Afterparty

[brokenhabit]

[ After the reunions have been had Lebkuchen finds a moment to compose herself, clearing her throat to get everyone's attention. ]

I think we ought to leave this place before our pathetic excuse of a Titan rears his ugly head once more. We can recuperate and mourn our losses... but also celebrate our win, [ She gives Aoi another squeeze to make it clear who she means ] before we move on to whatever happens next.

Give me a little time and I'll prepare something in the eatery for everyone.

[ It feels weird to have one of these not in the bar (even though her ass was almost always somewhere else after these ordeals) but she's certain it would feel even worse to be in the bar with Quark not there (even without her knowing that's where their bodies were found).

And so true to her word the eatery is eventually full of the usual spread of homemade treats Lebkuchen has been know for. Some of them were made the day before she poofed but are still perfectly good, however eventually some fresh ones do appear as well. Some of them have some leaves stuck to them though... probably because the kitchen is full of Lebkuchen's vines hard at work making everything for her. Oh well, it's extra nutrients!

She's also brought up several bottles from the bar because dunno about you but she's going to drink. ]

Comments

[yourheroine]

[Thank you, Leb. Aoi doesn't quite want to go the bar again. At least not yet.

So she's resurrected the makeshift version they'd been using until they got an actual bar and will make drinks both alcoholic and otherwise for people. Eru is sound asleep in a nearby chair.

She may also be found dozing off in that chair herself sometimes. Dying and coming back is exhausting.]

[raisethemoon]

[ Ah, she's asleep...Luna approaches and considers Aoi for a moment, before her horn starts to glow silver. Sweet dreams, Aoi~ ]

[catsgothistongue]

[Aoi...

Ranma doesn't try to wake her, because after everything she deserves this. He quietly slinks off, fetching a cover to drape over her and takes over covering bartending duties.]

[sweetsynergy]

[As she's dozing, Vanity quietly places a steaming mug on the table. The smell is rich and sweet, and contains a multitude of non-coffee aromas, chief among which is cocoa.]

[Vanity herself silently slides into the chair opposite, tiredly sipping at her own, more-caffeinated beverage.]

[letsplayamod]

[Early on, for a little while at least, Eru isn't the only furry creature in the chair. All three Winions are nestled on all sides of him, curled up into napping balls of grey fur, entrapping his round little body in a cozy circle.]

[pariunt]

[Astarion carries Velvet into the eatery before he settles her into a chair. He doesn't sit down himself, though. Looking for all the world like he's a wreck. And, if anyone was paying attention to notice the conversation he'd been having with Seymour during the battle, it might not be entirely a surprise.]

...Since everyone saw my scars today.

[Well. Lebkuchen didn't, but he isn't thinking about that currently.]

They're part of a contract my former master had. For the Rite of Profane Ascension. It would have created a new being, had it been completed. The Vampire Ascendant. I had every intention of going through with it, of taking Cazador's power myself. Going through with it would have killed every single soul with the scar, save for myself.

But Tav, she...

[...]

...she talked me out of it.

If she hadn't, I would have ended up exactly like Seymour. A frightened, miserable creature justifying countless deaths to hide my own pain.

I do not blame any of you for hating him. But I can't, because we're the same. The sole difference between us is that I had someone there for me.

[literarybehemoth]

...It is easier to turn out poorly when you do not have anyone. Like I said, I do not know his circumstances... but I regret that he came to the conclusions he did.

[sweetsynergy]

You really think that's the only thing, huh.

[also yeah, she is absolutely gonna keep hating Seymour]

[murchada]

...So, what? Do you want our permission to sympathize with him?

You can do whatever you want, you know.

[raisethemoon]

[ Luna disappears back to her room for a moment, and returns carrying Critwo on her back along with whatever Winions may or may not still be there, a few lingering Zubat, and Fritz trotting alongside her. This horse is now a single mother!

She stands at the spread for a little while, variously feeding all of her new children. Critwo is cradled against her chest, held with magic, like a baby. Her mood seems to have picked up somewhat since Lebkuchen and Aoi's return, but she's still quiet and withdrawn, and only picks at any food herself.

Later on, once Critwo starts to go to sleep, she returns them to her room and comes back to hit those bottles. She needs a drink. Again, she doesn't make any move to approach anyone. ]

drink pony club?

[sweetsynergy]

[Vanity debates for a moment whether to actually approach. Giving everyone some space is probably the smarter choice, especially anyone knocking it back and hanging away from the crowd. But why start doing the smart thing now?]

Does that still do anything to you? Figured maybe alicorn immortality or whatever came with toxin immunity.

shots shots shots shots shots

[fillets]

[ Riful lingers late tonight, which means she's around for both Luna's stays at the eatery. Once she comes back, she's finally taken the plunge and is pouring some kind of clear liquor into her blood glass. She doesn't even have the decency to look embarrassed about it!

There's a brief period of silence. Riful sets the bottle down and puts it back where it came from, and eventually she speaks. ]

Has anyone asked you how you're doing?

[ Her tone of voice implies she knows that she's nobody's first choice when it comes to a mental health checkin! Luna's not a total stranger, because none of them really can be strangers at this point, but that means precious little. ]

[sweetsynergy]

[Vanity's here. She is very awkwardly helping with the drinks service and making coffee, as usual. She is still in her combat uniform, because leaving to change would mean possibly being away when things inevitably explode.]

