I drink; therefore I am. (OPEN)

[code_obsidian]

WHO: Garak and whoever shows up (Feel free to threadjack and ignore posting order, ya drunks.)
WHAT: Getting drunk, self medication, and a stunning display of healthy coping mechanisms.
WHERE: The bar.
WHEN: Early evening until.

Comments

[raised_fromhell]

Dean started to educate Julian in the fine art of subtly and lying when Jack Harkness swooped in and fed Owen an knuckle sandwich. On reflex the hunter braced himself for an attack, drink coming down on the surface of the bar and angling himself for a fight.

He frowned at Jack's scolding of the Starfleet doctor and waited until the man had carried out his own drunk medic before clapping a hand on Julian's shoulder, a comforting gesture and to also keep the other man from rushing off after the two of them.

"Subtly." Dean said. "They don't teach that at the fancy space military school you went to?" He reached around and motioned to the bartender. "Scotch for the Doc."

He picked up his drink while he waited for Julian's to come and grimaced as he took a sip. "Alright," The hunter raised his voice so he could be heard over the music and across the bar when Ford and Garak had taken refuge from the humans. "When I said put on some rock, I meant rock and roll. From Earth. Or something as close to what you aliens will find acceptable." Dean paused for a moment and passed a calculating glance at Julian. "Do they still make rock and roll in the 24th?"

The bartender produced a glass of scotch, setting it down beside the bottle Dean was working his way through.

[got_his_towel]

Ford had, truthfully, enjoyed the show. Anytime he was in a bar and someone besides him got punched, it was a good evening. He looked across at Dean blankly as he explained what sort of music he'd been hoping for, then looked at Garak.

"Was that Jack Bloody Harkness?" he asked.

[code_obsidian]

Garak hadn't really been privy to the music selection conversation, on his way out of the bar and focused on other things at that time. "Not a fan of rock music, then?" he asked Dean casually.

"Indeed it was," Garak answered Ford. He smiled somewhat smugly into his glass as he lifted it for a long swallow. Not only had the crisis been averted, he was absolved of further babysitting duty and could now enjoy his slow spiral into intoxication. If he was lucky, Owen wouldn't remember a word Bashir said about his responsibility for his presence there, so he wouldn't be blamed when he came to.

[only_human]

After watching Owen get knocked unconscious and carried out, Julian rolled his eyes and smirked at Jack. No one is going to sue you for malpractice here, so treating someone who is trying to drink themselves to death without their permission isn't such a bloody big deal.

He turned to Dean and grimaced. "Yeah ... well, no. "No, they don't teach it at the Academy and I've been told once before I could use a little help in the subtlety department." He nodded his head in Garak's direction and smiled.

"But Owen did surprise me when he replied. I was expecting to be able to come in, ask the question, get no response, administer the hypo, and be done with it. That's a lot of alcohol he consumed. It's amazing he was able to hear my question at all. But Jack? I don't take offense with Jack. He seems to have a long history with Owen that I don't have. How would I know what works with him and what doesn't?"

Taking the seat Owen had vacated and had kept warm, Julian put his med kit aside. "Besides, there is one thing you never do and that is never treat and administer care to another doctor who can still speak and who can still hear you speak. Period. It's an insult to them. When I appear on the scene I get so focused on assessing the patient and determining what is best for them that I automatically ask that question if I feel for any reason they might be able to give me an answer. Humans are still quite happy to sue in the 24th century and there is a special joy in suing doctors, it seems."

Julian pushed up his sleeves and took hold of the glass of scotch. "Rock and Roll? Yes, of course! It's not popular on Bajor or Cardassia, but on earth its very popular. The joke with Chief O'Brien and myself is that between the two of us, our tastes run the gamut to include every rock song from the mid 20th century to 2373. He loves Elvis Presley. I don't."

Julian took a sip of his scotch and looked at Ford and nodded in reply to his question to Garak. Looking around the bar, he wondered if anyone might be in the mood for a game of darts.

