Paint the town

Evie remembered enough of the basics of Morrigan's childhood from when they had first met. Hearing it again didn't make it feel any less foreign. She'd been afforded a great deal of freedom growing up, living among a group of people that had been as diverse as they had been open. She had no idea how she could possibly have functioned with a childhood that was so cloistered.

Regardless, it looked like she might be rushing into things a little to much. She didn't want her drinking buddy to get cold feet before they even got to do anything. She came to a stop, spinning around on her heels to face Morrigan, arms crossed. "Girl, you need to relax." She stated, as if it were the most simple thing ever. "We're just here to have fun, right? We aren't gonna be doing anything bad. You really don't need to worry so much."

She shot her another grin. "We can start with something simple, maybe find a bar that doesn't card."

"Or at least doesn't card much." She muttered under her breath.

"We'll have some drinks, unwind a bit, keep from doing anything too wild. Then see where we go from there. I promise I'll make sure you have a good time."

She crossed her arms behind her back again, smiling innocently up at the taller girl, batting her eyes. "You trust me to do that, right?"

"That's the spirit!" She spun back around, smiling slyly at her from over her shoulder. "Come on then!"

The matter settled, Evie rested her hands on the back of her head, walking along the path, leading Morrigan onwards. She always liked the city, the lights. the sounds, the hustle and bustle. While she was travelling with the circus she made a point of heading out and exploring the nightlife in every city they stopped in. She enjoyed the feeling, enough to almost get lost in it.

Eventually, after a little while of walking (and a few consultations of Evie's phone), the two of them arrived at a bar. Evie gave it a quick once-over before she seemed satisfied.

"Alright, here we are! Come on!" She took Morrigan by the hand again, and lead her inside.

The bar was brightly lit, with wooden tables and seats that were polished enough to shine in the light. It was spacious, well cleaned and maintained, and if the many other patrons filling the stools and sitting at the tables were anything to go by, it appeared to be quite popular. Evie lead her to one of the booths near the back, a space that was a little more secluded.

"Alright, take a seat," She spoke over the chatter around them. "I'll be right back!"

She headed over to the bartender, presented an ID that was most certainly not a fake, frowned a little and exchanged a few frustrated looking words, before eventually returning to their table, a Margarita glass in each hand.

"Here ya go!" She placed the cocktail in front of Morrigan, before slipping into the seat across from her.

Evie can't stop herself from giggling, watching her reaction with a grin. The same thing had happened to her when she tried alcohol for the first time. The giggling eventually evolved into a full-on laugh after hearing her speak.

"Its tequila," She eventually said, after settling down. "It takes a bit of getting used to at first. It's definitely worth it though."

She started to drink from her own glass, taking a much larger gulp in comparison to Morrigan, clearly already accustomed to the taste.

"You wanna take it slow," She explained, leaning back into her seat, one of her arms draped along the headrest. "Make sure the salt mixes with the rest."

Yikes, Evie felt like tugging on her collar after the implication Morrigan just dropped. She was fortunate to have avoided things like that when she had been out drinking in the past. Carnies looked out for each other like that, at least they were supposed to.

Skirting away from that topic, she shot her an encouraging thumbs up now she was getting the hang of it, Evie's mouth still otherwise occupied by her own glass. Truth be told, she hadn't been out drinking that often in the past. Her carny friends had only started bringing her along a few months before she got sent to the island, though she had gotten used to the partying pretty fast.

She eventually put down her glass, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand before speaking.

"Yep, I go out like this alllll the time!" The lie rolled off her tongue easily. "I just haven't really had as much time now that I'm in school and all."

She smiled, looking very smug, thinking she must sound very impressive to someone as sheltered as Morrigan.

Evie took once last long drink while she talked, turning her glass to get more of the salt as she drained the last of the alcohol.

"Jeeeez, I have no idea how you lasted, really. I would have been bored outta my mind if the most exciting thing I had to look forward too was group prayers. At least if there's one thing us circus folks are good at, it's having a good party."

She was about to continue, but then she stopped, blinking. She hadn't meant to let that part slip. Since she'd arrived at the island she had deliberately avoided talking much about herself, her childhood. Maybe she was more of a lightweight then she realised.

Swiftly putting that aside, she put down her empty glass, putting both hands on the table as she leaned forward, grinning.

"Weeeeeeell, I was planning on having a few more drinks just to ease you into things. But you're sounding a whole lot more eager now. Whaddya say we head on to the main attraction? There's a club near here that we can sneak into. Once you're finished we'll go hit it up."