open | i'll never die, i am a freak

[brushoff]

Who: Dorian Gray & OPEN
What: settling in
When: all throughout the month of March
Where: Milton, with a focus on the community hall, the church, and the outskirts

Content Warnings: drug use, smut, body horror and gore in the form of Dorian's creepyass portrait, others tba

( catch all post for March! full of open and closed starters, dm me if you have an idea~ )

Comments

[brushoff]

"Alas, I live exclusively on takeaway and kebab shops."

Unsurprisingly, Dorian has never grown a vegetable in his life.

"However, manual labor sounds easy enough. That, I can do."

[desperate_times_right]

“They do still serve meals at the community centre, I think.” Chloe herself doesn't often head over there other than on feast days, but that seems to be the story. “Closest thing we’ve got to takeout. There used to be a restaurant over in Lakeside, but it burned down and then the guy who ran it disappeared.”

[brushoff]

"It's a damn shame I'm a terrible chef," Dorian muses, with a little shrug. "A restaurant seems like a good idea for everyone involved. Something to build community spirit and keep people fed."

[desperate_times_right]

“Yeah, me too.” British potatoes are about at the limit of her skill. “The restaurant guy used to cook for me. It was great.”

[brushoff]

"I wonder if the Aurora or the Darkwalker or whatever the fuck brought us here takes requests," he muses. "I'll put together a petition to bring over a chef."

[desperate_times_right]

“Ugh, with our luck we’d get the Victorian chef from the boat.” Who even knows how that would go.

[brushoff]

"What boat even is it? The Medusa was technically a raft, but still...."

Dorian winces slightly.

[desperate_times_right]

“Later. A bunch of sad sack Northwest Passage guys. Terror, I think.”

Not exactly a promising name.

[brushoff]

That wince grows even deeper.

"John Franklin, right? There was a big to-do back in the 1980s when they unearthed one of those ice mummies. I think I read about it in Time."

Maybe? He's not sure. The 1980s were a bit of a weird decade for Dorian—half of it he remembers crystal clear, the other half might as well not have existed.

"If I'm not mistaken, that's one of those naval mistakes where they absolutely ate each other, but because good proper Englishmen don't do that, they probably blamed it on the natives in the press."

[desperate_times_right]

“The very same, and they did, and there are very hard feelings here about it, so tread carefully, I guess.”

Some people don't seem to care much but those people (Billy) are freaks so whatever.

“Not a chef I’d want around here, all the same.”

We are ignoring that Hickey cooked and fed her part of a man’s leg last summer, thank you.

[brushoff]

"I will happily keep all cannibalism jokes to myself," Dorian muses. He gives Chloe finger guns, which oddly makes him look like an old man desperately trying to be hip instead of someone who does finger guns on a regular basis.

"Still, I suppose it's good that they already got to that point. If I found out that in my future, I died horrifically and also ate my coworker, I'd be very put out."

Understatement of the century.

[desperate_times_right]

Chloe snorts, amused. “There’s been a little of that.” After all, several people only learned here what had happened to their corpses. “But I think it's mostly culture shock stuff with them, in terms of finding stuff out. You know, what’s a helicopter, gay people can get married, that kind of stuff.”

[brushoff]

"Thank God someone's told them about that," he sighs dramatically. "This way, I can flirt with the cute Victorians and they won't immediately brand me a sodomite."

Unfortunately for Dorian, the vast majority of the cute Victorians are in a relationship of some kind. A boy can dream, though!

[desperate_times_right]

“They might still do that,” Chloe warns. “A lot of stuffed shirts in that bunch.”

Honestly, some of the modern people might also do that. She does know all about the Rorschach situation.

“Numbers are on your side, though, if you're looking to play around. People get stuff for me all the time.”

[brushoff]

"Oh, I'm certainly going to play around. As far as I'm concerned, might as well have a little bit of fun here. Brand new world, brand new people..."

As he talks, he gives Chloe a once-over, very obviously checking her out.

"Might as well have a bit of fun."

[desperate_times_right]

Oh, that's interesting. Chloe raises her eyebrows. Hopefully this isn't one of those guys who is totally useless on coke.

“Might as well, indeed. That's the house over there. Looks like shit out here after those idiots burned the barn last summer, but I promise it's better inside.”

[brushoff]

"In that case, lead the way. I cannot wait to get out of this cold."

And take off his coat. And possibly his shirt. And hopefully his trousers in the end.

[desperate_times_right]

It feels a bit quaint in this place but Chloe always locks her door, so she fishes around in her jacket for a second for her key before letting them inside.

Thanks to the boiler it's luxuriously warm in the house. Chloe peels off her jacket with a relieved sigh and a stretch that she hopes looks careless despite being designed to show off her best assets.

Most of what’s in the house is utilitarian farm furniture - rustic wooden chairs and that sort of thing - but a small bronze figure of the Hindu god Ganesh sits in the middle of the kitchen table.

“You can hang your coat up over here. Want a drink or anything?”

[brushoff]

"Whatever you've got on hand, I'll be happy with," Dorian says as he takes off his coat. He's certainly noticed Chloe's assets but, like a gentleman, he doesn't stare too long. Instead, he takes a moment to look around the house itself, eyes drawn to the statue.

"Ganesh? I didn't know you were Hindu. I live in the church here, but I'm not religious. I doubt the Christians have much in the way of prayer mats or rugs, but I can at least filch some candles and incense for you, if you want."

[desperate_times_right]

Chloe pours two glasses of that noxious pine beverage and brings them to the table.

“Huh? Oh, yeah. My dad was, but I mostly grew up with my mum and she didn't like me doing that stuff. Reconnecting as an adult, you know?”

[brushoff]

Dorian makes a little noise of acknowledgement. Taking one of the glasses, he muses, "I know that feeling entirely. I only came into my own when I turned twenty. My parents died when I was young. When that happens, you learn to...mmm, keep yourself quiet, so to speak? I was living with relatives and I already knew I was an imposition."

He takes a sip of the pine wine...and then almost immediately gags. That was a very unexpected taste.

[desperate_times_right]

Chloe can definitely sympathize - she ran away at eighteen and almost immediately became a sugar baby for the mob - but before she can say so poor Dorian gags and she laughs, distracted.

“Yeah, it's an acquired taste. If you find it, let me know.”

[brushoff]

"I can tell you right now, it'll probably take a while."

Dorian winces, looking down at the pine wine...before taking another drink. It's alcohol, after all. That's what matters most.

"How quickly can you get fucked up on this?"

[desperate_times_right]

“I wouldn't drive after a glass, if that's what you mean.”

She can already feel her own head spinning pleasantly.

“They make this in some shitty old cabin so it's pretty powerful.”

[brushoff]

"In that case, I hope you don't mind me crashing on your couch tonight—or bed, if I'm lucky enough."

Dorian gives Chloe a grin, a wide sort of 'I am absolutely planning on trying to sleep with you tonight,' confident kind of grin, before taking a very large swig of the pine wine. He winces as it goes down but it goes down all the same. Just think of it like those shitty drinks you had at the club, think of it like vodka and something, it'll get you fucked up and that's what matters most.