open || at a honky-tonk where their boots stomp all night

[sempreadagio]

Mass Text:
Ask and you shall receive. The Houndstooth Grill and Tavern now broadcasts all sporting events on a ton of TV's. I think I kind of love whoever runs this place. For now.
Grand opening this Saturday.
Are you ready for some football? Hope y'all come by. And Roll Tide!

The Houndstooth, while it's been open for business for awhile, now has sporting broadcasts from every world and every time. Of course, the default on the many screens is American football since Jill is such a football fan. But she's willing to search the channels to get at least one or two TV's onto whatever someone wants to watch. The Pub and Grill has a homey atmosphere and serves classic Americana foods like burgers and steaks, every kind of fried foods you can imagine, frito pies, chili cheese dogs, etc. Some nights there's even live music playing at the top floor and a dance floor to get your groove thing on.

While she's finagled Lucy into helping her out on this one day, Jill is sometimes at the bar serving drinks. Sometimes she's behind the piano playing and singing some of that afore mentioned live music. Sometimes she's out on the patio smoking a cigarette. Sometimes she's walking around serving, making sure everyone has what they need. All the time she's watching some football game or another. She's thrilled to have the place here in its entirety.

Stop on by. Bring a date. Have a few drinks and laughs and fun.



ooc: The official grand opening of The Houndstooth. Forward dated for this weekend (October 10th). Treat this as a mingle for Saturday, tag around and have fun.
Get an idea of what The Houndstooth looks like at the Residences and Businesses page.

Comments

alaina | ota

[championinquisitor]

While Alaina hasn't been stuck here for very long, she's already feeling antsy. She wants to go back to Skyhold. Who knows what Corypheus will do while she's gone? The sense of restlessness has her wandering around, exploring, looking for exits, escapes, anything she can use.

Eventually, this takes her to Jill's bar. Alaina hasn't trusted much in this city, least of all what seems to be a Venatori mage trap in the weird devices, but she can accept a good bar. She probably needs a drink. At this point, she would take a dragon fight by herself over being stuck in a strange place alone and with no way to help should Corypheus attack.

It's frustrating.

Alaina walks into the bar just as Jill finishes her latest song. Her weapon might have been left in her inventory for now, walking around a city with a giant greataxe isn't always the nicest thing, but she's still in full armor. Except for the helmet; that's off, too. For now. She glances around, bright purple eyes looking pink in the current light.

Eventually, she ends up at a table, where she orders a drink and proceeds to stare at one of the tvs, obviously confused by it. For a variety of reasons. She is very open to being bothered, especially if someone can explain this game to her.

[sempreadagio]

It's hard not to notice someone in a modern day pub wearing full armor like that. Jill has returned to her waiting duties and the bar to work, waiting to see if anyone is going to join the girl, but the more she sits alone and the more confused she looks, Jill feels compelled to go and speak to her. Also, she's really just curious about the armor because it looks so cool.

"Hey, I'm Jill." She says, approaching her table and standing there with her. "Would you like something to drink?"

[championinquisitor]

The Inquisitor glances up when someone eventually does approach her. She offers a slight smile in response, not one to turn down company. "Alaina Trevelyan," she replies, still half expecting the reverent murmur of "Your Worship" to follow. "I don't think there's anything here that I would recognize. Do you have an ale or something strong like that?"

She's in the mood to drink a hard one in honor of Bull. That's her excuse.

[sempreadagio]

Even her name sounds like something foreign and exotic. Jill doesn't smile all that much around strangers, but the corners of her lips pinch just a bit to give the impression of one. "I've got some high percentage of alcohol ale. Or you could just go straight for the liquor. I mean if getting drunk is your aim." Which she thinks is the aim given the phrasing of the question.

"I could even add some fruity something to it to make it taste better." She offers.

[championinquisitor]

Were Cullen here, Alaina knows he would protest. But he isn't.

For a minute, she considers, thinking over her options. Something with a little flavor sounds good to start with, but only if it's strong. "All right. You've got yourself a deal. Let's try something strong. Peach maybe?"

It won't be a Qunari ale -- actually, Bull would probably chastise and make fun of her for putting something fruity in her drink and not just drinking it straight -- but it'll be good anyway. And then she can go back to staring at the moving pictures on the wall.

[sempreadagio]

Clearly this Cullen dude has no idea how delicious fruity beverages can be. Getting drunk fast can taste very, very good if you let it.

"You've got it. I'll be right back." Jill disappears for a few minutes. And when she returns it's with a frosty glass that she sets in front of Alaina. "This is a peach-tini. I made it a triple so..." But she also sets down a little shot glass in front of the other woman. "Also, maybe you might like this. It's one of my favorites so I brought you just a taste. It's pineapple liquor."

