#DelKitty

[atonalginger]

It's Snippet Sunday! I know this because @fangbangerghoul tagged me and thank you for that. I'm trying out a new banner I put together, trying to spruce up the posts.

Today's snippet is from The Ranger and the Deputy. Still working away on the mini case intermission before act 3 and the ranger questline picks up.

I'm going to toss it under a cut to save dashboard scrolling, there is a brief hint of spice (some touching) but the two small scenes are not spicy on purpose.

Diego had repeated that stupid knock of his four times now as he stood at the front door. Kitty had grabbed a fresh towel an slipped into the bathroom to start the shower while Delgado reluctantly pulled his pants and undershirt back on and went to answer the door. A very vocal part of Del’s mind wanted to pop Diego for the intrusion but it wouldn’t undo the loss of their tender moment.

He didn’t know what had compelled him to ask that of her but the way his name rolled off her tongue filled him with a warmth and happiness he hadn’t felt in a long time. Which frightened him as he thought about it. Diego knocked a fifth time, each fist strike filled with agitation.

Del threw the door open and snarled at his fellow ranger, “someone better be fucking dying, Diego.”

“Not yet,” Diego leaned against the door frame, “but the way a friend of yours from Neon is acting, people might soon.”

“What?” Delgado glared at Diego, his hand still on the door, wanting to slam it shut.

“The Weasel showed up in the Rock begging for someone to throw them in a cage. Says they’ll only talk to you so Blake told me to come get you. It’s not like them to leave Neon so Blake figured it was serious.”

Del closed his eyes and took a deep breath through his nose, trying not to scream. Blake was right, it was serious. Reed wasn’t supposed to leave Neon per the terms of their probation. And for all the shit they got into, the Weasel wasn’t stupid, it was why they worked so well together.

“Give me ten minutes and I’ll be back in the Rock to see the little shit,” Del rubbed his temple.

“Blake wants you to being Kitty along, good training opportunity,” Diego said.

“Ten minutes.”

--

“What did Diego want?” Kitty asked as Del stepped under the water with her. Her hair was full of suds as she massaged her scalp, her eyes closed and head tilted back.

“We’re being called back into work. One of my people in Neon showed up in the Rock begging for a cell and Blake wants us to talk to him.” Del rubbed on her body, cupping her breasts and bum before setting about washing his own hair.

“Why can’t one of them talk to him?” Kitty asked as she rinsed her hair.

“Reed is very particular about who they deals with. We have a long history so they’ll only speak with me.” Del explained, “it happens when you deal with folks like this. Trust is hard earned and not every ranger works the same.”

“If that’s the case then why am I getting called in?” she asked.

Del could hear her squirt bodywash into her hand and then her touch on his chest. He stifled a moan and cursed their need to hurry; he wanted to pin her to the shower wall and take her so badly, risk of slipping on the tile be damned.

“Blake wants you helping,” Del explained, “this will be a good learning opportunity for you.”

“And this can’t wait till the morning because?” he could hear her irritation. She gave him a couple playful strokes before turning to rinse her body. Clearly she had other ideas as well.

“This person is not supposed to be traveling, them showing up means they skipped town and will have Neon security hunting them. Coming directly to us means there’s a problem that can’t wait, otherwise they’d have just sent me a slate.”

“What do you think is the problem?” she asked as she smoothed condition into her hair.

“For Reed to flee town?” Del sighed through his nose, “It would mean either their boss is dead or is planning something stupid.”

“Who is his boss?”

“Luca Episcopo,” Del traded places with her to rinse his hair and body, “insists he be called The Bishop by most in Neon because the man doesn’t have a single clever bone in his body. He manages a bar his father owns in Ebbside and oversees a smuggling ring on the side. They run guns and hooch.”

“Oversee?” Kitty asked, “Who’s actually in charge then?”

