driftfleet | (no subject)

[Nami stiffens a little at the sudden familiar face, surprised to see him here. Which... okay, for a while before this she'd been surprised he hadn't turned up well before this, so irony for you. She just kind of assumed this version of Dean either didn't like bars or didn't like crowds.]

...sure. Probably in a couple of ways. [She smiles crookedly at him, reaching back behind the bar for a glass. Beer'll do; the specific kind the other Dean preferred while he was here.]

Try this on for size.

[ Oh, believe you me - had they not been on the yucky moon, Dean would've been here a hell of a lot sooner. The man is deprived without liquor powering his soul so, y'know. But he's here now, and really, he will take whatever you set in front of him.

.... Though, okay, what does that mean. He'll take the beer more than happily enough, only vaguely suspicious, and now suddenly waiting for that 'I knew you in another life' thing to happen again. ]

Meaning? [ Although okay wait, drinking beer first. ]

[Good plan. Though Nami's news is maybe a little more palatable than knew you in another life.]

We've met before on the Fleet. It's okay, I know you're not the same guy. [And how. Your brother's been telling tales. Well, that and Nami is a dirty eavesdropper.] Just figured you should know. I'm not a fan of pretending you're a complete stranger.

My name's Nami. [She gives him a measuring look.] I'm a friend of Sam's.

[ Ahhh, beer. Heals all woes in life (HAH) and it's surprisingly, not shitty beer. Dean cants his head in something akin to gratitude at the fact that she gave him something actually enjoyable, and then he listens up.

She knew a version of him. Check.

She knows Sam. Double check.

Got it. ]

Which means you'd know about me one way or another. [ And also probably means she knows certain details. Faaantastic. ] I'd introduce myself but he probably got there first.

You'd be right. [Her grin's back. She still isn't sure where he stands with Sam because he hasn't said much on that score, at least, and she hasn't asked. But Dean's not scowling yet, she'll take it.]

He's probably told you he was stuck in a place before this one. That's where we met, so... it's been over a year now. But yeah, he talks about you a lot.

[Also, he still likes the beer: check. She didn't think that'd change, but hey, you never know.]

[ Can he just drown himself in this instead of finding a way to respond to that? It'd be easier. But at least he's better at being civil with people he doesn't truly know - it's like being back home in that regard. Might as well play nice, considering you never know when you're going to watch good people get eaten alive. ]

I'll try to resist the urge to do the same about him.

[ While that doesn't entirely classify as a joke, it's still sarcasm and not entirely unkind at that. ]

[She gives a small snort of amusement at that.]

Your restraint is admirable. [Not actually the first thing that came to mind, but the humour in it is less cutting. She's not entirely sure how to treat this Dean, so she'll leave most of her snark at the door.]

I'm sorry your first month has been stuck in this stupid place. The moon isn't exactly what I'd call a great first impression. [This is Nami casting about for conversation that isn't about Sam, FYI.] Inasmuch as this place is capable of a good impression.

[ It's actually a fairly good attempt at finding something to converse about - not problematic for a first go around. Not pushy or overly demanding of introspection. Just is what it is. A+ Good job, Dean can appreciate this. ]

I'll take it over being stuck on the ship for a month straight.

[ Honestly, watching Dean get cooped up is a horror no one has yet to experience. ]

I see your point. [She's gonna pour herself one of those drinks too, who cares if she's actually behind the bar.]

If it helps, even when we do take off we tend to pass a whole bunch of waystations and stuff to visit. Terrible places to buy clothes. Great places to buy cheap booze.

[ No judgement here.

Though Dean pauses halfway to another drink, looking somewhere between curious and suspicious. ] Please don't tell me I was supposed to be stocking up on a new wardrobe.

[Snrk. She grins outright.]

I think you're good. At least you didn't turn up in your pajamas or something, right? [Unlike certain other idiot Winchesters.] No, nobody's gonna blink twice if you never change clothes, as long as you wash them on occasion.

[ There's probably worse clothing he could turn up in, but yanno. Let's not go there. But no really, the re-found novelty of being able to wash his clothes in something other than a babbling brook is not lost on him. ]

Laundry I can do. [ LBR he's probably been doing the laundry since he was five. ]

Place's got modern marvels, might as well use 'em.

Right? [There's some sympathy there, because she knows the kind of shit show he came from, but she keeps it light.] Mostly I hate being cooped up on these ships too, but at least they've got hot running water. And beer.

But as far as I can tell, that shit doesn't regenerate on its own.

[ Someone has weird feelings about their food supply. ]

[Can't blame you there, man. She gives him a look over her glass.]

The booze sure doesn't. We have to restock that and make it ourselves. S'why there's a pricetag on it. As for the water, even sea sailing ships have a way of recycling that kind of thing.

I'm not so sure about the rest of our magically appearing product, though.

[ OH THANK GOD, someone else who has the same feelings that he does on the matter. Another someone. And he thought he was just being weird-paranoid about the whole thing, just like he is about... everything. ]

I'm all for home-brewed liquor, believe you me- but that shit that appears out of nowhere? Food doesn't do that.

[Nami's used to being the only person on her crew who examines things too much.]

Not until you turn up in weird places like this, anyway. I assume the Atroma... I don't know, beam it aboard or something when stocks get low.

If it worries you, or if you just hate the taste, stock up on stuff every time we pass a place that sells food. At least you can be more sure of it.

[Plus it tastes better.]

Couldn't care less about the taste- [ who the hell knows what he has consumed these past four years when desperate times became desperate measures, but that's not a topic of conversation right now... well, it is but it isn't. ]

But i'll keep an eye out for intergalactic grocery stores.

[...heh. She gives him a wry smile.]

The waystations we pass out here are all automated. They take a bit of getting used to, and they don't cater to just us. Just...you know. To warn you, if you find something like jeans for eight-legged people.

[ Wow just... he's not even sure how to feel about. ]

I shouldn't even be surprised, should I.

You get stuck in these places long enough, nothing surprises you anymore. Steep learning curve for new people. I don't know if I'm luckier for getting used to the place; it means I've been here too long.

How long's it been for you?

About nine months now. Probably about that long in the place before this. [She frowns.] I fell asleep for a while here, the way Cas has-- woke up with new memories from home. But I don't know if that means I actually left here for a week or two.

[ Let's just navigate around the Cas topic, here-- ]

Sounds like astral projection.

[And here Nami thought she was the navigator.]

That, or someone mentioned memories updating on the augment. That's kind of out of my league. We don't even have computers in my world.