The Buzzed Bee

Lugruk - who was presently on his third or fourth mental tally of his 'opening day' checklist - jumped at the sound. He opened his mouth to speak, petrified that he would turn around to find a builder or quartermaster that had come to tell him they were shutting him down. Or perhaps a flamingo wearing a top hat, to tell him that this was all just a dream.

It all melted away at the sight of Naoki. Lugruk grinned, chuckled, and snagged a clean glass from the bar. 

"New draft. Calling it Gorgon's Gold." He walked over to a keg on the wall, flipping up the tap and filling the glass stein with mead, its color worthy of the name. "Honey's from Indica's hive, infused with those pink apples we found growing along the south shore. Really specific thing you gotta do with the barrel, or the whole thing falls apart."

Lugruk placed a napkin in front of Naoki as a coaster, followed by the drink itself. His tusks made his smile all the wider. "Enjoy."

After a short exchange, Lugruk walked past Naoki and over to the front door. The hearth was lit, the tables were clean, and the kegs were brimming. All that was left was the rabble.

"Alright, alright!" Lugruk flung the door open, shouting with bravado at the thirsty crowd that had begun to gather outside. He waved a hand, beckoning the lot inside.

"Get in here, ya degenerates!"

As Lugruk flung the doors open, the wiry form of Ito quickly wormed its way through the crowd. Letting out a curse as someone nearly stepped on his tail, Ito bounded his way over to the bar and leaped onto the stool next to his mother. Landing with both hands and feet on the top of the stool, it was a rather funny pose he struck, almost reminiscent of a perched gargoyle.

“I see even sprinting through the crowd I wasn’t able to beat you here, Mother. You weren’t in here sampling the best stuff without us I hope?” Ito said, his playful mock-accusatory tone accompanied by a waggling of his ears before he turned his attention to the bartender. Oh. Ito had to admit, his mother certainly had a good eye when it came to hiring people. Ito was in approval at the very least. 

Raising a hand in request, Ito nodded in the direction of Naoki’s drink. “I’ll have whatever you gave her!” Perhaps he'd sample some of the more experimental brews later, but for now, he might as well stick with something a bit safer. Peering around the room while he waited for his drink, Ito noticed the diminutive form of Indica. Was that a fairy? It was a bit hard to tell at this distance, but something about the wings looked a bit different than the faeries he'd seen before.  

A gander Indica will take. The craftsmanship of the small furniture and glass is exquisite. It must've taken Lugruk loads of patience to make something of this size and quality. "Well call me surprised. You've just got yourself a regular. I'm flattered that you took the time to make this for me and my kind. You've put a lot of care and thought into this." She takes a seat in the tiny chair.

The Pchelinaya notices the feline staring at her. "Careful, you know what they say, curiosity killed the cat." Indica grins at Ito. She does appear quite fairy-like as she doesn't resemble the typical bee appearance of her kind. 4 generations are separating her from the queen, the further your bloodline you are from the queen, the less bee you look. The only trace left is the tissue-like wings. Everything else about her is human-like, from her luminescent blue eyes and long limbs to the absence of a stinger at her tailbone. Indica looks at Ito and then at Naoki, to say there is no resemblance amongst the two would be like saying the sky is green.

"Mother? I didn't know that she had any kids. I thought I knew all the hot buzz in town but it seems I'm mistaken." Though she only knows Naoki through words on the street. She's spoken with the big cat in person. She takes a long sip of her drink. The mead flows like nectar and the honey adds the perfect amount of sweetness. This might be her ambrosia. She could drink this all day, in fact maybe she will.

"You orc, you've truly made a masterpiece. Wow! This drink is the perfect thing to sate my sweet tooth. I could drink these all day"

Ito wasn’t quite sure what the raised eyebrows and glances from Lugruk were trying to communicate, but given a glass of the meed was quickly placed before him… He honestly decided deciphering those social smoke signals could wait! Returning Lugruk’s smile with a toothy grin of his own, Ito reached out to shake the Orc's hand. He tried to offer a firm shake but that proved a bit difficult given the absolute size of Lugruk’s mitts. Goddamn.

“Likewise, a pleasure to meet you Lugruk. I’ll no doubt be seeing you frequently if you're running this place. Oh, and I’m Ito.” Deciding to go into further details just now would do nothing more than delay him from his primary mission, Ito wasted no further time getting to it. Grabbing the glass with both hands, Ito raised it to his lips before offering a few experimental sniffs to it. Tilting his head further back Ito brought the glass fully up and began chugging down the drink. He made it about halfway through before having to come back up for air as he slammed it back down on the counter.

It was a good drink, but he couldn’t honestly say chugging it like that was the best way to appreciate the flavor. No, that was more just something he wanted to do. When was the last time he’d been at a bar? He frankly couldn't remember how many years. He remembered he and Ren had gone out to some bar oh-so-many years ago, although even then the exact number escaped him. Those had been good times. Maybe he was just grasping at straws and hoping to relive those good times again by mimicking them in the present. Or maybe… Maybe he was thinking too hard and needed to keep drinking. Yes.

Raising the glass to his mouth once more, there was an audible gulping sound as Ito slowly drained it empty before setting it back down on the bar. “Oh don’t you worry Lugruk, it’s been far too long since I’ve had a proper drink and I don’t intend for my thirst to be sated by anything less than…” Ito paused, was the alcohol already getting to him? He had somehow completely lost his train of thought mid-sentence. “Anything less than the floodwaters that brought me here, but it’s booze not water!” Somewhere in the back of Ito’s mind was something that told him that might be an insensitive comment, but fortunately the alcohol was very good at quieting down such troublesome voices.

Turning to look at Indica again as she addresses him, Ito seems almost stunned by the fae’s comment. Whether this was due to her words or simply the sudden amount of alcohol the lad had just chugged down was yet to be determined. Amber colored eyes stared at Indica in a glazed-over sort of way as the cogs of Ito’s mind slowly but surely turned looking for a response. Something must have clicked into place because Ito offered the fae the most serious look he could muster.

“Well, if curiosity killed the cat, then I’m definitely not going to ask you for your name,” Ito said, his tone serious and voice significantly deeper sounding than normal as he turned away from Indica as if to ignore her. Leaning down on the counter to rest his head on it, Ito seemed to be trying his damndest to prevent from breaking into a fit of laughter, but it was a battle he seemed to be losing.

"Lucky for you my name's not curiosity." Indica huffs and takes a swig of her drink. "You were eyeing me earlier, now you're giving me the cold shoulder. What's so funny? Cat got your tongue? I promise I won't sting" The buzy Pchelinaya couldn't help but egg Ito on. She had a personality for stirring up drama and the alcohol only enhances it. She takes her drink as she flies closer to the cat. There's something comical about her trying to take on what in her eyes is a giant. Her chest is puffed and her back straightened to appear a little taller.  

"Indica" the buzzy Pchelinaya introduces herself. She buzzes a little close to Ito, drink in hand. "Now it's your turn, what do they call you?" She arches an eyebrow at the question. Her interest is piqued. Indica takes a quick moment to finish her drink. She finds this cat to be cute, but in the way people find puppies to be cute.

"I'll take what he's having. I'm sure the child of Naoki has good taste in alcohol" She also orders another drink. "Everyone has their own stick, their own agenda. What's your stick? You seem like a nice boy but maybe there's some deceit to that? Then again not many nice boys enjoy spending their time in taverns. Maybe you're actually one who likes to sneak out in the middle of the night and thinks rules are beyond them."