[raised_fromhell]

"A fan of real rock music." Dean replied to Ford and Garak. To Julian he shrugged."First think you gotta learn Jude, is that when booze is involved, it's better to not ask questions and just do it. And besides, we're trapped in this damn hotel. There is no way anyone is going to sue you."

Dean frowned at the music selections. "Elvis had his moments. Not a big fan of him myself."

He sighed a little and pulled the Gargle Blaster over that had been taken from Owen's hands. "What the hell is in this damn drink anyway? He had one and it was like his brain just decided to flat line."

[got_his_towel]

"Arcturan Mega-Gin, Ol' Janx Spirit..." Ford answered. "Well, I can't tell you everything that's in it, since I think it might be a family secret, but I think it's either the Ol' Janx Spirit or the Fallian marsh gas that's fatal to humans in any tangible quantity."

He looked to Garak for his opinion on the subject of why humans shouldn't drink Gargle Blasters.

[code_obsidian]

"Oh, but that is real rock music, you see," Garak said. "It doesn't get any more genuine than that. You are, in fact, hearing real rocks."

Satisfied with himself for the succinct explanation, he tossed back the rest of his second Gargle Blaster. "It's quite simple. It's a different form of alcohol than the human body is able to process. You drink ethanol. Ol' Janx Spirit is 2-methylpropan-2-ol. Or is that 2-methylbutan-2-ol?" He had to think about it. The Gargle Blasters were working their magic. "The first. The marsh gas...could be toxic. It could be a cumulative effect. What was clear is that the young man intended to die." The bartender brought him another drink.

[only_human]

He leaned towards Dean and nodded. "You're correct. As soon as the question was out of my mouth, I realized it was pointless being as we are all stuck here in the hotel. I trust Owen anyway, so if I had stopped to think, I wouldn't have asked. It's a hard habit to break."

Julian sat up straight, his eyebrows raised in astonishment and directed his question to Garak. "So, he intentionally consumed this highly toxic drink knowing exactly what was in it and that humans could not tolerate it?"

[raised_fromhell]

"And it is not the first time I've watched him do it." Dean said, sipping at his whiskey.

[code_obsidian]

"Yes," Garak said. "He did. I wouldn't have summoned both you and Captain Harkness had he not stated such intent. You know me well enough to know I'm not an alarmist unless there's a reason to be."

[got_his_towel]

"Well, he didn't know exactly what was in it," Ford corrected, "but he made sure to confirm that it would kill him. He wasn't much interested in the details."

[only_human]

Julian sighed. "So he's tried killing himself before? With alcohol?"

[raised_fromhell]

"I don't know if suicide was his intention before." Dean said. "But he sure as hell wanted to pay tribute to the porcelain god later." He pushed off from the bar and started for the jukebox. He had certainly had enough of the actual rock music that Ford had chosen. "What's your poison Jude?" He asked.

[code_obsidian]

"I wonder what happens if we do die here," Garak said. It was purely rhetorical speculation. He had no intention of trying to find out. Shrugging, he decided this would be his last Gargle Blaster. His head was beginning to spin, and he didn't want to get belligerent like he sometimes did when he was drunk.

[only_human]

Julian raised his eyebrows and and let a deep breath through his mouth. "That's a very good question, Garak."

[only_human]

Julian turned in his chair to face Dean. "How about some Rolling Stones, mate? "You Can't Always Get What You Want", "Gimme Shelter", "Sympathy for the Devil", "Wild Horses", "Angie" ... your call."

He gave Dean a slight grin before turning back around and finishing his drink. The tender placed another scotch on the bar in front of him and walked away.

"Well, to Jack, then. May all of his efforts to help Owen pay off." Julian took a big gulp of his drink and leaned back in his chair.

OOC: This post was meant to be a reply to Dean's request for some rock music. Posted out of order.