“Ah, you picked that up,” he smiled, “Reed does. Luca is a lazy shit who delegates everything to other people. Just like his old man. So the head bartender actually runs Boleo and Reed runs the smuggling operations while Luca takes designer drugs and drinks in his VIP booth. Because his family has influence in Freestar politics he’s safe from Syndicate interference as well as Neon security. Or was, since I get the feeling that’s why Reed is hiding in a cell instead of working.”

“Boleo? Is that the club Helga mentioned a while back?” Kitty asked as she rinsed the conditioner from her hair.

“Yes, it is.”

“I’m guessing if we have to head out there we won’t have time for fun, will we?” she was grinning, her head back while she ran her hands through her wet hair.

“We’ll see,” he said.

[delusionalarts]

Del in a box !!

[meadowziplines]

concept wips for Delirium of the Endless as a cat

[phightingheadcanons]

Mmm Pokemon… but phighting. In no particular order (I might spell some of these wrong bear with me)

Vinestaff: Sylveon

Hyperlaser: Delkitty (it’s Princess but as a pokemon)

Medkit: government assigned Audino

Valk: Klefkey who keeps stealing his music equipment

Dom: Espeon

Skateboard: Scorbunny

Slingshot: Alcreamie

Katana: Kommo-o

Zuka: Hydreigon

Rocket: Goomy (who he did not like at first because he thought it was weak)

Subspace: Sableye (accidentally captured it when it was trying to steal some crystals)

And the most obvious of all

Banhammer: Tinkaton

.

[kokorowoutsu]

-- RP: @skullboneandunown

skullboneandunown:

Donovan half listens to Ashe as she explains, and continues to read. Flannery nods at Leon. She didn't like this rift either, and it's gonna be a trip trying to get Donnie to talk about it. "....Yeah. I don't like it, but both Donnie and Razor are both on edge because of it." She turns to look at her lover, and smiles softly. "Hopefully this can be resolved peacefully." Her heart can't take it! She lets out an "Aawwww~" as Leon leads Willow to the backyard. "Donnieeeeeeee, I want one!" Donovan smiles and watches the little girl from the corner of his eye. "Babe, we talked about this. We agreed to wait at least a year after we get married." Flannery gives Willow a quick hug back and waves her off. "I knoooowwww....." Mewtwo takes a moment to eyes her....handiwork with her shoelaces, and rolls his eyes. "A work in progress, I suppose." Brutus takes note of the pair close to the house, only for his attention to be grabbed by a herd of wild Stantler disappearing into the treeline. He follows the herd surprisingly quietly, and vanishes into the forest beyond. "....Well, Brutus won't be hungry later." He crouches down to better observe Willow, and smiles. "That would be Precious. Donovan caught her as a Meowth before he got his fourth gym badge as a child. She never really liked battling, so Donovan lets her live here." Precious gently headbutts Willow affectionately, and begins purring. "She likes you."

"We'll leave it be for then. She'll want to talk with her mother, i'm sure--" Seeing Flannery dash off to give Willow a hug as she giggled loudly and saying how she wanted a child as well, Ashe gave a snort. "Get married faster then?" Ashe asked Donovan, squishing his cheeks and pulling on them for comedy.

Once outside, Willow giggled loudly now in Precious' presence and petting through her soft fur. "She's like Mia, then! Mama's Delkitty!" That wasn't the right word but close enough. "Logan! Mama's Lieperd too!" Again, not the right word, but close enough. Seeing how Brutus ran off though, Willow curiosity's was peaked. "Let's go see!" She lets Precious go with some headpats before taking off at mach speed through the snow like its second nature to amble after Brutus... and now to see him hunting the herd of Stantler.

It didn't dawn on her at first that he was hunting, but she soon was watching the way he moved, and in a flash of instinct, she pulled out her knife that looked like it was the fang of some pokemon that had been made into a weapon for her. Child of the Forest instincts kicking in, she hopped up onto the log and went to slip into the bushes, moving much like a wild pokemon. Kumiko in worry had made her way to find the girl, remaining quiet, but a low trill coming from her over her trainer's daughter.

Oh, little weeping Willow, don't be reckless now...

