Thunderjaw Heart - Horizon Zero Dawn Fanfiction

Cheese biscuits

The Golden Pot was a charming building, with some Carjas discussing outside. Most of them were holding beers and laughing loudly. Aloy grimaced at the sight of the alcohol, remembering what happened in the Nora camp. She decided to be more careful this night and to check for anything weird getting in her drink.

"Okay, so Erend, I heard that you are extremely good at drinking, aren't you?", Kïma asked, as she was entering the tavern.

"Extremely good ? That's rude ! I'm the best man ever for that !", He replied.

"Let's check it out, then ! Find a free table where we could sit, drink and talk. I'll meet you there once I ordered everything."

Avad was looking around nervously, probably worried about the eventuality that somebody would recognize him. Aloy took him, Erend and Bast to a table nearby and waited for Kïma to return.
Erend sat next to her, while Avad and Bast went on the opposite bench, leaving a large space between them.
Was it because they didn't know each other ?
Kïma finally came back, holding three cups of beers. A waitress was following her, holding two more.

"Could you please bring other cups ? We'd like to see which one of us is the best for drinking.", She stated casually.

The woman nodded her head and, after placing the beer on the table, asked :

"Would you also like some Banïah liquor ? In smaller quantities, of course."

"Oh, yes please !", Answered the collector, sitting between Avad and Bast.

Once the waitress was gone, Kïma looked at Erend, ready to start. Aloy had to admit she was quite curious to see who would win. Avad seemed confident and was drinking slowly his beer, glancing at Kïma.

"And...let's start !", She shouted, instantly placing her lips on the glass, so did Erend.

The musicians were just starting another song, a lot better than the first one.
The huntress was impressed by how quick the alcohol was disappearing in both glasses. Bast was also staring at the concurrents, with wide eyes. Only Avad didn't seem to worry for them.
Kïma finished a second before Erend, who had to stop to cough a bit. She stood up and raised her empty cup, making a mocking animal noise, shaking her head.

"Hey, you cheated ! Let's get the Banïah liquor, and we'll see who's going to win with that !", Erend proposed, still amused with Kïma's celebration move.

Once the Banïah liquor arrived, Aloy noticed she really wanted to taste it. It has a beautiful colour, between orange and red, and a small yellow flower was placed on top of the drink, making it extremely appealing.

"Can I have one?", She asked, pointing at the small glasses.

"Oh, sure, but let me tell you that it's stronger than beer !"

"Don't worry for me, Kïma, I won't drink many of these.", She said to reassure her.

She took a glass and drink a bit.
Ew, Kïma was right, it burnt her whole mouth and throat, but a sugary taste was tickleling her tongue. Her eyes started to cry a bit and she grimaced, clenching her jaw.

And she took another sip.

So did Bast.

So did Avad.

And little can you imagine that Kïma and Erend already drank three of those.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Twenty minutes later, Kïma was sitting on Avad's knees, with her legs resting on Bast's lap. Erend was lying on the table, repeating that he wanted to drink again. Aloy was feeling a slight dizziness between her eyes, and the music didn't help, but she quite liked it. She wasn't thinking about all her problems anymore.
Maybe that's why Kïma called it 'a way of resting'.