thisavrou | text; + action options; (cw character death)

[locked to people who know Elena Fisher]

elena's dead

[....yeah that's all. Odds are good that Nate will not want to reply to questions, condolences or comments regarding the recent tragedy, though Chloe Frazer might. However, he can be found...]

wandering; Once the shock has passed—if it ever does—Nate wanders for hours. Fuck, maybe days, he doesn't know. He just doesn't want to go back to the house in Region 1 where she isn't.

Eventually he finds himself in a well-wooded park. For lack of anything else to do, he climbs a tree.

at home; When he finally does make it back, Nate parks his ass on the couch, where he'll be sleeping until—well, he can't count on there being an "until." Maybe he'll just live on the couch forever. Sorry, Pepper, Varric, etc.

at the ingress complex; Nate comes by the facility a couple of times, to ask for news or if they can guarantee that they'll be able to bring her back, because he knows that people have returned, and he knows that they don't always.

He walks away both times, unable to stand it if the answer is no.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[It's the only reason to get blitzed, honestly. The reason Dorian drinks is to distract himself and to numb himself to his own sufferings when they happen to come up.

He drinks for the pleasure of it as well, but those are separate circumstances.

Regardless Dorian strides over, taking a seat at Nate's side and laying the bottles carefully at their feet.]

I believe in variety, of course they're all good, but some wines are robust and some are dry.

[But Dorian simply picked one from the bunch and uncorked it, because his arsenal wouldn't be complete without a wine bottle opener.]

Long as they're wet enough to drink.

[With the wine uncorked, he motions it over so he can take a long swig. Mourning husbands first, hospitality to houseguests be damned. It's pretty good, as far as he knows wine, but then as far as he knows Dorian, he'd expect nothing less.

Maybe another time he'd be able to appreciate it.]

So, how much before I'm so wasted I forget why I needed it?

I hope they're not wet enough to chew, that would defeat the purpose...and I'd have to promptly request a refund.

[Mourning husbands first, Dorian respects the unspoken rules of the house and he's not easily offended by them. It helps that he quite adores Nathan and the man's pain does have an unexpected impact on Dorian as well.

Fortunately Dorian knows his wine and he knows that it's good, but he's also been to places like this and he's gotten drunk without caring in the slightest about taste and quality. So it's alright.]

Money is on you being drunk by the second bottle and throwing up by the third, so somewhere between drunk and vomiting.

[So Dorian predicts that somewhere between bottle number two and bottle number three Nathan won't remember why they're doing this...he'll probably have trouble remembering his own name.

He could be wrong, but wine is potent.]

Maybe I'll get lucky and die of alcohol poisoning.

[Ha, ha, very funny. The real joke is that he's not suicidal; does want to live. But not like this.

Down goes the first half of the bottle.]

You know, I figured after two ship crashes, we'd come through the worst danger space could throw at us.

[What an idiot he was.]

Then I would be the grieving one, it's a sick cycle, you know.

[Just picture all of the kohl running down his face, talk about ugly crying face...who are we kidding, Dorian couldn't possibly look ugly, but it says something that he'd cry. It isn't normal for him to cry.

And as Nate busies himself with his own bottle Dorian opens one for himself and takes a swig, listening.]

Calm before the storm maybe...do you...want to talk about it?

[It's an open question, Dorian might not have any advice, but he had ears, and Nate had every bit of his time and every ounce of his attention.

Or they could just drink, that is a fair option as well.]

[Nate actually stops to think about it. So far, he's immediately shut down any similar overtures, any offers for him to reach into his chest and tear out his own heart...otherwise known as offers to listen.

But Dorian sounds so tentative and uncertain, nearly as lost as he is. So for a moment, he considers. But then he shakes his head.]

Nah. Let's stick with the dragon piss.

[It's the easiest option. And right now Nate doesn't think he can do hard.]

[Dorian can respect that, he's already given Nate the open invitation to say anything weighing on his mind he wishes without it getting strange on the mage's part.

He would listen if Nate ever felt the desire to open up on the subject, but only on his terms.]

Oh no, my dear Nate, if this was dragon piss you'd smell it before you tasted it, the hairs in your nose would be one fire. If you can picture it.

[Dorian's not sure he wants to picture a man running around with his hands over his face because his nose hairs are on fire.]

Wouldn't mind that right now. It'd be a change of pace at least.

[Some physical pain to supplant the emotional pain? Yeah, that's a real healthy way of looking at it, not self-destructive at all. It's not really an urge he has. But if it were foisted upon him, he wouldn't complain.]

Maybe there's a space dragon we could find.