[fuwafuwamedb]

I saw your post for the Disney drabble and got an idea for a drabble please. Can Ishtar be frustrated around a pokemon game and got Enkidu, Hakuno, and Nefertari stuck in it. It takes a week to get them out, but when they do they each have at least one pokemon and Hakuno won the league challenge to be the champion due to needing money. They come out with at least one pokemon. Hakuno an Eevee. Nefertari one of the cat species like a delkitty. Enkidu a ditto.

Oh goodness. 

Let’s see...

[uptheantares]

skitty

Yes!

(normal skitty, shiny skitty, spring bud skitty, crescent moon skitty, siamese skitty, and Delkitty)

[dayglow-company]

"R-Right." Vivienne was nervous though. She knew it wouldn't take much for the illusion to be broken, and knew she had to be extra careful given that fact.

Upon getting close to the door she was ready. She was use to trial by fire. That was basically her entire life in a nutshell. So she would follow his lead. And than he spoke to her. Time to put on the act.

"Oh yes! It was um..." She playing it up and than looked at the clipboard that had the names on it. And it was names because everyone in the guild had one. "Mr. Calous the Arcanine, and Ms. Felicity the Delkitty. Both serving time for assault and pleaded guilty." She was soft spoken and was going to refer to her notes often to give the impression that she was new to this

Continued from here @chxsingtheshxdows

This irritated her. She had a feeling he knew why she had come to him about this. Still, she couldn't exactly say that she could do this on her own either. "I've looked into the law since we've been here. If someone is killed to protect others than it can be classified justifiable homicide. A few years of probation and community service is likely all he might get. But to prove that there needs to be three or more victims besides the accused killer."

She had thought this through pretty well, and had Ruric's permission to pursue this. She had a few leads on some of the former members thanks to public records from Magnezone. But those only gave her records. It didn't tell her if they were currently serving time or not. And that's where H's guild came in. "Like it or not we're your responsibility now. Unless you want your guild shut down for harboring fugitives."

(Is all good. I understand)

[mtrenchdeathofme]

Pokémon! AU (Haikyuu Characters)

Basically the team, and all of them will be either Gym Leaders or Elite Four (a handful of Ace Trainers for obvious reasons) (level goes from lowest to highest)

Hinata Shoyo (Fire Gym; sixth or seventh gym) Flareon Rapidash Chandelure Charizard

Kageyama Tobio 1st ver. (Ghost Gym; last one) Mismagius Chandeleur Mimikyu Spiritomb Delmise

Kageyama Tobio 2nd ver. (Flying Gym; last one) Drifblim Emolga Pidgeot Honchkrow Charizard

Tsukishima Kei 1st ver. (Psychic Elite Four; highest levels) Espeon Reuniclus Meowstic (female) Metagross Alakazam

Tsukishima Kei 2nd ver. (Bug Elite Four; highest levels) Scizor Scolipede Vikavolt Beautifly Volcarona

Kuroo Tetsuro 1st  ver. (Dark main Champion) Umbreon Bisharp Honchkrow Luxray Meowstic (male) Hydreigon

Kuroo Tetsuro 2nd ver. (Ghost main Champion) Spiritomb Vikavolt Zangoose Liepard Trevenant Gengar

Kozume Kenma (Normal Gym; fifth gym)  Eevee Delkitty Purrugly Persian

Bokuto Kotaro (Ace Trainer; Victory Road) Talonflame Rhyperior Noctowl

Akaashi Keiji (Ace Trainer; Victory Road) Haxorus Noctowl

Iwaizumi Hajime (Ace Trainer; route after the final gym) Zoroark Gallade

Oikawa Toru (Fairy Elite Four; lowest levels) Sylveon Clefki Comfey Clefable Gardevoir

[atonalginger]

WIP Wednesday

I'm having a day but then @fangbangerghoul, @bearlytolerant, and @therealgchu reminded me it was Wednesday and time for another sneak peek! Thanks for the reminder from y'all! If you see think and think "Hey I've been working on something and it might be fun to share a snip" come join us! It's fun!

