Cider Days Festival!

[Kray]

It would seem he had taught the spring queen a new word, id a word he will regret, that waits to be seen. "Uh. They are selling big bottles of the stuff right over there if you want to try it." Gesturing very loosely in a nearby direction, he might be a little disorianted from his won heavy drinking already.

The directions if they had been of any use at all which was unlikely given the ashen king did seem to have lost sense of where the scrumpy stall was, also intended for Jasper. "Oh. Never?" That seemed simply madness. "Uh. Really never?" It was taking a moment to filter through the haze of alcohol in his brain. "Ah. I'll have to order some in before the season is done, have it an event or something." Because he still was not going to share what remained in his bottle.

Circe explains what applejack is, and it sort of maybe gets there with the ogre. "Uh. Why would you freeze it?" That made no sense to him though. "Hm. And unless it pure apples, windfall apples at that it is not scrumpy." Adding anything broke the cardinal rules of scrumpy making. "Bah. It would not be proper to call it scrumpy if it had anything else in it." Of that much he was drunkenly certain.

He shrugs as Mina says about making it better. "Uh. It is authentic, same no extra flavors, extra chemical, no extra fizz." Great shoulders heave a shrug. "Ah. A lot of people do not like it actually, something of an acquired taste." More that it was just different without the carbon.

[Sonnie Wu]

"Isn't the tail the best part?" she asked curiously, "Why eat a scorpion at all if there's no tail? Might as well just eat any random bug."

The Beast snickered in response to Mina, "There's always pie. Heh heh." Grow up, Sonnie. "Anyway, not surprised there's hard cider. Wouldn't be a city festival if people couldn't get publicly drunk!" How else were the cops going to meet their arrest quotas?

"Isn't Applejack a pony?" What?

[Jasper]

The answering tilt of Mina's head drew Jasper's grin a little wider. “Oh, I'm up for it.” Apparently that settled whether he'd taken it as a challenge. When she waved off the offered food, he gave an easy shrug and reclaimed the tray without offense, helping himself to another bite as they continued toward the tent. “Offer was there.” The comment about it being a good afternoon earned a quieter smile, but he let that one sit rather than chasing it any further.

Kray's continued disbelief over Jasper never having tried scrumpy got a low chuckle from him. “Really never.” He glanced vaguely in the direction Kray had indicated, whether or not that direction was particularly useful. “I'll find it. Sounds like I oughta try the proper thing at least once.” Especially if it was dry rather than sweet. Circe's explanation of applejack got a brief lift of his brows, followed by a glance between her and Sonnie. “Strong frozen cider or a pony. Got it. Glad we've narrowed that down.”

Once they reached the beer tent, Jasper eyed the four little glasses making up the sampler before looking over the listed flavors. That seemed considerably smarter than committing to a full drink before knowing whether somebody had decided cider desperately needed to taste like a fruit basket. At Mina's question, he nodded. “Yeah, I'll do one.” His attention went back to the selection. “Figure four chances to find somethin' decent beats picking one blind.” Then he glanced sideways at Mina, that crooked grin returning. “You pickin' yours based on the names, or've you actually got a strategy here, Trouble?”

[Circe]

"Sonnie," Circe says with a flat expression. "The stinger is removed. Where the poison is," she speaks slowly. "Not the whole tail, just the stinger. To make you don't kill the person buying candied scorpions. Repeat customers."

It was her favorite argument for doing something. Repeat customer is beater than one time. That is just good business.


As for Kray's inquest on freezing for booze? Circe shrugs, "Lack of other options," she answers Kray on why freeze it. "This is like Thomas Jefferson era, so don't think they had distilleries on the continent yet. Somebody probably discovered applejack by accident. So repeat for more liquor," which was a logical means of discovery. "Well John, I didn't know that about scrumpy. And now I do," she assures the drunken ogre. She didn't think she'd like scrumpy herself. But seems others were trying, "Sure, lets try scrumpy before the booze knocks us on our rumpy."


"Someone has a baby horse named after booze?" Circe looks back to Sonja in confusion. Somebody had a drinking problem though drink and pony ride was likely safer than drink and drive.


Circe pauses on the question of samplers as she sniffs the air. Sweet smells abound, but she swears she smells bacon or pork roasting. Circe stands up on her toes and looks around. She has to slowly spin before stopping on what was originally her right, "Tombola!," as she dashes off somewhere.


