Word: Flapdragon

flapdragon

\ FLAP-drag-uhn \  , noun;

1. an old game in which the players snatch raisins, plums, etc., out of burning brandy, and eat them.

2. the object so caught and eaten.

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             “Man, this party is dragging.”  Ben said.  He looked around at the group of people in the large room.  They were talking and drinking lightly to some decent music.

                “What’re you talking about?”  Sean said.  “It’s fine.  Everyone’s having a good enough time, so it’s fine.”

                “No way, man.  It’s lame.  Totally dull.”

                “You know, now that we’ve graduated, we can probably expect most parties to be like this.”

                “That sucks.”

                “Really?  I’m ok with it.” 

                “Well I’m not.”  Ben’s shoulders slumped.  He had been a major partier in college, and now that he was out, the relative lightweight social gatherings were just not up to his standard.  “You know what?  I’m gonna go fix it.  Wait here.”

                He left before Sean could say anything in protest.  Sean waited for his friend with an sense of impending doom.  Ben came back with a small bowl of something nearly ten minutes later.  Ben set the bowl down on a nearby table and began fishing in his pockets for something.

                Sean looked into the bowl.  The deep brown liquid inside smelled of alcohol, but Sean couldn’t immediately tell what kind it was.  It looked like there were small things resting on the bottom of the bowl as well. 

                “What, uh, what is this?”  Sean asked.

                “Brandy.  Don’t worry, it’s pretty cheap stuff.”

                “You’re not planning on drinking all this, are you?”

                “Nope.  Well, not right away.”

                “So what are you doing?”

                “I’m gonna light it on fire.”  Ben said.  He pulled a lighter out of his pockets and immediately started flicking it.

                “What!?”  Sean exclaimed.  “Why would you do that?  That’s like, the worst idea ever.”

                “It’s something I read online.  It’s an old game where you light put things like raisins and plums and stuff in Brandy, light it on fire and pull the stuff out.”

                “That is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.  You’re not doing that.”

                “Oh yeas I am.  I’ve already put the stuff in there. I got some chocolate balls, some dried fruit, and stuff like that.  It’ll be great, I promise.”

                “You’re just gonna hurt yourself.”

                “Nah, I got this.”  Ben said.

                “What’re you boys doing?”  Said another person.  Both guys turned to look at the intruder.

                It was a young woman who had come over to them when she saw the large bowl of Brandy.  She was a slight thing.  Short, thin, and with a face that could be considered cute more than anything. 

                “I’m gonna light this stuff on fire and pull stuff out.  It’s a game I found online.”  Ben said, looking far too proud of himself.

                “Sounds like fun.”  The woman said.  “Can I play?”  Sean opened his mouth to protest, but Ben spoke first.

                “Sure thing.  Just so you know, this is 80 proof, so it’s pretty strong.  You think you can handle it?”

                “Yup.”  She said cheerfully.  “Besides, it doesn’t seem like we’re drinking.  Just eating things that’ve been soaking in it, right?”

                “Yup.”

                “You know, it’s still going to be on fire, right?”  Sean said.

                “Yeah, so?”  Ben asked.

                “I don’t have any problem with that.”  The newcomer said.  Sean looked from one to the other and sighed. 

                “Fine, but I want no part in this.  Also, just be aware, if you get burned, I reserve the right to laugh at your pain until the ambulance comes.”

                “Duly noted.”  Ben said.  “Now, let’s get this party started.”

                He flicked on the lighter and placed the flame to the liquid.  The blue, white, and orange flame rose a good distance off the surface of the bowl, and immediately drew a crowd as people became curious about the flame.   

                Ben rolled up his sleeve and quickly reached into the bowl.  His hand was only in it for a second, and he came out with a piece of dried fruit, which he promptly shoved into his mouth.  The woman went next, doing the same thing, and quickly eating the chocolate she came up with.

                The game continued uninterrupted for quite some time.  At first, Ben seemed quite confident in his ability to win against his much smaller opponent.  But soon the strong alcohol and hot flames started to get to him.  He many times he would reach in and come up with nothing.  Others, he spent too long in the bowl, and ended up with a few singed arm hairs.  The woman, on the other hand, didn’t seem to have any problems.  Although there were times when she came up empty handed as well, it was far fewer than Ben, and she never kept her arm in the bowl for more than even a second. 

                Ben was also starting to show signs of drunkenness.  His body became shakier and hi arm less and less steady as the game went on.  By contrast, his opponent had no such trouble.  The alcohol didn’t seem to be having any effect on the small young woman, even though she was eating more of the liquor soaked food stuffs.      

                Sean watched in morbid fascination as Ben lost more and more of his coordination and judgment, while the woman remained almost unaffected by their competition.  He was amazed by how well she was holding her liquor.  All he could think of was what her upbringing must have been like for such a small woman to have such tolerance.

                Ben didn’t last much longer.  He went to dip his hand into the burning alcohol, and missed completely.  His entire body ended up on the floor instead.  Sean, and most likely everyone else, was quite glad he managed to miss the table on his way down.

                “I guess that means I win.”  The woman said happily.  Her voice was a bit off.  Not as clear as it had been at the start of the game.  Otherwise, she seemed fine.  “That was fun, we should do this again sometime.”  She said.

                Sean helped his friend up to his unsteady feet as the victor walked away, humming to herself.  Someone took the opportunity to use a large metal pot lid to put out the fire, and people were dipping in to the still hot Brandy.  Sean had to admit, the party was much more interesting now than it had been.

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You know, for a guy who doesn't drink, I sure do write quite a few stories that involve alcohol, don't I?  

Also, for the upcoming new year, I decided to try something new:  Actually trying to get readers!  It's been a long time coming, but I've just gotten myself a Twitter account.  This is a big thing for me, since I don't normally go into the whole social media thing (as evidenced by the fact that I haven't logged on to my Facebook account since college).  Now I just have to figure out how it works.  It'll be interesting to see how this all turns out, won't it?