Today's sneak peek is from Ranger and the Deputy. It's softer and more subdued after an exciting finale to their latest case in Neon.

I'm throwing it under a "read more" because it's a touch longer section

Del woke to the distant sounds of crying. He thought it was a trick of his imagination until he reached out and felt the space when Kitty should have laid empty. His eyes shot open and he quickly sat up, looking around for her. He crawled across the bed and saw her crumpled on the floor gripping her left calf and foot, her foot pointed down and toes seemingly locked in a contorted position.

He quickly joined her on the floor, whispering reassurances while taking her foot and massaging the arch.

She whimpered and sniffed hard, “I just wanted to get a damn drink of water.”

“I grab it for you once we get this sorted,” Del assured her.

“I didn’t want to wake you,” she said defeated.

“It’s alright,” he helped her point her toes up, stretching the offending calf muscle, “we’re partners, we take care of each other.”

“That was me taking care of you,” she mumbled. Her cramped muscles relaxed and she sighed in relief, “you’ve done so much today, literally carried me at the end despite your own exhaustion. You deserve rest.”

“We’ll get plenty of that,” he stood up and bent over to help her up off the floor. Once standing she shuffled away, a slight limp from the cramp and possibly, Del realized, the sores on her feet. She was headed for their bathroom, disappearing into the darkness of the small corner room.

He walked back to the front room, not bothering to dig out clean clothes or find one of the robes, and made his way to the mini-fridge at the bar. He pulled two water pouches and closed it again, suddenly filled with uneasy gratitude for the room upgrade. Had they received the room he requested they’d be stuck drinking Neon tap and while not poisonous he’d still rather lick a chambass corpse.

The sound of a flush followed by running water came from the back while he shuffled to the bedroom, a bag of plain chips from the bar counter pinched between his index and middle finger. They could use some food and the salt would help encourage them to drink more. He internally groaned at himself for that, realizing thinking like that made him sound like Emma.

They sat on the edge of the bed, an open water pouch in one hand, the other free to pull chips, in silence. Neither were really awake enough for proper conversation and after they were finished they would curl back up in bed for more sleep.

Del mulled over what happened at Boleo. He never should have agreed to walk into a trap, even with Bayu’s promises. Not with so many unknowns, not with her at his side. What would they have done if Bayu hadn’t been moving in through the back door when Luca attacked? How quickly would Antonio have taken Kitty from him? That was one thing he knew for certain: Antonio would have killed her first, just to see Del suffer.

He looked and found her watching him. She’d taken time to wash her face while in the bathroom and looked much better than when he laid her down however long ago. She moved closer, Del bouncing a bit with her movements, and came to rest her head on his shoulder. He kissed her forehead and wrapped an arm around her.

“You’re beating up on yourself,” she said softly, “stop it.”

“It was reckless,” he retorted.

“How were we to know Bayu was going to get hung up on Ecliptic, or take the longest scenic route he could find to the club, or whatever the fuck happened that delayed him so long,” she sat up and sipped her water, finishing the pouch and then tossing it toward the trash bin in the corner, missing. She sighed and continued, “I know we were both figuring five or six songs tops, nothing crazy, nothing we couldn't handle.”

“I could have lost you,” Del admitted, his eyes squeezed shut as he internally fought to stop the flow of words, “I know you can handle the job, but I…that…it was too close.”

“Oh, Gabi,” she touched his cheek and kissed him, lingering close as she continued to speak, “I’ve had the same thoughts. But it’s over and we’re both here.”

“We are,” he hugged her closer, “te quiero, mi alma.”

She hummed and snuggled into him, her face buried in the crook of his neck. He was astonished at himself by his choice of words this evening, his admissions. No one, absolutely no one outside his close family, had ever heard him say those words and even then, he danced around that truth. He told his Mama and Lupe, his nieces, that he loved them through actions. Gifts and visits. Helping them. He’d come close with Sam once, years ago, around the time the cowboy was leaving for New Atlantis, but held his tongue.

