And it's the stars, the stars that lie to you.

[neverheardofhim]

[This week, Varric opted to take a page from Vanille’s book. Gathering everyone together after the roller-coaster that the first trial had been proved to be somewhat cathartic for himself. He hoped that it would prove to do the same for the others.]

[He wasn’t alone, of course, having found himself blessed with the most ragtag team of chefs and party-planners. He might have had words for and thoughts on Elda and Kimbley, Mikazuki was welcome company, and he wasn’t about to turn away potential allies, even in a fight as simple as cooking dinner.]

[Once everyone’s set to a task, baking a cake, brewing tea, or stirring stew (the only task Varric could think to assign Elda to), Varric excused himself to his room. His first task was writing up cards, each personally titled and signed by Varric.]

Food in the Library. 5 p.m. Don’t spend the night alone.

[Each note was slid under a door and accompanied by a single rap on the wood.]

[With his tasks completed, Varric returned to the kitchen to put out any potential fires and, with luck, set the food out. A table in the library would be adorned with plenty of tea, cake, pancakes courtesy of Viktor, and stew thanks mostly to Varric (sorry, Elda).]

Comments

[quadruples]

[ He shakes his head, offering Varric a smile that's not entirely genuine. ]

No, I'm fine. You should eat something if you haven't already; it's unwise to drink vodka on an empty stomach.

[neverheardofhim]

[In that case, they can match. At least until Varric moved to wave the man off. The movement seemed to chase his smile away.]

I had a few bites here and there during prep. And I'm no lightweight, either. [Drinking and writing were his talents, after all.]

[quadruples]

I wonder which one of us would win if we had a drinking contest.

[neverheardofhim]

[Well that's... an interesting thought. And a welcome distraction.]

Is that a challenge?

[quadruples]

Maybe. If we get a bar or if I get more booze from the machine. [ With only two bottles, the amount of alcohol is a little limited and he'd rather save it for the time being. ]

[neverheardofhim]

Where there's a will, there's a way. [And his will is to get absolutely hammered. That little sip he got wasn't going to do shit for that.]

Here's hoping Smitty has another floor for us. One filled with nothing but alcohol.

[quadruples]

A floor like that would be heaven. [ Pause. ] And hell for my liver, probably.

[neverheardofhim]

It'd make for an interesting investigation, wouldn't it? Who killed the dwarf and the skater, mmm? Found in the bar, bottles around them.

Can you execute a room, do you think?

[Ah, good ol' gallows humor.]

[quadruples]

[ A soft laugh - the gallows humor isn't unwelcome. ]

Now I'm imagining the shadow thing consuming everything in the room, including any bottles that are still left. Do you think it can get drunk?

[neverheardofhim]

Maybe. Hell, maybe that's how we stop it. Throw bottles of booze at it until it can't see straight. Hell, maybe if we're lucky, it'll gobble up the Wordsmith in the process.

[The thought roused a loud laugh from the dwarf, perhaps out of place considering the current locale and situation. It wasn't unwelcome in his eyes, though. At least it kept the grim thoughts away.]

[quadruples]

It'd be wonderful. I certainly wouldn't be upset if the Wordsmith got eaten. [ And he's pretty certain no one else would be, either. ]

[neverheardofhim]

Certainly not. [After his laughter subsided, a grin remained on his lips.] Might even make this whole shitshow worth it.

[Not really.]

[quadruples]

[ Viktor goes quiet for a moment, thinking. ]

Joking aside, I wonder what would actually work against that thing. Fire?

[neverheardofhim]

[Varric grew quiet as well. His mind ran through a list of enemies, both like the shadows and unlike it. He'd fought a great number of battles -- surely there was parallel somewhere.]

Never met a thing I couldn't kill. I'll figure something out. For all our sakes.

[quadruples]

...Maybe Molotov cocktails would work, or some sort of improvised flamethrower.

[neverheardofhim]

Can never go wrong with fire. [He glanced at the bottle of vodka, then shook his head.] But... maybe not until we get that bar. Hate for you to lose your stash.