Catchall

[winecasks]

Who: Grantaire & OPEN
What: Catch-all for January
When: January. Just January
Where: Mostly Wyver with an Olympia option
Warning(s): N…one…? He’s a trainwreck but he’s harmless



1. Obligatory drinking prompt [Wyver]

[ Grantaire isn’t blind to the sudden shift in atmosphere within Wyver. Even within an otherwise friendly establishment, he’s watched from behind wine glasses and bottles as more than one patron is refused service for what seems to be no particular reason. It strikes him as odd, but he his head is always an impossible tangle of thoughts and words, and the reasoning has gotten caught up within them entirely. He hadn’t chosen a ribbon on Gala night, so he remains a welcome customer despite his fondness for spouting nonsense.

Grantaire doesn’t have a particularly strong stance on anything at all, but he is a friendly soul. To the next person who is turned away by the bartender, Grantaire turns, gently grabs hold of them by their arm, and pulls them down to sit across from him. He smiles, almost obliviously, as he pours wine into a glass from a bottle he’s purchased himself, and then forces the glass into his new companion’s hand. ]

There you are, my friend. Now I’ve served you myself, and your supposedly unwelcome money didn’t need to be spent at all. I don’t suppose any complaints can be made about that, do you?


2. Around Wyver

[ Though Grantaire spends a great deal of his time drinking, he makes a special effort to learn the city. It has its quirks and its history, even if the native citizens strangely can’t seem to recall it. Throughout the day, you can find him at various points throughout the city—surprisingly doing something productive. He’s acquired a sketchbook and charcoal, and he seems to be attempting to create sketches of parts of the city that he finds interesting, though he seems upset. He furrows his eyebrows at his paper more often than not, marks through pages entirely, runs his fingers through his hair in frustration and mumbles quietly to himself. ]

Hideous. Distorted perspective. Delusional Grantaire, they’ll say. He sees the world just as twisted as he claims it really is.

[ If you were to peer over this shoulder, you might see that they’re not that bad. He’s just out of practice and expecting miracles. Is that anime? ]

3. Another drinking prompt because this sad sack of shit [Olympia]

[ Grantaire’s frustration with himself has caused his spirits to sink, while his desire to drink has skyrocketed. He wonders vaguely if Olympia wine is of superior or lesser quality in comparison to Wyver wine, and in a thoughtless decision, he decides to put it to the test.

He isn’t as familiar with Olympia. Unwilling to leave Enjolras, the only friend he has left from the barricade, Wyver has become his new home, but he makes his way to the other city regardless.

The last of his money is spent rather quickly, and his glass drained even more quickly--more than once. Feel free to find him slumped over a table in the corner completely conked out. It's not a good look. Give him a little shake? ]

4. Wildcard

[ Just…anything. Or grab me at muttonchops for a top level. ]

Comments

[winecasks]

[ He’s not just a bit depressing. He’s very depressing, and a smile isn’t exactly the best disguise for it. He’s friendly, but that smile doesn’t clear away the sadness in his eyes. ]

Any company can be good company when the wine is flowing and the atmosphere is fair.

[ He doesn’t pour a glass for himself. Instead, he merely toasts the entire bottle and takes a swig from that instead. We’ve got a serious drinker on our hands here. ]

I should like to know your name, however. I may learn nothing else of you, but have I not earned that much?

[ininhuman]

[ You certainly don't need to have Maximus' powers of observation to figure any of that out. Were Maximus anyone else, he might even feel sorry. Well. Sorrier than he does, but honestly his pity isn't born out of concern. It's just pity. ]

Maximus. And yours?

[winecasks]

[ It doesn’t seem to be pity or concern that Grantaire is after. He drowns his sorrows in wine until he doesn’t have to face them any longer, and he has pushed away his friends’ worries many times before in the past. They surely saw his pain, but what can be done when someone clearly doesn’t want to be helped? ]

You have a great name, monsieur Maximus. Quite literally, if the Latin is anything to judge by. Know me as Grantaire.

[ininhuman]

My parents, I don't think, had any great ideas for me when they gave me the name.

[ But here he is, stuck with a name far greater than he is. He shrugs a shoulder and takes a sip of his wine. ]

A pleasure, Grantaire. Wyver's where you call home, then?

[winecasks]

A name is only a name. It can be changed as easily as one changes his clothes. I've been known only as Grantaire for years, so only Grantaire I remain.

[ If you were to ask him his first name right now, in his drunken state, he likely wouldn’t be able to recall it. It’s a good thing too, because he doesn’t have one. ]

But you, my friend, have been granted a wonderful name. It does not merely mean great but the greatest. You’re most likely correct when you say that it is unlikely that your parents had anything in mind at all when they chose it—

[ He isn’t making it any better, is he? He can fix it. ]

But men named Maximus do not go unnoticed throughout history. It's an impossible name to ignore.

[ Basically, he thinks your name is really cool, Max, and he smiles as he takes another swig from the bottle. ]

Wyver is my home, for the time being, but my home is wherever my friends should lead me.

[ininhuman]

I would wager that there are ten thousand men named Maximus who go unnoticed, for every one that rewrites history.

[ He would know. He's gone unnoticed his whole life. What a maudlin thought. ]

A simple existence. That does seem like the easiest course of action, though tricky, I think, given the animosity that's brewing. I'd say you're stuck in Wyver, even if your friends desire Olympia.

[winecasks]

Perhaps.

[ He’s willing to concede to that point. ]

But that hardly makes it a name that anyone can ignore, Maximus.

[ He inclines his head, studying the bottle in his hand. He’ll go where Enjolras should lead, even if it means walking through fire, but he doesn’t think he’ll ever have it in him to match any of his passion when it comes to politics. ]

In France, it was the monarchy. Here, it’s the monarchy as well. Someone is always quarreling about the monarchy. Neither the empress nor the king seem so terrible as the other side makes them out to be. Where my friends lead, I’ll follow all the same, the animosity be damned.

[ininhuman]

[ All right, so that means Grantaire is, at least, from a recognizable earth. Though the monarchy ... Maximus knew enough to know that was a thing long since gone. It explains the manner of speech.

Though the comment about monarchies and quarreling is amusing, so Maximus has to have a chuckle. ]

It's the nature of war, to villainize your enemy.

[winecasks]

The only enemies I have, monsieur Maximus, are an empty glass and the man who refuses to fill it before I’ve had my share.

[ It’s a simple, but harmful thought process. ]

If they thought the same, perhaps they might be happier for it.

[ But it's clear that he isn't happy himself. He makes a point to believe in nothing, but he never pushes that opinion anyone else. These are nothing but the out-loud musings of a drunk man. ]