And ‘mi alma’? It was true, and he’d thought it at least a dozen times before tonight, but he hadn’t planned on saying it. It just came out. Kitty had that effect on people, he wasn’t special in that regard. No, the special one was her.

She said it first, on the dance floor as they incautiously enjoyed one more dance, her hand in his hair, their foreheads touching, her leg between his, those words leapt from her mouth with a life all their own. And while Del had deflected many over the years he couldn’t then. Because to deflect, to deny, would be a lie. He loved her and he wasn’t going to hide that anymore.

“I love you, Gabi,” she said in a tired voice.

He smiled and kissed her head before urging her to lay down. He tossed his trash and the empty bag off the bed, they could worry about the mess when they both weren’t moving like corpses, and crawled in behind her, snaking his arm around her middle and pulling her close while she pulled the blankets up and over them both.

[thepokedexisgay]

Could you make a genderfluid Smitty and delkitty pls

Skitty and Delcatty? You got it!

[brinty]

THANK YOU FOR ADDING THAT GUY FROM LES MIS ON THAT POST

HAHAHAHAHA I'M SO GLAD PEOPLE AGREE WITH ME

[dayglow-company]

The Delcatty just stared at the items. In her mind this meant he was dead. "So...they're dead and you plan on just marking us off a list huh? And for what? A dead guy no one will ever see again? How much are our bodies worth to you?"

Vivienne sighed. At this point she had no idea how to continue. The other was definitely not going to trust them now, and from the look on her face she was about to shut down. Than a thought came to her. But than she stopped herself. Another rationalization might be that herself, Ruric, and Jack were being tortured.

"I'll be honest. He's lying right now. We did find the hideout out, but they had already cleared out by then. We don't even know who's badge that is. But we did find something interesting."

At that the Delkitty looked up, but she looked more pissed now than anything. "And why the hell should I believe your bullshit now?! You already lied to my face once!"

Vivienne smiled at that. "Because it belonged to the former guildmaster. We tracked down where the old guild hall use to be, and behind one of the walls was a journal. It had details about all of the guildmembers he just mentioned. It's why all we know are names, but nothing else." Vivienne figured this was it. All she needed was for H to not go off again. Because right now the Delcatty was thinking.

Continued from here @chxsingtheshxdows

This irritated her. She had a feeling he knew why she had come to him about this. Still, she couldn't exactly say that she could do this on her own either. "I've looked into the law since we've been here. If someone is killed to protect others than it can be classified justifiable homicide. A few years of probation and community service is likely all he might get. But to prove that there needs to be three or more victims besides the accused killer."

She had thought this through pretty well, and had Ruric's permission to pursue this. She had a few leads on some of the former members thanks to public records from Magnezone. But those only gave her records. It didn't tell her if they were currently serving time or not. And that's where H's guild came in. "Like it or not we're your responsibility now. Unless you want your guild shut down for harboring fugitives."

(Is all good. I understand)

[atonalginger]

thanks for the tag @fangbangerghoul! today's wip is Ranger and the Deputy because it's all I've been working on right now to get what was supposed to be an interlude but has now become a full fledged act done. Because sometimes the characters run away with the plot...lol anywaay

the wip is below :)

--

The shops were next to one another with unassuming facades. Modest signs above the doors, the left ‘Adornos’ and the right ‘Galas’. Del leaned in to whisper in Kitty’s ear, “I messaged ahead so she’s ready for you. Roxie likes to talk but we don’t really have time so do your best to keep her on task.”

He kissed her ear and made his way to the other doors before Kitty could respond. She knew his mind was elsewhere, plotting their route in and out of the warehouse, what gear they could afford to carry, backup plans. Dread in his eyes every time he looked at her in the elevator or their walk to the shops. She was just cleared to work and they were instantly jumping back into the deep end. She knew he regretted taking her to the Empty Nest like he did and yet here they were, at it again.

