Where We Belong [End]

[Momo]

Ursula grinned ear to ear as Rosemary knocked back the remainder of her drink. Thank suits she wasn’t drinking with a prude, or a lightweight for that matter. Such people were never any fun. The Yarrow’s new, waiter-turned-drunkard friend came into their proximity and she waved him over.

“I’ll have another one of these,” she ordered, nudging the empty glass towards him. It would be easier to forget the fact she could hardly afford these drinks if she was tipsy.

“Well, I’ll agree with you there.” Talking about careers was like discussing the weather. She rolled her eyes, tail swaying lazily. “No, I prefer clubs over pubs. But what can I say? Sometimes a change of scenery pays off.”

“As for what I do for fun, well, I actually haven’t been to the capital in ages. I used to go all the time when I was a kid, but we always stuck to the nicer neighborhoods. So I guess I was just interested to see what this place was really like.”

She paused thoughtfully before smiling slyly. “What about you? I can’t believe that you’d be a regular here.”

[Kari Muffin]

Interesting. It sounded like this Yarrow really did have a story. Rosemary paused in thought to usher over the drunken tender. "I'll have some Kriek beer if you have any. Otherwise just give me some Ale." She sighed, they probably didn't have any beer that didn't taste like water.

"Eh, well. I don't come in here very often. I tend to lean towards night clubs and bars that are a bit more lively. You know, the sketchy places you're told to stay away from if you know what's good for you." Rosemary shrugged. "I like to get into trouble, I have my entire life and I haven't changed since I was a kid. I guess that's why I'm here... all my friends grew up and I wanted to see what it's like."

She snorted.

"I like being a kid better."

[Momo]

Her drink was delivered by way of sliding down the counter, and the fox took a sip and wrinkled her nose. It was stronger than the one before, but maybe that was a good thing. Nothing worse than a weak drink, in her own exalted opinion.

Ursula listened intently to Rosemary’s explanation, a faint smile on her face. She knew the feeling; in fact that was why she frequented dodgy places like this. “I get what you’re saying, life gets boring if you don’t take some risks or get out of your comfort zone, even a little.” Like some of her friends in the Gardens, who were content to never leave. How was that even possible? Maybe she was just too antsy for her own good, but Ursula had always thought that was incredibly claustrophobic.

She laughed. "See, I think I grew up too fast, I missed out on a lot. So I guess I’m making up for lost time, or something like that,” she said with a shrug of her shoulders. “I figure eventually I’ll have to grow up and do something productive with myself, but not now.” Only in the very distant future.

[Kari Muffin]

Rosemary's drink was delivered shortly after Ursula was finished speaking. The wolf-squirrel sniffed it for a long moment before lapping up a bit of the liquor.

Still tasted like ass.

Her ears drooped in slight disappointment before she returned to the conversation. "Growing up too fast? I think that happens a lot. I'm glad that my parents were willing to let me be a kid. But I think that might just have to do with the fact that my mother's a little out there...." By a little she clearly meant "a lot" with the tone of her voice. As darling as her mother was, she was pretty far out there compared to most adults her age. But really, none were as happy as she could ever be.

"Of course kids don't drink alcohol... so I think being an adult is a bit more fun as long as you can get away with acting like a kid half the time."

[Momo]

Ursula giggled into her own, slightly more satisfying drink. “Not exactly top-notch stuff, is it?” This bar obviously catered to the quantity-rather-than-quality crowd, and that suited her just fine; she couldn’t afford to be here otherwise. “Hopefully it’ll still get the job done,” she added, smirking. Ah, always the optimist.

“Oh, it’s definitely not an original story, and certainly not my mother’s fault.” Well, actually it was, but only in a passive sort of way, and not a calculated parenting decision by any means. “But that must be fun! My own mother was pretty strict, and wasn’t ‘out there’ in any sense of the word. Just a different way of growing up, I guess,” she said with a shrug. The Yarrow had never wanted for anything when she was little, and wasn’t that all anyone could really ask for?

She tipped her head back and laughed wholeheartedly. “No, being a kid had its upsides, but I much prefer being able to drink and have a good time…which most responsible adults don’t tend to do very often, from what I’ve experienced.” Maybe she wasn’t mature enough to ‘understand’ adulthood, but from her point of view it seemed impossibly boring sometimes – or most of the time, actually.

[Kari Muffin]

Rosemary gave a small cough. "I need to find a place that stocks booze that don't try to kill me be scent. My knows would cry tears of blood if it could." She gave a snort before tipping back the glass to take a long swig. Sometimes she wished she had her fairy brother's dexterity when it came things like this.

"I doubt how we grow up is anyone's fault," The wolf squirrel gave a shrug. "It's not like it's my parent's fault that I got my grandmother's curiosity and poke my nose where it doesn't belong. We are what we are, our parents just try to help to get us to adulthood. At least that's my theory. Anyway, you seem pretty damn successful to me."

