Origins

The words he least likes to hear are “You’re Ixian.” Apollo eagerly claims him as a countryman, and he answers flatly: he’s a New Yorker, baby. When Abrams asked when he last went to Ixia, he said never: New York born and raised. When Kelvin apologized for what was going on back home, he said only that home is right here.

“I'm a New Yorker, baby.”

“我是个地道的纽约客”

What runs in the blood can’t be scrubbed out, of course: his parents came from Ixia. But around him, the couple will speak only English. As for why they never went back, he makes no excuses for them, and leaves it at this: if they thought living there was so great, they never would’ve left.

“You'd have to ask them. All I know is that If my parents thought living in Ixia was so great they never would've left.”

“你必须问他们。我知道的只是如果我的父母认为住在伊克斯亚这么好的话，他们就永远不会离开了”

In his youth he was someone else. When Haze asked whether he had been military, he would only call those years a “misspent youth.” When Holliday asked what kind of life he had before he became a bartender, he said he wasn’t sure the statute of limitations let him answer that question honestly.

“I'm not sure the statute of limitations lets me answer that question honestly.”

“我不确定诉讼时效是否允许我诚实地回答这个问题”

In those years he did work for the Mendoza Syndicate. When Lash asked whether Mendoza had let him out, he said it was a long time ago, and that Mendoza “knew what was good for him.” He respects Lash, too, for daring to say no to Mendoza.

“He knew what was good for him”

“他知道什么对他有好处。”TL

Nor is the name he left behind a kind one. Graves once said the people who worked at Pier 31 don’t have kind things to say about him. The Doorman went further, confronting him to his face: he ruined many lives, so did he really think saving a bar would make up for it? With Venator he first deflected with “the whole city’s haunted,” and only then admitted, quietly, that he really thought he had buried this part of himself.

“You ruined many lives, Infernus, do you really think that saving Hank's bar will make up for the harm you caused?”

“炽焱，你毁了许多人的生活，你真的认为拯救汉克的酒吧就能弥补你造成的伤害吗？”

Still, he draws his own lines. When Calico said he didn’t look happy to work with her, he answered that he values loyalty; and he rebuked her, too: the moment you think killing people for money is a viable midlife crisis, you’ve lost the goddamn plot.

“Maybe. But I know that the moment you think killing people for money is a viable midlife crisis you've the lost the goddamn plot.”

“也许吧。但我知道，一个人要是觉得杀人赚钱能当中年危机的出路，那他妈的就是彻底疯了。”TL

Old Friends and Foes

Wraith: The Most Dangerous Old Acquaintance

Wraith knows the truth about him, and where he is weak. She wanted him to say he missed her; he said he didn’t, and she told him to practice that line more, so next time he says it she might believe him. When Mo & Krill asked whether he was afraid she would pull him back in, his answer was honest: he knows she wants to, and he’s afraid he’ll listen. He has not made a clean break from the old crowd: when they come to blows he still says he’ll see her at the game Friday, though he has also flung this at her: you don’t own me.

“I know she wants to pull me back in. I'm afraid I'll listen.”

“我知道她想把我拉回去。恐怕我会听的”

“See you at the game Friday, Wraith.”

“周五比赛见，灵魅”

Wraith herself, once he had burned a target to the ground, said with relish: you were born for this.

“You were born for this, Infernus.”

“你天生就是干这个的，炽焱。”TL

Vyper: The One Who Wants the Old Infernus

Vyper opens by asking which Infernus she’s getting today: the serial arsonist, or the master of the Shirley Temple? He says he is trying to be a better man, but she isn’t buying it. She doesn’t want a better man; she wants a crazy-ass firebug. He shot back: be careful what you wish for.

“Lady I'm trying to be a better man but you are testing me.”

“女士，我正努力做个更好的人，可你在考验我。”TL

She also mentioned how “that gargoyle” really messed up Mendoza’s operation; he said she sure did, and admitted that maybe he is happy about it. When she talked of kidnapping the Arroyos to drag Ivy out, he stopped her twice: definitely don’t do that.

“Oh don't do that.”

“哦，别那么做。”TL

Ivy: Wanting to Trust, Not Daring To

She told him, “I don’t trust you”; he answered, “I deserve that.” Then she said, “I want to.” He said he got it, it was ok, and told her to stay safe out there.

“I get it. It's ok. Stay safe out there Ivy.”

“我懂。没关系。在外面保重，青藤。”TL

Abrams: Regular and Bartender

Abrams told him to remember, next time he was pouring him the good stuff, all the times he had saved his life today. He agreed, and called him buddy.

“Hey Fern, try to remember all the times I save your life today next time you're pouring me the good stuff.”

