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Post by shades on Nov 18, 2017 19:24:39 GMT -5
[ my cat has been sitting at the door for 5 minutes. There is no way my roommate is home from work this early and I swear I heard something at the door also. I can hear the shrill of the wind in the rain against the window, it's so creepy. I think I'm in a horror movie and I'm about to die. ]
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Post by 𝕾𝖙𝖔𝖗𝖒𝖗𝖆𝖌𝖊 on Nov 18, 2017 19:30:34 GMT -5
[ lulz ]
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Post by shades on Nov 18, 2017 20:29:15 GMT -5
[ it was amusing. There is a storm coming through and it's gone now. ]
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Post by Deleted on Nov 18, 2017 22:01:40 GMT -5
BENJAMIN COLLINGSWORTH
Benji folded his arms across the smooth oak counter, tracing a small whorl in the dark wood with one finger as the bartender scurried back and forth to supply the crew with drinks. He glanced up, watching sullenly from beneath thick eyebrows as the young man, probably no older than twenty-five, poured the golden liquid into a glass and set it in front of him. “Thanks,” he grunted, sitting up straight and staring into his glass thoughtfully. The bartender was almost like him, in that he stood out from the crowd that populated the pub. The whole place was crawling with filthy lowlifes, crooks and beggars--with the exception of his fellow crew members of course. It was the beggars in particular that repulsed him, with the way they essentially stole change from good-natured folk only to blow it on rum and whiskey until they were drunk out of their minds again. Perhaps that was the trick; to drink themselves into a haze of misery so as to better attain pity from passersby on the cobbled streets. They would gather just enough money to grab another drink, and repeat the process until they had satiated their unquenchable thirst. Where they got their food, he didn’t know, nor did he care. Maybe some poor, naively generous souls gave them bread or fish from the port to get by on. Some folks, he suspected, did it to show off. Look at me, I’m giving to the poor and destitute, aren’t I a good person? Benji despised people like that. They were liars who operated on false pretenses to garner attention and popularity. Sometimes the phrase “survival of the fittest” could be better applied to members of the higher class, who would do anything to climb to the top of the social ladder. It was people like these he couldn’t stand. Fake people, who took advantage of others and pretended to be kind to advance themselves in society. People like his father. Unfortunately, society loved these duplicitous personages, which only encouraged more of the same deceitful behavior from good people. Benji truly believed all people were good to start with, and it was the influences of the cruel world and they way they chose to react to those challenges that changed them for better or for worse. Even the thought of these people, or more specifically, his father, left a bad taste in Benji’s mouth. This was why he had joined the ranks of the Vile Squid; to escape exactly that lifestyle. It was never meant for him anyway. He washed the bile rising in his throat down with whiskey and turned to the outspoken Frenchman who had taken a seat to his left. He recognized the man as Nicola, the ship’s navigator. A very important job held by a fellow who apparently could not hold his liquor. Shooting Levi a sympathetic glance, Benji answered in a low sort of growl, “We’re here because we have to be. Personally, I will follow Nemo anywhere." He snatched the glass away from Nicola and held it just out of the drunken man's reach. "And I’d rather drink seawater than accept liquor from you,” he added, lifting his arm away from the amber liquid Nicola had spilled with a disgusted sneer that crinkled his nose. “Please tell me the bartender’s cut you off. Or is he deaf and blind to the health of his customers? I wouldn’t put it past 'im, considering the condition this pub is in. When does he clean it, every couple of years?” He took another sip of his own whiskey, eyeing the grimy tables with revulsion and trying not to breath too deeply the dank air inside the dimly-lit building.
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Post by mourningdove on Nov 18, 2017 23:10:25 GMT -5
(how do yall do the pretty replies haha i wanna do them too!)
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Post by shades on Nov 18, 2017 23:39:10 GMT -5
[ yeah. Pretty replies are nice. ]
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яєɗ
Chrom is overrated you fools
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Post by яєɗ on Nov 18, 2017 23:42:14 GMT -5
I would try to learn how to do the pretty replies, but I've done this way for so long I don't think I could seriously pick up a new trick)
If anything, Levi had settled on a spot next to Nicola purely because the man couldn't hold his liquor. Levi didn't like to spend more time in port than necessary, and if their navigator drank himself into oblivion, or got into trouble while drunk, they'd be delayed longer than he would like, or longer than any of his higher-ups would like. So if anything, Levi had appointed himself to be a glorified babysitter to ensure the fact that he wouldn't have to stay in that miserable city any longer than he'd need to.
