Drinking Game

Jun stepped off the main street walking away from the town's center. She knew right where she was going, though she'd never been there before. A new bar-restaurant, tucked in a inconvenient location of the downtown, right where the last failed bar-restaurant had been. The entrance was on a side street away from the rest of the night clubs making the last couple of establishments leasing the building fail rather quickly. Of course, in order to combat their eventual failure, it was half price drinks during opening week. Great news for one discontented sacrifice who was aching for some alcohol.

Work had been tough that week, which was Junko's rationalization for going out drinking on her own. She'd enlisted her self-control in order to try and hold up the outing until she had someone to go with, but in her small circle of friends, it looked to be impossible if she wanted to go before the following monday. Jun opened the front door alone, descending half a dozen stairs into a depressed lounge. The music was some sort of quiet jazz that was easily overpowered by more talkative customers. The lighting was low, but not so dark as the night was still young, with the color choices falling around maroon and olive. As the room was below street level, only small windows on the top of the walls allowed any sort of view to the outside world. The decorations were rather plain, but it didn't bother this woman, she was only looking for the bar.

The bartender greeted her, "What can I get you?" the young woman asked as the new comer sat down at the closest available stool. Though she would have asked for a more exotic drink on a usual day, what sounded best right then was something more straightforward, "Could I have a rum and coke please." The bartender nodded in reply, turning around to gather the ingredients. "How are you doing today?" the employee asked as she brought out a glass. Junko smiled lightly in return, but she didn't feel up for conversation, "I have a headache." She replied, slumping right over the bar with her head in her folded arms.

The woman behind the counter smiled, "And you thinking drinking is going to help?" Jun took a peek out from her makeshift headrest, watching the woman calmly pour her drink. She didn't think it was going to help, but that wasn't going to stop her from drinking herself content. The beverage was set down beside her after a moment and the sacrifice's arm freed itself in order to slide some money across the wood counter. The lady happily excepted, lightly touching Jun's hand before moving on to other patrons. The young woman erected in order to correctly enjoy her drink, looking around at the half empty bar as she took her first sip. Not a soul - yet anyways - she could see that would make a good drinking partner. "Well, alright then," she thought to herself, "a game." The rules came to her quickly; a sip whenever anyone spoke to her, a gulp when someone good-looking came in and she had to finish her drink if anyone asked her a question. Nursing her beverage as to not end the game too early, the customer set her eyes on the entrance. Her gaze drifted ever so often in order not to make herself seem like she was actually waiting for someone, but she was on alert, watching for the room to get full enough for her actually get buzzed.

Kirill slowly pushed open the door and scuttled into the bar. The Russian had no need to find his way back to Seven Moons until morning, and after the hotel staff encouraged him--although over half of what they had said went over his head--he'd been pointed in this direction for 'food and fun' and after stumbling past throngs of young people Kirill had managed to find his way to this...

Establishment...?

The entire place was quite...plain although he wasn't one to talk. Most taverns and bars in his home country weren't very elaborate but the few he'd been to had been well cared for, brilliant places and the ones here in Japan were even more so. The few patrons dotting the bar wore expressions of pure boredom, although a group in the corner booth seemed lively, talking and waving their hands with bouts of laughter here and there.

He reached up and combed his still damp bangs down over his rust-coloured eyes and began to shuffle towards the bar. He slipped into the stool that was pressed up against the wall, and when the bartender finally noticed him, he hardly understood any of her words; but who needed to understand when you were in a bar? "Vodka." he requested with a small smile.

The bar was apparently headed to failure quicker then she had originally thought. After fifteenth minutes of sitting, no one else had come in, leaving Jun to wander to her own thoughts. Musing over the last week, it took her a minute to realize that she had unconsciously gone through half her drink. It surprised her, as she had never really liked the taste of alcohol, but the soda offset the flavor in the beverage very nicely so it was pretty easy to get down. Even with that in mind, it seemed unlikely for her to get through more then one without some motivation.

It was just as she thought this that the door to the business opened, letting in a person who seemed to be about her height and age. At first, the long hair threw her off to his gender, but once getting a look at his face it was clear he was male. "Well, it's not exactly my taste, but I'm not going to deny he's good-looking." Jun thought, turning back to the bar to take a gulp of her drink. She kept her eyes forward for the next few seconds, only heard the footprints pass behind her as the man came to sit further down the counter, before she let her eyes wander to get a look. With his dark locks covering his face, the man could have blended in as another Japanese, if not for his accent. As soon as he relayed his order to the bartender it became clear the male was a foreigner. Not really the kind of partner she was expecting, but as it seemed unlikely that she would get another opportunity to drink with someone, the female decided to take a chance. Jun leaded over the counter as she had before, craning her neck slightly as to try and get the man's attention. "Hello," the sacrifice called as she dipped her head and raised her glass, "How are you doing?"

