#sharing drinks

“I, thank you for letting me come. I’m- I guess I’m having trouble falling asleep at night. I know she’ll be back, but I can’t do my nightly routine without her.”

“You two have a routine?” Ruff smirked.

“You two don’t do anything with Barf & Belch before turning in?”

“I guess they do light our hearth before we get them to the stables, leave a lingering smell. What do you and Meatlug do?” 

“I stroke her scales, she likes this salve I made from an aloe plant. Wing massage, she licks my feet for a bit.”

“And it feels so different without her.” She nodded. “Here, try this.”

She pressed a cup to his lips, tilting it up. He only had time to open his mouth to allow the liquid to go in and he let it sit for a few seconds before it slid down his throat. 

“How’s it taste?” She asked eagerly.

He gave a short cough. “A little bitter. What is this anyway?”

“It’s called agua de jamaica.” She drank what was left in the cup, making a sour face of her own.

“How’s it supposed to taste?” He looked curiously into the jug.

Seeing a liquid near crimson red in color, a giant block of ice from the mountain still drifting around idly. Ruffnut dumped the stirring spoon back inside.

“Sweet. But you gotta blend it perfectly because the taste is kind of unpleasant if you add too much sugar or water.”

“How did you even make something like this? Why called jamaica?”

Ruffnut strode over to a bag, digging her hand inside and coming out with a wooden serving cup filled to the brim with sugar. She dumped the sugar inside, and after returning the cup she came to stir the liquid. Doing the motion for some time before she set it down, taking Fishlegs’ hand and guiding him over to a large bulging sack. She undid the drawstring knot and dipped a hand in. 

“They’re called hibiscus flowers.” She held them out toward him. 

“They’re wilted.” He plucked one from her palm.

“The flowers are dried out. How you make the agua fresca is that you place these flowers in water, have it boil, and it draws out the flavor of the flowers.”

“And that’s why you have the ice, because it’d be really hot.”

“Yeah, it’s best served cold.” She said with a smirk.

“How did you get these?”

He held the flower up to his nose and gave it a sniff. Noting the smell was definitely like the flavor of the drink. 

“Johann brought some once. Tuffnut took a fascination upon them and asked about them. Johann came to give him the recipe and he tried it. We’ve loved it ever since. He brings us a steady supply even after we came here to the Edge.”

“These can’t be easy to come by. And can’t be cheap either.”

“We manage to get by. Try it again.”

She had just extended the cup toward him again, when he stopped her.

“No, it’s your turn to try it first.”

He pushed it toward her, using his hand to guide hers as he tilted it upward. She managed to smile before opening her mouth to allow the red drink to slip in.

“It’s good.” She poured more into the cup.