[championinquisitor]

That or he doesn't like things that alter the mind. With his on-going troubles regarding lyrium addiction and breaking himself of it, the last thing he ever wants is for Alaina to go down that same road, even with something else. They had the lyrium talk because she mentioned the possibility of becoming a templar. Cullen had vehemently protested. She had respected his argument and decided to become the equivalent of a chevalier instead. A champion of the people.

But she isn't above getting "shitfaced," as Iron Bull would say, every so often.

"A triple? What did I do to get that lucky?" Alaina jokes easily. When faced with the two options before her, she decides to go for the shot first. Picking the tiny glass up, she lifts it towards her new friend. "To showing up in the weirdest-ass place you ever saw." And then she downs it with a practiced ease, without even blinking. "Doesn't pack the same punch that Bull's Qunari drink does, but I like it. Yours doesn't taste like a goat used it."

Took a piss in it is what Bull would have said. Alaina misses her whole crew already. It's been so long since she's been away from them.

[sempreadagio]

"Who wants to drink something a goat used when you have yumminess like this?" Her nose wrinkles a bit at the thought but there's also something like amusement there. Jill also isn't much for being punched when she drinks. Not that she'll say no if someone buys her a shot that has that punch, but she prefers things to taste good.

It does say something that Alaina can drink the shot without even making a face. Cause it does have a tiny bite to it.

"So what's with the armor?" she asks her, unable to help being just a little but curious.

[championinquisitor]

"A Qunari would," Alaina answers with no small amount of amusement. "Me? As long as it tastes good, I'll drink it. Unless I've just killed a dragon with a friend who then invites me out to drink to celebrate and his idea of a drink is the kind that burns going down." Yeah, Bull's drinks are not the normal. Alaina had three of those in a row and boy the hangover she had the next morning...

Surprise lifts her brows at the question. She had noticed that everyone was dressed oddly here, but she had never thought armor would be that unusual. "Doesn't everyone wear armor when they go somewhere dangerous?"

[sempreadagio]

"You've killed dragons?" Well, that probably explains the armor. It's a medieval fantasy world kind of thing. But Jill has to admit that Alaina wears the armor well. She looks pretty bad ass. And kind of hot. Hot, as in attractive. She isn't sure that she could pull off the bad ass the way Alaina does though. Jill is not the bad ass hot dragon slayer sort of girl.

"That's actually kind of cool." She shakes her head. "I left my armor at home." The words come out with a dry sense of sarcastic humor that is very much Jill. "But I haven't seen any dragons here yet so... there's that."

[championinquisitor]

"Ten of them." Not to brag. That's just how it's actually been. "A couple of them have been high dragons and one was an abyssal high dragon." So, basically, if when monsters invade this place ever, Alaina is the one to call for help.

"Glad to hear it, though they don't like staying around in secret. One I heard ate three horses, five cats, and two dogs before my party and I got to it." That one hadn't been the worst of the batch, but because it was a storm dragon, it hadn't been easy, either. "I'm guessing there's not much danger here or else I've just been lucky enough to avoid it."

She's never that lucky. She's known for her supremely bad luck when it comes to all the shit that tries to kill her and her supremely good luck in not actually ever ending up dead.

[deathbysk8board]

While Noah's never been much of a sports fan, he is a fan of Jill and Lucy. So, he comes here wearing what is perilously close to a Gansey-like outfit: khakis and a button down and he smiles when he sees her, giving her a small wave. Hey.

[sempreadagio]

Jill is standing behind the bar mixing some drinks when she spots Noah waving at her. She's in her normal boho chic relaxed style of clothing, her hair long and naturally messy after she had let it air dry this morning before coming into work. She waves back at him before returning to the drinks to finish them up. Once they're passed across the bar to the customers sitting there she goes over to him.

"Hey you." She says with a small smile. "Want something to drink?" She doesn't know if he drinks or not. But here she doesn't really care about the underage thing. "I know one of the bar tenders." Herself, naturally.

[deathbysk8board]

"Hey," he says aloud this time, giving her a smile that's equal parts bashful and smitten. "Just a soda, actually. Thanks." He doesn't drink; doesn't see the point of it. And he really, really doesn't drink brandy because of his mom.

"So, this is where you work, huh?" He looks around, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "It's nice."

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Jill fills a glass with ice and takes soda from a tap before sliding it across the bar to him along with a straw. She's got a fruity something or other that she's sipping on behind the bar. In her world you aren't supposed to drink while you're working. Here she doesn't think it's such a big deal. The Houndstooth is never that busy here. So she made herself a lemon drop martini.