It was certainly nice to hear cheerful laughter in this depressing place. Some of the patrons turned their heads curiously. Rosemary's face broke into a grin. "That's because most responsible adults are sticks in the mud! My Corvie Brother for instant always has his head stuck in a car, too busy to go out and have fun with a few of his friends. Then again I'm pretty sure he hasn't discovered the joy of real alcohol yet."

[Momo]

Ursula leaned over and daintily sniffed Rosemary’s drink. She recoiled, her nose scrunched up with dislike. “I agree with you there, this whole place does have a very…unique odor.” She had done her best to ignore it, but once the Jack acknowledged it the mixture of old beer and sweat became even more unpleasant. “Maybe it’s more fun like this?” She mused in faux-innocence. “That way you get the whole ‘skeevy bar’ experience,” she added with a wide grin.

“No, not purposefully – unless you have one of those parents.” The mothers and fathers that one would see on the news, and not because they did a fine job raising their kids. “I think I got that same gene,” she replied, smirking. “Although definitely not from my grandmother.” The old Yarrow wolf had rarely even ventured outdoors, as far as she could remember.

She raised an eyebrow, skeptical. “Well, I haven’t died or murdered anyone so sure, I’m a success.” Not a failure, of course, but she would hardly call herself prosperous…maybe somewhere stuck in the middle. “But thank you,” she smiled sweetly at the compliment of sorts.

Ursula noticed the stares immediately and shot a teasing glance in Rosemary’s direction. “It’s not a happy sort of establishment, is it?” The more she drank, the louder she seemed to get, although truth be told she was never exactly the quiet type. She chuckled and nodded. “I guess people feel like they can’t relax and actually have any fun once they hit a certain age.” She was ignorant of the particular year, but it didn’t matter much; she didn’t see herself turning into a real adult any time soon. “I think once he did it would be hard to go back,” the Yarrow quipped.

“If you don’t mind me asking, do you come from a large family?” She asked thoughtfully - it sounded like she had more than the one brother - before laughing at herself. “Sorry, that sounds weird; I just grew up in a very small family and was wondering what it was like not being an only child.” Ah yes, here came the rambling. Rein it in, she warned herself, no one likes a jabberer.

[Kari Muffin]

Rosemary snorted. "Large family is an understatement. My parents ended up having five kids right off the bat. Nearly killed our tiny mother."

Rooooosemary! said a voice in the back of her head. She had been ignoring her weapon long enough and he had finally broken through her barrier of "not giving a damn."

She took a sip of her drink to try to keep face. No. I am not letting you out. I'm actually enjoying a conversation where someone isn't being hit on. Stop whining and suck it up.

But you rarely get a chance to meet pretty Yarrows.... come on. Just this once.

No. Shut it. I doubt she likes men. Just like most Yarrows.

Rosemary went back to the conversation, "Unfortnately things have been going down hill recently since the loss of one of my brothers. I've lost my muse because of it, and thought that this place could at least.... poke it back to life somewhat." Thank the suits people couldn't read minds.

[Momo]

Ursula’s eyes widened with surprise. That poor uterus. “Wow, that’s insane! And here I was thinking my friends with two other siblings had a large family…Holidays must’ve been a blast, huh?” She asked teasingly, thinking of all the commotion that came with having so many people under one roof. Her family occasions had been small and quiet – lots of people around would’ve been a nice change of pace. “A family like that is such a foreign concept to me – for a long time it was just me and my mother and a creepy great-uncle. Or maybe he was a cousin twice removed,” she added, brow furrowed dramatically. “My family tree is really more like a bush.”

The Yarrow glanced down at the countertop. Fuck. Death hit too close to home and it was always an awkward topic of conversation. “Well, we’ll just have to find it,” she said simply, smiling sadly. “I know that when someone close to me died I wasn’t able to do anything for a very long time…too long, honestly. I think it would’ve helped to do something to fill up all those horrible hours.” Too much empty space.

Her expression brightened considerably as she looked around the bar. “There’s hope for you yet! I mean, look at all these interesting people,” she exclaimed, probably a little too loudly. “After all, there could be mobsters here,” Ursula said, glancing at the group of wolves. “Or a serial killer." This was directed at a biped horse huddled in the corner. “Or even just a woman sitting here getting drunk because she has nowhere else to go and has no idea what to do next,” the fox finished with a triumphant laugh.

“But maybe I’m too optimistic? I don’t know what it takes to uncover a muse in hiding,” the Yarrow noted with a smirk.

[Kari Muffin]

"A bush, I think, is better than a forest. Somehow I am related to Highlanders, Corvies and Tulgeys." She shrugged as she poked at her liquor. There was that familiar feeling of being at a loss. Of course she shouldn't have burst out and said anything, but really.

At least she was being sweet. And at least she knew where it came from. The wolf-squirrel gave a small sigh. "Mobsters. Serial killers. Herm. I heard about a Mafia family not too long ago. Related to the bird Queen of Diamonds. Something about risky business. And I heard an awful rumor about serial killers... kind of doubt any of them would come here. Then again supposedly they can maintain normal lives. Kind of creepy...."

Topic. Change of topic.

"Maybe I should tell a story to liven things up in this place. You want to hear something?" She asked with a hint of a smirk.