With his ever-present scowl, Levi lifted his arm up off the bar to keep the alcohol that sloshed from Nicola's glass from hitting his arm. Levi didn't respond to Nicola as it wouldn't have meant anything; it would've went in one ear and went out the other. It would have been a waste of energy for him to tell Nicola why he wasn't drinking, and, besides, it didn't warrant an answer from him. Levi was notoriously quiet, and it was times like these that it showed. He did, however, meet the sympathetic eyes of Benji over the short frame of the navigator and simply rolled his eyes before turning his head from Benji -- who had now picked up Nicola's glass out of his reach -- and turned to observe the other patrons of the pub.
What was happening at their corner of the bar wasn't an isolated incident, plenty of other people in the building had drank themselves stupid. Mainly, though, those drunkards were the lowlifes that ran rampant without the supervision of authority, wasting away their money on whiskey and other liquor as to drown their day's sorrows. As if to forget that they were stuck in a cycle where they would end up here the next night, drinking themselves into oblivion. It didn't bother Levi one bit, though. Let them drink themselves into a haze, especially the beggars. They'd ended up in this ugly cycle, and if they cared enough, they could put their begging money to good use, or find legitimate ways to find money to waste themselves on. After all, Levi had broken that cycle. He'd come from living on the streets to an apprenticeship to a comfortable spot on the Vile Squid where he made money now, even if it wasn't totally legitimate.
Levi's eyes may not have been directed towards Benji and Nicola, but his ears most definitely were; he listened to it all. The part where Benji said he'd follow Nemo anywhere was Levi's favorite bit. Levi agreed with that statement. Even if Nemo took on impossible challenges with his crew, he always got them out of it. Not all captains could say the same, definitely not the previous captains Levi had answered to. He'd started a life of piracy ten years ago, at the age of fifteen, and only landed on the Vile Squid two years ago. He'd been under plenty of captains, and to say he'd blindly follow one anywhere was something Levi felt only comfortable saying he'd do with Nemo. For Benji to say that, the out-of-place looking man with the aristocratic air about him, meant that he really did place faith in their captain. Faith that was rarely placed into captains, too.
Had Benji stopped there, Levi would have never replied. However, he didn't. Benji went on to mutter something about how the bartender hadn't cut Nicola off yet, and that caused Levi to turn back to the pair and finally speak. "You really think he's blind to this?" Levi chuckled, hearing the tone of Benji's voice just fine. "He sees some easy money here. And he's not deaf, either. He just hasn't heard any complaints. I don't think any one here is in a position to complain, anyway." That was a jab at the clientele who spent their days begging on the streets. They didn't care what the place looked like as long as they were getting their alcohol. If the patrons wanted class or cleanliness, they'd go to a pub farther away from the docks, as the docks were a festering place for poor and grime. Levi would admit, though, he'd scrub this entire place down given the chance. All of the crew on the Vile Squid knew the boatswain liked some semblance of order and cleanliness; that's why he was good at what he did. Supplies were organized, the sails always neatly packed away when he supervised things, the masts always in near-perfect condition when his eye was monitoring things. So he could understand Benji's distaste for the pub, but there was nothing to be done about it.
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Post by mourningdove on Nov 18, 2017 23:49:23 GMT -5
"You are worried about my health? I am touched." Nicola looked at the older man, reaching to reclaim his drink. "My friend, does this look like an establishment that cuts its patrons off?" He asked with a light laugh, his cheeks flushed from drink. Obviously, the bartender would serve the navigator until he was incapable of verbally asking for more, and perhaps after that! As long as his coin was accepted, he would be served. That was the beauty of little taverns like this. It made up for the fact that mice ran beneath the bar stools and water leaked in through the roof, collecting steadily in a tin bucket near the door.
Much smaller than Benji, he accepted his attempts to grasp his whiskey a failure, and dropped his arm to rest on the bar top. Late to process the crew member's words, Nicola finally realized that he was offended. "You would not drink with me?" He asked, astounded. "I thought we were closer than that; we live on the same boat!" Then again, this was not surprising. Nicola wasn't the most popular man on the ship. Shoot, it seemed he wasn't even moderately liked. The captain spoke to him out of necessity, and the other crew members refrained from talking to him. He was even disliked by the powder monkeys, who he had to trade drink with for favors of finding certain towns or ports on his maps. Usually, Nicola found himself not caring that he spent most days without being in conversation with his crew members, but the drink had fogged his mind, and he found himself upset.
