Character Bar (Explicit, 18+)

Darit: *jumps out of chair* FUCKING SHIT!!!!!! How do I keep getting mixed up with pscyhos? Sommelier training was supposed to get me away from this type of shit.

 

Mistress Claudia: (Taking the bottom olive off the pick in the glass in her teeth) Oh never mind...I am sure he will turn up eventually.
Anyways (looking seductively at Ortlidne) you are cute, and you know how to make a Martini for a lady. (Takes a sip from the glass) So
are you available later, or are you busy? (Gesturing at Darit and Rosseweisse). I wouldn't mind having a bit of fun with you.

Mistress Claudia: Holy hell woman! Why...What is your malfunction? You really have an unhealthy
way about you. And no (looks at the heads in disgust) neither of those would be he. (Brings the tip of the
crop under Amy's chin) You really should learn some manners, young lady. It is most impolite to go about
lopping off peoples heads. Were you raised by a bunch of barbarians? You should be ashamed of your self.
Now get those out here, because they reek and are attracting flies.

 

Charlie: Crap.

Alec: Here we go.

Amy: OK, let me take these in order. One, my malfunction is PTSD, and I just took my meds like an hour ago. This is me functional. Two, telling someone you just met that you want to smack them around a bit doesn't sound that polite to me. [grabs her wrist] Or safe. Three, I was raised by patriotic, Constitution-spouting American conservatives who tried to drag me to church at 15 to confess my sin of being raped, so now that I say that out loud, that's actually a point for you. Looks like you're 1 for 3. Four, this is the kind of person I am. What the fuck's there to be ashamed of for that? Now you're down to 1 for 4. And just to make it 1 for 5, I was going to take care of these anyway, but now I think I'll take my time. Maybe you and Charlie could head off someplace private if you don't like it out here?

Charlie: Um, no problem here.

Amy: Or are you not into chicks who like it when you treat them like that? [lets go of her] Tread carefully.

Alec: Oh, and by the way, she came up with a better joke since the one you were talking about.

Amy: ... Is that really important right now?

Charlie: No. No it isn't. She and I should go far away from here. [Looks over her shoulder as she heads out] Mistress, Amy's my friend, my enforcer, and my responsibility. If she offended you, do you need me to apologize?

 

Darit: Holy Mani, you sound just like my ex-girlfriend. You two should hook up sometime. Also, try being raised by strict Manichaeans and not told what you are until you're in college and suddenly working for a trans-dimensional human-trafficking ring just so that they don't zap you back to where you came from.

*Darit winces in pain.*

Shit, the stress is probably messing with me.

*Winces again, falls to the ground in pain, flickers a few times, then disappears.*

 

Amy: Well, that was a hoot.

 

*Darit re-appears, in a fetal position, twitching and dazed*

 

Amy: Hey, you need any contact information for my psychiatrist by any chance?

 

Ortlinde: What she needs is a glass of water and a hug, you little shit!

*kneeling beside Darit*

You okay, hon'?

Darit: *shaking* I saw them. They almost got me.

Ortlinde: Shhhh....it's okay...

Maha: *bursting in the door* Hey, has anyone here seen my cousin Dar...oh fuck...

 

Amy: Alec, would you mind getting her a glass of water?

Alec: Sure, on it.

Amy: [whispers in Ortlinde's ear] When your friend's had time to calm down, you and I are having a few words about how trauma recovery works. Capice?

 

Rossweisse: Right, kid. Ortlinde may be MY little sister, but she's got about nine centuries experience on you when it comes to trauma.

 

Maha: *producing a purple capsule* Give her that, it'll help with the quantum displacement episodes.

Darit: *Sitting up and taking a deep breath* I'm okay. Not the first time I've come unglued.

 

Amy: Damn. 900 years and your treatment still hasn't worked yet?

Amy: Oh. Well if this wasn't about trauma recovery in the first place, then I apologize for overreacting.

 

*Rossweisse's arm lights one fire.*

Ortlinde: Calm down, sis. She wants you to do that. They always want you to.

And yeah, kid, it don't ever go away. Trust me, I been tryin' to wash it off a long time.

 

Darit: *taking a long drink* Oh, there's trauma, that's just not what causes the blinking. If you saw what was on the other side, you'd understand.

 

Amy: OK, then, I'd like to ask again why you're so sure therapy wouldn't work. You'd go to a doctor for issues with your heart, stomach, spleen, or bone marrow, right? What makes you think the brain's different?

 

Rossweisse: Nobody said therapy doesn't work, genius. Just that when someone's writhing on the floor isn't the time to bring it up...

Ortlinde: Ross - not the time.

Rossweisse: ....you heartless cow.

 

Amy: Darit? You OK now?

 

Darit: Not sure if OK is the word but I'm awake. I haven't blinked that hard in a while - and you wouldn't believe whats on the other side.

 

Amy: So what are some of the things you do to keep yourself going?

 

Darit: I don't need to "keep myself going." I love my life, I just want to KEEP my life.

Ortlinde: *fuming in the corner* If this goes where I think it's going, you and me gonna have words later. And by "words" I mean violence.

 

Amy: Are we still talking about the same thing? I was just wondering if Darit and I might be able to trade ideas for handling traumas. I mean, sure, serial murder probably wouldn't work as well as it did for me, but that's not the only thing I've done that works to keep my PTSD from flaring up, it's not even the most effective thing I've done.

 

Darit: *laughs sardonically* I love how clinical you are. "Trauma" sounds so much cleaner than "my parents paid traffickers to get us to an alternate reality and had to leave my big sister behind." You don't deal with that, you bury it and find a way to move on. Find the good things in your new world and hold onto them tight - that's how I got into choc...I mean...xocolatl. A sommelier has to be into the details all the time, and they have to be totally immersed in the science of pleasure 24-7. I have one job, and that's to make people forget that anything exists outside my tasting room. Half the time it works well enough that I don't think about where Alîn might be now.

 

Rossweisse: Will somebody please smack that tree?