14093/Too Many Monsters

Too Many Monsters
Date of Scene:	28 January 2022
Location:	The Bronze, Sunnydale
Synopsis:	Faith and Hannibal share some down time before heading out for a hunt. The Bronze is the place to be as always.
Cast of Characters:	Faith Lehane, Hannibal King

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Faith Lehane has posed:
There was one constant in the life of the Scooby Gang: Monsters. They showed up constantly, in a wide range of varieties. From vampires to demons to evil witches and everything in between. It was thanks to the Hellmouth centered in Sunnydale.

It was also a helluva lot of fun.

In the mind of a certain Slayer at least. Faith loved her job. She loved being a Slayer and made the most of her work. While Buffy whined and cried about the burden of Slayerhood, Faith embraced it. This was a freedom she never had earlier in life.

Yet, even for her, there needed to be a night off. Thus, she had come to the infamous Bronze to hang out and have a few drinks while listening to the live band up on the stage.

Hannibal King has posed:
Monsters came in many shapes and sizes. There were big ones, little ones, even ones with spots. And there was Hannibal King. He was by most definitions, a monster, even if he had been fighting the monster within him, from the moment he woke up as one, after having been bitten by Deacon Frost all those many years ago.

Instead of a monster, he preferred the term magnificent bastard. That suited him more. Like right now, he was on stage, singing alongside the live band. He wasn't part of the band. He didn't even know them, but had played poker with them earlier in the night, and one of the bets was that he got to sing alongside them, a pot he had obviously won, and they weren't regretting it. He was no professional, but he was a pretty good amateur. And they weren't very good professionals, so he had fit in nicely.

Faith Lehane has posed:
Faith picked up her glass from the bar and headed for a table. The Bronze didn't have the typical wait staff. Instead it had a small bar to the side where people had to walk up and order.

She was grooving a bit to the music as she moved toward an empty table which is when she spotted Hannibal with the band. That earned the lifting of her eyebrows in surprise as she settled down to watch and listen.

Hannibal King has posed:
The band was playing a cover of Jon Bon Jovi's 'It's My Life'. It was quite ironic when Hannibal sang that he ain't gonna live forever, but soon, it was over, people cheered, and Hannibal King would jump off the stage, with a bit of a flourish, rather than walk down the side like a normal person. Thankfully he hadn't tried to crowd surf, as the band wasn't that good, and nobody would have caught him.

Moving to a table with people he didn't know, he grabbed a drink, "sorry, I need this more than you," and plopped money on the table to cover whatever it was he took, and after drinking half of it, he gave a confused look, then shifted to a happy one, "rum and lime Gatorade, my favorite." He lied, but he had just taken someone's drink and then given them the money for it without asking.

Faith Lehane has posed:
Not knowing that Hannibal was a vampire, Faith didn't get the irony of course. She'd met him a few times. They got along alright. Though she was getting that usual feeling from her Slayer sense that something was off. She figured it was because there were always vampires around the Bronze. Other places they had met, population was high in the area so hard to pinpoint where the sense was focused.

"Sounds disgusting," was her verdict on the particular drink he had borrowed from the hapless guest. She nodded to her table, inviting him to join her wordlessly

Hannibal King has posed:
Refreshed by the drink, even if it was disgusting, and thankful for the invite, Hannibal sat on the available stool, mouthing 'thank you', in case the other table could hear. Music was playing, by the band, but sans Hannibal, so it was much better. "Besides, everybody knows that Glacier Freeze is the best Gatorade, and who doesn't like Fruit Punch. Although I have heard good things about this Riptide Rush, tell me Faith, where do you stand on your Gatorade selections, are you a powder kind of girl, or pre-mixed?"

Faith Lehane has posed:
That gets a frown from Faith and a negative shake of the head. "Got to say hell no to any of them. It's like flavored water, with too much salt. So I prefer to stick with a good soda." At that she picks up her cup and offers it in a mock toast.

Course, it isn't just Coca Cola in there. Rum and Coke was her drink of choice tonight. She was even old enough to buy it without a fake ID now.

"How you been?"

Hannibal King has posed:
"I prefer to think of it as salt with a side of water." He drank some more, he had paid over the odds for it. It was still disgusting. He lifted his glass in response to her mock toast, "Oh, the usual, I'm not paranoid if everyone is out to get me, and all that." He was suddenly feeling a bit peckish. "Is the kitchen still open? They usually have some finger foods around here, pretzels, peanuts, a Scotch Egg in the really nice places." It obviously had nothing to do with all the salt he was drinking.

Faith Lehane has posed:
"A..what?" Because Faith had never heard of a Scotch Egg and it sounded weird as well. "Is that a kind of candy?" Mabye it was like those gummy foods they sold? It had to be something weird like that.

"If you go up to the bar, you can order drinks and food there. Nothing fancy. Just things like mozzarella sticks."

Hannibal King has posed:
"A scotch egg," he repeated, in case she hadn't understood with the noise of the music and other people about. But when it became clear that she did not know what one was, he thought about explaining that it was a boiled egg, wrapped in sausage, and coated in breadcrumbs, then deep fried, but instead, decided to take her advice, and see if he can order one. "Be back in a jiffy," he said, getting up, and would see if he could.