Kitty opened the door and stepped into a small boutique that was fairly spartan to her eyes, considering it was supposed to be a dress shop. There were more chairs and couches than clothing in the shop, a small counter near the back with a red curtain covered door. She could hear tango music playing on a radio in the back room.

“Roxie?” Kitty asked, still looking around the empty shop, “It’s Deputy Lincoln.”

“Oh, you’re early!” a vibrant voice called from the backroom, “from Del’s message I assumed I had another five. Not to worry, come on back, we’ll get started.”

“He wanted to pass along that we’re under a time crunch,” Kitty said, deciding to put any stepped on toes under Del’s foot and not her own. Roxie was his friend after all.

“He did mention this was for a job,” Roxie peeked through the curtain, motioning excitedly for Kitty to join her. Her blue hair with a gray streak at the front popped against the red curtain, “He sent approximate sizes, which helped, but I still need to get you in a dress to see what will work.”

Kitty slipped behind the curtain and saw racks and racks of dresses, a dizzying array of colors and fabrics, cuts and styles, and several dresses hung up on the wall. Roxie was buzzing about the room, picking at dresses here and there, ticking her tongue or shaking her head as she glanced back at Kitty, “he mentioned you were a pastel beauty but I thought he meant your clothes; you’re a cotton candy dream!”

Kitty blushed and picked at the hem of her shirt glancing over at the dresses on the wall. All were black, each one progressively more revealing. The first one looked like a dress out of an old earth book with the asymmetrical hemline and heart-shaped neckline. Then there was a floor length dress with a peek-a-boo cutout at the belly and a long slit up one side of the flowing skirt. The last one was draped over the hanger in a way that obscured the dress.

“I have them in other colors, don’t worry,” Roxie came up behind Kitty, “I know Del, he’ll be in an all black suit piece with a red accent because the boy doesn’t wear anything else, so I pulled black dresses to start.”

“What’s popular right now?” Kitty asked while she looked over the dresses, “New Homestead doesn’t really keep up with the latest fashions and Del said something about Neon being another beast all together.”

“Let’s start with what you’re comfortable with and then we can talk trends,” Roxie turned Kitty and started looking her over, “you’ve got a curvy frame, lots of fun to be had there. How modest are you? Is this how you usually dress?”

“I…kind of?” Kitty looked over her own clothes, “I’ve never dressed for more than function really. Back in New Homestead we were always working on something when we were in classes, always needed to be ready to get dirty so there wasn’t much room for fun pieces. And since leaving I’ve worked a mining job, a brief stint as an explorer, and now a deputy. And the latest job comes with a set uniform most days.”

Roxie ticked her tongue and shook her head, “You and I are going to need to go shopping, palomita. But you must have some clothes that aren’t destined for grime and filth? What are they like?”

“I have this pastel pink cardigan I love,” Kitty said with a bashful smile, “oversized and soft, Del says it looks like a cloud. I’d like to wear more colors but again, most of the work I do gets them dirty.”

“So you like oversized sweaters, how do you style what’s underneath?” Roxie stepped back and glanced over the dresses, “high necklines or something more…flirty?”

[atonalginger]

Ranger and the Deputy update

A 3 chapter update that focuses mainly on the day after Kitty and Del's busy day in Neon, as well as their return to Akila City. You can read them on ao3 by clicking here.

To start from the beginning you can click here

a sneak peek:

With their adrenaline spent, exhaustion set in as the couple stumbled out of the elevator for their room. Del fumbled with the keycard as Kitty hung onto him, her gold heels in her hands. He’d helped her take them off in the elevator, dried blood speckled on the insole and lining and red chafing on her heel and ankles. He was sure his feet looked no better but he’d deal with that later.

Kitty’s legs gave out as the door slide open so Del scooped her up and carried her inside, catching the door with his heel to slide it shut behind them. She rested her forehead on his shoulder, whining in frustration at it all, while he carried her back to the bedroom. He laid her on the bed and quickly knocked all the boxes and bags to the floor. He tossed his jacket, salt sweat stains visible on the inner lining, onto a chair in the corner and worked on removing the holster while he returned to the table in the front room.