It took a moment for Kirill to realize that the words were directed at him. He took his drink from the bartender and slid a bit of money to her before sipping his drink. Ugh. He made a face, his nose wrinkling, brow furrowed. It was weak...and flavorless.

What was this?? Water?

Dark eyes slid back to the girl leaning over the counter, staring at him. The Russian shifted a bit, the stool digging into his backside. How was he doing..? "I do vodka now." he tried. Wasn't that obvious? What was he doing... Drinking. In a bar. He picked at the counter for a moment before snagging one of the cherries on the bar. He stuck it between his lips and suckled on it, twirling the stem with his fingers. Hmmm at least the cherries were nice? Better than peanuts and such.

Jun couldn't help herself, she laughed. Not loud or wild enough for anyone to take notice, just enough for her coy smile to shift into a toothy grin. She had misjudged his language skills entirely. It seemed to be a miracle he was able to get around without someone to translate. Not that she was worried about the fellow - if he'd made it this far he'd probably be alright - just maybe she could get him to say something funny again. On one hand, his disgruntled attitude was a bit of a turn off, but on the other it made her want to tease him a bit.

It didn't seem like he was going to be able to understand anyways.

"I'll drink too now." She replied, scooting over to a seat closer to his. As the female sacrifice had never really played much attention to other cultures, she couldn't quite say were his accent or looks put in on a map. "Sláinte? Prost? Salud?" She tried, not really sure where any of the words originated. She could say a couple of things in Chinese, but that sure wasn't going to help. In order to bring her message home Jun raised her glass in the universal sign for 'cheers.'

His brow furrowed a bit more at her, the expression seeming more like that of a pouting child than a confused adult. He shifted in his seat a bit, trying to scoot away from the stranger. He'd met a handful of individuals here so far, and every single one--with the exception of Zael since the man could speak Russian--had been perverted and thought he was either a whore, a girl, or stupid. None of which appealed to him let alone described him.

He ran a hand through his hair, still playing with the cherry stem. [Stupid Japanese...]" he muttered under his breath in his native tongue. Frustration began to brew in his stomach, and he let his charming, sweet facade slip while he took his glass and downed the whole thing without a wince. He set the empty glass down and pushed it aside. "Again." he mumbled when the bartender scurried over.

He glanced over at the girl again, brow furrowing yet again when he noticed she was still staring at him. He reached up and touched his cheek. "Eye cum my face?" he asked.

Jun had to take her eyes off of him for a moment, seeing his serious expression while he said something so ridiculous was making it hard for her to stop laughing. Her elbows rested against the wood frame of the bar as she chuckled hard and noiselessly. "Okay, I am pretty sure you did that one on purpose." She commented, holding the back of her hand against her mouth in a attempt to contain her sniggering. The laughter faded after a moment, but she couldn't seem to wipe the grin off her face. Seeing as the man's mistranslated statement was a question the sacrifice downed the remainder of her drink and took a breath to regain her composer. The stiff taste helped to bring down her mood. Setting the now empty glass on the counter, she raised a finger at the bartender to signal she wanted another drink.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," the girl started, her expression breaking slightly, "I'm afraid I didn't quite catch that, but, no cum your face. Your face is seems just fine." She was not at all sure what the foreigner had meant. He seemed annoyed though Jun pretended not to notice. The only thing she could really be sure of was that judging by the pace of his alcohol, the man was here to drink. But that was fine, after all, that's what she was here for too, so why couldn't they keep each other company? "Where are you from anyways?" She asked as straight forwardly as she could. Her eyes were fixed forward this time, watching the woman behind the counter make her drink.

He made a slight face at her. Why was she so adamant about talking to him?? He wanted to drink in peace, try and find his way back to the hotel, work on the application and go back to Seven Moons in the morning. Was that too much to ask?

He flicked the stem over the bar, lips set in a pout. "I Russian." he muttered grudgingly. His bad mood was starting to inflate. He heaved a sigh and looked right at her. "I no whore. Okay. I do vodka. I go climb hotel. I make sleep in bed. No sex." he explained. May as well get everything out in the open.

