[MINGLE] Harvest Feast 🍂

[sixthiteration]

WHERE: 6I Inn
WHEN: 10 November, all day
OPEN TO: ALL - MINGLE POST
NOTE: Details can be found here.

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In the wee hours of November 10th, before even the earliest risers have roused themselves for another day, items begin to appear in the front room of the Inn. Decorations first — Boughs of autumn leaves in their reds and golds, wreaths of dried flowers and silken ribbon, flickering candles among the goards and berries and acorns. The food arrives next, the decadent aroma slipping up the Inn stairs to tempt those lingering in bed — Every imaginable harvest time delicacy, from roast turkey and ham to smoked salmon and oysters; fresh, soft bread warm from the oven to plum pudding and ice cream. And did we mention pie?

Once again, it's time for a feast. The bar is stocked, the coffee is brewed and the tables are groaning with food. Indulge, there's more than enough for everyone — That is, if you don't lose your appetite worrying about what it will all cost.

Comments

[ethnobotany]

As soon as Beverly spies Nerys, she makes her way over with her own plate of food and cup of coffee. She'll be stockpiling the leftovers after she's eaten, to be sure. In the meantime, she can say hello to a friend.

"Hi, Nerys," she says, her smile warm and gentle. "Mind a little company?"

She doesn't think Nerys will turn her down, but she always likes to be sure, especially since they're still really forging that bond of friendship. It's different with Jean-Luc, where she barely even needs to ask anymore. Maybe one day she'll get there with Nerys, but it hasn't happened yet.

[thenewways]

"Oh, hey, Beverly," Nerys says, and she can't help but give the woman a warm smile in reply. "Sure, have a seat. Besides, you'll need to sit down to tackle this spread of food." She gestures at the tables around them, which are effectively (if metaphorically) groaning with the load.

After a moment, she thinks of something, because Beverly's experiences are complex enough that she's sure it will have come to mind. "The food's probably safe to eat, by the way. At least, it has been the past couple of times something like this has happened. No one's developed strange growths or been unable to put their feet on the ground from eating it, at least, though it does..."

She trails off for a second, but respects her friend enough to say it aloud. Besides, it's not as if either of them are the kind of beings who panic. "Things tend to happen, afterwards."

[ethnobotany]

Beverly chuckles lightly as she slips into a seat nearby, pleased to have developed an actual friendship here from someone she knew by name at home. Not that it was hard for them; both women are friendly enough to make it work and Beverly is happy to call Nerys a friend in any place.

The levity doesn't last very long, unfortunately. Nerys brings up a thought that Beverly's had herself. Many times so far. "I won't be surprised if something does happen," she admits, pausing herself. They haven't talked theories as much as she and Jean-Luc have, but Nerys is a Bajoran; she has more experience, in all the worst ways, with Cardassians than either of the Starfleet officers. Even Jean-Luc.

"Jean-Luc and I aren't convinced that this whole valley isn't the product of Q or a bunch of Cardassians," she admits finally, also valuing Nerys' friendship enough to be honest. They've touched the subject before, but not for a while. "Some kind of holodeck simulation made to break us or get information. Even if it isn't, I still won't be surprised to have something less pleasant happening, especially given the letter I had following me earlier."

[thenewways]

Nerys reaches for the carafe of wine on the table. She's probably going to be hungover tomorrow, but unless there's a major disaster to deal with, it's not like she has anything she needs to be doing with all her wits about her. Though that would be exquisitely cruel, perhaps, dropping a crisis on a bunch of hungover village residents.

"I had thought that," she says, after listening to Beverly posit what she and Picard had discussed. Gesturing with the carafe, she pours some wine into a nearby clean glass for her friend. "But I can't think of any holo-tech that is this complex and extensive, and the Cardassians don't have enough resources--not to mention the people from other universes, there's no good answer for them. As for the Q, I'd have thought one or more of them would turn up gloating by now."

Pausing, she frowns in curiosity. "Sorry, what do you mean, letter?"

[ethnobotany]

Beverly isn't inclined to drink too much alcohol at the moment, but if it's possible to get a hangover from coffee, she might end up with that. It's been a long time since she had good coffee, longer still since she and Jean-Luc had their customary coffee and croissants breakfast. She misses a lot about life on the Enterprise, but she misses little things like breakfast with her best friend most of all.

"I know," she agrees with a sigh. "But it would explain the sun stopping in the sky or any of the other issues we've had. As for Q... Jean-Luc would have a better idea of this, but he's done this sort of thing before. Stayed away for longer than we ever expected he could without prodding."

She rubs her temple before taking a sip of coffee to try to soothe her nerves. "Nothing really makes sense. It's like we're grasping at straws no matter what we do."

[thenewways]

Nodding slowly, Nerys sips a little of her wine--she's never been a connoisseur, but she finds herself softly slurping it, letting the taste and texture of it play across her tongue, letting the faint alcohol burn enliven her mouth. It's something different, after all. Maybe she'll try a second batch in the still one of these days, just to liven things up, especially now that it's getting cold.

"I find myself..." she shakes her head a little, embarrassed. "Sometimes I find myself trying not to think about it. Like, trying not to think of a cause or an answer, just plodding through. And then I get scared, because when that happened during the Occupation, it was always a bad sign. It was burnout, looking at the problem and seeing that it was too big to solve by yourself--your mind tries to tell you it can't be solved at all."

[ethnobotany]

Beverly can certainly understand that feeling. She might not have experienced something as horrific as the Occupation, but given what she has been through, she can imagine. She never got to that point when she was being held hostage by the Ansata, mostly because they were never quite as bad as Cardassian Guls. It wasn't exactly pleasant, though. Getting some kind of burnout from being stuck there for so long wouldn't have been hard, especially if Jean-Luc hadn't turned up with her.

Hesitating slightly, Beverly reaches out to rest a hand against Nerys' arm, just as she would do for anyone else she was particularly close to. "Then it's a good thing we've got each other, isn't it?"

[thenewways]

For a half-second, Nerys startles, the response still not entirely removed from her reflexes after all these years. But it's a bare moment and she relaxes into Beverly's touch before the other woman can move away, and offers a smile of apology. "It's always a good thing to have friends with you," she agrees. "And not just for making plans or sharing the work. Just to have someone to talk to keeps you sane."