A Couple of 'Couples', Drinking

[Terri Nutkins]

Following the Fallen Fair, after the night had fully descended on the Freehold, four Changelings had left Edna's with the idea of heading to a place that was once well-known among the Summer Court and it's allies, owned by a wooden little bastard and named after a fallen King.

Reaching Harry's however, had left three of them shocked. Somewhere along the line, the bar had been closed down (no doubt due to city health actually testing those pretzels). After the initial "No fucking way," Terri wasn't all that surprised. They hadn't seen Barkley for some time now and who knows where or when he would reappear, if at all.

With a moment's thought, Terri had an idea. "Why don't we grab some drinks and take them back to ours?" she had suggested to Rick, Marcus and Aaren. It would be a nice way to end the day and allow the newly appointed Legate of Mists a chance to relax and chat with Aaren without fear of slipping up with outsiders.

So, grabbing some drinks enroute, Terri and Rick led Aaren and Marcus through McKinley Park to an old caretaker's hut. Slipping a piece of food under the door, the gate activated, a doorway that stepped straight into the treehouse proper.

Outside the windows, the Hedge was dark and menacing but inside, it was a cosy Hollow grown from the tree itself. Kitchen, lounge area, a couple of rooms and a workshop for Terri's sewing and hedgespun stuff, the Beast was quite happy to play hostess, beaming as she relaxed, the treehouse filling with the smell of baking bread.

"Who wants a drink?" she asked, spreading their purchases out along the oaken kitchen worktop.

[Lesingnon]

He couldn't believe that they'd closed Harry's. Most people wouldn't care, granted. But he knew what the place had represented, that it had been a memorial as much as a bar. Not to mention that it always reminded him of Barkley as well. So the news held an extra bit of sting for him.

Speaking of Barkley, he could only imagine how he'd respond to the news if he was still around. He'd probably have probably taken up his staff and started swinging. So maybe it was a good thing he hadn't been there for that.

"Personally, I think it sounds like a good night for bourbon." As he spoke he moved to a kitchen cabinet, opening it to reveal an assortment of tumblers, pint glasses, snifters, and the like. It appeared that they were well-stocked when it came to glassware.

[Marcus Evan]

Marcus just stared as he blinked in disbelief at the abandoned wreck of what had once been his old watering hole. Granted, he hadn't seen Sam around the freehold for a very long time, and the metalflesh couldn't even recall the last time he had stopped in for a drink at Harry's, but seeing it dark and boarded up on this chilly autumn evening made him feel like he had lost both former summer kings all over again. He nods in consent to Terri's suggestion, but remains even quieter than usual as they make their way through McKinley Park to his best friends' tree hollow. Once inside, the Hunter of the Longest Day makes himself comfortable and leaves plenty of room for the Spring Searce to join him before he raises his hand to the newly re-appointed Legate of Mists' question and nods in agreement with recently named Ranger of the Thorns.

"Bourbon sounds like an excellent idea."

Looking around the inside of the tree, Marcus is reminded of his own hollow and it's comparatively utilitarian appearance. Since he mainly just uses it as a workshop, the lack of homey touches becomes quite apparent as he notices the cozy little comforts and amenities around him.

"Place looks real nice. Was it always this big?"

[Terri Nutkins]

With a nod and a grin, Terri pours three glasses of Bourbon, before handing them out. The Beast then opens the bottle of vodka and mixes it in a fourth glass with a can of Red Bull.

"It used to be," Terri replied as she sipped at her drink and joined the others. She glanced to Rick. "Then it wasn't and now it is again!" she chirped, plonking herself onto the soft couch, kicking off her shoes. "Well, if you ever want to go hunting for a place, Aaren, you've definitely got the right men here. Between Marcus and Rick, I can't imagine there would be anywhere in the Hedge you couldn't carve out."

[Lesingnon]

"It's not unheard of for Changelings to maintain a place both here and there. Let's you have the advantages of both." He'd always continued to simply pay rent on an apartment out in the mortal world himself. Not necessarily a place he used often, but it was nice to have available. And it was hardly as though he had to pay rent for both places.

After accepting his glass of bourbon Rick took a sip, appreciating the liquor, then made his way over to the fireplace. Embers still glowed within, so it didn't take long at all to arrange a few pieces of dry firewood within to get the flames crackling merrily once more. Then he settled down on the couch along with Terri, chuckling slightly at the mention of hunting for a Hollow. "Oh yes, we'd just need to know what you're looking for and I imagine we could find it. There aren't many who've wandered the Hedge around here as much as we have."

Something reflected in their positions within their courts.

[Marcus Evan]

Marcus leans forward to accept the tumbler of bourbon and slides his arm behind Aaren's shoulders as he settles back into the couch. The earthy scent of the fairest's mantle has its usual effect on the elemental, and faint cheering can be heard echoing from a distance. The metalflesh takes a sip of his drink before nodding in agreement with Rick and Terri.

"Definitely. I sometimes go out to my workshop... my other workshop... just to get away from everything for a little while. Get some peace and quiet. Of course, I usually end up finding something to work on while I'm there..."

Marcus knows he a tinkerer, and his friends probably know it just as well. Since he came back from the other side of crazy town, he just always seems to feel a bit better when he keeps himself busy. Idle hands and all that. At least, that's what he tells himself.

"So, what kind of a place are you interested in?"

[Terri Nutkins]

Terri sipped her drink, watching with a hint of a smile as Marcus' arm slid behind Aaren's shoulders. Settling onto the soft couch, the Beast brought her legs under her as her bushy tail draped naturally across her lap as Rick sat next to her. Without thinking, her arms rested over the tail.

"It's certainly not easy to find a place that you really feel you can settle into," Terri said, ear-tufts twitching. "When I discovered this place, I was lucky it wasn't already taken by hobs or someone else. With Rick's help it's grown into something much better, excuse the pun," she chuckled, taking another sip of the vodka-Red Bull. "It's always good to have some protection though. It's not exactly safe in the Hedge but then, is it anywhere these days?" she added with a shrug. "Sorry, worrying again. At this rate, I'm gonna start speaking like Morgan." A smile to show she was merely teasing.

[Lesingnon]

"A hollow's about as safe as you make it, really." He leaned back into the couch, taking another sip of bourbon as he pondered how better to explain what he meant. "I mean, no part of the Hedge is inherently safe. It's a bit less risky if you're closer to the mortal world and away from major trods; but still, it's always a dangerous place. But once you carve out your own place there are a lot of things you can do to protect it. Whether it be something as simple as camouflaging the entrance, or as esoteric as figuring out how to set up some mystical wards for it. No area of the Hedge is inherently safe, but once you claim a place as your own you can make it safe."

He shrugged slightly, "I guess what I'm saying is that safety is something you can take care of after you find a place, not necessarily something you need to worry about while looking. Though if what you want is a getaway I'd say try to find a spot you like near wherever you live in the mortal world, or your gallery perhaps. Just to make sure it's someplace you can slip away to easily."

"And I wouldn't disagree with that candy store statement at all. So much of what the Hedge does is reactive...to who's in the area, what they want, what they're feeling. Once you settle in a place, that really let's you leave your mark on it." He can't quite help but glance over to Terri, "Like we have here."