Sheesh. And to think he used to be social...?

The girl held off a response in order to try her newly made drink. It was the same, or course, as the last one, but the flavor was finally starting to get to her. Following the foreigner's lead, she dropped a cherry into her glass to off set the bitterness. It helped and she kept the glass in hand while turning to focus back at her companion.

The female wasn't quite sure why he told her that, maybe he thought she was hitting on him? "No, no, no, you have it all wrong." She said, deciding that must have been the reason. Her free hand waved dismissively as if to clear away the confusion, "I'm not trying to pick you up, you'd know if I was kid." Her left arm fell back to it's resting position while it's counterpart continued to hold her drink just to the side of her face. As the girl took another sip, pondering too late how well "pick up" was going to translate, another thought crossed through her mind. She didn't know this guy's name yet and neither did he know hers. "Ahh, I forgot myself." She said lightly, placing her drink on the counter. Jun titled a shoulder to better face her companion, "I'm Jun Tsuji by the way. No whore, just someone looking something to drink too. But it's lonely drinking by yourself, don't you think?"

His brow furrowed a bit when she introduced herself. He didn't understand half of what she said...

He sipped at his drink, picking up another cherry. "Just want vodka. Not want talk." he explained. He wanted to drink, get back to the hotel, sleep, go back to Seven moons and get a fighter. His brow furrowed a bit as he picked at the bar, trying to ignore the girl who just kept staring at him. It was starting to creep him out to be honest. He fiddled with the edge of his shirt sleeve, mind trailing off. Damn that bitch Viktorya... He grabbed his glass and suddenly downed it in one gulp. He slammed it on the counter. "Vodka."he snapped at the bartender, cheeks flushed from the burn.

Jun watched as the bartender scurried to gather the vodka bottle from the other side of the bar. She always thought foreigners were supposed to be obnoxiously friendly. Where was a stereotypical American when you needed one? She glanced around the room for another person she could pick on to no avail. It seemed the establishment's business had tapered out for the evening and the place had gone mostly quiet. Even the rowdy table had settled into a drunken stupor. She sighed, tilting back in towards herself. As her head stank down towards the counter, her beverage stared back at her. It was hard for her to drink in such a sullen atmosphere, but as she was only being to be buzzed, her resolve moved to continue despite the circumstances.

Though the man beside her had said he didn't want to talk, at the very least he hadn't said he didn't want company, "Though, he may just not know how to say 'go away.'" she smirked. Still, even if he was not fond of her, that was not going to stop this sacrifice. She sat back up on her stool, fixing her gaze on the part of the bar between the two of them, "So keen on drinking are you? Why, hard day?"

He wrinkled his nose. Was it so difficult to understand?

Kirill pulled out an ice cube from his glass with his fingers, suckling on it for a moment. He glanced over at the woman again, studying her as he thought. She was a stranger, right? And well...his parents had told him to confide in someone once in a while, lest he...exploded? Or something like that. So what could it hurt? Besides, if he spoke in Russian it wasn't as if she would understand, right?

He spit the ice cube out, letting it clink back into the glass. "[My entire life was destroyed and uprooted because a frigid bitch. She brainwashed my best friend, deported me, stuffed me in a foreign country with no way of returning, broke my hand so I can no longer do the thing I love the most, and now I am in the process of gaining the ability to kill said frigid bitch so I can have some sort of revenge for the fact that she ruined my entire life.]" he rambled off in his mother tongue. "Make much one clue?" he asked, eying her before taking a sip of his drink.

((Translation; Any more questions? And sorry...Kiki is really irritated about being in Japan -_-; ))

Awkwardly reaching out her arm, Jun's free hand found the foreigner's shoulder and proceeded to pat it lightly as she downed the rest of her drink. The gesture was quickly interrupted however, as the cherry at the bottom of her glass was stubbornly sticking to the tumblr. Her hand swept back to her as quickly as it had left, patting the other end of her glass in an attempt to dislodge the fruit. She had no idea what the guy said, even the part in Japanese, but as the man was finally saying something other than just a quick sentence the sacrifice decided to play along. "Sounds rough my friend." Jun replied sympathetically. The thought had crossed her mind that he may have said everything was great, but it didn't really seem like he was understanding what she was saying either.