Receding back into silence, Nicola placed all his weight on his elbows, hunching over the bar top, his hands trapped between his chest and the side of the bar. The drink began to play tricks on him, dragging his mind back to revisit old memories. Nicola's eyes glassed over as he stared at a fixed point on the wall behind the bartender.
In his mind's eye, the French country side appeared, showing the small city where he grew up in, resting in the shadow of a wealthier city district. Nicola saw his father and mother, working hard to make less and less money each day. He saw his twin sister, and his heart gave a little squeeze. God, he missed her more and more every day; It was like part of him had stayed behind the day he boarded the ship. He saw himself beside his sister, the twins in old dresses, too big and somehow too short at the same time, exposing their shins to the bitter wind. Nicola's dress had blood on the color, his lip was busted, and he was crying as his sister led him home.
Shaking his mind, Nicola tried to clear away the memories. Rubbing his face with his hands, Nicola rejoined the bar, the noise suddenly crushing his eardrums. He wanted to leave.
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Post by shades on Nov 19, 2017 0:52:07 GMT -5
[ just so ya'll know. I edited Charlie's reply so he snuck into the pub. It's the last reply on page 6. El oh el ]
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Post by mourningdove on Nov 19, 2017 1:47:40 GMT -5
(More Nicola!! If y'all get tired of my drawings tell me haha (or if youll allow me to draw your characyers!))
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Post by lozi on Nov 19, 2017 8:33:24 GMT -5
[ dove I can try to make a reply code for you. If you want, you can tell me what symbol or theme you want me to put in there.
I love your art! Nicola is great!
you can always draw my characters I am shamelessly desperate ]
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ιcєу
nothing good starts in a getaway car
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Post by ιcєу on Nov 19, 2017 11:31:24 GMT -5
( You could draw Brynn if you'd like Dove! I have no artistic ability, at all. Even my stick figures look like blobs. )
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Post by mourningdove on Nov 19, 2017 12:37:29 GMT -5
(That's so sweet! But it's okay, I reply on my phone too often, and I wouldn't ever use it haha Thanks you two!! Over the break I'll procrastinate my history paper by drawing characters lol)
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Post by lozi on Nov 19, 2017 12:43:54 GMT -5
[ It's good stuff, that thing called procrastinating.
Anyone have any idea what we're doing next, or what I should be doing about Benno? ]
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Post by mourningdove on Nov 19, 2017 12:51:03 GMT -5
(Hmmm im not sure. Probably leaving port that night?? Tbh I was thinking Nicola might get into a fight with someone??)
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Post by lozi on Nov 19, 2017 13:02:21 GMT -5
[ I was thinking the same thing about Benno seeing how riled up and inebriated he is. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) ]
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Post by shades on Nov 19, 2017 13:11:44 GMT -5
[ Charlie will be under the tables making bets on this fight. ]
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Post by mourningdove on Nov 19, 2017 13:11:46 GMT -5
(That face omg)
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Post by mourningdove on Nov 19, 2017 13:12:20 GMT -5
(Charlie finna make bank on a bar fight lol)
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Post by lozi on Nov 19, 2017 13:20:24 GMT -5
[ I can see it now, one of the patrons goes “you’re drinking like your mother just died” and Benno just goes rabid on him ]
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Post by mourningdove on Nov 19, 2017 13:23:39 GMT -5
(Nicola, watching; wow he's hot)
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Post by lozi on Nov 19, 2017 13:24:57 GMT -5
[ lol I might actually have that happen if everyone’s down. ]
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Post by mourningdove on Nov 19, 2017 13:36:30 GMT -5
(I'm down; hopefully nemo isn't pissed)
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Post by lozi on Nov 19, 2017 13:47:41 GMT -5
[ yeah, I’ll just run it by ℊℓоω first. ]
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Post by Deleted on Nov 19, 2017 14:00:45 GMT -5
{ Benji, being the ill-tempered yet self-proclaimed peacemaker he is, would probably try to intervene only to get dragged into it dove, your drawings are gorgeous <3 Nicola is so cute !! }
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Post by mourningdove on Nov 19, 2017 14:03:04 GMT -5
(Thank you!!!)
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Post by lozi on Nov 19, 2017 14:18:02 GMT -5
[ Alright. I’ll put up something for the fight in a little bit, I’ve got some homework to finish up on. ]
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Post by mourningdove on Nov 19, 2017 14:18:58 GMT -5
(Y'all are so sweet aaaa!! <3 )
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