"This is where I work. It's just like it is back home only... less busy for a football weekend." Usually the place is bustling given that she lives in a college town and football is a huge deal there.

"I could take a break if you're gonna stay for a bit." She offers.

[deathbysk8board]

"I'll stay if you want me to." Which isn't much of an answer, but Noah isn't used to being at all forceful, so it's the best he can do.

He takes a sip from his soda, rotating the glass on the bar. "But if it's time for a break, that's cool, too."

[sempreadagio]

Oh. Sadly, Jill isn't the forceful type either. She almost always follows Lucy's lead on things. And it kind of sounds like he doesn't want to stay with that non answer, which kind of deflates her a bit, visibly so.

She ends up pressing her lips together around an awkward small smile and shaking her head. "No that's okay. Are your friends coming to meet you?" A part of her hopes they are because that would explain why he doesn't want to stay or hang with her.

[deathbysk8board]

Oh, wait, what? Noah sees her kind of frown a little, but that's terrible. Just ... really terrible.

"They're not coming," Noah says, reaching his hand across the bartop. "I came to see you." He tries to catch her eye, cocking his head to do so, trying on a small, crooked smile. "I just don't want to get in your way or whatever, since you're working." He remembers how irate Blue had gotten when they would interfere with her work, too, at least at first.

"But if I'm not in the way or bothering you, I'll stay."

[sempreadagio]

Okay that's better. For a minute there she thought maybe he didn't want to be around her. But that crooked smile gets a similar one from her.

"I can take a break." She sets the dishtowel back on the bar and then walks around to meet him with her own fruity drink in one hand and her cigarettes in the other. "Want to go out to the patio?"

[deathbysk8board]

"Yeah, that'd be nice," he tells her, and he goes, this time, grabbing his own soda as well.

He follows her out, not quite succeeding in not watching how her hips sway when she walks.

"What's with the football?" He asks. It's not big in Henrietta. More about the rugby there.

[sempreadagio]

"We're from Alabama, Lucy and me." She says, turning back to look at him as she pulls open the back door to the outdoor patio for him. She follows him outside. The patio has picnic benches on it. There are a few patrons outside watching some games on the outdoor TV's.

Jill leads Noah to a picnic table in the far corner. She sets her drink down on the table and pushes up to sit beside it, her feet on the bench where she should be sitting. "Football is king there. Especially college football. We're huge Crimson Tide fans. That's what they call the University of Alabama football team."

She looks to Noah. "You're not into football?"

[deathbysk8board]

"Aglionby wasn't big on football. It was mostly rich boys, so ... " Noah smiles a little as he sits, his chin nearly at her knees. "Rugby and cricket and rowing. That kind of stuff. I don't know if people would crowd around a TV to watch those, though. Or go to a bar."

[mightbeconcussed]

Even if Jill hadn't asked Lucy to help her out tonight, she'd be here for the game. She works behind the bar a great deal making strong drinks, occasionally waiting tables and often (always) either yelling or sweet-talking the closest TV showing the Alabama game. She's dressed for the gameand she circulates through the room on a semi regular basis. She's quite passionate about 'her boys' as she calls them and you can expect to wait until this play is over to get your drink or your food.

By the way, she'll insist on shots when 'the boys' make a touchdown. Let's hope it's not a high scoring game?

[clairedanvers]

Claire is from Texas. She knows football even if she's never really followed a certain team. She knows her dad is happy when UT wins. He went to school at the University of Texas. So that's why he loves them. She's here watching one of the TV's sitting at the bar and sipping on a coke. It makes her feel like she's watching it with her dad. Her dad would be very disappointed in how they're playing.

When that other team scores and the girl behind the bar, who seems to be very into a certain game, screams 'roll tide' and starts filling up shot glasses. Claire shakes her head quickly. "Oh I don't need that. Thanks though."

[championinquisitor]

Alaina might not understand football -- or the TV things that keep playing images somehow -- but she can understand cheering for a team or a goal or whatever it is involved in this. It's like cheering for someone to win a sparring match, so she can get behind that. At some point, she ends up by the bar, after having one of Jill's fruity drinks and whatever was in that tiny glass -- liquor? This other blonde woman seems to know what this is better than she does.

"You seem to know what's going on better than I do," Alaina comments easily, just as the right team scores again, not that she knows she'll be privy to a shot for it. "Mind explaining what this is?"

Things that stand out most are probably her bright purple eyes that turn pink in the right light and the fact that she's wearing medieval armor. Like a knight. At least her helmet is off and there's no weapon in sight?