After the cherry finally found its way into her mouth the woman set her glass back on the counter. She raised a hand to the barkeep, signaling that she wanted another for herself and the man beside her. "Since you were so nice to share with me, the next one'll be on me, alright?" She smiled, at least drinking was a common ground for the two of them. While the bartender fuddled with the bottles behind the counter, Jun continued in the harassment of the Russian, "So, would it be safe to say that your spiel from before has something to do with why you came to Japan?"

Zeal looked at his watch and sighed. The teal haired man had plenty of time to kill before his bet with Shivani. Tonight was definitely going to be interesting and if she managed to win this time Zeal was going to be beyond impressed with her. She picks up things so quickly and excels at such rapid paces but this game will take some time so she is learning. He looked up and noticed another location and strolled inside. This one was fairly new and not too busy. Of course it is early and people still had time to come inside and catch a few rounds and what not. As he looked over he saw Kirill with a woman and Zeal smiled. "A little early to start playing that game aren't you Kiki?" Zeal muttered to himself as he went to sit a little ways at the bar. "One Bloody Mary." He stated as the bar tender checked his I.D. and then began making the drink. Zeal was already thinking about their new bloodhound mission and how they were going to have to be extremely careful. The Yakuza was not a good place to mingle with even if it was the son's birthday. Deep down he was hoping that they didn't have to fight in any spell battles tonight. He wasn't sure if a buzzed him could handle spewing power around like that and causing a scene.

After what seemed like forever, someone else finally joined the small group at the newly opened bar. Jun turned her head slightly, checking who the new comer could be, but trying not to make it too noticeable. It gave her a bit of a surprise to see him coming towards her direction, but as it turned out he was just there for a foreigner.

"Eh, this guy actually knows someone?" She exclaimed in disbelief, not really to anyone. She figured it made sense, because he probably wouldn't have gotten very far with such poor speaking skills and no one to translate. With the level of Japanese her self proclaimed "drinking buddy" was capable of, he was probably just as well off speaking his native tongue. The sacrifice swung sloppily in her chair in order to get a good view of the teal haired man, "If been trying to talk to him, but it isn't really going anywhere without a translator."

"Thank you." Zeal said once he received his drink and listened to the girl speak. After a few sips he turned to her and just smiled as it seems Kirill had tried being friends but was limited after all. "He was sort of dropped off around here and I placed him in a hotel not too far from here. But it seems he wanted to explore the town once I left him to rest. I can translate for you if you wish once he starts trying to talk to you once again." Zeal stated as he waved the barkeep down. "Got any green sauce? I need this hotter than what you have it." he said as the guy walked to the back.

The woman laughed lightly and took a sip of her drink before continuing, "No, that's alright, thank you. I dare say he might be tired of my antics." She continued smirking and swung around to lay her hands on the bar's counter. Jun took a second to pause as she watched the bartender pull a green bottle from out of site and place it silently on the counter by the newcomer. The man seemed genuinely kind, which was a nice change of pace from the regular drinking crowd. She didn't want to miss out on an opportunity to talk to him, "I'd be happy to chat with you however." She added, raising her drink slightly and tipping her head, "It's nice to meet you and my name is Junko Tsuji by the way."

Once the bartender handed him the green sauce Zeal started to pour the hot sauce in his drink and stirred it really well inside the drink. Taking a sip he tested it to ensure that it was to his liking and then closed the sauce up and handed it back to him. "Kajira, Zeal Kajira. Pleasure to meet you Jun." Zeal said with a bow as he continued to drink. "So what brings you out here for a drink?' He asked as he smiled to her. For now it was best to try and relax until it was time for work. Looking around he didn't see much in the area but he did see a chance to get to know more people and not have to play the teacher role all the tie like he presumed.

Remembering the game she'd been playing with herself, Junko braced herself, lifted her glass and finished the hearty portion of alcohol left in her glass. She winced slightly as it went down, but kept her composer for the most part. Rum was not a kind mistress. Maybe she'd try out something else for her next drink.

"Zeal's a interesting name," Jun commented off hand, picking a cherry from the bowl on the counter to get the taste out of her mouth, "I'm not here on any special occasion, I just wanted to escape after a long week." The woman sighed lightly at her own statement before her eyes darted back to the adjacent man, "How about yourself?"

He had to admit even to himself the drink was now spicy and with that he was loving every ounce of it as he drank it. The more he drank the spicier it would be come. As he set his half empty glass down on the counter he chuckled a bit. His name was very unique on this side of the world. But then again there were very few with his name to begin with. Turning to her in interest to their conversation he smiled and said, "Well it means I am passionate to accomplish something. I will stay all the ay to the end of this one task before I start the next one. Something my dad thought about." Zeal took another few sips and then set his glass back down. "Actually I was waiting on a friend of mine. She is still early so I have some time to chat for a bit." HE said looking at his watch and then back at her. "So, are you in school now Jun or taking a break?" He asked as he wanted to keep up with the friendly conversation.