“嘿，炽焱，下次你给我倒好酒的时候，请试着记住我今天救过你多少次”

Apollo and Seven: Both Say He Wasted It

Apollo laments that he has so much power and wastes it peddling drinks in a pool hall. Seven says it too: all that power, and he wastes it as a bartender. His answer always comes to the same thing: choosing a different life for himself isn’t a waste, it’s the best thing he ever did; make enough bad choices in your life, and it feels real good when you start making the right ones.

“You have so much power and you waste it peddling drinks in a pool hall.”

“你拥有如此强大的力量，却浪费在台球厅卖饮料上”

“Choosing a different life for myself isn't a waste; it's the best thing I ever did”

“为自己选择不同的生活并不是浪费；这是我做过的最好的事情”

Graves and Mina: The Young Ones at the Door

He told Graves he wasn’t going to tell her how to live her life, but if she ever found herself over her head, she could come to him for help: when he was around her age, he needed help too, someone gave it to him, and it changed his life; now he is willing to pay it forward. As for Mina, he once caught her using a fake ID and turned down her bribe, because no amount of money was worth risking Jezebel’s getting shut down; she kept that score, and kept it right up until they came to blows.

“Look when I was around your age I needed help and someone gave it to me. It changed my life, and I just wanted you to know that I'm willing to pay it forward.”

“听着，我像你这么大的时候也需要帮助，有人帮助了我。这改变了我的人生，我只是想让你知道，我也愿意把这份爱传递下去”

“That's for carding me on my 16th birthday.”

“要怪你让我在16岁生日那天出示证件”

Grey Talon: The Serious Old Man

Grey Talon told him he didn’t want to spill more Ixian blood.

“I didn't want to spill more Ixian blood.”

“我不想再让伊克斯亚人流血了”

Lady Geist: A Wealthy Guest at the Bar

Lady Geist asked how Hank was doing and wanted to help; he told her she was doing it right now. Her complaint when she cut him down was a practical one: he was the only one who knew how to make a proper gin and tonic.

“Ugh, he was the only one who knew how to make a proper gin and tonic. Pity.”

“呃，他是唯一知道如何制作正宗的杜松子酒和补品的人。可惜”

Vindicta: The One He Has to Stop

He tells Vindicta he is sorry, and also that he is not letting her take out his friends; what she gives back is a gracious line: sometimes, good men die.

“I'm not letting you take out my friends, Vindicta.”

“我不会让你击倒我的朋友，薇妲”

“I'm not losing sleep.”

“我不会失眠”

Calico: The One He No Longer Tries to Turn

When Calico asked whether this was the part where he tries to coax her back to the light, he said no: as a bartender, part of his job is to be quiet when people are hellbent on destroying themselves. It sucks to watch, though. She said she wasn’t interested in his judgement or his pity; well, he said, she gets both anyway.

“No, as a bartender part of my job is to be quiet when people are hellbent on destroying themselves. Sucks to watch though.”

“不，我是酒保，别人一心自我毁灭的时候闭嘴就是我的本分。不过看着真难受。”TL

Shiv and Venator: Those Who Let the Past Lie

He told Shiv that if he judged people based on the bad shit they have done in the past, he’d be the biggest hypocrite in the world; if a man says he’s a better man, he’ll treat him like a better man. The advice Venator gave him came down to a single word: win.

“Brother, if I judged people based on the bad shit that they have done in the past, then I'd be the biggest hypocrite in the world. If you say that you're a better man, then I'll treat you like a better man.”

“兄弟，要是我光凭一个人过去干的那些烂事就给人下定论，那我就是天底下最大的伪君子。你说你想做个更好的人，那我就把你当个更好的人看。”TL

Holliday: An Appointment at the Bar

Holliday did not mince words about his past, telling him he was not in her jurisdiction. Even so, he invited her to have a chat at the bar once this was over. She agreed, and he said it sounded like a date.

“Sounds like a date.”

“听起来像约会”

Anecdotes

Jezebel’s. He calls it an institution, one they won’t let close without a fight. He once invited McGinnis for a drink, saying Hank would pick up the tab.

“Hank'll pick up the tab”

“汉克会收到账单的”

Cocktails and Arson. He once said he had been perfecting a concoction for years, and what he threw next was napalm. Mixing drinks and setting fires were, in his hands, always the same craft.

“I've been perfecting this concoction for years…”

“我花了多年时间才完善了这个配方…”

“Throwing napalm!”

“投掷凝固汽油弹！”

Riding a Bike. To him, arson is just like riding a bike: you never forget.

“Just like riding a bike…”

“就像骑自行车一样…”

The Fedora. Word has gone around the streets: a beloved bartender at Jezebel’s has traded in his fedora for a Santa hat.

“A beloved bartender at Jezebel's has traded in his fadora for a santa's hat.”

“杰泽贝尔酒吧一位深受喜爱的调酒师脱下了他的软呢帽，换上了圣诞帽”

Open Questions