lean over the bar and tease his new friend some more, but it seemed like she had another person to worry about. It was almost funny to see how similar the other girl looked to the woman who seemed to be her mother. He relaxed in his chair and kept on sipping at his drink until the girl sat next to him.

“Stood up? Poor… kid…?!”

A look of utter shock came over his face when Milly leaned in towards him. All his hair, even the softer stuff on his head, stood up like pins. Not exactly the reaction the poor girl was probably looking for, and Jink had a feeling that it wasn’t his normal one, either. He’d done a total one-eighty, from hitting on the girl with the amazing taste in liquor, to being scared shitless by her now-drunk friend wanting to touch him. He looked between them helplessly, downed the rest of his drink, and then tried to avoid being drunk-hugged by Milly.

“I, uh, no… I don’t come here often... Are you really this drunk, already?!”

[darkest.desires.]

Camille tried her hardest to suppress her laughter but failed, tossing her head back as she laughed. Laughing so hard she snorted slightly covering her mouth, the sound only made her laugh even harder. Tears started to brim up, wiping away the ones that spilt over her cheeks as she tried to get a grip of herself. Breathing deeply she tried to regain her bearings, wiping away the remaining tears before settling back down. Looking from the man and than Milly she bit down on her lower lip, her face turning red as she made soft almost scoffing like sounds. "Okay, okay.." The man looked uneasy and she felt bad, slightly. "Sorry, Milly is a light weighty and giving her this was a bad idea..."

At that exact moment Milly reached out touching his soft purple fur before grinning wildly. "So soft.. It feels purrrfect." Milly rolled her r's as she touched his fur barely before Camille caught her hand. "Milly don't touch the man.." A small pout spread across the girl's face before she pulled her hand away, folding her arms over her chest.

"I never get to have any fun..."

"I know, I know your life is so boring.." Camille matched her fake pout as she watched the girl stomp up the stairs to her room, slamming the door. "My Goddess dealing with her is going to give me gray hairs..." Running a hand through her golden honey brown locks before looking back at the male breaking into another smile. "Sorry about that, didn't mean to unleash that beast at ya'.."

[Xakthul]

Jink just watched his new friend laugh uncontrollably as he was harassed by Milly. Another sense of déjÃ* vu, but this time he just flattened his ears in annoyance. He really didn’t want to know why this was a familiar situation for him. But the pouting kitty bit couldn’t stand up to feeling fingers in his hair. That was a pretty big weakness, right there. He closed his eyes and purred until the hand was pulled away, and when they opened again, he stuck his tongue out at the alcohol-handler.

“Don’t give venom to lightweights. It ends in people who don’t know how to pet petting me.”

The purple cat-man laid his arms on top of each other on the bar counter, and then put his purple stubble-covered cheek down on top of the resulting makeshift pillow. His mock-severe look gave way to silent cat-like staring for a couple of minutes. There was a lot about the woman in front of him to stare at. And then there was also a smell around her that he decided he rather liked. Kind of musky. Finally, he actually opened his mouth to talk, raising an eyebrow with a completely straight face.

“Y’know, it’s good manners to finish petting when you scare off the person who was doing it.”