It seems that he was in luck. They were available, though not something they pre-fried, so it'd be a few minutes. He returned a few moments later with a beer, and another rum and coke for her. A few minutes after that, a waitress would deliver the food, enough for them both. The cooked food, while not a big seller, was all they delivered from the kitchen with wait staff. That and picking up glasses from tables. "Are you brave enough to try one?" He asked as the plate of scotch eggs were placed on the table.

Faith Lehane has posed:
"I don't think it's a matter of brave."

Faith eyed the atrocities that were laid in a bowl before them on the table. They looked kind of like rocks. More golden than that but they still didn't look like something one should be eating. Maybe throwing at an enemy.

"I think it's a matter of good taste or lack thereof?"

Hannibal King has posed:
"Suit yourself," and Hannibal picked one up, taking a bite. The way he held it, Faith wouldn't get much of a look at the insides of it. But it was easy to bite into, and he had the look of someone who was enjoying it, especially compared to how he had looked when drinking the rum and lime Gatorade disaster that he had appropriated from the next table. After swallowing, he gave her a look, a look that he dared her to try one.

Faith Lehane has posed:
"Yeah...no."

Faith was not a coward. Everyone who knew her as a Slayer knew that. She wasn't one to run from any fight--even when she should. Instead, she was a bit brash and dangerous.

Yet those little rocks had her eyeing them as though they might be demonic in nature.

"You enjoy. I'll take your word on it."

Hannibal King has posed:
"More for me," and he finished off his first one in short order. He had arranged for enough for both of them, so this now had him thinking, "of course, this many will go straight to my thighs." He shook his head, taking another, "but they're so good. I'll just have to figure out some kind of cardio to make it worthwhile."

Faith Lehane has posed:
"Do some hunting. A few fights and your heartrate will be right up there where it needs to be," Faith suggested as she picked up her original drink, finishing it off. At least she didn't have to go get another one since he'd been kind enough to get her a new one. She moved the empty glass to the side and pulled the other one closer so it'd be easier to reach.

"I know of a nest that we could go deal with, if you wanted."

Hannibal King has posed:
"So the plan is to get liquored up, me to finish off these delicious Scotch Eggs, and then go pick a fight? I'm okay with that." And he polished off his second Scotch Egg. There were two more to go. He may not have thought this through. It was way more than he really wanted to eat, but they were just so good.

Faith Lehane has posed:
"Just a thought. Not required, of course," Faith adds as she picks up her drink and cradles it in one hand, balanced atop the arm of her chair. She settled back comfortably, half slouched.

"And you bought your own drink. So don't try to blame me for liquoring you up. And I don't know if eating all those boulders is a good idea if you do plan to help me with the fight."

Hannibal King has posed:
"No, it's good, we'll do that." He knew she likely needed some backup, or else she'd have taken the nest out the moment she learned of it. But at the same time, not much backup, since she was a slayer. No nest was going to be that difficult. "But I will blame you for fattening me up. I bought these for you too, but you're too scared to try one."

Faith Lehane has posed:
"I'm not to scared."

It was an automatic answer. "Eat all of those and you get a punch in the stomach it'll be bleeeeeh all over the place. Might be amusing if you puked on the vamps though."

She eyed the things in the bowl, reaching out to poke one with a finger. "What exactly are they? You said eggs but they don't look like eggs."

Hannibal King has posed:
"I bet nobody's ever tried to dust one with their own vomit. Could be funny, especially if it works. Might open up a whole new way of slaying." He shook his head, then seeing her poke one with her finger, "boiled egg, wrapped in sausage, coated in breadcrumbs, and then deep fried. They're delicious. Trust me."

Faith Lehane has posed:
"Huh." Faith considered now that she knew the ingredients. Separately, nothing wrong there. Fried anything in breading was usually good. Egg and sausage made her think breakfast.

She finally picked one up, giving it the full once-over as she spun it in her fingers to look at it from every angle. Then finally she carefully took a nible off one end. Resulting in breading and sausage with no egg. Which was excellent already.

Hannibal King has posed:
Watching her eat something new was quite amusing. She was so tentative, as if the thing would disgust her, or kill her. She nibbled it, rather than eat it. She was like someone who gets a plate of food, prepared by the chef, and immediately starts separating the ingredients, instead of eating it as intended. "Try another bite?" Maybe she'd get some egg in the next one.

Faith Lehane has posed:
When one tastes something they are afraid will be disgusting, they tend to nibble. They didn't take a giant bite they might end up spitting out across the table. Not that she cared if she did that. It wasn't like she was the dainty, hide things in a napkin sort. But better to avoid a mouthful of ick to a little bit.

She did take another bit and this time got the full effect. She looks surprised as she chewed thoughtfully. "Very good."

Hannibal King has posed:
"The other one's all yours too," since he had gotten two for each of them. She seemed the kind of girl who could eat two, or hell, even more. With her metabolism, she could probably eat a whole plate of them, then kick ass. Hannibal continued to drink his beer, which was so much more refreshing after that awful concoction he had earlier.

Faith Lehane has posed:
Faith took her time enjoying her treat. After she finished the first, she would then pick up the next one. Might as well enjoy it. After all, this was not something they normally had at the Bronze. Kind of outside their wheelhouse.

in truth she could eat up to four of them with no adverse effects to her physique. Another perk of being a Slayer.

Once she finished off the second, she wiped her hands and then moved to finish off her drink. "So, we going to do this? I can handle it alone but thought you might want the workout." She patted her tummy. "Help you keep your abs."