Del laid everything out, removing his knifes and back holster as well, and pulled two med packs from the equipment case. He shuffled back to the bedroom and found Kitty still laying there in her dress, her breathing slow. 

“Kitty?” he asked before injecting one of the med packs into his side. He tossed the cartridge onto a dresser, waiting for her to stir. When she didn’t he leaned over her, checking her color and pulse. She stirred as he held his fingers to her neck, a disgruntled groan and feeble swats of her hands. He let out a sigh of relief and kissed her forehead, “you scared me, Kitten.”

She laid there with her eyes closed, “I was resting my eyes.”

He chuckled and kissed her forehead again, “I have a med pack for you. I can also help you get out of that dress.”

“I’m sure you can,” she sassed as she slowly pushed herself up to seated.

[atonalginger]

Ranger and the Deputy update (Chapter 33)

It's been 6 months since their last major case and Kitty has just gotten back from another fugitive hunt with Diego (a 'one ranger, one riot' mission). It's time for an evening of fun with their friends catching up and doing stupid shit.

Find the chapter by clicking here. Start from the beginning by clicking here.

A sneak peek

--

The six of them were clustered around the small table Diego favored near the back of the bar. With Aggie’s blessing, they had the bottles of New Homestead gin and vodka on the table along with several mixers sent with Kitty to give everyone a proper New Homestead experience. 

Aggie had already sampled the clear liquors, her usually stony expression broken as she winced at the burn from the vodka and gagged at the gin. Once she recovered she laughed and said she’d need to send someone to pick up some full bottles for the bar, a way to mess with the regulars that made her mad.

“That’s so wicked, Aggie,” Kitty said with a giggle.”

After watching Aggie react so harshly to the clear liquors before them Jazz was less enthusiastic about trying them. Diego teased her, echoing her words from earlier about how it couldn’t be that bad, and taunting her as Kitty poured a shot of the vodka and slid it her way. 

Del still hadn’t had the vodka but he’d experienced the gin months ago after his parents returned from UC space. Bastian had insisted they stop by New Homestead and bought several bottles of gin to add to his various collections. During the evening they spent at the Delgado Manor, Bastian insisted everyone try a martini made with it and Del swore the pine cleaner burn would haunt him forever. Even Kitty struggled with the couple sips she tried, admitting she tended to favor the vodka when she drank. Bastian had finished his dry-as-a-bone, glorified shot of a martini with no trouble, merely noting that if they filtered it once or twice it would be perfect

“If you follow it with a chaser it isn’t as bad,” Lin told Jazz, “I know when Heller had everyone in the crew try it we all had glasses of cranberry juice at the ready. The tart bite tore the mind from the burn.”

“Which is why I have the bottle there,” Kitty pointed at the cranberry juice on the table, “I would usually get a vodka tonic with cranberry juice and while it couldn’t mask it completely it made it more bearable.”

“Just remember, Aggie said we weren’t allowed to puke in her bar,” Helga said with a shit eating grin, “so be prepared to run for the door.”

“Oh shut up,” Jazz laughed, “it’ll be bad but it can’t be that bad.”

“We’ll see,” Kitty said while she poured everyone else’s shots, pushing them toward their person as she went. 

“Alright, here goes nothing,” Jazz said, picking up the shot glass and eying the clear liquid inside.

“Don’t sniff,” Kitty reminded her, “throw it back best you can so it doesn’t bathe your entire tongue and it will be a better experience.”

“Little missy, I know how to shoot alcohol,” Jazz said. 

She took a breath, exhaled, and then threw the shot back, everyone watching with bated breath to see her reaction. Despite her insistence, Jazz managed to do the opposite, immediately retching and scraping her tongue across her top teeth before accepting the glass of cranberry juice from Lin and taking a big gulp.

“What’d you think?” Diego asked, “not that bad, right?”

Jazz was still recovering, her head shaking back and forth, “how are they allowed to sell that?”