Circe returns after a moment with a half-dozen skewers of apple, pork, and onion. "Mwhoo monts mun?" She asks holding out five skewers with her left hand. In her right is the sixth clearly being partially eaten already.

[Mina]

At the mention of ordering some, “Could always do a game night if you ordered some! And for food, do like stews and chilis for the season!” sounded like she was already planning it out.

“Well, having never had applejack or scrumpy, I’m down to try both.” Why not?

With the talk of eating scorpions, she just had to shake her head with a chuckle. She wasn’t sure she could eat one, or any bug for that matter.

“The trick is to get a nice buzz and not too drunk.” Getting too drunk in public was never a good look.

“A pony?” huh?

Laughing as Jasper seemed as confused as she was, “Maybe a pony is the mascot?” shrugging.

When Jasper agreed to a sampler, she ordered another one before laughing again, “I go based off taste. If it tastes good, then I’m usually sold on it. I mean, names are cool and all, but it has to taste good. So I guess that’s my strategy. How about you?”

Then Circe mentioned the scorpions are candied, “Wait, the bugs are made into candy?” her nose scrunches up.

But soon Circe is off…somewhere!

And returns with food! On skewers!

“Oh!! Now those look yummy! Thank you!” and accepts one.

[Kray]

"Hm. Nothing wrong with eating bugs if its what there is to eat." Latching onto something the spring queen had said, a little late to that thread of conversation. But still bugs were edible more or less.

But yeah there you go Jasper and apparently others here had never tried scrumpy. "Oh. Yes I would say worth a try no question or doubt about that." Like it or not to say you had tried a proper old fashioned cider without the sweeteners and bubbles was very much worth it.

The giants free hand goes up to the side of his face where it scratches at the five o clock shadow the giant seemed to have almost permanently. "Ah. Sounds like the by accident idea does a lot of heavy lifting for that one." Someone died over winter, apples froze or some such and were discovered some time later in the spring by who knows who. When the summer queen dashes off and returns with food on ticks the ogres bulbous yellow eyes lock in, as best as they are able. That was always a good way to get his attention. But some habits run very deep and after several moments of deliberation he fumbles at his pocket in search of his wallet. "Ah. What do I owe you?" He is not so blindly drunk as yet to reckless in debt himself to the summer queen. Not yet.

But following as many conversations as was going on while in any state of inebriation was tricky, as so the giant is left unsure if Mina meant that comment for him or not. "Uh. Well I generally enjoy a good games not." Which was true and if one did happen he could bring a few bottles. "Hm. And a pony, pony tastes pretty good." It is probably good he trails off in some haze of recollection about the time eh ate a pony rather then go into what was likely a disturbing vocal tirade about the event.

[Sonnie Wu]

"I just don't see what the attraction is to eating a scorpion if there's no stinger. It's nothing special." The Spring Queen has spoken!

She nodded to Mina. "Yeah, a pony. A little one. Mine, maybe." She looked around. "Am I the only one who makes that connection?" Sonnie sighed. "I'm getting old," said the 30 year old who still looked like she was maybe 22 at most. Changelings aged slowly, even more so the higher their Wyrd got, and Sonnie's was... strong. She probably wouldn't even look 30 for a couple more decades!

At least Arcadia provided some benefits.

Kray talked about eating ponies, because of course he did. Ogres were like that. As much as the Monkey Girl liked to eat, she drew the line at some things. Ponies was one of them. Scorpions were debatable.

[Jasper]

Jasper considered Mina's question while looking over the sampler that had been set in front of him. “Think my strategy's start with whichever one sounds least like somebody melted candy into it.” His eyes moved over the little glasses again before he added, “Then work my way toward the dangerous ones.” A crooked grin accompanied that, perhaps unsurprisingly. “Figure if I'm gonna regret one, might as well know what good cider tastes like first.”

Circe's sudden departure and equally sudden return with food earned an amused lift of Jasper's brows. He accepted one of the offered skewers without hesitation. “Cheers, Mary.” Apple, pork, and onion was considerably more his speed than candied scorpions anyway. He took a bite as Mina inspected hers, then glanced toward Sonnie. “Think you're safe. Pretty sure nobody's takin' your scorpion rights away.” Another bite followed before he added, “Though apparently thirty's ancient now, so maybe enjoy 'em while you still can.”

