Pog Mahone's Irish Pub, Baltimore, Saturday Afternoon

[not_every_mage]

This was still the tackiest Irish-themed pub in America, just as it had been for Anders' and Edward's first visit the fall before. Almost everything that could be faded, scratched or dingy was, and the badly outdated St. Patrick's Day posters curled off the walls at their edges. But the beers were cheap, the bartenders were lax about carding, and Anders knew from past experience that the nachos were thick with melted cheese and gloppy guacamole.

It was, in other words, the perfect place to introduce Thorin to earth culture.

"They added a new type of nachos!" Anders exclaimed with some delight, as he squinted at the menu. "Irish. With ... potato slices, cheese and bacon. We have to try those, don't we?"

[OOC: For those named. NFB due to distance.]

Comments

[doesnotkneel]

Edward grabbed a mug of his own and took a nice, long drink from it. "Ah, I thought that the smaller you get, the more your tolerance lessens," he teased.

Or challenged. One of those things.

[dwarvenswagger]

Thorin tossed up a rude gesture in Iglishmêk as he downed his mug in a few gulps. Because none could say his people were not prone to rising to a challenge laid before them.

He blinked once he set the mug back down with a clack on the table. Then burped. "It's watered down. Is all that your people drink as such?"

[not_every_mage]

"No," Anders protested out of misplaced pride. "We have whiskey too. We just wanted to be nice and start with something weaker."

[doesnotkneel]

"We have plenty for the discerning gentleman," Edward said, grinning. "We can order you some, if you like."

[dwarvenswagger]

That's what you get when you call him short. He was a very tall dwarf, thank you.

"If you don't think it too much for you to handle..."

[not_every_mage]

Anders snorted. "You couldn't give me more than I could handle."

That wasn't flirting. That was just ... keeping in practice. He raised his voice to attract the bartender's attention.

"Three shots of whiskey, barkeep."

[doesnotkneel]

Edward would be over here, chugging back that ale of his before the whiskey arrived.

What? It was only smart to put down a bit of fortification in his stomach.

[dwarvenswagger]

This was gonna end sooooo badly. Probably with puking in the street.

"And more ale." To keep hydrated. "I think I like this place."

[not_every_mage]

"It's got personality," Anders agreed, matching Edward's pace at emptying his ale. "Not all -- hoity-toity nose in the air. 'sgood."

The replacement ales and shots arrived, as did the food. And then Anders would be quiet for a (brief) moment as he tried to eat All The Cheese.

[doesnotkneel]

Edward reached out to snag some of the potato-y bits.

Then he grabbed the shot. "You ready, Thorin, good sir?"

[dwarvenswagger]

Thorin looked at Edward and then down at the shot, swallowing down one of the so called cheese sticks before his lifted the tiny glass in response.

"Master Kenway," he replied, mimicking the tone.

[doesnotkneel]

"Master Thorin," Edward echoed, lifting the thiny glass.

He gave a most honorable nod in recognition, then downed the whole thing.

Good luck beating Edward's alcohol tolerance, lads.

[not_every_mage]

"To old friends and new," Anders said, equally formal since that seemed to be the thing they were doing.

And then he downed his and looked away so they wouldn't see the face he made. He hadn't had straight whiskey often, and he'd never learned to like it. More cheese was needed to chase the taste from his mouth.

[dwarvenswagger]

Thorin gave it a sniff before knocking it back as his compatriots had.

Then promptly coughed.

"That is potent." And no, he didn't seem upset by it.

[doesnotkneel]

"Might put another inch on you, mate," Edward said, laughing, and turned to his pint. "So how are we all finding ourselves this eve?"

[not_every_mage]

"It's a good day," Anders decided, sprawling out as best he could on a barstool. "You lot are in your right minds, for one thing. And Nathan and I have plans for a birthday weekend away in a few weeks, so there's that to look forward to."

[dwarvenswagger]

"Nathan?" Thorin asked after rolling his eyes at Edward.

[doesnotkneel]

"His..." Edward took a sip of his ale, "Close companion."

There. That was appropriate, right?

[not_every_mage]

It was much more appropriate than Anders would have wagered on Edward coming up with, and the lad got a grateful look as Anders swallowed his unwieldy mouthful of potato and bacon. "What he said," he confirmed. "You've probably seen him. He's got dark hair and he's a lot quieter than I am. Anyhow, we're going to the beach for a few days if I can get it arranged."

[dwarvenswagger]

"That describes many," Thorin replied dryly. "Does he not enjoy such places?"

[doesnotkneel]

Edward let Anders field that one, waving for the barkeep and putting in an order for some rum.

What? He'd seen Anders drunk. Now he wanted to see Thorin drunk.

[not_every_mage]

Anders shrugged at Thorin. "Not particularly," he said. "Besides, we don't spend all our time together."

And Nathan might have talked him out of being stupid, which would clearly be wasted effort.

[dwarvenswagger]

Not when they were in the posse of archaic bros. Thou turnst downwards whyfore?

Thorin nodded as though that was a suitable enough explanation for him as he sipped the watery beer and polished off the last of his plate of Irish nachos. It was sort of magical how much he could shovel away. "The only thing this place lacks seems to be music."

[doesnotkneel]

Now, now, that was at least a hundred years even before Edward's time, Thorin's narrative.

"They have this device near the back," Edward said, as the bartender put down three tall glasses of rum. "You put some coin in it and allegedly, something in it produces music."

[not_every_mage]

"Very bad music, mostly," Anders chipped in. "Noise and caterwauling. But sometimes the words are ... stirring."

Mainly because he didn't know the cliches were cliches.