Jun smiled when she heard Zeal would be sticking around for a while, "Lucky me then! Cheers to your friend." She said, before noticing that there was nothing left in her glass. Her grin fumbled drunkenly and she made a motion for the bartender to bring her another, "And a water." She quickly added to the order. The thought of another drink in front of her was a little disheartening, but she'd already resolved to getting herself hammered and couldn't turn back now.

"An extended break, you could say. I'm not made out for college." The woman replied, keeping her tone upbeat. She thought about returning the question, but the foreigner seemed too mature for it to be logical. His face was young, but his demeanor definitely gave the notion he was older than his looks implied. "So, what do you do for a living then?" She inquired, sincerely interested in what the man would have to say.

Jun gave a drunken smile and Zeal tried his hardest to not raise an eyebrow at the woman. She seemed to be drunk as it was already and he had no clue as to why such a person would drink so much. But he left it alone as he sipped his glass at least and smiled at her question. "I teach self defense if that appeals to you." He stated as he lightly placed his glass on the counter and played with the decorative umbrella that came with it. "Not all are suited for college or for having classes all day everyday. One class at a time can still get you where you need to go. Whether it be for one per semester or one per year. Just having the knowledge is good enough for some people." He stated as he drank some more."Have you thought about a profession or just something trying to get by in life for now?"

She mused over the thought of defense lessons for a moment, actually considering it. The woman was confident in her physically strength, but when it came to withstanding damage she wasn't so sure of herself. Seven Moons had often pestered her about this trait, though it'd been a good while since she'd had contact with the group. If possible, she liked not having to think about them.

"Only if you can teach someone how to take a hit." She commented, half-joking. Zeal seemed the right guy for such a job. With how ripped he was, he did not appear to be the kind of guy you'd want to pick a fight with, "It's a pretty interesting profession, how'd you get into it?"

The barkeep placed the two glasses in front of Jun, distracting her for a moment. She went straight for the water, knocking back a good portion of the liquid before speaking again. "Just getting by," she stated, staring at the glasses in front of her, "For now." the sacrifice tagged on quickly as she turned back to Zeal, "The way I see it I still have my whole life ahead of me, right?"

He had twirled the tiny umbrella between his thumb and index finger for a little as they spoke. He smiled and placed the decoration down on the counter and chuckled a bit as he took up his glass once more. "I teach all aspects of self defense. But I always inform my students that the scenarios in class will always differ in the outside world. People have different techniques and tactics which can place you in danger. So it is always best to use these methods wisely and only if you must." With that he drank down to half the glass then set it back down.

"I was raised in it by my father so I just continued doing it till this day." He stated looking at her but keeping the actual truth hidden. She didn't need to know the real truth behind him doing this. The partial was just as good as the full one. "And if I may ask what has your interest in this particular field of study? It isn't always easy that is for sure. Although I do get students in who believe it is." He grumbled at that last statement because it was true that some students felt it wasn't going to be had and slacked off until they got into the bigger fights and complained about losing.


Jun stated that she had her whole life ahead of her and Zeal gave a weak smile at the careless statement. "Just live everyday to the fullest. You never know when your time comes." He stated as he drank the rest of his drink down. He waved the bartender down and ordered a vodka mixture and sat up once more. "SO are you enjoying the night so far?" He asked trying to change the subject.

So it runs in the family? That’s kind of nice. Jun thought, sipping meekly at the water in her glass. "My interest only stems from my own defense." She picked up after her drink, deciding against taking in more liquor for the time being, "It can be dangerous out there - you can never tell who could be out to get'cha." She finished laughing, trying to lighten up the statement. In all honestly, she hated having to dodge why she was actually interested, but when it came to Units it was a lot easier - and safer - to do so. Plus who would believe such an outlandish story like that? Battles were surreal when you were a part of them, let alone relaying them to someone else.

Jun continued to laugh lightly, not for any particular reason, besides the effects of the alcohol. "My night has been fine, thank you. Though I'll say it's been distinctly better after being able to chat with someone who speaks the same language as me." She smirked, her eyes passing quickly to silent foreigner before settling back on Zeal, "How about your night so far? Or anything special happen today?" The woman asked.