Kray's comment about pony earned a glance from Jasper, though there wasn't much surprise in it. He chewed thoughtfully for another second before swallowing. “Horse ain't bad.” A beat, and the corner of his mouth twitched as his attention shifted toward Sonnie. “Though I reckon that's probably not the kind of pony she's talkin' about.”

With that particular distinction made, he reached for the first glass of his sampler and lifted it slightly toward Mina. “Alright, Trouble. Let's see if your strategy beats mine.”

[Circe]

"Game night as in roll the dice or tackle each other on the coach to get an edge in Mario Party kind of game night?" Different kinds of chaos in either case.



"It is loudly crunchy and makes folks uncomfortable when you eat it in front of them Sonnie, oh ho ho ho!" Which was the real point as far as Circe was concerned. Mess with people!


Circe wasn't quite understanding the phrasing for roasted scorpions. Glazed and grilled was not the same as candied when it came to cooking scorpions. Candied would be a scorpion in a lollipop, but she didn't quite ask that question ever. Circe finishes munching. "Well, the bugs I've had on skewers had a honey glaze. That is candied right? Could probably puree them into base for hard candies too."


Circe somehow restrains from rolling her eyes as Kray asks for a debt for a skewer. Dude seriously didn't get extroverted friends. "Two skewers for one apple pie slice," she suggest as a solution. "For it is a wonderful day for pie~" Though she makes a disgusted face at the prospect of eating pony. It probably was too much like long pig or seal. Muscles had an odd, oily mouth feel to her. "Yankee girls don't like to eat horse John," she chuckles as she says this to the Ogre. "I also don't recommend seal. Too cute and oily. Or blubbery? Bad mouth feel either way."


"Wait, what kind of pony then? Is then a don't talk about it in front of children thing?" Circe wasn't innocent by any stretch, she trolled the internet. Didn't mean she looked at everything to figure out what folks were into. Finding posts listed as chair orgy that had nothing but those universal plastic chairs oddly stacked says the Internet is weirder than the Wyrd.


"Thirty?" Circe smirks and then intentionally shakes her voice, "Oooh my dearie, you are such a young whipped snapper thinking yourself a boomer already," she says with a wide grin. "Even I don't count myself as suuuch dearie. I haven't got my explosive technicians license." That was a setup for a pun that ran long.


She will grab a cider for herself to try, because why cower? Summer says no to that. "This one my dude," she holds up the glass towards Jasper to get his attention. "It is soft, not hard. No booze."


Warning sent, she washes down her skewer.

[Mina]

Head tilts, well, jerks slightly, “I mean, yeah, you’re not wrong. But still. No thanks.” This was not a situation where there was nothing else to eat and she was about to die from hunger.

With the talk back to games, “Then lets host a game night! I’m sure I can find a recipe for chili or something of the sort, and you provide a bottle or two of the scrumpy!” pausing, remembering something, “If you wouldn’t mind of course. And I can bring some games of course.” Drinking worked best with food she had learned over the years. She was not touching the topic of eating a pony. Nope.

A slight shrug, “Maybe to say you ate it?” she really had nothing.

“Most ponies are little.” Clearly the Elemental wasn’t making the connection.

Laughing, “Melted candy into it? I’m going to go out a limb and guess you don’t like sweet beer.” She ventures to guess with a smirk. “Sound strategy though, lets see if it works.” She just wanted beer that tasted good.

Truth be told, there really wasn’t a strategy, she just randomly picks a glass and raises it back to Jasper, “We’ll see.” Raising the glass to her nose to get a sniff, then taking a sip. It wasn’t bad, it was one of the fruitier flavors, more berries had been added to the apple. “Lots of berries in this one.” A nod, “But it’s good.”

Looking over to Circe, “Never been very good at Mario Party, but I’d be down to give it another go. But I was talking about planning a roll the dice type nice, or play cards, or whatever game suits our fancy.” She hadn’t played much video games as a kid, but was always down to give them a go.

She doesn’t jump into the conversation about the different meats. Even though she was a meat lover, she wasn’t too keen on the type of meat being talked about. But, to each their own.

“I think I’ll skip the age talk.” She declares with a smirk.