[If you're one of the many people she fought with at any point earlier today, sooner or later she'll approach, mouth thin and arms folded.]

Hey.

[The tone is neutral, careful. Kind of like she's expecting a bomb to go off. But it's pretty clearly an invitation to either talk or tell her to fuck off.]

[Later on, in a moment when she's finally stepped outside for just a second- she clearly thinks she's alone, because she waves a hand in the air, trying to summon the flowing wind-]

[And nothing happens.]

Mmmph. Figures.

[Otherwise, she's generally just. Moving all night.]

[Until she can finally be found sitting in an out of the way corner, feet and knees drawn up onto her chair, snoring softly.]

[murchada]

...Hey.

[Also very neutral. Though it's less careful, for her, it's just... this is how she talks, man.]

cw for potential underage drinking

[catsgothistongue]

[First thing Ranma does when they're out of the trial? Boils up some hot water and returns back to his natural form, now that they don't have a murder to deal with nor his hallucikitties children. He returns to the same routine as other after parties and shifts: cooking up some grub.

This situation calls for some okonomiyaki to go along with Leb's treats, stat. Anyone who hasn't grabbed any food (or blood pack/mystery meat if you're the two people eater) will be approached by the teen, pushing out the plate insistently.]

C'mon, keep your strength up. It isn't over, yet.

[... Without Quark around, he needs to set his own break. Ranma sits on one of the barstools, eyeing the bottle of whatever first booze he swiped off the counter. Deliberating was present all over his face, tug-of-warring between whether to get his drink on in celebration/take the edge off or stay sober and frosty.]

break

[sweetsynergy]

[From a stool or two over.]

Pretty sure there's no legal age for gods, if that's what you're worried about.

[fillets]

[ Riful, still in ribbon mode because her clothes are bloody rags now, doesn't spend a solid three hours fucking off to the forest for once! She's still by herself, of course, but she's solitary inside the temple rather than out—specifically the bathhouse, where she finally returns to little girl form and quietly washes the blood off. She hums under her breath, seemingly unaware of any intrusions. You all know better than that by now, probably.

You may see her leaving room 13, wearing clean clothes and a dissatisfied pout. Shortly after, she comes to the eatery, where she doesn't eat anything! She does have a glass of blood with her, though, and she eyes one of the bottles of booze as though she's solving a complex math equation in her head. The skeleton bird is back at her side, living its best life.

Nearer to the tail end of the gathering, she produces a little bottle of nailpolish and starts painting the nails on one hand, using her hair to shoo away the bird if it hops too close. Again, she hums. ]

eatery

[sweetsynergy]

[Just kind of. Watching the nail painting a little.]

...so if you go all kaiju and then change back, does the polish stay or will the transformation just kind of shred it?

eatery

[pariunt]

[Astarion saunters over to Riful, completely without fear of her like he's always been.]

Riful, I have a question. Forgive me, because I've been ever-so-curious.

That form you take on... is that how you truly look, or merely a shape you can take at will?

[brokenhabit]

[ Once she's supervised her vines long enough, Lebkuchen has found herself a place to sit with an entire bottle of wine to herself. She's using a glass of course, but the temptation to forgo one was tempting. Her golden glow is persisting even now and she stares absently at her red shoes. That book is with her again, next to her wine bottle.

Though she said she wanted to celebrate getting Aoi back, there is still... an emptiness deep in her. It's a lot to process, and knowing Quark is just g--

...

She takes another drink, wishing it were ale instead. Man it really would be right as Quark is gone that she finally decides she needs a bar, huh. ]

[pariunt]

[Astarion sits next to her.

As is usual with these gatherings, he isn't drinking anything himself.]

I'm so grateful you're okay, Lebkuchen.

I don't know what I would have done, were you not.

[sweetsynergy]

So. Welcome back, I guess.

[Leb, and not Quark. Aoi, but not both of them. The rage at it all isn't burning white-hot and all-consuming anymore, but the ashes still sit deep in the pit of her stomach, when she lets them. It's not fair of her, and even she isn't stupid or petty enough to voice it, but she can't help but feel like there's some grand equation that might have been balanced differently, that if Lebkuchen had stayed gone maybe Quark would be sitting here instead.]

[And even with that low-burning guilt and resentment, she can't bring herself to actually wish Leb away. She just wishes the relief at having her back didn't feel like a betrayal against Quark.]

Do you remember everything? From- ...I don't know, being a bunch of glowing bugs?

[yourheroine]

[Aoi isn't quite sure what to say. Leb was the one who told her that sometimes just being there was enough, however, so she simply allows the other girl the space for a few minutes while she works the bar. Which mainly consists of polishing the same glass since Leb is drinking wine.]

...there were a lot of plants when Aoi saw the arena. So Leb came back and stopped Seymour?

[murchada]

So, um...

[How does she even broach this topic? Is it insensitive to bring up, or is it worse to ignore it?

Oh, fuck it.]

...Do you want to talk about the glow, or would you rather not think about it?

[stringup]

[ Thanks to Astarion, Velvet is surprised that when she finally comes to, it's not while she's on the floor. There's still some mess left, but at least she isn't still bleeding all over. ]

Ugh... What happened...?

[sweetsynergy]

You kind of melted a little. Aoi un-died. Typhon might try killing us all but we're gonna shank his ass- wait, no, you were still up for that part right?

[She was just passing by when Velvet woke up, this is all said in the entirely too off-hand manner of someone who's very busy and sparing a second for some small talk.]